where to?

[dgeehan]

Well it's been years since I,ve hunted and I promised my two boys 10 and 15 that I would take them this year. I have no clue where to go. I suspect it will be a lot like camping with a gun. I have a 29' travel trailer and I'm looking for an area that is fairly close to the puget sound area +- 100 miles. Anyone have any suggestions?

[Redmist]

My first reaction to your post was very negative.  I'm now assuming that you are the one trying to hunt again, and the boys are not yet licensed?  Just tagging along with dad.  That's good of you to spend time with them and include them. The post gives a perception that you made a promise, the kids do their part and complete hunter safety education, and now you've procrastinated until crunch time to find a place to hunt.  By the lack of responses, maybe other people have the same perception.  I don't hunt Blacktail, or Whites, just mule.  100 miles from the Ocean and I can only suggest going over the pass to around the Teanaway, Taneum, Manastash area if you want mule deer.  I've never been in that area during deer season, but have spent time driving the logging roads and riding dirt bikes on the trails.  I have seen some decent bucks on summer range at high elevation accessable by logging roads up Taneum Creek on Taneum Ridge, and South Cle Elum Ridge area.  You would take the Thorp off ramp before Ellensburg and head back west up Taneum Creek Road.  Stay at Taneum camp ground, and drive the truck up the river to the high ground poking around here and there, glassing the clear cuts up on top. Make an effort to do some walking along the more open ridges where going would be easier for the boys.  Have a bear tag and sit accross from a clear cut in the morning and evenings.  Explain that it is an exploration hunting/camping adventure, and make sure to bring a couple of new pellet guns or a 22 to do some plinking away from the roads when it gets boring.  If you just see some deer the boys should get excited, but make the most of the camping fun.  To be safe, legal, and give the boys a good bonding period with dad should be your goal this late in the game.  Again, I don't hunt that area, on this area, but it is within your parameters stated.  Good luck, and hopefully you can get some better advice from others on this area, or better areas close to the Sound. 

[PolarBear]

Vail.  Have your kids passed their hunter's ed or are they just tagging along hoping you get something?  Are you just looking for a place to road hunt?  If so, Weyerhaeuser's Vail Tree farm in Rainier is the place to go.  Just were lots of orange and don't use your scope as binoculars.  Good luck.

[ICEMAN]

Redmist, nice post, but I would not recommend target shooting during the general deer hunt out of respect for other hunters...

We even try to accomplish our target practice when bow and muzzle guys are not in the woods.....

[SCRUBS]

Redmist, nice post, but I would not recommend target shooting during the general deer hunt out of respect for other hunters...

We even try to accomplish our target practice when bow and muzzle guys are not in the woods.....

As an archer, i thank you for the courtesy Iceman!

[12Gauge]

Yeap, Vail, I am heading there myself.  It is probably the best area to hunt on the wet side.

[Bean Counter]

+1 to all of the above.

[trackman]

I'm going to give you this tip because you have kids and blacktail are good for kids.  Easy draggin!  Don't tell anyone about this place though.  Head South I-5 to Hwy 6. 18 miles out on hwy 6 is a little town called Doty.  Head East out of  Doty on Elk Creek Road (there are no stores here, so get supplies before).  Stay on the wide main road past the houses and soon you'll enter Weyerhauser land.  Don't turn right yet.  Stay along the lower logging road.  After a few miles, the road will split left to go down and right to go up. It looks pretty rough, but I took my 32' RV on it.  After about 5 miles or so you'll start seeing left turns.  Find a dead end spur road off to the side and set up camp. From there, keep heading up the road and stay right the entire time and you'll head up into the higher hills where there is fresh reprod bordering thick timber.  Just look for recent clearcuts and fresh soil.  Deer love recently turned up soil. There are thousands of miles of prime blacktail country back there.  Be careful though!  These roads can take you to the ocean and if you get lost, you'll spend days driving around.  Watch every turn carefully and make sure to set GPS to track mode and keep it on your dash.  Anyways, you'll find sign and tracks everywhere.  At night, buzz the roads with your truck and you'll see tons of deer.  Hunting is fun for kids, but you gotta keep them entertained and if they get to drop in the woods in the morning where they saw fresh tracks the night before, they'll be ecstatic.  Have fun.

[PolarBear]

A little advice about hunting around Doty. Don't leave your rig unattended for very long and be very wary of folks "broken down" in the hills.  There are a ton of tweekers out there.