Unit 444/44

BradA

Very Active Member
Messages
2,919
Kinda planning out my hunting schedule for the following couple years of tags I can draw in what order and I'm trying to decide if I would rather draw unit 44 period 2 or unit 444 period 4 next year. What I am wondering is what experience anyone is willing to share, if they have hunted it or killed anything in those units? What's all of yours opinion?


https://www.sagemuleys.com
 
Unit 44 second is a damn tough hunt but it?can produce a good buck. Majority of the people who aren't familiar with unit struggle to say the least. Unit 444 has some great bucks but majority of the winter range is private land.

Coloradoboy
 
>Unit 44 second is a damn
>tough hunt but it?can produce
>a good buck. Majority of
>the people who aren't familiar
>with unit struggle to say
>the least. Unit 444 has
>some great bucks but majority
>of the winter range is
>private land.
>
>Coloradoboy

I have no experience with either unit, but I'm doing some research to plan to hunt it in the next couple years. I was considering applying for 44 second because with the later seasons that Colorado is considering for next year would make the 2nd season close to a 3rd season.

I was considering 444 because its a fairly easy draw in the 4th and it would be super late in the season with the new hunting dates. I have read that in the 4th they will winter on private property. I was wondering how difficult it would be to hunt the bordering of the private on public and hope that maybe one of the mature bucks would cross back over on to public.

https://www.sagemuleys.com
 
I hunted 44 in 2012 on a 3rd season tag. It was hot and dry and a tough tough hunt. I did kill a decent buck with some good intel from a local, but overall it was far from the hype of that unit gets. I burned my points this year on a 4th season tag so we will see what that will produce. With later dates it might be better, but I would imagine those top tier units are going to get log jammed with guys that have been holding on to their points. If you dont draw it in the first year or two the top end quality will be knocked down. Good luck! If you know nothing about either unit I personally would look at some units with higher deer density.
 
>I hunted 44 in 2012 on
>a 3rd season tag. It
>was hot and dry and
>a tough tough hunt. I
>did kill a decent buck
>with some good intel from
>a local, but overall it
>was far from the hype
>of that unit gets. I
>burned my points this year
>on a 4th season tag
>so we will see what
>that will produce. With later
>dates it might be better,
>but I would imagine those
>top tier units are going
>to get log jammed with
>guys that have been holding
>on to their points. If
>you dont draw it in
>the first year or two
>the top end quality will
>be knocked down. Good luck!
>If you know nothing about
>either unit I personally would
>look at some units with
>higher deer density.


Alright I will look into some other areas and do research since I have more then enough time for other units with a higher density of deer. I don't have a ton of points so it's not worth me waiting for anything more than 2nd season 44 in my opinion which can be drawn with 6/7 points .

https://www.sagemuleys.com
 
>I hunted 44 in 2012 on
>a 3rd season tag. It
>was hot and dry and
>a tough tough hunt. I
>did kill a decent buck
>with some good intel from
>a local, but overall it
>was far from the hype
>of that unit gets. I
>burned my points this year
>on a 4th season tag
>so we will see what
>that will produce. With later
>dates it might be better,
>but I would imagine those
>top tier units are going
>to get log jammed with
>guys that have been holding
>on to their points. If
>you dont draw it in
>the first year or two
>the top end quality will
>be knocked down. Good luck!
>If you know nothing about
>either unit I personally would
>look at some units with
>higher deer density.

Not sure who this local guy is that's giving you all this good intel is...
 
LAST EDITED ON Jul-19-19 AT 06:44PM (MST)[p]
I would take a 44 second again.

Nothing other than hunting..glassed deer, stalked deer, shot deer, packed deer out.

32721img0154.jpg
 
444 is an easier tag to pull for a reason. Mostly little ranchettes around basalt MT. No access, where there is access you have hikers, walkers,dog people mountain bikers and anti hunters walking the public grounds. Early seasons when deer are high not many issues.
 
>444 is an easier tag to
>pull for a reason. Mostly
>little ranchettes around basalt MT.
>No access, where there is
>access you have hikers, walkers,dog
>people mountain bikers and anti
>hunters walking the public grounds.
>Early seasons when deer are
>high not many issues.

Yeah I figured that was the issue with it being a easier to draw unit. I'm just trying to decide if the opportunity to hunt more often over having more space and freedom to not deal with others is worth it.

https://www.sagemuleys.com
 
>Nothing other than hunting..glassed deer, stalked
>deer, shot deer, packed deer
>out.

That sounds eerily similar to my deer hunt plans! I call it Plan A!

Congrats on a nice one!
 
Unless you get to the eastern part of the unit, it will seem like you are always around people because it is a narrow unit and towns and highways are close. Lower is where the bucks will be but there are only a few small public areas north and also east of Basalt. I didn't like hunting there mostly because it never felt like you were in the wilderness. Only bucks we saw were close to town by the community college.
 
I had a 44 tag 2nd season with 8 pts back in 14?. I had a difficult time the first few days because it wasn?t conducive to my style of hunting. I had to learn how to find the deer. In the end I got super lucky really. There wasn?t much skill in how I killed my buck. That luck can happen in any unit but in 44 you know that the genetics are there so when those big bucks show themselves it's worth the challenge.

If I were you I'd draw 444 as a second choice next year 2nd season and hunt the red mt road divide to 44. You can see 44 and how the terrain looks. You can also see the type of deer and terrain 444 has. I met a resident on that road during my hunt and he showed me deer photos from all his time in 444. There are huge bucks in 444. But like 44 they are hard to find. There isn't any big basins/high country above timberline. Except for the holy cross wilderness of course) but I have heard the deer aren't up there like you'd think they are. There isn't much sage brush canyons either. Yes lower country has rutting bucks and does but we are talking 2nd season. If I had 8 pts again I'd try 44 for another chance at a whopper buck but I would also really consider another unit like 40 3rd season or a gunnison 2nd season.

Colorado is just a cool place to hunt so just go get there and hunt a few lesser units. BTW I look at my buck everyday and smile. I want to hunt big bucks like that all the time but I also know that I got so lucky to have been in the right place at the right time.

1378239a14e6042884a2b9423eb3fc593f01f.jpg
 
Great buck Broomer.
I reached out to Gadjet prior to our 44 hunt and he gave me some insight on what to expect...thanks again.
 
>I had a 44 tag 2nd
>season with 8 pts back
>in 14?. I had a
>difficult time the first few
>days because it wasn?t conducive
>to my style of hunting.
>I had to learn how
>to find the deer. In
>the end I got super
>lucky really. There wasn?t much
>skill in how I killed
>my buck. That luck can
>happen in any unit but
>in 44 you know that
>the genetics are there so
>when those big bucks show
>themselves it's worth the challenge.
>
>
>If I were you I'd draw
>444 as a second choice
>next year 2nd season and
>hunt the red mt road
>divide to 44. You can
>see 44 and how the
>terrain looks. You can also
>see the type of deer
>and terrain 444 has. I
>met a resident on that
>road during my hunt and
>he showed me deer photos
>from all his time in
>444. There are huge bucks
>in 444. But like 44
>they are hard to find.
>There isn't any big basins/high
>country above timberline. Except for
>the holy cross wilderness of
>course) but I have heard
>the deer aren't up there
>like you'd think they are.
>There isn't much sage brush
>canyons either. Yes lower country
>has rutting bucks and does
>but we are talking 2nd
>season. If I had 8
>pts again I'd try 44
>for another chance at a
>whopper buck but I would
>also really consider another unit
>like 40 3rd season or
>a gunnison 2nd season.
>
>Colorado is just a cool place
>to hunt so just go
>get there and hunt a
>few lesser units. BTW I
>look at my buck everyday
>and smile. I want to
>hunt big bucks like that
>all the time but I
>also know that I got
>so lucky to have been
>in the right place at
>the right time.
>
>
1378239a14e6042884a2b9423eb3fc593f01f.jpeg


What is conducive to your style of hunting? I ask because I'm a glassing, using my spotter kinda guy but I also understand we have to adapt to different locations and styles so that your a better rounded hunter but I still enjoy hiking and glassing.

I agree with you that I should get a 2nd season 444 tag and get some eyes on the unit as well as if it's where I want to burn my points.

Or I suppose I could hunt 444 early season, then I could hunt 44 on that tag and be able to check out both and draw that on a second choice.

Great looking buck congrats and thank you for the advice!
How wide was your buck and what did he end up scoring?
https://www.sagemuleys.com
 
My style is really bow hunting sub alpine bucks, bedding them and making a stalk. This buck was the first rifle buck I shot or hunted since I was 14 years old. That was 25 years hiatus. 44 and surrounding areas are heavily timbered. Hardscapple mtn is over 10k ft but in Colorado that's like 8k where I hunt. At 10k I'm usually above timberline on tall peaks. Colorado you need to be closer to 12-12,500 to be in that county. He walked out in a cut in the middle of thick conifers. I wouldn't have found him unless I was where I was at 5:00 that night?. The mountain has more open country on the west, and above Eagle it's oak county.

As for my buck, yeah he was a hart stopper for sure. He was only 120 yards and I looked at him standing stiff looking up at me. I actually lifted my binos to make sure I was looking at what I though I saw. He has kickers both sides which make his outside spread 37? and his inside spread 29 1/2?. I never got him officially scored but I did total it up a few different times and came up with 210?

Founder shot a huge 200? buck on that hunt but he got snow to bush the buck he shot out into the open. I think a lot of those big bucks summer in and out of the timber below the ?golf ball? on red mtn. Then come the rut they move down across the river and up into Hardscrabble where most of the rutting happened. I think it would be hard to hunt that timber because to get close you are above them and if they aren't in the cuts and open them you never see them.
 
When you say golf ball are you referring to that man-made structure on the top red Mountain sort of looks like a tower water tank or something?
 
>When you say golf ball are
>you referring to that man-made
>structure on the top red
>Mountain sort of looks like
>a tower water tank or
>something?

Yes, that looks like a golf ball to me especially from a far.
 
I have Glassed the heck out of all those high basin bowls off of red table mountain but never seen any animals. It seems to be all just rock rubble and no growth or vegetation in the clearings. If there are bucks over there they have got to be in the really thick stuff. Just doesn't fit the mule deer country I envisioned where bucks like to get up high and have a vast view of everything below.
 
I have Glassed the heck out of all those high basin bowls off of red table mountain but never seen any animals. It seems to be all just rock rubble and no growth or vegetation in the clearings. If there are bucks over there they have got to be in the really thick stuff. Just doesn't fit the mule deer country I envisioned where bucks like to get up high and have a vast view of everything below.
I am planning on getting boots on the ground in August this year in advance of a muzzy mule deer hunt. From the pictures, it doesn't look like there is much feed up on the red scree...good cover and water - but like you said - no food. I'm still planning to spend 1 day glassing it just to see what it looks like...for scouting 1 day on red table, 1 day on Hardscrabble, and 1 in Eagles Nest...certainly can find some deer, right?!
 
My cousin and I hunted 444 4th season this year and we were all over the unit: driving, hiking, glassing a ton. We glassed up a bunch of elk up around 12,000ft and the weather was so nice I am guessing the bucks might have been up there too, because we couldn't find them from 7200-10,200. Granted, this was my first time hunting this unit and we hiked more than we probably should have. If I had to do it all over again, in this unit, I would get on as many roads as possible and drive around while the sun is coming up to find out where the heck the does are. We found a couple small doe groups on private land and hiked around to try to get in behind the private but ended up spending a lot of time looking and not hunting.
 
My cousin and I hunted 444 4th season this year and we were all over the unit: driving, hiking, glassing a ton. We glassed up a bunch of elk up around 12,000ft and the weather was so nice I am guessing the bucks might have been up there too, because we couldn't find them from 7200-10,200. Granted, this was my first time hunting this unit and we hiked more than we probably should have. If I had to do it all over again, in this unit, I would get on as many roads as possible and drive around while the sun is coming up to find out where the heck the does are. We found a couple small doe groups on private land and hiked around to try to get in behind the private but ended up spending a lot of time looking and not hunting.
Do you ate your tag ?
 

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