ff89
09-30-2017, 01:18 PM
I went up here last year and had a great solo hunting experience, sneaking up on a bachelor group, picking a buck and bringing it home. I'd like to do something similar this upcoming week and I was wondering a few basic mule deer questions to help narrow down my search. I really want to go at this trip with a confirmed game plan not just my new hunter ideas on deer behaviour.
Deer are where you find them, but is it safe to say most bucks where I'm looking at are still going to be up high? Really high subalpine stuff or not so much? Heavy timbered North slopes or more open south slopes?
South aspects in the mornings trying to catch some sun?
Where do these guys bed down during the day? Will a bachelor group bed down together or split up?
If the wind switches and blows my scent in an unintended direction, should I just give up at that spot?
Does rattling work for mule deer? Is it too early to use a can call?
When should I sit still and observe and when should I get up and go? I dont do enough sitting and observing perhaps because of my youthful impatience. The thought of "well there might be deer just over the next hill" is too overpowering. Should I grow up, ditch this mentality buy some binos and glass more? Should I focus on cutblocks? I'll do a slow drive by if I have a good feeling about it but I see hunters glassing barren wastelands, am I missing something?
My hunting strategy has been basically drive around till I find what looks like good habitat and get out and walk slow, rattle a bit if I'm gonna walk through some noisy stuff and keep the wind at my face. 99% of the time I dont see anything by doing this but when I do it has worked for me, 100% of the time its been within 2 hours after first light and it feels like 100% luck and 0% skill right now. Never seen anything this way in the evenings. I'm looking to get more deer sightings and have a better idea if what I'm doing makes sense.
Deer are where you find them, but is it safe to say most bucks where I'm looking at are still going to be up high? Really high subalpine stuff or not so much? Heavy timbered North slopes or more open south slopes?
South aspects in the mornings trying to catch some sun?
Where do these guys bed down during the day? Will a bachelor group bed down together or split up?
If the wind switches and blows my scent in an unintended direction, should I just give up at that spot?
Does rattling work for mule deer? Is it too early to use a can call?
When should I sit still and observe and when should I get up and go? I dont do enough sitting and observing perhaps because of my youthful impatience. The thought of "well there might be deer just over the next hill" is too overpowering. Should I grow up, ditch this mentality buy some binos and glass more? Should I focus on cutblocks? I'll do a slow drive by if I have a good feeling about it but I see hunters glassing barren wastelands, am I missing something?
My hunting strategy has been basically drive around till I find what looks like good habitat and get out and walk slow, rattle a bit if I'm gonna walk through some noisy stuff and keep the wind at my face. 99% of the time I dont see anything by doing this but when I do it has worked for me, 100% of the time its been within 2 hours after first light and it feels like 100% luck and 0% skill right now. Never seen anything this way in the evenings. I'm looking to get more deer sightings and have a better idea if what I'm doing makes sense.