News from the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department
January 24, 2006
Phone: (603) 271-3211
Email: info@wildlife.state.nh.us
For information and online licenses, visit 
http://www.wildlife.state.nh.us

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CONTACT: 
Linda Verville: (603) 271-2461 
Kent Gustafson: (603) 271-2461 
Jane Vachon: (603) 271-3211
January 24, 2006 


TRY YOUR LUCK IN THE 2006 MOOSE LOTTERY 

CONCORD, N.H. -- If you want a chance for the adventure of a lifetime 
hunting moose in New Hampshire this fall, now's the time to get your 
application in for N.H. Fish and Game's moose hunt lottery. Applications 
for the 2006 hunt are available at http://wildlife.state.nh.us or from 
Fish and Game license agents statewide. The fee for entering the moose 
hunt lottery is $10 (nonrefundable). New Hampshire's moose hunt is nine 
days long, starting the third Saturday in October. This year, it runs 
from October 21-29. 

Visit the Fish and Game website at http://www.wildlife.state.nh.us to 
enter the moose hunt lottery online or print out an application to mail 
in. Moose hunt lottery applications for 2006 must be postmarked or 
submitted online by midnight Eastern Time, May 26, 2006, or they may be 
delivered to N.H. Fish and Game headquarters in Concord prior to 4:00 p.m. 
that day. Winners will be selected through a computerized random 
drawing on June 23, 2006. 

In 2005, 15,837 applicants entered the lottery for the chance to win 
one of 525 permits issued for the moose season. Those who are lucky 
enough to take part in the hunt have an excellent chance of success. About 
three-fourths of New Hampshire permit holders get their moose. Permit 
holders can choose another hunter of any age to accompany them on the 
hunt, but only one moose may be taken per permit. 

Each applicant can enter the moose hunt lottery once each year. A bonus 
point system improves the chances for unsuccessful applicants who apply 
each consecutive year. Hunters who get permits are not eligible to 
enter the lottery for the following three years. It is not necessary to 
have a current hunting license to enter the lottery, but hunters who are 
offered and accept a permit must buy a $100 resident or $300 nonresident 
moose hunt permit, as well as a New Hampshire hunting license. 

Both state residents and nonresidents can enter the moose lottery. The 
number of permits available to nonresidents is capped, based on the 
prior year's sales of nonresident hunting licenses (recently about 14 to 
18 percent of the total). The chance of winning a New Hampshire moose 
hunt permit is about 1 in 24 for residents, and 1 in 62 for 
out-of-staters, giving New Hampshire some of the best odds in the nation for moose 
hunting.

On the Fish and Game website, you can find a moose hunt Q&A and a 
gallery of photos and stories from past New Hampshire hunts, including these 
successful 2005 hunters:

   * Robert McAlister of Canaan, N.H., shot a bull moose weighing 865 
pounds with 18 points and a 58-inch spread with a 30-06 at 50 yards. 

   * Chuck Esser, of Fair Haven, Michigan and his sub-permittee, Steve 
Grosso, scored a nice bull near Pittsburg on opening day. "New 
Hampshire is a beautiful state, a veritable sportsman's paradise, and everyone 
we encountered was friendly and supportive," he wrote. "Our bull's rack 
had a spread of 47 1/2 inches, and it weighed out at 725 pounds 
dressed."

   * Roger A. Forcier of Allenstown, N.H., submitted a photo of the cow 
moose he and his sub-permittee took in the 2005 hunt, which dressed out 
at 685 pounds. He wrote, "We had a great time...and are eating some 
mighty fine meat these days." 

All proceeds from the sale of moose hunt lottery applications and 
permits are used to support New Hampshire's comprehensive moose management 
program, which includes education, research, protection and management. 
The state's current moose population is estimated at about 6,500 
animals. N.H. Fish and Game is the guardian of the state's fish, wildlife and 
marine resources. Visit http://www.wildlife.state.nh.us.

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Copyright 2005 New Hampshire Fish and Game Department, 11 Hazen Drive, 
Concord, NH 03301.  Comments or questions concerning this list should 
be directed to lpoinier@wildlife.state.nh.us.