First trip west

[ILrutaddict]

Hello all. I’ve made the decision to follow a dream and start my western hunting career. I’ve grown up hunting whitetail in Illinois and the deer rut here is my Super Bowl, however I’ve always wanted to go west to chase mule deer and this is the year. Bought the GOHUNT insider subscription to start doing some research on units. I’m pretty much set on Colorado. It will be a solo hunt and I plan on camping from the truck in case I need to move and scout different areas. I’m starting my e-scouting journey but I think the hardest part so far is understanding where I’ll be able to park/camp and access different units. This will be a 0 point hunt just to get out there and get some experience. I have ZERO expectations of a monster buck or shooting a buck period. My main goal is to glass up some deer and watch their patterns and behaviors. So far I’m thinking units 9/19/191, 20, and 39/46. Trying to stay on the eastern side of the mountains for travel sake, and trying to avoid getting too close to big cities. So here’s the question/s, what tips would you go back and give yourself as a first time mule deer hunter? Am I on the right track? I know there’s a million things that I will learn on this first trip but that’s what I’m going for. Any tips/help would be awesome. Sincerely -another nonresident white tailer that’s excited to be a rookie again.

 

[TimberHunter]

Keep in mind that while 39/46 may not look close to a large town, Denver is not far.

I’ve never hunted whitetail but from what I’ve heard, many whitetail hunters struggle when they come out west, both physically and mentally. Keep in mind that your physical and mental game will likely need to be elevated compared to whitetail hunting. Just a different game

Picking a unit can be tricky, at some point you’ll just need to pick one and go with it.

You say you want to learn about mule deer on a 0 point unit. That is definitely possible but it can also be tricky. Last fall I went to a new to me CO unit that took 0 points and spotted only 13 mule deer in 3 days of hunting (not road hunting). Some of which were glassed up 2-3 miles away


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[ILrutaddict]

I appreciate the quick reply! Yes I think the mental game will be different for sure. Mature whitetail deer can fool a man to the point of near insanity. The difference now is I have an animal just as smart that I have no history with, no home range identified, and far more ground that he can cover. Not to mention I have far less time to get it all done! It will be tasking for sure. As far as the physical part of it goes I’m pretty confident. I’m in my early 30’s, work out regularly, and have a clean bill of health. I haven’t done much at higher altitudes though so I will just have to see how my body reacts. And yes, I’m now kicking myself that I didn’t start buying preference points when I was a teenager. My plan now is to go out this year to get a feel for it, and then hunt every other year while trying my luck on leftover/reissue tags as well. I like the hunt often approach thus gaining experience and building a database. All great points and more food for thought, thanks!