Beaver Unit Bound

[bullmania]

Hey Guys,
I am headed back to the Beaver unit this week to chase those monster bulls down there once again with the guys from
Gooches Guides !!! I hear the rut has been a bit slow this year
so far but the horn growth has been a real good one...

Last year i was blessed to shoot a great bull that grossed right at the 390 mark and this years goal is to beat that mark.


Well from what i hear so far thats going to be very possible with this years great horn growth and some of the bulls that have been spotted we have a chance of harvesting a great bull on the Beaver.

As usual with elk hunting it will be a lot of hard work and a lot of Luck involved.. One thing i know for sure there were a
couple of bulls i saw last year that were not harvested ,one being a bull named Tootsie roll i would like to meet up with as he was a 380 plus bull last year and with average horn growth this year will be a true Monster this year.

I will keep all of you posted on the progress of my hunt and hopefully will have a story and photos to share of our success.

Just being part of the elk rut in premier unit in the great state of Utah is a dream come true and just maybe we will get lucky !!!!

Good Luck to All....
Bullmania

 

[BoNeRaker]

Congratulations on the grate bull you harvested last year I hope for this season to be just as good or better I wish you the best of luck and hope to see you down their

 

[MEEW]

Go get em Randy....be sure to fight of the "fever" and shoot straight.....wink wink ha ha.... you are in great hands!!!!

 

[bingo]

LAST EDITED ON Sep-14-10 AT 07:28AM (MST)[p]Good luck to you Randy. it should be another world class hunt for you I bet. I will be down there again this weekend and then from the 24th until my dads muzzy elk tag starts on the 29th. We are excited too. Alot of build-up for this tag and I want to help do my dad proud.
If any of you fellow MM'rs are going to be down there muzzy deer hunting on the Beaver Unit and spot a giant that you want to share, by all means give me a call. 801-599-7175
We will be dragging the trailer around the unit wherever we are focusing our time.
Best of luck to everyone this year as the rut heats up!
Ryan

 

[BIGFOOT]

Good luck on your hunt. I hope you have a safe and successful hunt.

 

[snowman22250]

good luck,
I hear there hasn't been anything seen over 380 this year. According to Daniel this year.

 

[logslinger]

Bull didn't you have a post on here about 6 months ago that said that the Beaver is all shot out with too many tags and no big bulls left. I guess you had a change of heart if you bought another tag for that worthless unit. Just kidding!!! I hope your post kept tag prices down and you kill another monster!!!!

 

[bullmania]

Guys
Thanks for all of the support its going to be an adventure and an exciting hunt. Logslinger - What i said a few months back is very true the Beaver Units elk herd is small for the amount of land that is within the unit and according to my guides the big bulls(numbers) are not on the unit as they once were. I have hunted elk in many areas in many states and the Beaver unit is the toughest unit i have ever hunted by far. Their is a potential to harvest a great bull as i was lucky enough to do last year but there also is a chance you will go home empty handed also and thats ok by me as you cant kill a monster every year but you can have the chance if you hunt where they live and their are one or two big bulls on the Beaver ,are they bigger than my bull i killed last year well stay tuned and we will let you know. I was successful last year because everyone involved worked their butts off (Gooches Guides) and at the end of the day we got lucky. I am returning to the Beaver for two reasons : 1.Have fun and enjoy the opportunity 2.Have a chance at harvesting a bull of a lifetime while i am physically able as this is a tough hunt mentally and physically.I will keep you guys posted and thanks again for all the kind words and good luck to all of you on your next hunt.
Bullmania

 

[huntin100]

Scouted and helped a friend for 4 days. Elk were very quiet. Hard hunt. We will see if they start talking more. Good luck. You will need some to get a 380 plus bull.

 

[bingo]

The fire is causing me fits. The whole North end of the unit is restricted. This is going to be one tough hunt. Not finding anything promising right now and we are just over a week til my dads muzzy tag starts. We are going to have to strap it on for sure.

 

[huntin100]

Bull,

Let's see the pictures! Let's hear how the hunt went? Hope you got a good one. I know it was a harder hunt than past years. I was down there for 4 days. Did your guides pull through this year?

 

[bullmania]

Hey Guys,
Well back from the Beaver unit and trying to get my feet back on the ground as we all busted our butts and had a great time.... Guy Mills and Gooches guides are some of the hardest working guys i have ever been around and just a super bunch of guys....and thanks Dale for making sure we were fed well....

As most of you know this was and is one of the toughest years i have ever seen in Utah. The forest fire on the Beaver unit really hurt us as some of our prime hunting area was in flames and a little to hot and smoky to even attempt to hunt.

In the 9 days of hunting i had the opportunity almost everyday to shoot a bull and did pass a couple of bulls in the 350 to 360 range but i can tell you without a doubt ,the monster bulls that once lived on the Beaver unit are not as numerous as in the past years, they just are not their.We covered hundreds of miles or so it seemed !!!!
The potential is still great on the unit but their would have to be some strict mangement for several years to get the top end 370 plus bulls back to where they once were on this unit.
No i did not shoot a bull this year but had a great hunt and a great time anyway .... As i said in my earlier post . If you are truly hunting for a monster 370 plus bull they just arent around every corner even in Utah...After last years bull i killed that grossed right at 390 it just didnt make sense to shoot a bull that was much smaller.I stilled had a great time and enjoyed hearing those bulls bugling everyday....This is a special time of year that all of us elkaholics look forward to and if the good Lords willing i will be chasen them again next year.
Good luck to all of you and Congratulations to those of you who had your dreams come true...........for now i am still dreaming of that 400 inch bull someday !!!!!

Bullmania

 

[TRDHUNTER]

Glad to hear you had a good time. Too bad you did not get another awesome bull. I have come to love that area. Where did you spend the majority of your time, if you don't mind me asking. If you want to send me a p.m. that would be o.k. too.

 

[mustache]

What area of the unit has the fire burned? I heard it was the northern part? any information would be great.

 

[bingo]

Bullmania is right. The unit is unbelievably tough this year with the fire and heat. My dad and I arrived 5 days early to scout and prepare for his muzzy tag which started yesterday. Needless to say, we made a trip to Cedar City Tuesday afternoon to surrender the tag and get his points back. Temps were at 90 degrees in the afternoon and the nights werent cool either. I never wore a jacket, even first thing in the morning. If the wind was blowing to the South which it did a good portion of the time, glassing was non-existant. There were times you literally could not see the mountains from town. Tuesday morning we woke to a thin sprinkling of ash all over our trailers and vehicles.
It was tough to turn the tag in after all the build-up and scouting but we felt the quality of the hunt would not justify sticking it out. Suprisingly we still heard some bugling but they were not very vocal at all. I truly hope those that are toughing it out are rewarded with a great bull.

 

[MuleyHntr]

The Beaver unit is no longer a viable source of quality bulls in my opinion. After waiting 10 ten years, I finally decided to burn my points and do an archery bull hunt since the Utah Game and Fish is committed to running our herd into the ground and I didn't feel that it was going to get any better. I spent over 65 days throughout the summer and had twenty plus trail camera's on the mountain as well. I had a few pretty decent bulls identified, but with the loads of spike/cow hunters hitting the woods on the same day as my long awaited tag, those candidates were pushed into a hole somewhere never to be found again. I spent a total of 26 days of the season on the mountain with a good amount of help equating to 162 man days during the hunt. Saw one bull in the 360 range and one 350 bull, but never drew my bow. I wanted to at least chase a giant, but I'm afraid that those days in Utah are over. They want to manage this unit for older age class bulls but it doesn't take into account trophy quality. So, you do have older age class bulls in the unit, but unfortunately they are the worst that the genetics have to offer. Until somebody wakes up and quits shooting these bulls with rifles during the prime of the rut, we will continue to see a decline. My recommendation to anyone looking to hunt and burn years of points is to get into the unit as much as possible prior to season and during the season the year before you want to hunt and see if it is worth your points. The equal lots of dollars and if you can't do that, hire a reputable guide that knows the unit. Good luck to all.