High Desert Steen Mt.. Oregon

S

skyline

Guest
I have 4 points and am a resident. I have been thinking about putting in for High Desert Elk and hunting the Steens Mountains in Oregon. I have never been to the Steens Mountain but have always wanted too. My question is am I wasting my time? I'm looking for a fun hunt with lots of hiking and glassing with few people and elk I can chase. I will also be using this trip as a scouting trip for deer. How is the deer herd on the Steens? Any responses will be appreciated.
 
refer to the mule deer forum on the topic of the whitehorse unit and you'll learn everything about deer in s.e. oregon.
 
I to am looking for a unit in Oregon to hunt elk. I have been doing alot of research the last few yeats. If I'm correct the High Desert Unit is a big unit that covers several different units, I have not heard good things about the High Desert Unit. Lot's of area and few elk. I do not know many particulars about the Elk in the Steens. But I heard there are a few big bucks there but they are far and few between. Hope this helps you.

Good Luck

If I can help you some more, please feel free to ask.
 
There aren't many deer there anymore and there aren't very many elk there either. I've been told also that there are more elk than deer there which may give you an idea of the situation. If I had four points I'd go to a unit like the Beulah, there are some really big bucks there. I've seen several 160 class bucks and my dad saw one that would be over 180. There are good numbers of elk in the unit also. There are areas that are interspersed with junipers and pines and then sagebrush hillsides and flats. It is good for glassing and it can be rugged and few roads. May be the kind of country and hunt your looking for.
 
I've been looking at the High desert hunt also because it's either sex, has a longer season and it's only 4-5 hours from home. I want to take my son whose still in high school. We had enough points last year but he was playing football. He says he'd rather go elk hunting this year so I plan on burning his points in both Colorado and Oregon. Is there a better unit for 5 points than this hunt? I have stock and am willing to hunt anywhere as long as the quality is there. I don't really care about size on the Ore. hunt, I just want to get him on a bull.
 
I hunted the east slope of the Steens this past fall. My daughter had a first time hunter tag. We hunted hard for a week (in the wilderness) and saw one good buck. I was shocked at how low the deer population was. Did not see any elk. Just a few sheep and antalope. Most of the deer we saw were in the alfalfa fields in the north end of the unit.
 
I do not know about current conditions on the Steens. My brother and I archery hunted the Steens about fifteen years ago. We had a great time and saw a lot of great country. We drove our truck to the top of the mountain and then hunted down to the Alvord Ranch at the valley floor. This is a great way to hunt the Steens. Especially if you can arrange for a pick up at the bottom! We also hunted from the bottom up. This would be a great experience to take your son on. We saw a lot of great habitat with no animals but we did eventually find some great Bucks and Bulls. Water is an issue and the animals seemed to be concentrated in canyons with good water. One canyon had 11 bucks that were in a group, the best one was 28 to 29 inches wide with deep backs and good fronts and some trash. He was a 185 to 190 gross type buck. We also hunted a six point Bull with thirty Cows that was about 320 gross. We saw some great Sheep! It is tough country with a bow. In fact, it is tough country period!! It seemed like most of the animals were on the middle of the mountain where it was hard to reach from the top or bottom. We ended up never nocking an arrow on a animal.There are some great animals in the Stenns but they can be tough to find and even tougher to harvest. On the way home we took a couple of days and put some meat in the freezer in a different unit. Good luck Goundhog
 
The winter of 92/93 killed the deer off and other factors have kept them down to super low numbers. most of the elk in that hunt are on private property from what I'm told, around the hay fields. as said on here before you would be better off looking at the units north of Burns for elk. and if you find a good deer unit let me know, I'm fresh out of ideas.
 
Thanks for all the info. I very impressed at how helpful everyone has been. I still haven't made up my mind.
 
skyline,

If you're serious about the Steens, I'd hunt the west slope from the 'aspen zone' down to the sage. I've scouted that area some the last two years and found sign and saw elk, lots in the deeper pockets. That is mad-crazy country, however. With 4 points you should consider the Ochoco Unit or north of Burns like these other guys suggest. The high desert isn't that hard of a draw, maybe every other year. Good luck, whatever you decide.
 

Click-a-Pic ... Details & Bigger Photos
Back
Top Bottom