My 2024 limited entry Utah rifle elk hunt
- Thread starter Deez Nutz
- Start date
November 7th, day 6. I was up early and I figured I’d take the wheeler back into the same area I was in the previous day to see if I could find some of the other elk that I saw but did not pursue. I glassed around, looking over a lot of ground, and did not see a single elk or deer anywhere so I bailed on that plan and decided to hike into one of the spots I hiked into over the summer and spend the night in there.
I was optimistic about this spot because it is a PITA to get into and there’s a nice big isolated drainage to glass once you get in there. I left the pickup around noon and hiked my way in and set up camp on a ridge top.
I hiked around a bit and set up on a great glassing point for the afternoon/evening glassing sesh.
View attachment 1731695743045.jpeg
If I shot something in there I was going to have to figure out some other way to get him out because I sure as heck wouldn't be able to hike an elk back out the same way I hiked in. I ended up glassing 1 crab claw 6 and 2 rag 5’s as well as 3 mule deer does being chased around by a somewhat decent looking mule deer buck.
Should have entered this guy in the big fork thread
Not much, but at least something. Crazy awesome sunsets and sunrises each and every day left me speechless.
I was even more optimistic about the drainage I was planning to hike into tomorrow. Only 4.2 miles today.
I was optimistic about this spot because it is a PITA to get into and there’s a nice big isolated drainage to glass once you get in there. I left the pickup around noon and hiked my way in and set up camp on a ridge top.
I hiked around a bit and set up on a great glassing point for the afternoon/evening glassing sesh.
View attachment 1731695743045.jpeg
If I shot something in there I was going to have to figure out some other way to get him out because I sure as heck wouldn't be able to hike an elk back out the same way I hiked in. I ended up glassing 1 crab claw 6 and 2 rag 5’s as well as 3 mule deer does being chased around by a somewhat decent looking mule deer buck.
Should have entered this guy in the big fork thread
Not much, but at least something. Crazy awesome sunsets and sunrises each and every day left me speechless.
I was even more optimistic about the drainage I was planning to hike into tomorrow. Only 4.2 miles today.
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November 8th, day 7. I was up well before daylight and planned to hike 3+ miles in the dark and set up to glass a further drainage as the sun came up, so I did.
Sketchy navigating some of that crap in the dark.
Ended up being 3.8 miles to the glassing point by daylight.
Looked like awesome country and I could see what you would think would be a premium late season elk haven, but I saw 1 single lone cow elk. Huh. I hiked around and glassed everywhere I could see and saw 1 more mule deer doe. What a let down. I cruised around getting different views and peeking into ravines. Late morning rolled around so I headed back towards my tent. Turns out a lion walked the same route I had walked earlier that morning since I was there.
At the tent, I packed up, and headed for the pickup.
I got to the pickup around noon and figured I’d go check out another spot somewhat nearby that was on my list. Not far enough to warrant an overnight but definitely somewhere I wanted to spend some time. I parked and hiked in about a mile and a half or so to the top of a bluff that overlooked another great big premium looking drainage.
Had to leave my mark.
“Oh yeah this is gonna be it” I told myself as I crested the top and took in the sights from there.
Well, it wasn’t “it” and I didn’t glass up a single animal, so that sucks. Stayed there until dark and then wandered back to my truck empty handed once again. It’s ok, I was getting use to it.
Also, on my way back I almost fell off a 30’ cliff thanks to that greasy slimy muddy crap.
A friend of mine that happens to be my neighbor came to the unit today to deer hunt and he had some other guys meeting him the next day so he came and camped by me which was nice to have someone to talk to after a week.
I call it PB&J, on naan.
15.2 miles today.
On a side note, any of you active hunters that don’t have a pair of zip off long john bottoms, get a pair and thank me later.
Sketchy navigating some of that crap in the dark.
Ended up being 3.8 miles to the glassing point by daylight.
Looked like awesome country and I could see what you would think would be a premium late season elk haven, but I saw 1 single lone cow elk. Huh. I hiked around and glassed everywhere I could see and saw 1 more mule deer doe. What a let down. I cruised around getting different views and peeking into ravines. Late morning rolled around so I headed back towards my tent. Turns out a lion walked the same route I had walked earlier that morning since I was there.
At the tent, I packed up, and headed for the pickup.
I got to the pickup around noon and figured I’d go check out another spot somewhat nearby that was on my list. Not far enough to warrant an overnight but definitely somewhere I wanted to spend some time. I parked and hiked in about a mile and a half or so to the top of a bluff that overlooked another great big premium looking drainage.
Had to leave my mark.
“Oh yeah this is gonna be it” I told myself as I crested the top and took in the sights from there.
Well, it wasn’t “it” and I didn’t glass up a single animal, so that sucks. Stayed there until dark and then wandered back to my truck empty handed once again. It’s ok, I was getting use to it.
Also, on my way back I almost fell off a 30’ cliff thanks to that greasy slimy muddy crap.
A friend of mine that happens to be my neighbor came to the unit today to deer hunt and he had some other guys meeting him the next day so he came and camped by me which was nice to have someone to talk to after a week.
I call it PB&J, on naan.
15.2 miles today.
On a side note, any of you active hunters that don’t have a pair of zip off long john bottoms, get a pair and thank me later.
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Addicting
Well-known member
Leave no trace…
It's sand, I scratched with a stick, it will be gone in a week, likely less. Don't get your panties in a wad.
Addicting
Well-known member
No it won’t, there are ones from the civil war and Spanish Conquistadors where I hunt in the sand STONE.
Stupid move
cgasner1
Well-known member
- Joined
- Apr 24, 2016
- Messages
- 2,943
I’ve told a couple guys this year to buy those long johns it’s the thing you didn’t know you needed.
November 9th, day 8. This was Saturday and I have to be back at work on Wednesday. I figured regardless of the outcome, I was probably going to pack up and mosey on home on Monday morning. That gave me Saturday night as my last opportunity for another overnighter so that’s what I planned to do.
At this point in the hunt, I felt that I had given it everything I had to give, put on a lot of miles, and looked over a huge amount of country. I hadn’t seen a bull that even remotely approached 300”, not on private, or in the back of a pickup or anywhere else. The other hunters that I talked to were struggling big time. For 5 days some local guys camped next to me. There were 7 hunters in their camp, they all had deer tags and they all had cow permits. After 5 days only one of them had harvested a cow elk, and none of them any deer, and they hadn’t even seen a bull.
I felt that I had seen what the unit had to offer, and though I didn’t want to shoot a dink bull, in my last 2 days I would take an opportunity on a respectable bull if the opportunity presented itself.
I had the morning to do something casual but I needed to be loaded up and leaving the pickup by noon in order to have enough time to get into the area I wanted to go into, get camp set up, and have some time to glass. So my buddy and I decided to go glass a spot that he had hunted in the past.
Cool to see the northern lights on our way to the spot.
We did see some animals there that morning but I think every hunter in the entire unit was hunting along that 5 mile stretch of road. No thank you, although still worth it to check out.
At this point in the hunt, I felt that I had given it everything I had to give, put on a lot of miles, and looked over a huge amount of country. I hadn’t seen a bull that even remotely approached 300”, not on private, or in the back of a pickup or anywhere else. The other hunters that I talked to were struggling big time. For 5 days some local guys camped next to me. There were 7 hunters in their camp, they all had deer tags and they all had cow permits. After 5 days only one of them had harvested a cow elk, and none of them any deer, and they hadn’t even seen a bull.
I felt that I had seen what the unit had to offer, and though I didn’t want to shoot a dink bull, in my last 2 days I would take an opportunity on a respectable bull if the opportunity presented itself.
I had the morning to do something casual but I needed to be loaded up and leaving the pickup by noon in order to have enough time to get into the area I wanted to go into, get camp set up, and have some time to glass. So my buddy and I decided to go glass a spot that he had hunted in the past.
Cool to see the northern lights on our way to the spot.
We did see some animals there that morning but I think every hunter in the entire unit was hunting along that 5 mile stretch of road. No thank you, although still worth it to check out.
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