UT regs clarification

robtattoo

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Mar 22, 2014
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So, unless I can get a leftover Wyoming cow tag, it's looking like I'll be hunting Utah this season.
I've got my unit & area picked out, done my virtual scouting & I've talked with a fair few people that've pointed me in the right direction.
It's a Bull unit, not a Spike unit & I'm tryin g to figure out the regs.....It looks like if I have a Bull tag I can kill any elk in archery season but in muzzleloader & rifle cows are off limits. Am I reading that correctly?

Also, can anyone tell me if Utah has antler restrictions? I know I can't shoot a cow during rifle season, but am I still ok with a Spike?

Sorry for the questions, I'm trying to figure out which season gives me the best opportunity at ANY elk!
 

UtahJimmy

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It looks like if I have a Bull tag I can kill any elk in archery season but in muzzleloader & rifle cows are off limits. Am I reading that correctly?
Only with the archery tag. There are 3 permits: archery, any legal weapon, and muzzleloader. You have to purchase one of the three. Any legal weapon and muzzleloader are male only.

Also, can anyone tell me if Utah has antler restrictions? I know I can't shoot a cow during rifle season, but am I still ok with a Spike?
If it is an any bull unit, yes you can shoot a spike. Only antler restrictions are in spike units.

Sorry for the questions, I'm trying to figure out which season gives me the best opportunity at ANY elk!
The only one that give you an opportunity at any elk is an archery permit.

Refer to pg 20 in last years regs: https://wildlife.utah.gov/guidebooks/2016_pdfs/2016_field_regs.pdf
 

muddydogs

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If interested the cow application period is coming up the end of the month if you want to put in for a cow tag. If you draw a cow tag and have a buck or bull tag in the same unit as your cow tag you can also hunt cows during the buck and bull seasons. I basically hunt cows for 3 to 4 weeks as I hunt them during the muzzle loader deer season then again during the rifle or muzzy bull elk season which ever I choose to hunt that year then if my cow tag wasn't for the seasons that coincide with the deer or bull hunt I can hunt just for a cow during the season printed on the cow tag. There are a few units where a guy can draw a cow tag with no points but most the time a point or two are required. Where do you plan to bull hunt?
 
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robtattoo

robtattoo

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See, this is another reason living east of the Mississippi sucks. I already have applications in for Kentucky elk. If I were to apply for a Utah cow tag, I guarantee I'll draw both, be out a ton of money & have to miss out on one or the other!
I've also got a Wyoming antelope application in. That would be super convenient though as I could take a couple of days there (private land, rifle 'hunt') then drop 3 hours south to the Uintas for my elk hunt.

If I do Utah this year (it is a backup plan if I can't score a leftover WY tag) I'm planning on the North Slope in the High Uintas. I have a friend lives out there & hunts it every year, so I have a little fore knowledge, albeit second hand.
 

muddydogs

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Well for $70 you could purchase a cow point this year if you end up not hunting Utah or plan to come back another time which would give you a better chance at drawing a cow tag. A lot of the North Slope doesn't have a cow hunt but a few area's do.
 
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