Q&A Podcast with Robby Denning

[Pistolpete28]

Robby thanks for the response. I have another question..... if you could hunt 2nd rifle in a unit you know well or 3rd rifle in a tougher to draw unit that you have never stepped foot in with a higher trophy potential which would you choose? I would be showing up to the 3rd rifle early to scout a day or 2 if I went that route

 

[wannabemtnman]

1. If Robby Denning and Chuck Norris go mule deer hunting, who comes out with a bigger buck?
2. If you only have a few days throughout the summer to scout and have to pick mornings or evenings, do you put more emphasis on either of the times of day?

 

[robby denning]

What type of terrain do you bring the big binos (15x56)?

any glassable terrain.

 

[robby denning]

Robby thanks for the response. I have another question..... if you could hunt 2nd rifle in a unit you know well or 3rd rifle in a tougher to draw unit that you have never stepped foot in with a higher trophy potential which would you choose? I would be showing up to the 3rd rifle early to scout a day or 2 if I went that route

I'd go with the one I know.

 

[robby denning]

1. If Robby Denning and Chuck Norris go mule deer hunting, who comes out with a bigger buck?
2. If you only have a few days throughout the summer to scout and have to pick mornings or evenings, do you put more emphasis on either of the times of day?

mornings, unless a full moon kept them up all night, then evenings might be worth a try

 

[idahohikker]

I'd go with the one I know.

What about the same question and you know both (equally bad). The 2nd season is a somewhat high end unit and the 3rd season is not. Looking for 180ish or above. Thanks.

 

[robby denning]

What about the same question and you know both (equally bad). The 2nd season is a somewhat high end unit and the 3rd season is not. Looking for 180ish or above. Thanks.

I can't answer every single scenario, but I do know that if I know a unit well, my odds are usually (although not always, might be hot, no snow, and an influx of people) better. But to give you a guess, if 2nd season is "high end" there must be a reason people wanna go there.

 

[idahohikker]

I can't answer every single scenario, but I do know that if I know a unit well, my odds are usually (although not always, might be hot, no snow, and an influx of people) better. But to give you a guess, if 2nd season is "high end" there must be a reason people wanna go there.

Thanks, Robby. I think at some point the second vs. third season debate is maybe more fuss than necessary. If it's a unit that is way harder to draw for third season and there's lots of deer then I think you can still have a good hunt even if it's second season. There's also third season hunts that are probably underrated. At some point, you just have to go hunt to shoot a deer.

 

[Fatcamp]

I’m afraid that if I could only hunt 2 to 4 days I wouldn’t even go. However, I know what you mean. You gotta go to exact spots a big buck has been killed, or you’ve seen them in the past. To me, that’s the only way to be efficient. Having said that, I hunt that way every year and it still takes a lot more than 2 to 4 days most of the time to kill a big deer. So I guess I’m not even really sure what my answer is. So we’re even. Hahahah.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Well, I know where big bucks are. They are also pretty undisturbed from what I can tell.

I said 2 to 4 days, but I can make numerous trips starting in September with archery and ending with muzzleloader(tag gods willing) the whole month of December. So I have four months to pester these deer and 3 or 4 tags to fill.

At this point I have moved around the state and found numerous local populations of deer, 3 places where I have found big bucks. This has just kind of happened and only through sheer persistence have I been able to put this together. Now that I am done with school I am able to spend significantly more time going after these deer. I've been so crushed the last few years just getting away a couple times a season has been pushing it.

So, to rephrase the question, would you pick one of these areas and focus on it solely by spending these short trips in one area? All three have plenty of land, plenty of deer, and good trophy potential.

 

[huntngolf]

Well thats depressing. lol. Going on my first mule deer hunt this Nov in SD.

Like he said, if it’s only open for archery it’s doable. S.D. rifle doesn’t open til mid November, so early November is still a good chance with a bow. I’ve had great success in late October/early November on muleys. They are starting to cruise a bit but not full on rutting so still able to stalk when bedded. And the weather is easy to hunt all day baring a major storm system

 

[robby denning]

Like he said, if it’s only open for archery it’s doable. S.D. rifle doesn’t open til mid November, so early November is still a good chance with a bow. I’ve had great success in late October/early November on muleys. They are starting to cruise a bit but not full on rutting so still able to stalk when bedded. And the weather is easy to hunt all day baring a major storm system

There’s some experienced words there. Thanks for chiming in

 

[robby denning]

Well, I know where big bucks are. They are also pretty undisturbed from what I can tell.

I said 2 to 4 days, but I can make numerous trips starting in September with archery and ending with muzzleloader(tag gods willing) the whole month of December. So I have four months to pester these deer and 3 or 4 tags to fill.

At this point I have moved around the state and found numerous local populations of deer, 3 places where I have found big bucks. This has just kind of happened and only through sheer persistence have I been able to put this together. Now that I am done with school I am able to spend significantly more time going after these deer. I've been so crushed the last few years just getting away a couple times a season has been pushing it.

So, to rephrase the question, would you pick one of these areas and focus on it solely by spending these short trips in one area? All three have plenty of land, plenty of deer, and good trophy potential.

OK, I understand now. I wouldn’t jump around. You waste days and energy jumping around. Now if it’s a matter of hiking one direction from camp versus the other, it makes sense to look at more deer. But if I’m losing any hunting time at all, I just try to stay put.

 

[robby denning]

Thanks, Robby. I think at some point the second vs. third season debate is maybe more fuss than necessary. If it's a unit that is way harder to draw for third season and there's lots of deer then I think you can still have a good hunt even if it's second season. There's also third season hunts that are probably underrated. At some point, you just have to go hunt to shoot a deer.

I’d agree. I hunted second season tags that have a great third season hunts in them, and they’re proportionally harder, but I definitely see more bucks than units with bad third seasons. However, get a snowy and cold second season versus a hot and dry third season, second season can be better.

The problem with any unit that’s under rated is that information travels so fast i.e. guys can’t keep their mouths shut, that nothing stays under rated for very long, in my opinion.

 

[robby denning]

Not counting photoperiod (daylight length); but do you know the average number of nights or the amount of time at freezing temperatures that is takes for native plants to go dormant in fall/winter at 5,000+ ft elevation? Does it take freezing temperatures for this to happen or just low temperatures with a shortening photoperiod? Trying to figure out if you can use this to plan a migrating deer hunt in a new state. Thanks for any help.

I think once you get a couple of hard freezes in the high country, 25° or so, it seems like within a few days the feed is drying up and dying. But if it’s before the rut, many places I don’t see the deer migrate, even at elevations above 8500 feet. It’s usually the rut or deep snow. But it is different in other units where just the calendar date can trigger the migration. Most states have pretty good information on migration for deer herds so you might check with the biologist or even the land managers to remove some of the guessing

 

[IAMike304]

Like he said, if it’s only open for archery it’s doable. S.D. rifle doesn’t open til mid November, so early November is still a good chance with a bow. I’ve had great success in late October/early November on muleys. They are starting to cruise a bit but not full on rutting so still able to stalk when bedded. And the weather is easy to hunt all day baring a major storm system

Thanks. Im planning the 10 days before rifle season. Can't hunt public as a NR until Oct 1. I figured early Nov may be better than mid Oct. I don't want to miss late Oct here in Iowa either.