The 1 Thing You Learned- MULE DEER

[Nitsua]

Could you explain what you mean by where you least expect them?

Pressure can force them into odd places. During this past archery season I bumped a mature buck out of a small aspen island right in the middle of a steep scree chute. I would have never expected anything other than goats to be in that stuff.

 

[Timberline001]

Biggest thing I learned this year was to stick with a buck once you find him and change things up if you can’t relocate him. I found a buck late one evening and spent the entire morning and afteroon trying to relocate him from a vantage point that I thought would give me a view over anywhere he could be. I ended up moving above where I’d glassed all day and found him bedded 500 yards from where I’d been glassing bedded right behind a lay down.

 

[Oregon Hunter]

Pressure can force them into odd places. During this past archery season I bumped a mature buck out of a small aspen island right in the middle of a steep scree chute. I would have never expected anything other than goats to be in that stuff.

It's so rewarding to root out bucks from hideouts like that!

 

[Oregon Hunter]

Biggest thing I learned this year was to stick with a buck once you find him and change things up if you can’t relocate him. I found a buck late one evening and spent the entire morning and afteroon trying to relocate him from a vantage point that I thought would give me a view over anywhere he could be. I ended up moving above where I’d glassed all day and found him bedded 500 yards from where I’d been glassing bedded right behind a lay down.

Does this only work in open country, or can you do it in the thick stuff too?

 

[Timberline001]

Does this only work in open country, or can you do it in the thick stuff too?

This was in a fairly thick burn. I’d do the same if I found a buck glassing into heavy timber though for sure. Glassing into thick country different angles will be even more important.

 

[Oregon Hunter]

We’ve had an outstanding response from all of you on these “1 Thing You Learned” series. I just created a new forum thread about glassing smarter.

Head over to this link if you’d like to share one thing you learned about glassing, horror stories, or want to learn a secret for making the most out of your hard work in the field!

 

[Oregon Hunter]

We’ve had an outstanding response from all of you on these “1 Thing You Learned” series. I just created a new forum thread about hard lessons learned about choosing scopes for hunting.

Head over to this link if you’d like to share one thing you learned about scopes, horror stories, or want to learn a secret for making the most out of your hard work in the field!

 

[NickD40]

As someone about to go on their first mule deer hunt this year, I found this thread super helpful. Really appreciate everyone sharing tips!

 

[Calbuck]

I found that sometimes, you need to be aggressive to get the buck you're looking for. Sometimes when you find them, you're gonna have to do serious work to get em. I waited on a decent buck this year in hopes of catching him in more favorable conditions for a shot. That didn't happen, and unfortunately I wasn't able to find another that fit my needs for the hunt. I should have made a play when I had the opportunity. You'll either score or have an encounter worth talking about no matter the outcome. One thing is sure..if you have to work your ass off to get him, once you do, you don't have to hunt anymore, you just have to embrace the suck! And that is the most rewarding part of a hunt for me.

 

[AC300win]

Learned a tough lesson a few years ago that contributed to my largest mulie this past season. In that early hunt we had located an exceptional non typical in August and kept tabs on him leading up to my hunt. Had him pegged the morning before the season hanging in a bachelor group and we had plan to get on him opening morning. That evening the big guy didn’t show with his buddies creating some anxiety for opening morning. Left camp opening morning at 2am for. 2 hour hike to a shooting/vantage point for first light. The bachelor group showed up like clockwork without “dropkick.” We had heard a gunshot up top where we had parked and thought perhaps the buck had been shot at. Spent the next day in area and decided to check another area where I had found a shooter. Returned a couple days to discover drop kick had been taken by a hunter that had no idea he was there about a mile from where he had him pegged. That buck went 180+. This past season found a shooter in same general area in August and tried to keep tabs on him till the October rifle season. Hadn’t located any bigger bucks leading up to opening day and hadn’t seen the big guy for over 3 weeks. Had a hunch he was there “somewhere “ nearby and the memory of old dropkick made me play a hunch that he would be somewhere in the local canyons where I could get glass without disturbance. Packed in early opening morning and discovered he’d been hanging about a mile from where he’d been in some broken country, probably hiding from archery hunters and completely hidden from long range glassing vantages. About an hour after daylight had him standing broadside at 460 and was rewarded with a memorable hunt played on a hunch from lessons learned.

 

[Oregon Hunter]

As someone about to go on their first mule deer hunt this year, I found this thread super helpful. Really appreciate everyone sharing tips!

What is one area of mule deer that you're nervous or unsure about?? Maybe people on this thread can help

 

[Oregon Hunter]

I found that sometimes, you need to be aggressive to get the buck you're looking for. Sometimes when you find them, you're gonna have to do serious work to get em. I waited on a decent buck this year in hopes of catching him in more favorable conditions for a shot. That didn't happen, and unfortunately I wasn't able to find another that fit my needs for the hunt. I should have made a play when I had the opportunity. You'll either score or have an encounter worth talking about no matter the outcome. One thing is sure..if you have to work your ass off to get him, once you do, you don't have to hunt anymore, you just have to embrace the suck! And that is the most rewarding part of a hunt for me.

Do you find you can be aggressive on public and private land?? Or would you maybe back off on private land because there's less pressure?

 

[Oregon Hunter]

Learned a tough lesson a few years ago that contributed to my largest mulie this past season. In that early hunt we had located an exceptional non typical in August and kept tabs on him leading up to my hunt. Had him pegged the morning before the season hanging in a bachelor group and we had plan to get on him opening morning. That evening the big guy didn’t show with his buddies creating some anxiety for opening morning. Left camp opening morning at 2am for. 2 hour hike to a shooting/vantage point for first light. The bachelor group showed up like clockwork without “dropkick.” We had heard a gunshot up top where we had parked and thought perhaps the buck had been shot at. Spent the next day in area and decided to check another area where I had found a shooter. Returned a couple days to discover drop kick had been taken by a hunter that had no idea he was there about a mile from where he had him pegged. That buck went 180+. This past season found a shooter in same general area in August and tried to keep tabs on him till the October rifle season. Hadn’t located any bigger bucks leading up to opening day and hadn’t seen the big guy for over 3 weeks. Had a hunch he was there “somewhere “ nearby and the memory of old dropkick made me play a hunch that he would be somewhere in the local canyons where I could get glass without disturbance. Packed in early opening morning and discovered he’d been hanging about a mile from where he’d been in some broken country, probably hiding from archery hunters and completely hidden from long range glassing vantages. About an hour after daylight had him standing broadside at 460 and was rewarded with a memorable hunt played on a hunch from lessons learned.

I think you're doing the most important thing and learning from each experience so we can get better next time

 

[NickD40]

What is one area of mule deer that you're nervous or unsure about?? Maybe people on this thread can help

To be honest, the biggest thing is trying to learn how to e-scout as best I can. We've done a few Colorado elk hunts and have sort of figured out what to look for there, but mule deer seems like a new game. We're doing a SD mule deer hunt next fall, so the terrain, environment, and basically everything is a pretty stark contrast to our previous hunts. There's only so much that can be done from 1,400 miles away in terms of scouting, so I've been trying to devour every article/thread I can on the topic rather than just ask the same question that 300 people have already asked haha

 

[3pointer]

Biggest lesson I’ve learned is they’re not always miles in !!! Try the overlooked pockets litterally off the road, made the mistake on the biggest buck I’ve ever came across hiking up a draw right off the road , was try to cover country looked up no further than a couple hundred yards off the road , 30 in + 4 pt stood up out of the sage brush and stared at me for about 6-8 seconds !!! O yea another lesson , when your in CO and you get off your bike , load your Mag, , let’s just say I sobbed like a little baby for a while

 

[Clark33]

The deer are where you find them, don't get caught up spending too much time in areas that "look bucky" if you're not seeing any.

 

[Super tag]

They have ice in their veins, nerves are steel, they can hold, and stay absolutely still for hours. They are magicians.
I glassed up a buck last year from a fair distance, decided to move in on him and get a better look. I snuck into the location I estimated was close. I glassed for 45 minutes, finally I spotted the buck at 48 yards from me, almost completely hidden, I spotted his eye peering at me through the brush. It was awesome, once I found him I could make out parts of his rack and body, and I have to admit I was shocked that he held that close for so long. Really awesome experience. He never did move, I backed out and moved on. He deserved to live another day.

 

[Jimss]

Mature muley bucks are an entirely different animal once they shed velvet! It’s almost like a switch is turned off and they disappear like a ghost. Found this true even in super open sage country where I would expect it would be so easy to find bucks. I watched bucks all day in velvet but they vanished once velvet was stripped. The only times I often see buck movement in late Sept to early nov is with game cameras taking night photos.

 

[Oregon Hunter]

To be honest, the biggest thing is trying to learn how to e-scout as best I can. We've done a few Colorado elk hunts and have sort of figured out what to look for there, but mule deer seems like a new game. We're doing a SD mule deer hunt next fall, so the terrain, environment, and basically everything is a pretty stark contrast to our previous hunts. There's only so much that can be done from 1,400 miles away in terms of scouting, so I've been trying to devour every article/thread I can on the topic rather than just ask the same question that 300 people have already asked haha

You're right, e-scouting sounds easy but it actually pretty tough. I find the value by using it to highlight areas that have a combination of features I want. That helps narrow down on new places to check out

 

[Oregon Hunter]

Biggest lesson I’ve learned is they’re not always miles in !!! Try the overlooked pockets litterally off the road, made the mistake on the biggest buck I’ve ever came across hiking up a draw right off the road , was try to cover country looked up no further than a couple hundred yards off the road , 30 in + 4 pt stood up out of the sage brush and stared at me for about 6-8 seconds !!! O yea another lesson , when your in CO and you get off your bike , load your Mag, , let’s just say I sobbed like a little baby for a while

Unlike elk, deer can be close to the road if there is good cover. While part of the fun is hiking way in, sometimes you only have an evening to hunt so it pays to know there are opportunities for short trips