DAVIS COUNTY—Hunting is one of the most popular outdoor sports in the Intermountain West and has been for decades. Every year, hunters in Utah turn out in droves to see just what kind of game they can bring home, and the Utah Department of Wildlife Resources (DWR) is doing its best to make sure hunters do so responsibly.

In the 1800s and early 1900s, there were few regulations on the kinds of animals that could be hunted across the country. This led to massive overhunting of specific species and their near extinction. Such species like the grey wolf, and the American bison are just now beginning to rebound, and build their numbers back to sustainable levels. 

The introduction of things like hunting permits, and game limits have greatly helped balance out the local ecology and made it so that hunters can still enjoy their sport, without eliminating vital parts of the ecosystem.

This year, hunters wanting to take on big game like elk, buck deer, pronghorn, or bison have one more chance to get their permits before the season begins. The Utah DWR is reminding hunters that their last chance to grab one of these permits will be July 11, 2023, using the following schedule:

Elk permits

• General-season archery elk permits – for adults and youth – will be available beginning at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, July 11. The general-season archery elk permits are unlimited.

• Youth general-season elk permits will be available beginning at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, July 11. New this year, the youth permits will allow any youth – 17 years old or younger on July 31 – to hunt all of the general-season elk hunts, including archery, muzzleloader and both any legal weapon seasons in both spike and any bull hunting units. The hunter will just need to use the applicable weapon and harvest the applicable animal for that hunting unit. These permits are unlimited and will be available for purchase from July 11 until the last day of the last general-season elk hunt.

• General-season any bull elk permits – for adults — will be available beginning at 8 a.m. on Thursday, July 13. New this year, the general-season bull elk hunt is split into two seasons. The early-season hunt will be held Oct. 7-13 and offers 15,000 permits. (The youth permits will not come out of that total and are unlimited.) The late-season hunt will be held Oct. 14-20 and has an unlimited number of permits. The muzzleloader hunt will be held Nov. 1-9 and is part of the 15,000 permit total. There are no longer multi-season permits available for any bull elk hunts. 

• General-season spike bull elk permits – for adults and youth – will be available beginning at 8 a.m. on Thursday, July 20 for the any-legal weapon, muzzleloader and multi-season hunts. There are a combined 15,000 permits available, with a cap of 4,500 on the multi-season permits. 

Deer permits

• The general-season buck deer permits that remain after the big game drawing will be available beginning at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, July 18. There are a total of 76 permits remaining.  

• Youth general-season archery deer permits will also become available at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, July 18. These permits are not left over from any type of drawing – they are set aside specifically for youth hunters each year. You can find the total number of permits available and the applicable units listed on the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources website.

Bison and limited-entry deer and pronghorn permits

• Limited-entry buck deer, pronghorn and over-the-counter bison permits will all be available beginning at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, July 11. There are only two limited-entry buck deer and two limited-entry pronghorn permits available, but the Nine Mile hunting unit bison permits are unlimited. (You must complete an online orientation course before you can purchase one of the bison permits.)

Permits can be obtained both online at the DWR website, https://wildlife.utah.gov/, in person at a DWR office or from any available licensing agent. These permits are first come, first serve, and applicants must have a valid hunting or combination license to purchase a permit. 

“If you happened to miss the big game drawing or were unsuccessful, this is your last opportunity for a chance to hunt big game in Utah this fall,” DWR Wildlife Licensing Coordinator Lindy Varney said. “Don’t forget that you can mentor a youth during these hunts, making it a great opportunity to pass on your love of the outdoors to the next generation.”