Drew a Kansas Mule Deer Rifle tag!

[FURMAN]

I have onx and have all of that available to me but hate the idea of blindly calling land owners for permission. guess the worst they can say is no though

They will not say yes if you do not ask. That is 100% guaranteed.

 

[FURMAN]

As already stated Kansas has very very little public land or WIHA. We have great mule deer but I would not rely on the very small tracts of land. The deer population is not very big out west and covering ground is your best bet. Obviously people get the job done on public every year but I would do all I could to stack the odds in my favor.

 

[Agilliam]

ill start asking around. How do you go about contacting land owners? Just look up their name from onX?

 

[FURMAN]

That is what I would do.

 

[Parkercox77]

As already stated Kansas has very very little public land or WIHA. We have great mule deer but I would not rely on the very small tracts of land. The deer population is not very big out west and covering ground is your best bet. Obviously people get the job done on public every year but I would do all I could to stack the odds in my favor.

Kansas public land is tough because there’s not much, but it’s definitely underrated, put the time in scouting and looking at maps if possible and you can find some great deer.
I mostly hunt whitetail, but the mulies are out here, and there’s some monsters for sure.

 

[Agilliam]

Those are awesome! anybody who's taken a kansas mule deer have advice on glassing points and where to watch for the rifle season? I've read north facing slopes for bedded bucks after crops have been cut?

 

[Parkercox77]

Those are awesome! anybody who's taken a kansas mule deer have advice on glassing points and where to watch for the rifle season? I've read north facing slopes for bedded bucks after crops have been cut?

If you’re out here during archery season before the Milo harvest,I’ve glassed them up in Milo fields, but don’t discount CRP fields either, that tall grass is often all the cover that they need

 

[KandiBarZZZZ]

Those are awesome! anybody who's taken a kansas mule deer have advice on glassing points and where to watch for the rifle season? I've read north facing slopes for bedded bucks after crops have been cut?

Agilliam, let’s compare notes once you get Pm’s LOL. Would be happy to share what I’ve learned.

 

[Dos Perros]

I think you guys might be making it harder than it needs to be. Just get in the truck and drive around and look for deer. Walk in to places you can't see from the road.

The one thing you absolutely can't scout for is hunting pressure. You'll have no idea if folks will be impacting your piece on opening morning. Have a plan and a backup plan considering pressure and wind direction (can't walk in in the dark if the wind is bad).

 

[AirborneEScouter]

The milo out there will cover a bedded buck, trust me it's taller than it looks. You have to be patient and glass hard if you're going that route, and a lot of them slip into the corn and you'll never see them - early season hunting is difficult. If you find wiha w/ CRP it can be a crap shoot but they definitely hold deer. Look for elevation and drainages - deer use them to hide/bed and stay out of the sun/wind. You can get a lot of scouting done from the road but sometimes you have to get out of the truck. I like big glass for finding deer - I use 20x binos but 15x would be sufficient. Even 8x can get it done but the extra power can mean the difference between spotting an ear flick or head movement and not seeing anything. Once the crops are harvested, you'll see deer in much bigger numbers. It is a completely different game than chasing whitetail. Completely

 

[Dos Perros]

My 2018 KS buck.



That’s one weekend scouting, one morning hunting. Had never been there before.

Made a scouting video for fun.

 

[KChunter71]

My 2018 KS buck.

View attachment 124429

That’s one weekend scouting, one morning hunting. Had never been there before.

Made a scouting video for fun.

Nice buck! I need to get my butt out to western Kansas!


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[Agilliam]

I think you guys might be making it harder than it needs to be. Just get in the truck and drive around and look for deer. Walk in to places you can't see from the road.

The one thing you absolutely can't scout for is hunting pressure. You'll have no idea if folks will be impacting your piece on opening morning. Have a plan and a backup plan considering pressure and wind direction (can't walk in in the dark if the wind is bad).

I actually plan on going out to a couple spots and scouting them in the next few weeks. I hope to see the milo and corn cut by mid October with the cold fronts coming in. I think I would be ecstatic to knock down a 4x4 after seeing yours but it looks like in your video that they mature bucks are just running everywhere. Were you on private or public ground if you dont mind?

Does anyone know when they typically cut milo and corn out west? I am from eastern Kansas and would hate to waste a trip out west if the deer are still going to be huddled in the tall crops.

 

[Parkercox77]

Where I'm at around Hays, a lot of the corn is already cut. My guess would be that if it stays dry (after today), milo will start getting cut by the middle of the month if not sooner, but probably wont all be cut till november. I wouldn't let some standing milo deter you, with some cooler weather heading our way, scouting should do you some good.

 

[Dos Perros]

I actually plan on going out to a couple spots and scouting them in the next few weeks. I hope to see the milo and corn cut by mid October with the cold fronts coming in. I think I would be ecstatic to knock down a 4x4 after seeing yours but it looks like in your video that they mature bucks are just running everywhere. Were you on private or public ground if you dont mind?

Does anyone know when they typically cut milo and corn out west? I am from eastern Kansas and would hate to waste a trip out west if the deer are still going to be huddled in the tall crops.

I'll tell you my rate for finding bucks in October and then again in December (rifle season) is 0%. That's public land whitetails and mulies combined. All I hunt is public. You'd be better to wait until just before the season to scout, IMO, if you're set on finding deer to hunt.

When they cut fall crops is quite variable year to year and even region to region. Both corn and milo were in when I killed that deer last year. There is quite a bit of data/resources on this available if you're willing to look for it, here for example: https://www.nass.usda.gov/Statistic...cations/Crop_Progress_and_Condition/index.php

Lots of folks' make a living farming and trading commodities and such so there is quite a pull for prompt reliable data.

 

[Agilliam]

Agreed on the ability to find deer month to month. I am in Colorado until the 1st of December and plan to spend the 2nd at home resting to head out the day before season starts (3rd). I've never hunted in West Kansas, do you think 1 half day of scouting would be enough?

 

[Agilliam]

Where I'm at around Hays, a lot of the corn is already cut. My guess would be that if it stays dry (after today), milo will start getting cut by the middle of the month if not sooner, but probably wont all be cut till november. I wouldn't let some standing milo deter you, with some cooler weather heading our way, scouting should do you some good.

Planning a few days of scouting/ pheasant hunt in mid November anyways. Hopefully it does me some good.

 

[Dos Perros]

Agreed on the ability to find deer month to month. I am in Colorado until the 1st of December and plan to spend the 2nd at home resting to head out the day before season starts (3rd). I've never hunted in West Kansas, do you think 1 half day of scouting would be enough?

If you’re willing to put your tag on forkies and does then a half day should be plenty.

 

[Marine4life]

I recommend a slightly different strategy for scouting by using the time to find places where the deer are likely to be instead of finding actual deer. Deer will move on and off a WIHA property in their normal travels and with pressure. For the early muzzy season I looked for milo and CRP fields. Hard to hunt corn. For the December firearms portion assume the crops will be cut so you need to find cover and those out of the way places the deer use to get away from the pressure. If you are going to walk into these areas be prepared to pack one out. Keep in min the mule deer will still be in the rut in early December. I killed these two deer in Western KS off Public accessible land a back to back a few years ago. They are my biggest whitetail and Muley so far. He whitetail was in Sept and the Muley opening day of firearms in December.

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[Agilliam]

Yeah honestly I hadn't thought about that method too much. I'll try it as well. You shot both of those deer in the same year? What unit was the Mule taken in if you don't mind?