How to hunt Blacktail in Alder

[fishnfur]

Well, by my count, I've got 16 days to sit and mull over the general season and twiddle my thumbs.  Might as well try to learn something while I wait......

RadSav got me thinking more and more about hunting BTs in alder.  There's got to be some tricks or tactics that I'm missing.  Mature alder stands generally have lots of deer sign and good browse to keep them coming back. God knows they love to rub those trees this time of year.  The downside is that you can't walk quietly in the alder due to all the broken limbs.  Many hunters tell me they never hunt deer in alder.  Even the conifer edges that are close enough to allow visibility into the alder tend to be noisy with broken alder limbs. 

Alder forests produces some nice bucks every year for some hunters, especially along river bottoms and benches on the sides of hills, and I see does in the small stuff in the middle of the day during the early season, but they are gone as soon as the trees drop most of their leaves.   RadSav recounted an experience when he followed a buck that was chasing/herding a couple of does over long distance to his breeding area on an alder flat.   

Bucks generally don't seem to travel through the alder unless it is dark out based on my limited experience, but I don't know if that is the case during the rut.  Seems like they must use it at times during daylight, or at least hug the conifer edges as they search for does that often seem to have no issues with being in the alder at mid-day. 

I got busted doing some scouting between seasons last year by a buck that was about 70 yards away.  All was good as I stood with my back to a large tree, completely motionless, until I slowly raised my binos to glass the area and a buck and doe exploded from their beds and made a loud and quick exit stage right.  Visibility is obviously a huge problem.

So, am I missing something obvious?  Many hunters tell me they never hunt deer in alder.  I've already committed to trying - I've got two tree stands and a blind on alder/conifer edges, each of which requires some travel through alder to get into.  That may have been a mistake.  (?) 

 Do any of you have tactics up your sleeves for getting in without being seen and hunting effectively, or is it a waste of time to go past the edges?

Many thanks for your thoughts on the matter.

[Sitka_Blacktail]

I grew up hunting alder patches and mixed conifer/alder maple patches in the Malone area. Our two best methods were drives with 3 to 5 people driving and 1 or 2 on stands or 3-5 guys doing soft pushes bouncing deer to each other. Still hunting can be effective, but you have to move verrrrrry slow. 

The Humptulips used to have some good alder patches in the 70s and early 80s but it's thick conifers up there now.

It's hard to find a good alder patch these days, for a while everything seemed to get replanted in fir. But it seems there are a few more than 10-15 years ago. Hardwood prices must be up.

[RadSav]

I rarely ever step foot in the alders unless there is a good skid road free of most debris.  Just too difficult to remain undetected.  I try to stay in the timber and glass into the alders.  If I could control the weather and I wanted to kill a blacktail buck during rut in the alders I'd have it rain like the dickens all night until about 8am.  Then completely stop raining but remain overcast until the evening.  Then I would work the edges glassing from 10am till 3pm.

If I wanted to hunt Christmas trees, which are my favorite during rifle season, I would change the weather slightly.  Instead of overcast after 8am I would lay the fog down onto the Christmas trees heavy right after the rain stopped.  I'd then burn it off with a nice warm sunshine.  I'd then be on a ridge where I could glass the small openings in the Christmas trees within 200 yards of some freak-nasty reprod and maybe a small alder flat or two.  Wouldn't change much if it was deep and dark timber edge instead of the reprod, but that wouldn't be my first choice.

Unfortunately I can't control the weather   So I think if a person commits 100% to one area or one style of hunting blacktail in such a short season he isn't doing himself any favors.  Just for you I'll share our secret...Everything is on the table!!  Even cruising roads if we need to.  We try to never ignore fresh deer sign.  Doesn't matter where that deer sign is in relation to alder flats, Christmas trees, clear cuts or big timber - if there is evidence does are living there and not just bucks passing through we give it a try.  This could be even more important this year as the late deer season may, for the first time in a long time, come after the main part of the rut is over.  20-25 days is forever in peak rut terms.  Then the game changes completely



I absolutely hate deer drives.  But they can be extremely effective unless your the lucky SOB that gets to push.  A long long time ago I participated in a lot of those in SC for whitetail.  Lots of wounded deer tracking later I swore I'd never participate in one again.  You would think with as often as they did them there guys would be better at hitting those deer.  That's what I thought...and I was wrong.

[huntingbaldguy]

Don't discount bait.  That's exactly how i got my 3x3 blackie this year.  There's a small clearing on the land i hunt, with small thorny plants all over and grass.  Then when you get to the edges of it, it's alder, maple, cedar and ferns... everywhere.  I tried to be in the woods every day right after rain stopped and sun hit for a bit.  The days i missed, i severely regretted, as i saw on my cam that bucks had been there.  The day i got mine, it was about 3 hours after a heavy rain stopped.  I got in my blind fairly silent, silent enough to where a half hour after i sat down, my buck walked in.  I didn't wear my jacket because it was a little warmer that day.  Jacket is too loud also, yet still considered quiet by hunting standards, so i try to keep it off.  It worked out that day.  Got to draw my bow and move about silently in just base layer and a t shirt.  Those deer have incredible sense of hearing though, and anything weird they will endlessly stare at until they feel comfortable.  But to add my .02 to bucks moving through alder, i did see it.  Alder, maple, cedar and ferns, they seem to love the combo.  Tough to spot them in that habitat too.  I got busted walking in more than once and never saw them til they scared the crap out of me.

That said, all i had on cams were small spikes and does for all of September and most of October in that location.  I stuck with it and bucks started seeking does end of October and got a little reckless.  You should see the same in late rifle, i did last year.

[Sitka_Blacktail]

I absolutely hate deer drives.  But they can be extremely effective unless your the lucky SOB that gets to push.  A long long time ago I participated in a lot of those in SC for whitetail.  Lots of wounded deer tracking later I swore I'd never participate in one again.  You would think with as often as they did them there guys would be better at hitting those deer.  That's what I thought...and I was wrong.

I can see that with whitetails, the way they take off and run run run. Blacktails will stop and look around or try to sneak out into the open looking for the next cover. A lot of our drives were into open fields and power lines. To be honest, I don't remember many wounded deer we had to hunt down. And we killed a lot of deer.

I never realized you could actually get deer in clearcuts until I was about 19 and started hunting with my girlfriend's step-dad. We always hunted the timber when I was growing up, other than someone on a stand getting something we pushed out of the woods.

[fishnfur]

Pretty much what I expected.  Thanks all for your thoughts.  I hunt alone, so unfortunately, drives are not a possibility at this point.

Baldguy - that deer you harvested was a toad.  Nice job!  Your Kitsap area doesn't sound remotely like the Kitsap areas I'm familiar with.  Where's all the Evergreen Huck. and 8 foot tall salal?

[RadSav]

I absolutely hate deer drives.  But they can be extremely effective unless your the lucky SOB that gets to push.  A long long time ago I participated in a lot of those in SC for whitetail.  Lots of wounded deer tracking later I swore I'd never participate in one again.  You would think with as often as they did them there guys would be better at hitting those deer.  That's what I thought...and I was wrong.

I can see that with whitetails, the way they take off and run run run. Blacktails will stop and look around or try to sneak out into the open looking for the next cover. A lot of our drives were into open fields and power lines. To be honest, I don't remember many wounded deer we had to hunt down. And we killed a lot of deer.

That is interesting.  Definitely different than SC.

[predatorG]

Pretty much what I expected.  Thanks all for your thoughts.  I hunt alone, so unfortunately, drives are not a possibility at this point.

Baldguy - that deer you harvested was a toad.  Nice job!  Your Kitsap area doesn't sound remotely like the Kitsap areas I'm familiar with.  Where's all the Evergreen Huck. and 8 foot tall salal?

I've hunted both those types of terrain here in kitsap. In my experience, tall alder with the creeper type of blackberries that just run along the ground is best. I'm still trying to get one this year so I'll tell you what its in if I connect.

[RadSav]

In my experience, tall alder with the creeper type of blackberries that just run along the ground is best.

   If your not ripped to shreds by the time you get the buck to the truck you got lucky!  There is a reason I wear bird pants to hunt rutting blacktail

I like blackberries for early season bucks too.  I had a place not far from the recreation dunes in Florence, OR.  Most of my opportunities there the bucks were knee deep in sand munching away on berries.  That was some fun hunting!  Took a few bear there as well.  We would keep a few big pieces of 3/4" plywood in the back of the truck.  We would leap frog them like Lilly pads on top of the blackberries to track and recover animals.  You really hoped they would jump into the blackberries as blood trailing on the sand dunes is a PITA

Bird pants, good gloves and some rose snippers are a good thing to have in the truck

[fishnfur]

Bird pants?  I assume the type you wear when hunting pheasant etc., that offer a bit more protection against the brush. (?)  - I think he was referring to trailing blackberries, which make a hell of a lot of noise when they get around your legs but are not nearly as lethal as Himalayan Black Berries.

I have two parcels of forest land that are primarily alder, but have mixed fir components in parts of them.  In the past, when I've planned on hunting in the alder, I've gone through in pre-season and swept the trails with my feet to remove 90% of the debris on my major trails.  At a minimum, I've created clear spots to step in the worst areas so that I can get through really quietly though rarely is it completely without a bit of noise.  I've always figured that the deer and elk make noise as they go through it, so if I just go slow and really feel with my feet, I can get into my spots without a major disturbance.  If a storm comes through, all bets are off.  There can be a lot of new twigs and branches down where it was clear prior to the blow. 

Of course, none of this has ever paid off.  I've seen plenty of does, but only just a few bucks, which is not surprising.  I don't think the bucks every really hang out in the alder during the day.  The rut seems to be the only exception to this.  I keep thinking a permanent blind made of large slash from thinnings might work really well for a high traffic area pre-rut and during late buck seasons.

[RadSav]

I keep thinking a permanent blind made of large slash from thinnings might work really well for a high traffic area pre-rut and during late buck seasons.

Sounds like a good option to me!

My problem is I hate sitting during the rut.  My mind is always thinking about the buck just over the ridge, the big 4 chasing tail around the next corner, or the monster cruising the next edge.  Makes me so excited I just can't sit still!!

Deer rut hunting is the most exciting time of year for me.  It's the sole purpose for getting Weyco passes and multi-season tags.

[fishnfur]

There you go!  I like that idea.  That's what I need to do too.

I'm not much of a sit down guy.  It sounds good in theory, but 45 minutes into the sit, I'm second guessing myself and thinking about what I should have done instead.  Off I go, (deer comes in after I left), I go hunt somewhere else then go home frustrated!

[huntingbaldguy]

Pretty much what I expected.  Thanks all for your thoughts.  I hunt alone, so unfortunately, drives are not a possibility at this point.

Baldguy - that deer you harvested was a toad.  Nice job!  Your Kitsap area doesn't sound remotely like the Kitsap areas I'm familiar with.  Where's all the Evergreen Huck. and 8 foot tall salal?

I beat a ton of brush to find that spot.  Cut a trail and all that after google earth scouting.  It's a unique spot for sure.

[RadSav]

I beat a ton of brush to find that spot.  Cut a trail and all that after google earth scouting.  It's a unique spot for sure.

Sounds like you really did some homework and prep work early for that beautiful timber buck.  That takes a lot of time!  Truly something to be proud of.  Was an interesting story too.  I've never had any luck baiting blacktails.  I might need to call you for some pointers

If I win the lotto or sell the business we will be spending most of our free time trying to find those kind of spots again.  Seems every time I find a good one Weyco mows it down to slash and dirt.  Especially this year!  I was snotty to a Weyco employee a few years ago.  I think they must have decided to get me back by destroying every spot where they see my truck on a regular basis

[huntingbaldguy]

I'll help you however i can.  I'm no pro but i have seen a lot this year.  I was baiting the land i hunted from April.  I had all the does and yearlings coming in to 2 spots the whole time, and bucks in 1 spot at night.  I moved cam spots 6-7 times from April to September and had 2 cams deployed on that property.

All the deer the wife and i watched come in and out while we were in the blind was really quite the educator.  It made it a really exciting first season for her too.  We learned a lot of lessons early on, some of which you know about.  It's a really finicky way of hunting but with time spent it seems to be rewarding.  That's the toughest part, sitting still in the blind lol.  Time will tell if it will pay off year after year but this gave me a quite the confidence booster!  Anything you want to know i'll share besides the obvious.

[JimmyHoffa]

I beat a ton of brush to find that spot.  Cut a trail and all that after google earth scouting.  It's a unique spot for sure.

Sounds like you really did some homework and prep work early for that beautiful timber buck.  That takes a lot of time!  Truly something to be proud of.  Was an interesting story too.  I've never had any luck baiting blacktails.  I might need to call you for some pointers

If I win the lotto or sell the business we will be spending most of our free time trying to find those kind of spots again.  Seems every time I find a good one Weyco mows it down to slash and dirt.  Especially this year!  I was snotty to a Weyco employee a few years ago.  I think they must have decided to get me back by destroying every spot where they see my truck on a regular basis

Good time to scout those areas is when they are mowed down.  Then just keep note what is where for when it fills in and go back later.  One of the areas I go the old loggers marked a bunch up on old maps after they leveled the area.  They could drive around and see the benches and where it was too steep, how to approach knobs, where the boundary to the OG was, etc.  I go back there now on a road and it looks all the same--wall of jungle 150ft tall and have to crawl through it to find anything.  Tougher to get a mental picture of what the ground would look like from today's view.  But as clear cut, you know the leave tree islands and where the big stumps that will be good dens and where a giant cedar is laying in a creek before even having to boot up.

[fishnfur]

I'm attempting to use nature's bait to attract deer.  Thinning out the overcrowded alder stands nearly doubles the light reaching the forest floor.  Down here, the Elderberry/Salmonberry/Trailing Blackberry complex responds incredibly quickly to alder thinning and becomes an amazing food source for elk and deer.  Brush that was knee-high suddenly grows to 6 - 8 feet and becomes impenetrable in wetter places.  I found out the hard way that when thinning and pruning trees, it is easy to go too far and end up with no remaining cover to hold animals during the day though - at least until the brush grows in.  Once that occurs, finding a bedded animal in that stuff is needle-in-haystack work.   

I've got another woodlot in Longbranch in which the reprod is just four years old.  I get to play with this one and attempt to create corridors and patches of alder among the fir in order to keep deer on the property.  Time will tell if this works according to plan.

[predatorG]

I think I need more variation in terrain. I just hunt a bit of land behind my house in Kitsap and I'm not sure if it has the potential to hold a large blacktail. We saw one large three point a couple years ago but it wasn't season. we've seen nothing since then. Not enough timber land to help vary the age of trees.

[fishnfur]

Predator G - you might be surprised at the size of some of the bucks hiding out there and running through your bit of land in the middle of the night.  A trail cam might be called for - sooner rather than later.  Now is the time to catch bucks cruising.

[RadSav]

Predator G - you might be surprised at the size of some of the bucks hiding out there and running through your bit of land in the middle of the night.  A trail cam might be called for - sooner rather than later.  Now is the time to catch bucks cruising.

Just hang around Cabela's in Lacey this time of year.  It's amazing how such a little bit of cover can hide so many trophy caliber bucks.  That big 3 with eye guards that hangs out in their parking lot fascinates me!  What a specimen

We have a huge B&C buck here in Vancouver by the Costco that is living in tight quarters.  Find the right spots and a little bit of land can really produce big on blacktails...and whitetails!  Sometimes those small plots can be completely void of pressure.  That's never a bad thing unless it's so small you can't hunt it safely.

[fishnfur]

RadSav - what?  No pics of those parking lot bucks???

[RadSav]

I am smart phone challenged!

[2labs]

I think I need more variation in terrain. I just hunt a bit of land behind my house in Kitsap and I'm not sure if it has the potential to hold a large blacktail. We saw one large three point a couple years ago but it wasn't season. we've seen nothing since then. Not enough timber land to help vary the age of trees.

I lived over there for twenty three years. Kinda by gold mt. There are some freaking toads around that area. Biggest blacktail I've personally layed  eyes on was at the McCormick woods driving range. Google earth that area. There's alder patches and ponds and swamps. And a lot of it is legal to hunt.might be no rifles. Who cares, ya can't see 30 feet in that stuff.what do ya need a rifle for.

[RadSav]

Here is a July pic of a Church deer over by the Home Depot here in Vancouver.  I just about got in an accident trying to pull over and get my phone out at the same time   Lousy picture, but I actually got the phone to work while excited.  That's a miracle in itself

[predatorG]

I think I need more variation in terrain. I just hunt a bit of land behind my house in Kitsap and I'm not sure if it has the potential to hold a large blacktail. We saw one large three point a couple years ago but it wasn't season. we've seen nothing since then. Not enough timber land to help vary the age of trees.

I lived over there for twenty three years. Kinda by gold mt. There are some freaking toads around that area. Biggest blacktail I've personally layed  eyes on was at the McCormick woods driving range. Google earth that area. There's alder patches and ponds and swamps. And a lot of it is legal to hunt.might be no rifles. Who cares, ya can't see 30 feet in that stuff.what do ya need a rifle for.

I have seen many pics of all the Kitsap toads, and they can easily compare to a beast from any other GMU. I think that I will probably just finish the year sitting in a stand that looks over our plot. I'm planning to put in alot of scouting time next summer either right close to home or in the backcountry.

Radsav- I completely agree with everything you say about large bucks growing even in very small areas. Quite a few people on here have seen pictures I posted of the buck from my Grandmother's yard in Bellevue. we know there's some good bucks back behind my house, I just wasn't able to out in the time scouting them and am having to pay for it now. 

[huntingbaldguy]

I have 2 massive deer on cam in Kitsap.  They grow big there because you have this tiny piece of land to hunt them on if it's private and surrounded by private residences.  And there's a lot of fruit trees, veggie planters and clover fields all over.  I'm working on getting another property next year in the gmu.  I know a guy that owns a ton of land out there bordered by alder and maple trees.  I worked for him in high school.  I would just say try to catch property owners outside.  Most people won't let you gun hunt there, but archery is much of the time a yes.  I just drive by properties i'm interested in a lot and hope to see the owner out and about to chat with them.  Not a big fan of knocking on doors and the little i've done it, they seem less receptive.

[predatorG]

I have 2 massive deer on cam in Kitsap.  They grow big there because you have this tiny piece of land to hunt them on if it's private and surrounded by private residences.  And there's a lot of fruit trees, veggie planters and clover fields all over.  I'm working on getting another property next year in the gmu.  I know a guy that owns a ton of land out there bordered by alder and maple trees.  I worked for him in high school.  I would just say try to catch property owners outside.  Most people won't let you gun hunt there, but archery is much of the time a yes.  I just drive by properties i'm interested in a lot and hope to see the owner out and about to chat with them.  Not a big fan of knocking on doors and the little i've done it, they seem less receptive.

I'm still in high school so buying land isn't really an option right now, although it is definitley a goal in the future. I've been torn between asking people to hunt on their land or just scouting and putting more work in behind my house. I've thought about offerring to do some work around someone's place in exchange for being able to hunt, but I would probably be more focused on people that live in a more urban area.

Fishnfur- sorry for hijacking the thread 

[bracer40]

I think I need more variation in terrain. I just hunt a bit of land behind my house in Kitsap and I'm not sure if it has the potential to hold a large blacktail. We saw one large three point a couple years ago but it wasn't season. we've seen nothing since then. Not enough timber land to help vary the age of trees.

I lived over there for twenty three years. Kinda by gold mt. There are some freaking toads around that area. Biggest blacktail I've personally layed  eyes on was at the McCormick woods driving range. Google earth that area. There's alder patches and ponds and swamps. And a lot of it is legal to hunt.might be no rifles. Who cares, ya can't see 30 feet in that stuff.what do ya need a rifle for.

Gold mtn is one of my favorite courses. But I rarely play golf from the start of Aug til the new year because I'm hunting instead. I'll bet my golf bag could hold a slug gun 

[fishnfur]

Bracer - I'll golf-hunt with you.  What's your handicap?      (Mine is that I'm not too good at either)

Predator G. -
no worries about my thread.  I'm not hunting modern elk, so I've got 13 days to talk about anything and everything.   In my mind, land is a great investment - as soon as you can afford to (after HS, college, found a great job - priorities first!) consider investing in land/homes, real estate in general.  Raw land will never be as cheap as it is now (or at that time).  Prices keep going up, up, up, and often you'll find you can't afford ten years from now what you could have managed to purchase today.  I can't tell you the number of times I've regretted not getting into the market or buying a certain piece of property.

Also - perhaps the late afternoon of the 17th (after school), you should drag and hang some quality doe estrous urine scent in or upwind of your spot and do some light rattling in the last hour of light, which is pretty much right after school now.  The rut may be declining at that point, so this is your first and best day of the late buck season.

RadSav - That is an incredible buck!   Good pic in my book.  I don't even carry a smart phone - I still use the old style cell phone - it takes pics, but I'll be darned if I can remember how to do it.     I carry a point and shoot in the woods, just in case I actually see something move that needs a photo.  (though I failed on that yesterday - I saw my first bobcat ever on a road going into DNR land get firewood.  My binocs were fogged for some odd reason and I couldn't find my camera.  Oh well!

[bracer40]

On a serious note, I want to thank everyone (especially Rad for sharing his knowledge and Fishnfur for spurring him on), for their insights on blackmails, their behavior, the terrain, and best ways to hunt them.
Years ago when I first arrived from Michigan, where I grew up hunting whitetails, I found my previous experience didn't offer me much help while scouting the wet side woods. I remember reading Boyd Iversons book on hunting them and feeling lost while looking for signs in the woods. Then in my first season here my buddy and I started hunting near Conconully, where during archery season we could still hunt down mountains for mulies and stand hunt whitetails in the evenings. And the late season brought cold and snow, the kind of weather I grew up hunting in.
Fast forward 25 years, and with the exception of my first year here, all of my deer and elk huntings been on the East side. I had this mind set that wet side hunting was this miserable, wet slog through deep ravines choked with Devils club and logging debris.
This year I started thinking I needed to reconsider the wet side. (I think partly due to the long hours I've spent on the road for work causing reluctance to  drive 4-5 more hrs to hunt on weekends).
So on the night before Halloween, as I sat next to the fire outside, i decided I was getting out the next day to explore and pursue blacktail. I threw together what I thought I might need and was on my way the next morning.
As I don't have any timber land passes, I pulled the Gazzetter out and located a couple of good sized areas of public access with roads systems and found myself in the Capitol forest during the Halloween monsoon. I creeped the roads going in (I'd even given myself a pass on road hunting because I'd heard it could be effective). But it didn't take too long before I knew I just needed to find a likely looking spot and get into the brush. After several forays into different terrain, I found the last spot to be full of sign. Lots of large sized droppings, trails and fresh rubs. But I also found myself struggling through and over dense alder slash. Sometimes I was walking on top of it 2feet above the ground. I'd look down at the foot high remnants of the alders and think, ouch, that could hurt to fall into those!
The boots and the rain gear performed well and all in all I had a fantastic time in this new terrain.

Then what do I find in Hunt Wa when I return, but a great discourse on how to identify good clearcuts and how to hunt them for blacktails!!
I'm so stoked! I'm rethinking all my gear for next year, probably getting a mountain bike, not to mention whatever forest passes needed. And of course, I'll be doing my homework in preparation for a new season next year. I'll get out for a few days of the late season (late elk is still the priority) hoping to use the time to learn what I can in the woods.

These blacktail "how-to" threads have been great!!

Thanks for sharing your experience and knowledge guys!

[predatorG]

Predator G. -

Also - perhaps the late afternoon of the 17th (after school), you should drag and hang some quality doe estrous urine scent in or upwind of your spot and do some light rattling in the last hour of light, which is pretty much right after school now.  The rut may be declining at that point, so this is your first and best day of the late buck season.

I'm hunting archery so it might have to be a couple days later. That's when conferences are so each day is half as long-- which means an afternoon and evening hunt!

Next year I think I'm going going to buy a MF tag and hunt it with my bow (My little brother already got an eastside MF muley, so my only way to one up him is a stud blacktail with my bow  )

[fishnfur]

Predator G.  -  sounds like a good plan for next year, but a lot more money.  You might consider just buying the modern firearm tag and hunting that season with a bow.  Perfectly legal.  Archery picks up again after late buck.  There are still a lot of bucks looking for does until late in the month.  Good luck!

Bracer - more than happy to harass RadSav. He and others like him are a wonderful source of information for those of us who are still learning.  I'm missing Sundance lately.  He's another member who is more than happy to help you out with great ideas and share knowledge of how to hunt these challenging animals.  I hope he's well and just off hunting somewhere. 

I love to learn as much about BTs as I can.  Mulies and Whitetails are wonderful deer and awesome when fully mature, but the difficulty of finding a quality blacktail is what makes the game so fun, and in my mind, Blacktails are the ultimate challenge.  My wife wants me to go east and hunt, I won't even consider it. 

I've probably read more BT literature than 95% of the hunters here.  That doesn't translate well into success, but gives you a solid base from which to work on those situations that you encounter in the woods.  Many times, we just need to have someone with experience shed a little brighter light on the questions at hand.  Many hunters figure out one way to find and kill a deer, and do that year after year.  I find it more interesting to try to understand the deer and it's behaviors, so that I can hunt them in whatever situation I find myself in.  This leads to failure on a regular basis, but does increase my field knowledge immensely along the way.      I also wish to thank you again RadSav. (but I'm not quite done yet!)
G.

[predatorG]

You might consider just buying the modern firearm tag and hunting that season with a bow.  Perfectly legal. 

I thought thats what I said  but I may have got mixed up.

Also fishnfur, I missed out on my grandparents buck that we joked about killing. They were in Germany in September all the way through mid October and I missed my chance to get him or one of his kids at the end of early archery 

I need to read more literature. Blacktail Trophy tactics is next up on my list.

[fishnfur]

Yes, that is what you said.  My mistake.

Good book.  My problem with the five blacktail books I have is they all refer to Oregon - generally around Eugene, which is quite dissimilar to Western WA and also, they all tend to concentrate only on trophy bucks.  Less accomplished hunters don't need books about trophy hunting, but instead, books about hunting techniques that will allow the reader to see the most deer possible (IMHO).

[bracer40]

Yes, that is what you said.  My mistake.

Good book.  My problem with the five blacktail books I have is they all refer to Oregon - generally around Eugene, which is quite dissimilar to Western WA and also, they all tend to concentrate only on trophy bucks.  Less accomplished hunters don't need books about trophy hunting, but instead, books about hunting techniques that will allow the reader to see the most deer possible (IMHO).

I agree on your opinion of Boyd's books.

[RadSav]

(but I'm not quite done yet!)

It's blacktail hunting.  Not sure you can ever be done learning about them.  I've spent a good 30+ years reading everything I can on them, talking with successful hunters and spending time observing.  Five of those years I probably spent more time in blacktail woods than I did at home.  And I still see things every year that make me go - WTF is he doing there!!!  They are fascinating animals. 

If I found a genie in a bottle and was given one wish.  And that wish was that I could shoot one world record animal before I die. All I had to do was choose.  I can't think of a better answer than blacktail deer.  They are the perfect blend of challenge and beauty.

[huntingbaldguy]

I have 2 massive deer on cam in Kitsap.  They grow big there because you have this tiny piece of land to hunt them on if it's private and surrounded by private residences.  And there's a lot of fruit trees, veggie planters and clover fields all over.  I'm working on getting another property next year in the gmu.  I know a guy that owns a ton of land out there bordered by alder and maple trees.  I worked for him in high school.  I would just say try to catch property owners outside.  Most people won't let you gun hunt there, but archery is much of the time a yes.  I just drive by properties i'm interested in a lot and hope to see the owner out and about to chat with them.  Not a big fan of knocking on doors and the little i've done it, they seem less receptive.

I'm still in high school so buying land isn't really an option right now, although it is definitley a goal in the future. I've been torn between asking people to hunt on their land or just scouting and putting more work in behind my house. I've thought about offerring to do some work around someone's place in exchange for being able to hunt, but I would probably be more focused on people that live in a more urban area.

Fishnfur- sorry for hijacking the thread 

Yeah i'm just talking about asking people if you can hunt their land.  Generally i'll promise some venison or fish or something else, or ask if they need a reasonable amount of help around their place.  I've had a decent amount of success with it. 

[huntingbaldguy]

Predator G. -

Also - perhaps the late afternoon of the 17th (after school), you should drag and hang some quality doe estrous urine scent in or upwind of your spot and do some light rattling in the last hour of light, which is pretty much right after school now.  The rut may be declining at that point, so this is your first and best day of the late buck season.

I'm hunting archery so it might have to be a couple days later. That's when conferences are so each day is half as long-- which means an afternoon and evening hunt!

Next year I think I'm going going to buy a MF tag and hunt it with my bow (My little brother already got an eastside MF muley, so my only way to one up him is a stud blacktail with my bow  )

You very well could hit a nice buck at the tail end of the rut late November. 

[predatorG]

I'm going to try. A few years ago my dad missed a buck that was still chasing a doe in the middle of December. The doe came back and he was at least able to get her. Dragged her back through the snow.

[predatorG]

I'm working on getting another property next year in the gmu.

Saw a piece of land for sale today between seabeck and silverdale. There's a massive buck on the property.