Just finished my first mule deer hunt, unfortunately only brought home a tag sandwich. Starting to plan my next hunt in a better region. What states/regions would y'all recommend where I could get drawn for a tag within the next few years, and have a reasonable chance at getting a deer?
Planning my next hunt
- Thread starter TwoLugz
- Start date
Pucky Freak
Well-known member
Tell us about your hunt from this year. What all do you think went in to you not notching tags?
glass eye
Well-known member
How far are you willing to travel ?
Axis deer in Hawaii is a high success rate and tags readily available.
I've never hunted Kodiak but I plan to. High success rate and OTC tags.
Axis deer in Hawaii is a high success rate and tags readily available.
I've never hunted Kodiak but I plan to. High success rate and OTC tags.
I got a tag in region T in Wyoming. And the public land there was very limited and over hunted. I only saw a little spike buck.
Hawaii sounds cool. I'm thinking more along the lines of the mountain west. Wyoming, Colorado, Montana, etc
Pucky Freak
Well-known member
Region T looks like a tough hunt for a DIY public land hunter. A little more planning could significantly upgrade your experience in a new area. Mule deer opportunity hunts, i.e. you’re mostly hunting/seeing 2.5-year-old deer on land you can hunt generally take at least 1PP or equivalent for the NR. The MT elk/deer combo is expensive, but an advantage is rifle season is during the rut and your chance to take a small deer is high. Several WY regional tags are approx. 1-2PP (fewer if you’re willing to pay for special rate), and the advantage here is predictability. CO has decent tags in the 2-3PP range and the advantage here is they are totally limited for residents as well, so you don’t have to contend with hordes of residents hunting a general deer tag. I’ll round out the list with ID. An advantage w/ ID is you can put in for a (premium) controlled hunt which is totally random selection and you could potentially pick up a nice tag in a short period of time. If you are not selected, you can turn around and buy a LQ OTC deer tag, having already bought the NR hunting license. Some of these are tough hunts due to rugged terrain, predators, low densities, difficult access, and/or low success rates, but it also beats sitting on the couch. If you live near ID this might also make sense if it’s a shorter drive than to other states.
Thanks. I live in South Carolina. So if I'm gonna travel, it really doesn't make much of a difference because I'll have a long trip ahead of me regardless. Thanks for the info!
OntarioHunter
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If a long trip doesn't bother you, consider Africa. I had a package deal for about $4K that included everything but flight and taxidermy: impala, blesbuck, gemsbuck, and kudu. I picked up an extra blue wildebeest, warthog, and cape buffalo and still only $8500 (mind you the buff was a cow management cull ... but a nice one). You can fly direct to South Africa out of Atlanta and taking your own gun is doable (I did it). Air fare is not bad if you shop around (but limited options if taking your gun - most clients rent them from the outfitter). The volume of wildlife is unbelievable. Beautiful country. No malaria in South Africa so no worries on that score. Best hunting is during our summer so theoretically one could still hunt deer in North America the same year.
