Hunting mule deer in heavy brush

[TreeStandMan]

I was out in 3-28 today looking for mule deer. I am still a fairly new hunter and teaching myself, so I am hoping I can get some pointers for the community. Last year I was out a lot in 3-28 and regularly saw does, with the rare buck. I was truck hunting about 80% of the time, and managed to get a deer.

I've hunted a bunch across the North Thompson valley from 3-28 where the topography is very similar. The best system I've found is to locate a clearing with sign out of sight of the road where I can sit and observe as large an area as possible. Sometimes I'll get up and move slowly around the edge of the to glass from other vantage points, but mostly I just sit quietly. This system worked for me the past three years, but this year I'm yet to pull the trigger despite putting in more time that previously. Seems that the deer have moved out of my old spot--I suspect predators are at least half the reason for this.

No system is fool proof, and there's a lot of good advice in this thread. I think the best thing to do is try a bunch of things so that when the hunting gets tough, you have a bunch of plays in your book. This is something I struggle with myself.

[finngun]

If ya have hunting puddy,,,try to send puddy ahead making big loop ,,he is waiting some opening quietly...ya are coming thru that bush area,,,but wind diretion is key..always check that..,,,,,,,i,have seen that kind of hunting working..good hunting for ya..it always fun,shoot or not
and remember,,,deer when spooked,,like to go uphill..get better view i guess..

[4 point]

Saw quite a few deer in 3-28 in October including 6 bucks none of which we able to wack. Now in November with snow, logging starting up for winter, 10 days of helicopter fertilizing things have been tough. Lots of wolf sign and several sightings of tracks we assume are grizzly though I have never known or heard of any in 3-28. Lots of moose sign in pockets but that open season for immature closed yesterday. Keep at it as we are and hopefully you'll score a nice 4x4.

[Darksith]

if the snow is crunchy, or even wet and it packs when you step in it, you won't see many deer. They can hear you, they will bust out of there way before you ever get a chance to see them. Still hunt is your better option, less movement more patience. That being said you have to know there are animals in the area or whats the point. If you see fresh sign...stop, bring a chair, sit n wait

[Bugle M In]

if the snow is crunchy, or even wet and it packs when you step in it, you won't see many deer. They can hear you, they will bust out of there way before you ever get a chance to see them. Still hunt is your better option, less movement more patience. That being said you have to know there are animals in the area or whats the point. If you see fresh sign...stop, bring a chair, sit n wait

Also like last Friday and Saturday in parts of R3....
if it gets socked in, and you can only see out 50 yards or so at best....forget it...
they will hear you, no matter how slow you walk, and a lot of the time, you will see nothing, even though there
are fresh tracks everywhere...not impossible to get close to something, but the odds go way down.
Basically....a good day to road hunt, or sight in the rifle....or drink with friends

[Wild one]

Also like last Friday and Saturday in parts of R3....
if it gets socked in, and you can only see out 50 yards or so at best....forget it...
they will hear you, no matter how slow you walk, and a lot of the time, you will see nothing, even though there
are fresh tracks everywhere...not impossible to get close to something, but the odds go way down.
Basically....a good day to road hunt, or sight in the rifle....or drink with friends

Or sit and wait

Personally I often hunt bush being able to see 50yards is along ways so my opinion is different

[jbruce]

spend more time with your binos in the thick brush.take your time focus out 75 or 100 yds and start looking through the gaps between trees and brush after a while you'll discover you can spot things far off in the thick shit.glass real slow soon you'll start spotting deer way out ,they will be watching you but havn't spooked as they aren't too threatened yet. hunt up hill you'll be amazed how far up you can see with the glasses compared to the naked eye,the bucks will be laying on small benches looking down,

[avadad]

No one has mentioned this yet but pay attention to the wind direction. A deer's #1 defense is its nose. If you're hunting and area with good sign but the wind is at your back you're not likely to see and bucks.

[horshur]

You hunt 360 degrees not just what is in front of your face. Hunt with the the wind on a ridge line you are likely to spot the on your right or left..Wind can betray them especially if it is fickle. Foggy rainy day keeps scent close and bush quiet the very best situation for bush hunting. Fresh snow is advantageous because it is quite,scent is held low and tracks are easy to age.

[Looking_4_Jerky]

I'm not surprised to hear that you had better success road hunting than walking. Under most conditions, I would expect that. Most hunters don't like it, and you certainly don't get the quality of hunt, but deer seem to be less averse to the sound of motorized vehicles than they are to the sound of footsteps, especially if there's any crunching going on. In the thick, finding an active travel corridor and sitting is about as good a plan as any, again especially if conditions are loud. If you're able to get around quietly, as almost everyone has advised, GO SLOW.