Rifle Elk Hunt - Currant Creek

6227 Views 39 Replies 18 Participants Last post by berrysblaster, Oct 10, 2015

Elkaddict

Discussion Starter · Oct 5, 2015

Went up currant creek for the spike elk hunt up Red Creek - I have been hunting there for 20+ years and in years past have never seen many hunter maybe 1 or 2 when I was out hunting.

Well this year I couldn't believe the amount of people - we counted 18 four wheelers driving all in a line at one point. Every single clearing and on top had someone sitting in it - was crazy

Opening morning was like a war zone there must have been 40 shots within 2 hours. the elk herd I have been hunting for the past 20 years must have been destroyed - Sad

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Billy6x47

· #2 · Oct 5, 2015

I've also hunted up there for a very long time. Missed this year because we are having a baby . but from what i have heard it was insane how many people are up there
we need the weather to drive all the people out .

mjensen1313

· #3 · Oct 5, 2015

Currant creek has been this way for years come opening weekend! I drew out for Wasatch last year and this year so we didn't go this last weekend. The colder weather will help to drive people home.

As for the heard, if it's the same one we've been hunting it is very much doing well. My brother and I counted about 90 cows and three 6x6 bulls, of course that was three years ago.

hazmat

· #4 · Oct 5, 2015

mjensen1313 said:
Currant creek has been this way for years come opening weekend! I drew out for Wasatch last year and this year so we didn't go this last weekend. The colder weather will help to drive people home.

As for the heard, if it's the same one we've been hunting it is very much doing well. My brother and I counted about 90 cows and three 6x6 bulls, of course that was three years ago.

Three years ago and today there is a huge differance in the herd

35whelen

· #5 · Oct 6, 2015

I've never been to currant creek and not seen huge crowds

timber_cruiser

· #6 · Oct 6, 2015

I hunted Currant Creek and walked about 2 miles away from end of road access. I did not see anyone past this range away from road access and saw many elk. I filled my cow tag and packed out my meat in several trips. My impression is that few hunters go on foot more than a mile or so from road access, but that is where the animals will be found.

mjensen1313

· #7 · Oct 6, 2015

hazmat said:
Three years ago and today there is a huge differance in the herd

Not so much difference; brother in law got back last night, the herd we hunt is doing very strong still! Packed his freezer and then some.

mjensen1313

· #8 · Oct 6, 2015

timber_cruiser said:
I hunted Currant Creek and walked about 2 miles away from end of road access. I did not see anyone past this range away from road access and saw many elk. I filled my cow tag and packed out my meat in several trips. My impression is that few hunters go on foot more than a mile or so from road access, but that is where the animals will be found.

That is definitely the key; just off the roads are VERY crowded! Get hiking in, you will see tons of elk!

30-06-hunter

· #9 · Oct 6, 2015

We counted 21 people on horses in the area we hunt on Saturday, more than we have ever seen.

UTJuice

· #10 · Oct 7, 2015

Get on your feet and away from the crowds. My group of 3 each filled a tag. 1 spike and 2 cows. We were in elk every day but we stayed away from the lake and all the people. we ran into very few hunters in our 4 days.

Mtnbeer

· #11 · Oct 7, 2015

Seeing the CC herd on their winter migration last year, I can see where DWR has concerns about the elk numbers being over objective. However, I hunt on another portion of the CC unit and in places three years ago where I was seeing 3-1 cow to bull ratios, this year it was 0.7-1 cow to bull ratios (no, I am not joking). I have a control tag in my pocket, but honestly, I'm not sure I want to fill that tag, so that I can do my part to keep my future hunting opportunities in good shape.

Reactions: 2

Fishracer

· #12 · Oct 8, 2015

It is absolutely disgusting what is happening to the elk around CC. Yes you can see elk everyday, yes you can fill your tag. That is not the point! The point is the decline of the heard and the annihilation of the cows! The amount of hunters on the opener of the elk rifle hunt is flat out insane! That does not count all the deer hunters with control tags either! I cannot bring myself to shot a cow on this mountain. I just cant do it. I was up there for 3 weeks, during the L.E. muzzy elk. I hunted everyday and saw a total of 10 cows!!!!! Yes it was hot. Yes it was a full moon, but areas that always held elk are abandoned! I always tried to trust what the DWR was doing, but i cant anymore. Not with the year to year decline that i have seen. Im sure other hunters go up for a weekend or two and run into a heard of elk and think, wow, this is easy, there are elk everywhere! That is not the case. I have hunted this mountain every single year, in the same spot for over 25 years. The past 5 years is just a total termination of elk! I will never understand what the hell is happening and why!

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hazmat

· #13 · Oct 8, 2015

Yup I have a cabin in the area so I am up there more then alot all year long. I have awesome neighbors who live there all year long. And anybody who knows the unit real well. Will tell you cow numbers are very bad. Weekend warriors that go up twice a year might get lucky and tell you just get off the road we found some do not get the big picture. I seen cows this week during the rifle hunt but in herds of 4 to 5 and alot of them were harvested. It use to be herds of 10-15 and big herds of 30 plus. I challenge any one that says there are still plenty of cows to go up there during the middle of the winter and try to come close to the 6k the dwr claims. My guesses are you will be way off. It will be in the low hundreds

hazmat

· #14 · Oct 8, 2015

First the fish lake then wasatch I am willing to bet the Manti or beaver is the next cash grab for the dwr

WTRFWLN

· #15 · Oct 8, 2015

NO COWS

Sounds like the Rumors are correct for the DWR. "we have spent a lot of money to get the Elk Heard's up in these units, NOW WE NEED A RETURN ON OUR INVESTMENT". So stereotypical for the UTAH DIVISION OF NO WILDLIFE??? -O,--O,--O,-

archerycrazy

· #16 · Oct 8, 2015

I do not have a long history of spending time on this unit, but I can give my experience this year on my LE Elk Hunt. During several scouting trips over the summer and a few days in the hills just prior to and during my muzzleloader hunt, I saw fewer than 10 total cows. Saw way more bulls than cows. Just didn't seem right.

DallanC

· #17 · Oct 8, 2015

archerycrazy said:
I saw fewer than 10 total cows. Saw way more bulls than cows. Just didn't seem right.

Thats the problem with managing animals to ratios. The fastest way to increase bull to cow, or buck to doe ratios is to kill females. Its terrible for overall herd health though.

-DallanC

Reactions: 3

UTJuice

· #18 · Oct 8, 2015

IDK what you all were smoking. I have hunted that area for years and saw more cows this year than ever before. I saw multiple herds of 20 plus cows being pushed by a big bull. DWR was also in there with the helicopters breaking up the herds the day before the hunt. That is the main reason why you were seeing herds of 3 or 4. I filled my second tag Tuesday took awhile to find a spike they are herding back up everyday the herds got bigger. Btw the herds are not sitting next to the lake waiting to be shot at.

wildliferyan

· #19 · Oct 8, 2015

I hunted up soapstone and same thing. Usually saw more road hunters than actual hunters hiking in. But this year, there were hunters everywhere. In the last 5 years I had never heard as many shots the whole hunt as I heard opening day.

Vanilla

· #20 · Oct 8, 2015

The ever present battle between "quality" (IE- trophy) hunting theory vs "opportunity" hunting mindset.

The vast majority of us say that we prefer the "opportunity" model, and trophy hunting is ruining hunting. But when we go out and see lots of other hunters, it also makes us mad.

Not saying anyone is right or wrong. Just observing that things aren't also as black and white as we try and make them.

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