Black Tail Hunting - So Frustrated - what would you do HuntingBC?

[markathome]

Hey Hunting BC - Here's my dilemma... I'm an intermediate hunter - been at for about 10 years and I've always filled my tags - moose, mulie and whitetails fill my freezer.

However - this year I didn't pull the trigger once.

How come you ask? Well I decided instead of spending tons of cash on gas and travel I would hunt my back yard - the Sea to Sky. I told myself I would commit to 50km from my house and hunt the hell out of it - Blacktails - how hard can it be?

I scoured the internet and watched every clip and read every article. Talked to the old timers in town and picked their brain. Looked at the old pics and found out where the big bucks were shot in the past...

So off I went. Steep, old-growth, wet, mossy, thick, hellish, slipping, sliding. Still hunted every weekend. I found my area with steady buck travel. I hunted it hard. Up in the zone before dark, sneaking around slow and steady. I spooked a deer or two or three. I found rubs. I found a rub trail. I followed tracks in the snow for 6-7 hours on three different weekends. I sat still as not one but three does sauntered by looking at me - they were wondering the same as me - where's the trucking bucks?

I feel like I did everything right but next year I'm going back to the old system. Hunt the Chilcotins and Kootenays and make sure my family has a full freezer. I'm pretty disappointed this year. I started out really excited and having a great time - as the season went on I started to enjoy it less and less - more so because I was pissed about the disappointment of shopping at Save On.

What would have you guys done? Stuck it out or bail on the plan and drive the 4-500k to the honey holes on Nov 11th?

[kennyj]

You picked a bad year to try for blacktails. For some reason they were more elusive that usuall. It sounds like you did everything right to me. Don't give up on them. When you get one you'll see why. Success is sweeter with BT's.
kenny

[ryanonthevedder]

It sounds like you had the right idea. I didn't get a BT this year either, and haven't for the last couple of years. We've gotten close for sure but that's the way she goes. After talking to some of the regulars in my area I would agree that the bucks are a little fewer and farther between this year. I found very little rub after several hours of hiking, but I did hear a buck fight early in November. I made my way down to where they were a couple of times, but the only evidence of their quarrel was a few scuffs in the dirt. As it happens a buddy of mine got a mid sized 4 point BT by road hunting. Sometimes that's just the way she goes boys.

[coach]

Sounds like you gained a ton of great knowledge and experience. Keep doing what you are doing in regards to reading and studying. Put some trail cameras up. Start scouting now. Hit the interior for a few days around September 10th and put an MD or WT in the freezer then enjoy a couple more months chasing BT's closer to home. If you don't give up, you will eventually be successful. Make sure you share the pics and stories when you are!

[charlie_horse]

I went out for blacktail every weekend this year. Same story, some does and seen rubs but didn't catch a glimpse of antler. But now I'm more determined than ever to get myself a decent buck out of the squamish valley. Going to invest in a lot of trail cams this year, already have an idea on the trails I'm setting them up on.

[proguide66]

Trail cams definitely help to encourage !! I saw with my own eye balls a total 9 deer last fall ! ( wacked one ) and saw I think 5 deer this year , wacked one ! lol then I go mule deer hunting and saw around 40 plus deer in one day !!
Keep at blacktails - then you become an assassin of all other species , lol

side note , the lack of snow the last few years has had a major impact on hunting success in these parts. With out serious snow for mid Nov on , the deer remain 'mostly' scattered over large areas. Typically , does in daylight is what is needed for success. The bucks travel %99 in the middle of the night and with not many does to see , the chances of a daylight buck sighting goes way down !!

[caddisguy]

Your hunting efforts sound pretty solid. Maybe there are things you can experiment with for fine tuning everything from how/when to move, when to look, calls to hold them in place, etc. PG's 2014 Trophy Blacktail thread has a lot of golden nuggets. I haven't seen a single blacktail since a beauty 4-point hung out in my camp back in late August. Lots of rubs, poop, tracks come November... even heard a grunt from one ridge away. Not a buck to be seen. And I was hunting my Region 2 spots, hard every weekend, 2-4 night trips once a week, September, November and part of December.

Some other highlights this year consisted of having a factory winchester misfire with a blackbear at 7 yards. Also shot a mulie and to make a long winded story short, I could not find it--despite several hours looking--before a large predator did. Saw some monster jungle-head mulies hunting a plateau but either wasn't quick enough or there was no safe shot because it was skylined.

I still consider it all a success. Finding mule bucks and black bears is getting pretty easy. And I am getting to know my BT areas so well I can whip through them like some kind of half tarzen half cat hybrid.

With daylight savings factored in. It's only 264 days, 16 hours and 25 minutes until 5AM on opening day for BT's in Region 2

[835]

What happened? you chose to hunt the hardes to hunt animal in BC!
You shoot moose and earn Blacktails. Keep at it buddy

Old growth mossy,,, you got it.... hunt sign dont hunt country.... Get out there this summer and find some sign
When you do connect you will get that feelin'

[Ajsawden]

The snow (or lack there of) has been a big damper on my enthusiasm the last few years. I have a spot that I love to go to. I usually only hunt it once a year so scouting does not happen. Every time I've hunted it in the snow I've saw a nice buck. Every time I've been in there without the snow I've saw nothing. The last two years have been no snow. In my other spots I saw 11 spikes this year and shot one nice fat one. I let the rest walk hoping for at least a two point. As others have mentioned when you do find your blacktail it will be the most rewarding animal you've harvested. Keep it up!

[markomoose]

Did you try Pemberton or stick to Sea to Sky area?