>I have hunted the Zion unit
>for the past 4 years.
> I am not
>impressed. Here is why:
>
>
>1. Too many roads...on top...in
>the Virgin River...in between...in the
>midddle...on the side....holy moly.
>2. No good bucks taken
>by our family in 4
>years.
>3. This year I passed
>up 18 2 points in
>3.5 days of hunting.
>Largest buck seen was 20"
>3point.
>4. People people people...tons of
>people everywhere....always. We
>saw guys in tree stands.
> Guys hunting over apple
>piles. Guys in bunkers
>built out of sand bags
>with cots and firepits.
> SOOoooo many people.
>5. Migration...sure its neato to
>sit and watch deer run
>by.....most do it at night
>when you cant see them.
> Also, you can not
>scout this unit. It
>is like hunting white tail
>deer. Sit and hope
>to heaven something is coming
>your way.
>
>No thanks. I am done.
> My boy wounded...never recovered...this
>fall a great buck just
>above our house in Northern
>Utah. So.
> I would rather stay
>north...scout the bucks....have ZERO roads
>in our area...spend the hunt
>above 9000 ft in the
>spruces instead of picking cactus
>out of my butt and
>sweating on my foam pad
>all night. You
>can have the Zion unit
>back. I hunted
>it...buried poop in it...and that
>was about all it was
>worth.
>
>Went in a "bad" unit in
>Idaho and hunted for a
>few days this fall....over 50
>bucks shot by the road...took
>a 25" heavy dark racked
>mulie a few miles from
>the road. No
>other hunters in the area
>to bug me or ruin
>a stalk. Gonna scout
>it next year....deer dont migraate
>there until snow...unlike Zion where
>they head out quick.
>
>You can have your Zion unit....let
>me know an address so
>I can send tweezers to
>pick cactus out of your
>rear with while you sit
>in one spot all week
>praying a buck comes out
>in front of you...and then
>you call it hunting....no hunting
>involved in sitting on your
>butt.....lame hunt.
>
>"The penalty good men pay for
>indifference to public affairs is
>to be ruled by evil
>men." - Plato
Zion is not a very huntable unit with the private issue and the hunters per square mile of public land legal to hunt is huge (might be the one of the worse per sq mile). I would never hunt low on the Zion unit and only before the any weapons elk hunt which leaves just archery. Unless you had a large amount of snow drop before the gun season, you will not be seeing the true migration of big bucks. Big bucks are not moving down that early thats why they are big.
I was at 15 yards with this one during archery with bow in hand this year but I only had a elk tag. A 3 mile hike to where he was and i had him regularly on one of my elk cameras. Lacking brow tines though should make it into the 170's with those deep fork.
Hunting a unit that you live near or can scout a lot is much easier as you discovered. I spent 20+ days scouting for elk in the zion unit just this summer and I have GIS ed most of the area that I hunt/plan too. Last fall, I scouted during the rifle elk and rifle deer hunt just to see where pressure was placed by other hunters. Glad I did!
Point is all general units are holding 180" deer finding them and hunting them is the challenge and its much easier if you can scout all summer which you have discovered.