Mid-day mule deer strategy?

[BigLooch63]

Hi everyone, recently I've heard a lot of elk hunters talk about just how productive mid day can be and it got me thinking about mule deer.

Typically if I don't see any deer or just not what I'm looking for I just stick to the glass and maybe move slightly to get different angles. I believe this is a very common strategy so I'm just curious if anyone changes the way they hunt during mid day that feel like has lead to continued success or lots of opportunity?

 

[Peakbagger46]

For hunting meat bucks (or does, back when one could draw doe tags) on public land, I enjoy pushing through bedding areas during mid day. I don’t get crazy aggressive with it but it leads to some action.

One year I passed on a very big buck that bounced out of his afternoon bed due to a poor shot angle.

Mule deer are different from elk or whitetail in that they often stop and offer an opportunity when spooked.

Oh, and don’t forget lunch and a midday nap in the sun.

 

[wmr89]

I have found some good success finding bucks up and moving while hunting mid day around the late September/early October. Typically, I have seen them while still hunting or road hunting in thick cover areas, I don't think I could have glassed many of them up where they were located. I haven't seen a ton of success glasses during those times.

 

[Muleyhntr00]

I’ll keep working in the middle of the day checking tanks and looking for tracks. Sometimes you get lucky and see a big buck in the middle of the day while everyone is back in their camp.

 

[CaliWoodsman]

My best deer have all been killed midday. While everyone was back at camp taking a nap, I was out still hunting. I’ve had great success still hunting through thick brush during warm afternoons.

Depending on how slow it is, I’ll get creative. I killed my best Utah buck on a brutally warm afternoon. Hiked out a finger ridge to glass and on the way back, threw a rock into a small, thick patch of brush 20 yards downhill. A tall 165” buck bounced out and that’s all she wrote. He let me walk by at 20 yards once and would have let me go by a second time if that rock hadn’t spooked him.

 

[j_volt]

I have no experience with hunting mule deer outside of the rut (until this fall!), but I have found all hours of the day to be productive (i.e. chasing, cruising, etc.). The days are so short by mid November that anything less than all day hunting feels wasteful.

 

[jtrips]

Depends on the time of year. I haven't found afternoons in October too productive, early season and late season though they're plenty active at midday. Good glassing opportunities to catch them in their beds as well.
Regardless, still hunting, glassing, covering country and looking for sign, you're not going to kill one from camp so best bets in the field

 

[fishslap]

For Colorado rifle seasons, I’ve located bucks mid day by getting in a position where I can glass into secluded small pockets with adjacent cover. Think about a small deep draw on a steep ridge that has dark timber on one side of the draw and open enough in the draw bottom or other side to glass into. The harder it is to hike or glass into, the better. Narrow or obstructed bottom, etc. Stuff like that.

 

[Hippie Steve]

Booner bucks are vampires, they only come out at night, they are before light/after light (should be a new clothing line). They don't live in conventional places, they've adapted to us and our perception of what we know about mule deer bucks (5+ yo/180"+). The attitude and discipline it takes to find and hunt them every season is on another level than anyone really understands unless you live in this world. Your entire year is devoted to one or two bucks, that's it. I believe everyone here is on the right path, just keep at it and think unorthodox and have an open mind. The juice is finding them and that's the game.

 

[ElDiablito]

Depends on the terrain. I’ve killed a number of big mulies by still hunting mid-day.

 

[fletcherchip]

I like finding my way deeper into the woods, then I'm hopefully in great spot for the evening feeding hour. That does mean you're hiking out well after dark. This gives me opportunity to still hunt throughout the day and capture something that not everyone gets to see in the evening.

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

I’ve bumped some of the biggest bucks I’ve ever seen by throwing a rock down into a canyon or down a steep face below me during the midday nap sessions.

If I do stop for lunch I continue glassing and keep my head on a swivel. Mid day has been good to me over the years.

 

[khart_6882]

I’ve considered this but I’m a big chicken. I always think if I don’t get a shot then I’m going to blow them out of the country


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[Oregon]

I only hunt mulies in the Sage. Old growth sage 6' tall is bedding area. If I'm on a 10 day hunt, about day 8 I'm doing drives with a buddy or by myself. Get upwind, let wind blow into canyon. Sometimes it takes an hour before the can't stand it. When they blow out, you better be ready. I suck at killing big deer. I excel at seeing lots of deer.
So, take that for what it's worth.

 

[JMajors_307]

Just catching a glimpse of deer moving from bed to bed during mid day can be productive. Shade to shade is the game. This tactic is best if there are known bucks in the area.

 

[dtrkyman]

Shade is king. Find it and look into it all day!

I mainly hunt in the desert and stare at bushes all day, low density areas are brutal, good glass is an absolute must!

 

[Rich M]

I've only done one muley hunt and we saw a band of does w 2x2 mid-afternoon one day. All other deer were seen within 2 hrs of dark - morning or evening. Then they bedded down and that was that - terrain was basically flat so glassing wasn't gonna do much.

We tried deer drives, still hunting, and even covering ground during a fresh snow to find deer and didn't really find anything. Sitting where they were feeding was the ticket to our success.

Stay flexible and above all things - be out there before sunup and work at it for at least 3 hrs, then relocate and work at if for the 3 hrs before dark. Once you find them, stay on them. Good luck.

 

[DunnCoHunter]

Good topic here. I have bumped big bucks mid day and nearly gotten shots. I think I’m going to try it more this year.

 

[hunterjmj]

I've killed a few bucks mid day that I glassed up in their beds. Typically, I hunt from glassing point to glassing point and sometimes you get lucky and pick one up. I like to be at good locations before the sun comes up but I hunt all day.

 

[Gun&BowSD]

Same as hunterjmj, above. Be somewhere high as the sun comes up, glass it til your eyes hurt, and/or the sun moves enough to get them out of bed to move. Pick up and move to another glassing area, looking down into draws you pass. Likely a nice buck will be in shade with the wind at its back. Usually half to top third of a hill. Start punching in those filters and the areas to look get smaller and smaller.