What is with the hype around Coues deer?

[fattybinz]

Just started hunting this year and I'm trying to formulate my plan of which states to build points in. Wondering if Coues deer should be a part of my plan. I feel like people on this forum either talk about how great it is to hunt them, or how "meh" they are.

I'm coming from Utah. Building elk and deer points in my home state, elk and deer points in Colorado, elk and pronghorn points in Wyoming, and elk points in Arizona. Wondering if I should add Arizona Coues deer to that list. I know it is just $15 or whatever to get a point...but even for that amount I'm wondering if I'd even enjoy driving 13+ hours to hunt a miniature deer in 80+ degrees. Thoughts?

 

[Deleted member 20812]

That's a question for you to answer.

 

[schmalts]

Sounds like you wouldn't be crazy about it already. I have hunted AZ many times for deer and the tag was good for either. Truthfully I had a hard time being real interested in Coues because in my head it was a dinky WT deer, even though it is a subspecies. Being I can hunt WT all the time where I live I choose to hunt muleys instead and thought if I saw a monster WT while hunting muleys I would take it but otherwise I would concentrate on Muleys. I do want to shoot one one day just because it is different, and the weather for the late hunts is better than being at home. But in the end you need to decide.

 

[cgarner]

I think for some people the challenge of seeing them is the draw. For me and most of my hunting partners, as we hunted more and harvested multiple animals, the harvest gets less and less important and the experience becomes more and more important.

 

[LopeHunter]

Coues are smaller in body size than other deer in America, blend in to the terrain and are scattered few and far between in that terrain.

That terrain is full of things that, jab, cut, sting and bite. Desolate. Unforgiving. Southern AZ is closer to the equator so a sunburn can sneak up on you.

Glassing up a bedded Coues is an achievement. Getting in close is difficult.

I would rifle hunt Coues every year in the late season if I could. I can't though. Only AZ and NM have rifle tags and those take me around 5 years to draw. No landowner deer tags for sale in NM and AZ. Not much private land if do draw. I do not archery hunt and do not want to hunt when is 110F so I avoid all but the late November-December rifle hunts. So, most years am not hunting Coues.

Know what I can hunt every year in November and December? Mule deer and Eastern whitetail. My last mule deer hunt I saw over 30 different bucks each day. My last Eastern whitetail hunt I saw ten or more bucks every day. My last Coues hunt I saw 8 bucks. The hunt before I saw 4 bucks. the hunt before, my first, I saw 3 bucks which were in one group.

My favorite Coues hunt was in AZ getting blasted by intermittent snow at elevation as worked in close as three bucks circled and fought. Not t-shirt weather in the desert that day. That hour-long pack out was nasty as the sun had set followed by blackness with snow flurries falling sideways and dealing with all the cacti and agave on the slick, steep up and down terrain. Was beat up, cut up and my toes got banged up in the sidehill and downhill. Normally would have paused to tighten my boot laces but kept going one more hill and one more descent to get to the truck. That was a hunt.

 

[FI460]

Being in Oregon I'm intrigued by the easy possibility of extending my season. I grew up hunting coastal blacktails and those little buggers are small too so that's not a big concern for me.

The thought of hunting in December and January is what's drawing me.

 

[LCH]

Cool country, good weather, good time of year, easy to get tags, easy to pack out, fun to glass.

 

[406LIFE]

...because when you shoot one you can pick it up and put it in your pocket.

 

[MTGomer]

Its fun. To kill one spot and stalk with a bow is a real accomplishment. After staring through the spotting scope for a few weeks for ghostlike Sonoran desert mule deer, I found the pace and action of coues to be a nice little refreshing break.

 

[Blackcats06]

I'd find a hunt in November that you can draw the first year and go do it to find out if its what you want to do. I wouldn't build points for coues, even for a late hunt. The rut isn't until mid jan and that late hunt ends dec 31

 

[3855WIN]

If you want a whitetail, why not drive up to Idaho?

Dates for Coues don’t work for me, but I’d enjoy it. Seems similar to hunting 2-4 year old clear cuts in the Southeast for whitetails which is awesome.

 

[Deleted member 20812]

If you want a whitetail, why not drive up to Idaho?

Dates for Coues don’t work for me, but I’d enjoy it. Seems similar to hunting 2-4 year old clear cuts in the Southeast for whitetails which is awesome.

You're comparing apples to oranges. Hunting whitetails in the northwoods of the Clearwater drainage is about as polar opposite as you can get to hunting the Sonoran Desert for whitetails.

 

[----]

I wouldn't build points for coues, even for a late hunt. The rut isn't until mid jan and that late hunt ends dec 31

What do you contribute the higher success rates of the late season tags to? Is it just less hunting pressure?

I've been building points for a while planning on a late coues tag, and had always assumed they were rut hunts, but have read this same thing a couple times lately.

 

[Deleted member 20812]

What do you contribute the higher success rates of the late season tags to? Is it just less hunting pressure?

I've been building points for a while planning on a late coues tag, and had always assumed they were rut hunts, but have read this same thing a couple times lately.

If you split your points with me, I'll drive

 

[bigsky2]

The coues I have hunted have seemed like a totally different species than the whitetails I have hunted here in Montana. They are a really neat animal...hunt them once and you're likely to get the coues bug like I did. All winter I find myself wishing I was down south glassing for coues in 70 degree weather.

 

[jmgraham1986]

I would rifle hunt Coues every year in the late season if I could. I can't though. Only AZ and NM have rifle tags and those take me around 5 years to draw. No landowner deer tags for sale in NM and AZ.

Lopehunter- Almost all private land deer hunts in NM are OTC and the ones you need to draw are all north of I40. If you can find a chunk of private land to hunt, you can hunt coues, with a rifle, every Dec.

 

[LCH]

I have 98% made up my mind that if I do not draw a late elk tag in AZ, I'm going back for one of the earlier Coues rifle seasons this fall.

 

[LopeHunter]

Lopehunter- Almost all private land deer hunts in NM are OTC and the ones you need to draw are all north of I40. If you can find a chunk of private land to hunt, you can hunt coues, with a rifle, every Dec.

Had no idea. Thanks! I will start looking around for access to private that holds some Coues.

 

[LaSportsman]

If you want a whitetail, why not drive up to Idaho?

Dates for Coues don’t work for me, but I’d enjoy it. Seems similar to hunting 2-4 year old clear cuts in the Southeast for whitetails which is awesome.

It is awesome but the Sonoran Desert is nothing like the Southeast. Terrain can vary greatly even over a short distance and Coues seem to like steep hills. You can glass the shade of trees repeatedly and then boom, there one is. My first hunt this fall is hopefully Muley's OTC in early season but if I don't get one, I'll try for Coues later. Was unsuccessful this year on a rifle hunt in November but first time hunting an area. Learned a lot for the future including I need to cross more ridges.

 

[deer_shooter]

I went the first time this past December and can't wait to go again. Everything about it was challenging and loved the scenery, terrain and weather.