Early Season Mule Deer Advice

[EricBender208]

Drew a unit that I’ve hunted with a rifle in October but decided to put in for an August archery hunt. Elevation ranges from 5k to 10k feet. Haven’t seen a deer over 6.5k ft and a majority have been at 5k in from pasture ground. Will they head back up into the hills closer to August? Is it even worth scouting this early? Any advice helps.

 

[realunlucky]

I personally think now is the best time to scout for archery mule deer.



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[NVbowhunter05]

This is a great time to scout. I usually start the beginning of June. If they aren't where you have found em scouting they will be higher during the hunt from what I have experienced.

 

[Muleyhntr00]

not only is worth your time to scout right now but it's the best thing you can do.

 

[mikemootry1]

Even if they aren’t at the elevation you’d expect go to those elevations and looks for sign and glassing spots then work your way back down lower to were you see them and you might find there in between zone and as season gets closer start to look higher and higher and see what the low deer are doing


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[trepuah]

People will give tons of input and feedback to threads like this but follow the deer. Like people before me have said, start high and work low. Don't let the online consensus steer you away from what is right in front of your eyes. The deer probably will not move all that much in-between now and archery season. It may even be an added bonus that you found deer low, because there is a chance you will end up avoiding some of the opening day crowds rushing to storm every beautiful alpine basin the unit holds.

In regards to is it worth scouting now, absolutely. Yes. Yes a million times.

 

[Bohunter33]

Those deer also might just live there all year, where I hunt some of the biggest deer just live on the winter range all year cause it’s mostly private and not many people hunt it.

Figure out which habitat you want to hunt in, most people hunt high country early season because it’s more open and the deer are more stalkable but there’ll be at least some deer spread through the whole unit.

 

[Schoolhousegrizz]

If you found something down low hunt it. There's got to be bucks up high though if it's deer country.