Orcas Island Deer

[Lady Grouse hunter]

I had did a "survey" on this Island for the Population on this Island since 1996.
I went out, day and night,,looked, scouted for deer every fall up too 2005.
I'd had now realized There IS more Deer than people on this one Island!

I have hiked, driven & been over hill and dale, all over this Island!
From farms, to the State parks lands, up too, (and back again
From the Ferry) to the cabin in EAST sound. Went to a local gravel pit(a big place with alot of limestome rock!) & then off the beton path and then onto a mini golf course close by & back onto west Sound hiway ...
Ohh not to mention at the local Dump on a road the back forty (40)

Over Turtle-back Mountain and up Houghton mountian and back again.

From East-Sound to West Sound and up those County Powerline ridgelines which runs the lenght to Canada (to the northside of this Island).
If one does NOT know this Island It's now,,, Not Center firearm lands... TOO BAD There is Alot of Farms here who still raises Cattle/cows.
 
I have been on the local hiwy(Horseshoe Hiway) at 2a.m., spotted at least 20 deer along that stretch of roadway per mile, (we had gotten on a 12:20 A.M. west bound ferry to Orcas, Was working, brought 40 gallons of paint to restore cabin's) and deer were in the road & seen what is beyond the fence lines. We had to just SLOW DOWN... They were really dangerous for our travel to the cabin into East Sound! I have seen some Trophy Blacktails one this Cabin property as well. Out-Of-season BIG boys!!! They have Apples there LOL

[Angry Perch]

Word.

[Platensek-po]

Word.

Lolololololol

[teanawayslayer]

 

[Tbar]

I had did a "survey" on this Island for the Population on this Island since 1996.
I went out, day and night,,looked, scouted for deer every fall up too 2005.
I'd had now realized There IS more Deer than people on this one Island!

I have hiked, driven & been over hill and dale, all over this Island!
From farms, to the State parks lands, up too, (and back again
From the Ferry) to the cabin in EAST sound. Went to a local gravel pit(a big place with alot of limestome rock!) & then off the beton path and then onto a mini golf course close by & back onto west Sound hiway ...
Ohh not to mention at the local Dump on a road the back forty (40)

Over Turtle-back Mountain and up Houghton mountian and back again.

From East-Sound to West Sound and up those County Powerline ridgelines which runs the lenght to Canada (to the northside of this Island).
If one does NOT know this Island It's now,,, Not Center firearm lands... TOO BAD There is Alot of Farms here who still raises Cattle/cows.
 
I have been on the local hiwy(Horseshoe Hiway) at 2a.m., spotted at least 20 deer along that stretch of roadway per mile, (we had gotten on a 12:20 A.M. west bound ferry to Orcas, Was working, brought 40 gallons of paint to restore cabin's) and deer were in the road & seen what is beyond the fence lines. We had to just SLOW DOWN... They were really dangerous for our travel to the cabin into East Sound! I have seen some Trophy Blacktails one this Cabin property as well. Out-Of-season BIG boys!!! They have Apples there LOL

The population is devastated by the AHD outbreak this summer. When did you survey last?

[luvmystang67]

Uhh what?

[h20hunter]

2005 is mentioned.

[Tbar]

@cryder, please translate. I'm guessing there's a few forkers still around but could benefit from clarity.

[Rainier10]

Ah the good ole days.

[JakeLand]

I’m lost

[lokidog]

I had did a "survey" on this Island for the Population on this Island since 1996.
I went out, day and night,,looked, scouted for deer every fall up too 2005.
I'd had now realized There IS more Deer than people on this one Island!

I have hiked, driven & been over hill and dale, all over this Island!
From farms, to the State parks lands, up too, (and back again
From the Ferry) to the cabin in EAST sound. Went to a local gravel pit(a big place with alot of limestome rock!) & then off the beton path and then onto a mini golf course close by & back onto west Sound hiway ...
Ohh not to mention at the local Dump on a road the back forty (40)

Over Turtle-back Mountain and up Houghton mountian and back again.

From East-Sound to West Sound and up those County Powerline ridgelines which runs the lenght to Canada (to the northside of this Island).
If one does NOT know this Island It's now,,, Not Center firearm lands... TOO BAD There is Alot of Farms here who still raises Cattle/cows.
 
I have been on the local hiwy(Horseshoe Hiway) at 2a.m., spotted at least 20 deer along that stretch of roadway per mile, (we had gotten on a 12:20 A.M. west bound ferry to Orcas, Was working, brought 40 gallons of paint to restore cabin's) and deer were in the road & seen what is beyond the fence lines. We had to just SLOW DOWN... They were really dangerous for our travel to the cabin into East Sound! I have seen some Trophy Blacktails one this Cabin property as well. Out-Of-season BIG boys!!! They have Apples there LOL

The population is devastated by the AHD outbreak this summer. When did you survey last?
[/quote

That was going to be my question as well. Deer population on Decatur dropped a lot this year.

[Tball77]

I heard from a buddy who hunts orcas every year that 90% of the herd is gone.

[browney5er]

My brother works out there a lot and he said the same thing, the herd has been decimated. Very few deer left all within a year.

[Limhangerslayer]

It’s all over out there, in the evening you could drive from Friday harbor to Roche and see 50-60 deer easy and at least 15+ were bucks.  This past summer I did that drive and saw 3.  It’s bad up there.

[Gobble Gobble]

Been on the island twice and seen deer both time. Just to bad the island is almost entirely private land and difficult to get permission. Lots of nice deer on San Juan as well.

[Joel1999]

Does anyone now if the disease has spread down to whidbey or camano island yet?

[Tbar]

Does anyone now if the disease has spread down to whidbey or camano island yet?

Yes to whidbey. Unknown to Camano but it's in fidalgo and in Bellingham. 

[luvmystang67]

I'm from Friday Harbor.  My buddies up there all shot does up there as there were no bucks to be found.  Usually you get to take your picks of big buck, but this year they took the only does they found.  Apparently all summer the woods just stunk like dead animal as all the deer died.

I'm sure they'll pop back to rat-like populations in the next few years.  They were getting out of control.  To me its a pretty prime example of what happens without proper management of herds.  The populations run themselves out of house and home and eventually a disease knocks them back down to size and all of that meat that hunters could've used to feed their families went to the fox, ravens, eagles, rats and racoons.

[Joel1999]

Does anyone now if the disease has spread down to whidbey or camano island yet?

Yes to whidbey. Unknown to Camano but it's in fidalgo and in Bellingham.

Good to know, hopefully Camano didn’t get hit as bad. Anyone else know about camano?

[Lady Grouse hunter]

Well just ask the folks there! Its true here! Did this Done that. They say an Apple & a hammer

[Lady Grouse hunter]

YOU ALL think I'm joking, really? 
No way!

[GWP]

Had a bud that went to one of the islands to 'scout' for a 'later date' deer hunt. The season was open. He had his kids (they were used to hunting/fishing) with him. Stopped at the first public area he chose and deer walked out and stood there. He figured they were waiting to be fed. He asked his kids to pick one as he had his bow in the truck. Dropped it and was on his way home. Sounded like the other deer didn't even spook.

[jeffro]

I’m on the south end of Camano and haven’t seen a single deer in a year.
Used to see them multiple times a week on the roads and
They used to eat all the apples from the tree in my front yard,
The ground is littered with apples this year.
Don’t know if a disease
Or if the meth heads doing some poaching

[Joel1999]

I’m on the south end of Camano and haven’t seen a single deer in a year.
Used to see them multiple times a week on the roads and
They used to eat all the apples from the tree in my front yard,
The ground is littered with apples this year.
Don’t know if a disease
Or if the meth heads doing some poaching

  Thanks for the info I got some family that has just moved to the island, they haven’t seen many deer but they also aren’t looking either.

[Lady Grouse hunter]

YES, YES & YES No Deer Are gone here, just run over from the Ferry Traffic!
There IS NO Coyote's, Bears on that Island. Folks feed the Deer, The Airport has to shoot cannons just to scare them of the Tarmac!
YOU ALL got to just shut UP!
I have been there, walked, drove all over this Island all over & over again.. Shot 2 (2 point & a Doe) 2000/2002
I think I DOO know what's going on there. That's why the WDFW has 2 tags now!!!

[Lady Grouse hunter]

I’m on the south end of Camano and haven’t seen a single deer in a year.
Used to see them multiple times a week on the roads and
They used to eat all the apples from the tree in my front yard,
The ground is littered with apples this year.
Don’t know if a disease
Or if the meth heads doing some poaching

  Thanks for the info I got some family that has just moved to the island, they haven’t seen many deer but they also aren’t looking either.

GOOD TO KNOW, Were ARE THEY???

[smithkl42]

I heard from a buddy who hunts orcas every year that 90% of the herd is gone.

A buddy of mine owns 70 acres out on Orcas. He normally sees 10-20 deer on his property every evening. Last summer, he saw one, the entire summer.

I put out a trail camera in August just to see, and it turns out that there are some deer, but very few, and they'd gone entirely nocturnal.

AHD has just decimated the herd. The deer there were too crowded and too malnourished to survive the additional stress.

Assuming that the disease has burned out by now (not a given), the remaining herd should be healthier, and I anticipate a few seasons of rapid growth. But probably not worth hunting for a few more years.

[Lady Grouse hunter]

Tried to reply off to P.M.s
AHD? O.K. I get ! I have spot lighted on the way From the ferry at 2AM to the Cabin, Had to slow WAY down like driving on ice!!!

[Lady Grouse hunter]

Smithl42? I see U R in Woodinville??? P.M. me!

[NWBrute]

Adenovirus Hemorrhagic Disease (AHD)

A deadly viral infection known as Adenovirus Hemorrhagic Disease (AHD) was confirmed in late August of 2017 in a mule deer herd east of Goldendale in Klickitat County and in June 2021 in the San Juan Islands.

Report sightings of live or dead deer with signs of AHD through the reporting link on WDFW’s Wildlife Diseases webpage.

[luvmystang67]

I was just home for Christmas, 5 days, not 1 deer spotted on San Juan Island.  First time ever for me.

I did cross one set of tracks in the snow, looked like a yearling.  So there's at least 1 alive up there!

[Lady Grouse hunter]

I SAID Orcas Island! 
Happy new years!

[lokidog]

I SAID Orcas Island! 
Happy new years!

What goes on on one of the islands, goes on on all of them....

[Bob33]

I SAID Orcas Island! 
Happy new years!

What goes on on one of the islands, goes on on all of them....

Pretty much true although I was on Blakely Island in November and it didn't seem to have as much impact as it did on San Juan and Orcas.

[Lady Grouse hunter]

Orcas is unique as it has a few mountains up to 2409' high, a LEE side and a wet-side. Most other Islands are Flat in terrrain...

[lokidog]

Orcas is unique as it has a few mountains up to 2409' high, a LEE side and a wet-side. Most other Islands are Flat in terrrain...

Does not change the FACT that deer travel a lot on the islands including back and forth between them and that crazy population numbers led to easy transmission of a "new" disease between them wiping out large numbers of them.

[h20hunter]

Well in 2005.........

[luvmystang67]

Orcas is unique as it has a few mountains up to 2409' high, a LEE side and a wet-side. Most other Islands are Flat in terrrain...

Does not change the FACT that deer travel a lot on the islands including back and forth between them and that crazy population numbers led to easy transmission of a "new" disease between them wiping out large numbers of them.

I see them all the time when out pulling crab pots.  They love a good swim and they float so easily with the hollow hair!

[steeleywhopper]

It’s not Orcas, but I just spent 3 days at my cousins place on San Juan and I did not see a single deer and trust me I was looking. Very sad to say the new Savage 220 slug gun I bought last year might have to stay in the safe for a few years. On the other hand there were a ton of ducks and geese all over. Wish I’d have brought the scattergun.