Too much luck?

Iowan · May 29, 2013

I can hardly believe the great tags and subsequent excellent hunts I have had in the past five years. I drew the Unit 2C archery mule deer tag in New Mexico for January 2014 and I am so excited about this hunt. Not sure how the hunt will shake out but I am as excited about this tag as any I have ever drawn.

So then I come back to work tonight to catch up on some things and I find an email from the State of Utah Game and Fish telling me I drew the following:

Buck Deer SUCCESSFUL for hunt 1018 San Juan, Elk Ridge Any Legal Weapon

I had not even checked my credit card because I had no expectation of drawing anything in Utah as I was really just building points for a future hunt. I hunted the Book Cliffs Roadless Area in 2011 with my muzzle loader now this tag!

Now the bad news - I have no idea how to hunt mule deer (never hunted them before) and I know nothing of the unit. I guess that is part of the fun, learning new things! I have no business drawing these two tags in one year, but I am going to enjoy it as I suspect my luck will run out eventually! I would love to talk with anyone that has been on a mule deer hunt in this unit in the recent past. Is this as good a tag as I think it is????

smackdaddy · May 29, 2013

"I have no idea how to hunt mule deer"
LMAO
smack

goforbroke · May 29, 2013

San Juan is not a gimmie deer. I hunted elk there and spent 10 days and never saw a deer I'd want on my wall, but I was elk hunting. I did speak with a deer hunter that said he was chasing a 200" deer. Last year I know of one hunter that harvested a 20" 3X3 on his hunt. So go in with a possibility of a huge deer, but only with lots of effort.

just_a_hunter · May 29, 2013

Being that I graduated from Monticello High School you would think I would know something of the area but I have never step foot on Elk Ridge.. All I know is I hope to be seeing another of your videos like your elk hunt. That is one of my favorites.

Good luck, I'm sure you will do fine.

Todd

Ticks N Tines · May 30, 2013

How did you draw the Book Cliffs tag in 2011 and now San Juan in 2013? Did you purchase a tag for the books?

Congrats on the luck!

stillwaitin · May 30, 2013

His Books tag was for elk and San Juan is for deer.

Ticks N Tines · May 30, 2013

Gotcha.

I must have missed that.

Thanks

Iowan · May 30, 2013

I was sort of thinking about turning the tag back in but my wife said she thinks I should do both hunts. Once I got her blessing there is no turning back. I do have to correct myself, I hunted mule deer once in South Dakota and shot a buck at sunrise on the first morning and I do not think I learned much with that experience. I was very young and the rancher relative drove me around until we spotted one he thought I should shoot and I killed it. I did not really enjoy the experience and am certainly looking for a different type of hunt with the two tags I have in my pocket for the coming season. We have drawn some great elk, antelope, and Oryx tags - I knew nothing about hunting them prior to drawing tags (unfortunately elk were exterminated from Iowa in the late 1800's and I have yet to see any antelope, Oryx, or mule deer around here). Other than the one mentioned above this is the first time I will have a mule deer tag in my pocket so I am OK stating that I am not the mule deer expert many others are. With a lot of help from some great people and some hard work on our part we have made the most of the tags we have been lucky enough to draw. Will try to do these tags justice too.

If Kevin can join me I plan to video both of these hunts just for fun but I know he has some conflicts already, we are working on it.

Might even warrant a post on the HAC. Good luck to all this season.

RabidRattleSnake1 · May 30, 2013

I know nothing about the UT unit, but 2C NM is as good as it gets in NM. Only thing better in NM would be to hunt the Jic, but most guys don't have the $$$. On a scale of one to 10 2C is a 12 (at least for NM) and the next best unit is a 7 at best. 2c doesn't compare to the Henry?s, but it is the best NM deer unit by a long shot.

grizzly · May 30, 2013

I hunted 2C in January a few years ago, it is a fun hunt but you will work your guts out for a nice buck. You will see few bucks, but some definite monsters (over 210" bucks). Killing them is an entirely different matter.

I have hunted on the San Juan twice. Once we hunted elk in September and saw two monster bucks. We jumped them out of the quakies while stalking a bull (this was just dumb luck).

The other time we hunted deer with a rifle on the unit and found it tough to find good deer.

We finally drove to the higher elevation parts of the unit and would park a wheeler down low and then drive to the top of the road. We would get off and still-hunt down to the lower wheeler and then do it again. That is how we finally started seeing deer. They were all bedded in the oaks. Just take a step, hunch down and glass really low. Repeat. We ended up shooting a nice buck.

Have fun and keep both tags if you can. No chance of drawing them again next year if you turn them back.

Grizzly

PS. Tristate, please be an adult and respect my wishes that you do not respond to any of my posts. I, in turn, will do you the courtesy of not responding to any of yours. I simply do not wish to converse with you.

Gator · May 30, 2013

If you turn in that tag You might never see that tag again.
HUNT THE HUNT.

"I have found if you go the extra mile it's Never crowded".
>[Font][Font color = "green"]Life member of
>the MM green signature club.[font/]

Iowan · May 31, 2013

I am definitely doing both but it is hard to plan the way I like to for these hunts with work, kids, farms, etc. living 16 hours away. I guess I should be (I am) thankful that the worst problem in my life right now is that I have two great mule deer tags. Thanks to those that have offered advice and a willingness to talk more.

I have friends in New Mexico that know 2C well so I am set there except I really need to step up my archery abilities to increase my range. The Utah tag is another story, but the planning and anticipation is certainly part of the fun. Maybe the best news is that I do not need to buy a single thing for either trip - I said NEED which does not mean I won't find something I want.