pointers needed.

huntFX4

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To start off with, I am not able to scout to find and pattern deer in Montana since i'm stationed in Cali. I hunt familiar territory that most people refuse to hunt b/c it entails actual "hunting" rather than driving roads and hoping to get lucky, so the deer aren't pushed hard.

Last year I found a nice bachelor group of 5 bucks ranging from a 3pt with about a 25" spread to a 30+"er with multiple points on each side. I would find the bucks in the same area each day i hunted them but at different times. i have a finger i go out on and glass a ridge line with many fingers and draws a half mile away. The stalk is very difficult due to open ground between me and the stands of thick cedar and juniper where they are bedding. The wind is always from them to me in the AM. They use the same general area all the time but I was unable to pattern them b/c sometimes they are on their way to bed at sunup and sometimes 3 hours after sunup. No real trails that they tend to follow. Each time they seem to just wander and feed their way to the bedrooms.

The first time I tried a stalk my wife and I had watched them go into a thick stand of cedar at the bottom of a finger moving up. I started off hoping to catch them in an opening halfway up the finger. When I got in range I saw the two smallest crossing the opening. They went over and disappeared. I thought that while I couldn't see the area that they all had crossed over. I snuck up the finger and without me ever seeing or hearing him, the largest of the bunch stood up 20 yards or so from me and snuck away. My wife watched the whole thing but didn't want to yell for fear of spooking him.

What would be the best way to catch these guys. I'm heading home for the 2nd or 3rd week of the season in Eastern Montana.
Would a broad view trail cam help at all?
Any pointers you all can offer would be appreciated.
Thanks
Don
 
You have half of the battle won if you've located bucks of that caliber. I'd say be patient and keep trying. No need for a trail camera. Your wife could be a great asset. Work out some good hand signals with her and she can watch the bucks from the top while you put the sneak on them.

You are right about not being able to exactly pattern mule deer, but you will usually be able to get a solid idea about where they are going.

You might also be able to bed them and wait them out until evening. Mornings seem to be best for me and big muleys, but this case might be an evening option.

Anyhow, you have what I call two the three eights of successful mule deer hunting covered.

Elevate
Locate, and
Assasinate

You have the first two, just get that last one done. We'll wait for the pictures. Good hunting.
 
2 way radios have helped my hunting partners and me several times on bedded bucks. One person watches from a distance and the other makes the sneak. If the buck changes beds or gets on the move, your spotter can let you know how to adjust. Radios with a "vibrate alert" are much more quiet.
 
Using two way radios to locate game is illegal in Montana. That is very bad advice.

Nemont
 
I agree, DO not use two ways like that.
I'd just get in on them when it's dark, find some cover, and ambush them as the sun comes up. . . You may have to sit it out for a while in the dark, but it would be well worth the effort in my view. If you pick a good spot - one where they wont smell you, you wont have to stalk them, you'll already be in position. You still will have to be careful.

think about like this, why not let them come to you wrather then you go to them, especially if you know their habbits.

Are you seeing them this year? I'll come on out and survey the situation and give you my opinion if you like. . . LOL

good luck, take your time, and get some good photos after you drop him!



"Roadless areas, in general, represent some of the best fish and wildlife habitat on public lands. The bad news is that there is nothing positive about a road where fish and wildlife habitat are concerned -- absolutely nothing." (B&C Professor, Jack Ward Thomas, Fair Chase, Fall 2005, p.10).
 
Tony, i'm in Iraq right now and won't be able to scout the area. I have nobody in my family that hunts the way i do or where i do b/c of the work it takes to get one down and get it out of this place.

Where i have seen them leads me to believe there is no way to set up before dark without them smelling me. they go to their bedrooms up wind. For the most part, i believe they are moving down a draw to the left side of the finger i use for glassing. But i've never seen them before 8AM so I haven't got the exact area they are coming from pinned down. It could be that they are close to the road that i use to get into the area around dark and get spooked by my truck when i come in at first light. I park a half mile from where i set up to glass. They are very skittish, b/c the first time i saw them was by accident. I jumped the group from their bed in a really thick patch of cedars at over 400 yards when i stopped to glass it. i didn't see them again for 3 days. That's why i picked the spot i have, b/c it gives me distance from the bedroom and elevation to see all around. it's just very tough to stalk.
if i have time i can try to figure out where they are feeding exactly, but i'm thinking they just wander the same general area that i'm seeing them in, b/c there are no crops for miles. the lay of the land is about the same all around. Juniper, cedar, sage, bunch grass, other hays, and some wild rose and other shrubs mixed in.
 
Here's the set-up. Black square at top left is where i park. Red dot in circle is my glassing point. the black dots are places i spotted the bachelor group or smaller bucks from it at different times. The ones closer to my glassing point were times i spooked them coming in early. the red arrows are general movement of deer. the black arrow is the predominant wind direction. the red square is the general bedding area.
See my predicament.

44d5ec8002e6576b.jpg
 
Based upon your map and narrative, I have a few suggestions.

First, I think you're parking too close if the deer are moving from the road side of the canyon. Park out farther, don't let your headlights shine over the canyon and be as quiet as possible when coming in.

Second, from looks of this set up, they might also be seeing you as you hike into the area. I would make sure I'm not skylined as I hike in or visible from the glassing point.

Third, I would get in there in the dark. An hour to an hour and a half before daybreak. They won't see you coming and they will settle down after about thirty minutes of silence. Then wait for them to move. They are much easier to locate when they are moving undisturbed.

Finally, slow down. Then slow down some more. It's hard to make yourself move that slow when the adrenalin is pumping becuase you know a buck is near and the game is on. When you hunt with a bow you have to learn to do this. If you got within twenty yards of a shooter buck and he snuck out the backdoor without you seeing him, you missed the opportunity to see him first. Once they see you, they are in control of the game and you lose. Think of it this way. If this were an Iraqi insurgent position and you were moving in for a surprise attack, you would be as quiet as possible and know where every Iraqi was before you took another step, because you and your brothers in arms would have your asses on the line. You go in like that and you'll get your buck. The deer have to play it that way because their asses are on the line.

Good luck and by the way thanks for standing between me and the bad guys. It's much appreciated.
 

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