Hey guys! Well, it's another one of those threads you see the month before the Utah big game application. What do ya'll think? I have 6 points and plan on applying for an archery elk tag this year. I have yet to kill a bull so i'm not looking to kill a monster. I'd like more of a quantity type hunt. I don't want to deal with too many utards screwing up my hunt! (tough in utah, I know, but the fewer people I see the better) I want it to be more of a back country experience, so good amounts of "roadless" area would be ideal! Here's what i'm thinking so far... It's a toss up between Manti and Bookcliffs Roadless.
I should be able to draw Manti with the points I have(ya never know though). I live in Salt Lake so it's closer, which will make scouting easier on the wallet and I have hunted the area twice before. Correct me if i'm wrong but Manti also has more elk per acreage than the books. From what I hear it gets a little more pressure not only by hunters but a lot of recreational use as well. When I hunted there last, we just hunted the roads so i'm not sure what the back country potential is like. It would be great to hear from some who have archery hunted the unit in the past.
The books would require a few more years to draw, unless I got lucky (highly unlikely). This is appealing to me because of the true backcountry feel and hopefully fewer encounters with people. (stupid utards) but I could be wrong. This would also be advantageous in a scouting aspect. Once I burn my elk points I will start putting in for books deer. The elk hunt would give me some pretty good knowledge of the area giving me a good place to start once I draw the deer tag. I wouldn't be able to do much pre-season scouting except for maybe one quick banzai trip but I plan on staying the last ten days of the season so maybe that wouldn't be a big deal. Again, anyone with experience in this area, I would love to hear what you have to say.
I have access to horses so that shouldn't be an issue. Maybe theres a unit out there i'm overlooking... any other suggestions would be welcome as well. I just don't want to wait 15 years for an archery tag. So... what do you guys think? My brain is melting over this silly decision haha
I should be able to draw Manti with the points I have(ya never know though). I live in Salt Lake so it's closer, which will make scouting easier on the wallet and I have hunted the area twice before. Correct me if i'm wrong but Manti also has more elk per acreage than the books. From what I hear it gets a little more pressure not only by hunters but a lot of recreational use as well. When I hunted there last, we just hunted the roads so i'm not sure what the back country potential is like. It would be great to hear from some who have archery hunted the unit in the past.
The books would require a few more years to draw, unless I got lucky (highly unlikely). This is appealing to me because of the true backcountry feel and hopefully fewer encounters with people. (stupid utards) but I could be wrong. This would also be advantageous in a scouting aspect. Once I burn my elk points I will start putting in for books deer. The elk hunt would give me some pretty good knowledge of the area giving me a good place to start once I draw the deer tag. I wouldn't be able to do much pre-season scouting except for maybe one quick banzai trip but I plan on staying the last ten days of the season so maybe that wouldn't be a big deal. Again, anyone with experience in this area, I would love to hear what you have to say.
I have access to horses so that shouldn't be an issue. Maybe theres a unit out there i'm overlooking... any other suggestions would be welcome as well. I just don't want to wait 15 years for an archery tag. So... what do you guys think? My brain is melting over this silly decision haha