Anyone doing deer scouting near Merritt and willing to mentor a new hunter?

[sockbot]

I'm a first generation hunter from Vancouver looking to go for deer for my second season this year. I have access to a room in Merritt so I'm planning to hunt there this year and would love to have someone local show me the ropes. I'm not looking for your secret spot or anything but more for someone to guide me with scouting principles and general hunting and shooting ettiquite.

If anyone is going out this long weekend I'd be grateful to tag along and I'll provide the beers at the end of the day.

[likemaple]

went to Merritt last season for black bears with no luck, but saw a lot deer along the way, many of those lands are private though, just search along the river and couple FSR in that area
interested in getting a black tail this fall, too, let me know if you want to go together.

[RyoTHC]

Be careful of all the reservation land in the area, Merritt is surrounded by numerous reserves. And as mentioned alot of the prime habitat is private property. To be successful in the area you need to catch the bucks early season before they leave the Alpine because once they do they are often spending all their time fattening up on private property.

[Wild one]

I don’t hunt Merritt but know people who do that are consistently successful. They are not relying on early season alpine or private land. Some are mule deer guys others hunt whitetail more so. All hunt public land but have invested effort into learning their spots.

I don’t hunt the area and don’t think any othe the guys I know would be up for taking out someone they don’t know. Most of them are tight lipped and anti social lol

Sorry I can’t be much help other then tell you the deer are there. Pick the species you have most interest in research the proffered habitat of that species and seek it out and scout.

If you can find a mentor to help you out it’s valuable but don’t let it hold you back from scouting. The best spots are usually the ones you find yourself. In my opinion rookies have an advantage in ways do to an open mind that can cause them to stumble on overlooked locations. Look for places others don’t go, don’t get caught up on large tracks of land, You don’t need FSR access everywhere, think small pockets, sightings are nice but at time good sign is all you need to find a good pocket and often it’s not about how far you hike

I wish you luck and advise mentor or not get out and explore

[RackStar]

Lots of great deer hunting ALL season for both WT N mulies.
Lots of crown land.
great place to start deer hunting, I took my first deer in Merritt a white tail.

[RackStar]

I don’t hunt Merritt but know people who do that are consistently successful. They are not relying on early season alpine or private land. Some are mule deer guys others hunt whitetail more so. All hunt public land but have invested effort into learning their spots.

I don’t hunt the area and don’t think any othe the guys I know would be up for taking out someone they don’t know. Most of them are tight lipped and anti social lol

Sorry I can’t be much help other then tell you the deer are there. Pick the species you have most interest in research the proffered habitat of that species and seek it out and scout.

If you can find a mentor to help you out it’s valuable but don’t let it hold you back from scouting. The best spots are usually the ones you find yourself. In my opinion rookies have an advantage in ways do to an open mind that can cause them to stumble on overlooked locations. Look for places others don’t go, don’t get caught up on large tracks of land, You don’t need FSR access everywhere, think small pockets, sightings are nice but at time good sign is all you need to find a good pocket and often it’s not about how far you hike

I wish you luck and advise mentor or not get out and explore

^^^^^^^^
this is great great advice

[Camp Cook]

If there is easy access with logging roads its been shot out by the stewards of the land one fellow I know that lives there told me of one of these poachers stopped and chatted with him had 5 does in the back of the truck and it was early morning ******* shot them during the night.

[butcher]

I’ll be scouting Merritt this weekend but down by the coldwater river. Lotsa cougars down there. Maybe some two-legged deer.

[RyoTHC]

I’ll be scouting Merritt this weekend but down by the coldwater river. Lotsa cougars down there. Maybe some two-legged deer.

Oh God, couldn't pay me to go to RRF.

[butcher]

Normally me either but a friend got me some tickets so I though I’d try a day or two. Scouting only. I have no tags and those things are waaaay out of season for me.

[RyoTHC]

You know what...

Send me a PM, Depending what you're looking to do/hunt.. I will take you out,but for a hunt.. forget the scouting.. if you're just looking to fill your freezer that is absolutely no issue in the WMU's immediately south of Merritt.


Cheers.

[sockbot]

went to Merritt last season for black bears with no luck, but saw a lot deer along the way, many of those lands are private though, just search along the river and couple FSR in that area
interested in getting a black tail this fall, too, let me know if you want to go together.

So I took the advice here and went for a walk without a mentor.

Me and a buddy climbed the hill just south of Lindley Creek road which I think took us to the edge of city limits: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1K6wv57h-RbXHK_Rxzx52oOq0Yz1ZZtWO&usp=sharing

It was really steep and did not have good vehicle access so I think the next trip would have to be with a car up one of the FSRs to the West.

Still not really sure how to tell if I'm on Crown land or not.

[northof49]

^^^^^ I recommend you start by spending some time on a computer and some mapping applications if you can. Google earth is a good start to help with orientation and picking some likely areas to explore. Get yourself a GPS as well if not bush savy....mark waypoint at truck. Compass for keeping track of direction you want to head in is helpful. Some of the mapping apps include private land survey parcel cadastre line work and you can also pull it up in google earth. Easy enough to pick Crown land areas well away from private land. There are some threads here on HBC about mapping applications that might be helpful. Pre trip planning is part of the key to success. Pick some good areas with access to water and escape cover.... mulies like relief. 3 to 10 year old cut blocks in hilly broken terrain are always a good bet. Look for fresh sign.....tracks, beds, droppings. Hunt the edges, ridges, draws around cut blocks...fir knobs to high side during the day. Sit on edge of block and watch funnel points for last 1hr of daylight....don’t forget a flashlight. Being comfortable with orientation in the bush will increase your chances of success!! Good luck.

http://www.huntingbc.ca/forum/showthread.php?134451-A-new-way-of-checking-for-private-Crown-land
http://www.huntingbc.ca/forum/showthread.php?110525-BC-government-Google-Earth-land-use-data-file
http://www.huntingbc.ca/forum/showthread.php?131669-Found-BC-map-link-of-every-road-there-is!
http://www.huntingbc.ca/forum/showthread.php?138497-Are-there-maps-with-more-specific-lines-for-regions
http://www.huntingbc.ca/forum/showthread.php?145852-Land-maps-barriers
http://www.huntingbc.ca/forum/showthread.php?137672-Backroad-Mapbooks

[RyoTHC]

So I took the advice here and went for a walk without a mentor.

Me and a buddy climbed the hill just south of Lindley Creek road which I think took us to the edge of city limits: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1K6wv57h-RbXHK_Rxzx52oOq0Yz1ZZtWO&usp=sharing

It was really steep and did not have good vehicle access so I think the next trip would have to be with a car up one of the FSRs to the West.

Still not really sure how to tell if I'm on Crown land or not.


As I said, I will take you out locally just get in touch..

As for lindley creek side road. That's all private property and you have a little ways to go before you're out of town limits. If you want to bag a deer I wouldn't anticipate hunting mid day valley area and more so south towards kingsvale and kane valley