utah400elk
Well-known member
Well this is not really a “live” hunt because the cell service was less than optimal in the unit but…here it is.
Colorado Unit 61…
- Thread starter utah400elk
- Start date
utah400elk
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I left Alabama for Unit 61 on 9/11. I had a rifle Bear tag, a muzzy deer tag and my friends son had a muzzy cow elk tag. This was going to be our first time in the unit. My son was going to join me on Saturday 9/13. He had a few days for the hunt. He is in his senior year and with college recruiting trips for swimming, state swimming and USA swimming he has very limited time. He was planning on leaving on 9/16. He had Homecomming on 9/20. I have 26 NR elk points and wanted to scout the unit before I used my elk points.
I got to Denver on a morning flight and drove to the unit. The rental car company gave me an Expidition Max instead of a small 4x4 truck.
Off to Grand Junction in a vehicle that was way to big for me.
In a funny twist of fate…the Colorado Game and Fish emailed me on the drive and offered my son a muzzy deer tag. I accepted and was able to stop by the office in Glenwood Springs on the way to 61. A great surprise for me son!
We had two deer tags, a cow elk tag and a bear tag…plus grouse. We were set.
I got to Denver on a morning flight and drove to the unit. The rental car company gave me an Expidition Max instead of a small 4x4 truck.
Off to Grand Junction in a vehicle that was way to big for me.
In a funny twist of fate…the Colorado Game and Fish emailed me on the drive and offered my son a muzzy deer tag. I accepted and was able to stop by the office in Glenwood Springs on the way to 61. A great surprise for me son!
We had two deer tags, a cow elk tag and a bear tag…plus grouse. We were set.
utah400elk
Well-known member
I was solo the first night with my friend and his son arriving Friday and my son on Saturday.
The unit is simply some of the best looking deer country I have ever seen. I didn’t see a lot of deer in the drive in but it was awesome looking country for sure. I tried to take a bunch of pics but never quite get enough.
A couple from the drive to 61
The unit is simply some of the best looking deer country I have ever seen. I didn’t see a lot of deer in the drive in but it was awesome looking country for sure. I tried to take a bunch of pics but never quite get enough.
A couple from the drive to 61
utah400elk
Well-known member
My bear tag was open the minute I got into 61 with the muzzy tags open on 9/13.
When I got there, I was treated to a fierce thunder storm and was actually glad to have suck a big vehicle. I slept in the back until the storm passed then moved to my Hennessy Hamock. I got a replacement to one I had…a 4 season version and it was awesome. In fact it was so awesome I got a little bit of a late start on Friday scouting.
However, the late start didn’t really matter.
Right away I found a bear. Just a little one and I really wanted to wait for my son Christian.
When I got there, I was treated to a fierce thunder storm and was actually glad to have suck a big vehicle. I slept in the back until the storm passed then moved to my Hennessy Hamock. I got a replacement to one I had…a 4 season version and it was awesome. In fact it was so awesome I got a little bit of a late start on Friday scouting.
However, the late start didn’t really matter.
Right away I found a bear. Just a little one and I really wanted to wait for my son Christian.
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utah400elk
Well-known member
I drove south and found a good looking canyon. I immediately found elk, found a very nice 340 class 6x6 beaded and found a much bigger bear. The second bear was large and I would guess over 300 lbs. I held off wanting to wait for my son. I thought the bear hunt was going to be very easy.
I was not seeing a ton of deer…in fact it was hard to even find a deer. The country was awesome but not a ton of deer in any canyon I glassed.
I ran into a local who said the unit was in serious decline for deer and the game and fish were only really managing for elk.
I got a new Digiscope system to try this year. This is a not so great picture of a smaller buck I was able to find while scouting. Sorry it was not centered and there was another buck with this one…more on him a little later.
I was not seeing a ton of deer…in fact it was hard to even find a deer. The country was awesome but not a ton of deer in any canyon I glassed.
I ran into a local who said the unit was in serious decline for deer and the game and fish were only really managing for elk.
I got a new Digiscope system to try this year. This is a not so great picture of a smaller buck I was able to find while scouting. Sorry it was not centered and there was another buck with this one…more on him a little later.
utah400elk
Well-known member
My friend and his son arrived and we got set up. We ended up renting a cabin on top…and we were glad we did. The first night a huge thunder and lightning storm rolled through and it shook the cabin. It was rough.
The cabin was rustic but gave us plenty of room to spread out, stay dray and warm. There was also a hot water cabin for showers.
We headed out to the same canyon and immediately found more elk.
These are not the best, I was learning to use the new Digiscope. They get better.
The cabin was rustic but gave us plenty of room to spread out, stay dray and warm. There was also a hot water cabin for showers.
We headed out to the same canyon and immediately found more elk.
These are not the best, I was learning to use the new Digiscope. They get better.
utah400elk
Well-known member
We also found another bear. I was not able to get a picture of him either but that was three bears in the first day. The same local guy said there was a 400-450 lbs chocolate bear in the same canyon. There were five different herds of elk in the canyon and they were going nuts. We were all ready for opening morning of Muzzy.
I will post more a little later. These are photos of the storm coming in from Utah.
I will post more a little later. These are photos of the storm coming in from Utah.
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utah400elk
Well-known member
Opening morning we were up early and heading to the canyon with 5 herds. We moved down the ridge and got within 220 yards of a herd. They were bugling like crazy and we were very close. I had to back out to pick up my son. We couldn’t close the distance without possibly spooking the herd. We felt it was not worth spooking anything on the first day.
We ran into a ton of grouse on the same ridge. On group had over 15 birds. In total we saw over 22 grouse and about 60 elk opening morning. No deer were seen.
It was all rainbows and unicorns opening morning with high spirits…
These are looking East into 62 from the decide Rd.
We ran into a ton of grouse on the same ridge. On group had over 15 birds. In total we saw over 22 grouse and about 60 elk opening morning. No deer were seen.
It was all rainbows and unicorns opening morning with high spirits…
These are looking East into 62 from the decide Rd.
utah400elk
Well-known member
I went to Montrose to pick up Christian and saw that the local Man untrained had gotten a bit of snow. First one is looking south out of Montrose and the 2nd is the UT Las Sal Mountains.
utah400elk
Well-known member
His flight was univentful and we were back up the mountain into for the evening hunt. Is was relatively slow night. Very few deer spotted, numerous herds of elk and two bears. One being a small black bear and the other being a much larger chocolate colored bear.
We watched a herd feed back to where we had encountered the elk in the morning. We were set for the second morning!
Absolutely awesome sunset views towards Utah.
We watched a herd feed back to where we had encountered the elk in the morning. We were set for the second morning!
Absolutely awesome sunset views towards Utah.
utah400elk
Well-known member
Second morning of the hunt..
We move down the same ridge of the first morning…we again jump over 20 grouse. It is crazy quiet this morning with no bugles or cow calls. We did manage to find a really nice buck. It was in the bottom canyon and you could see the rack with your naked eye at over 800 yards. I was not able to get a Digiscope picture but it was big. I would bet over 180.
We were able to spot several herds of elk and determine where the deer were heading.
The winds were terrible for our evening hunt plans so we backed off to glass again. We spotted a bunch of elk and another bear. The only real pics were of an awesome sun set again.
We move down the same ridge of the first morning…we again jump over 20 grouse. It is crazy quiet this morning with no bugles or cow calls. We did manage to find a really nice buck. It was in the bottom canyon and you could see the rack with your naked eye at over 800 yards. I was not able to get a Digiscope picture but it was big. I would bet over 180.
We were able to spot several herds of elk and determine where the deer were heading.
The winds were terrible for our evening hunt plans so we backed off to glass again. We spotted a bunch of elk and another bear. The only real pics were of an awesome sun set again.
jeff_gibbons
Well-known member
Excellent story and pics! Looking forward to the rest of the story
utah400elk
Well-known member
Monday morning and we have a game plan. We move down the same ridge and see a small buck right away…less than 300 yards from the vehicle. Right behind him is a mature buck, 3x4 about 25 wide. Christian was a little too slow. The bigger buck never gave us another look but he was only 30 yards away.
We got to within 300 yards of a group of elk but my friends son could not get any closer. It was a great morning. We did run into huge piles of bear poop.
This is me and my son and the canyon where we saw the large buck the day before.
My friend and his son had scared a herd of elk and we watched them run down the canyon and up the other side. It was not their fault…swirling winds ruined the chances and they never even herd them move off. Christian and I herd them and then watched them. Decent bull but they were moving too fast for me to get any good pictures.
I did find a solo cow and was able to practice the Digiscope pictures a little more.
We got to within 300 yards of a group of elk but my friends son could not get any closer. It was a great morning. We did run into huge piles of bear poop.
This is me and my son and the canyon where we saw the large buck the day before.My friend and his son had scared a herd of elk and we watched them run down the canyon and up the other side. It was not their fault…swirling winds ruined the chances and they never even herd them move off. Christian and I herd them and then watched them. Decent bull but they were moving too fast for me to get any good pictures.
I did find a solo cow and was able to practice the Digiscope pictures a little more.
utah400elk
Well-known member
That night we decided to go to a completely different location. We parked the car and could smell a dead animal. It took us a minute but we eventually found a dead moo cow. There was bear crap all over the place. The carcass was picked almost completely clean but it was clear there were a lot of bear in the area. We moved to a canyon to glass and almost immediate got into elk.
I am starting to get the hang of the Digiscope…my buddy said he saw a decent 6X6 and cows and he moved off to try and get a shot. My son and I stayed in a great spot to glass for bear and deer while we watched their stalk.
I got a few good pictures…and a good laugh.
I asked my friend if he was sure it was a “6X6”. He said he was positive and I bet him camp dishes it wasn’t a 6X6. Well…it was the best meal of the trip knowing he had to do the dishes. I actually think this would qualify as a spike in Utah. It’s close but I count 7 on one side and no branch above the ear of the other.
They were able to get 217 yards from the cow but it was too far for a shot. They had a 125 yard limit for shot distance.
I am starting to get the hang of the Digiscope…my buddy said he saw a decent 6X6 and cows and he moved off to try and get a shot. My son and I stayed in a great spot to glass for bear and deer while we watched their stalk.
I got a few good pictures…and a good laugh.
I asked my friend if he was sure it was a “6X6”. He said he was positive and I bet him camp dishes it wasn’t a 6X6. Well…it was the best meal of the trip knowing he had to do the dishes. I actually think this would qualify as a spike in Utah. It’s close but I count 7 on one side and no branch above the ear of the other.
They were able to get 217 yards from the cow but it was too far for a shot. They had a 125 yard limit for shot distance.
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utah400elk
Well-known member
The next morning we were set for deer and elk on the opening morning ridge. As we moved down the trail, there were no deer and no sounds of elk. It was a 6-8 inch wide trail. In scrub oak.
We hiked about 1/2 mile and found this:
This was clearly on a marked closed road. This idiot drove his quad about 1/2 to 3/4 of a mile past the closed road sign. We found him about 300 yards further sitting on the trail calling like a maniac. He said he had watched a herd move onto the ridge the night before. He had an archery tag for a bull.
The morning turned into a total shit show. As I was talking to the quad owner ( I told him what I thought of his driving on the closed road) he starts yelling at me that there was no sign and he was a local so he was allowed to drive wherever the hell he wanted. He is yelling that he has 1st right at the elk because he has the bull tag. I took pictures of his quad and of him, marked the location and told him we were going to report it to Game and fish. He laughed and said there was only one Game Wared for the entire unit and good luck finding him. Let me just say Karma!!!!!
We moved over to the other side of the ridge and immediately herd numerous dogs barking and somebody yelling from the bottom of the canyon. It reminded me of the “Bumpas Hounds” (I am sure I killed the spelling) from Christmas Story.
We left and ran to another canyon. For those that are wondering…every canyon we went to had elk. The unit is thick with elk.
Even getting to the other canyon late. We immediately located another herd. We were able to pick the travel route of the herd and my buddy and his son moved into location.
Christian and I went to class and look for bear and deer. We found a ton more of bear poop but no bears and a few does and small bucks.
My friend and his son were able to get 220 yards from the herd but no shots. As they were licking there wounds another herd walked by. They got much closer and were on 160 yards away but no shot.
Literally every canyon we went to had elk.
We hiked about 1/2 mile and found this:
This was clearly on a marked closed road. This idiot drove his quad about 1/2 to 3/4 of a mile past the closed road sign. We found him about 300 yards further sitting on the trail calling like a maniac. He said he had watched a herd move onto the ridge the night before. He had an archery tag for a bull.
The morning turned into a total shit show. As I was talking to the quad owner ( I told him what I thought of his driving on the closed road) he starts yelling at me that there was no sign and he was a local so he was allowed to drive wherever the hell he wanted. He is yelling that he has 1st right at the elk because he has the bull tag. I took pictures of his quad and of him, marked the location and told him we were going to report it to Game and fish. He laughed and said there was only one Game Wared for the entire unit and good luck finding him. Let me just say Karma!!!!!
We moved over to the other side of the ridge and immediately herd numerous dogs barking and somebody yelling from the bottom of the canyon. It reminded me of the “Bumpas Hounds” (I am sure I killed the spelling) from Christmas Story.
We left and ran to another canyon. For those that are wondering…every canyon we went to had elk. The unit is thick with elk.
Even getting to the other canyon late. We immediately located another herd. We were able to pick the travel route of the herd and my buddy and his son moved into location.
Christian and I went to class and look for bear and deer. We found a ton more of bear poop but no bears and a few does and small bucks.
My friend and his son were able to get 220 yards from the herd but no shots. As they were licking there wounds another herd walked by. They got much closer and were on 160 yards away but no shot.
Literally every canyon we went to had elk.
utah400elk
Well-known member
We had to head out for Christian to catch his flight when Karma stopped by…we ran into the “only” game warden on the unit. I gave him pictures of the ATV registration, the Owner and the Pin location of the quad. He was calling the forest service as we drove away to ticket the owner.
utah400elk
Well-known member
I was late getting back from the airport and when my friend and his son had not returned by 9:30, I knew something was up.
More tomorrow!
More tomorrow!
appmtnhntr
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- Joined
- Aug 29, 2018
- Messages
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Next time let the air out of his tires. It’s on him if he didn’t bring a pump.
LuketheDog
Well-known member
Good, I was going to offer the GW's contact info for that unit, met him last year...
utah400elk
Well-known member
OK…when they arrived at the cabin I asked if they got a shot at an elk? They were all smiles and said they had actually gotten two shots. They explained that his son got two shots at the same elk. They said he got a 40 yard shot and clearly hit a cow. It moved off about 25 yards and was just standing there. They repositioned and got another shot. The elk just stood there for what they described as several seconds then bolted off. It was close to dark and they backed out. They herd the elk run off and didn’t want to push it.
They then said they found a monster buck on the way out. It was in an area you wouldn't expect. They kept saying it was huge and that we should try for the deer in the morning then go look for the elk.
We had a bit of a sleepless night and got an early start. We got to a glassing spot that put us in the neighborhood of the elk and waited to first light. We glassed for the first 15-20 minutes not seeing anything. We were just about to give up and go look for the elk when I spotted a huge looking odd shaped stump. It was 107 yards off the devise road in an open field. Well you can probably guess what the stump was. I watched a very large buck stand up and trot off with about a 24 inch buck.
The buck went into one of two canyons and my friend and I split. He went South and I went North. I glassed for a few minutes and went to check on my buddy. The buck was 217 yards away from us on an aspen line. Too far for me to shoot.
My buddy explained that the buck had been @ 75 yards for several minutes before I arrived and then wandered to the 217 distance. I had the smaller buck in range but obviously passed. We watched the bigger buck walk into the nearby aspens. I was sure he was the second buck from earlier (Digiscope picture above). I could never get the buck in glass but body size and color were a match. I clearly should have spent more time glassing him.
This is from my friends I-Phone as the buck was 75 yards away.
They then said they found a monster buck on the way out. It was in an area you wouldn't expect. They kept saying it was huge and that we should try for the deer in the morning then go look for the elk.
We had a bit of a sleepless night and got an early start. We got to a glassing spot that put us in the neighborhood of the elk and waited to first light. We glassed for the first 15-20 minutes not seeing anything. We were just about to give up and go look for the elk when I spotted a huge looking odd shaped stump. It was 107 yards off the devise road in an open field. Well you can probably guess what the stump was. I watched a very large buck stand up and trot off with about a 24 inch buck.
The buck went into one of two canyons and my friend and I split. He went South and I went North. I glassed for a few minutes and went to check on my buddy. The buck was 217 yards away from us on an aspen line. Too far for me to shoot.
My buddy explained that the buck had been @ 75 yards for several minutes before I arrived and then wandered to the 217 distance. I had the smaller buck in range but obviously passed. We watched the bigger buck walk into the nearby aspens. I was sure he was the second buck from earlier (Digiscope picture above). I could never get the buck in glass but body size and color were a match. I clearly should have spent more time glassing him.
This is from my friends I-Phone as the buck was 75 yards away.
