mightyhunter
Very Active Member
- Messages
- 1,183
The Big Plus here is G&F listened and actually had check stations on the Chief Joseph Highway to cover the Sunlight/Crandall deer, elk, sheep, goats and moose units. They also had a check station in Clark for the 5 day lowland season in 105 and Elk Unit 54-2.
The weather brought lots of early snow and low temperatures. On October 11th, I was hunting the Sunlight with temps at 5 below and a foot of snow. I saw a single mature buck in 106 that day. He got a pass. After that, all I saw was does, fawns and numerous yearling mule deer bucks. I called the young mule deer bucks the "resurrection deer". These are the deer that had allegedly died in the claimed winter kills in the previous two years.
On the last weekend of the general deer hunt in Sunlight/Crandall, I was told by G&F that they checked 12 bucks that weekend. Of the 12 bucks checked, 11 of those bucks were yearlings. I heard that only 20 mule deer bucks were checked for the six days the check station was open ending October 24th. Based on my observations, I believe few mature mule deer bucks were harvested in 106. The only question is was the low mature buck harvest the result of winterkill, CWD, poor habitat, lack of leafy browse, predation or the fact the season closed before the usual migration of mule deer from YNP. I have been asked to accompany G&F on their deer counts in late November. Counts are great but if there is a decline they don't show the cause of that decline.
Fast forward to those units on the North Fork of the Shoshone River. That deer season closed November 3rd. For a very long time, those seasons had always run through the 10th of November. Again, the weather was conducive to deer migration. I saw lots of mule deer does with two fawns. I also saw numerous bighorn rams and elk. I saw a total of two bucks. Only one buck was a legal buck and I killed him on the 1st day of November. He was chubby and in good shape. He was the smallest buck I have harvested in the last 15 years in Park County. I heard very little gunfire in these units. I talked to numerous NR and resident hunters who wondered where all the bucks had gone. I ran into a young local couple who had seen only a single legal buck after some hard hunting. Most of these people were angry. I saw numerous outfitted hunters on horseback hitting all the usual spots. I did not see a single buck in a packsaddle. I know of at least one outfitter that had limited success by hunting deep into the South Fork country.
I ran into a kid at church who shot a 170 buck in the North Fork in the last days of the season. It was a dandy. I can tell you that as off last Friday evening, there were very few mule deer in the Wapiti hay fields. There was a large group of elk in those same hayfields. That may or may not mean a thing. Because of the harsh winter weather in the backcountry in October, I realized that the length of the days plays a much larger factor in mule deer migration than does snow and or cold weather. That is just my observation.
I am encouraged that there was actual harvest data being collected for a change. I suspect that harvest in 106 may be way down from counts in 2016 and 2017. The same will likely be true on the North Fork of the Shoshone units. If harvest is down, what is the cause? Is it a lack of bucks for whatever reason or is it the result of the shortened seasons. I can tell you of all the bucks I have taken in 106 only 3 of the many harvested were taken before the 24th. On the North Fork of the Shoshone, me or the guys accompanying me have only taken two deer prior to the new November closing date. I believe that we have taken at least 10 bucks between the 3rd and the 10th in that area.
What will be the result of all this? I really don't know. I would love to hear from others who hunted these units as residents or NR with the F general tag. I can tell you that G&F sold 650 F Tags. I can also tell you that G&F personnel all insist that they are giving opportunity to those deer hunters. I can also tell you that I ran into a couple of G&F employees who are openly critical of the season changes made in 2019.
just---sayin mh
The weather brought lots of early snow and low temperatures. On October 11th, I was hunting the Sunlight with temps at 5 below and a foot of snow. I saw a single mature buck in 106 that day. He got a pass. After that, all I saw was does, fawns and numerous yearling mule deer bucks. I called the young mule deer bucks the "resurrection deer". These are the deer that had allegedly died in the claimed winter kills in the previous two years.
On the last weekend of the general deer hunt in Sunlight/Crandall, I was told by G&F that they checked 12 bucks that weekend. Of the 12 bucks checked, 11 of those bucks were yearlings. I heard that only 20 mule deer bucks were checked for the six days the check station was open ending October 24th. Based on my observations, I believe few mature mule deer bucks were harvested in 106. The only question is was the low mature buck harvest the result of winterkill, CWD, poor habitat, lack of leafy browse, predation or the fact the season closed before the usual migration of mule deer from YNP. I have been asked to accompany G&F on their deer counts in late November. Counts are great but if there is a decline they don't show the cause of that decline.
Fast forward to those units on the North Fork of the Shoshone River. That deer season closed November 3rd. For a very long time, those seasons had always run through the 10th of November. Again, the weather was conducive to deer migration. I saw lots of mule deer does with two fawns. I also saw numerous bighorn rams and elk. I saw a total of two bucks. Only one buck was a legal buck and I killed him on the 1st day of November. He was chubby and in good shape. He was the smallest buck I have harvested in the last 15 years in Park County. I heard very little gunfire in these units. I talked to numerous NR and resident hunters who wondered where all the bucks had gone. I ran into a young local couple who had seen only a single legal buck after some hard hunting. Most of these people were angry. I saw numerous outfitted hunters on horseback hitting all the usual spots. I did not see a single buck in a packsaddle. I know of at least one outfitter that had limited success by hunting deep into the South Fork country.
I ran into a kid at church who shot a 170 buck in the North Fork in the last days of the season. It was a dandy. I can tell you that as off last Friday evening, there were very few mule deer in the Wapiti hay fields. There was a large group of elk in those same hayfields. That may or may not mean a thing. Because of the harsh winter weather in the backcountry in October, I realized that the length of the days plays a much larger factor in mule deer migration than does snow and or cold weather. That is just my observation.
I am encouraged that there was actual harvest data being collected for a change. I suspect that harvest in 106 may be way down from counts in 2016 and 2017. The same will likely be true on the North Fork of the Shoshone units. If harvest is down, what is the cause? Is it a lack of bucks for whatever reason or is it the result of the shortened seasons. I can tell you of all the bucks I have taken in 106 only 3 of the many harvested were taken before the 24th. On the North Fork of the Shoshone, me or the guys accompanying me have only taken two deer prior to the new November closing date. I believe that we have taken at least 10 bucks between the 3rd and the 10th in that area.
What will be the result of all this? I really don't know. I would love to hear from others who hunted these units as residents or NR with the F general tag. I can tell you that G&F sold 650 F Tags. I can also tell you that G&F personnel all insist that they are giving opportunity to those deer hunters. I can also tell you that I ran into a couple of G&F employees who are openly critical of the season changes made in 2019.
just---sayin mh
