Mule Deer in 8-9

[OKMuleyHunter]

Hey everyone,

I'm a new hunter and I'm looking for some advice on where to find mule deer in the 8-9 areas around Beaverdell Road. I've been scouting the area a bit, but when I was out last Sunday, I didn't see a single deer!

Any tips or advice would be greatly appreciated. I'm open to any suggestions, from general locations to strategies.

Thanks in advance!

[HarryToolips]

Many ungulates are now educated/pressured to stay off the roads after about 2 months of hunting pressure.. get off the roads and find fresh sign, if there's snow it's much easier..all the best..

[skaha]

Yep get off the road and hit the ridges. Move slow, glass a lot.

[OKMuleyHunter]

Thanks for the advice, everyone. A couple of weeks ago when I was driving in the area, I saw about a dozen mule deer and even had to dodge a couple that darted in front of my car. However, the past two weekends I haven't seen anything hiking ridges and logging trails. I think I’ll need to rethink my strategy.

[mike31154]

I've been hunting a number of region 8 MU's for years without success. Put in more than my share of boots on the ground on roads & in the timber, climbing etc. I see more deer in my front yard in Vernon than out in the wild. All you can do is keep at it, have the wind to your advantage & your eyes peeled, binos ready. Might be worthwhile exploring neighbouring regions 4 & 3.

Got to the point where I put in for antlerless LEH to up my chances of getting something haha. I won the draw for 3-12 & ironically saw 2 bucks last Friday. 1st one eluded me as I noticed him off to my left as I was walking a road. It was a 4 point & I would have gladly taken him vs shooting a doe or juvenile buck. I continued hiking getting off the road & looping back to my truck. Must have hiked a good 6 km over varied terrain, plenty of tracks & sign. The area had been burned by the fires a few years ago so the going was relatively easy.

Back to the truck around lunch time, tuckered & considering my options. Decided a drive to another lake not too far might be a good idea if nothing else but to scope out more of the area which I had never hunted. Just short of the destination another 4 point walks across the road I'm driving & wanders up a cut block. General consensus is that chances are better of sighting something at dawn or dusk. I made sure I was on site before sunrise & both bucks were moving mid-day. I reckon part of the deal is sometimes you gotta have Lady Luck smiling on you.