Sabiston creek rd(

[ratherbefishin]

I have hunted deadman creek years ago but not sabiston creek rd(near Savona) and we’re heading up that way this week.any local input on road conditions, forest service campsites, would be appreciated.Hoping to see some animals and shoot some grouse ,got both mule deer whitetail tags.Was this area impacted by fires?Any streams or small lakes to camp by for fishing?

[Grousedaddy]

Big fire went through close to there last year. Lots of vehicle restrictions and no orv at all

[ratherbefishin]

No ORV....looks like we will have to walk in or use a pac Kart if we get a deer..

[bighornbob]

As mentioned no ORV/ATV use at all in the whole MU. The area I hunt is affected by this too even though the fire was 30km away:(

BHB

[tipper]

Too much night poaching go's on up sabiston copper creek. If you see the rancher out ask him about it.

[ratherbefishin]

I am unclear on prohibiting the use of a quad in MU 29....I know you can’t go off road, but can you drive on logging roads?

[lovemywinchester]

It's a highway all of October. Too many people all over. Lots of wolves there as well, hope you see one.

[ratherbefishin]

We’re hoping to just set up camp on a spur and do some walking.Got a PAC KART hunt if we do happen to connect.Hopefuly there are some grouse around.I understand whitetail does open on the 10th and we’ve got a couple of kids with us so a doe would be fine.If the fires were there last year,this year there should Be greening up

[scttlp86]

We started hunting the area a few years ago. Easy walking/hiking, grassy and fairly open. My brother pulled a small 4x4 out of there a few years ago but emphasis on the small. It is hunted very heavily in October. I think Italian Sporting goods hunts there and it seems they invite all of their friends out for a week or two, non stop traffic.

[Wild one]

I don’t hunt there but if it is like most place hunters call busy it means heavy road traffic and busy clearcut pressure

If you have faith in the deer population, plan on working/sitting in timber away from road glassing locations, and think outside of the box it might pan out alright pressure wise

You seen the thread where advice on the peace was asked and tons of responses of the area being so busy. I can tell you I had no issues with hunting pressure or competition but I stuck to the timber away from areas that could be glassed. I regularly seen game and did have chances but lack of experience with the species/things just not panning out is all that stopped success

I say if the area looked good to you and glassing clear cuts/road hunting is not your plan giver. At the worst it’s a new adventure

[dmaxtech]

ATV for Hunting Closed Areas: The operation of all ATVs to hunt wildlife, transport wildlife, transport equipment and supplies which are intended for or in support of hunting, or transport hunters to and from the location of wildlife is prohibited in Management Units 3-28, 3-29 and 3-30 from September 1 to December 10

[swampthing]

Some nice mulies hang around there. Find low pressure spots and enjoy a good hunt.

[finngun]

ah 20 years back sabiston creeck area was real mulies heaven...no need to make empty trip there..only brob. was not to many lakes for set up the camp..just sabiston lake ,,with 1 or 2 camp areas,,mostly occupied with old fellas..most of the time we just camp in the bush..
nowdays it is almost all logged ,,no near that many deer left..maybe more black bears and wolves,,:biggrin: just good memories left..

[Ferenc]

Hunt the North side of the lake between Savona - Tranquille ... Eagle hills also ... put the boots on and pack and give er ..... good luck !!! : )

[MichelD]

I tried to go up Criss Creek yesterday from Deadman and was stopped by a herd of cows at the cattle guard at 4 km. They wanted to go home because of the snow and were all lined up facing down hill and I couldn't go past them. It was straight up and down mountain side on both sides of the road and they were just standing there hock deep in manure waiting for the taxi. Oddly enough, the bull was 500 metres down hill laying down, calmly chewing his cud.

[ratherbefishin]

We had a great hunt,took two young bucks.Didn’t see any big bucks but lots of does which is a good sign.( one guy stopped say he had taken a 4 point chasing a doe already which is likely the early rut ahead of the main rut a month later )The advice to get off the roads and hike the ridges and pockets resulted in lots of deer seen.Some areas didn’t have much sign,but others held a lot of deer.It was just a matter of locating them.But from what I saw,the mule deer population was in good shape ,and I think the big boys will be be out and about in about another month when the rut is on,but until then they tend to stay out of sight.
I had expected to see more grouse,ther were a few but not many.Didn’t see any coyotes or see any wolf sign and no bears

[Wild one]

Congrats on a the bucks and good to hear you enjoyed yourself

[ratherbefishin]

Had a whitetail tag in my pocket but never saw one ,lots of mule deer does though,bodes well for mulies

[Wild one]

Had a whitetail tag in my pocket but never saw one ,lots of mule deer does though,bodes well for mulies

Like I said don’t hunt the area so can’t really say if there is a reasonable wt population in the area especially with BCs habit of applying liberal wt seasons to very few wt

In many places tactics and locations targeted within an area will dictate if you even see a wt. Yes md and wt will mix in some areas but no doubt they have habitat they prefer. I have seen hunters struggle to find wt in areas with good populations but see md all day. Majority of deer hunters in BC run md tactics and when targeting deer hunt areas that are geared to md as that is the species they know

If you really want a wt in my opinion you will be way more successful focusing on locations and tactics geared to wt. Most areas I target wt still hunting is not going to be effective because it’s too thick to be stealthy even.

Huge increase in success rate for wt approaching the hunt with them as the number one goal targeting areas better suited for them and tactics geared for hunting them. Stands, blinds, and cams are nice but not a must so it’s not a gear thing. Without doing this it’s really just carrying a tag in case of an opportunity

Your success seeing and taking md this trip I assume you’re locations and tactics were better suited for md

[ratherbefishin]

Do I presume WT hunting is more successful by hunting from a stand and waiting for them to move?

[Wild one]

Do I presume WT hunting is more successful by hunting from a stand and waiting for them to move?

Because they are way more routine then other deer species and movement in daylight hours is often in thick bush waiting(does not need to be a stand) is very effective. Calling during the rut is another effective one. Still hunting super slow if you have the right location can work

The reason tree stands are a common tool is often wt are in bush that is tough to still hunt. They are less forgiving when it comes to noise/sent. They also have a habit of only visiting open areas at night if pressured. Combined this with the wt have a small home range you are focusing on a small area

The biggest one I notice with most hunters in bc they look for WT in the wrong places