The Cook Wildlife Management Area: A full-circle story
By Hailey Blair Wildlife Lands Specialist
As a wildlife lands specialist with the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, I help administer all of the lands that the agency owns and manages. My job involves things like conservation easements, public utility easements and land acquisition for wildlife purposes. While I am a wildlife enthusiast and have a master’s degree in biology, I had never had much interest in hunting until I started working for the DWR six years ago. Over the last couple of years, I have been able to participate in several hunting education seminars and have found some excellent hunting mentors.
Setting off for my first deer hunt on the Cook WMA!
Recently, I also had the pleasure of leading the acquisition of a new DWR Wildlife Management Area consisting of 1,600 acres near Manila, Utah that serves as valuable big game habitat. The previous landowners were incredible to work with, and even donated a significant portion of the property value to the DWR. The Cook family prioritized seeing that the property remain undeveloped and continue serving Utah’s wildlife. In honor of their contribution, the property is now known as the Cook WMA.
My experience learning more about hunting and getting to know this property inspired me to shoot for the stars with my 2025 general-season buck deer permit application. Never having hunted before, I had very few points accumulated in the draw for a deer permit, but I decided to dream big and apply for a North Slope unit tag in hopes of having the opportunity to hunt on the Cook WMA. Beginner’s luck must be real, because I drew!
For the next few months, I prepared for the hunt while keeping my expectations low. After all, this was my first deer permit and I was realistic about my odds for success. Nevertheless, I spent some time finding a deer rifle that I was comfortable with, practicing shooting, purchasing some hunting tools like game bags and a hunter orange sweatshirt, and watching some online videos on how to field dress an animal. I wouldn’t say I was as prepared as possible, but I at least knew enough to be able to handle the outcome of my hunt with the skill level of a novice.
With my amazing fiancé, TJ, in tow, we set off to the WMA on opening weekend. Our hopes for immediate success weren’t high: TJ had no hunting experience, and I went in with the intention of enjoying a nice hike and hopefully spotting some wildlife. After a very windy and sleepless night, we laced up our boots and started hiking up the ridgeline as the sun was coming up. The Cook WMA is unique in that it is only accessible by foot or horseback; no motorized access is permitted. I was very quickly hit with a hard truth about my cardiovascular fitness level — bushwhacking up a ridge is hard! Out of breath and freezing from the cold wind, we decided to hunker down under a juniper tree on the south face and glass for deer. (And we may have dozed off for a minute or two once the sun came out.)
Seeking refuge from the wind.
Once we gathered some more energy, we followed the ridgeline to the back of the draw and circled north, hiking over 6 miles and 3,000 feet of elevation change by dark without seeing a buck. I have to admit that I was feeling a little bit tired and discouraged, but kept reminding myself that I got to spend all day on a gorgeous mountain, which in itself makes for a great day.
After a decent night’s sleep, I was ready to tackle another day, and we were up and going before the sun came up. We decided to hike the same ridgeline as the previous day, since all the other hunters we’d seen were in the draw to the north. After several stops to catch my breath, we made it up to the top and were greeted with a stunning sunrise.
A beautiful sunrise to start the day off right.
As I was admiring the beauty of the morning, TJ was glassing (an impressive feat since he didn’t have binoculars and was using my spotting scope freehand) and suddenly he saw some deer on the southern ridge of the draw. I pulled out my binoculars and saw two little two-point bucks sparring with each other. I couldn’t help but giggle at their preteen attitudes, and watching them warmed me with a feeling of success. After all, this is what hunting is all about!
We kept watching the young bucks for a few minutes, and some more deer came out of the trees to join them. After triple checking, we confirmed that they were also bucks: two three-points and a four-point. We decided to hike to the back of the draw again and this time circle south toward where the deer were. We crested the ridge and saw the deer relaxing under some juniper trees in the bowl below. They didn't seem too concerned, but we were above the treeline and upwind from them so we proceeded slowly. I was able to find the four-point buck in my spotting scope, but the shot was about 50 yards farther than I felt comfortable with. My worst nightmare is wounding a deer and then not being able to find it again. I tried to get closer, but the deer spooked and headed east out of sight.
We circled around the three different sides of the ridge without seeing any deer — they were suddenly gone! Grappling with a mix of relief at not taking the too-far shot and disappointment at being so close without any success, we decided to eat lunch and then circle back toward the truck to head home. It was mid-afternoon and we had a 3-hour drive ahead of us, so I was already brainstorming a game plan to come back the following weekend.
As we were at the edge of the draw and almost back to the truck, suddenly I heard a loud snort and the three bucks exploded out of the trees! Two of them crossed the road over the next ridge into a very steep and heavily wooded area, definitely too rugged to hike, especially with our drive home looming over us. We decided to spend a few minutes trying to find the buck that stayed in the patch of sage and oak at the bottom of the draw.
After about half an hour, we hadn’t spotted anything, but as a last Hail Mary effort, TJ suggested that he hike down and arc behind the bushes and try to flush out the deer. Still no luck! As I hiked down to meet him to start heading home, my phone buzzed in my pocket. A text from TJ: “I see him. He’s a 4-point, 25 yards in front of me.”
I tried to quickly but quietly catch up to him, and the buck turned and walked away from us. TJ hurried ahead and circled behind to flush him back toward me. Rifle at the ready, I was frantically scouring the bushes for any movement — again, with no luck. We figured the buck must have slipped over to the next draw somehow. As TJ was making his way back in my direction to head home, my phone buzzed again: “I see him.” I looked up and TJ was pointing about 30 yards to his left. There’s the buck!
My first buck!
Making sure TJ was a safe distance away, I aimed and fired, quickly firing a follow-up shot. The buck was slowly walking still, then stopped behind a thick patch of scrub oak. I waited for what felt like several minutes, ready to fire a third shot if needed but the deer never emerged. A successful kill shot! Exactly what I was hoping for.
As I had all of the feelings of the hunting experience wash over me, I couldn’t help but single out a bright thread of awe and gratitude for this experience on this property. This was my first acquisition project that created a brand new WMA, and I was able to develop a sincere connection with the previous landowner and his family during their bittersweet experience of selling the land. And now, I was one of the first public users to hunt on the property, and successfully harvested my first deer to top it all off.
It was a very long night of field dressing and driving home, but I was too excited to sleep much anyways. What a truly humbling experience. I am so honored to participate full circle in the creation of the Cook WMA, where hopefully many more generations of hunters will have a chance to see wildlife thrive on this crucial habitat.
Wildlife Lands Specialist Hailey Blair has been with the DWR for 6 years. In addition to conserving and protecting land for wildlife, she also enjoys spending time with her dogs and horses, reading books and being outside.
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About six times a year, the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources presents a series of recommendations to the Utah Wildlife Board, including proposals for species management plans, permit quotas, and specific hunting and fishing regulations.
After a public comment period, the five Regional Advisory Councils — representing the central, northern, southern, southeastern, and northeastern parts of the state — meet to review the feedback and provide their own recommendations to the Wildlife Board. The Wildlife Board then meets to make final decisions on the DWR's proposals.
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