Founder?? Slammdunk??

You offering to help Stubert?

They don’t need my help. I could have killed this bull this morning tho. I’d give anything for a mid or late tag this year
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I came off the mountain last night, my target bulls were bumped by spike hunters going into the little drainage in the dark with lights that my two good bulls were holed up for the past month, I saw them both Thursday night and Friday before the opener.

I'll continue to hunt after work each evening and the last full day hoping to get "lucky" like the road hunters did.

We saw 3 Bears, 3 bull Moose, 7 cow Moose and passed on 5 bull elk.

I don't mind eating tag soup if that happens, my days on the mountain and experiences I shared with my son were "successful".

Knowledge gained?
"Do not apply for a Mid Season tag if you are targeting a particular bull on an already overly crowded unit".



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I came off the mountain last night, my target bulls were bumped by spike hunters going into the little drainage in the dark with lights that my two good bulls were holed up for the past month, I saw them both Thursday night and Friday before the opener.

I'll continue to hunt after work each evening and the last full day hoping to get "lucky" like the road hunters did.

We saw 3 Bears, 3 bull Moose, 7 cow Moose and passed on 5 bull elk.

I don't mind eating tag soup if that happens, my days on the mountain and experiences I shared with my son were "successful".

Knowledge gained?
"Do not apply for a Mid Season tag if you are targeting a particular bull on an already overly crowded unit".



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What caliber of bulls have you passed? What do you mean by the lucky road hunters? What are you seeing for overall numbers of elk compared to years past?
 
What caliber of bulls have you passed? What do you mean by the lucky road hunters? What are you seeing for overall numbers of elk compared to years past?
I had 4 bulls spotted since the first part of September from 340 to 370ish, two of which were in the same drainage together, the other two were in an easy accessible area that I knew would get either killed or bumped immediately.
If you are familiar with Strawberry area, the two other bulls I chose not to hunt opening day were on Poison and one in Chipman, both get pounded hard and were both easily visible.

I chose to target the two bull area because it's a 1.5 mile walk in with about a 500 yard hike up to my shooting spot.
I was actually shocked to see how many hunters came from the top and hiked down on top of them and blew them out in the dark.
My goal was get underneath them due to normal winds traveling down in the morning.
We counted 17 hunters on top at first light, and only my 3 person crew from the bottom.
One spike bull was shot at sun up that had a "mature bull" with it, according to a guy I later spoke with.

"Lesser bulls" I passed on were all young 5 points down to spikes

"Lucky Road Hunters" are those who were in the right spot at the right time to kill mature bulls while driving the roads.....there were several of those.

As for a comparison to years passed, I'd have to say the numbers and quality were par in that area.
About the only thing I noticed differently were the elk were in smaller pods and very spread out, probably due to a lot of water and excellent feed compared to drier years?
I also noticed a lot of young bulls, raghorns and young fives, had cows, same observation many others have noticed for the pre rut on through post rut.

If I were king for a day, I would think hard and long about moving the Spike hunts into November.
The way they dumped so many Early Rifle tags into the Mid Season pool was a nightmare.
 
I had 4 bulls spotted since the first part of September from 340 to 370ish, two of which were in the same drainage together, the other two were in an easy accessible area that I knew would get either killed or bumped immediately.
If you are familiar with Strawberry area, the two other bulls I chose not to hunt opening day were on Poison and one in Chipman, both get pounded hard and were both easily visible.

I chose to target the two bull area because it's a 1.5 mile walk in with about a 500 yard hike up to my shooting spot.
I was actually shocked to see how many hunters came from the top and hiked down on top of them and blew them out in the dark.
My goal was get underneath them due to normal winds traveling down in the morning.
We counted 17 hunters on top at first light, and only my 3 person crew from the bottom.
One spike bull was shot at sun up that had a "mature bull" with it, according to a guy I later spoke with.

"Lesser bulls" I passed on were all young 5 points down to spikes

"Lucky Road Hunters" are those who were in the right spot at the right time to kill mature bulls while driving the roads.....there were several of those.

As for a comparison to years passed, I'd have to say the numbers and quality were par in that area.
About the only thing I noticed differently were the elk were in smaller pods and very spread out, probably due to a lot of water and excellent feed compared to drier years?
I also noticed a lot of young bulls, raghorns and young fives, had cows, same observation many others have noticed for the pre rut on through post rut.

If I were king for a day, I would think hard and long about moving the Spike hunts into November.
The way they dumped so many Early Rifle tags into the Mid Season pool was a nightmare.
Completely agree - it is a tough hunt with all of the pressure from spike hunters. I don't think you could possibly target a bull on this hunt unless he stays put and you kill him quick on opening morning (or you have a spot all to yourself - tough to find on the Wasatch unit).

We saw zero bulls over 320 - most were 5 points or small 6's and raghorns.
 
If I were king for a day, I would think hard and long about moving the Spike hunts into November.
The way they dumped so many Early Rifle tags into the Mid Season pool was a nightmare.
We already have the Muzzleloader spike hunt in November. The muzzleloaders get the scraps after the Archery and rifle guys mow through them, and they have been hunted for 3 months.
It's ok though. We all know the Muzzleloaders are the problem. :D
 
We already have the Muzzleloader spike hunt in November. The muzzleloaders get the scraps after the Archery and rifle guys mow through them, and they have been hunted for 3 months.
It's ok though. We all know the Muzzleloaders are the problem. :D
That's true, I forgot about that hunt.
Our hunts are just stacked way too full and too tight.
 
The way they dumped so many Early Rifle tags into the Mid Season pool was a nightmare.

Most definitely! I said it was a mistake what they were doing ahead of time, and I believe it has played out that way.

I tried to convince myself that I was okay with the shift and the shortened season, but they really screwed a crap ton of hunters by doing this. At least the archery folks get their extra few days, I guess. Nothing else matters.
 
Most definitely! I said it was a mistake what they were doing ahead of time, and I believe it has played out that way.

I tried to convince myself that I was okay with the shift and the shortened season, but they really screwed a crap ton of hunters by doing this. At least the archery folks get their extra few days, I guess. Nothing else matters.
Agreed.
I really should have either changed my tactics to a more casual hunting method or turned the tag in.
Oh well.....I'm not done yet, I've got the last full day to hunt ?
 
Most definitely! I said it was a mistake what they were doing ahead of time, and I believe it has played out that way.

I tried to convince myself that I was okay with the shift and the shortened season, but they really screwed a crap ton of hunters by doing this. At least the archery folks get their extra few days, I guess. Nothing else matters.
Haha did you even hunt the mid-season, or are you just finding a way to blame a bowhunter? When all else fails throw a tantrum and blame bowhunters. Typical mentality coming from you. Aren't you Mr. Opportunity? Slam was stoked he drew with 6 points, probably the reason he drew had to do with the increase of tags (opportunity) now you are crying about what you've been crying about all these years......Just so I'm clear you want to add more tags, cry when it's crowded, then blame a bowhunter....got it.
 
We already have the Muzzleloader spike hunt in November. The muzzleloaders get the scraps after the Archery and rifle guys mow through them, and they have been hunted for 3 months.
It's ok though. We all know the Muzzleloaders are the problem. :D
Maybe put the spike on later compete more with the deer hunters?
 
Haha did you even hunt the mid-season, or are you just finding a way to blame a bowhunter? When all else fails throw a tantrum and blame bowhunters. Typical mentality coming from you. Aren't you Mr. Opportunity? Slam was stoked he drew with 6 points, probably the reason he drew had to do with the increase of tags (opportunity) now you are crying about what you've been crying about all these years......Just so I'm clear you want to add more tags, cry when it's crowded, then blame a bowhunter....got it.

Sensitive, much? I can almost hear the tear drops hitting your keyboard as you type that!

I never blamed a bow hunter. I blame the wildlife board. They are the ones that made the adjustments. And yes, I think they screwed many hunters in what they did. Thousands upon thousands, actually. It is what it is. Watch what elk hunting looks like within 5 years in this state, and then see who is standing there waiting for their next handout. It’s not hard to predict!
 
Sensitive, much? I can almost hear the tear drops hitting your keyboard as you type that!

I never blamed a bow hunter. I blame the wildlife board. They are the ones that made the adjustments. And yes, I think they screwed many hunters in what they did. Thousands upon thousands, actually. It is what it is. Watch what elk hunting looks like within 5 years in this state, and then see who is standing there waiting for their next handout. It’s not hard to predict!
I'm sure glad I'm not a rifle hunter and have to be out in the woods with a boob like you.
 
You have people complaining for opportunities, then bitching to many people are getting opportunities.

Then you have people regardless of hunt, bitching that they didn’t have enough days, or there are too many people, that they need to change dates for hunts, blah blah blah blah blah, whaa whaa whaa whaa whaa.

You out in for these hunts knowing dates, knowing other overlapping hunts etc.

Man up, accept responsibility for your decisions and stop being a *****. We all knew the dates, the winter, etc. it’s your fault for your failure.
 
You have people complaining for opportunities, then bitching to many people are getting opportunities.

Then you have people regardless of hunt, bitching that they didn’t have enough days, or there are too many people, that they need to change dates for hunts, blah blah blah blah blah, whaa whaa whaa whaa whaa.

You out in for these hunts knowing dates, knowing other overlapping hunts etc.

Man up, accept responsibility for your decisions and stop being a *****. We all knew the dates, the winter, etc. it’s your fault for your failure.
Did someone say "failure"?
I missed that part.....
 
You have people complaining for opportunities, then bitching to many people are getting opportunities.

Then you have people regardless of hunt, bitching that they didn’t have enough days, or there are too many people, that they need to change dates for hunts, blah blah blah blah blah, whaa whaa whaa whaa whaa.

You out in for these hunts knowing dates, knowing other overlapping hunts etc.

Man up, accept responsibility for your decisions and stop being a *****. We all knew the dates, the winter, etc. it’s your fault for your failure.

I haven't seen anyone complaining about "failure." Tell us more about that.
 
I'm sure glad I'm not a rifle hunter and have to be out in the woods with a boob like you.

Says the guy that wrote a 5 paragraph essay crying about a post I made that didn't even do what the whiney loser was crying about?

I too am glad you are not out hunting with me. We agree on something, finally!
 
I haven't seen anyone complaining about "failure." Tell us more about that.
It is not a direct correlation to this particular thread vanilla.

It has been brought up in previous threads. It’s was a general statement about the complaints of the “big bull” hunt in general.

This particular thread has mentioned changing current hunts, that have been in place longer than the hunt referenced, to give those select few a better experience. But everyone knew what they applied for, and what they would be competing against when they put their name in the hat.
 
Before we go throwing out the baby with the bathwater on this new elk plan let's see how the data lines out when the seasons are over.

What did the success % end up being per season?
What bull age objective was met per each season?
What did the hunter satisfaction scores say?

The one consensus I keep hearing from friends and others is that the bulls were coming out of winter starving for nutrients, their bodies were replenishing instead of building antlers in the spring. When antler growth started it was later than normal, this resulted in a lot of bulls having good front ends but ended poorly on the back end or just lacked the agility to finish out well. Last winter was tough.
 
I'll Agree On The Front Ends Being Good!

But Above The 3rds Wasn't All That Great On alot Of The Bulls!

Here's My Question:

JUST HOW GAWD-DAMNED MUCH HARDER CAN YOU HUNT AN ELK HERD?





Before we go throwing out the baby with the bathwater on this new elk plan let's see how the data lines out when the seasons are over.

What did the success % end up being per season?
What bull age objective was met per each season?
What did the hunter satisfaction scores say?

The one consensus I keep hearing from friends and others is that the bulls were coming out of winter starving for nutrients, their bodies were replenishing instead of building antlers in the spring. When antler growth started it was later than normal, this resulted in a lot of bulls having good front ends but ended poorly on the back end or just lacked the agility to finish out well. Last winter was tough.
 
Says the guy that wrote a 5 paragraph essay crying about a post I made that didn't even do what the whiney loser was crying about?

I too am glad you are not out hunting with me. We agree on something, finally!
Stick to your rifle, it's much appreciated. Good luck this weekend.
 
It is not a direct correlation to this particular thread vanilla.

It has been brought up in previous threads. It’s was a general statement about the complaints of the “big bull” hunt in general.

This particular thread has mentioned changing current hunts, that have been in place longer than the hunt referenced, to give those select few a better experience. But everyone knew what they applied for, and what they would be competing against when they put their name in the hat.
I'll try giving a more in depth personal experience.

@Bigwiffy is exactly right, I applied for this mid season hunt based off low points, low investment and decent odds I would draw based of the massive tag allotment moved from early rifle to mid....."opportunity" is correct.

I know that area well, I've hunted it since I was 16 years old (56 now) and wanted to harvest a mature bull with my son whom is now 33.

My buddy drew the same unit but Premium tag.
I scouted hard since August for him a good bull since his tag was the 23 year investment and priority one, mine was second.

I had located 4 great bulls (great to me is over 340") in 3 different locations.

When it came time for my hunt, I knew full well options 1&2 were not in my favor for killing opportunities on opening morning of the general spike hunt, so I opted for a "hike in" place 1.5 miles from any roads in the bottom.
My hope was that knowing there was a partial road on top , the masses of "spikers" would push elk down in my direction.
Mind you, I verified both bulls were still there 24 hours before opening morning.

Saturday morning 4 of us headed on our trek in hopes of harvesting one of the two bulls in that little drainage.
My heart sank as we watched what appeared to be approximately 20 head lamps coming over the still dark horizon. I knew there would be a few, but it looked like a small army.
On top of that, here comes a tote goat hunter off the trail, parks his bike 100 yards from me and hikes up the adjacent hillside.
Wtf??

It was at that point I knew it was over before it even started but accepted it as is and started hunting elsewhere the next 8 days.

Yes I passed up bulls, but I knew what I wanted for the first phase of my hunt and stuck with it.

Now I have an opportunity to hunt a friends honey hole and hopefully get it done on the last day. His daughter killed a 360 in there yesterday and they saw 13 other bulls, one being a giant.
My odds and hopes are good at this point.

My hunt was not a "failure", disappointing yes, but shared experiences with my son like seeing the bear and showing him places he's not seen, campfire talks, getting froze to death in his RZR and laughing about it was "successful" to me.
Killing a bull on Thursday will just be the frosting if it happens.

I've had the blessings of guiding elk hunters for 26 years and have helped clients put close to a hundred bulls on the ground, several over 400", so I know what that feels like.
It's not about the kill for me at this point in life, but I definitely would have loved sharing that type of experience with my son and taking a mature bull together.

In closing, I did not like how many hunters were on the hill, it was far worse than I had anticipated.

If anyone just wanted to kill a "bull" and wasn't set on a size limitation, it can be a good opportunity to do so.
But to think I could have hunted it "professionally" like my mindset was, I was purely over thinking my opportunity.

If someone wants to target a particular bull, this is not the hunt to apply for unless you've got access to private lands where you aren't competing with anything other than your bull.
 
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Sounds like the hunt was pretty much as advertised. I hope others enjoyed the opportunity they had.

People complaining about too many people on a Wasatch hunt of any type is just ridiculous.
 
My son had a mid season LE tag and man it was a tough hunt. We did 9 days in a row. Saw a few elk, had a brief 10 second window of a shot. That I would have taken but he was waiting for the perfect shot being a 18 yr old kid. We saw a total of 3 bulls. I knew it would be a tough hunt for the unit he drew with 0 points. We more put in for the point but when he drew it we figured what the hell. We had a good time hunted hard, saw quite a few other hunters. Sometimes right on top of us. Also had control burns that happened last Friday that soured a day or 2 where we had seen elk. I don't think the mid season was a bad hunt just a weird year. We didn't hear a single bugle the entire hunt.
 
We were also on the Wasatch during this Mid Season Big bull hunt. I was helping a friends 15 year old son. We have hunted this area for years on plenty of big bull hunts as well as spike hunts. We knew where elk were and where they would go when the shooting started. We horseback into areas, sometimes 5-7 miles in. There were plenty of elk. Not many "Big' Bulls. We had a couple opportunities at "Big" bulls, but like mentioned above, they don't always hang around and give the time it takes for a 15 year old to get comfortable to make a good shot. What surprised me was the number of foot soldiers that hiked into these remote areas with spike tags. We talked to a couple guys at least 5 miles in. They had a spike and a cow tag. I asked them what they were going to do if they actually shot one back there. His response..... " Well, I guess we hadn't thought about that part. " The bulls seemed to be rutting hard, but they also seemed extra skiddish this year. It took a pretty good sneak to get within 500 yards of a herd without them busting out. Maybe they got extra pressure from earlier hunts this year. Normally, the horses dont really spook them that bad. Still a ton of fun and a great experience. Nothing beats a canyon with half a dozen bulls screaming their heads off at first light. On day 8, the "suicide bull" came out and he put him down.. This bull seemed to follow us for the week. He was everywhere we looked. haha. About a 300" 5x6. Not bad for the kids first bull.
 
The Wasatch unit is a great opportunity hunt. I will not wait a lifetime to have one great elk hunt in Utah. In the last three years I drew the archery tag (2021) and my daughter drew the mid season rifle tag (2023). Both were great hunts, we both drew our tags with 4 points, both were not easy hunts, we both killed 5x6 bulls (not big, mine 300”, my daughters 250”), we were both happy, and created memories for a lifetime. I fully support the new elk plan to provide more opportunity by putting more tags in the more challenging season to hunt elk. If people want that premium once in a lifetime elk hunt there are still units in Utah that will provide that for those that want to wait 30+ years. I would rather hunt more often over collecting points. I feel the same about general tags, any general tag I drew with 0-1 points Is better to me than a general tag that take 5+. Three hunts/opportunities over one hunt/opportunity is better in my opinion no matter the outcome. I care about time out hunting and creating memories more than inches.

Back to the tread topic. I have no doubt Slam will be successful no matter the outcome but I bet he is posting a picture of a bull on the ground by Thursday night. Good luck.
 
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The Wasatch unit is a great opportunity hunt. I will not wait a lifetime to have one great elk hunt in Utah. In the last three years I drew the archery tag (2021) and my daughter drew the mid season rifle tag (2023). Both were great hunts, we both drew our tags with 4 points, both were not easy hunts, we both killed 5x6 bulls (not big, mine 300”, my daughters 250”), we were both happy, and created memories for a lifetime. I fully support the new elk plan to provide more opportunity by putting more tags in the more challenging season to hunt elk. If people want that premium once in a lifetime elk hunt there are still units in Utah that will provide that for those that want to wait 30+ years. I would rather hunt more often over collecting points. I feel the same about general tags, any general tag I drew with 0-1 points I better to me than a general tag that take 5+. Three hunts/opportunities over one hunt/opportunity is better in my opinion no matter the outcome. I care about time out hunting and creating memories more than inches.

Back to the tread topic. I have no doubt Slam will be successful no matter the outcome but I bet he is posting a picture of a bull on the ground by Thursday night. Good luck.
Now THATS some pressure!!??

I've got the best chance tomorrow that I've had all along, hopefully the stars align and I get er done.
If not.....I could have filled my tag and had 300lbs of elk burger but I'll be stuck buying Canadian beef at Walmart?
 
What the hell are you talking about. No crap bulls don’t have calves.
You wanted to eliminate spike hunting.
Carrying capacity is how many animals an area can feed. The herd objective is usually somewhere near the carrying capacity. let's say the carrying capacity is 10,000 elk made up of 7000 cows and 3000 bulls. If those 7000 cows have 5000 calves and 50% of those are bull calves, you will have around 2500 spikes the following year. We can say 2000 spikes for mortality that does happen. If you wait until that spike if 4 years old to kill it and each subsequent year has a similar bull crop there will be over 8000 bulls running around eating all the grub by the time that original spike is harvested at 4 years old. The managers need to stay in that 10,000 carrying capacity so they start issuing cow tag to decrease the herd. That's where the "Bulls don't have Calves" comment comes from. ( read that last sentence twice )
So, you can either kill some spikes or you can kill some cows. or you can make everything general and kill everything. If you want good Limited entry areas, you have to kill spikes.

There isn't enough grub to feed every bull calf until it gets 6 or 7 years old.
 
Now THATS some pressure!!??

I've got the best chance tomorrow that I've had all along, hopefully the stars align and I get er done.
If not.....I could have filled my tag and had 300lbs of elk burger but I'll be stuck buying Canadian beef at Walmart?
Good luck, may the last day luck be with you!! Way to not give up. I killed my personal best general buck 5 minutes left of the season. You can do it!!
 
Ok now I get it. You’re one of those guys that believe all the bull sh-t the dnr tells you. Your a lost cause. To have good limited entry units you have to kill spikes. (I’ve heard it all now.)
 
My family hunts the Rez. Out here in the basin and I’ll tell you one thing they don’t do all that bull to cow ratio or any of that stupid stuff. Their hunting is so much better than anything the state has to offer it’s ridiculous . I wouldn’t trade their elk herd for the states elk herd no way in hell. And guess what. They give permits out to the members and they can shoot one animal, cow,spike or big bull. They don’t screw around and say they need to get rid of spikes or cows. So tell me who’s right and who’s wrong. I’ve witnessed it my whole life. Quit believing them educated idiots.
 
You have people complaining for opportunities, then bitching to many people are getting opportunities.

Then you have people regardless of hunt, bitching that they didn’t have enough days, or there are too many people, that they need to change dates for hunts, blah blah blah blah blah, whaa whaa whaa whaa whaa.

You out in for these hunts knowing dates, knowing other overlapping hunts etc.

Man up, accept responsibility for your decisions and stop being a *****. We all knew the dates, the winter, etc. it’s your fault for your failure.


Bitching?

Seems like he tried a hunt he did t care for and won't put in again
 
My family hunts the Rez. Out here in the basin and I’ll tell you one thing they don’t do all that bull to cow ratio or any of that stupid stuff. Their hunting is so much better than anything the state has to offer it’s ridiculous . I wouldn’t trade their elk herd for the states elk herd no way in hell. And guess what. They give permits out to the members and they can shoot one animal, cow,spike or big bull. They don’t screw around and say they need to get rid of spikes or cows. So tell me who’s right and who’s wrong. I’ve witnessed it my whole life. Quit believing them educated idiots.


Sorry, in ranking the best elk units in the state, I've never seen the "rez" mentioned.
 
I support this new hunt at this point. It is doing exactly what is intended. It allows a lot more more opportunity for people to hunt while reducing overall harvest.

My prediction is that this new model actually helps quality as less bulls will be killed overall.

Is the mid season hunt a mad house? Yes, but a lot if guys and gals got to hunt LE elk that wouldn’t have any other way. No one with any point totals over 5-6 would ever apply for this hunt. If they do they know what they are getting into.

The early hunt was amazing as far as crowds. It was a ghost town up there. The rut sucked but it wasn’t due to pressure.

One thing is certain, with this new hunt model you had better have a bull or two located before the hunt opens and get him killed asap. Especially on the early hunt.

What I feel like I’m hearing (and I could be wrong) is the shift from entitlement- I drew a tag and I am entitled to a bull (not referring to Slamdunk) to the reality of this mid season is a true hunt. You have got to really hit it hard to kill a bull of any quality size.

As for the bow hunter having extra “advantage” that is laughable. Regardless of the length of season bow hunters have always and will always have the absolute worst dates - hunting with the masses of general seasons hunters and end of summer recreationalists. It’s the toughest hunt out there. It’s like the mid season hunt was this year but with a short range weapon. To blame your tough hunt on the bow hunters opportunity level is ridiculous.

Good luck Slam and anyone else giving it a go today. I wish you luck!
 
My family hunts the Rez. Out here in the basin and I’ll tell you one thing they don’t do all that bull to cow ratio or any of that stupid stuff. Their hunting is so much better than anything the state has to offer it’s ridiculous . I wouldn’t trade their elk herd for the states elk herd no way in hell. And guess what. They give permits out to the members and they can shoot one animal, cow,spike or big bull. They don’t screw around and say they need to get rid of spikes or cows. So tell me who’s right and who’s wrong. I’ve witnessed it my whole life. Quit believing them educated idiots.
If you hunt the "rez", what do you care how the DWR manages our herds.
 
Let’s Go Slam! Out with the pic already! You can type the story later!!!

Congrats by the way! Nothing sweeter than a punched tag on the last day with friends and family!
 

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