New here(quest for the one)

[Turbo6x6]

Well here's the deal I have hunted elk for around 30 years in the early years I was not that successful.........spent most my time chasseing Mule deer back when you could hunt all three seasons until you tagged that buck of your dreams.
Of course things changed.
I started spending more and more time hunting elk in the spike units and late season cow hunts filling the freezer.
Still hunted Mule Deer looking to score but I found my passion was Elk hunting.
I started putting in on the Heaston range for limited entry Elk put in and scout and wait.Now this was before you had the internet we had to head to the fish & game office on the day of the results they were posted on the wall on the front of the office and we had no point system.....lottery.And of course that changed and we went to the point system.So the first year of the new point system......my neighbors sixteen year old brother put in for the Heaston LE Elk and drew with 0 points one lucky kid! He ended up killing a nice 6x6 score in the 360 range!
Well me and my ATTITUDE diced to stop putting in!(not very smart) Well me and my ATTITUDE came up with a plan to show the Fish&Game that I didn't need a limited entry tag to kill an Elk!
Well I continued chasseing spikes always thinking about the any bull areas but the amount of big bulls in that area was way less than the hunters.
Spent three hunting seasons in Colorado killed two small raghorn bulls and one bull around 285 not to bad? Put the tags went from $250 to $485 WOW! The years I spent in Colorado I also hunted here in Utah but had moved for the spike unit I was hunting to the any bull units with no tags filled.The spike unit I was hunting seemed to dry up not of elk just spikes..........more and more big bulls.
So in 2005 me and my ATTITUDE had a disagreement! Yes I started to putting in for the Wasatch because of the amount of shooter bull I had seen on the hoof during the spike hunt. 2005 hunt in the any bull unit I was hunting we took the hole hunt
off from work and the city. when a said we I mean my wife and son he was six at the time.We had spent a week solid with
even seeing a cow! Two days before this year came to an end we decided to do a little road hunt witch I am not a fan of but
when your wore out and frustrated a road hunt sounds good! Now here's where our six year old comes into play the entire time
spent in the woods he had an on going joke with (dad there's an elk)when I would turn my head to look he would loose it with
giggles! and we would tell him the story of the boy that cried wolf.....back to the road hunt we had just passed a nice open hill
side and I told my wife that would be nice open area for a bull to be standing and waiting for me to let the air out of him.....when from the back seat came a voice........ELK! ELK! ELK!!!!!! yes it was are six year old comedian just as we turned to rip him a new one about the little boy who cried wolf......my wife yelled ELK! There he was standing on the side of the road a nice prefect 6x6 bull!!!! Now if we had been 5min later this bull would have been on that nice open hill side!!!
Well that's when bull fever got right a hold of me I threw my truck into park coming to a grinding stop grab my gun bullets in my pocket jumped out of the truck trying to take a shot at this bull.......unfortunately he did not present a ethical shot! So I just stood there in disbelief on what had just happened and watch that bull run out of range!
When I got back to the truck the look on that six year olds face was priceless"Dad I will never say that again"....LOL!
I ended up taking a spike on the last day with my wife and comedian by my side.
2006,2007 scored two bulls over 300 my buddy filled his first Elk tag he is from Tennessee scored right around 300.
My 2007 bull scored 316 1/8 biggest bull to date.
Its been three years with out filling a tag but 2011 my luck has changed with 6 points me and my ATTITUDE drew the Wasatch early rifle tag!!! Back to the spike bull unit maybe I can score a bull well over 300 that's my goal and my dream.

 

[Zeke]

Good story. You almost out-foxed yourself with your attitude!

Congrats on the tag this year. It should be fun.

We've been seeing lots of bulls over the 300" mark on the Wasatch (my daughter has a tag). What are you hoping for.... realistically?

Zeke

 

[Turbo6x6]

Thanks,realistically hoping for at least a bull in the 360 range.
Would love to put a 380 class bull on the wall I'M
thinking that might be a long shot?
Congrats to your daughter and good luck on the hunt!

 

[Zeke]

Well turbo..... It could happen.

It would be more likely that a top end bull will score around 350-360". There are lots of 280-320" but far fewer 330-360" and damn few 370+ bulls.

This is just MY obervations about the unit this year.

The bulls all look good but we've scouted hard for 8 days and haven't found tons of monsters yet.... just a couple. The bulls will all move before the season and will have been pushed around by the archery hunters too. Remember, the season is only 9 days. It will be here and gone before we can blink! Win, lose or draw!

Zeke

 

[MudRunner]

Best of luck! I do hope you find what your looking for. We've got 3 rifle tags on that mountain this year. We've been watching bulls religiously since early June and have glassed countless bulls. We have trail cams set up over 7 miles, and feel very comfortable about knowing what bulls are in the area. There might be bigger bulls outside our little circle but if it's any indication of how the rest of the unit is, you'll be hard pressed to see too many over 360. The biggest bull we've seen will probably push the 350 mark (if were not being too wide eye'd scoring off the hoof) and he might be the only bull we've see over the high 330's. But, we're not shooting for score... 330 is a good enough mark for us. We just love the hunt and are grateful for the opportunities we have to hunt these beautiful animals. More than anything we'd love to find a good bull with some character.

Keep us up to date on your hunt progress, it'll be fun to watch your successful hunt.

[URLwww.simplypoulson.com][/URL]​

 

[Zeke]

Hey Mud,

I like your attitude. We don't let the tape tell us if we've had a good hunt. I talk about score all the time but only for comparison purposes.

350" bulls are BIG bulls.

I'm old enough to remember when a 300" bull was cause for great celebration and folks traveled from far and wide to see a 300" elk kill!

The good old days are TODAY for the elk! Enjoy them while you can and have fun with all the great tags!

see ya on the mtn,
Zeke

 

[utahbigbull]

LAST EDITED ON Aug-02-11 AT 06:26PM (MST)[p]
Turbo, it made me laugh at how similar our stories are. I had spike hunted the manti's for years and always done very well. Well enough that the spike hunt was getting a bit dull. In all those years, I had seen some nice bulls up close and personal and through the glass and always kept me dreaming and wishing for the day.

2010 was my year for the tag. I had drew a Dutton muzzle tag and I was in seventh heaven for months dreaming of that big 380+ bull I had dreamed about for years (my realistic goal was 350+). Now here was my one shot I had waited so long for. I put a lot of time scouting as much as possible, scouring maps and info. I was there five full days before the hunt and man it was starting to get VERY discouraging not seeing those 380 bulls under every tree.

When the moment of truth arrived, I hunted my butt off in some very hot, dry conditions with a full moon and a raging fire dumping ash on the mountain from a neighboring unit. There were nights it litteraly rained ash on our camp from a fire 40 miles away. On day 6 at dusk I had my cross hairs on a diecent bull that I got only a brief side view of at 165 yards. I knew he had good tine length but there was not enough light for the optics to get a clear view. Deciding it was time to get it done, I crossed the fingers, pulled the trigger and folded him on the spot.

Once I got my hands on him, I could see he was a narrow bull that in the end dropped his score down to come in right at 340". I can tell you that from being in the lowest of lows, I had came up on a plateu of the highes of highs. His score did not mean jack and I was proud as a peacock. I did not hit my mark I had so desperatly consumed myself for years on achieving but learned my most important lesson to date about hunting. After all the hard work, the bitter fights with the wife, the sleepless nights from being so consumed that I had missed the obvious, IT WAS THE EXPERIENCE, NOT THE END SCORE! Plus I met some incredible people. I learned who my friends were, made new friends, and help from here on MM by one guy resulted in a friendship that I would trade my bull in return for his friendship any day!

I know I had my oppetunity at monster bull on a quality unit and even though I did not quite get there, I walked away from that mountain with my head held high, knowing I had the oppertunity and had done the very best I could have done. I had a experience I will never forget in the rest of my years living and am very greatful for the bull I did get.

Turbo, I wish you the best of luck and truly cross my fingers that you hit your mark. Just remember, if not, you had the tag to chase them and walk away with your head held high no matter what the outcome and enjoy the experience. Good luck!!!!!!!

 

[Rowiebutt]

Turbo I have a smoke pole tag we should compare notes the rifle hunt should be fun. A 340 is really big thats what I am realistly hoping for but 370 could happen on his unit It is coming fast

 

[Cam@strawberry]

May I throw my 2 cents in here, I am not trying to be pessimistic just simply my observations.

No hunter on the wasatch should pass on a 330 bull unless and here is my opinion, that hunter has one or more of the following list

1) 30+ days of scouting under his belt from that year alone
2) 3 or more consecutive years of previous experience hunting the Wasatch (I went with a friend for a couple of days or spotted a bull this one time doesn't count)
3) 5 or more bulls better than 350 spotted
4) Private ground
5) a guide

That is for the hunter alone, having a friend who qualifies on this list literally means nothing. In fact if your relying on the knowledge of a friend, even more so DO NOT PASS ON A 330 BULL!!!!

Just my experience with the odds, some guys fall outside the odds but most will not....

 

[Elkhunter96]

Good advice Berry. A 330-340 bull is a very good bull and is probably above average off the Wasatch. Out of the 500+ tags given for the Wasatch, there will be some toads taken, but that is the exception, not the norm...

The fist "Big bull" I killed in the mid 90s I had mounted and he is only in the 285 range. I remember when any six point was a big bull as well.

 

[Turbo6x6]

LAST EDITED ON Aug-09-11 AT 02:16PM (MST)[p]Just wanted to thank every one for their replies!
Put my boots to the ground last weekend went in about a mile and half to check out a new area.
Started my hike about mid day no thanks to Tim and Coors the night before! Didn't see much sign found a rubbed off pine (last years) some good open parks.Tons of bugs tons of feed......! hopefully the temps drop and kill some of these buzzing around biting little SOBS before the hunts start!