Utah general deer quality

[idahohikker]

I have a buddy who lives in Utah who I like to hunt with. He will draw a Utah general deer tag within the next year or two. I’d like to draw one at some point.

I’m familiar with the quality of deer in the Wasatch area. Not real high but not bad.

I’m wondering about the quality of deer in the general units that are harder to draw. Some are 4-5 point units. Reasonable to hold out for 165-170 range deer? If not, maybe I’ll bag it and hunt elsewhere.

Thanks much. PM only please.

 

[MuleyFever]

There are that and bigger in any general unit but they are not common. As a non resident I don’t think waiting for 4-5 years is something I would do for Utah when I can probably get better or equal quality in CO for 0-1 point. I would not pass up the opportunity to hunt Utah as it’s cheap to apply but if it’s one or the other I would be going to Colorado.

 

[IdahoHntr]

I hunt the general in Utah frequently and in the end they are all still general units. There are 165-170 bucks in all of them, but like anywhere else you have to work for it. From my experience you are better off hunting every year or every other year where you can get a tag than waiting the 4+ years for the harder to draw units. There really isn't a lot of quality difference between most the general units in Utah and definitely not a quality difference worth waiting years for a tag. I agree with MuleyFever though and that it is worth hunting. Getting hunting season started in the middle of August is a lot of fun if you like to chase them with a bow!

 

[idahohikker]

It’s not either or. I will be hunting a number of western states in upcoming years.

I’m happy waiting 4-5 years if there’s any quality difference. I would guess there’s some reason why there are units that are more like 5 years to draw versus 2 but I understand draw difficulty doesn’t always match quality.

 

[Macegl]

Sent you a pm

 

[IdahoHntr]

It’s not either or. I will be hunting a number of western states in upcoming years.

I’m happy waiting 4-5 years if there’s any quality difference. I would guess there’s some reason why there are units that are more like 5 years to draw versus 2 but I understand draw difficulty doesn’t always match quality.

In my experience its more the amount of deer that might be different. People like to go hunting and see lot of deer, so the units that tend to have larger populations tend to be harder to draw. Quality doesn't tend to differ that much and like I said before, definitely not 4-5 years worth of points worth for sure. You don't have to take my word for it though, if you do a little research on decent bucks killed on the Utah general in the last few years I think you will see that a majority of them were killed in easier to draw general units.

If you want to save up for 4-5 years, go for it. I'm sure you will have a great hunt. I just don't think its necessary. I really think Utah's general units provide a lot of good opportunity and I will say that I have yet to hunt a general unit in Utah that I couldn't find a mature buck to chase in the class you're looking for.

 

[Fitzwho]

I have 4 points in Utah. Not necessarily because I am intentionally waiting for one of those units. More so because it hasn’t fit my schedule. I’ll be drawing next year for a Muzzleloader season. Not sure if I should go for one of the “harder” to draw seasons or just go with one that I can draw every year or so if I want. Not going to hurt my feelings either way.

 

[bighorn]

Agree with everyone one here. Utah General is tough and I wouldn’t expect a deer in the 170” range. Too many hunters and too many young two points getting shot each year.


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[idahohikker]

Thanks for those who have pm’d. Not interested in a public convo on these items. Please hold comments going forward as requested originally.

 

[realunlucky]

Thanks for those who have pm’d. Not interested in a public convo on these items. Please hold comments going forward as requested originally.

Can you pm me the best Idaho general season unit and quality buck I can expect to kill there. Thanks in advance

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[idahohikker]

Can you pm me the best Idaho general season unit and quality buck I can expect to kill there. Thanks in advance

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Clown comment. I didn’t ask for a unit. I do my own research and you well know being around the site. Move along.

 

[realunlucky]

Clown comment. I didn’t ask for a unit. I do my own research and you well know being around the site. Move along.

Well I was really hoping you'd throw me a bone but oh well.

Utah has a bunch of factors in play. Lifetime license holders- since they are grandfathered into the system they have a direct influence on the how many tags are available to preference point holders.

Loop hole closure has skewed the numbers of points being dumped on units it's hard to say when you'll be able to see the true tends.

Late season muzzleloader has started to remove the best bucks on a unit. If your looking I'd try to avoid those units. Utah new Mule deer plan has adding these late seasons on ALL general units so will be a mute point. To a lesser extent the same goes for the units with an "early" rifle season.

Some units have higher deer populations and hunters like to see animals. Number of points to draw has nothing necessarily to do with buck potential other than simply seeing some bucks.

Lastly access to some units have vast 50"> trail systems a quick glance at the odds show these typically take more points to draw.

In summary the southern units populations don't fluctuate as much as the northern units. Less die offs seem to provide more older class deer. The southern units are trending currently and probably for good reasons.

 

[idahohikker]

Well I was really hoping you'd throw me a bone but oh well.

Utah has a bunch of factors in play. Lifetime license holders- since they are grandfathered into the system they have a direct influence on the how many tags are available to preference point holders.

Loop hole closure has skewed the numbers of points being dumped on units it's hard to say when you'll be able to see the true tends.

Late season muzzleloader has started to remove the best bucks on a unit. If your looking I'd try to avoid those units. Utah new Mule deer plan has adding these late seasons on ALL general units so will be a mute point. To a lesser extent the same goes for the units with an "early" rifle season.

Some units have higher deer populations and hunters like to see animals. Number of points to draw has nothing necessarily to do with buck potential other than simply seeing some bucks.

Lastly access to some units have vast 50"> trail systems a quick glance at the odds show these typically take more points to draw.

In summary the southern units populations don't fluctuate as much as the northern units. Less die offs seem to provide more older class deer. The southern units are trending currently and probably for good reasons.

So you weren't being a jerk. Sorry I read your comment wrong.

Lots of good info. Much appreciated.

If you shoot me a PM, I'm happy to give a similar summary of Idaho general deer units to assist your research.