Alberta Whitetail

[monasheemountainman]

Hey guys, thought I'd share this buck I shot a few weeks back. I recently moved to Northern Alberta for business. I have a couple properties that I am fortunate enough to be able to hunt on. The unfortunate part is I don't have much time at all to get out and hunt. I wanted to hold out for a monster WT as I know there are a lot of them around this area, but when I had this fella at 100 yards and with my very limited hunting time I decided to take him. It's too bad because he was a perfectly typical 5x5 and would have been a really nice deer in a few years. Either way though he's a nice buck and will be enjoyed by the family this winter

good luck to everyone

http://i1253.photobucket.com/albums/hh597/monasheemountainman/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zps9a7c5a64.jpg (http://s1253.photobucket.com/user/monasheemountainman/media/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zps9a7c5a64.jpg.html)

[monasheemountainman]

http://i1253.photobucket.com/albums/hh597/monasheemountainman/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zpsa6ebf162.jpg (http://s1253.photobucket.com/user/monasheemountainman/media/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zpsa6ebf162.jpg.html)

[monasheemountainman]

http://i1253.photobucket.com/albums/hh597/monasheemountainman/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zps49869f21.jpg (http://s1253.photobucket.com/user/monasheemountainman/media/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zps49869f21.jpg.html)

[Brez]

Congrats, should be a great eater. It's very difficult to hold out for what may come when one like that walks by.

[monasheemountainman]

Congrats, should be a great eater. It's very difficult to hold out for what may come when one like that walks by.
Thanks, ya I watched him for a good 5 mins before I decided a decent buck is better than maybe no wild meat this year.

[pronghorn]

That's a great buck as for limited time I would have done the same, congratulations

[Wild one]

Nice buck but if you want to get a truly big buck don't be afraid to hold out Northern Alberta holds a good number of really big WT

Not knocking your deer at all just know what is out there

[monasheemountainman]

Nice buck but if you want to get a truly big buck don't be afraid to hold out Northern Alberta holds a good number of really big WT

Not knocking your deer at all just know what is out there
100%, I have seen them. Thanks for the input

[kennyj]

Nice buck!
kenny

[monasheemountainman]

Gonna do a skull hooker with the skull, anyone use them before? How do they look?

[coach]

Congratulations, Ben. That's a good looking buck. Hard to find a better tasting animal than an alberta grain fed WT!

[barklee]

Nice buck.
Just so you know if you have limited time you made the right call. Yes there are some monster bucks in northern Alberta but they take a lot of time and they don't come easy. For next year because it snowed out here last night I would suggest that the rut just kicked in so next year try to get some time to hunt from November 10-20 and you will increase your odds of getting a monster Alberta buck.
You can also get supplemental doe tags if you want a little extra wild game to get you through the winter.
That's a great Alberta white tail.

[boxhitch]

Good looking buck attago
Do you only get a chance for one ? any doe WT tag ?

IMO the skull hookers look cool , depending on the artwork of the actual base portion . Some plain simple ones look better than some of the modern artsy type. Snareman on here had some pics of his.

[Wild one]

Only 1 wt buck tag in Alberta but you get 2 supplementary doe tags that can be used in MU's with higher populations. Exception is in areas where CWD is a concern.

This is one of the reasons Alberta holds more large bucks then BC. Most hunters out their won't burn their buck tag on a small buck and take a doe or 2 as their meat deer. The different regs create a different hunting mentality out there

[monasheemountainman]

Only 1 wt buck tag in Alberta but you get 2 supplementary doe tags that can be used in MU's with higher populations. Exception is in areas where CWD is a concern.

This is one of the reasons Alberta holds more large bucks then BC. Most hunters out their won't burn their buck tag on a small buck and take a doe or 2 as their meat deer. The different regs create a different hunting mentality out there

good point, I think a lot of the horn growth though has to do with the feed they are getting though not just to do with hunting.

[Wild one]

good point, I think a lot of the horn growth though has to do with the feed they are getting though not just to do with hunting.

I hunted all crown land away from farms and big baucks are still there in better numbers than BC. I actually proffer to hunt crown for WT in Alberta. Get a km or 2 off the road in Alberta and it seems almost unhunted. Starting next month the big boys show up that have been hiding in the really thick stuff

Genetics and the fact they have a better chance to grow is the biggest factor in my opinion.

[luckofthedraw]

Nice buck. I hope you post the pic of your skull mount.

[Wild one]

A few things I found hunting Alberta WT that might help you out.

Hunt the MU's that don't open for rifle till Nov. These areas are not hit hard till Nov and a lot of guys tag out before these open. The WT in these areas come to calls a lot better. Also find a higher % of large bucks. I like the MU's that are flatter with huge spans of forest.

Find where the evergreens and poplars meet. WT like to run scrape lines in these areas. Scout for scrapes I don't see much for rubs from Alberta WT. Target scrapes and scrapes only even if it is a well beaten trail pass it up for a scrape.

These areas are often thick and you will only get shots at 50yards or less. Don't get caught up on trying to maximize your range. Set a blind or treestand and use a combo of doe bleat/rattling. Grunts work for stopping but have not had luck drawing them in. Tree stand is my choice as it gives you a better field of view in the thick stuff. It can be a shock on what opens up when you are in the tree.

Sit first light to last in Nov they show up at the strangest times.

This is for crown land and in my opinion there is a lot of big bucks that are hiding in the thick stuff going unnoticed till the rut. Many in Alberta seem to overlook this because it is easy to spot the farmland deer. Also it is harder to pattern crownland WT before the rut.

Take this info and use it or not it is just what I found from hunting WT in north western Alberta. It may help save you some time trying to figure out those WT in Alberta

[monasheemountainman]

Thanks there's some great info there. I'm not too worried about how to find them though. I just don't have the time to hunt this year, hopefully next year I'll have more free time.

[Wild one]

Best of luck lack of time is a killer

Need to get myself back to Alberta for late season WT I do miss it.

[monasheemountainman]

here is the finished product. I got my taxi to do this one, next one im gonna do myself.

http://i1253.photobucket.com/albums/hh597/monasheemountainman/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zps874d6774.jpg (http://s1253.photobucket.com/user/monasheemountainman/media/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zps874d6774.jpg.html)
http://i1253.photobucket.com/albums/hh597/monasheemountainman/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zps3e2b4ad0.jpg (http://s1253.photobucket.com/user/monasheemountainman/media/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zps3e2b4ad0.jpg.html)
http://i1253.photobucket.com/albums/hh597/monasheemountainman/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zps2f0962ad.jpg (http://s1253.photobucket.com/user/monasheemountainman/media/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zps2f0962ad.jpg.html)
http://i1253.photobucket.com/albums/hh597/monasheemountainman/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zps1ae05027.jpg (http://s1253.photobucket.com/user/monasheemountainman/media/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zps1ae05027.jpg.html)

[Seeker]

Looks great! Congrats!

[Husky7mm]

A few things I found hunting Alberta WT that might help you out.

Hunt the MU's that don't open for rifle till Nov. These areas are not hit hard till Nov and a lot of guys tag out before these open. The WT in these areas come to calls a lot better. Also find a higher % of large bucks. I like the MU's that are flatter with huge spans of forest.

Find where the evergreens and poplars meet. WT like to run scrape lines in these areas. Scout for scrapes I don't see much for rubs from Alberta WT. Target scrapes and scrapes only even if it is a well beaten trail pass it up for a scrape.

These areas are often thick and you will only get shots at 50yards or less. Don't get caught up on trying to maximize your range. Set a blind or treestand and use a combo of doe bleat/rattling. Grunts work for stopping but have not had luck drawing them in. Tree stand is my choice as it gives you a better field of view in the thick stuff. It can be a shock on what opens up when you are in the tree.

Sit first light to last in Nov they show up at the strangest times.

This is for crown land and in my opinion there is a lot of big bucks that are hiding in the thick stuff going unnoticed till the rut. Many in Alberta seem to overlook this because it is easy to spot the farmland deer. Also it is harder to pattern crownland WT before the rut.

Take this info and use it or not it is just what I found from hunting WT in north western Alberta. It may help save you some time trying to figure out those WT in Alberta

Excellent advice, that balls on !!