Huge mule deer where to start

[Gr8bawana]

most years i end up shooting the first deer i see on the last day of season because meat is meat

Maybe all the monster bucks only come out late on the last day of the season.
Seriously though I think most bucks that are taken that would fall into your unrealistic goal are taken by pure luck. To go out every year looking for a specific goal of a deer will most definitely lead to a lifetime of disappointment when at the end of your hunting life you were unable to fullfil that dream. I say just go out and enjoy hunting and maybe you will luck into one of those type of bucks.

 

[.280 Remington]

Well i know its unrealistic but some day before i die i would love to fulfill my grandpas dream of 40 inch wide mule deer after 40 plus years of hunting/guiding from the selway bitterroot to Canada he never did kill a 40in deer i think the closest he got was 38 or 39 inches and he had more than just a few bucks that made the book since his passing the older i get the more i want to carry on his dream of chasing big deer while im still young and so far i have only seen 2 mule deer in Montana that i would say go north of 200 b&c and long story short i never got to hunt ether deer and now that i have spent a few years working on new spots and growing in my skill sets in the last few years i have got to see and or hunt 160 to 180ish deer also i know it maybe hard to find a deer of life times in a state that the biggest typical taken is 207 7/8 b&c when we are living in a age of deer growing 250 plus inches of bone and being killed almost every year in some states so in short i want to find a place where these deer rome free and maybe after years of trying to draw tags and hiking thousands of miles i will get my chance at a deer of a life time but most years i end up shooting the first deer i see on the last day of season because meat is meat

If a 40" mule deer is truly your goal, then I would drop what you are doing, spend 8 years in school to become a doctor, work like a dog for the next 40, then buy the Henry's auction tag and hire Doyle Moss's great grandson.

Short of that, your goals are about as realistic as dating Kate Upton.

 

[Jamen]

Chasing ghosts!! If that is your goal and dream go out and make it happen! The animals are out there but they do not get that big on accident. Just do not turn into a Captain Ahab about it!!

 

[sra61]

I believe there are bucks like that still up high on the ridges down the Swan and in the Whitefish range. I know a guy that killed a 212 gross buck a couple of years ago. That country is super rough and full of griz and wolves.

 

[HalfAce]

I’m glad you used “unrealistic” and 40 incher in the same sentence.

If a 40 incher is what you are really after, I don’t know what to tell you. I don’t think 40 inchers are really ever earned. I think it’s a fluke or just happening onto one.

I don’t know any hard numbers, but there are probably fewer than 75 bucks in “recorded” history that made that mark. I am sure most of those came from the golden decade of the 60’s . If your grandpa couldn’t do it in the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s (assuming that’s when he hunted), well believe it that it’s a lot harder to do today.

As far as just BIG bucks, there are heart stopper size deer in every state. Some states have more than others. It takes a lot of hard work, or luck (even better if you have both) to stumble onto a big one.

Montana is probably the last state in the list of Rocky Mountain States where you would find a 40” in.

I would think that Utah, and Arizona are as good of any state to look in and maybe find one. A 39 incher came off the Henries this year. That unit is arguably the top or in the top two best units in the United States, and that buck was pretty big news because it was so rare.

But just to bring this all back down to earth,
- How many 30 inchers have you seen?
- Taken any?
Now stretch those 30's out another 10 inches.

Good luck, I think it’s great to set a high bar like that, you might never get there but you will surely see some big ones along the way and have a great time in the big picture. But it will also be tough and won’t be much fun during some hunts if you stick to your guns.

 

[Mudranger1]

But just to bring this all back down to earth,
- How many 30 inchers have you seen?
- Taken any?
Now stretch those 30's out another 10 inches.

Good luck, I think it’s great to set a high bar like that, you might never get there but you will surely see some big ones along the way and have a great time in the big picture. But it will also be tough and won’t be much fun during some hunts if you stick to your guns.

this is what I've been thinking since I read the OP

 

[AZBridger]

am i wrong to believe that it is possible that there might not even be a deer that is 40" wide out there? how many bucks have ever been killed that are truly 40" wide? i will say with 99.99999% positivity that there has never been a deer that's frame is 40" wide. the 40"ers are 30" bucks with cheaters sticking straight out the side? doesn't matter to me what direction the cheaters might happen to grow

 

[MT_Fin]

Dinkshooter nailed it. The problem (in my opinion is a lack of management. MT does not manage for big bucks or big bulls for that matter.

This goes right back to the age old meat hunter vs trophy hunter differences of opinion, and is a matter of perspective. You're correct in that MT does not manage for big bucks or big bulls, they are pretty clear that they manage for opportunity. So while i understand the premise, i think your sentence should be "the problem is they don't manage the way I would prefer them to, which is for trophy potential." If they were managing for trophy potential they of course wouldn't allow any rut hunting of muleys, but to play devils advocate, not everyone needs a huge buck to be happy and some people are perfectly happy with shooting a 3point during the rut when they are strutting around like blind and deaf horny teenagers.

 

[MooseCaboose]

2 mule deer in Montana that i would say go north of 200 b&c and long story short i never got to hunt ether deer and now that i have spent a few years working on new spots and growing in my skill sets in the last few years i have got to see and or hunt 160 to 180ish deer

This is as good as you will wind in Montana for the most part. With the state OTC for rifle hunting the rut and no antler restrictions, it's plain dangerous to be a 2.5 to 4.5-year-old buck who just felt his first hormone rush. Someone is going to pop him from the road. So few bucks make it to the 5.5-9.5 year age range in Montana that the excellent genetics are far more likely to be killed off young.

The bucks who are timider and hide out during the rut are going to be naturally selected to survive into older age. Many times the old bucks that I have killed or seen killed during the Montana rut did not have the most excellent genetics, they had just made it to old age and overcome weak genetics to top out at 180. So really how MT has it set up is the complete opposite of what would favor maximal antler growth. And that's ok because that is not the objective that FWP has had.

So go out and kill the 180s in Montana and keep getting better and better at finding and killing big deer.

I would second the advice about the AZ Strip and the Henry mountains. Apply every year and in 30 you might be able to take the skills you have mastered in Montana and chase your dream of a 40" wide buck. When you find him you'll have the ability to make it happen. Those are the only places you could realistically expect to encounter a buck of the size you describe.

 

[Cheater]

A 40" buck is incredibly unlikely, but it doesn't need to be 40" wide to be considered a giant. A Henry's or Strip tag are pretty unlikely as well. After that it comes down to the amount of time spent hunting when deer are most vulnerable. In my opinion early season high country archery hunts present die hard hunters with great opportunities. Some states offer a few select early season rifle or muzzleloader tags too. You might consider a 3rd season Colorado tag, or start saving your money for a private land hunt.

 

[joelweb]

I still want to see some photos of your granddads bucks.

I'm having a hard time finding a 160 class buck in Montana and I've looked over at least 40 bucks so far this season. I think a 30" buck is a pretty high bar (but not impossible) to reach in this state.

 

[joelweb]

Here is the 39 incher that was killed on the Henry's this year. About as wide as they come.

 

[HalfAce]

am i wrong to believe that it is possible that there might not even be a deer that is 40" wide out there? how many bucks have ever been killed that are truly 40" wide? i will say with 99.99999% positivity that there has never been a deer that's frame is 40" wide. the 40"ers are 30" bucks with cheaters sticking straight out the side? doesn't matter to me what direction the cheaters might happen to grow

AZBridger, you are pretty much right. All the ones I have ever looked at in books were Non-typical’s that had cheaters taking them past the 40” mark. But a small handful of them eclipsed 40 with a few inches to spare and didn’t have all that long of cheaters. The Gem states widest buck is almost 48” and only has one or two relatively short cheaters on each side, but doesn’t say how wide the bucks actual frame is.

 

[HalfAce]

That's a once in a thousand lifetime's buck right there Joel.

Better make DAMN sure you hit your mark if you ever see something like that or you will never have a chance at one again!

 

[joelweb]

That's a once in a thousand lifetime's buck right there Joel.

Better make DAMN sure you hit your mark if you ever see something like that or you will never have a chance at one again!

And you'll never forgive yourself...

 

[Zach]

Dinkshooter nailed it. The problem (in my opinion is a lack of management. MT does not manage for big bucks or big bulls for that matter.

Are F&G supposed to manage herd density/buck-doe ratio or horn size?

 

[HalfAce]

And you'll never forgive yourself...

In this life-time or the next. Lol.

 

[smarandr]

Here is the 39 incher that was killed on the Henry's this year. About as wide as they come.
View attachment 64044

http://onyourownadventures.com/hunt...-don-t-really-care-for&highlight=grip+picture

Think we should add this to the list?

 

[Baerman]

Here is the 39 incher that was killed on the Henry's this year. About as wide as they come.
View attachment 64044

loaded whole into the razor. difficult hunt eh? To me, this is not hunting but to each is own. This squashes my original idea of find the least accessible and most limited areas.

Back to the post. As long as you are in it for the journey and not about killing, sounds like you will have the opportunity to see lots of deer. I hope you don't pull the trigger on one that is 39 inches like the one above and regret it though!

 

[The Hedgehog]

loaded whole into the razor. difficult hunt eh? To me, this is not hunting but to each is own. This squashes my original idea of find the least accessible and most limited areas.

I wonder how a deer being loaded whole tells you about how difficult the hunt was, and that it's "not hunting." If you don't think the Henry Mtns aren't one of the "most limited" areas, you might be mistaken.