What about Nevada....?

[ron w]

I have hunted Colorado and Wyoming, and would like to get back out west again at some point. You hear about Elk in New Mexico and Arizona, mule deer and black tails all over the place......but you never hear to much about Nevada. Is there good Mule Deer hunting, or any quality hunting out in that part of the west. If anyone has been out there or hunts there on a regular basis, fill us in. Or is it a secrete......LOL!

[Trumpkin the Dwarf]

It is a tough draw if I'm not mistaken. REALLY tough.

[ron w]

Maybe that's why we don't hear to much from that part of the world!

[DarkTimber]

Nevada has some huge bulls but I doubt anyone is going to chime in that has elk hunted Nevada on a regular basis because drawing an elk tag there is a once or twice in a lifetime deal unless you're extremely lucky.  I've managed to rat hole 9 bonus points and don't expect to draw for probably another 10 years.   You must buy a license to aquire a bonus point which costs $142 plus another $21.50 application fee.  If you are fortunate enough to draw, the tag is $1,200.

They also have some great mule deer and the tags aren't nearly as hard to draw as their elk tags.   I haven't personally hunted mule deer there but plan on doing so in the next couple years.    I'm hoping South Cox will chime in....I know he has some first hand experience in NV  

 

[old_goat2]

I rifle hunted there a few seasons when I was stationed in Fallon, NV, hunting was awesome when you could draw. Very very very rugged country! I didn't get a monster, but seen some.

[Roadkill]

I hunt here every year I get a tag.  Huge bulls and great bucks.  Hot-hard hunts during archery season/  This year they opened cow for non resi.  I hunt cows and there are opportunities.  We have 4 kinds of sheep, goats, antelope, lion, elk, bear and mulies. All but lion is draw.
Lots of public land-anything with water is privately owned. Tags are due on the 15th so get crackin.  If you draw one, gurantee we can spot you a canyon or two to start your hunt.  I live in Reno-a 9 hour drive to my favorite elk spot.  Big country, not a lot of civilization except  vegas, Reno, Elko.  Nice folks

[Burnsie]

Ask South Cox of Stalker Stickbows about the mule deer in Nevada.

[ron w]

So it's draw even for residents?

[helo]

Yes it is a draw for everyone. I have hunted nevada several times over the years when I draw a tag. My brother has drawn multiple times over the last few years and I always go with him. My father in law drew a good tag last year and I tagged along with him. So even if I don't draw  I usually end up in nevada just about every other year in one form or another. I may not always have a tag but I love the country. Great state you need to play the points game so my advice is get after it. Several units are high draw odds for mule deer archery.  

[ron w]

Thanks for the input!!  

[old_goat2]

I really loved it there, if my folks weren't still alive when I retired from the Navy, I would of moved there in a heart beat instead of Colorado, bird hunting is great too, quail, turkey in places, chuckars, some grouse I think and sage grouse. Great fishing too!

[Bivyhunter]

If you want to hunt Nevada, it'll likely cost you a couple of years of buying a license and building up a preference point or two--at the minimum. The whole time I've hunted Nevada, I've only hunted one unit. Traditionally, it has been about a 1 in 3 odds of drawing the tag. Unfortunately, it has been in a steady decline in deer quality since 2005, too many rifle tags are being issued (too many tags in general, but the guns make the biggest dent in the population). In 2012 they doubled the amount of deer tags, they should have cut them IMO. Here is one for you...Last winter (2011-12) the F&W did a deer count. I don't remember the exact numbers, but it was about 8,500 deer counted on the winter range. If you figure (generously) 30% bucks= 3,160 bucks. They issued well over 4,000 tags. I'm not rocket scientist, but something tells me if you sell more tags than you have deer, you are going to be making a really big dent in the deer population. I've been hunting up there since the late 90's. It is an amazing area with good deer numbers (despite the over-harvesting), but the deer quality has dropped so greatly that I'm lucky to see a P&Y class buck on a trip. I used to see 20-30 P&Y class bucks in a week pre-2005! It is still a fun hunt with my stick because I am less concerned about the size of the antlers and more focused on whether I can get close to the buck or not. I F&W comes to their senses and sees what is happening to their herds and doesn't run it completely into the ground. Kind of a bleak report, but for what it is worth, I'll be putting in again this year. I guess I'm an addict....

[ron w]

Thanks for the input Mr. Cox!  

[Bivyhunter]

I don't mean to paint a doom and gloom picture of Nevada, you can still have a dream hunt there. It just isn't nearly as good as it used to be. The unit I hunt, I still can find double digit bucks quantities in a single day and generally get at least one stalk a day if I'm moving around to different areas, just aren't as many big bucks as there used to be.

[ron w]

I understand South......things are not what they used to be in New York either....lol!

[beendare]

I would back what South said. Nevada has gone through cycles with their mulie herd over the 25 or so years I've hunted it. Last year just about everyone who wanted a tag drew. So along with declining herds and too many tags we are in a bit of a trough right now.

 That said, its still a good hunt if you spent the time and boot leather to find a good pocket.

In regards to elk, still excellent elk hunting but tough to draw. I'm at 15 points right now but don't want to draw this year since I have an Arizona Unit 27 elk tag in my pocket...grin

[Shawn Leonard]

I would respectfully disagree about NY, we are starting to see some of the best bucks killed in years. I would love to hunt Nevada just to see it there! Shawn

[Littlejake]

What are the 4 types of sheep? I'd guess desert bighorn but what else?

[screamin]

The thing about Nevada, in spite of the current problems, is on any given unit you have the potential to kill a trophy class buck.

Elk will take you prolly 19 or so points for bulls. Around 14 to 15 as a resident. Cow tags can usually be drawn every other year.

Desert, rocky mtn and california bighorns are in the state although there isn't a tag offered for rockies to non-residents. There is usually one non resident tag available for mtn goat.

[Roadkill]

The fourth is Sierra Nevada Big Horn.  There still are spectacular bucks, but South is right about numbers. FW says the numbers are up this year for elk, and I hope to be drawnfor my third cow in a row. There are places where civilization does not appear other than an occasional cowboy-real cowboys- a few shepherds, until hunting season.  Then every road has vehicles on it.  Rifle hunters are generally road hunters, few archery only tags so you can out distance other hunters easily in archery only season. I hope to draw an archery tag just above Reno.  Last fall I ran a coup,e dandies out of quakies I was pushing blue grouse in.  Quakies eat arrows shot at blues.