WMA closures

[Ticks N Tines]

I was just wondering how the Wildlife Management areas work. Do all of them close for the winter? I know many of them host cow elk hunters in the winter and such. When do they close and when do they re-open? This subject is pretty confusing. Does anybody know the deal???

 

[nochawk]

they close Dec 31st and reopen around May after the fawning/calfing.

NO JAN COW ELK HUNTS on them

 

[NeverStopHuntin]

The ones in my neck of the woods close to motor vehicles mostly on december 1st and a few close november 1st and they re open may 1st

 

[Ticks N Tines]

So Middle Fork and Henefer/Echo WMAs are shut down right now? I thought there were still people cow hunting up there.
So nobody can hunt sheds on the WMAs until May right???

 

[nochawk]

Im not 100% about Henefer/echo WMA, but Middlefork is closed, I was there when they locked the gate on the 31st.

Im hunting Cow Elk right next to it right now and the Jan hunt EXCLUDES middlefork WMA and has for the last 7 years.

Yep, no shed hunting till after calfing season is over there.. they have to have a safe place to hide from me..LOL

 

[NeverStopHuntin]

Many of the WMA's are only closed to motor vehicles. You can still shed hunt them you just have to hike in. But if you want to stay out please do. Leave more horns for the rest of us.

 

[Ticks N Tines]

I was not aware that any of the WMAs were even open to Motor vehicles. I know Middle Fork, Henefer/Echo, East Canyon, Round Valley, and tons of others don't allow any vehicle access at all. One exception would be the cow elk hunts on the Henefer/Echo unit sometimes allow limited access.

I thought that the reason for the WMA program was to protect the game during the winter months. Why would they allow people to go in there while the animals winter? They should all be closed from Dec 31st to the 1st of may. The shed hunters should give the game a break and let them winter in peace, not to mention the calving does and cows that go through a bunch of stress. I was in Henefer/Echo last year in May and many bulls still had antlers on, is it so important to shed hunt that we can't wait until May??? I bet greedy shed hunters are responsible for more deaths than poachers. Pretty sick that it has to come to this.

 

[NeverStopHuntin]

I'm not sure about up north but many of the wildlife management areas around here have roads in them. Walsburg, chicken hollow, tank hollow, lasson draw, fairview, big hollow, nebo creek, spencer fork, all have roads in them and they lock the gates to motor vehicles on december 1st. They don't re open until may 1st. I think this really helps keep people from pressuring the deer and elk with their fourwheelers and snowmobiles.

With the winter we are having i hope people know to stay back from wildlife. If we have a die off like last year there wont be much left. IMO

 

[nochawk]

First you say this..

Many of the WMA's are only closed to motor vehicles. You can still shed hunt them you just have to hike in. But if you want to stay out please do. Leave more horns for the rest of us.

And then you say this...

With the winter we are having i hope people know to stay back from wildlife. If we have a die off like last year there wont be much left. IMO


SO WHICH IS IT ??????
you want all the horns for yourself and harrass the animals? or you want them left alone?

 

[NeverStopHuntin]

Calm down little fella. I was just making a joke when i said stay out and leave some horns for the rest of us. I never once said that i go into WMA when they are closed to hunt sheds. I'm just stating a fact that they are only closed to motor vehicles and not foot traffic.

HJB asked "So nobody can hunt sheds on WMA until may 1st?"

I was just answering his question. The answer is people can hunt sheds on WMA's before May 1st but many are closed to motor vehicles.

 

[nochawk]

and the northern unit in Utah has a shed season for that exact reason, people going in harassing the animals when they are at there weakest.

I will make it a point to go read the regs at middle-fork in the morning, but I do not think you can even walk in till after May 1st.
Middle-fork never has had vehicle access, it is horse or walk in only

 

[Ticks N Tines]

Middle for is managed pretty good, the one that I worry about is the Henefer/Echo WMA. There are thousands of deer and elk on that unit in the winter and there are several access points that do not have gates or signs. People can just walk up a canyon without being seen and go to town on the animals.
With only one CO per region, most people don't get caught. Even in May the animals struggled last year and we actaully had to move away from the canyon we were in because there were still tons of critters struggling in the snow. I also found three bull elk that had skull plates removed, people just never learn.
If I had my way, no one in the state of Utah would be able to hunt sheds until the 1st of May. I know people will hate me for saying it, but there really is no harm in giving these critters a break until may. Northern Utah was torn apart by shed hunters before last year when the new law was made, now we are just going back to the old days. Bye Bye deer : (