Cache South Archery

tailgunner · Feb 20, 2023

I drew the Cache South archery elk tag at the expo and I'm looking for some info on this hunt. I'm a nonresident so scouting will be limited. I will be able to get up once or twice in the summer. Does anyone have a guide recommendation in my unit or a starting point to scout. Any help is appreciated. Thanks

Deer · Feb 20, 2023

Congrats!! Wish I had some info to share.

middlefork · Feb 20, 2023

If you have OnX download the unit and you can eliminate most private land as it is CWMU or no public access. There is plenty of public to hunt and not terribly difficult to locate bulls during that hunt. I'm not sure what your expectations are.

Can't help on guides. But there is a few people on here who know the unit pretty well. I would recommend searching for previous threads.

I know a few people trying to draw that tag so I'm a bit reluctant to get more detailed until the results of the regular draw are out.

tailgunner · Feb 20, 2023

I do have OnX and I will download the unit, thanks. I've also ordered a unit map from mytopo it should be here soon. Great idea to look at previous posts, I will start looking. I not sure where to set my expectations on this hunt, I guess it will depend what I find out scouting and talking to people. Thanks
for the help.

matt23 · Feb 20, 2023

tailgunner said:
I do have OnX and I will download the unit, thanks. I've also ordered a unit map from mytopo it should be here soon. Great idea to look at previous posts, I will start looking. I not sure where up set my expectations on this hunt, I guess it will depend what I find out scouting and talking to people. Thanks
for the help.

I have hunted the unit quite a bit. Usually not during that time frame of your tag though. Give me a pm if you'd like. Lucky guy. Pretty good tag you got.

PleaseDear · Feb 21, 2023

It's a pretty big unit and a fun hunt .

Robb

MountainRat · Feb 21, 2023

tailgunner said:
I drew the Cache South archery elk tag at the expo and I'm looking for some info on this hunt. I'm a nonresident so scouting will be limited. I will be able to get up once or twice in the summer. Does anyone have a guide recommendation in my unit or a starting point to scout. Any help is appreciated. Thanks

I have hunted it a few times. Send me a PM. I'd be happy to give you some pointers.

Dangbig · Feb 22, 2023

You will have fun tons of elk 260-300 is realistic with out a lot of scouting I will keep my eye open for one I spend every weekend up there from snow melts to December sometime I find a good one I will pm you if I do

honkerdwn · Feb 22, 2023

Look up Kearl Ranch Outfitters. I hunted with them early rifle years ago and had a great time. Greg Wamsley or Clint Kearl. They own and run a lot of private ground up there that holds a lot of elk. There is a lot of other private ground in the unit as well. Not saying there's no public because there is but if your a non res and wanting to put the odds in your favor give them a call. I live 1 1/2 from the unit and have spent a ton of time on the east side of the unit. There is elk but it can be tough. Congrats on the tag! Either way you'll enjoy the hunt, its beautiful up there!

Side note: I went the guided route because of a situation at the time. Drew the tag, dad had the big C and want to experience a elk hunt. They accommodated us perfect. In the end had a great trip, chase elk everyday, great bull tagged, and dad is good to go!

tailgunner · Feb 22, 2023

Thanks every for the all the info, I really appreciate it. I have been looking through past posts on the Cache South unit but I haven't found many recent posts. As soon as my map arrives I will be sending out PM's. I am extremely lucky to have won this tag and would like to make the best of it, thanks again for your help.

tailgunner · Feb 22, 2023

PleaseDear said:
It's a pretty big unit and a fun hunt .

Robb

I'm looking forward to it.

tailgunner · Feb 22, 2023

Dangbig said:
You will have fun tons of elk 260-300 is realistic with out a lot of scouting I will keep my eye open for one I spend every weekend up there from snow melts to December sometime I find a good one I will pm you if I do

Thanks Dangbig, I'm early in my planning stages of this hunt , but I plan to head up for a couple look arounds this summer. I would love some starting area's.

middlefork · Feb 22, 2023

I believe both Kearls and Wamsley are all in Cache-Meadowville not Cache South.

matt23 · Feb 22, 2023

tailgunner said:
Thanks every for the all the info, I really appreciate it. I have been looking through past posts on the Cache South unit but I haven't found many recent posts. As soon as my map arrives I will be sending out PM's. I am extremely lucky to have won this tag and would like to make the best of it, thanks again for your help.

Give me a message when you get your map. I'll give you a couple areas to check out where I usually see bulls.

bamacpl · Feb 22, 2023

honkerdwn said:
Look up Kearl Ranch Outfitters. I hunted with them early rifle years ago and had a great time. Greg Wamsley or Clint Kearl. They own and run a lot of private ground up there that holds a lot of elk. There is a lot of other private ground in the unit as well. Not saying there's no public because there is but if your a non res and wanting to put the odds in your favor give them a call. I live 1 1/2 from the unit and have spent a ton of time on the east side of the unit. There is elk but it can be tough. Congrats on the tag! Either way you'll enjoy the hunt, its beautiful up there!

Side note: I went the guided route because of a situation at the time. Drew the tag, dad had the big C and want to experience an elk hunt. They accommodated us perfect. In the end had a great trip, chase elk everyday, great bull tagged, and dad is good to go!

Kearl Ranch would be “Cache Medowville” different unit than South Cache

HORNhunter7 · Feb 22, 2023

tailgunner said:
Thanks Dangbig, I'm early in my planning stages of this hunt , but I plan to head up for a couple look arounds this summer. I would love some starting area's.

I would suggest calling the local biologist in that area and chatting with him. You could PM me for his name and phone number or get it from the division office in Ogden. 801 476 2740.

tailgunner · Feb 23, 2023

HORNhunter7 said:
I would suggest calling the local biologist in that area and chatting with him. You could PM me for his name and phone number or get it from the division office in Ogden. 801 476 2740.

That's a great idea, thanks.

tailgunner · Feb 23, 2023

matt23 said:
Give me a message when you get your map. I'll give you a couple areas to check out where I usually see bulls.

I well be in touch, thanks for the help.

honkerdwn · Feb 27, 2023

honkerdwn said:
Look up Kearl Ranch Outfitters. I hunted with them early rifle years ago and had a great time. Greg Wamsley or Clint Kearl. They own and run a lot of private ground up there that holds a lot of elk. There is a lot of other private ground in the unit as well. Not saying there's no public because there is but if your a non res and wanting to put the odds in your favor give them a call. I live 1 1/2 from the unit and have spent a ton of time on the east side of the unit. There is elk but it can be tough. Congrats on the tag! Either way you'll enjoy the hunt, its beautiful up there!

Side note: I went the guided route because of a situation at the time. Drew the tag, dad had the big C and want to experience a elk hunt. They accommodated us perfect. In the end had a great trip, chase elk everyday, great bull tagged, and dad is good to go!

I stand corrected. Im not sure what was going through my head when I seen your post. Just hoping to help I suppose. Enjoy your hunt!!

huntin50 · Mar 14, 2023

Good potential.
if-you look at harvest success the past two years, only one archery hunter out of 9 permits filled their tags Each year. A few days later season will help some.

gundog2 · Mar 15, 2023

There will be lots of hunting camps up there on the general archery elk hunt, which ends September 8. The general archery spike/cow elk permits are unlimited, and it is very popular with locals. The general archery deer hunt goes until September 15, so there will still be plenty of hunters and non hunters in the unit, but then you got eight quality days. There are lots of roads and trails, so it is also very popular for atvs and stuff like that. I would try to spend sometime scouting around during the general archery elk hunt just to get some idea where people are hunting and maybe try talking with people.

tailgunner · Mar 18, 2023

huntin50 said:
Good potential.
if-you look at harvest success the past two years, only one archery hunter out of 9 permits filled their tags Each year. A few days later season will help some.

Ouch.. I have not seen the success rate stats. I sure hope it gets better this year. Thanks for the info.

Dangbig · Mar 18, 2023

You should be able to find a bull and have a great experience
If your stuck on a number you may be disappointed

tailgunner · Mar 30, 2023

Dangbig said:
You should be able to find a bull and have a great experience
If your stuck on a number you may be disappointed.

I'm not stuck on numbers. I just want to have a good time and kill a nice elk. I won't be able to hunt the whole 28 days of this hunt, so I'll need to make good use of my time. Good luck to everyone in the draw and thanks for the advice and tips.

roadrunner · Mar 30, 2023

huntin50 said:
Good potential.
if-you look at harvest success the past two years, only one archery hunter out of 9 permits filled their tags Each year. A few days later season will help some.

A 10% success rate is pretty normal for avg units

middlefork · Mar 30, 2023

I don't know your definition of average units but this is a Utah LE unit. They generally run about 30% success for archery.

The OP should not have a problem running into elk. The rest is up to him.

roadrunner · Mar 30, 2023

middlefork said:
I don't know your definition of average units but this is a Utah LE unit. They generally run about 30% success for archery.

The OP should not have a problem running into elk. The rest is up to him.

Not all Utah LE units are created equal, an avg unit will provide opportunity. Good units will provide more opportunities than avg and excellent units will provide more than good units. It comes down to bull to cow ratio, local herd nose count and pressure throughout an entire season - pre, during, and post.

Archery hunts usually run the lowest success rates. Across the board in avg units for archery that runs in the 10% range.

Big difference between running into elk and connecting. Lots can go wrong with archery real quick - more stars need to align at 40 yds rather than 400 yds.

woodruffhunter · Mar 30, 2023

Glad to help if I can. I live in the unit and have hunted it a lot.
I am certainly no expert but do know the area well. The best part about this unit is that there is A LOT of public land.

Best of luck and congrat's.

middlefork · Mar 31, 2023

https://wildlife.utah.gov/pdf/annual_reports/big_game/21_bg_report.pdf

Page 82

tmbr_hntr · Apr 2, 2023

My dad had the tag a few years ago. It actually was a very tough hunt without a lot of action, but we did end up finding a decent bull on his next to last day of the hunt. Very little rutting action that year. Other than the end result I wasn't impressed with the unit.

His bull was 374" gross if anyone was wondering.

Dangbig · Apr 2, 2023

Good bull for the area, it is mostly quite during the bow hunt
Muzzleloader is best I think

roadrunner · Apr 2, 2023

middlefork said:
https://wildlife.utah.gov/pdf/annual_reports/big_game/21_bg_report.pdf

Page 82

2 more permits would've put it at 10%. Had the "1" missed, it would've been 0.

This is why some of these LE units are misleading - we don't know if all 8 shot and missed or didn't even have an opportunity...

tmbr_hntr · Apr 2, 2023

Dangbig said:
Good bull for the area, it is mostly quite during the bow hunt
Muzzleloader is best I think

Yes, I've had way more bugling/rutting action on general area hunts all over the west. Having little pressure is the only thing that made this hunt ok. It took me 2+ hours of working and dogging that bull to call him into my dad. May not have worked with lots of other hunters around.

Dangbig · Apr 2, 2023

tmbr_hntr said:
Yes, I've had way more bugling/rutting action on general area hunts all over the west. Having little pressure is the only thing that made this hunt ok. It took me 2+ hours of working and dogging that bull to call him into my dad. May not have worked with lots of other hunters around.

Looks like Curtis /rock creek area I have been trying to find pictures I think some where I have of this guy

tailgunner · Apr 4, 2023

tmbr_hntr said:
My dad had the tag a few years ago. It actually was a very tough hunt without a lot of action, but we did end up finding a decent bull on his next to last day of the hunt. Very little rutting action that year. Other than the end result I wasn't impressed with the unit.

View attachment 107136

View attachment 107137

His bull was 374" gross if anyone was wondering.

Nice Bull Congrats.. I would love a shot at a bull like that. I guess time will tell, I'm just glad to have a chance.

middlefork · Apr 4, 2023

That bull is in the upper range for the unit. Nice bull.

Bugle action on the archery hunt is generally limited to the last week or so. It is that way on a lot of the units.

There is some pre rut action before and you can get bulls coming in looking with cow calls earlier. Glassing and ambushing also works.

tallelkchaser · Jun 16, 2023

Tailgunner I’ll shoot you a PM. I have the muzzy tag this year and will be spending as much time as I can up there. There are some good bulls on the unit, just have to find em. Happy to help out where I can.

matt23 · Jun 18, 2023

Tailgunner, I know we have texted and had a few phone calls. My son drew a tag up on the neighboring unit. We will be spending some time up there this summer. Reach out before your hunt to me again. I'll let you know what I have found.