Hunting News

Apply now, moose hunt lottery closes May 27

Apply now, moose hunt lottery closes May 27

By New Hampshire Fish and Game Department

If you want to hunt moose in New Hampshire this fall, now is the time to enter the moose hunt lottery which closes May 27. The lottery entrance fee is $15 for New Hampshire residents, and $25 for nonresidents. A total of 40 permits will be issued in 2022.

Applicants are encouraged to apply online and early, so there is less chance of submitting an incomplete application. Hunters can complete the lottery application online or print a mail-in application. Applicants without internet access can call (603)271-2461 to request an application by mail.

Moose hunt lottery applications for 2022 must be postmarked by Friday, May 27 or submitted online by midnight Eastern time May 27 or delivered to the Licensing Office at Fish and Game Department headquarters in Concord before 4:00 p.m. May 27.

Lottery winners will be selected through a computerized random drawing and announced on June 17.

Applicants can enter the moose hunt lottery once per year. A bonus-point system improves the chances for unsuccessful applicants who apply each consecutive year. Each point translates to a chance in the drawing. For example, in 2021 the overall odds of a resident applicant being drawn were 1 in 98, while resident applicants with a total of 18 points had a 1 in 35 chance of being drawn. For nonresidents, the odds increased from 1 in 480 overall to 1 in 192 for applicants with 18 points.

In 2021, 6,195 people entered the lottery for the chance to win one of 40 permits. More than 1,150 people continued to accrue bonus points because they submitted an application exclusively to preserve their accrued points. Hunters from six other states besides New Hampshire won permits in the lottery.

While people travel from all over the country to take part in the moose hunt, the majority of permits, about 85%, are awarded to New Hampshire residents. The number of permits available to nonresidents is capped based on the prior year’s sales of nonresident hunting licenses.

New Hampshire’s nine-day moose hunt starts the third Saturday in October. This year’s hunt runs from October 15 to October 23.

New Hampshire has had an annual moose hunt since 1988, when 75 permits were issued for a three-day hunt in the North Country. The state’s current moose population is estimated at about 3,000 animals.

The availability of moose hunting permits is made possible by careful monitoring of moose populations. The resulting annual harvest of moose provides valuable information on their physical condition and productivity and provides a unique recreational opportunity. Learn more about moose hunting in New Hampshire here.

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