Deseret News | Reader comments: Utah elk sets Boone and Crockett record

Reader comments
Utah elk sets record

19 comments | Read story

Anonymous | 10:21 a.m. Jan. 6, 2009

Now the World record is in Utah, thats fantastic. Congratulations!

Which one is it | 10:50 a.m. Jan. 6, 2009

The article says the bull scored 478 BC and the picture says 499 BC. Which one is it? Did it gross 499?

Anonymous | 10:55 a.m. Jan. 6, 2009

Congratulations! Fantastic looking beast!

Comments continue below

Great Bull | 11:36 a.m. Jan. 6, 2009

The score of 478 was the dry score. The 499 was scored just after the animal was killed. The antlers had to dry for a set period of time to give its final score. 478 is a monster!!!

not a believer | 11:39 a.m. Jan. 6, 2009

I'd like to see DNA prove that this elk belongs to the herd down on the Monroe where it was taken. People scout that area like mad and this bull appeared this year out of nowhere. Nobody has ever collected sheds on it or seen it in previous years.

A typical bull can gain 40 inches of growth each year which means he would have been a 450 bull (gross, 425 net) last year which is enormous. Even if he doubled the growth rate, and grew 7 feet of new antler this year, he would have been a 400+ bull last year which anyone would take note of, yet somehow he went completely unnoticed on one of the most popular units in the state. How does a bull that has 7 feet more antler than any bull taken there go so unnoticed before this year?

My hunch is that it was bought and released in early spring or late winter by one of the guides down there like Mossback or Tines-Up. Mossback (the guide used here) is all ready a convicted felon for poaching... why not do it? It generated hundreds of thousands of dollars for outfitters this year!

Fishy | 11:56 a.m. Jan. 6, 2009

I say this was farm raised. And he didn't hunt fo 13 days, he had a paid scout watching the bull for months. Then when it was time, they woke him up from sleeping in the motel and said "Time to come shoot him." Don't make it sound like this guy is some great hunter.

When I first saw | 11:55 a.m. Jan. 6, 2009

The picture, I mistook it for one of the Bucks we used to take down on the Boulder in the 1960's. Then after a closer view from another angle I realized it was an Elk.

If true it is great.

don't believe | 12:39 p.m. Jan. 6, 2009

This has to be a farm grown elk.
I do not like Mossback outfitters. They are no good to the industry. They cheat and step on people. Get me the DNA and lets see what really is going on.

Todd Evans | 6:02 p.m. Jan. 6, 2009

All of you doubters, do your research!!
I have no doubt at all that this is a wild Utah elk, I think that the Utah Division has done an amazing job at managing our herds. This is proved by the number of bulls that have been taken out of Utah in the last few years putting us ahead of all other states including Arizona, for the number of book bulls harvested. I hope that with my 13 points collected so far that I soon will have a chance at anything close to this bull.
I do however have issues with the guides. IF the rumors are true that Mossback aggressivly chased other hunters off of this bull on public lands and chased the bull off of private lands back on to public lands there should be an investigation and they have absolutly no place in the guide business, and IF that is the case then this bull should not count as a fair chase harvested bull. However, I congatulate the hunter on a fine bull in any case. What the guides may have done should not reflect in a negative way on him.

Idahoan | 6:23 p.m. Jan. 6, 2009

Congratulation on the fine bull elk. Some advice from an Idaho elk hunter: do what ever you have to to keep wolves out of your state because if you don't, you will never see another elk live long enough to grow to a mature animal. I don't hate wolves, I just enjoy elk, moose and deer more! Elk where I hunt are in trouble and according to research by wildlife biologists, over predation from wolves is the reason. But, few people care about the elk.

Wolves bring balance. | 8:04 p.m. Jan. 6, 2009

It must be something in the genetics of folks from Idaho regarding wolves?? I won't rant too long, but take yellowstone, you know where most of the wolves live. The elk herd numbers are up since the wolves have been introduced. For all of you that think that wolves are going to decimate the elk, deer and moose herds I would like you to explain that to me. The wolves may shift the elk around a little from one drainage to another, but will never kill all the elk. Maybe you should take a short walk from your ATV and you may start seeing some elk again.

Prehistoric Irish Elk | 8:48 p.m. Jan. 6, 2009

That set of headgear rivals a pair of mounted racks I once saw in a tour of a stately home (Longleat House) near Stonehenge that had been there for centuries. I was startled by the massive size of the antlers, which looked like a cross between moose and elk, and asked the docent what they were. He told me they were from two prehistoric Irish Elk.

I'm with "not a believer"...dubious that a bull of that size could have escaped detection, or at least discovery of his sheds, for that many years. I'm a bit surprised that B&C didn't give it a little more scrutiny to preserve the integrity of their record book.

kulu | 8:34 a.m. Jan. 7, 2009

Hiring high school kids to drive up and down the mountain and pushing the elk into public areas is fraudulent. Everyone in Monroe knows this hunt was a farce. This is what has become of "our" wildlife. The division has carte blanche to sell to the highest bidder and they only buy/bid if they know there's a big animal around. A similar hunt occurred in Washington state. You think these rich guys would buy the tag if they didn't know that caliber of animal was out there. Outrageous!

Re: Wolves bring balance | 9:20 a.m. Jan. 7, 2009

You must be kidding!!! Or buying into the false blather being published by the environmentalists. Elk herds in Yellowstone are down--dramatically. And they are not just being moved around.

Take a drive up to Idaho and you will note that its elk herds are also being affected--along with domestic animals, coyotes (which would be great but for the more effective killing being done by wolves) and any other animal within the wolves' long list of prey.

Understand, there was a reason why wolves were removed in the early part of the last century. They decimated both wild and domestic livestock. We are seeing that again.

Balance my foot!!!

kulu | 9:57 a.m. Jan. 7, 2009

Re: wolves bring balance: In addition to the cow calf numbers being down, biologists are now realizing that elk cows are so stressed by wolves they don't even ovulate! This adds another dimension to the effect of wolves on game and wildlife.

Wolves bring balance | 10:16 a.m. Jan. 7, 2009

I do hunt idaho every season. And with the hope of not dooming myself by saying this, have been successful with my bow nearly every year in wolf country. I see plenty of elk most of the time. I DO believe that the wolves also need to be managed and when numbers are up, should be hunted. Again, balance is the key. I just simply believe that the extremist, on each side of the issue should be ignored.

Wolves | 11:09 a.m. Jan. 7, 2009

It is just amazing that all of these animals co-existed before man overpopulated the west? With the "wolves will kill them all" attitude and the wolves are now responsible for cow elk not ovulating it is a wonder that any of these animals other than predators survived? Thanks God for man and his depredation of the wolf?

kulu | 11:40 a.m. Jan. 7, 2009

Wolves:11:09;
Most who want to "see" wolves back in the west will never actually see the wolves in person. It's just a cozy concept. Those actually affected who live around these areas are and simply don't want the effect that has come with the reintroduction. The large mammals are adversely affected because they are not adjusted to this type of predator. Will they survive? Probably, but there's a big difference between just surviving and actually having healthy populations that are a big part of the recreation and economy in the west.

bucksnort | 8:36 a.m. Jan. 8, 2009

this is party hunting at its purest, except they use strong young legs and radios. nothing fair chase about it. history shows that anyone who kills consistently trophy mule deer or elk are poachers or are breaking the fair chase rules. the thing about utah is you can hunt limited entry units and never see a fishcop. if it were up to me, i'd take everyone involved hunting privleges away for 10 year and stick ole doyle in jail for 5.

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1 photo

Associated Press, Boone and Crocket Club

Denny Austad of Ammon, Idaho poses with his prize elk in south-central Utah. The bull elk shot in Utah set a Boone and Crockett Club record for antlers. The club says, with official data dating back to 1830, at 499-3/8 inches it is the only elk on record with a gross score approaching the 500-inch mark.