WY Deer!!

[wisconsinteacher]

Well, I am less than 2 weeks away from heading west. My brother in law is in charge of the UTV and trailer. I am in charge of food. I have the 7mm and 270 shooting well. I have scouted on google earth for hours. I have also talked to guys that have hunted the area I picked. Now to pack the truck and head west.

I am a little nervous about seeing deer. I don't want this to be a big camping trip with no animals seen. I also, don't know what to expect for size. I would hate to pass up a nice buck but on the other hand, I don't want to shoot a small buck. Going for the first time is kinda nerve racking at times. I know I can't control the weather so I am not going to stress to much on that. All, we can do is get to our predetermined spots and glass. If we see one, we will try to put the sneak on him. If we don't see anything, all we can do is keep walking and glassing hill sides and hiding spots I guess.

If you have any advice for a first time mule deer hunter please share. I am want to be as prepared as possible.

 

[c. schutte]

I had the same concerns on my first mule deer hunt. They are going to look bigger than whitetails, especially if you have not seen one in the wild. My advice is to not shoot the first one you see. Then again, what happens if you see the biggest buck in the county the first 30 minutes in the hunt? You've got to be prepared to shoot the first hour into you hunt.

I'd look up some pictures of bucks in the wild and maybe mounts so that you can get a good idea as their antler size in relation to their body. A good rule of thumb is to try and find one that has an inside spread as wide or wider than the ears, that should get you close to 24"?

If you are lucky the rut will be on. What I did on my first hunt was waste 2 days hiking all over the pace. Then I found a herd of doe and parked my butt on a ridge over looking them. There were some small bucks that would enter the heard but eventually an older one got up on the opposite side of the valley. Not the biggest ever for sure but it gave me the chance to evaluate him over the younger bucks.

Before the hunt I visited a taxidermy shop in the area and asked what was a typical buck, what was an exceptional one and what size should I not pass up. The guys who own those shops have an awful lot of experience and can tell provide you with many of your answers including hot spots. They see many of the "successes" in the area you are hunting. I can tell you that after spending some time there I had a different idea of what I could expect.

Anyway, folks with tons more experience than I should be able to provide much more help.

 

[Guy Miner]

Often they will feed or water at night. Providing two opportunities to ambush them. They'll often be down low, in or near irrigated fields, or just to water, and will be walking back up higher, into the sagebrush covered hills, to bed down for the day. That's your morning opportunity.

Late afternoon, they'll start heading back down. That's your afternoon/evening opportunity.

Unless you spot a "shooter" right off, spend a couple of days figuring out their pattern. When and where they feed & water. When and where they bed down. A lot of that can be done by glassing from a good observation point, rather than walking all over the place.

If you're in an area with a good deer population, you'll see quite a few bucks, and the pre-rut behavior may already be kicking in by mid October. They may be pushing each other around, seeing who's dominant.

Don't have unreasonable expectations. Most mule deer hunters go a lifetime of hunting without ever shooting that 28" 4x4 buck. Some mule deer hunters shoot several of those in their lifetime. Monsters are out there, huge deer. Some are taken by really smart, dedicated hunters. Others by blind luck! I favor the blind luck approach. :grin: But I still haven't shot a monster buck. Probably never will. I think the hunting shows, and magazines give the impression that there are monster mule deer bucks on every other ridge... Ah, no... There are a lot of mule deer, but not a lot of really big bucks.

Try not to judge a buck's rack when he's walking away from you, particularly with his ears upright, or laid back. An average buck can look like he's got a huge rack that way. Try to see how the rack's width compares to his ears when he's looking your way, ears spread out. If it's a couple of inches wider than his ears... He's probably a pretty good size deer.

They can make great table fare! Yes, their flavor is stronger, often, than a whitetail, but it can be very good. Take care with the carcass, cleaning it and cooling it down quickly.

Though they are big, strong animals, most mule deer drop readily to a single well-placed shot.

Best of luck!

Guy

 

[Guy Miner]

My son with a young 3x3 Washington buck. He's legal, three point minimum here, and it was a great hunt, but the rack is small:


Pretty much average central Washington buck. Still a 3x3, but mature. My buddy and I were both pretty happy with this buck, biggest one I saw that season:


26" 4x4 with shallow tines. He'll never score well, but he looks good on the wall of my loading room. Washington buck:


26+ inch wide buck, more or less a 2x4, Wyoming. I really liked this guy. Patterned him for three days before taking him. He's probably the biggest buck I've ever shot. I've never scored any of my mule deer racks. None were ever big enough to bother getting an official score, and it really doesn't matter to me anyway. He was a smart one, when moving, he always brought up the rear of the group of bucks that were with him.


3x4 average Wyoming buck. I'm not smiling in the photo, but I'm really happy with this guy after about four days of hunting. He's a european mount on my living room wall. Was great table fare too, he'd been eating alfalfa mostly... Yum!


You are a meticulous handloader, a skilled rifleman, and an experienced hunter. I know you can make the shot when needed. Don't be too sure it will be a long-range shot either... I've taken mule deer at 20 yards and at 400 yards... Take the shot presented. Make it a good one. Oftentimes, but not always, a mule deer will bound away, difficult to hit with that "bouncing" they do. Then, 200 yards out, they'll turn and look to see if anything is chasing them... I've tagged a couple when they made that mistake. The big, smart bucks? They don't turn around and look, they just LEAVE.

These are pretty much average bucks, from an average mule deer hunter. There are websites with pages and pages of bucks that humble these. If you want a great-scoring rack, you'll want width, deep forks, and mass... All three. Me? I'm happy with average size bucks. I enjoy the hunt, and take what I take.

Regards, Guy

 

[salmonchaser]

Following your efforts here I would guess you're better prepared then most.
Remember to look for parts of a deer when glassing, in big open country they have to hide someplace, it may be they bed down in knee high grass. In the unit I hunt the deer will travel three or four rough miles to water at night. That means we are back in with them at last light. Try to stay off the open ridge tops when moving. I use them when I want to cover ground but will always look for a route that gets me below the crest.
Use your glasses a lot.
On opening morning if you see a buck and your reaction is oh my God, shoot him, if you have a buck out at 400 yards, not skylined and you can see horns with the naked eye, shoot him. Well wider then his ears, boom.
These bucks were taken last weekend in a unit I've hunted in since I was a kid. I no longer will pack a small deer out of there. There are bigger deer in there but I would have killed either one on opening day, in particular the one on the left. His back forks are deeper and he carries more mass. He also came off what's known as don's ridge. Just a good representative mule deer buck, a bit wider than his ears.
With that being said, if you're passing on four point mule deer for two or three days and not seeing anything bigger it might be the genetics are not there.
I think you're going to have a great adventure.


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[wisconsinteacher]

Keep it coming guys. I have not slept for a week thinking and dreaming of big bucks and this is not helping the issue.

From what I see, if it is as wide as the ears, he is a respectable deer????

 

[OU812]

My advice is to use your binos as much as possible when you can and be patient while glassing. Here in Oregon I often see MD bedded up under Juniper trees so look them over even if the area looks open you'll be surprised on what your eyes don't see.

 

[joelkdouglas]

From a couple three muley failures of mine...

If you find a buck you should look for a while longer until you see the does. I've been busted too many times when I saw the buck but didn't spot the doe until she busted me.

You can spot bedded bucks in the middle of the day if you are good or lucky. If you don't spot them keep trying and eventually you'll find some. They're easier to see than whitetails in the Midwest during the middle of the day.

Many muleys have died when they bust you but turn back to look. Usually not the old wise ones, but I was standing next to my buddy who killed a small 4x4 when his brother got busted, but the buck ran about 300 yards and stopped. That can sometimes be your chance even if you get busted!

Most of all enjoy Wyoming!


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[wayno945]

Which tag do you have?

 

[salmonchaser]

Keep it coming guys. I have not slept for a week thinking and dreaming of big bucks and this is not helping the issue.

From what I see, if it is as wide as the ears, he is a respectable deer????

From your writings it appears you may not be making regular trips out west to hunt Mulies.
I know nothing about your area or its potential but I think I would look for a four point and wider than his ears on a trip like this. At least give it a couple of days.
Trust your instinct, if your gut says shoot, go tag him and post your photos.


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[wisconsinteacher]

We have Region R tags for the west side of the Big Horns.

 

[SJB358]

My advice is to use your binos as much as possible when you can and be patient while glassing. Here in Oregon I often see MD bedded up under Juniper trees so look them over even if the area looks open you'll be surprised on what your eyes don't see.

I'm with Bill and the others. Glass, glass and glass again!

You'll do well buddy. Those rifles are shooting well and will get it done when you need them to!

 

[wisconsinteacher]

One last range run this morning. 300 off sticks the 270 put all 8 in the kill zone and the 7mmRM did the same.

Now to pack tomorrow night and pray we have a safe trip.

 

[OU812]

Good luck, be safe and post pictures.

 

[DrMike]

Here's to a successful and enjoyable hunt! We're all pulling for you.

 

[wisconsinteacher]

Well, the time has come. The truck is packed. After work, we will be on our way west. Thanks for all the help getting my gear list and reloads ready for the hunt. I hope my next post has a few pictures of mule deer and mountain scenery.

I will let you know how it goes in a week or so!!!!

 

[AFG270]

Good luck!!! Looking forward to pictures.

 

[DrMike]

Trust you have grand success on this hunt!

 

[salmonchaser]

I am excited for you. This is the second year in a row I didn't hunt mule deer in either Oregon Washington or both in the last 48 or 49 years. There is nothing like seeing a big old mulie slipping through the sage. I'm envious that you get to see it for the first time.
God speed and good hunting.


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[cloverleaf]

Go get 'em WT. Enjoy Wyoming! CL