I figure no one cares to hear about my deer hunting but maybee some of you could offer some advice if I post my hunting experinces this year. I am a rifle hunter, and the rifle hunt statrs here in utah in late ocotber. I started scouting in august just as the deer were coming into the full development of thier antlers. I was in the high country where there are no roads, and the only way in is on a horse or by walkin with a backpack straped to your back. I saw deer every trip out, and the buck to doe ratio is one that would roll back the mind of any big game hunter. But this is country where it is steep and deep and with no means of game retrieval other than packing it out on your back, you dont just shoot any buck, it has to be a good one. I patterned a great buck. He is a very square framed buck with great hight and a good width. He is only 27-28 inches wide and this year I have seen a couple that are bigger, ( 30 inch range ) but this deer was a good looker and I knew where he was spending his nights, where he would spend his days, and the exact location of the trails he would use to access his feeding and bedding areas. He was also the single most cautious deer i have ever seen. I watched him several times from 3/4 a mile away and he is a very cautious buck. Once a doe got spooked just a bit and he instantly bolted. Normally bucks will key off these does and smaller bucks to locate danger but I have always seen them notice a spooked deer and then look around to locate the danger for themselves. Not this buck, he just clears country. He always stops to scan the terrain before going over a ridge to ensure there is no sign of danger on the other side. I believe he ahs the terrain memorized and if one thing looks out of place he doest continue. I beleieve this because one day I moved in to about six hundred yards to get some real good video footage of him and at dusk when he came around the ridge to his evening area he stopped as usual to check and located me. I was in full camo with the wind at my face tucked up under a low hanging tree with a small hill behind me so I was not silhouetted. There was no movement so he couldnt have known I was there other than that he just knew something wasnt right. The distance should have been enough that he wouldnt have looked for me had he been just any deer. Needless to say, he went back to his hiding hole. I saw him again and got more video footage of him. But a few weeks later, I was back up there just ensuring he was holding true to his pattern and I found grouse hunters riding horses down in his day and evening areas. I saw two sets of grouse hunters on horses, firing shotguns in his living space. As you can guess, with as cautious a buck as he is, we was way gone. Not only cleared country but cleared continent. I am not sure if he is still somewhere in the area and has just gone nocturnal or if he has fled into the nastiest country around. I went back up this last weekend for two days trying to find him but he is a wise old critter and he has outsmarted me two weekends in a row now. I have just a couple more weeks to relocate him before the rifle hunt starts. I will probably not find him and have to shoot another buck. Any one got any high country wise old muley advice?
Personally I have never given much thought of hunting deer from the back of a mule. I guess that it would be easer to drag a deer out of the woods with.
How ever it sounds like you are hunting “grandpa”. These majestic and wise old deer are not your run of the mill hard to get buck. They did not get to their tremendous size and age by behaving like those deer you are used to tracking.
The average big buck has a rout that can be easily picked out. I know this first hand from tracking a trophy and letting many pass on by waiting for the granddaddy of them all. (Oldest buck in the woods)
These two animals do not behave any thing alike. (The one you are looking for knows the threat of man and the peril of what waits should he fail and give away his position)
He has been hunted and stalked from the day he was old enough to see his paternal taken by another hunter. I have watched these animals that possess intelligence and attitude worthy of the most skilled of trackers. I have watched them lead predators (hunters and other predators i.e. wolves, bear, coyote) on wild goose chases. Meaning that I have seen them heading down the usual trail and then jump 15 - 20 feet straight up and over to completely jump track landing in the thickets and completely disappear from view an almost impossible to track with out a machete or helicopter.
To catch a glimpse of such a magnificent animal is truly an aspiration. To successfully track the lord of the bucks now that he is aware of the hunting season beginning, you will need to forget 90% of what you have already learned about hunting deer. This animal is territorial and will only be challenged by very few bucks. (Because they are way out classed)
Note I said only 90%. Some things will remain the same but still different. He beds alone and will choose vantage points that will give the best tactical view and best possible escape rout. The locations you would look for scrapings will be located in tight places his buck rubs will be high in the trees (meaning that he will be challenging tree limbs as if they were suitors challenging him for his territory. Also this animal is having nightmares from the calls of the wild)
Do not disturb or go near the scraping if found in a secluded place, nor should you disturb the entrance or exits to this place, this animal need his privacy and if deprived he will move on, and then good luck on locating him again, he can move as much as 20 miles before he feels safe again.
Once he is located you must make him feel comfortable with your being there. He must believe that you are not hunting but are a natural animal in the woods and have other motives in mind like foraging for example, or building a nest. These are things that are normal of non-predator type animals and the deer will watch you from the horizon remember that this is his home and he is aware of any thing that happens or if any thing has been disturbed do not make any aggressive movements or get excited, he can smell the change in your chemistry.
These things I tell you sound a bit unusual and one might even say a little off my rocker, but understanding the animal you are targeting one must take it upon himself or herself to get inside of his mind and truly feel what he is feeling (the fear the anger the peace and serenity). And don’t be surprised when the other animals start talking to you scolding you or treating you as another log in the forest. And when the birds start landing on you then you know that you are half way there..
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[size 3]I had a squirrel crawl up my boot this weekend![sly] This is not the biggest deer in the area but he is the most cautious. Finding him again is going to be a challenge. But just to clear up a slight misunderstanding, I dont have a mule. I am actually hunting " MULE DEER". The larger cousin of the whitetail deer. Thanks for the help again dave.[/size]
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The mule thing was a joke and I know what you are talking about them pesky squirrels.
As soon as I can find the pic of my 400+ pound white tail I will post it here to show you just what it is you are looking for.
I might add that every one thought I was nuts when I told them about that deer and his antics for several years till one year me and my uncle dragged him home.
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Sorry for the slow reply PREDATOR, I'm still trying to learn the new forum.(I have a friend who is known as Predator from Salt Lake City). She is a very accomplished hunter. To answer your Mulie question, look very high. Higher than Elk. Mature Mulies will stay higher and longer than Elk. The will be there until very deep snow or the rut brings them down. They are like Chameleon's, and can blend in with the bluff's and overhangs, making them nearly invisible. If the bed at lower elevations, they like "Buck bushes" to lie in. Their antlers blend in very well. Use a high grade spotting scope if possible, you'll need to scan every inch of ground extremely close, and I mean literally. The rougher the country, the better. Big bucks will most likely be bedding where they can view their domain below and wind anything behind them. Good hunting, Ghost
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