Blacktail bucks

TripleJ

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Apr 12, 2016
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i'm still jealous of that massive forky your son killed, that is a sweet buck! it's cool seeing all of the regional characteristics.... every area has it's own thing going on with antlers. I would love to kill a big palmed out buck some day, but I have only seen one around here and it was a young lion kill.... would have turned into a very special buck I think.

Thanks Mike! You do quite well on the coast, the caliber of bucks you kill over there is super impressive. The regional differences on these bucks is one of the coolest things about them for sure. No matter where you are though, you can't beat the look of an old tire neck white faced roman nose November blacktail IMHO. If ODFW keeps the late archery season intact, you're more than welcome to come chase high country bucks with me some time. It's not like it used to be, but if you get some weather, it can still be really good.
 
Joined
Aug 23, 2014
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oregon coast
that would be fun. they better not mess with late archery season.... the state is making me nervous though. I will be bummed if we can't hunt roosies and blacktail otc in the future. our blacktail populations aren't as good as they were at one time, but I just don't see hunting being a big contributing factor.

the habitat they live in lends lots of escapement by default, and there is so much habitat that stay untouched which lends to escapement. yeah, buck populations may not be great in easy access areas, but easy access areas are a fraction of their habitat, and even at that, bucks are great at not being seen when there is lots of pressure... trail cams will show you that, or just walking the edge of good habitat will show you that.... tore up with tracks and sign, but vacant of deer..... they aren't dumb critters, and they have the advantage in their habitat..... other states seem to key in on this, and their sanctuary habitat is nothing like it is on the coast.

people are so quick to want to just shut it down, especially the ones who have had a whole hunting career behind them and now lack interest. they want to compare today to the logging boom when the population exploded due to "eruptive dynamic" that cannot ever happen again, it was a perfect storm in history that isn't realistic today for a multitude of reasons.

nobody wants to talk about the population of deer pre logging boom, when blacktails were scarce on the coast.... I hate the politics of hunting.… I guess I hate the politics of anything.

I think something as small as the cooperation of the logging industry to be a little more "habitat friendly" would go a long ways for deer and elk, as well as salmon and steelhead.... now they are huge corporations with too much money and no interest in anything but maximum profits, between habitat and predation, this is what we have to work with. I don't think hunting is the right thing to go after.... just the easiest thing.

if that happens, I guess i'll be going on a lot of road trips, haha.... and plane rides. if I can't hunt blackies at home, i'll do it in SE AK every fall.... make lemonade I guess
 

JasonWi

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Jul 3, 2012
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Salem, Oregon
Here is another buck I shot a few seasons ago. Can't remember if 2015 or 16?

Changes in logging practices and making accessibility easier has changed many of my spots. In fact a couple spots that used to be consistent producers, aren't even worth hunting anymore.
 

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sbcff15

Lil-Rokslider
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Central Coast, CA
3c6cc19075fd621f622f5c7c8cc1da4d.jpg


My middle son’s buck this year. Two years running, youth big buck in our area.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Joined
Aug 23, 2014
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oregon coast
This thread has me wanting to get after some blacktail!! Some very impressive animals on this thread.
they are neat critters, prettiest deer there are (especially sitka bt) and especially in their winter colors. a mature blacktail buck is a trophy regardless of the circumstance.... some come easier than others, but for every easy one there is some hell to pay (or have already paid ;) ) not in a bad way, it's all fun. you wouldn't regret a trip as long as you kept things realistic.

one cool thing about blacktail is there are lots of places to chase them with vast access.... hunt them where you want how you want.... if you mess up a spot there are thousands and thousands more acres of habitat to fall back on, and you can get away from pressure if you care to.

long list of reasons to plan a blacktail hunt. another nice thing is there is relevant info most of us are willing to share to get you pointed in the right direction. maybe not our favorite ridge, but an area to start and strategy to employ.
 
Joined
Jan 17, 2020
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Georgia
roosiebull i appreciate it. It is certainly on my radar within the next 3 years!
they are neat critters, prettiest deer there are (especially sitka bt) and especially in their winter colors. a mature blacktail buck is a trophy regardless of the circumstance.... some come easier than others, but for every easy one there is some hell to pay (or have already paid ;) ) not in a bad way, it's all fun. you wouldn't regret a trip as long as you kept things realistic.

one cool thing about blacktail is there are lots of places to chase them with vast access.... hunt them where you want how you want.... if you mess up a spot there are thousands and thousands more acres of habitat to fall back on, and you can get away from pressure if you care to.

long list of reasons to plan a blacktail hunt. another nice thing is there is relevant info most of us are willing to share to get you pointed in the right direction. maybe not our favorite ridge, but an area to start and strategy to employ.
 

OXN939

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Joined
Jun 28, 2018
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VA
His rack may not be bumping anyone out of the record books, but what a wild trip. Pulled the trigger just before 11 p.m. at about 3000' MSL above the Gulf of Alaska. Literally finalized my decision on the spot that I'm wasting valuable time living in the lower 48.

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Joined
Jun 27, 2019
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Alaska
Here are a couple from southern southeast Ak and Kodiak. Both are great places to chase deer, just different terrain.
 

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