Id panhandlers muleys

[b0nes]

I'm a semi recent transplant to the panhandle. Just wondering if anyone has any tips or advice on where to look for mule deer. I've poked around the Purcell trench and seen some muleys. Never anything special, I have a second deer tag to fill and would like to shoot a decent muley to fill the freezer. Any advice?

 

[b0nes]

Panhandle! Damn autocorrect, but it does seem sort of fitting.

 

[coop2424]

This will be my first serious year looking for them up in unit 1. I plan on hitting clear cuts and glossing and then glossing more and then again. Once the Snow starts hitting I will do some hiking looking for active areas. This will be a year of learning for me up north.

 

[b0nes]

I've been hiking in the selkirks the last couple weekends, tried to hike a mountain I found on Google earth Sunday. Thought a certain area would be passable, guess again, what looked like a grassy mountainside on Google earth away from roads turned out to be 8 foot alders so dense it made me want to cry. Lesson learned. Only gained a couple hundred feet in elevation in an hours time. Came home looked on Google earth, good thing I stopped, there was at least 1500 hundred more feet in elevation of that crap. Not to mention the grizzly signs I saw on the road below. Seen a couple forkies in a slightly different area, decided taking a "hiking" trail above tree line and cutting off will be better. Any tips would be great!

 

[b0nes]

Coop what areas are you hitting? I'm just south of you in post falls.

 

[coop2424]

We are going to be going east of Priest lake on Sunday. I have been up there a couple times and have seen some but they were never our target at the time. I imagine it will probably be more of a scouting trip for future weekends than a hunting. Maybe we will get lucky and a stupid one will just be standing there on our way up..

 

[Ross]

I love this line, " 8 foot alders so dense it made me want to cry. Lesson learned. Only gained a couple hundred feet in elevation in an hours time. Came home looked on Google earth, good thing I stopped, there was at least 1500 hundred more feet in elevation of that crap". North Idaho at its finest......Priest and North of Bonners offer some very good Muley Hunting....it is steep, brushy and nasty but you have a chance at a 180+ buck.........good luck.

 

[b0nes]

Ross, any chance you would tell which side is better north of Bonner? East or west?

 

[coop2424]

bones... So we got into 15-20 mule deer and 3 bucks we were on the west side in clearcuts behind a gate.. Now with talking to people I am being told both are good tell snow starts flying then the bonners ferry side is better.. Not sure how accurate this us but we are going bonners side this weekend.

 

[joshmo]

Ive been hunting in Unit 2 closer to cocolalla, mainly for whitetail and bear, but am trying to learn some muley spots as well. I hunted bear when i first moved to the area in the spring east of sandpoint and thought it looked like decent muley area up high, but havent been back this fall.

 

[b0nes]

Awesome to hear you guys had a little luck. I was up near bonners ferry and it was snowing and we cut some fresh tracks and saw a couple does. Does anyone know about the myrtle creek wildlife preserve? The idfg has nothing on their maps in the map planner but I came across a no hunting sign in there and had to relocate. We didn't even see deer or deer sign in till we hit the summit of the mountain we hiked.

 

[Jesse Minish]

b0nes, Myrtle creek preserve is closed to hunting. Fish and game is in there often as many people are not aware it is closed to hunting. I have seen some dandy mule deer bucks in there...

 

[b0nes]

Good to know thanks Jesse, is it both sides of the canyon that myrtle creek is in all the way back to harrison lake? Went out today in the pack river area found some great whitetail areas but can't seem to get to the tops of mountains like I feel like I need to be without my atv which I can't haul right now. Hopefully coop has better turnout than me.

 

[Jesse Minish]

I have never been able to find an actual map of the area but the game warden told me it is the entire Myrtle Creek drainage.

 

[Sam Millard]

Good to know thanks Jesse, is it both sides of the canyon that myrtle creek is in all the way back to harrison lake? Went out today in the pack river area found some great whitetail areas but can't seem to get to the tops of mountains like I feel like I need to be without my atv which I can't haul right now. Hopefully coop has better turnout than me.

It's the Kootenai NWR. Mostly its intent is for waterfowl. To that end, it doesn't extend very far above the West Side Road.

Legal description of Myrtle Creek Game Preserve: https://legislature.idaho.gov/idstat/Title36/T36CH19SECT36-1905.htm

 

[b0nes]

I have found information that supports both Jesse and Sam's description on official internet sites. I hate it when they make it difficult just to stay legal.

 

[Sam Millard]

I have found information that supports both Jesse and Sam's description on official internet sites. I hate it when they make it difficult just to stay legal.

No kidding! Edited post above...

 

[b0nes]

Knowing that is pure torture casned, got any gps coordinates you could pm me?

 

[coop2424]

What a worthless weekend for us.. Put on 15 plus miles hiking and saw one doe.. Also had this driving in which is a size 14 boot. Also probably 15-20 different wolf tracks.

 

[b0nes]

That's a bummer coop. My weekend was uneventful also. Lots of good whitetail county but not a single muley. Knowing that grizzly could be around keeps me out of a lot of the thick stuff too.