Late Season Modern Blacktail 2019

[HunterofWA]

Got one yesterday!

[PeninsulaPariah]

Not a monster by any stretch of the imagination, but he was bird dogging hard instead of being on the lookout for hunters.

It took him a bit to stand still long enough for a shot! It was a longer drag than I would have liked, I definitely should have cut him up!

Good luck to everyone this weekend.

Hey man, no worries. No monster required. That’s a classic forky, and this is crunch time! Really nice buck 👍🏻

[HntnFsh]

Got one yesterday!

Congratulations! You'll get some fantastic eats out of that one!

[LeeRay]

Going back our right now to 627 for the evening. Where’s the rain?!?  We’ve had the same experience as everyone else in the 633/627 area. No gunshots except for maybe ducks or pheasants. Loads of sign everywhere, very fresh, but no joy on seeing anything in our clear cut or anywhere else. We’ve been laying in wait in our clear cut at dawn and dusk and during the day still hunt a bit.

Ironically, on the way home last night on Old Belfair Rd we clipped a buck with the corner of the SUV!! The buck was mosying across the road, not a care in the world, my husband hit the breaks, the anti locks kicked in and we very slowly hit his rear right haunch. We got out to find him, but he vanished into the woods. Hope he’s ok.

[slowhand]

My report from 510
First in and last out
Sounded like the 4th of July with all the gun shots in then morning.
I’d venture to say quite a few Deer went down.
No luck for us. jumped a few does but that was it.
Late hunt has been quite disappointing.
1/2 day hunt tomorrow morning then head home to start the unpack, clean, put hunting gear away process.
Fingers crossed for a last minute buck for one of our group.
We now have four tags in camp.

[fishnfur]

Frustrated hunters?  Welcome to Blacktail hunting. 

I'm guessing the early dates for the late season put us hunting just after the peak of the rut, when the majority of the breeding that there was to do is done, at least for the low land deer.  The doe population has some misses that didn't get bred or didn't conceive, but they need time to get to the next cycle.  While I heard almost no rifle fire on Thurs. or Fri. I did count something like 8 - 10 shots this morning between 0830 and 1100.  Most were on the early side of those times.  I had a couple of doe come into the cut I was on at 0830 with a spike in tow, frantically smelling the air in hopes of some sign of a hot doe.  They busted me when I was trying to get my phone out of my pocked to video them.  They left.  I left.

Hit the woods for awhile and then went to my (prison) elevated blind.  Heard two shots late in the day but I get no feeling that bucks are cruising for doe in any number.  The ones that are out looking, are doing it at night.  I think tomorrow morning should be better, same times as above.  Good luck. 

Edit - Slowhand's report shows that it's better at elevation.  If you have a chance to hit the hills, probably above 2000 feet (Stormking elebation??) a change of plans might be in order.

[LeeRay]

Good luck everyone. We’re taking a break in the car right now, eating and getting warm before we go back out. Heard some gun shots this morning. Hopefully someone got a deer. We’ve still seen nothing.

[tgray]

Found this guy Friday morning

[2MANY]

Nice buck.

[ljsommer]

Hah, that's not just a nice buck, that's a gorgeous buck. Well done!

[BiggerMcGuire]

Well, I went out to a local hunting spot for the morning hunt. I was hoping to take advantage of the rain. Started in at dawn and planned on getting to a major crossing by visible light.

Well, I got there too early guess, which i am kicking myself for, now. So I continued my "step, step, wait, and observe" across it. 40 yards later I turn to see a deer behind me. I brought up my binos, studied its head. I could see antlers, I believed it, but wasn't positive as it was still twilight. If it were a buck, its antlers were low and tight to its ears.

I may be young, but I have observed my share of deer. The body was long and not very leggy. Probably about three, maybe four years old. The deer was skiddish and its muscles were ready to explode. I felt so positive it was a buck. I raised my rifle, I told myself to shoot, and if it were a doe I would turn myself in. I didn't take the shot. I watched its chest walk out of my crosshairs and into the thick, dark woods.

There isn't a game animal alive worth my hunting privilege, and my future opportunity to pass my love and knowledge of hunting on to my son. I find it funny how all this went through my head in a matter of ten seconds.

[JasonG]

Found this guy Friday morning

Wow!!! Congrats!!

[Skyvalhunter]

There isn't a game animal alive worth my hunting privilege, and my future opportunity to pass my love and knowledge of hunting on to my son. I find it funny how all this went through my head in a matter of ten seconds.

well there is an animal alive and it's the wolf. The animal rights groups will do all they can to make sure you lose that privilege unless something is done.

[LeeRay]

@tgray  Where did you find that guy? He is gorgeous. That area is very different from the terrain in Kitsap/Mason. Much more open and walkable.

[Dark2Dark]

Well, I went out to a local hunting spot for the morning hunt. I was hoping to take advantage of the rain. Started in at dawn and planned on getting to a major crossing by visible light.

Well, I got there too early guess, which i am kicking myself for, now. So I continued my "step, step, wait, and observe" across it. 40 yards later I turn to see a deer behind me. I brought up my binos, studied its head. I could see antlers, I believed it, but wasn't positive as it was still twilight. If it were a buck, its antlers were low and tight to its ears.

I may be young, but I have observed my share of deer. The body was long and not very leggy. Probably about three, maybe four years old. The deer was skiddish and its muscles were ready to explode. I felt so positive it was a buck. I raised my rifle, I told myself to shoot, and if it were a doe I would turn myself in. I didn't take the shot. I watched its chest walk out of my crosshairs and into the thick, dark woods.

There isn't a game animal alive worth my hunting privilege, and my future opportunity to pass my love and knowledge of hunting on to my son. I find it funny how all this went through my head in a matter of ten seconds.

I’d have quite a few more legal bucks and bulls hanging on my wall if I was hunting in either sex units and only trying to harvest bucks and bulls as my own preference versus the law requiring it. Lots of instances where I have passed on an animals because I was only 98% sure they were legal!