Montana Deer Hunt- Help

[Duckhunter14]

I have been hesitant to post this, but I figured what the heck. So here it is; myself and several other members from this site are planning a hunting trip to Eastern Montana for deer next fall. We have been pouring over maps, Google earth, asking around for others experience, researching online, etc. We have tentatively decided to head over to the Fort Peck Reservoir area and give that a try. None of us have ever been over there; we are going in blind. Especially if we cant get over this summer to do some scouting, which with our work schedules may prove to be impossible. So we were curious if any members on here could give us any insight? It should go without saying we are not looking for your secret spot to find big bucks, or anything super specific, I'm not asking for GPS coordinates. But if anyone has ever been to the area and had success and could offer any kind of advice it would be much appreciated. Anything to help with the learning curve would be great. I looked up a couple of older threads on HuntWa that were helpful, and we are really looking forward to the hunt! If you would rather PM myself or Johnnyaustin44 any information you share and would like to remain confidential will stay that way.

As I mentioned we have obtained maps of the area, I will be getting a Hunt MT chip for my GPS to help with public and private land ownership, I was planning on calling the local biologist/game warden to pick their brain, also planning on contacting the Charles M. Russell Refuge headquarters to make sure we understand all the guidelines for being on the refuge and camping near the reservoir. Anyone I'm forgetting?

One of the things I have heard from talking to a few people who have hunted that country was if rain is in the forecast forget about driving or riding a quad...or even hiking for that matter. Which I have experienced in WY before and understand how nasty that clay gumbo can be. Also if we plan to use a boat for access on the lake be mindful of high winds because that water can get extremely nasty in a hurry?

Any tips on good places to camp, jump off points for areas to hunt, an item you couldn't have gone without over there, what was your most successful style of hunting (glass early and late, pushing canyons, etc), anything really. Thanks in advance guys. I will be sure to document the trip; and provide a write up with pictures to share once we get back (with hopefully a punched tag or two). 

Clint

[Bigshooter]

Bring some extra gas cans.  The CMR closes in most units earlier than the general season.  What unit do you plan on hunting?  I like the units on the south side of the lake more than the units on the north side.

[Bwana Bob]

Hunt the rut if you can. Find a good vantage point and glass for an hr or 2 in the am. If you take a boat walk far up into those draws away from other hunters and sit and wait for deer to move to you. I hunted the breaks 5 times from my friends place and the best  time to see a lot of bucks was during the rut. Walking on the jumbo sucks but driving on it may be impossible. Shoot the first 160 inch buck you see.
Good luck.

[Duckhunter14]

Thanks for the info guys. We were planning on hunting as close to the rut as possible depending on the CMR closure. We're not sure about which units to focus on yet. Obviously 652 is out because it's draw only. So we were thinking 631, 632, and/or 700? We have thrown the idea around of taking a boat but have also heard many others also deploy that tactic that time of year? Have you guys that have hunted the area had to deal with a lot of competition?

[Magnum_Willys]

pm sent.....

[WoolyRunner]

Nice picture 

[Duckhunter14]

That is an awesome pic Magnum thanks for sharing. Really gives you an idea of how big and open that country is. Thank you to the guys who have PM'd information. I love this forum more and more every day. You guys rock 

Clint

[opdinkslayer]

Sent you a pm DH14

[The scout]

hunt there each year, the best advise is glass. witch is kinda obvious for mule deer. and wait till it's frozen to go or you wont get around in the bentonite, probably the best advise is bring sets of chains for front and rear.

[Brushbuster]

When you call the bio ask how the deer numbers are doing. There are still some areas struggling to recover from the bad winter they had 3-4 yrs ago. I know the units on the east end of the lake were devastated.

You may also want to get the Block Management Catalogue for the region. I believe they come out in August. Listed are private ranches that you can get permission to hunt. Some are as simple as signing in at an access gate.

Weather can make or break the hunt. I try to go as late as possible but with these weird winters we've been having it is no guarantee.

Good Luck. Hope this helps. 

[Duckhunter14]

Thanks Scout looks like I'm headed to pick up another set of chains for my truck, I have only ever needed two but you're the second guy that's told me the same thing! All 4 is a necessity! Brushbuster I spoke with the biologist over there on Monday and brought up the winter kill from years recent as well as the Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease (EHD). His was response was this; 2010-11 winter kill was the worst he had seen in his career and he mentioned even the old timers said it was the worst they had seen in their lifetimes. He said it was in fact, devastating. But due to the two consecutive mild winter conditions the last two years, they are seeing better fawn recruitment and have been doing some studies on the survival rate of bucks from their first to second year. He said that they are 'hopeful' for a good fall as far as number of bucks and number of mature bucks. But he said that its not back to what it was prior to 2010, and that with more mild winters and ample moisture in the spring they will return to those numbers in the coming years. He didn't want to turn me away from hunting this year, but he was honest in the fact that he thought the coming years would in fact be better than this fall. As far as EHD, he said that two years ago their whitetail population got hit extremely hard (just like it did in parts of Western MT) and that the population of whitetails was still down from years past but in its 2rd year of recovery and they did start to see more bucks last year and they were hopeful that the population would continue to rebound this year.

Ordering the Block Management maps for the area is great advice, we are definitely going to give those a close look. Thanks again for all the information guys. What else are we missing? What else do we need to know? Anybody ever find any monster elk sheds while hunting over there? I know its tough to draw that bull tag, but I hear there are some dandies over there! Be cool to scoop up a couple shed antlers while we're hiking. Anybody ever fish after tagging out or while they were glassing?

Clint

[300rum]

Most of the time it freezes up at night depending on the time of year so if you don't get too excited and can hang out awhile after the sun goes down you will be able to get out.  The outside Temp doesn't matter as much as the sun hitting the roads, if the sun hits the roads, they can get bad even in single digits.  Wait until the sun goes down to get out and get in before it comes up (usually you have a couple of hours in the a.m. before it gets bad).  I carry a stake and a come along as there isn't much of anything to hook up to to pull you out, you should plan on driving something into the ground.  If for some reason it rains, forget about it.  Even the good roads get real bad, real quick.  It can dump two feet of snow quick and has the last two times I was there.  Hopefully the ground has a chance to freeze up before a snow like that hits or the driving is pretty much over.  One place we hunt is about 2.5 hours away from a gas pump.  I always carry 5 gallons in the truck just in case. 

[Carl]

Tagging.  I would love to do this sometime.

[Brushbuster]

You may want to take a shotgun. An upland game permit is included in your license & some areas have good numbers of pheasants.

[Karl Blanchard]

lots of boats.  shore gets a bit shot out and the deer change their habits accordingly.  Also, a vast majority of hunters never leave their trucks because, well, its montana and you can shoot a buck from the truck.  You see enough deer driving around to keep most guys from walking.  Hit the country between roads and the water and you will have a good hunt.  Don't expect to shoot a big deer but a few are taken every year.  Lots of 110-140" deer last year so there should be a good crop of decent bucks this year.  Good luck!