Book Cliff Deer

desperatehills · Sep 23, 2015

I have a friend that is in the Book Cliffs right now and says it is a zoo. He has been scouting for the last week and has only seen 2 bucks that would clear 160. Today is opening day and there are side by sides on every ridge. He says that scouting, just driving the roads, he would see 2 bucks to a hundred does.

Has this place gone down hill that far in the last 5 years? I suspect he needs to spend a little more time getting away from the crowds but not to long ago, we would see 30 bucks a day driving around. Has anyone been out there recently, maybe hunted the archery season. I am close on points in Utah as well as unit 21 in Colorado and hope to have a great hunt. I am just curious if my friend needs to hunt harder or is this how that hunt is these days

travismadden · Sep 23, 2015

I was out there about 2 weeks before the archery hunt started and saw about 50-60 bucks from the road in 2 days. Only saw 2 bucks that were 160 or better. Lots of 4 points that were in the 130-140 range.

travismadden · Sep 23, 2015

>I have a friend that is
>in the Book Cliffs right
>now and says it is
>a zoo. He has been
>scouting for the last week
>and has only seen 2
>bucks that would clear 160.
> Today is opening day
>and there are side by
>sides on every ridge. He
>says that scouting, just driving
>the roads, he would see
>2 bucks to a hundred
>does.
>
>Has this place gone down hill
>that far in the last
>5 years? I suspect he
>needs to spend a little
>more time getting away from
>the crowds but not to
>long ago, we would see
>30 bucks a day driving
>around. Has anyone been out
>there recently, maybe hunted the
>archery season. I am close
>on points in Utah as
>well as unit 21 in
>Colorado and hope to have
>a great hunt. I am
>just curious if my friend
>needs to hunt harder or
>is this how that hunt
>is these days

I was out there about 2 weeks before the archery hunt started and saw about 50-60 bucks from the road in 2 days. Only saw 2 bucks that were 160 or better. Lots of 4 points that were in the 130-140 range.

sniper14 · Sep 23, 2015

We elk hunted there this year, and before the archery hunt we saw more bucks then we could count. My dad said it was the coolest thing he has seen in a long time. During the rifle elk hunt we saw two little bucks off the side of the road, but most 3 and 4 points we saw were off the beaten path. It was nothing like before the hunts started, they are hiding somewhere, but not off the side of the road.

BrowningRage · Sep 24, 2015

Sounds like its one of those tough years for the Muzzy Hunters out there. The muzzy hunts are always a little bit of a gamble on a migratory unit like the Book Cliffs. It seems the bucks have decided to move away from "The Top" and that means they are spread out between the summer and winter ranges already...

The muzzy hunt in the Books is best when the deer haven't moved from the summer area. From what you're describing, I think this is not one of those years. Your friend needs to hunt harder. There are plenty of roads to get him away from the "main roads" if he can't or doesn't want to hike. But he's going to need to do some glassing. There's plenty of opportunity for that out there.

Tell him to get off the road, hike a ridge, and glass all morning. With as many deer/bucks as there are out there, he'll find something. Most of the guys on their quads/side-by-sides are hoping to shoot a buck from the road (and maybe from their seat). If your buddy takes a different approach, he'll be the one with a nice buck hanging off his truck.

"Therefore, wo be unto him that is at ease in Zion!" 2 Ne. 28: 24

desperatehills · Sep 24, 2015

Glad to here the buck numbers were decent before the seasons. I am leaning towards the archery hunt anyway which is a better time to see numbers of bucks. My friend hiked out a ridge today. he found two 160 bucks but wasn't ready to shoot just yet. before he could hike out a quad came riding out the same ridge he hiked

Sniper1 · Sep 27, 2015

My dad just killed a buck our there. Lots of people and less deer than expected. That being said when we decided to hike we got bout 2 miles from crowds and found 11 bucks first 30 min of light and dad killed a stud. Buck had no teeth and mass for ever.

_gloomis · Sep 27, 2015

Good buck Mr. Hancock. Can't wait to hear the story at work next week.

_gloomis

Leftysbowman · Sep 28, 2015

Sniper, that is a stud buck for your dad...I was helping Kent with his bull and they showed me the pictures. Way to get it done!!!

?The bugle of the bull elk echo?s through the pines, the north wind moans her lonesome lullaby, he hungers for the freedom of an eagle as she flies?somewhere beyond the great divide?

elkassassin · Oct 5, 2015

Hey DesperateHills!

Don't know if you Remember Me & WoodruffHunter stopping by & looking at your Buck 4-5 years ago?

Things have went down Hill since then!

Gonna be a few Lucky Hunters as always!

But for the most part there's gonna be some Un-Happy Hunters once again!

We go out 2-3 times during the November Rut!

What do we see?

We see Bucks that nobody would Shoot doing the Breeding,that's what!

SAD!!!

Go Ahead!

Make Me take it down!

BrowningRage · Oct 10, 2015

So what happened to your friend in the Book Cliffs DesperateHills..??

Did he get anything..??

"Therefore, wo be unto him that is at ease in Zion!" 2 Ne. 28: 24

desperatehills · Oct 11, 2015

He ate the tag. He hunted hard and started enjoying the hunt more as people left. He sent me multiple pictures of decent bucks, but never found one that stopped his heart. On the last day of the season he saw 30 bucks. The best buck was a 24" 4x4, not what he came to shoot. I have to admit that I would have taken home a meat buck but that wasn't his thing.

desperatehills · Oct 11, 2015

>Hey DesperateHills!
>
>Don't know if you Remember Me
>& WoodruffHunter stopping by &
>looking at your Buck 4-5
>years ago?
>
>Yeah I remember you guys stopping by but I didn't know you were elkassasin/buzz.

Do you think Colorado unit 21 is seeing the same decline?
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>Ahead!
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>Make Me take it down!
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HUNTNNW · Oct 11, 2015

I had the tag and spent it all in the roadless area. A few days before it opened I had found 3 big bucks one being near 190" the smallest was 170" .. I was excited for the season to open!! I never turned up any of those bucks or anything close in size. Saw alot of bucks and ended up with a 150" 4x4 on day 6

elkassassin · Oct 11, 2015

Hey dh!

I'm not buzz!

Glad to hear your Friend Held out for what He wanted,Sad He didn't Find the Buck He wanted!

Sometimes you can Chew Tag Soup Proudly!

Go Ahead!

Make Me take it down!

elkassassin · Oct 13, 2015

I Haven't seen many Bucks like this one out there this year!

Go Ahead!

Make Me take it down!

Broadside_Shot · Oct 14, 2015

You can say this about the Book Cliffs.

"They Don't Make em like the Used Too"

desperatehills · Oct 14, 2015

Ha.. I love that picture. Its the screen saver on my phone. I always thought my head looked like it was photoshopped! The book cliffs is the best deer hunt I have ever been on. Doesn't mean its that great, more likely a testament to how poor our Oregon mule deer herds are doing. I know someday I'll go back and I am sure it wont be as good as I remembered it. Kinda like going to disneyland when you're 12 then going back when you are 35.

BrowningRage · Oct 15, 2015

Thanks for the update DH. Tough eating tag soup on any LE hunt. Hope he didn't wait too many years for it. My uncle's neighbor apparently had a Muzzy tag out there. He told my uncle that on Opening Day he missed "the biggest deer he's ever seen in the Book Cliffs". The following day he killed a 140" 4x4 and was home Friday morning.

All kinds of different hunters and standards out there. I can respect most of them. Tell you buddy he'll have another chance someday. And if you're real close, he can go with you on your hunt and at least enjoy that with you.

"Therefore, wo be unto him that is at ease in Zion!" 2 Ne. 28: 24