High Country Muleys, cant hunt the archery opener

[jgilber5]

For all you muley experts, this will be my first time chasing muleys with a bow. I'm hunting an area of the Southwest with terrain varying from desert sage flats and canyons up to alpine basins and high peaks, I know deer exist from bottom to top. Two buddies drew first archery Valle Vidal elk tags so I'm going to be calling for them likely the first 10 days of september (couldn't pass that up), so won't be able to get after these deer until the 11th most likely.

I've been out finding pockets of bucks above timberline and have a few basins worked out, but also have found some secluded water down in the low country holding sign. Ideally, I'd love to do a treeline spot-and-stalk hunt, but my question is, would you expect deer to hang around that long in the high basins once season opens, and once velvet starts to come off? Do you stay in the alpine into late september or should I think about just chasing the desert deer as they're likely much more tied down to limited resources that will keep them around most of the fall? It's a decent time commitment to get up high, and as I'd like to get after elk myself, efficiency is key this September. Appreciate any input! For anyone familiar with the area I'm talking about, I'm more than willing to share elk info for the area as well.

 

[nm_nomad]

I would not say I'm an expert, but I suppose it is area/unit dependent. If you're hunting northern New Mexico or Colorado, most of the bigger bucks will be shedding by mid-September and also following feed into their secondary living after they drop out of the high alpine basins. Pressure could also push them out of those high-country basins quicker. However, I've seen central and southern NM bucks hold their velvet into late September/early October as they seem to be behind the northern deer. Pressure will be key, and with you not hunting until mid-September I would probably focus on the lower elevations at that point, although some bucks will definitely hold up in the high-country if the feed and pressure allows.