# Help with moose units?



## colorcountrygunner (Oct 6, 2009)

I've been putting in for moose for quite awhile for my OIL hunt and I have close to ten points. I never really pay which attention to what unit I have been putting in for because I didn't think my odds of drawing were very good and I didn't have a clue about any of the units anyway. I live and do all my hunting down south so I never spend any time on any of those units that moose live on. I was just curious if any of you guys who know would have any insight for me on a good unit.

What units seem to have the best overall numbers of moose? What units seem to have the most mature bulls? How many points does it usually take to draw OIL Moose?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.


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## Elkoholic8 (Jan 15, 2008)

About 5-10 years ago, Cache, North Slope, Wasatch, and Chalk Creek all held decent numbers of good bulls. However, in the last 3 years these units have all severly declined. I didn't even see a bull moose last year and I hunted all 3 deer seasons, plus 2 elk seasons on all the above units. If you draw, you can probably still kill a bull, but I don't know about a good sized moose. There are some still around, but very few and far between.

Unfortunately 10 points is not even half way to a guaranteed tag, and with the recent drop in tag numbers that is only going to get worse. Probably a good chance you'll never get one. I'm right behind you with 8 points that will most likely be wasted money by the time I die.

Good luck though. If you do end up with a tag, PM me and I'll see if I can help you out.


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## swbuckmaster (Sep 14, 2007)

the moose have been hit pretty hard in this state with some sort of disease. Then top it off the division has over sold the tags by killing to many bulls and cows and if that wasn't bad enough they rounded up and sold the rest to help out the states where they are being eaten by wolves. 

Just pick any unit up north. The further north you go the better. They all probably have the same quality now with 3-5 year old bulls being herd bulls. 

your in the same boat as I am for points. So it looks like you might have a chance in 120-180 years or so depending on what unit your applying for. Sucks to be us! I wish I would have been putting in for goats.


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## dkhntrdstn (Sep 7, 2007)

im right there with you with ten points. just got to hope you are the lucky one that draws a tag.


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## crimson obsession (Sep 7, 2008)

Do you think the division regrets trading away our moose in exchange for bighorn sheep? Anybody know how many consecutive years Utah and Colorado had this agreement?

Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk


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## colorcountrygunner (Oct 6, 2009)

Holy cow I had no idea the moose situation sucked so bad! I'm kinda ****** off that I've spent all these years applying now! Do you think it would be wise to just cut my losses with my moose points and begin applying for some other OIL species? Thanks for the info guys. I'll probably never be able to afford to go on some out of state moose hunt either. I guess I can just consider that one animal that will never adorn the wall of my trophy room. Oh well. :roll:


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## stuckduck (Jan 31, 2008)

colorcountrygunner said:


> Holy cow I had no idea the moose situation sucked so bad! I'm kinda ****** off that I've spent all these years applying now! Do you think it would be wise to just cut my losses with my moose points and begin applying for some other OIL species? Thanks for the info guys. I'll probably never be able to afford to go on some out of state moose hunt either. I guess I can just consider that one animal that will never adorn the wall of my trophy room. Oh well. :roll:


Im in the same boat... POT COMMITTED.. it will take you more than 10 years from today to draw a moose tag... you have to look at the long run will 10 years in a different OIL tag get you closer to a tag.. I'd say yes. I thought about switching up on the OIL tag but want to give it a few years and see if there is any rebound. Now with the wolf in the picture the moose just might not make it back... sure wish I could trade the points for something else.


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## DallanC (Jan 13, 2009)

stuckduck said:


> Im in the same boat... POT COMMITTED.. it will take you more than 10 years from today to draw a moose tag... you have to look at the long run will 10 years in a different OIL tag get you closer to a tag.. I'd say yes. I thought about switching up on the OIL tag but want to give it a few years and see if there is any rebound. Now with the wolf in the picture the moose just might not make it back... sure wish I could trade the points for something else.


10 years? I'm 1 year behind the current max and figure I still have 10 years. Wish I had gone for Mt Goat instead... my wife has 12 people ahead of her in her unit... 12! That sadly still puts her 5'ish years out.

My boy cant even start putting in for pts for another 5 years... he has absolutely zero chance at ever drawing a tag. Told him though to study hard, get a great paying job and he will be able to buy a tag every year.

-DallanC


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## xxxxxxBirdDogger (Mar 7, 2008)

FWIW- I've seen several nice bulls on the Cache in the past couple of years.


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## hazmat (Apr 23, 2009)

i have seen some good ones on the wasatch the last few years as well.they are definantly not as plentiful as they used to be. but they are still there for sure.i seen one of the biggest shiras bulls i have ever seen in utah last year ...


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## goofy elk (Dec 16, 2007)

I'll tell ya what, Nothin like getting the rug pulled out from under ya!!!

I spent almost 2 full weeks last fall on Kamas and SS Yellowsone trying
to figure out were to burn my 16 points,...

Thought I had a plan ..

Then the DWR decide to change the boundaries,,RIGHT WERE I'M PLANNING TO HUNT!
AND CUT 50% OF THE PERMITS!!!!! I realize moose numbers are down , cuts are needed..

BUT DAM!! I've got the one bull picked out I want,,,,BUT NOW probably wont draw 
Utah moose this year .. So, We put in for a TRUCKLOAD of other permits ..
Hopefully we'll draw something else and worry about the moose tag in a year or two.


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## ramrod (Apr 15, 2008)

could the reason moose numbers are starting to decline be due to wolfs starting to migrate south?


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## shaun larsen (Aug 5, 2011)

ramrod said:


> could the reason moose numbers are starting to decline be due to wolfs starting to migrate south?


no i think up until now it has more to do with shooting the **** out of them, then shipping the survivors to other states where they become wolf food. chalk up another great move to the DWR! these guys are on a roll.... o-||


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## Jonwo (Apr 29, 2010)

I hunted the Kamas unit for deer last year and saw quite a bit of moose. Got within 20 feet of one bull that I felt was pretty good sized, but that might have been because I was so close. Probably not helping much but just my 2 cents


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## MWScott72 (May 23, 2011)

What state(s) (besides CO) does the DWR have moose transplant agreements with?


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## spiderew (Oct 27, 2011)

My Brother pulled a Tag on a little CWMU in 2009 and we harvested a 36in bull but saw several others on the ranch so I put in with 9 points last year on the same CWMU and pulled a tag. I harvested a really nice 46 inch bull in the first hour of the hunt. After reading these posts I now feel that I might have won the Utah lottery.


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## spiderew (Oct 27, 2011)

I forgot to mention my Brother also had 9 points when he drew his tag. Have the numbers declined only in the last year?


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## stablebuck (Nov 22, 2007)

yeah I believe CWMU is the route you are gonna want to go if you want to draw any time soon...otherwise I would stick with the North Slope units...I was a resident and now am a non-resident so I'm just hoping for a good shake with the resident vs. non-resident tag allocation on the North Slope one of these years...


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## martymcfly73 (Sep 17, 2007)

I read somewhere they have some parasite that is affecting the heards. I put in for the Wasatch w/13 points. I spend a majority of my time there and its close to home. So I can spend a lot of time there. The herd has gone downhill but there are still some decent bulls. Who knows I may get lucky.


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## waspocrew (Nov 26, 2011)

I'm new to Utah hunting so I am at the bottom. This is my first year putting in for moose. I figured I'd have a long wait at a tag, but now I'm trying to decide if it's even worth putting in for. It might be better to switch and go after a different OIL.


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## Mrad (Mar 25, 2011)

If I had 10 or fewer moose points I'd cut my loses and start applying for mountain goats. 10 years from now there will very very few moose tags in Utah.


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## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

I have always figured that if you really wanted to hunt any of the OIL animals in the state of Utah or any other state that has a limited draw for them that it would be easier to save the money and head north to where you can buy a tag over the counter. 

I couldn't even begin to tell you how long I have been putting in for bison, goats, and sheep in Utah but it started back in the 70's before there were any points for the draw and now that I am a non-resident it may take that many more years before I think that I might have a chance. But as long as I can get a permit to use a motorized wheel chair with a oxygen tank then I'll be hunting them when I draw.


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## swbuckmaster (Sep 14, 2007)

All OIL hunts are a lottery tag unless you got in when they were first created. In fact if you weren't one of the first in line they very well could be never in your life. They are a pyramid scheme and the base of the pyramid is getting very wide. The future generations defiantly will never be guaranteed a tag. 

The bad thing is there are several Le elk rifle tags that are indeed OIL right now if not never in your life unless you draw them in the random draw. This is why I hate the spike hunts and the age objectives on these units. I would prefer to see bull to cow ratios. I know it sucks but at least this way my kids might be able to draw a bull tag some day. The way it is now they can only shoot a spike or a cow.

If you really want to know how you can up your odds of drawing a OIL tag all you have to do is move out of state. Being a non resident you will have a chance at all the oil tags. Its a very small chance in heck though. OR you can go to the SFW dog and pony expo show. This is the only way you can have a crack as a resident at multiple OIL tags. Sure the odds are worse then crap and you will more then likely just be throwing your $$400$$ bucks into Dons pocket where he will then use that money to lobby some dick weed politician into further screwing your hunting opportunity. 

Or maybe you can just save up $$+20,000 bucks and go buy the moose tag at one of SFW auctions where you will have some dill weed that isn't even interested in purchasing the tag bid against you just to run the bid up and make you fork over more dough.


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## El Matador (Dec 21, 2007)

swbuckmaster said:


> Sure the odds are worse then crap and you will more then likely just be throwing your $$400$$ bucks into Dons pocket where he will then use that money to lobby some dick weed politician into further screwing your hunting opportunity.


 -_O- Well said, this statement should be on the huntexpo.com homepage!

In regard to the original question, it would be wise to look at CWMUs. I guess it's like any other hunt in Utah - if you want the best quality/best chance at a big animal you should be prepared to wait a long time. There are plenty of hunts you can draw with fewer points that will get you in the field though. At least for now.


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## MWScott72 (May 23, 2011)

waspocrew said:


> I'm new to Utah hunting so I am at the bottom. This is my first year putting in for moose. I figured I'd have a long wait at a tag, but now I'm trying to decide if it's even worth putting in for. It might be better to switch and go after a different OIL.


I'd put in for mtn goats if I were starting out right now. Moose odds are beyond horrible. Goats are much better plus the herd is expanding while moose are declining. I'm stuck at 10 pts trying to draw a sheep tag but if I could do it over again, I'd do mtn goat.


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## DallanC (Jan 13, 2009)

MWScott72 said:


> I'd put in for mtn goats if I were starting out right now. Moose odds are beyond horrible. Goats are much better plus the herd is expanding while moose are declining. I'm stuck at 10 pts trying to draw a sheep tag but if I could do it over again, I'd do mtn goat.


I wish I could swap my Moose pts for Goat pts as well. But that said, goats are declining along with everything else. The goat unit my wife puts in for has been cut in half in the past couple of years. Its a terrible feeling to see the cuts when she is at the pinacle and seeing the years still stretch out. There are only 12 people ahead of her but shes still 5 or more years out.

-DallanC


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## mikevanwilder (Nov 11, 2008)

Glad I switched 4 years ago from moose to mtn goat. I felt this was coming with the moose in Utah and bailed out with only wasting 4 points. I also figured if I ever did hunt moose I wanted to go after Yukon moose instead of shiras anyway. Its part of my retirement plan. :mrgreen:


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## Beast (Apr 4, 2010)

I wish I could swap my Moose pts for Goat pts as well. But that said, goats are declining along with everything else. The goat unit my wife puts in for has been cut in half in the past couple of years. Its a terrible feeling to see the cuts when she is at the pinacle and seeing the years still stretch out. There are only 12 people ahead of her but shes still 5 or more years out.

-DallanC[/quote]
This is a little bit off of the moose unit, but maby some of the reason for the goat decline.
Last Sept. I went on a pack trip to the Uinta's, and while there I ran into 3 camps that where hunting Goats. ( 2 with rifles, 1 archery) We Saddled up one morning, and headed for the Upper Red Castle Lake to fish. We ran into the archery hunter, and ask him about the goat that was out on the ledge. He said one of the rifle hunters had shot it, crawled up to it, and left it. Only latter to shoot another one. We asked both camps about it, but they both blamed it on the other one. Must of had some ground shrinkage, but thats no reason to leave it.


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## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

Beast said:


> This is a little bit off of the moose unit, but maby some of the reason for the goat decline.
> Last Sept. I went on a pack trip to the Uinta's, and while there I ran into 3 camps that where hunting Goats. ( 2 with rifles, 1 archery) We Saddled up one morning, and headed for the Upper Red Castle Lake to fish. We ran into the archery hunter, and ask him about the goat that was out on the ledge. He said one of the rifle hunters had shot it, crawled up to it, and left it. Only latter to shoot another one. We asked both camps about it, but they both blamed it on the other one. Must of had some ground shrinkage, but thats no reason to leave it.


I believe that I would of made a trip out to the nearest phone service and reported them even if it took me the whole day to of gotten there. There are no excuses for not tagging the animal after you either pull the trigger or let the arrow fly.


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## sigboy66 (Nov 8, 2010)

Your best bets are drawing on a CWMU unit. I drew a moose tag in 2010 with 6 points and shot a respectable 43", 5 year old moose. Saw lots of moose that year around 19 total, 5 bulls, but 4 of them could not have been over 2 or 3 years old. In 2011 drew a buck deer tag for the same CWMU only saw two moose 1 cow, one 36" bull. Saw very few deer, no bucks worth shooting. I feel very fortunate to have drawn when I did. I give God all the credit for doing so the odds were definitely not in my favor.


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