Mule deer, Book Cliffs?? Why so much$$$

[AT Hiker]

Not to mention any major magazine names, but those that know what I am talking about why are mule deer hunts so dang expensive in this area?

$20k for a deer hunt? Insane...what am I missing here?

FYI...I know nothing about UT hunting.

 

[ivorytip]

Utah draw systems are crazy!!! no sane man would ever pay that much for a deer tag. 20k must have been some kind of auction tag. book cliffs area is hard enough to draw as a res but for a non res?? you will be putting in for 15 years to draw. there are awesome general hunts in other western states.

 

[PointsHunter]

20k is WAY over the top for Book Cliffs. It had to be an auction tag - but that really sounds high. My cousin drew a Res tag last year with 2 points (lucky sob). Great area, tons of deer, lots of good bucks. Have to be patient to find something exceptional. One could purchase several landowner tags for that amount in just as good areas elsewhere in Utah.

For 20k I'd be sheep hunting!

 

[AT Hiker]

What about Henry Mountains? I seen something where a mule deer hunt was worth more than the $20k.

For $20k I would invest it in a growth stock mutual fund and use the earnings to pay for DIY trips for the rest of my life!!!!

 

[shedhead]

The Henry's routinely sell for $95-105,000 each year. 20K sounds really high for the Books, those usually end up in the $4-7,000 range.

 

[PointsHunter]

Some will think it crazy.... But 20k for Henry tag would be a steal... Like Shedhead pointed out they go a lot higher. 20k sounds like a ton - but that's not much more than a Dall sheep hunt and there aren't a lot of units nation-wide that stack up with Henry's.

 

[okielite]

Wealthy hunters enjoy many advantages in Utah.

 

[AT Hiker]

The Henry's routinely sell for $95-105,000 each year. 20K sounds really high for the Books, those usually end up in the $4-7,000 range.

Thats insane! I could not imagine paying $100k for a hunt, I barely paid that for my house!!!

 

[shedhead]

It boils down to perspective. paying $100,000 seams outrageous to most of us. But lets say you have 5 million dollars (logical ballpark for some of the guys buying these tags), that is the same as someone making $50,000 a year buying a $1,000 hunt. Not so ridiculous when you look at it from a different standpoint.

 

[woodtick]

Wealthy hunters enjoy many advantages in Utah.

Yeah they kill the draw odds for Res and Non Res alike, complete horse manure!!

 

[woodtick]

Thats insane! I could not imagine paying $100k for a hunt, I barely paid that for my house!!!

I don't remember what tag it was that was sold at the WHCE this year but it fetched 450K!!! That is just the tag not including guides and all the other necessities!!

 

[PointsHunter]

I don't remember what tag it was that was sold at the WHCE this year but it fetched 450K!!! That is just the tag not including guides and all the other necessities!!

If you had the money to pay 450k for a tag... The guide and necessities don't even cross your mind!

 

[woodtick]

If you had the money to pay 450k for a tag... The guide and necessities don't even cross your mind!

Exactly, I'm sure he'll fork over another 100k for guide fee's to old Mossback again this year!!

 

[shedhead]

The 450K was for the Montana Statewide Bighorn two years ago I believe. Don't think it was sold at the WHCE though. Arizona's gov. elk tags were in the 380K range recently. And yes, if I had millions I'd buy one too, just skip the outfitter and spend 4 months scouting, that would be a blast.

 

[ivorytip]

how much did that guy who killed the "spider bull" pay for his tag?

 

[PointsHunter]

how much did that guy who killed the "spider bull" pay for his tag?

Something like 150-170k. He's dropped over 300k twice on Ut deer tags... I've read that he's dropped almost 2mil on Utah tags all together.

 

[ivorytip]

that is crazy! all that money goes back into the state though right? I know a lot of families I could help out if I had cash like that. sad to see it be spent on hunting an animal, but hopefully Utah makes good use of the money.

 

[ssliger]

that is crazy! all that money goes back into the state though right? I know a lot of families I could help out if I had cash like that. sad to see it be spent on hunting an animal, but hopefully Utah makes good use of the money.

The organizations that auction these tags are not transparent with where the money goes. And that is a problem in my book.

 

[shedhead]

By law, the organizations get 10% of the sales and 90% goes back to the Utah DWR. What the organizations do with that 10% is their choice. This is the same for all orgs. MDF, SFW,RMEF, FNAWS, they all sell tags. DWR has conducts audits of these orgs to verify the 90/10 split.

 

[ivorytip]

why doesnt fish and game auction the tags off and get 100% of the money for it? how do these organizations get these tags unless fish and game is giving them these tags? i guess if they think they will end up making more money off of the organizations selling tags it makes sense.