I talked with Doug Jones at the Spanish Fork Ranger District today regarding this burn. He told me that it is currently scheduled with a target date for Sep 15 which puts it right in the middle of our hunt. They will typically close the area a day before and a day after the burn. There will be NO access into the area if that's when they choose to burn.
Of course, it's all pending weather conditions and having things just right for the burn so it could push to sometime later (conditions are usually better in Oct) but there doesn't appear to be anything we can do at all. It's frustrating to wait 15 years for a tag, spend all of that time hunting the area, watching large bulls, learning their behavior, escape routes, where they hang in different kinds of weather, etc. knowing that your day will come and then to lose 1/2 of your available hunt to a game of chance. The season is 8 days long and if you choose to not hunt on Sunday, you're down to 6 days. Having them take 3 of them is not cool!!!
I tried to reason that there were better times than right in the middle of one of the premium western US elk hunts - especially with such a long waiting period, but ran into brick walls. He did agree to call me as soon as he knows what the picture looks like and when they might proceed but it's still targeted at Sep 15. I fully support the need for these burns and the benefits they provide to the wildlife and I understand that there probably isn't any time when you're not going to conflict with someone's outdoor plans, but a little bit of understanding during a hunt with such a long waiting period would be nice.
I don't have an account to post to that forum but if you do, you might put a note in there - perhaps along with Doug Jones phone number 801-342-5261 so that others can call him. I suspect if we hit him enough, we'll get their attention.
Of course, it's all pending weather conditions and having things just right for the burn so it could push to sometime later (conditions are usually better in Oct) but there doesn't appear to be anything we can do at all. It's frustrating to wait 15 years for a tag, spend all of that time hunting the area, watching large bulls, learning their behavior, escape routes, where they hang in different kinds of weather, etc. knowing that your day will come and then to lose 1/2 of your available hunt to a game of chance. The season is 8 days long and if you choose to not hunt on Sunday, you're down to 6 days. Having them take 3 of them is not cool!!!
I tried to reason that there were better times than right in the middle of one of the premium western US elk hunts - especially with such a long waiting period, but ran into brick walls. He did agree to call me as soon as he knows what the picture looks like and when they might proceed but it's still targeted at Sep 15. I fully support the need for these burns and the benefits they provide to the wildlife and I understand that there probably isn't any time when you're not going to conflict with someone's outdoor plans, but a little bit of understanding during a hunt with such a long waiting period would be nice.
I don't have an account to post to that forum but if you do, you might put a note in there - perhaps along with Doug Jones phone number 801-342-5261 so that others can call him. I suspect if we hit him enough, we'll get their attention.
