Hunting Washington Forum
Big Game Hunting => Deer Hunting => Topic started by: Daytog19 on July 26, 2016, 10:39:39 AM
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Hey guys wanted to thank you for the add to the forums and introduce myself. Recently moved back to washington and trying for a deer this year. Have been looking through 448 and have not had much luck. Not really interested in buying a access pass to a logging area. I'm also not looking for a huge buck just meat in my freezer. Ibe scouted the area using maps and all the trails I've tried following have led me to dead ends and unpassable terrain. Any help is greatly appreciated.
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Welcome to the board! My opinion is that you are trying to hard. There is a lot of DNR ground, and private forest land in 448 that holds animals and doesn't cost anything for you to walk into. Most of it is actively logged which is ideal habitat for blacktail. High elevation has its pros (i'm assuming you have been looking at high elevation since you mentioned trails and impassable terrain...?) like getting away from people, better class of deer in general, etc... I would start with a DNR maps, National Forest maps, and also find where private forest land owners other than Weyerhauser are, and start there. Find some good 2-5 year old clear cuts and start scouting the edges looking for sign, it should be there.
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There is hundreds and hundreds of square miles of public land in that unit. You don't need timber access. As far as trails and impassible terrain goes, you're in a unit full of big mountains. If you're not ok with hiking and being in that sort of country, you'll need to find a different GMU to focus your efforts on. Have you been out in the woods or are you just looking at the maps and such?
There are deer there.
What do you mean by dead ends and impassible terrain?
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I have no issues hiking the terrain and I am going in at least a mile to try getting away from people. I have found a couple spots but only catching bears and coyotes a doe every now and then on my cams. Most of my searching has been off mountain loop road.
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That part of the unit is mainly national forest and so it hasn't been logged in forever. Very poor deer habitat. There are deer there, but you're going to find isolated pockets of them. Your best bet in that area would be to get high to the timberline, or hunt along the river. I wouldn't worry to much about a bunch of people in that area, not many blacktail hunters are willing to much further than hearing distance from their trucks.
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Look on google earth and find clear cuts in the 3-5 year old range!! That's what you're looking for
