Utah mule deer.

[renello]

Me and my wife have about 17 points each for deer. Starting to wonder if this point game is all worth it and if we will ever draw a limited entry tag. It is relatively cheap to keep going with points but damn, we need to get out there and hunt. Would love for someone to help us on a hunt there with advice on unit to hunt up to and including, setting us up on a great adventure. Yes we are open to guide services but we also like to try DIY as much as we can. Sadly most quality mule deer hunts are in the $7000 US range which is $10,000 Cdn and after travel, kennels for dogs and other expenses your getting into the $12,000Cdn range. Hard to justify for a better shot at a few inches of horn. I know I have hosted quite a few deer and bear hunters in Ontario and never charged anyone a penny. I thought it was fun. Guess I am naïve sometimes. He he. Anyway, any advice appreciated. We have been applying for the usual very coveted units. We are still young enough and motivated enough to spend a good 10 days glassing and hiking looking for a good mule deer.

Thanks all. I may not comment all that much but the conversations here and members are top notch. Hope everyone has a great holiday season with friends and family. Cheers.


My 2019 Colorado public land mule deer. 4th season hunt 6500-7000 elevation. 2 days of scouting, 3 days of hunting with my wife. 160 inch frame with about 9 inches of abnormals.

 

[Edwin]

I would consider going for 1 at a time. Apply separate that way you can hunt LE in Utah twice in a few years. And be able to put forth as much effort as you can getting a trophy for each of you. Book cliffs or vernon would be fun. And looks like you could have either. Good luck

 

[renello]

Your right on the money Edwin. We did just this in Colorado. I applied this year and my wife and I hunted together, hopefully Deb get's a tag next year but with the changing seasons it will be hard to predict how many points required to draw various units. We put in together for antelope tags in Wyoming this year and both ate our tags. That is two antelope hunts in row in Wyoming that we ate our tags on and we put in some serious mileage. We will always go one at time for all species now. I will have to dig in a bit and look at draw odds closely in Utah, we have to be getting close to getting tags in some desirable units. Thanks for the response!

 

[renello]

Not sure Book Cliffs or Vernon will have the deer I am looking for but you are absolutely right they fall into my wheelhouse with the points I have. The Utah game and fish has a pretty darn good interactive web site with a lot of great information. I will be patient and keep putting in for top units and see if I get lucky and someday hook up with the right person to help us get on a really good program in Utah. I think I may have a great plan for Wyoming mule deer hunt next year anyway and with Deb likely drawing a Colorado tag that will be enough for 2020. Meanwhile, I always default back to Ontario when Western game hunts don't pan out.

 

[Edwin]

Not sure Book Cliffs or Vernon will have the deer I am looking for but you are absolutely right they fall into my wheelhouse with the points I have. The Utah game and fish has a pretty darn good interactive web site with a lot of great information. I will be patient and keep putting in for top units and see if I get lucky and someday hook up with the right person to help us get on a really good program in Utah. I think I may have a great plan for Wyoming mule deer hunt next year anyway and with Deb likely drawing a Colorado tag that will be enough for 2020. Meanwhile, I always default back to Ontario when Western game hunts don't pan out.

Just make sure to apply in Utah, even on a long shot. With that many points it could happen anytime!

 

[TheDudeAbides]

I would never discourage anyone from going to the book cliffs. It is a unique place and a fun hunt. You would not need a guide on the book cliffs. Just a truck/atv and extra gas cans. The only issue with the book cliffs is resisting the temptation of all the 22-24" 4 points and holding out for something better.

As far as Vernon, I have seen pictures of some toads from there; but most are on private land. A lot of good bucks and a few freak bucks in that unit. I have seen some extremely tall forkies from that unit. The unit is 90% public land, which is a plus. Probably wouldn't need a guide on this one either.

You could always hold out for the Henry's, but odds are low with the state only giving out 3 NR rifle tags a year. The Henry's a brutal mountain range - steep, rocky, and down right nasty. One of the reasons why there is an opportunity to harvest a giant. You would run into a similar problem as in the book cliffs here. How many 150-160 deer can you pass up to hold out for a biggun. If you are looking for a deer of a lifetime, then it is probably better to go guided unless you get some time to scout and learn the country.

I like the Pauns. It is a unique hunt and can be quite difficult or extremely easy. It is a migration hunt where the deer migrate out of the unit and sometimes all the big deer migrate early. I think the ML or Archery is a better bet on the Pauns due to having the potential to be screwed over by the weather. If it is too warm, then the deer don't move a lot. If it is too cold, then the deer migrate out of the unit. Sometimes the deer migrate out anyway regardless of the weather. On a good year you can get a giant, on an average year you can get a great deer, and on a poor year you will scramble to get a good deer. Which probably makes it a better option to go guided. Granted, you can learn the country by taking a family vacation to Bryce and Zion NP.

I don't know a whole lot about Oak Creek, San Juan, Diamond Mountain, or Doloras Triangle other than people find good bucks in them on occasion.

Do not waste your points on the North Slope. North Slope isn't even worth zero points as a non resident in my opinion. A few tags are occasionally leftover for this reason. $500+ for 25% success during the orange army elk hunt.

 

[renello]

Dude, your response was excellent and informative. Thank You. The idea of taking a family vacation to Bryce or Zion NP sounds like fun. My family is me my wife and our dogs. I am decent at arm chair scouting using online maps and ONX is a wonderful tool, but nothing better than scouting. With the distance I have to travel it is probably best to arrive 3 days or so in advance and scout then but if this was a sheep hunt, I would definitely make an extra trip if I was DIY.