Utah Non-resident OTC

[Grim Archer]

hey guys, im looking for some info on hunting utah for a non-resident otc. would love to find a unit i could find decent bulls and bucks for a combo hunt. im not looking for monster trophys just something bigger than socal offers. any info would be appreciated and im not afraid to put in the time with glass just looking for some info where to start. thanks in advance. and until then let your arrows flight straight and true!

[Grim Archer]

oh and this is for the 2013 season.

[Mularcher]

I looked into a otc Mule Deer Archery this year but why wouldn’t you put in for the archery draw to at least try for a tag then look at otc if you don’t draw? You can buy left over otc archery tags IF there are any left after the draw but you have no control over what units you’ll hunt. If you do get an otc tag and don’t fill you can then hunt the extended archery season areas extending your season.

[Grim Archer]

ya i was checking out the extended season and did the online test. i know ill have to do it again next year but i wanted to see what it was like. i thought about putting in for the draw but dont really want to pay that much, i may end up doing that anyway. im just trying to get idea on what unit(s) i should try for. what are the dates for the extended season? i havent found that yet everything i read just says extended starting the day general season ends but how long does it go? i didnt realize the otc tags were unit specific, i thought it was a general season tag for any non limited unit. is elk the same way? the reason i am considering Utah over other states is i thought i could pick up the otc for the low price.

[Mularcher]

When buying the otc tag you'll have to buy a hunting license first then the archery deer tag if available.

It's been a while but I believe the extended archery season starts mid September and goes until mid December roughly but you can't hunt bucks in December.

[Grim Archer]

if i could hunt archery in november would be great since thats what im used to doing in WA but im not willing to pay the non-resident fee for there. its rediculous! one of the areas i was considering scouting was the north side of the fish lake area. would this be a decent place to start?

[a_bow_nut]

Lets start at the begining. When you pick up an archery elk tag you have two choices. You can hunt on either an open bull unit or a spike only unit. You can hunt anywhere in the state but just have to follow the rules of the unit that you are hunting on for that day be it an open bull of spike unit.

Stating that you would like to hunt a nice bull you first step would be to look into the open bull units that are avalible. Once that you have picked a unit you will need to look for a deer unit in that area also to put in for. On a side note the DWR has made it's recommendations for the 2013 season and it includes opening two more areas to general season open bull hunting. The two areas that they are talking about changing are the Beaver unit on the west side of I-15 and the Fillmore Oak Creek South unit. For deer hunting the Fillmore unit has a limited enty unit on it but there are general season units that are close by to hunt.

The Wasatch front extended unit does run until the end of november for the hunters choice and then antlerless only until mid december, but the antlerless portion may be going away next year also.

[Grim Archer]

thank you for all the info guys! looks like my next step is a road trip with some unit maps and usfs maps as well.