Deer rut in western Montana

[Pagosa]

I hunted three days in region 1 last week and seen lots of smaller whitetail and mule deer bucks. Several of the bucks were still in groups. Do the mule deer rut earlier than whitetails out here? I assume it would be the same due spring fawning timeframe. I will be back out over the week of Thanksgiving and hope to find more bucks.

 

[have gun will travel]

The later you can hunt mule deer the better. I have heard they are just starting to rut hopefully I will have more info this week. I just started my hunt today. Good luck

 

[MTpubliclander]

The later the better definitely and with this years season going to Dec 1st im pretty stoked for thanksgiving week unless I get a decent one first but that never seems to be the case. I would say you are right on.

 

[belly-deep]

Mule deer rut earlier than whitetail. I saw bucks chasing does on Nov. 2 this year.

 

[Pagosa]

Thanks guys. It will be a good moon phase then too. Good luck out there.

 

[jerrym]

I have hunted western Montana for a long time and have kept a journal and would say if I could only hunt one day for whitetails it would be 11-20 and for mule deer it would be 11-17, not much difference. Thanksgiving is late 11-28 this year I bet a lot of bucks will be a little tired by then and not quite as visible, but you could still get a good one. My 2 cents.

 

[Gerald Martin]

Have gun will travel, are you hunting in Montana?

 

[hk_willow]

My buddy got a nice 4pt whitetail last weekend up in region 1 of MT and it looked to be pretty rutty. Glands weren't swollen yet but the neck was and the classic forehead of the buck was looking rutty.

 

[Randy11]

I have hunted western Montana for a long time and have kept a journal and would say if I could only hunt one day for whitetails it would be 11-20 and for mule deer it would be 11-17, not much difference. Thanksgiving is late 11-28 this year I bet a lot of bucks will be a little tired by then and not quite as visible, but you could still get a good one. My 2 cents.

I agree 100% on the twentieth for whiteys, that's magic time.

I have a harder time on mule deer, to me their rut seems longer and doesn't really peak like whitetails. I figure anytime from the 10th through the 20th is good. I watched a really nice buck on Sunday in 270 rutting like crazy, then saw four bucks an hour later in a bachelor herd.