Big tag cuts to Gunnison Basin

ColoradoV

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At the tag recommendation meeting last night the CPW said to expect deep cuts to deer tags in the Gunnsion Basin. The winter is turning out to be that bad and it looks like the basin will once again need years time to recover.

66/67 the recommendation was a 50% cut in tags.
54 the recommendation was a 60% cut in tags..
55/551 the recommendation was a 70% and maybe even larger cut in tags as these units just got hammered...

IMO the tag cuts are warranted as the winter is that bad. Sad to see but fair to say the effect of this winter will be felt for years to come.
 
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I disagree with how much they cut tags. I think they over did it big time. I've seen way too many deer myself to think their numbers are accurate.

Come May 15th, I will know more and could change my mine.

There is another issue at play here regarding the Gunnison Basin units that they aren't telling publicly. I'm not about to put on the internet either.

I've seen too many Muley herds of 60+ to think their data is accurate. When I shed hunt, we will see how bad it is.

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William Hanson (live2hunt)

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I disagree with how much they cut tags. I think they over did it big time. I've seen way too many deer myself to think their numbers are accurate.

Come May 15th, I will know more and could change my mine.

There is another issue at play here regarding the Gunnison Basin units that they aren't telling publicly. I'm not about to put on the internet either.

I've seen too many Muley herds of 60+ to think their data is accurate. When I shed hunt, we will see how bad it is.

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Have you actually spoken with a local biologist or just basing your opinion solely on what you've seen?

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topher89

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There is another issue at play here regarding the Gunnison Basin units that they aren't telling publicly. I'm not about to put on the internet either.

How mysterious of you... :confused:

Also, how many of the units are you spending time in? Seeing lots of healthy deer in the same 20 mile stretch is a lot different than spending time in the whole basin. Don't let local, anecdotal data confuse the larger picture
 
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The fact I have lives here for 4 straight winters and knowing where the deer in 55 and 551 winter helps.

55 was hit decent. 551 was not.

I could see reducing them 30% to be safe and eliminate the doe tags.

Why even have doe tags in the gunny basin? The winter s take care of that.

When you can count thousands of animals over a stretch of 30 miles it can give you a good count.

In 551 there were deer that made it without going the full migration route.

I guess I'm not as confident on guesstimates from the government as you are.

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I will reserve final judgement until I walk it come May 15th. I will be able to get a better visual than just glassing.

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406

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Anybody going to spill the beans on this mysterious "other" issue? Lived and worked in the area for several years, genuinely curious.

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3forks

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Anybody going to spill the beans on this mysterious "other" issue? Lived and worked in the area for several years, genuinely curious.

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Likewise, my dad's side of the family have lived in Gunnison since 1923 and I hunt unit 551 extensively.
 

HOT ROD

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I would rather them cut tags now... Than wait a season.. Then realize it was worse than they though... JMO
 

robby denning

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This is a good thread. Curious to see what happens down there, too.

I've heard conflicting reports too, "BAD WINTER!" others "eh, not so bad like 07/08"
 

Vids

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I'm curious to see how many tags they give out as well. Not sure what to expect in terms of populations. Tons of snow in Jan/Feb, but they started feeding them pretty quickly. We were just out there and with the recent warm up there is plenty of feeding area open now. It looked like late April to me. I've heard about a lot of deer strikes along highway 50, it seems like that is the main culprit rather than starvation this year.
 

Ftguides

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It's incredible that we harvest does anywhere in CO mtn units, let alone in the basin after a hard winter. I just do not understand it and have gotten borderline insane explanations. Basically that's what the model spits out??????? I have spoken with several ungulate biologists and everyone is on the same page except, apparently, the CO guys. There is no reason to be harvesting does in the mountain units of CO, period.

From my understanding in 55 and 551 they are still putting out does permits while taking down buck tags by over 60%. That is idiotic.
 
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Marshmstr

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It's incredible that we harvest does anywhere in CO mtn units, let alone in the basin after a hard winter. I just do not understand it and have gotten borderline insane explanations. Basically that's what the model spits out??????? I have spoken with several ungulate biologists and everyone is on the same page except, apparently, the CO guys. There is no reason to be harvesting does in the mountain units of CO, period.

From my understanding in 55 and 551 they are still putting out does permits while taking down buck tags by over 60%. That is idiotic.

Agree!


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I can tell you how many times I have seen the DOW in 551 winter grounds this year. Zero.

I'm sure they do flyovers.

I live at 8500 ft. And we had 107" of snow in 1 week in January. So yes, lots of snow. However this year the snow started melting last week of February and when it did, the ground soaked it up quick. My place looks now, like it usually does in May.

There were deer everywhere in the 55 and 551 grounds that last week of February. After the snow started melting, they slowly went higher and higher.

The cuts are way too much. If it is that bad, then there should not be any doe tags.



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OP
ColoradoV

ColoradoV

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It does seem silly to give out any doe tags not sure the logic in that one.

After the cpw missed how bad the winter of 08 was I think that they are being a bit more pro active on this bad winter. IMO it was a very hard winter harder in some units than others and the only time will tell how bad. From what I saw once the crust formed the predators had a field day.. I will believe what is really going on is when I can return to the high country and see what deer numbers look like with my own eyes.
 

dotman

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I don't know how this is proactive if not cutting doe tags, last I knew Bucks didn't deliver fawns but with all this gender identification crap maybe they do now.
 

Bulldawg

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So the reason they still have doe tags is because they can't change what tags are offered but only every 5 years, they can only change the amount of tags given out so they cut as many as they see fit. I don't think the deer have gotten hit as bad as people think this this year, as far as mature deer, yes fawns got hammered. The reason tags need slashed are because of years and years of inaccurate counts, me and many many many others believe that the CPW has miss counted deer for a very long time and has over estimated the amount of deer in these units for a long time.


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prm

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According to Eastman's, here are the approved reductions:
GMU 54 – 54%

GMU 55 – 85%

GMU 551 – 65%

GMUs 66, 67 -- low to mid 60%s
 
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