Scouting days vs hunting days?

[Brad G]

Got a CO archery tag in my pocket. I’ll be hunting solo and leaving TN on 8/26 and should arrive to the hunt area on late evening on 8/27. Ive got 5 areas that I’m interested in hunting. Ive got 3 days to scout and 1 day to pack in before the seasons starts on 9/1. Hopefully that will give me an idea about the deer and hunter #s in these areas before I commit to a bigger climb to get to the areas I want to hunt. That would leave me 6 days to hunt as I’ve got to be back home by 9/9. Do you more experienced guys think that’s a good balance between scouting and hunting days?

 

[270Whatelse]

Scouting days are good but don't get burned out before the hunt even starts.

 

[Serrano]

Season starts 9/2.

 

[Brad G]

Season starts 9/2.

Thanks for the heads-up. You are correct. I was typing that post while on a stair climber and apparently the fatigue affected my memory.

 

[Serrano]

Most hunters won't arrive until a day before, most have scouted/hunted before.

 

[BuckHntr13]

The unfortunate reality is that most guys say they’ll be there for a full 5-7 days or whatever and by day 3 they are DONE. I would say take one full day to scout and so you have more days with weapon in hand in case you do end getting burnt out. Not saying you will but very few withstand the mental side of solo hunting for a week at a time.

 

[BrianID]

I think you have a good plan. I've done a similar stratagy multiple times.
I agree, you could burn yourself out mentally or physically before the hunt even starts. Some guys could hunt for 10 days straight solo and still be going just as hard on day 10 as they did on day 1. I've seen many hunters get burned out after one or two days of hunting, even when they are not solo hunting. Know your limits and go enjoy your hunt.

 

[The_Coloradoboy]

You’re gonna need 2 to 3 days probably just to adjust to altitude to be honest. Watch guys come from out of state year after year with aspirations of back pack hunting high country mule deer and they absolutely torch them selfs the first day or two trying to hike in and end up leaving after a day or two to hunting at best.
That being said if you’re experienced with the high country and know how demanding it is, I would choose more hunting days over scouting days when it comes to archery.

 

[AZ4life]

If you are scouting hard you can burn out before the hunt starts real quick, especially if you don't see much the first couple days of the hunt. Some guys can do 10 or more days straight on the mountain solo, but I don't know very many. Even if you are fine with it physically, its most of the time the mental wear that gets you.

 

[liecabucks]

Get there and give yourself 48 hours to acclimate and drive around to some of your trailheads and get a little better feel for your internal thoughts to catch up with what you’re visually taking in. Make your decisions to scout or hike maybe 2 of your choices and go from there. You can’t do it all.

 

[PleaseDear]

Brad, I was going to reach out to ya to see if ya wanted to do Nv. group bow buck again, share my 10 points with ya, back in April, but it looks like we both drew other tags so maybe next year.


Robb

 

[idahomuleyhunter]

With the schedule you've laid out, I'd commit to the first spot you see good sign of deer. 9 days is a limited amount of time to learn a new area, and you can burn up your whole hunt moving camps. You'll need a little luck anyway, so pick a spot a stick with it. Hope you get a nice one.

 

[scopenstalk]

I’m not big on scouting days for out of state stuff unless they’re well before season and aren’t going to be draining the body battery close to season. also, I would scout stuff closer to the road if I were going to scout immediately prior to season. Might be surprised what you find. But if I’m going through the effort to hike 3-5 miles in somehwere it’s going to be with bow in hand and time clock running on the season.

 

[Slick8]

It is a balance and greatly depends on your mental and physical conditioning.

I hit it a little hard last year on a NM muley hunt and as a flat lander was feeling it. I took morning three off with the full intention of hunting till the end. It made a huge difference in my attitude and had me tagging a deer the morning of day 5.

 

[tracker12]

I have traveled out west to deer and elk hunt since earthly 80s. As many hunt days as possible. I’ll be in 67 this year and will scout 1 day and hunt every day of the season. 7 days of actual hunting is tuff. Check out camps after day 3 and there all sitting around drinking coffee at 8am

 

[sagebrush]

You only have 8 days to hunt and that isn't going to change. Go as early as you can and scout as much as possible. I spent 21 days on the AZ Strip at age 66. Not the same altitude, but go for all you can!

 

[Servehim]

It is a balance and greatly depends on your mental and physical conditioning.

I hit it a little hard last year on a NM muley hunt and as a flat lander was feeling it. I took morning three off with the full intention of hunting till the end. It made a huge difference in my attitude and had me tagging a deer the morning of day 5.

That's the correct approach. I never experience mental fatigue, but got to listen to what your body is telling you with physical rest.

 

[Mallardsx2]

I hunted every day from daylight to dark on my trips. I sure wish I could take a full 14 days boots on the ground so I could take a morning off here or there but since I can't get that much PTO scheduled I grind it out.

I look forward to retirement when I can hunt when and however long I want to.

 

[oldmossback]

In my experience the more time spent scouting will equal less time hunting. For the last few major hunts my sons and I have done, I have spent almost every weekend from August to season opener scouting. This has resulted in filling the tags opening weekend. I am a Co resident and acclimated to an extent, but anything over 10k ft still kicks your ass no matter where you are from.

 

[mightyhunter]

I have a unique perspective on this subject. The mule deer I hunt are almost exclusively migratory. Scouting a basin or an area to look the bucks over is not a viable method. I learned this the hard way some 25 years ago. The mule deer move from west to east. The migration is triggered by weather, length of days, moon phases and numerous other factors. Looking for pinch points where the geography forces migration helps. Also, avoid concentrations of predators (lions and wolves). Judging bucks requires a fast and keen eye. They are usually moving on a brisk pace. Just saying …mh

 

[Brad G]

Thanks for all the feedback. Between work and trying get packed, I haven’t been able to check back in here lately. This will be my 3rd solo hunt. I hunted 7-8 days in NM and NV on my previous trips. I definitely understand what I’m up against.

My updated plans are to leave on 8/28 and arrive in Co before dark on 8/29. I’ve got 2 days to scout and have two areas picked out where I can make a fairly short steep climb to areas where I can glass the opposite ridge. Hopefully that will give me an idea of which area I want to pack into. I plan to camp in a campground within a couple of miles of each location. I’ll pack in on 9/1 and be ready to hunt on 9/2. Plan to hunt thru 9/8 as I have to be back home by 9/11. Really wish I lived closer than 20 hours to the unit. At least it’s a closer than NV!

 

[Brad G]

Brad, I was going to reach out to ya to see if ya wanted to do Nv. group bow buck again, share my 10 points with ya, back in April, but it looks like we both drew other tags so maybe next year.


Robb

I’m game to do that, maybe we can work it out.

 

[Brad G]

1st morning scouting went pretty good. Saw a bunch of elk and these 2 bucks. Dyer country to get into but well worth it!

 

[BrianID]

Looks like steep country with a lot of rocks. Might be difficult to put a quiet stalk on those bucks. You are off to a good start. Good luck on your hunt. Even if you don't get one, it looks like you should be in great county and at least have the opportunity to hunt big bucks.

 

[Brad G]

2nd am scouting. Found another group of bucks. Nothing huge but I’m not that picky! Getting into bow range is going to be a challenge

 

[sambo3006]

NIce! Go get 'em!

 

[Brad G]

Been watching this buck for 4 days. He’s by himself but is feeding in some country that so far has not presented an opportunity for a stalk within bow range. Due to the lay of the lay of the land I can’t pinpoint where is is bedding. He either beds or passes through a small patch of trees on the crown of the ridge. No way to approach him from above due to the sheer rock face. His routine has been very consistent. Should I give him a few days to make a mistake or get aggressive and try to cut him off on the way back to bed? I can hunt until Friday but am getting impatient. Thoughts?

 

[BrowningRage]

I think it sounds like you've patterned him already and its time to use what you know and try and kill him... it also sounds like ambushing him is a good option since you know how he gets to where he's going, but not exactly where he ends up... Good luck to you.! Good luck keeping your heart rate in check as he moves towards you.! ?

 

[BrianID]

I would get aggressive and try to cut him off. If you know where he has been and the terrain allows to to move in, I would go for it.

 

[Founder]

I’d get in there and try to catch headed for bed.