Muzzle loader hunt going down hill?

[muzzle]

Just curious as what everyone else is has experienced over the last few years with the quality of the ML hunt here in Utah. It seems that where I hunt is a busy as the rifle hunt now. I guess the popularity of the ML hunt has really grown but now I am starting to hate it. (Been hunting the ML hunt for 10 years now and it has changed a bunch) Anyway, it is super frustrating to scout, plan and get into shape so that you can get into the back country away from everyone else and just enjoy hunting the animals. Well for the second year in a row in different canyons I have had the same experience. I have hiked way back in to the honey hole before light, I wait until its just light enough to start to spot the deer in the area but then I notice I am not alone! There are other hunters everywhere. It's like someone handed out an invitation to the big grand opening party on the mountain. Now i,m depressed but still have to play it out so I start to make plans on how i'm going to get in on them taking into account wind, cover etc. All goes well and I am in position to have the big ones feeding right at me all I have to go is be patient and i'll get the shot..ya right. In reality, right about this point someone else sees me and that I am in the perfect position to take the big buck and they can't let that happen oh no! So for the second year in a row, another hunter who is way out of position, too far away etc. but that can still see the deer will lob a hale marry across the canyon to either hit the deer by a miracle or scare it away so I can't shoot it and its still kicking for them to try for another day. The quest for antlers is in my opinion ruining the quality of the hunts and the ethics of way to many hunters now days. Don't get me wrong, I dream about the big one like everyone else but I would never stoop so low as to bust someones hunt on purpose just for my own selfish desires to get the big one. Apparently, where I hunt there is no such thing as spot and stalking, it now come to spot and charging cause if you wait and try and do it right some SOB will bust it for you every time! I guess I should find another area but it took a lot of time to find this one which does produce nice bucks! Anyone noticing stuff like this?

 

[longshooter338]

I feel your pain! for the past 10 yrs. I've been hunting the same area and notice more and more people every year. When we find a good spot most people can't keep quiet about it, so every year you get more and more yahoo's bring their friend's to the same spot. This year I vowed to hunt any area that I didn't encounter any pre-scout activity. It payed off with a 185 class 5x8 buck. Find new ground, there's hundreds of thousands of acres of prime hunting ground.


GOOD LUCK!

 

[bosoxfan]

I guess I have been lucky the last few years. I hunt entirely different areas on the powder and rifle hunt and have seen less hunting pressure in both. Come to think of it I haven't seen the same quality of deer either. Looks like I am behind the eightball again and need to find greener pastures.

"If God didn't want us to eat animals, then why did He make them out of meat?"
~Ted Nugent

 

[muzzle]

longshooter338, glad i'm not alone and good advice to find more ground, I just hate to give the area up because it is so nice and I finally learned all the ins and outs of it. (I took me quite a while!) Also, last year I had a hunter WHO on the muzzle loader hunt busted my chance at a 30" buck being a douche and then to top it off, on the rifle opener, he hit my truck with his 4-wheeler trying to pull a Nascar move on me heading up the mountian to beat me to the spot where he busted my hunt on the big buck, he now knowing it was in the area. This almost started world war III as my truck was only a week old at the time. Some other guys I ran into this year pitched their tents with gear a few days before the ML hunt only to have some douche bag tear their camp apart and steal their gear. (I'm sure they did it because they didn't want the competition on the mountain) Is this what hunting has come to for many out there? Are people so fixated on the prize they have forgotten the reason why most of us do it in the first place. For me it's the thrill of the hunt and memories of success and failures. I feel the average hunter out there is changing and so are the rules of acceptable behavior. It's sad to see but inevitable im afraid.

 

[mickeyelk]

I hunted the muzzle season and saw the same results. I don't get to hunt ever year but when I do the numbers of hunters amazes me. This year was no expcetion. I was in an area about the size of 50 acres and counted no less the 14 hunters. These guys had those deer moving. Quite exciting!! I prescounted the area the day and half before the season opened and really didn't see any real large deer. I talked to other hunters and they said during archery season there was quite a few nice ones. I probally saw 50 bucks in the day and half of scouting with the largest being about 25 inches. Opening day I probally saw 15 of them running like crazy. I did end up shooting a 23 incher on my way back to camp on my quad. A large group of hunters were pushing a hillside off and I noticed them looking my way and I then saw what they were looking at. Had allot of fun and love to hunt Utah!!! I don't mind the crowds as much as I use too.

 

[Sagebrush1]

if you really want an area to your self then number #1 rule never tell anyone where you are hunting. I mean "anyone" all it takes is one person to spread the word via casual talk and before you know the whole world knows.

 

[zboys]

You could say this site is part of the problem to. I know its great to get on here and talk to other people that love the same thing we do but then people want some info and some guy whats to look like he knows what hes talking about and gives up all the info all other people have ever givin him and then it just snowball from there. Its all about the antlers anymore. Look at some of the high profile names we know of and these guys have killed more than 1 great buck but they still want more and they pay for it. I killed my best buck last year and told everyone a totally different unit. i fill alittle bad but what else can you do. Lets teach our kids the fun of hunting not the ART of trying to kill the biggest one and maybe we should do the same.

 

[cabinfever]

Couldn't agree more. The muzzy hunt in Utah has gone to crap. I have been hunting out of state the past couple years and so haven't really hunted the Utah muzzy much. Five years ago I hunted a certain area here in southern Utah. I virtually had the mountain to myself and the number of mature bucks was pretty good. This year I hiked into a remote spot and when the sun came up I could not believe how many hunters there were. While I saw a good number of deer and plenty of bucks, the number of mature bucks was down significantly.The dedicated hunter program is making it worse.This years muzzy hunt was as crowded as the Utah general rifle. What a joke!I also noticed that most hunters were taking any deer with horns which doesn't bode well for trophy hunters.

Mike

 

[muzzle]

I know for a fact the Dedicated hunter program is cause unintended problems. I have been in the program from the beginning and I have seen a dramatic increase in the numbers of hunters on the mountain for all three hunts. I also run into the same guys year in and year out and they are also dedicated hunters. I have now come to the conclusion that although I love to hunt all three seasons, I am beginning to question whether it is in the best interest of the deer herds to continue this program. The deer are just getting too much pressure from August to Nov. I also think the deer are adjusting their habits due to increased pressure early in the year. I think this is partly to blame of why the quality of the hunts seem to be going down. The deer are getting more educated. I know this is just my opinion based on what I am seeing in the field. Maybe it's not the same in other parts of the state but from the guys I have talked to, they seem to be echoing the same findings. I would be curious to see if they did get rid of the DH program if their would be a dramatic difference in the number of hunters in the field for each season. If so, I could go for that because I would rather have one quality hunt vs three average to poor hunts. Anyone else feel the same?

 

[TylerT]

After my dedicated hunter years are over I will never hunt this state agian for mule deer.I have saw way to many people the last five days of hunting.The area is so prime with elk but where did all the deer go? When the archery hunt was going on there were a few good bucks in the area but now they have all just disappeared.We hunted high,low and everything in between but no luck for 5 consecutive days.I even hiked in four miles and still no luck.I did run across a few small three points but nothing worth taking that far back into the country.I don't know what to think about it all.I hope it snows and gets cold for the Rifle hunt other wise I will be in the same boat I'm in now.

 

[walleye1121]

I am also in the dedicated hunter program and had used my tag on the archery hunt, but I took my son on the muzzleloader this weekend. What a joke. I have never been so happy to not be hunting.

The pressure on that mountain was unbelievable.

I think Dedicated hunters should be forced to choose between two of the three hunts and stick to their chosen region for the archery hunt.

My son did bag a little 2 point but the quality of the hunting experience was poor. He said he never wants to hunt with a gun again. He will stick with archery.

 

[lone_hunter]

I agree with a lot that has been said. I still love the ML, and still had a quality hunt but there are increasing numbers of "hunters". The reason I say "hunters" is that there are more people out there but I am not sure how many hunters. I got back into the ML about 7 years ago and have hunted with the ML 5 out of the 7. I have yet to see another hunter in the field, but there are more and more ATV and UTVer's. This year was particularly bad. One time I saw a "herd" of 8 atv's in a row! Now, even though I do not get hunting from the road, I am not complaining. I hope they all stay on the roads! This year as I quartered out my buck, I heard at least 4 atv's driving up on the ridge and in the canyon below me. I even thought that if a hunter actually made the effort to hunt near me, I would help them find the other deer that were with the one I shot. No worry, they kept riding.

I love the dedicated hunter program but, I also have to agree that it may need to be changed to reduce the numbers in the field. I suspect that the ML is becoming the bonus hunt.

 

[HornyMan]

You won't see anyone if you hunt starting Sunday through the close. It is dead and animals start showing up again.

 

[SMELLYBUCK]

I haven't read all comments but have only noticed that the southern region is mentioned. Is everyone shifting from rifle to muzzleloader because of the short rifle hunt? I will continue hunting the southern muzzleloader as long as the rifle is 5 days and muzzleloader is 8.

 

[TylerT]

I have been hunting central my whole life and decided to swtich to south eastern this year.I have saw twice as many people in the south eastern region and a lot less deer.Time to go back to my old honey holes.

 

[cabinfever]

My observation is that many of the guys who draw the muzzy in the regular draw were shooting anything woth horns. Than, inject 10,000 dedicated hunters into the mix and you have a lot of pressure on the big bucks as well. The bucks are getting hammered from both ends!

Mike