New Black tail Hunter

[MrSmallington]

if you're in capitol forest, you'd be wise to try to get as far away from the road as you can.  better yet if you can find somewhere gated off to walk in(there are a few areas like that in there, but not many).  it gets hit hard because it's just because it's public and close to a ton of people, but most of those guys never get off the roads.

yea. i despise road hunters. was shot at last year by some old nimrod shooting his rifle while driving! i found a great place behind a gate fresh bedding, poop, rubs and tracks! only down side is its also by a great campsite. i plan on taking the last 4 days off in november but will weekend hunt/scout every weekend till then. the tricky part will be finding somewhere close enough so my hunting spot doesnt get stolen. but it is off a small road pretty deep. and i will be off in the woods pretty good. all in all im just way to anxious to get out there... thanks all for the tips! i plan on just sitting and glassing for 48 hours straight. get up at three am. and  stalk till light.

[7mmfan]

if you're in capitol forest, you'd be wise to try to get as far away from the road as you can.  better yet if you can find somewhere gated off to walk in(there are a few areas like that in there, but not many).  it gets hit hard because it's just because it's public and close to a ton of people, but most of those guys never get off the roads.

yea. i despise road hunters. was shot at last year by some old nimrod shooting his rifle while driving! i found a great place behind a gate fresh bedding, poop, rubs and tracks! only down side is its also by a great campsite. i plan on taking the last 4 days off in november but will weekend hunt/scout every weekend till then. the tricky part will be finding somewhere close enough so my hunting spot doesnt get stolen. but it is off a small road pretty deep. and i will be off in the woods pretty good. all in all im just way to anxious to get out there... thanks all for the tips! i plan on just sitting and glassing for 48 hours straight. get up at three am. and  stalk till light.

Don't be discouraged if while you're in there, other guys come and go. If you get in there early and sit down and become part of the landscape, you'll see deer. Those guys that walk in after light and stand around glassing will be seen by any deer that are around. Blacktail have a great habit of just laying their heads down in the brush and disappearing until the threat leaves. But when that threat leaves, they will often get up and change beds. Many times I have had deer activity in my spots pick up immediately after someone has come and gone from it, or dirt bikes have gone by, or something like that. I guess what I'm saying is don't leave just because someone else walks through, the spot isn't spoiled.

[Turner89]

if you're in capitol forest, you'd be wise to try to get as far away from the road as you can.  better yet if you can find somewhere gated off to walk in(there are a few areas like that in there, but not many).  it gets hit hard because it's just because it's public and close to a ton of people, but most of those guys never get off the roads.

yea. i despise road hunters. was shot at last year by some old nimrod shooting his rifle while driving! i found a great place behind a gate fresh bedding, poop, rubs and tracks! only down side is its also by a great campsite. i plan on taking the last 4 days off in november but will weekend hunt/scout every weekend till then. the tricky part will be finding somewhere close enough so my hunting spot doesnt get stolen. but it is off a small road pretty deep. and i will be off in the woods pretty good. all in all im just way to anxious to get out there... thanks all for the tips! i plan on just sitting and glassing for 48 hours straight. get up at three am. and  stalk till light.

Don't be discouraged if while you're in there, other guys come and go. If you get in there early and sit down and become part of the landscape, you'll see deer. Those guys that walk in after light and stand around glassing will be seen by any deer that are around. Blacktail have a great habit of just laying their heads down in the brush and disappearing until the threat leaves. But when that threat leaves, they will often get up and change beds. Many times I have had deer activity in my spots pick up immediately after someone has come and gone from it, or dirt bikes have gone by, or something like that. I guess what I'm saying is don't leave just because someone else walks through, the spot isn't spoiled.

I totally agree with 7mm on that. The key ,for me anyways, is to be there first. Then you know what's gone on there the whole day.

[Turner89]

Last year I'd already tagged out, but I was up looking for deer for friends. I ran into a guy cutting firewood. I talked to him for a bit and drove on. I stopped at the other side of the clearing, about 600yards away, and was looking for a spot to sit the next day with my son. Wasn't even looking for deer since it was 11am and woodcutter had been there awhile. About 150yards up the cut there was a doe and a nice 3x4. They walked all the way down, and crossed the road about 50yards from me. Sometimes I think a guy would have better luck talking, and walking into a spot without a care. 

[STIKNSTRINGBOW]

I cannot even think about how many deer we used to get while cutting firewood.
My friend Ron swore they were attracted to the sound of a chainsaw.

[predatorG]

I love when I new blacktail hunter makes a post. Gives me more opportunities to read and learn as well, and I've hunted them for 6 years 

[WAnoob]

I'm with the OP on this one, this is my third year trying to hunt them here in WA and it is tough. Luckily I have more time this year, it's a hard transition to make after hunting Sitka black tail when I lived in Alaska as they were a lot easier to hunt.

[MrSmallington]

thanks all for the posts. i am pumped and cant wait to sit out there all day. now i know around 11 to axe up some fire wood.   

[Turner89]

Good luck.....and be LOUD my friend 

[viva_che1363]

For what it worth... Go slow and always be ready, I jumped way to many blacktails that I didn't see while walking down overgrown logging roads on my way to a "better" spot. Get up over the cut if you can and glass, pay close attention to the edges early morning and late evening. But also they'll bed in the middle of the cut if there's enough cover. I'm 0 for 2 on blacktails when I lived on the west side, but hindsight 20-20 you know.

[Crunchy]

Blacktail is one word.  Has different meaning as two words lol...

[JDHasty]

Love hunting the elusive blacktail.

Hunt when the weather is the worst.
Hunt your hardest the last few days of October.
Hunt all times of the day.
Watching a long stretch of closed road where I can see 3-400 yards has been successful. That or a good looking clearcut.
Look for sign. Blacktail love to do good little rub lines.

Don't get discouraged hunting these ghosts. You may go all season and not see anything, then come around the corner and a great buck will be standing there staring at you.

Good luck!

thanks man. last year i hunted with a guy who only wanted to hunt a couple hours in the morning. this year i am going solo and plan on up at 3. hanging by the tracks i saw to noon ish. then hiking to the top of the ridge and watching the clear cut. i found a nice spot. spent 9 hours scouting the cap forest and this place was the only place i saw tracks and poop... im pumped.  ill be out every weekend and then 4 days in the last part of the season in November.

Capitol Forest has no shortage of blacktails. 

They are used to people and that makes the mature bucks particularly difficult in a lot of ways.  They aren't usually "spooky" and as such will sit tight and let you almost step on them.  I was pheasant hunting on a release site once and jumped a real monster buck that was hiding out half submerged in a slough, he got hung up between me and my dogs and I am sure he would have let me walk past him, but what he wasn't prepared for was me walking down the slough in hip deep water.  I come round a bend and he exploded out of the water.  I have a more than one friend who had one go down on it's knees and try creeping past while screened by ferns and salal.   They absolutely do have the ability to move around to the side and behind and let most hunters just go right on by them w/o giving themselves away.

On the plus side these bucks that are used to a lot of human interaction sometimes think they are hidden when in fact they are not quite as stealthy as they think they are.  As long as they think they have not been detected they are more likely than not to sit tight.     

Blacktail bucks don't get to grow up into mature blacktail bucks by standing on the side of the road, or out in a clear cut in Cap Forest saying:  shoot me.  They rarely use the mountain bike or motorcycle trails or even the "major" deer trails.  But that doesn't mean they are not there, they almost exclusively use subsidiary trails.   You will find tracks on the former, but I think they were left at night. 

[MrSmallington]

Blacktail is one word.  Has different meaning as two words lol...

I'll have to go back and re-read my comments. I know when I type on my phone or use speech-to-text it separates them... everyone is out there butchering animals and i am here butchering the English language! 

[MrSmallington]

Love hunting the elusive blacktail.

Hunt when the weather is the worst.
Hunt your hardest the last few days of October.
Hunt all times of the day.
Watching a long stretch of closed road where I can see 3-400 yards has been successful. That or a good looking clearcut.
Look for sign. Blacktail love to do good little rub lines.

Don't get discouraged hunting these ghosts. You may go all season and not see anything, then come around the corner and a great buck will be standing there staring at you.

Good luck!

thanks man. last year i hunted with a guy who only wanted to hunt a couple hours in the morning. this year i am going solo and plan on up at 3. hanging by the tracks i saw to noon ish. then hiking to the top of the ridge and watching the clear cut. i found a nice spot. spent 9 hours scouting the cap forest and this place was the only place i saw tracks and poop... im pumped.  ill be out every weekend and then 4 days in the last part of the season in November.

Capitol Forest has no shortage of blacktails. 

They are used to people and that makes the mature bucks particularly difficult in a lot of ways.  They aren't usually "spooky" and as such will sit tight and let you almost step on them.  I was pheasant hunting on a release site once and jumped a real monster buck that was hiding out half submerged in a slough, he got hung up between me and my dogs and I am sure he would have let me walk past him, but what he wasn't prepared for was me walking down the slough in hip deep water.  I come round a bend and he exploded out of the water.  I have a more than one friend who had one go down on it's knees and try creeping past while screened by ferns and salal.   They absolutely do have the ability to move around to the side and behind and let most hunters just go right on by them w/o giving themselves away.

On the plus side these bucks that are used to a lot of human interaction sometimes think they are hidden when in fact they are not quite as stealthy as they think they are.  As long as they think they have not been detected they are more likely than not to sit tight.     

Blacktail bucks don't get to grow up into mature blacktail bucks by standing on the side of the road, or out in a clear cut in Cap Forest saying:  shoot me.  They rarely use the mountain bike or motorcycle trails or even the "major" deer trails.  But that doesn't mean they are not there, they almost exclusively use subsidiary trails.   You will find tracks on the former, but I think they were left at night.

thanks! yea after scouting my area I saw three does. came across droppings and tracks with no trail in sight. figure i will be in the woods for the most part of my mornings and above the clear cuts during the afternoon. found nice bedding areas  near my spot too... all real promising. Not looking for a trophy anything to stock my freezer... it will be my first tag ever so I'm glad it will be challenging.

[7mmfan]

Someone can chime in if they think I'm off here, but I would do vice versa. Be in those clear cuts an hour before light until about 11:00 and then still hunt the timber until about 2:30 or 3:00 before returning to the clear cut for the evening. If you have a heavily used travel route to and from the cuts, you can sit close to those in the timber as well.