First Blacktail

[Feathernfurr]

Deer season is fast approaching. This’ll be my first go round chasing blacktails, I’ll be doing it with a bow. Would love to hear/see what y’all would say is a shooter for a first blacktail buck. I’m a rather experienced archery hunter with some good elk and whitetails under my belt. I’m not too proud to shoot a forky, but would love to hold out for a modest first buck.

[kodiak06]

It really depends on the area you choose to hunt

[Feathernfurr]

True blacktails, not bench legs. West of interstate 5, mix of public and private.

[MADMAX]

 
Mostly private
Good luck

[Feathernfurr]

Meant I already have permission to a handful of private pieces.

[Twispriver]

With archery equipment maybe a forky is a modest first buck 

[Feathernfurr]

Thats just what I’m curious about! I’m also aware not all forkies are built equal. I imagine I’ll be hard pressed to pass the first deer that gives me a good shot, but I love spending time in a tree so I’ll try to drag it out.

[IFunk]

Are you using traditional tackle?

[Feathernfurr]

Modern, but that doesn’t make terribly much difference for me, I’m a 20-30 yard guy either way.

[highside74]

Meant I already have permission to a handful of private pieces.

If you have private access you need to start driving around and filling buckets with apples. Put out cameras and apples.

[Feathernfurr]

I’ve got a couple cans up, I’ve been trifling on the apples though. I wish I could just buy a couple bushels somewhere. Guys generally putting them out whole or cutting them up?

[highside74]

I stomp on a few but that's about it. Just to get the scent in the wind.

[WapitiTalk1]

Deer season is fast approaching. This’ll be my first go round chasing blacktails, I’ll be doing it with a bow. Would love to hear/see what y’all would say is a shooter for a first blacktail buck. I’m a rather experienced archery hunter with some good elk and whitetails under my belt. I’m not too proud to shoot a forky, but would love to hold out for a modest first buck.

With stick n string, any legal BT for the area you’re hunting sir.

[WapitiTalk1]

I’ve got a couple cans up, I’ve been trifling on the apples though. I wish I could just buy a couple bushels somewhere. Guys generally putting them out whole or cutting them up?

Get your apples from a place/residence u see along the road that has apple trees. Most of them have no problem with you filling a gunny sack once hit the ground. Sweet cob is a nice addition to your bait sites along with 3-4 mineral bricks… just saying. Good luck sir!

[Feathernfurr]

How consistent do blacktails seem to get on bait?

[highside74]

Daily for apples

[WapitiTalk1]

How consistent do blacktails seem to get on bait?

Salt/mineral blocks?  More popular with the does earlier in the year, me thinks when they’re expecting a visit/visits from the stork. Apples/Sweet Cob?  IME, it’s crack for deer sir and they’ll snarf it down with great greed mostly all year long  . Placement is important….

[Feathernfurr]

That’s been the battle I’ve been fighting, hunt the general firearm with a bow for the rut, or bait non stop and hunt the archery tag for more time.

[WapitiTalk1]

That’s been the battle I’ve been fighting, hunt the general firearm with a bow for the rut, or bait non stop and hunt the archery tag for more time.

I hear you. If u really want to target BT with a bow, you’re really talking tree standing and a TON of research, scouting, bating or not baiting (targeting high traffic trail areas).  One thing I deduced growing up in the Big Sky State, if you want the best odds to shoot a buck…. hunt during the rut. For BT’s, you’re talking  that last week in OCT and those 4 days they give us around Turkey Day.

[metlhead]

September 1st, between the azaleas and the blueberries. This guy will do.

[Feathernfurr]

Good news is I’ve got thirty years of tree stand hunting under my belt. 25ft up a tree is one of my favorite places to be. I’m inclined to believe I’ll stick with the rut plan. Only foreseeable I swap the tag last minute is if I out out bait and get some bucks on camera daily. As of right now I have a couple bucks on camera relatively consistent. Most smaller, and two pretty decent. In a perfect world the biggest one slips up looking for does on Halloween evening.

[PNWheckle]

In my experience if targeting the biggest buck in the area they usually won’t even bother to show up until middle of October. I like to see a lot of resident does on my camera in the summer to fall transition period


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[addicted1]

If you’ve done a lot WT tree stands then I think you’ll do just fine on filling a tag. But, really depends on the area you hunt in that will dictate the class of buck to go after. As someone else mentioned any legal BT is a good one for you first one, and that’s probably not a stretch. One of my areas shows very little for bucks until the rut, then they materialize out of no where. I just locate the does and wait for buck activity, shoot what ever gets me excited.

[Feathernfurr]

I’ve got about 50/50 of bucks and does on cameras right now. Bucks are definitely less frequent than does, and most of the does have fawns. I’ll be interested in seeing how that changes as hunting pressure increases and the rut nears. Did get my first hard horned buck this morning, a little sooner than expected.

[tluns]

There are forkies and two points. In some areas they don't get more points just bigger and thicker.