Utah value?

[Trimbandit]

Part of the problem is, 4ish years ago Utah took 5 or 6 of the mid LE hunts and made them general units. Meaning anyone wanting LE was focused into that many fewer units. Point creep will continue to get far worse.
If folks insist in putting in don't buy a license every year. You can apply for tags twice on the same license if you but it toward the end of one years application period then again at the beginning of the next application period.

 

[link]

I drew a mid season Le elk tag in a mid unit last year. I only had 12 points and drew in the random. Point pool took 20 points I believe. I knew I was way too far behind to ever draw a top unit in any season and my only hope of ever hunting elk in Utah was to start applying for the hunts that had the most available tags.
I have no real complaints. I got to hunt some neat new country for a couple weeks and eventually found a good bull I was completely satisfied with. I think those mid season hunts are what they are, an opportunity to hunt bulls. I definitely believe those le hunts should start at least a few days before the army of spike hunters descend upon the mountain with their hostile, large scale offensive though.

 

[Beendare]

I helped a buddy with a LE elk tag in Utah last year- a big disappointment on how limited it actually was. Felt more like OTC Colorado.

There are LE units .....and real LE units. Many of the LE units for Non Res will allow any resident to hunt cows and spikes over the counter- and they did in this unit. The side by side trails were busier than the main highway.

The few true LE units are tough to draw. I have a buddy trying with 20 points and he is still years out from drawing.

 

[F16pointy]

Unfortunately there are people who will pay those prices no problem. So Utah will continue to get its money. I think point systems suck all around. I moved to Utah later in life so I will more than likely never draw a multi-season LE tag. I wont live long enough to collect the points needed. So the point system is a young persons game anymore here.

 

[Sully_44]

If you want a 350+ bull and waiting 20+ years to hunt 1 time isn’t your cup of tea, you need to learn an Idaho general unit very well. There are giants on a lot of those units every year, just extremely hard to kill. I killed a 369 bull in Idaho in 2019 and have hunted as big or bigger bulls a couple times since, just haven’t sealed the deal in the others.

With that said, I also drew an archery tag in Utah on a mid tier unit. I didn’t come home with a bull, but hunted a few 340+ bulls, with one being a true mega giant. It was as fun of a hunt as I could have asked for and I’ll draw that again maybe twice more in my life (I’m an Utah resident now). It really comes down to your finances and priorities on whether it’s worth it or not.

For me I put in for almost every western state, but I know that I’ll probably die with elk points for Nevada, deer points for Arizona, and sheep points in every state including my home state. But IF I drew one of those, it would all be worth it.

 

[Trial153]

Utah sucks on so many levels

 

[Moezer]

As a resident, I'm still waiting for my LE chance. And there's some echoing of Trail153's post - it's been tough.

 

[HunterGatherer]

Utah sucks on so many levels

And yet, it’s still one of the greatest places to hunt elk on planet Earth…

 

[CorbLand]

Utah seems to be attempting to switch from an "elk state" to a "deer state" in my opinion.

Utah is still one of the cheaper ones to apply in each year, odds are long but people get lucky. From a nonresident stand point, its probably the most cost effective option at a chance...unless you draw, then damn.

 

[Bziegler6843]

I drew a non-res mid rifle tag this year in the random pool with 6 points. Cloud 9, went and scouted the unit last week and saw probably 20-30 bulls (2 I'd like to see again, likely going to go over 370). The unit, Beaver east, is now on fire. I've been following the fire and weather like a hawk and have a few local guys I'm in pretty constant communication with. I can tell you what, unless they keep the NF closed during hunting season I'm gonna grind it to find a giant and its still gonna be better than any other elk hunt I've been on based on the quality of bulls.

 

[buckshot516]

I drew a non-res mid rifle tag this year in the random pool with 6 points. Cloud 9, went and scouted the unit last week and saw probably 20-30 bulls (2 I'd like to see again, likely going to go over 370). The unit, Beaver east, is now on fire. I've been following the fire and weather like a hawk and have a few local guys I'm in pretty constant communication with. I can tell you what, unless they keep the NF closed during hunting season I'm gonna grind it to find a giant and its still gonna be better than any other elk hunt I've been on based on the quality of bulls.

Other than the fire that’s pretty freaking awesome luck. Congrats and good luck this season. Hope you find a stud. Keep us posted please


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[buckshot516]

And yet, it’s still one of the greatest places to hunt elk on planet Earth…
View attachment 1085456

Dandy bull. Congrats


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[buckshot516]

I helped a buddy with a LE elk tag in Utah last year- a big disappointment on how limited it actually was. Felt more like OTC Colorado.

There are LE units .....and real LE units. Many of the LE units for Non Res will allow any resident to hunt cows and spikes over the counter- and they did in this unit. The side by side trails were busier than the main highway.

The few true LE units are tough to draw. I have a buddy trying with 20 points and he is still years out from drawing.

That’s exactly what I’m afraid of. I’m from war zone Idaho. The last thing I want is combat style hunting on what you expect to be an amazing experience. Especially if the realistic top end is in the realm of what can be expected from year after year experience hunting at home


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