Desert A Special Permit X2

[winston2789]

   WOW........I'm lost for words. My cousin and I drew Desert A tags!!!!    . Has anyone on here drawn these tags and if so what is it like? I've heard there are some real toads but also alot a lot of smaller bucks.
 mike

1 1041  Desert A SELECTED 
2 1030  Entiat A Not Selected 
3 1032  Swakane A Not Selected 
4 1091  Skookumchuck B Not Selected 

[Brushbuster]

Congratulations on great tags. I have a little knowledge. Even tho it appears to be very open, there is bitterbrush 6+ feet tall & Russian Olives trees that provide a lot of shade & cover. The deer really know how to use it to their advantage. Haven't been there for 10 yrs but, yes there should be some toads there. Keep us all updated.

[jstamp]

my buddy also drew the desert A! we are going to scout the hell out of it.

[Cougeyes]

Use horses if you have them to see over the tall brush.

[winston2789]

very nice jstamp, tell him congrats. We plan on doing the same...........its gonna be a long 4 months waiting!!!!

thanks brushbuster! I'll be sure to keep you updated.

If I need horses its must be pretty flat cougeyes?
 

[winston2789]

How much is public vs private? Is any of it gated?

[chukarchaser]

There is quite a mix of private and public land in there, but easy to distinguish.  Where you find deer in hot weather may not be where they are in November so stay focused and scout accordingly.  Horses are a big advantage for visibility as well as the walking in the sandy soil can knock the stuffing out of you.  When I hunted the unit with a tag holder a few years ago the deer where real spooky even thought the pressure seemed light.  Go out and buy a lotto ticket your luck is running high right now.  You are going to have a great hunt. Oh ya a GPS is real nice as well it helps in that country because it starts to look the same.

[yelp]

I would start by talking with the WDFW region two bio..Brock Hoenes.  They do a big deer survey every year and they will be able to assist you with some locations..he is out of the Region Two office in Ephrata.  Good luck and don't shoot the first ones you see..think big..congrats.

[jstamp]

my buddy that drew is a pretty accomplished hunter, and he knows whats big and what is not, i think he is setting the bar at about a 180" deer. he is also gonna have some some help from me and bigshooter as well. should be an awesome year. congrats to everyone who drew.

[wastickslinger]

I agree that 180" is a good mark to set if you have the whole time to hunt. If it is still hot you will need to kick the cattails for the big ones.

[stringflinger4elk]

Yeah Congrats Myself and my buddy got one each for the archery season and we didn't even apply as a group so figure them odds! we will pass any info on as we learn new stuff as well. keep it updated! and Good Luck just leave us a bruiser or 2 for us since we will be hitting cleanup as the last group to hunt!

[Pathfinder101]

Congrats to all that drew.  I don't know the unit real well, but on the way home from business in Moses Lake the other day I took a swing through the unit with the binos.  Saw 2 bucks.  Both looked pretty healthy.  They were both already wider than their ears, and one of them hadn't even forked yet.  You should have a great hunt.

[Bigshooter]

my buddy that drew is a pretty accomplished hunter, and he knows whats big and what is not, i think he is setting the bar at about a 180" deer. he is also gonna have some some help from me and bigshooter as well. should be an awesome year. congrats to everyone who drew.

Is he going to alberta before or after this hunt stamp.

[Up a Creek]

How many points did yahll have when you drew?

[Bigshooter]

Mine and Jstamp's buddy had 8 or 9 points.  Pretty sure it was 8.

[andrew_12gauge]

I drew the Desert A tag in 2004 and hunted the full season i missed a 190 class typical on the first evening of the hunt and the next closest buck i saw was maybe a 160 class, ended up taking a 24" 4X2 on the last day, there are big bucks in the desert but they arent behind every sagebrush like everyone seems to make it sound, they hang out in the cattails and the russian olives where you cant see em and if you go in there youll here em comin out, until the rut(rifle season) then they start comin out and roaming, one of your most valuable summer scouting tools out there could be a spotlight as its hot and those deer dont leave their cover much, and the desert is mostly public

[winston2789]

Thanks for the posts!
We had seven points when we drew. I'm not asking for anyones honey hole or secret spot, just a foot in the right direction. I seen some talk about peoples first post asking for desert info. You might recognize me from these pictures, past couple years. I've made some posts on here. Any info could be pm'ed to me if you'd like. Any experiences help! I do know this is a lucky tag to pull. My cousin was the other one who drew with me(wildwood), we have been hunting together since we were little kids with ours dads. Always have hunted the westside for elk and deer. We got into bear hunting a few years ago. Last year was our first experience hunting muleys over in winthrop, didn't have much luck but came back and my brother and cousin got 2 three points the next day.
mike

[winston2789]

few more

[Pathfinder101]

nice photo album.  That first bear looks like he took a shot to the head.

[winston2789]

Ya pathfinder he did get one to the head. That bear is from last sept. An hour after first light i was glassing a steep clear cut infront of me and my cousin was down the road a bit further. I heard a branch break behind me and turned around and saw this boar coming out of the timber about 75 yards away. When I turned he saw me, he paused then started quartering away from me back into the timber. I was able to get a shot off and nailed him... got both lungs. He ran about ten feet to where my cousin hit him in the head. It probably a good thing he did cause they are tough animals and sometimes hard to find in the thick stuff, but i doubt he would have went much further.