hunting 3rd season deer

[mixedbag]

I ended up drawing my 3rd season deer tag in Co.I've never been in the unit which isn't uncommon for me since I'm from Pa.I've always done well with maps and some locals advise,and biologist suggestions.This is only my 3rd muley specific hunt.I was successful in a mid Nov hunt in Mt,and last year ate my Wy tag by choice.
How do you guys like to hunt mule deer?I've mainly just driven roads and would stop every so often and glass.If I see or find any good canyons/breaks,I'd walk the rim and glass over the edge every so often.I wouldn't walk where anything in the canyon would be able to see me.On maps, what would be some things to look for?I've used maps mainly for my elk hunts and have certain things I look for,but don't know exactly what to look for with deer.More specifically big deer.I wont shoot forkies or 3x3s.I want a buck with a little age/size.I'm not talking 200",of course that would be awesome.I'd be happy to find anything over 160".I know a lot of guys on here kill big deer year in and year out.Is it distance from roads,overlooked areas,private/public land borders,certain food sources,finding lots of doe.Trying to figure out what I should key in on when looking at maps or when I'm out there a few days before season opens.What kind of hunting techniques work for you.Also,with whitetail, if I'm on does during the rut everyday can bring new bucks in to check them out.Do the muleys work around like this traveling from doe groups to doe groups

 

[HalfAce]

I guess ill take a stab at your questions.

Don’t know what unit you are talking about, but there is a difference between hunting the plains and hunting the Rockies. If you’re hunting West of I25 you won’t really want to hunt from the truck. Obviously anyone can get lucky and have a big buck cross the road in front of them, but for the most part, if you are looking for a big buck, you won’t see a big one near the roads. But, being the 3rd season, and mule deer bucks having 4 legs and starting to get into the rut, anything can happen, so be ready at all times. If you want to increase your chances of seeing a mature buck, you will have to get off the roads. You won’t need to be hiking miles upon miles into the back country to see deer, just one ridge over and out of sight from the road is where the hunting begins to get good. You will be surprised how few people want to walk more than 1 mile to check out a spot. For the most part, you should plan on parking your truck at a pre-determined location, and hiking in to hunt a certain spot all day. Have 3 or 4 places picked out, and check them all out, one each day, hiking in and out during the dark. Thing is, once the deer start to rut, you can see them at any time of the day, so hiking in and out during the dark really isn’t as important as it would be earlier in the season, it only gives you more time in the field, but i still think the first and last half hours of day light are the best. Once you have checked out all the spots you have planned on checking out, repeat the process if you haven’t shot anything yet. If you find a spot with more deer than in others, its a good idea to hunt it for a few days and see what moves in or through that area.

Things can go two ways during the third season. Some years the snow falls and the bucks begin to rut sometime during the 3rd season time frame. Other years it’s warm and dry, and you may see bucks still hanging out with each other, even during the 3rd season, at least that has been my experience. This year having the season pushed back 5 days improves the odds of hunting during the beginning of the rut. In my experience the cold and snow make a big difference. A few inches of snow make a little difference, but 10 to 18 inches makes it a different hunt altogether.

If you want to shoot a big Mule Deer, try all of the things you listed, each is a good idea. It may be a smart azz answer, but a big Mule Deer buck will be where he will be. They can be anywhere. If there is even such thing as a secret to finding a big Mule Deer buck, it is, work REALLY hard. That’s why they are one of the toughest trophies sized animals to get. Each buck is unique and will live wherever he has been able to survive a few hunting seasons. And the reason they are alive there is because no one found him there.

Some general info though for hunting these things in CO during the 3rd season is to set up and glass different aspen pockets in the 8,500ft to 10,000ft elevation range. Depth of snow dictates elevation a bit. Don’t waste your time in the dark timber if there is snow. If you find an area with does, check them out regularly to see if a buck moved in. Bucks will move to different areas to search out hot does. But i have seen it where a big buck finds a group of does and sticks with them and won’t leave them, unless he gets pushed out by a bigger buck. Ide say hunting aspen pockets that transition into sage that are near private property boundaries in the 8,500 to 9,000 ft elevation range which has a handful of does in it is a winning formula if there is one. Any lower elevation than this and its usually private property. Hunting overlooked areas is good too, but you need to hunt an area for years before you can figure out where these overlooked areas are.

You’re going to have to try your whole bag of tricks to find a good one. Good part is, you will be hunting the best big Mule Deer state during a great season in what sounds like a tough to draw unit. So you should have a really good chance to run across one or more 160+ bucks. If you are used to hunting Mule Deer in Montana, try not to shoot the first good buck you see. A good buck in Colorado is different than a good buck in Montana.

 

[Bambistew]

I'd look for 3-4 draws/canyons that look loke good deer habitat. Must be at least a mile or two from the nearest road or ATV trail AND can't be seen from a road. This will be more hunting than you can probably do in a week. Driving around is a waste of time IMO. You might get lucky, but miss a whole bunch.

If the spots look good it might take a day or two to turn up a buck in there. Look for does... the bucks will show up eventually.

Look for small isolated pockets that may be overlooked. Deer don't need big country, but they need security.

Congrats on the tag!

 

[mixedbag]

Thanks for the imfo.I'll start staring at maps to pick a few places to hike in to.I think I found a couple of draws that would meet the requirements.I guess I should call the biologist and ask for areas within the unit with higher deer numbers.I appreciate the advise as I'm still learning these muleys.I can hold off the trigger as I did last year in Wy on 2 respectable bucks and a lot of dinks and ate the tag.I am looking forward to the late season dates and the hunt.