# Deseret Land & Livestock Cow Elk Review



## Winglish (Mar 28, 2015)

I've debated about whether or not to post anything about this hunt because anything about DL&L usually starts a firestorm here. I think an honest review is in order, with both the positives and negatives from the hunt.

Communication was good from the beginning. Tyson Land is great to answer questions and I got the feeling that he is just a great young man all the way around. He was raised right.

My guide, Dave Dingman, was AWESOME. There were 7 hunters and 4 guides last Saturday. Each hunter was asked to be completely honest and tell whether they wanted to hike or hunt from a truck. Four chose to hunt from a truck. I hiked. The hunt WAS NOT canned! We hiked our butts off! Dave took me and a 16 year old kid who was on his first hunt for a hike of several miles. We spotted some elk in a spot that would have made for a really tough haul. Dave offered to go after them, but he thought we could find some elk that were more cooperative, which we did. Kind of...

Tyson radioed that he had his eyes on some elk and he put together a plan of attack. The plan worked. Kind of...

There was an older man who had not yet tagged out. The elk were down in some trees resting. The plan was to bring the hunter in from above, let him take a shot, and the two of us hikers would have hiked down the next ridge to the south and we would pick up the herd as they ran by. Like I said, it was a good plan. Kind of...

The older hunter got his elk with a 6.5 sniper rifle of some sort. No noise and about ten feet long with a scope as long as my arm. Anyway, he hit his elk and she went down with just one shot. Then Hell broke loose...

Somebody was yelling through the radio that the Elk were coming in far below us. We had to hot foot it down the mountain _as fast as we could go_ to get in position for a shot! I was breathing hard and like some sort of rookie had left my darn pack up where we started. Anyway, the elk were moving by in a hurry and were not in the mood for stopping. I picked out the rear-most elk, put my 300 yard dot on her, and fired away! Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam!

Somewhere in there Dave says, "Good shot. You got her." And I did. And it was a good thing, too, because the rest of my bullets were up the hill in that pack I had left behind! Seriously, what kind of dummy chases elk with a total of 4 bullets? But before she curled up under a brush she had run a long darn ways down a really steep hill. That hill sucked to climb up, by the way. It sucked bad. At least I wasn't hauling the elk! I had paid for the guide service for this very reason. Dave Dingman cleaned that elk and Tyson Land made his way down to her on his gas powered horse to carry her out of that hole. I was so glad not to be hauling an elk out all night!

The cost for guide service in October at Deseret is $300. You can hunt Saturdays in November at no cost without a guide, but you have to choose one option or the other. I would have chosen no guide service if they let you bring a horse or your own four-wheeler and that's the one part I did not like. If you choose the no guide option, you haul the elk out on your back. That made the decision for me. Even though my guide was a GREAT guy who worked his butt off for me, I would have liked to have the option to take a horse in after my elk if I shot one without a guide. But, you know, it's their place and their rules.

I did not see any of the truck rodeos I have read so much about. Everybody went their own way and the guides were good company. They would radio funny stuff to each other throughout the morning, keeping each other informed of progress. It was mellow and fun. A really enjoyable day in gorgeous country.

On the way up the hill I found the sheds of a 6 point bull. It was a cool find, but I didn't get to keep it. That was a bummer for me because I had carried it all the way up that steep canyon. I probably should have just left it down at the bottom to maybe never be found or to become one with the earth. Live and learn.

Anyway, I had an overall good time. Well worth it to do at least once in my life.


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## CaneHunter (Oct 10, 2013)

"The cost for guide service in October at Deseret is $300."

Is that correct or supposed to be $3,000?

$300 for someone to guide, clean, and pack is a really good deal..isn't it?


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## colorcountrygunner (Oct 6, 2009)

They wouldnt let you keep the sheds you packed out yourself? Thats kind of petty


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## Vanilla (Dec 11, 2009)

I have been curious what the results would be under their new policies. I'd like to know the success rates for those that select DIY. 

Glad you had a good time.


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## Firehawk (Sep 30, 2007)

My 16 & 14 year old drew cow tags up there too. I elected to pay for a guide and arranged with Tyson to have a friend of mine guide us as he is a guide up there. We hiked a bunch and heard and watched bulls bugling all day long. About 2 pm we finally had our well earned opportunity and both my kiddos shot their cows. 

They were deep in a steep canyon and was very happy that they were able to get the gas powered mule down in that hole. It was a wet day that I will not soon forget. The time of our life with two great kids and a terrific guide. Well worth the money spent and a really fun and REAL hunt! I helped with the quartering duties as we had two on the ground and it is an essential part of hunting in my opinion. I was prepared to strap quarters to my back, but was so glad to find out we didn't have to.

A big shout out to Tyson and his people. We were very impressed and would definitely do it again. Great first animals for my daughter and son.

FH


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## Nambaster (Nov 15, 2007)

Total bummer that you did not get to keep the sheds. That is a buzz kill that would be hard to get over. Other than that awesome hunt and congrats!


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## CPAjeff (Dec 20, 2014)

Congrats on the elk and thanks for taking the time for the write up! I have had one cow elk tag and one doe antelope tag on DL&L and have very positive experiences both times! Also, the op had it right, it's $300.


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## Winglish (Mar 28, 2015)

CaneHunter said:


> "The cost for guide service in October at Deseret is $300."
> 
> Is that correct or supposed to be $3,000?
> 
> $300 for someone to guide, clean, and pack is a really good deal..isn't it?


Yes, I felt like it was a pretty good deal. I mean, he used his truck to drive me all over the ranch. He took us to prime elk spots, found elk, cleaned the elk, and hauled the elk out.


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## goofy elk (Dec 16, 2007)

I know Dave Dingman,
Good, honest guy for sure.

Treed a lion for him about 12 years ago.


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## RandomElk16 (Sep 17, 2013)

Tysons and Dave are both great. Most all the guys up there are. That said, apparently the price has increased since last year. Still, not bad for them to drive you around, clean the elk, put it on a ranger, and deliver you and the elk to your truck... in a day usually. Saves you the 5 days afield on public.

Congrats on the hunt.


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## waspocrew (Nov 26, 2011)

Thanks for the review and congrats! I've thought about dumping my cow elk points on that area eventually. $300 sounds like a heck of a deal to me.


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## 30-06-hunter (Sep 22, 2013)

$300 is a steal, some of us spend that much or more just on fuel and food during the hunts.


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## whitepd01 (Aug 26, 2014)

My oldest son hunted cow elk there last year and my second oldest this year. Both times we had an excellent HUNT. And I mean hunt. We hunted HARD. We saw some incredible elk. We put miles and miles on our boots and had a wonderful time. Tyson was my sons guide this year and he was an absolute pleasure to hunt with. It was a great experience and I will be back for more. I don't have the time to do a DIY hunt so these experience are great for my kids and I. This year my son didn't punch his tag til right before dark. But we got to see the most incredible bulls and bugling I've ever seen. We had a couple monster bulls 30 yards away from us. The challenge was finding the cows. With a 1 to 1 bull to cow ratio it can be hard to find the cows. You have 10 bulls bugling and only 1 of those 10 bulls has the cows with him it makes it a bit more challenging.
I have also hunted doe pronghorn there multiple times. Thats a great DIY hunt. No guides, but they show you were to go. We have had to hike to get the antelope both times. We could have road hunted and shot one from the road thought but where is the fun in that.
Communication with Tyson and the guys was excellent. Organized and professional.
I hope the haters keep hating so my chances to keep hunting out there increase.....


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## hondodawg (Mar 13, 2013)

How many points does it generally take. I have a friend and all she wants is a cow elk for meat.


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## bowhunt3r4l1f3 (Jan 12, 2011)

I believe 4 points should put you at close to 100% draw.


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## johnnycake (Jul 19, 2011)

Bummed I couldn't make it up for my doe pronghorn tag this year. My dad had this tag last year and we had a riot! Neat place for sure


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## 3arabians (Dec 9, 2014)

bowhunt3r4l1f3 said:


> I believe 4 points should put you at close to 100% draw.


I checked the odds and this is correct. 4 points drew the tag this year. With that said, the youth odds would be much better correct? Im thinking about putting my 15 year old daughter in on this tag next year. She is late to gain interest (not my fault, the x is to blame  ) and I think this sounds like a great hunt for her to get her first elk. Im a little nervous about taking her out on my favorite cow elk hunt which tends to heat up when the temps dip below zero. Sometimes I question how much fun I'm having when that happens


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## Firehawk (Sep 30, 2007)

3arabians said:


> I checked the odds and this is correct. 4 points drew the tag this year. With that said, the youth odds would be much better correct? Im thinking about putting my 15 year old daughter in on this tag next year. She is late to gain interest (not my fault, the x is to blame  ) and I think this sounds like a great hunt for her to get her first elk. Im a little nervous about taking her out on my favorite cow elk hunt which tends to heat up when the temps dip below zero. Sometimes I question how much fun I'm having when that happens


My 14 year old son had 1 point and my 16 year old daughter had 2 points. We were a bit surprised that we drew. So was Tyson. He said it took him 4 points to draw.

Youth still get a certain % of tags so their odds are better. My 16 year old son has drawn his cow tag each year. He and I will be hunting public land DIY once the snow flies this fall. I draw that tag about every two years. Keep thinking I should hold out for Deseret myself, as driving up to a cow elk on a ranger is tons easier than hauling it out on my back like I normally do. ;-)
FH

FH


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## Bo0YaA (Sep 29, 2008)

Happy to hear ya had a good time. My daughter and I went up last yr and although our experience wasn't quite so good, I went ahead and put her in again this yr and she drew. However, once we heard the price had gone up from $200.00 last year to $317.00 this year +80.00 - $100.00 tip, we surrendered her tag. Its a unique experience, but not worth the $600.00 + total I would have had to pay once I added the butcher fee.


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