RUN RUN RUDOLPH…Where Utah Ranks in Deer Hunting

The ultimate prey is said to be homo sapiens which is basically us. There's a story that fifth graders are forced to read where rich people pay poor people to come into their backyards in order to be hunted by them. The teachers say it's an allegory for capitalism while the kids sketch those cool "S" shapes in their notebooks.

But after homo sapiens, the next hardest thing to hunt is said to be the Mountain Goat. According to Field & Stream:

"Goat trouble comes if you don’t drop the beast in its tracks, or after a few halting steps. The creatures have a fondness of taking their leave of the Earth by rolling several thousand feet into places that are almost impossible to get in and out of, or by taking a swan dive that breaks off a horn, or a combination of the two.

A mountain goat hunt involves big chunks of money, lots and lots of physical effort, arduous travel, and an absolute obligation to pack a dead animal out. Your guide will probably do a lot of the heavy lifting, but you’ll be honor-bound to participate."

So basically, stick with deer.

Deer are the primary targets of Utah hunters and according to Stacker.com, Utah ranks 21st in the country for registered hunters. Seven people out of 100 are hunters in the Beehive State. That seems like a ton, but I thought we'd have ranked higher.

The top five states are:

1. Wyoming (23 out of 100 people are hunters!)

2. South Dakota

3. Montana

4. North Dakota

5. Idaho

Enjoy hunting season Utah!