Just about anybody who hunts game is sure to appreciate the idea of a high-quality hunting experience for a price that won't break the bank. Perhaps that explains the continued popularity of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department's drawn hunt program, which recently began taking applications for the upcoming 2018-19 hunting seasons.

The online operation is one-stop shopping for shots at good hunting trips with exceptional values. Application fees for most hunts range from $3 to $10. Successful applicants are usually required to pay a hunt fee of $80-$130, but some hunts, including the youth-only options, require no application fees or hunt fees.

That's a bargain price considering many of the hunts last for multiple days (some as long as nine days) on managed properties with abundant game and limited hunting pressure. In some cases, liberal bag limits allow lucky hunters to fill several tags.

Each year, the draw program offers hunters the opportunity to enter drawings for permits in dozens of hunt categories for a variety of game including white-tailed deer, mule deer, pronghorn antelope, dove, alligator, turkey, waterfowl, squirrel, quail, javelina, feral hogs and several exotic species. There also is a desert bighorn sheep permit available when August population surveys are favorable.

Hunts are held on state-owned wildlife management areas, state parks, federal wildlife refuges, U.S. Forest Service properties and select private tracts around the state. Some allow hunters to use firearms, while others are designated as archery-only hunts. There also are several youth-only hunts on the list.

The drawn hunt program has become increasingly popular in recent times, largely because of expanded hunting opportunities, more available permits and relaxed rules that allow hunters to apply for multiple hunts in the same category.

Another positive is convenience. In 2014-15, an online-only application process replaced the antiquated paper application/hunting booklet format TPWD had relied upon for years. The move made it easier for hunters to apply while saving TPWD a bundle in printing and postage costs.

The number of applications for about 4,800 permits doubled from 50,000 to 100,000 the first year the online application system was put in place. Last year, the program generated an all-time high 155,000 applications for the nearly 9,500 permits in 50 different categories.

The lottery-style drawings are open to resident and non-resident hunters who meet application deadlines for preferred hunts. Successful applicants are decided by random computer draw and notified by email. As many as four hunters may be included on the same application for many hunts.

New for 2018

In early July, TPWD unveiled its list of drawn hunt options for the upcoming seasons. Those options include a long list of special permit hunts and E-postcard selection hunts for multiple species, National Wildlife Refuge hunts for deer and exotics and U.S. Forest Service land hunts for antlerless deer.

There are several new big game opportunities in the mix, including the first special permit hunts for Sambar deer, Axis deer and white-tailed deer on the new Powderhorn WMA along the Texas coast in Calhoun County. There also will be a youth archery deer hunt at Palmetto State Park.

The menu also features a pair of new additions in the private lands dove hunt category, which will award 160 permits for September hunts hosted by seven outfitters on prime dove hunting country.

Hunters should note the upcoming Aug. 1 application deadline for all private lands dove hunts, as well as alligator, pronghorn and youth deer hunting categories. Aug. 15 is the deadline for archery deer, exotic and javelina. Other deadlines will follow on the 1st and 15th of each month.

There are a couple of rule changes for drawn hunt applicants this year:

Hunters must have a current Annual Public Permit ($48) before applying for E-postcard hunts and U.S. Forest Service antlerless hunts. Permits go on sale Aug. 15, the same day as 2018-19 hunting/fishing licenses.

Youth hunters are limited to three applications per hunt category.

Making the choice

You can review the categories, hunting areas, rules, deadlines and packages online at the TPWD's public hunting program website, tpwd.texas.gov/huntwild/hunt/public/publichuntdrawing/.

The number of applicants and success rates from the previous season also are listed, along with a link to other frequently asked questions.

Not surprisingly, some hunts are more popular than others. Those held on areas known for abundant game, liberal limits or producing trophy animals always get plenty of attention.

The 15,200-acre Chaparral WMA in South Texas is always the front-runner among white-tailed deer hunters. Last year, "The Chap" drew 4,149 applications for 26 available permits in the gun/deer either sex category. Those hunters enjoyed a success rate of 61 percent. Another 2,115 hunters applied for 100 permits in the archery-only category and had a success rate of 19 percent.

The 11,000-acre Gus Engling WMA and 13,700-acre Richland Creek WMA are among the most popular areas in eastern Texas. Both WMAs produce a fair number of quality bucks each year, and the waterfowl hunting can be outstanding during years with ample water.

Last year, 1,702 permits were issued for E-postcard waterfowl hunts at Richland Creek, where hunters registered a 100 percent success rate.

As deer hunting goes, Gus Engling hunters killed four bucks last season that qualified for the Texas Big Game Awards Program, according to Jeff Gunnels, the TPWD wildlife biologist who oversees the unit.

Gunnels is expecting to see more of the same this season if hunting conditions are favorable. He says his staff has been running about 30 game cameras to monitor wild turkey and feral hog populations on the WMA, and the cameras have photographed at least a dozen good quality bucks that most hunters would be proud to tag.

"It should be a good year," Gunnels said. "We know there are some nice deer out there."

The same could be said about plenty of other Texas public hunting areas.

Dallas Boat Expo

When: Thursday-July 22

Where: Dallas Market Hall, 2200 N. Stemmons Freeway

Boat dealers from across North Texas and beyond, along with dozens of accessory vendors, will be on hand to display some of their newest wares. Show hours: Thursday and Friday, 3-8 p.m. with free admission; Saturday, 10 a.m.-8 p.m.; Sunday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Admission for adults on Saturday and Sunday is $12; $6 for children 6-13 and kids 5 and under get in free. For more information or a list of vendors, 469-500-6155 or dallasboatexpo.com.

Matt Williams is a freelance writer based in Nacogdoches. He can be reached by email at mattwillwrite4u@yahoo.com