Nate Miller, a contractor from Thermopolis, Wyoming, recently defied astronomical odds by winning the Wyoming Game and Fish Department’s Super Tag Trifecta raffle. This rare opportunity allows him to purchase hunting licenses for three of the state’s premier big game species.
The Super Tag raffle, established in 2013 to support wildlife conservation, offers hunters the chance to obtain licenses for species such as bighorn sheep, Shiras moose, elk, mountain goat, mule deer or white-tailed deer, wild bison, pronghorn, mountain lion, gray wolf, and black bear. Each regular Super Tag ticket costs $10, while the Trifecta ticket is priced at $30, with only one winner annually who can select licenses for any three species.
This year, the raffle sold 158,595 tickets nationwide, generating approximately $2 million for conservation efforts. Miller, who invested around $300 in tickets, was stunned by his win, stating, “It truly is unbelievable and statistically impossible. But I guess somebody had to win, and this year, it was me.”
Winners of the Super Tag retain their preference points and are exempt from once-in-a-lifetime restrictions for certain species. Miller plans to pursue bighorn sheep, Shiras moose, and is “90% sure” about selecting mountain goat as his third choice. Having previously harvested a bighorn sheep in 2020 and accumulated 27 preference points for moose, this win offers him a rare second chance at these hunts.
Reflecting on his good fortune, Miller remarked, “Those once-in-a-lifetime hunting opportunities became twice-in-a-lifetime for me.” He now faces the exciting challenge of planning these hunts, acknowledging, “I never thought I would win the trifecta. But I did, and now I have to figure out what to do.”
The Wyoming Super Tag raffle continues to provide hunters with extraordinary opportunities while supporting vital wildlife conservation efforts across the state.
Sources:
Cowboy State Daily
