I realize you may not want to comment on the forum, and if not I'd love to see your PMs with ideas too.
Anyone on here know of a good option? Thanks!
I had good luck with the latter. I drew a premium UT tag a few years ago and knew nothing of the unit other than its reputation. Drawing the tag was a big surprise. I also drew solo and knew I should get some help to make the best of the opportunity. I had my own camp, atv, gear, and desire to hunt on my own, I just didn't know the country and lacked time to scout sufficiently. I called a very well known outfitting business in the area and asked if he had any fully guided clients with the tag I had. He said no, so I explained my situation, that I did not need or want a fully guided hunt, and asked if he might have a guide I could hire just on a daily rate to point me in the right direction and show me around for a few days. He set me up with the son of one of his top guides who was an apprentice at the time. He knew the unit well. I paid him a very nominal sum and killed a great bull. The whole arrangement worked out great. If you call around the units you are interested in, you might be able to arrange something similar.
First off, at 11 points, you're vested enough that I imagine you don't want a lower quality hunt, but you're also just 1 to 3 points behind a sure thing in some great units. The problem is, these units pretty much all have a point of creep per year for the tags.
Secondly, as someone else mentioned, many units only have one tag. Many others dont have 2 tags available in the point round since UT divides their tags 50/50 to the point round and the random round.
Third, many of these units don't require a back country trip, but I'm sure you'd both have a great time in a great unit hunting from the truck.
There are a couple units you guys could draw together, but they might not be the quality you guys are hoping for.
How long are you willing to wait if you don't draw?
Consider the option mentioned of applying separately. That's what I do with my dad and I, although we have less points than you guys. If one of us were to draw, the other would hunt on an OTC cow/spike tag.
If you really want to draw next year, you could draw either Wasatch or the Central Mountains/Manti. You'd draw them for sure. There's a good chance you won't draw Fishlake next year, but you probably will in 2-3.
They'll certainly be a better hunt than your typical OTC hunt. But if you really want a good chance at a big bull, you'll need to roll the dice on a unit that won't be a sure thing and wait it out.
Remember, Utah has a 1st and 2nd choice so you need to have two units in mind and you need to consider different strategies for applying with two choices as you can go long on the first, but if you go too low with your 2nd choice, that's what you're gonna get so you'll have to be happy with that.
My dad is 65 so I put him in for two units that would be great hunts, but have a better shot at drawing. I'm 37, so I put myself in for one top end unit and one of the units I put my dad in for. Either way, we'd hunt together if one of us drew and then we'd continue with the same application strategy.
For sure go separate as arrowing 2 quality bulls out of the units you may/may not draw by applying group is a tough order to full.
The bow hunt dates will be the best in years in 2016 as 9er stated above.
Granted there are 1st/2nd choices but I can not remember a single person in years and years that has drawn a 2nd choice LE tag. (Utah is not like Az. or Nv. as look at your choices before the next applicant)
It is 1st choice and then if any are leftover it is into 2nd choice---never happens on LE tags non -ressy pool.
2 other LE units you may want to look into would be Mnt. Dutton and Book Cliffs Bitter Creek.
Good luck, Robb
Also as mentioned Book Cliffs Rdls would be the only one a drop camp would make sense to me. However there are many places that having a Packer on Speed dial after your kill, would come in handy!
lots of good advice
I want to have a great time, with honest potential for a very good bull 330+ (tall order I know) and a reasonably comfortable arrangement to stay 10 days or so.
Are there cabins in any of these areas that would make sense or is a tent camp or RV the way to go? We would be flying in.
There's cabins all over Utah, especially the units that are closer to SLC, but they're pretty darn expensive within 150 miles of SLC. You may be better off renting a truck and a pop up tent trailer or going the tent route. I did that for a Yellowstone trip one year. They're very comfortable. There's a service that'll park a 5th wheel at any campground for you too. Consider driving your own truck. Take turns sleeping and it'll only take you a day coming and going.
BTW, even with 11 points, you're looking at 2-4% odds in many of the units that have "honest potential for a very good bull 330+" if they fall above 11 points in the point round. The units I mentioned will have bulls that big, as pretty much every unit does, but not on the level that the units that are taking 14ish points and I'm not referring to San Juan.
It is possible.
There are several units in UT where a 330 range bull is very doable.
They could purchase a tag if they want
Many units offer only 1 non-ressy tag----that said....Every applicant is in for that 1 tag, so your 11 points kinda don't make up for that as it just always seems to be a low point applicant that draws the 1 tag.
Good luck, Robb
If there's just one tag, it goes to random and normal bonus points apply to affect your chances. If there's 2 tags, one goes to random of the highest point holders or the single highest point holder if there's only one person (as it would in a preference point system) with that many points and one goes to random for everyone. If there are 3 tags, one goes to the highest point holder or randomed to the highest point holder group and two go into random for everyone. If there's 4 tags, it's 2 and 2, etc etc.
In other words, if there's one tag for a unit and two people apply for it, one person having 8 points and the other person having 0 points, it's random so the first person will have their points and their app so a 9 in 10 chance of drawing and the person with 0 points will just have their app so they'll have a 1 in 10 chance.
If there's a draw with 2 tags and 3 people apply, one has 1 point and the other two have zero points, then the person with 1 point will have a 100% chance of drawing the tag that goes by points and the people with 0 points will have a 50% chance of drawing the 2nd (random round) tag.
100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 33.3% 10.2% 9.0% 8.0% 6.9% 5.7% 4.7% 3.6% 2.3% 1.2%
There were 18 nonres tags (9 max points and 9 bonus)
Here are the number of PEOPLE that had points from 12 to 0. 1 person had 12, 2 had 11, etc:
1 2 1 15 5 5 13 26 13 20 20 42 66
Now look at the odds for boulder from 13 points to 0:
50.0% 2.2% 2.0% 1.8% 1.7% 1.5% 1.3% 1.2% 1.0% 0.8% 0.7% 0.5% 0.3% 0.2%
There were only 2 tags with one max and 1 bonus. Notice how your odds drop from 50% to 2.2% when you go from 13 to 12 points! So your points last year (10) would have given you a 1.8% chance of drawing!
