Muley Rut Hunt in Missouri River Breaks

[djnoodle]

The first week of November, I will be hunting out of Ft Peck (launching from a boat each morning.) I have a rifle tag, but as far as I know, I can buy an archery option for it and hunt with my bow, which is my preferred weapon.

I have been told by my dad and uncle, who have both been there many times before, that it is extremely difficult to get within bow range of the deer there because in the open country of 'The Breaks', they can see for miles and miles and will spook and run if you get within 250 yards of them and get busted. Then again, my dad says he had a decent 4 point walk within 20 yards of him while he was glassing across a ravine a couple of years ago.

I really don't want to use my rifle on my hunt, but I would rather use a rifle than sit around and glass deer from 500+ yards away every day and never get any closer to a buck. My experience elsewhere with bucks in the rut is that they will respond to estrus scents and follow does around and I should be able to get one to come to me using an estrus scent, bleat call, horn rattle, decoy, etc., or at least use these tactics, plus use the ground cover to sneak my way into range of a couple of bucks.

Has anyone from hunt-wa done this hunt before and can it be done in November with a bow? What are your thoughts?



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[JLS]

The mule deer in the breaks are no different than any other mule deer.

Expect company from other hunters, boats are an easy way to access lots of shoreline that you can't drive to.

I think your idea is feasible.  Your biggest concern will be other hunters bumping deer while you are trying to sneak within bow range.  Also, you will be hunting bucks that are really on the move.  Sounds like you are familiar with that, it won't be your traditional spot and stalk. 

Don't forget that you have to wear hunter orange, and make sure that you are aware of special deer regs on the CMR.  Also, you don't have to buy the archery validation if you are hunting during the general season.

[cooltimber]

crunchy snow

[djnoodle]

The mule deer in the breaks are no different than any other mule deer.

Expect company from other hunters, boats are an easy way to access lots of shoreline that you can't drive to.

I think your idea is feasible.  Your biggest concern will be other hunters bumping deer while you are trying to sneak within bow range.  Also, you will be hunting bucks that are really on the move.  Sounds like you are familiar with that, it won't be your traditional spot and stalk. 

Don't forget that you have to wear hunter orange, and make sure that you are aware of special deer regs on the CMR.  Also, you don't have to buy the archery validation if you are hunting during the general season.

I was aware of the hunter orange requirement, but a reminder does not hurt. I was under the impression that I would have to buy the archery validation, so thanks for saving me a couple of dollars.

My dad and uncle use the boat to get away from people. They said most people hunt from the road system and push the deer down towards the shore, sometimes right into the water for a swim.

I hope to use the pressure of the other hunters in the area to my advantage. Just like the wind. If they are going to be moving a lot, I hope to get a good read on their path/direction and perhaps get set up somewhere between the deer and their destination.

crunchy snow

Crunchy snow would certainly change my strategy for sure... I hope that I can be quiet somehow.

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[Craig]

Make sure you know unit 652 right outside FT peck is Limited entry unit not open to general season tag

I know some people hunt by boat. Spot them from the lake. Go a couple draws downwind and start a stalk from there. Sounds fun. Not sure what kind of boat you have but the lake can get pretty rough when the wind starts to blow. If the wind is blowing they will be down in the draws . Makes for a good stalk opportunity.

[djnoodle]

Make sure you know unit 652 right outside FT peck is Limited entry unit not open to general season tag

I know some people hunt by boat. Spot them from the lake. Go a couple draws downwind and start a stalk from there. Sounds fun. Not sure what kind of boat you have but the lake can get pretty rough when the wind starts to blow. If the wind is blowing they will be down in the draws . Makes for a good stalk opportunity.

This is all such good info. I had no idea about 652...

My dad has the boat and he says if the wind is blowing it is hell getting anywhere with it. However, the wind pushing the deer into draws is something I'm sort of hoping for. Then again I have never been there before. I may regret that statement later on.


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[opdinkslayer]

Make sure you know unit 652 right outside FT peck is Limited entry unit not open to general season tag

I know some people hunt by boat. Spot them from the lake. Go a couple draws downwind and start a stalk from there. Sounds fun. Not sure what kind of boat you have but the lake can get pretty rough when the wind starts to blow. If the wind is blowing they will be down in the draws . Makes for a good stalk opportunity.

This is all such good info. I had no idea about 652...

My dad has the boat and he says if the wind is blowing it is hell getting anywhere with it. However, the wind pushing the deer into draws is something I'm sort of hoping for. Then again I have never been there before. I may regret that statement later on.


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 Be careful what ya wish for around there when it comes to wind. That reservoir looks like the pacific during a winter storm when the wind blows and that would not be a good thing boat hunting. The rut is not going to be a huge factor the 1st week of Nov and I would doubt you will have much for other hunters fouling you up being away from the roads. Pray for no snow,light winds and use your optics to find deer laying up in pockets you can put a stalk on them to bow range. If the weather gods cooperate you will have a blast, if they don't you will wonder why you are there.

 I hunted the CRWR in 2015 and the weather turned to snow and temps as low as -22 the 2nd week of Nov. It was challenging and limited the fun factor as well as the ability to hunt as hard as you wanted to. We are going over on the 16th this year with a stop off to hunt elk 1st and the refuge the week of Thanksgiving to finish any remaining deer tags. I am praying for no snow,light winds and normal temps!

[Pathfinder101]

Mostly just tagging along to see how your hunt goes.

I have hunted an area west of there.  That same year I considered hunting the CMR, but the only boat I have is a canoe and after several people told me that I was probably going to get killed... ...so I decided to hunt a different area.  That same year a member on here (I can't remember who) posted a thread about hunting the CMR.  They were in a heavy duty boat and he and his partner both killed pretty big bucks.   

[ribka]

I've fished it in summer.

It's doable but would bring gear with me in the boat to spend the night before you head across the lake.

The wind can come up quick and it can very dangerous to try and boat back across the lake especially in November weather . It gets quite a bit of pressure by locals in boats but there are nice bucks. The guys I know that do well hunt the far bays and the tall sage  brush.

As mentioned the crunchy snow could make the archery hunt tough.might as well bring both
Good luck

[Gamblin Guy]

Here's some more info on the CMR.

https://www.fws.gov/uploadedFiles/2016%20Hunting%20Regs.pdf

[johnnyaustin44]

The lake can get very bad indeed. Be safe and smart. There's a lot of deer around but as mentioned are very skittish. But I think you could have some opportunities. Also that mud gets on everything!

[Twang]

The mud mentioned is no joke. Plan no travel when it is not dry or frozen.  Farther from access points mule deer are mule deer but you will witness many many supercharged mulies there for sure.  No joke cold.  Plan on it to be what we call windy but if locals call it windy you need a no boat plan too.
Many hunt by boat so the deer know how that works.  Hike up into those coulees all the way for best results. Very fun hunt with elk and sheep to see.  150 miles is a big lake so depending on your access point things can be very different. I have heard the west end is canoe possible but not the best option where I was at. I will watch for Ft Peck report.

[The scout]

if your planning the first week in November the cmr will be open but the rut will really just be starting. have a backup plan, you could get blown off everyday of your hunt, it blows often and hard there. bring chains for all four. bow is doable, I would rather bow hunt when you are going, once they are going full rut they don't want to sit still long. good luck

[dune]

Shot my buck last weekend down their they were starting to rut mid week they should be going perty good.

[djnoodle]

First day, we seen 30 deer, about 12 were bucks. A couple of nice ones. Rut is certainly coming on... We'll see how the rest of the week goes.


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[KM1986]

Good luck

[CLARKTAR]

Good luck. Hope I don't miss the rut ! I plan on being in the breaks starting the 17th

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[JLS]

Good luck. Hope I don't miss the rut ! I plan on being in the breaks starting the 17th

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You won't miss the rut, but most of the really big bucks I've seen taken come around Veterans Day.  I've seen and killed my biggest between Halloween and Veterans Day.


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[djnoodle]

Well, my hunt has come to an end.

I seen a few really big bucks, 160"+ or so. First of all, I only seen two bucks that I potentially could have taken with my bow. Both were inside 50 yards. Not sure how much closer I could have gotten to them. Both were hanging out near the road and were smaller bucks. I chose not to use the bow and try to get one of these bucks. I think as skiddish as the deer here are behaving, even in the rut, I don't feel confident that I could have gotten a shot on either.

With the rifle, I had a three hour stalk on a 180" buck get blown before I had a shot due to some other hunters packing out their own deer over the ridge beside him. I had a good stalk on a 160ish buck that I missed a 150 yard shot on as he busted me and bounded away. This morning being my last day, I took a 400 yard shot at a big fork horn, maybe even a regression buck. A much smaller buck stepped into the shot at exactly the wrong time, and he is now wearing my tag. I spent most of the day feeling sick about my mistake, replayed it in my mind a hundred times, and every way I look at it, I pulled the trigger when I should have waited for more separation between them.

After my wife gave me the "We are luckier than a lot of people who are eating tag soup..." and "You'll get a trophy buck next time..." speech, I felt a little better about the buck. She has that effect on me. Not letting myself off the hook for the shot, but feel better about the deer I am bringing back. He'll eat good.

Now, the better story, and the main reason I went on this rifle hunt was to hunt with my dad. The hunt for his buck was a great memory that I will cherish forever.

Here is a pic of my dad and I with his 5x3:


He first spotted and shot it from about 275 yards, and it jumped up and ran over the ridge out of sight. We both walked down and started looking for deer/blood where we last seen him. I spotted him on the next little ridge looking at us and as soon as we seen him, he turned and ran again. We walked up to that ridge and finally I found small blood spots where he was last standing. My dad is colorblind so he cannot see blood unless it is obviously a big grey wet spot. This blood trail was a few drops every 20 yards or so, making my dad and I quite a great tracking pair. We set out together following the tracks and very sparse blood for about 400 yards or so, and every time the buck crossed the tracks of another deer, we would slow down and find blood and make sure we were on the right track. A few times we had to back track to the last blood spot and get back on the track to figure out which track was his. After a total of two hours tracking the buck, we finally jumped him again on the back side of the next ridge. As he ran across the bottom, dad pulled up his rifle and put a great 50 yard shot on him to put him down.

Dad will be 67 in a month. Last year, he had stints put in his heart and despite that, he is actually in very good health for his age and has no plans on slowing down anytime soon. Still I know that he won't always be able to go on these hunts and I will always remember how much fun we had tracking down his buck. He quartered it, and my cousin and I packed it out for him. All he had to pack was his own backpack out.


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[Dan-o]

Nice buck and great story!

[Boss .300 winmag]

 

Make sure you get your dads buck in the five point thread.

[JLS]

Glad you guys had a good hunt!


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[bracer40]

Been following this and really glad to hear it worked out so well. That's awesome you get to enjoy these hunts with your dad at his age!

[mburrows]

Congrats thats awesome.