Gastro Gnome - Eat Better Wherever

I drew an archery North Dakota tag !

so question to all - are the badlands crisscrossed with roads, or is it easy to find miles of unspoiled virgin grasslands with no roads, atv trails etc? if those places exist, I want to go there .... I've always wanted to go to those hard to get areas, the ones fewer people go to. Walking 5 miles or 10 .... that's something that's very attractive to me and my hunting adventures
BlakeA's message is dead on. I spent 4 summers in Billings county and nearby areas in the 2000's and the mulies are everywhere. You hardly have to go looking for them. They are not shy. Saw several 3.5 year old bucks, but no monsters. The landscape is beautiful, air fresh, and few people; it looks odd with so many roads. A lot of roads are used for ranching and gas/oil. In the national grasslands areas there are tons of cattle fences, but a lot of it is also accessible to the public too. It is a paradise for upland birds. Unspoiled virgin grasslands? Never saw anything like that. I know it might not be what you had in mind in terms of a hike in, wilderness, or relative isolation, but you will certainly enjoy this hunt if you approach it with the right mindset. An effective strategy may look like spending the first hour of light driving the red roads and spotting multiple bucks, then planning a stalk once one you like beds down.

Interestingly, this area also holds elk, but they are like ghosts. Saw plenty of scat and tracks when I was out mountain biking and hiking, but not one animal.
 
+1 to BlakeA. Get a grasslands map. I would set up a base camp and drive out in the dark to your glassing areas. It is a little tougher glassing early until the leaves drop. But if you are hunting junipers, it won't matter. Plenty of roads and trails as everyone has said. Just don't drive off of them. A game cart can come in handy if you whack one. Plenty of cattle and no, the deer don't care.
 
Congrats, you're gonna have a blast. Some good advice above. Pick your vantage points well and you can cover a lot of country with a spotting scope. Don't ignore the fringes and areas that look like that they don't have a lot of cover. You never know where you might find one laying up.
IMG_0689.jpg
Muley Buck.jpg
 
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both of those are fantastic mule deer bucks to me ... getting within 40 yards is another story :)

I'm pretty much set on early season hunting - it just works better for my fall hunting and family plans.

first 2 weeks of season, are most muleys on the western side still velvet ?
 
I think the season opens up on 8/30, so there should be velvet muleys that first week. The one velvet muley I've shot was on 9/5.
 
Being a resident of ND I have hunt the badlands quite a bit. Get out of the pickup and glass early in the mornings and you should have no problem finding 140s-150s. 160 are for sure out there you just need to wade through the smaller bucks to find them. Some areas will be void of deer and others will seem like the honey hole. Bigger bucks are possible also. Just keep looking and trying new areas.
 
Being a resident of ND I have hunt the badlands quite a bit. Get out of the pickup and glass early in the mornings and you should have no problem finding 140s-150s. 160 are for sure out there you just need to wade through the smaller bucks to find them. Some areas will be void of deer and others will seem like the honey hole. Bigger bucks are possible also. Just keep looking and trying new areas.


thanks for the added info - score isn't everything to me, however if I could manage one to justify a taxidermy fee that would be so sweet .... I'm 50 years old but in pretty good shape overall ..... without knowing the areas yet (I'm going to get ONX and maps) .... i'd think walking into less accessible area's more fits how I like to hunt. Have a plan, then be able to adapt right? All the info I can absorb is the goal right now
 
I would highly recommend a paper map. I find it easier to use that to navigate the badlands
 
thanks for the added info - score isn't everything to me, however if I could manage one to justify a taxidermy fee that would be so sweet .... I'm 50 years old but in pretty good shape overall ..... without knowing the areas yet (I'm going to get ONX and maps) .... i'd think walking into less accessible area's more fits how I like to hunt. Have a plan, then be able to adapt right? All the info I can absorb is the goal right now
You’ll be surprised how close to the road you can actually hunt and find deer numbers and quality. The only thing you will find a shortage of in the badlands is fresh water. Find the nearest campground and set up shop. Basically as simple as that. Good luck
 
Also keep in mind that NoDak is a open section line state, That's means if you are willing to walk a little, there isn't any landlocked public land. For the most part if a hunter can't drive to it, they won't hunt it.
Which leaves some parcels of public unhunted for the most part.
 
Also keep in mind that NoDak is a open section line state, That's means if you are willing to walk a little, there isn't any landlocked public land. For the most part if a hunter can't drive to it, they won't hunt it.
Which leaves some parcels of public unhunted for the most part.


That's me - I like to go out of the way, less hunted places and if that's walking miles, even better !

anyone have any North Dakota muley photo's like Lige posted above to drive me crazy over the next few months !! :)
 
Good god this isn’t that great of a hunt .... get ready for tons of oil traffic and roads everywhere and road hunters . Montana is twice the hunt as western ND ....
 
I've never hunted North Dakota, I've never been in that area before, the badlands and grasslands etc ......... the planning, the hunting, its all part of the hunt and I think it'll be really great to go on. I've never taken a really good muley and surely there won't be road hunters everywhere first 2 weeks of archery season ?

I'm optimistic, I'll make it the best hunt I can 8andcounting
 
Good l
I've never hunted North Dakota, I've never been in that area before, the badlands and grasslands etc ......... the planning, the hunting, its all part of the hunt and I think it'll be really great to go on. I've never taken a really good muley and surely there won't be road hunters everywhere first 2 weeks of archery season ?

I'm optimistic, I'll make it the best hunt I can 8andcounting

Wasn’t trying be a downer - if you work hard I’m sure you’ll get a good deer and have tons of fun . Good luck to you !!!! Hope to see pics of a stud on the ground
 
Good god this isn’t that great of a hunt .... get ready for tons of oil traffic and roads everywhere and road hunters . Montana is twice the hunt as western ND ....
I have hunted both MT and ND for many years and harvest bigger Mule deer in ND than MT.
 
I have hunted both MT and ND for many years and harvest bigger Mule deer in ND than MT.

Possible for sure . I guess I think western ND has gotten over run with oil traffic and people , and I hate hunting out there which is too bad cuz I used to love it . Roads everywhere.... everywhere......
 
I would take a North Dakota archery tag over a Montana rifle tag every year. Good luck in your hunt!!
 
western ND isn't a country like I'm used to hunting .... I hunt whitetails in AR, KS ..... i lived in Colorado and hunted elk for several years, never muley's though for some reason (back in the 90's)

I've hunted open prairie a couple of times .... but the pic's I see from ND so far, its a different country. Very much looking forward to this - thanks !
 

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