# First elk hunt - Mt. Dutton, Deep Creek



## fattybinz (Jun 12, 2018)

Hi all, long-time lurker. Just made an account to finally start participating. I never thought I would be a hunter but I bought a mitigation/depridation doe voucher last year just to check "hunting" off my bucket list. The moment I sat by that downed doe and took a moment to appreciate her I knew that I would be a hunter for the rest of my life. This year I'm stepping it up a level by applying for an anterless elk hunt. I'm looking at Mt. Dutton Deep Creek in early December. Fair and consistent harvest statistics suggest that the unit may be forgiving of my newbie mistakes. I understand that it doesn't have much in terms of roads, but I'm willing to put the hiking effort into getting where the elk are. 

So my questions...would you suggest this hunt to someone starting out like me? Will a 4x4 with chains be enough to get me high enough to start hiking, or is this a hunt that requires a snowmobile? If anyone has any information about how to go about a hunt here, a PM would be appreciated. I've searched through the forum already and read people commenting that going up deer and deep creeks would be good. Any more info would be much appreciated. Thanks!

Edit: If anyone knows someone near there that is familiar with the area, I'd be willing to pay for a day or two of amateur guide service...with some kind of agreement that if I shoot a cow (or get a reasonable shot opportunity) the fee would double.


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## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

It is all going to depend on the amount of snow. If this year is like last year you should be able to drive anywhere you want to go but if it is a normal year the elk will be down and on the private lands where you are going to have to do a lot of door knocking to get access to shoot one.


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## PBH (Nov 7, 2007)

Critter said:


> ... but if it is a normal year the elk will be down and on the private lands where you are going to have to do a lot of door knocking to get access to shoot one.


Not on Dutton! Those elk will be up at the very top of the mountain!

Horses are a great benefit on Dutton late cow elk hunts.


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## fattybinz (Jun 12, 2018)

PBH said:


> Not on Dutton! Those elk will be up at the very top of the mountain!
> 
> Horses are a great benefit on Dutton late cow elk hunts.


Unfortunately I do not have access to horses. Even if I had someone that would rent them to me or something, I don't have any experience with them, so I don't know if I would be comfortable with that.


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## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

PBH said:


> Not on Dutton! Those elk will be up at the very top of the mountain!
> 
> Horses are a great benefit on Dutton late cow elk hunts.


I don't know about that. Last year when we came around HWY 22 after fishing at Pine Lake to Antimony we spotted quite a few down off of the hill, this was during the deer hunt.


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## PBH (Nov 7, 2007)

Critter said:


> I don't know about that. Last year when we came around HWY 22 after fishing at Pine Lake to Antimony we spotted quite a few down off of the hill, this was during the deer hunt.


Exactly. down low in the summer / fall, up high in the winter. That unit is screwy.

Personally, I don't hunt the Dutton. I don't think that Deep Creek unit is "forgiving" for anyone.

If you want a "forgiving" hunt, get that Dutton/Plateau tag. Then you'd have the best of Dutton, Boulder, and Fishlake to hunt. Whatever the weather brings, you'd most likely still be able to access areas that hold elk. That's just a harder draw to obtain.


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## fattybinz (Jun 12, 2018)

PBH said:


> Personally, I don't hunt the Dutton. I don't think that Deep Creek unit is "forgiving" for anyone.


What about it makes it not forgiving? This is exactly the info I need. Thanks


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## johnnycake (Jul 19, 2011)

fattybinz said:


> What about it makes it not forgiving? This is exactly the info I need. Thanks


I would imagine he is getting at the combination of the following factors:

1. Elk are big (unless you shoot a calf, 10/10 johnny-style sociopaths would recommend)
2. There is a lot of steep, nasty terrain without easy road access that hiking into is one thing, but packing out an elk is another. See #1.
3. Late season hunts can start out with usable roads, but can change in an instant and you're stuck way out in the middle of nowhere with little/no cell coverage.

Those would be my guesses, but I don't know the Deep Creeks that well.


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## PBH (Nov 7, 2007)

It's not just about getting an elk out. It's also about getting _to where the elk are._

Like I said: horses are a great benefit for those late season Dutton elk hunts. This is one very good reason I never apply for Dutton late cow elk tags.

Further, there are other units that are easier to get into cows that time of year than Dutton. And you're banking on restricting your options to one small area of the Dutton.

Maybe I'm crazy. I've been caught off base before, and it will probably happen again. Hopefully some people that have actually hunted late cows on Dutton will chime in and tell you what you want to hear.


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## fattybinz (Jun 12, 2018)

PBH said:


> It's not just about getting an elk out. It's also about getting _to where the elk are._Further, there are other units that are easier to get into cows that time of year than Dutton. And you're banking on restricting your options to one small area of the Dutton.
> 
> Maybe I'm crazy. I've been caught off base before, and it will probably happen again. Hopefully some people that have actually hunted late cows on Dutton will chime in and tell you what you want to hear.


Sounds like this may not be a good option for me then. :/ Is there another unit that you would suggest? Keep in mind I have 0 points lol. Maybe I can just build points and do a depredation/mitigation elk hunt this year.


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## PBH (Nov 7, 2007)

hmm...




Most of the hunts in the southern areas are low on tag numbers this year, which is going to make getting them harder with 0 points. Not impossible.


I don't know much about the Beaver hunts.
Panguitch Lake hunts you could probably draw. I'm sure many people would be able to give good advice on hunting that area. 

Fish Lake is always a good late hunt.

Plateau / Boulder is where we typically hunt. Like many units, much of the success depends on snow. Like Goldilocks, you need it "just right". Too much snow makes it hard, and not enough snow makes it hard. A little snow is just right.




Do you archery hunt? Something to consider would be this:
A. Put in for the Dutton / Deep Creek hunt like you had planned.
B. Purchase an over-the-counter archery elk (spike) permit.
C. Go hunt in that Dutton / Deep Creek area Aug 18 - Sep 7
D. If you find a cow, kill it archery. Or a spike. Or both if you drew that late season tag. 


(I'm assuming Dutton is open to spike archery elk -- correct?)


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## Bucksnbulls08 (Sep 18, 2008)

Deep creek is very steep and rough, top to bottom. The only road access is from the bottom but does not gain much elevation before you come to the end of the road. If you can even get to the top then, it is a long steep walk down into Deep. Unless there is about 36” of snow the elk will remain high. There are always a few down low but most are high. Deep is a horse hunt. Very limited access.


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