First hunt out west.

I

IFalcone2

Guest
Hi everyone! I am new to MonsterMuleys and I am looking for some help and information regarding a hunt I am planning for the 2014 season to WY and Co. I want to go for antelope and mule deer. My questions are what areas are good for both? I don't have any preference point or anything but I am planning about a month long trip to WY and CO. Hunting out west has been my dream since I was a kid and I am looking for your help please. I am doing this hunt myself. I have done a few moose hunts myself and a bear hunt so I am not foreign to these things just to hunting out west. Any help or tips would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Isaac Falcone
 
Welcome. There are a number of hunts in CO you can draw with zero points for mule deer. This link is a good place to get started:
http://wildlife.state.co.us/Hunting/PlanYourHunt/Pages/PlanYourHunt.aspx

It will take a little research, but once you get the hang of all the idiosyncrasies of CO Parks & Wildlife, it's not too tough to find a hunt. You can always call them and they have knowledgeable staff standing by the phones to help you out. Get familiar with the first three links on the link from above so you will be able to ask good questions before you call.

I can't help you with WY other than its a great place to hunt pronghorn. I'm sure somebody will chime in with help for there. You may be a little too late for WY this year.
 
If you are coming for a month, I'd go for an antelope in Wyoming and a deer during second season in Colorado. Both are in October. You could also shoot a deer here in Wyoming, but the quality is better in Colorado - in general.

I'd look in the eastern half of Wyoming. Check the lists where there were leftover licenses last year, contact a rancher in that area and do a trespass fee. It won't cost much and you'll be much better served than going on public or walk-in areas.

Remember that the Wyoming deadline is looming on March 15th. And the best ranches are likely full already, so start ASAP on the antelope. The CO deer hunt will be on public ground and the application date is later, so not as much time pressure there.

Best of luck and welcome to MM.

And make sure you have GOOD binoculars and a spotting scope with a tripod and window mount.
 
I'd probably do the same as ICMDEER says.....antelope in Wyoming, then down to Colorado for deer. You could do deer in Wyoming too though and have a good hunt.

Brian Latturner
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Isaac, I know exactly how you feel, going to a completely new State to hunt without a clue as to where to start and generalities are very much appreciated but where as you already said you were going to Wy or Co, getting encouraged to go to one State or the other or both doesn't really give you what your needing, I don't think.

First, regarding specifics, while it not always a slam dunk to find someone on the internet that will put you right in the middle of a "honey hole" as they're called. But.......it might surprise folks how often it does happen. Really great locations are pretty scarce because of hunting pressure in the west (Remember you eastern folks have more whitetails in a single State than we have mule deer in five States, so people that have invested the time and effort to find a specific herd of deer with a good buck or two, aren't very likely to share it with a best friend, let along someone they've never met. Hope that makes sense without offending you.) HOWEVER, it does happen and maybe more often than folks realize. It's happened to me, on more than one occasion.

Just politely start communicating with folks that respond to your inquiry, through PM's, (personal messages) so you are conversing, one on one, without the eyes of everybody watching. Hunters are usually pretty generous but aren't going to share specific locations for the entire world to see. Does that make sense?

Regarding deer in Wyoming, I noticed these Monster Muley members were discussing a specific location in Wyoming and seemed to be pretty open.

http://www.monstermuleys.info/dcforum/DCForumID6/24923.html

Read this thread and if it seems like an area you'd be interested in, join the conversation, then PM those hunters and see what you can learn. Same for antelope. Watch for hunters discussing Antelope in Wy and Co in various threads and get into the conversation, then get one on one with them, and so on, with Deer in Wy and Co.

The General Hunting Threads are good but be sure to keep checking on the Deer Thread, the Sheep, Goats, Moose, Antelope Thread, the Wyoming Threads and the Colorado Threads.

If I knew Wy and Co I'd give you more specifics, but I don't. If you'd asked about Utah, I would have been willing to give you some pretty specific details.

Success to you on your first trip west!
DC
 
If you're not so much concerned with killing a record book goat wyoming is a slam dunk as far as killing an antelope on most general areas.. probably the easiest western hunt there is as far as success goes. Colorado has better quality as far as deer but you need to have your ducks in a row and figure out an area to apply for. I personally don't know my Wyo general areas off the top of my head but there are many and all have plenty of antelope. As far as deer I would look into the northwest part of the state... units 3/301, 11/211, 4, 12, etc...

Colorado
 
Good advice so far, but I wouldn't dismiss Elk hunting in Colorado unless you are concerned with getting the animal out of the field. If that is the case, then maybe leave elk for the next round.

With a month to hunt, I think I would hunt deer, antelope and elk in Wyoming for 3 weeks and then hunt Deer in Colorado for a week. The deadline for Elk in Wyoming has passed. If you want the best hunt you can get, you really need to make some decisions prior to the Antelope and Deer draw deadline in Wyoming on March 15th and the Colorado draw deadline in early April. Feel free to PM and Best of Luck!
 

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