mule deer sugestions

[ESP]

I am wanting to go chase my cursed animal again (mule deer).  I have found that I like hunting them but have yet to harvest one.  

So I have a  question for anyone.  I am wanting to find a unit or area that I can hunt on a regular basis.  Maybe draw the tag every other year. I am looking for public land with relative ease of access.  I am more concerned with quantity instead of quality, but would not turn down a 30 inch deer.  

I was thinking Wyoming maybe around the medicine bow national forest, but I want any suggestion.

Thank you in advance

Eric

[Prairie Drifter]

Plenty of public land in eastern Montana. May take a season or two to recover from the bad winter kill we had in 2010. At least this winter was VERY easy on them.

[ESP]

Prairie how easy is it to draw eastern Montana deer tag?

[Shedrock]

Stay away from southern Wyoming. Deer herds are hurting bad. We are going to limited quota for residents next year. All these areas have been general for many years, not any more. A non-res will have a real hard time drawing a tag. We pretty much have hardly any deer left. Go to Colorado where they have learned how to manage the deer. Our Game and Fish have been managing for money way too long.

[ESP]

Thanks Shedrock.  The area I like to hunt in CO takes 3-5 preference points to hunt them. When i was in the Air Force my friends stationed in Cheyenne always said to look at Medicine Bow but that was 10 years ago.  I was thinking with the wolves in the Northern part of the state that the southern might be a better option.

[wckid2]

I would suggest going with a region instead of a unit. That away you have more areas to hunt. Some of those areas can be drawn every year. The biggest problem is that wyoming got slammed with some brutal conditions last year and the winter kill was bad. People need to give some of those deer a free pass on future hunts to help the herd out. I would say dont kill any does if you go. I love wyoming and hope the hunters give the animals a break for a couple years.

[Prairie Drifter]

Last I heard the draw wasn't too bad. They had tags left over last year, I believe.

[Prairie Drifter]

Oh, and applications need to be in by March 15th

[Shedrock]

Our lions, coyotes, and over harvest has sent our mulies to an almost exstict species. Check out the WG&F website about the Platte Valley mule deer herd. I used to be able to be choosey about the bucks I stalked, not any more. We have very few left. The few good ones are on the big private ranches where limited big dollar hunts are allowed. It is getting really sad.

[wckid2]

They need to stop all doe harvest for two years on the mule deer. They need to hammer on the whitetails because they will over take the mule deer. They are just more aggresive than the mule deer and need to be nocked way back plus they eat the same food. Shoot every coyote you see they are great predators and prolific breeders.

[Shedrock]

They are stopping any mule deer doe harvest. 3 doe tags a year per hunter was totally ridiculous. I drew a doe tag this past season just to save a doe. I never hunted for one. It's all about $ with our G&F.

The agency I work for is possibly going to do coyote control in this area to help the deer herd.

Lions are a big issue as well. Tha Snowies, I hear, have the biggest lion population in the US. The lion quota may be raised and a year long season may come, we hope.

[wckid2]

I dont know if it is correct but they say a lion cankill a deer a day. They kill alot of mature deer.

[wckid2]

It will take alot of work and year round hunting to get the yotes thinned out some. If I was serious about it I would hitem hard when they are denned up in spring.

[Shedrock]

We do alot of den hunting. Problem is, not eveyone in that area like's "their" coyotes killed. They save them for calling contests and for their nephews, grandsons, ect. And, that is the problem. The weekend warrior, fur trapper types don't put a dent in the populations. The areas where we use poison, airplanes, ect., have a good population of deer.

We maybe getting off topic here, but everone who loves to bowhunt need's to relize the importance of predator control.

[wckid2]

I was about to say we are getting off topic but you are correct. It is important for the herds health to thin the yotes out. If people want a chance at hunting mule deer in the future it is imperative to get on it ASAP. Good luck with the yote program.

[PaddyMac]

We're over the counter in Washington and Okanogan Co. is one of the best mule deer counties in the state and not too bad in the West.

I've never killed a mule deer on the west shoulder of the Methow Valley, but I've not killed a lot on the east shoulder. But a fair number. That said, I'm giving up on hunting the sage brush and I'm going to hunt timber from now on. Now that I'm without wheels.

But...

There are now wolves over there. (I live on the east shoulder of the valley.) And of course you hear about that -- wolf predation -- all the time, but the really nice bucks I see coming out during the bow season are coming out of there.

[ESP]

Paddy Mac thanks for the info.  My sister in law lived there about 13 years ago.  Never think of Washington except for Roosevelt Elk.

[twitchstick]

If you want to look at Utah I can give you some good starting pionts. The draw has move to a unit by unit instead of the state wide archery draw. Deer herds are down but i think a good hunt is still possible. Draw dead line is march frist so you will have to act quick. If you do choose Utah give me a pm and I will do my best to piont you in the right direction.

[ESP]

twitchstick thank you

[trip4f]

Look at az. fish and game. Non resident hunting license $151.25, over the counter archery deer tag $225.25 and 3 different time frames during the year to hunt. Lots of public land.