Post by: JasonG on August 04, 2019, 04:37:37 PM
Post by: Blacktail_Slayer on August 06, 2019, 03:54:03 PM
Post by: Twispriver on August 06, 2019, 04:41:01 PM
Post by: JakeLand on August 06, 2019, 07:50:47 PM
Post by: Stein on August 06, 2019, 08:02:08 PM
I have always thought that if a guy takes a legal blacktail on public land year after year that he is at the top of the hunting game anywhere in the world.
Post by: STIKNSTRINGBOW on August 06, 2019, 11:32:47 PM
Area I hunt is any deer, and them damn *censored*s like to taunt me until I decide to stick one.
I buy a tag, just because of this.
But if I was actually after them, it would be with a modern tag during the last week of Oct., or Late buck .
That's when I see the most bucks.
But does taste great!
Post by: headshot5 on August 07, 2019, 05:35:04 AM
Post by: pianoman9701 on August 07, 2019, 07:27:34 AM
Post by: Ridgerunner on August 07, 2019, 07:43:10 AM
Post by: Smith_22 on August 07, 2019, 07:59:39 AM
Post by: fishnfur on August 07, 2019, 12:03:48 PM
Until it starts raining, still hunting quietly is really difficult in the dry woods. Often, the real rains don't start until around the time of the MF season. Sitting still in a high traffic area, whether in a ground blind, in a tree stand, or just hidden in the brush may yield more deer sightings during the early season. A true spot and stalk for Blackies seems to be a rarely used tactic due to the animals propensity to vaporize into the surrounding jungle. Plenty of hunters attempt to trail a buck if they can find it's tracks after spotting it though. If I see a buck outside my effective shooting range, I generally watch and hope that it works it's way towards me. I likely try to call it with rattling, grunting, or by using a can call. If you blow a stalk and that deer recognizes that you are hunting him, he will likely be much harder to locate until well later in the season when he is chasing does.
The more seasons I get under my belt, the less I tend to move in the woods. You can make a little noise occasionally while you're hunting during the pre-rut, but just a little too much, or a little too frequent (non-deer) noise will make any close-by deer completely nervous and cause them to bolt. They'll be long gone before you realized that you were even close. You just see nothing. I see this over and over again on my trail cam vids - deer in a total panic run from God knows what. They don't wait around to find out what is causing the noise.
Hang in there and keep working your techniques. Every season gets a little easier and things make a little more sense. I'll make a case here for buying a slug gun (with a rifled barrel), which I prefer to ML hunting in firearm restricted areas. Savage 220 - Not too expensive if you shop around. (I got mine used, but it looked brand new and came in the original box. It had just been shot a couple times). Good to 200 yards with the right ammo, easy to carry, easy on the shoulder.
Here's a simple article with some other good ideas.
https://www.columbian.com/news/2014/oct/01/outdoors-tactics-hunting-blacktail-deer/
Post by: ljsommer on September 01, 2019, 08:40:30 AM
Post by: NorseNW on September 01, 2019, 08:52:32 AM
As to the OP I still hunt / spot and stalk. I'm not greatly successful but I enjoy it.
Post by: dilleytech on September 01, 2019, 11:41:52 AM
Post by: pd on September 01, 2019, 12:03:55 PM
Like what Fish&Fur said, a slugged shotgun works very well, especially if you scope it. I find a slow walk with a rifle tag in late October with a bow to be the most fun. I am just as successful with the bow as with the slug gun. YMMV.
Post by: blackveltbowhunter on September 01, 2019, 01:05:36 PM
Post by: brew on September 01, 2019, 01:26:19 PM
I am kind of getting the sense that few people attempt to archery hunt blacktail on archery opener. How many folks are going out today?there are more people out there than you think. took my son's father in law out last year opening day and took him until 9:30 to kill one. He tagged out this morning at 8:23. saw a couple yotes but couldn't get a shot at them. jumped 2 grouse walking in to recover his deer. It's not that hard if you are not particular. Back home recharging the batteries and will head out in a couple hours for the evening shoot
Post by: ljsommer on September 02, 2019, 08:21:58 PM
Post by: ljsommer on September 09, 2019, 09:04:03 AM
Post by: npaull on September 09, 2019, 10:26:09 AM
When it's crunchy still hunting is almost futile, but I'll still walk old roads slowly. I've stumbled on more than a few does and small bucks who were being stupid just long enough to get a shot off with my recurve before they bolt.
Once it starts raining and the ground is wet I still hunt clearcuts super, super slowly. Remember - it's STILL hunting. The goal isn't to move towards the deer. It's to be in a spot where the deer will move towards YOU. A lot of guys get this wrong and think still hunting means walking around until you bump one. Rarely works except for those "got lucky" scenarios I just described.
Tree stands are very effective but it can be hard to find a place that's a reliable producer day after day like you can with whitetail. There's food everywhere. There's water everywhere. There's cover everywhere. Hard to pattern an animal that has that kind of habitat.
Best advice for bow season: Find a closed road that runs between a 4-8 yo cut on one side and a 10-15 yo cut on the other. Be on that road before dawn when it's raining, and walk it slowly and as quietly as you can. If you can manage to only have neoprene booties on your feet you can be super stealthy. You'll encounter deer moving from one side to the other as day breaks. Reverse pattern as the sun sets. It can be super deadly.
Post by: ljsommer on September 09, 2019, 11:20:03 AM
Post by: fishnfur on September 14, 2019, 09:02:39 PM
Seeing a branched blacktail buck in the September archery season is only slightly more likely than seeing bigfoot. I hunt the early season with my bow every year. I could LITERALLY count on one hand the number of branched bucks I've seen during hunting hours in September over 15+ seasons. Literally.
When it's crunchy still hunting is almost futile, but I'll still walk old roads slowly. I've stumbled on more than a few does and small bucks who were being stupid just long enough to get a shot off with my recurve before they bolt.
Once it starts raining and the ground is wet I still hunt clearcuts super, super slowly. Remember - it's STILL hunting. The goal isn't to move towards the deer. It's to be in a spot where the deer will move towards YOU. A lot of guys get this wrong and think still hunting means walking around until you bump one. Rarely works except for those "got lucky" scenarios I just described.
Tree stands are very effective but it can be hard to find a place that's a reliable producer day after day like you can with whitetail. There's food everywhere. There's water everywhere. There's cover everywhere. Hard to pattern an animal that has that kind of habitat.
Best advice for bow season: Find a closed road that runs between a 4-8 yo cut on one side and a 10-15 yo cut on the other. Be on that road before dawn when it's raining, and walk it slowly and as quietly as you can. If you can manage to only have neoprene booties on your feet you can be super stealthy. You'll encounter deer moving from one side to the other as day breaks. Reverse pattern as the sun sets. It can be super deadly.
That's a ton of good advice in just a few words. Well done npaull!
If you haven't already done so, re/re-read the Hunter's Bible (Iverson). He well describes the nature of the mature Blactail buck. In the early season, any close by non-deer noise will put them on instant alert. Multiple occurrences of non-deer noises may cause them to leave the area immediately. They don't hang around and wonder what is making the noise. They just go, and you never knew they were there (at all). Older, well hidden bucks are also well known for holding tight to cover and letting you just walk by, completely unaware that they are there.
You're eyes should be working any low cover below the two foot level. Try sitting the the sword ferns sometime - in spots you can be totally hidden, even sitting upright. Deer are bedded down most of the day and typically hidden in foliage (sword fern, Vine Maple, etc) or behind some other obscuring item (tree, log, etc.) and that is where you should be looking as you slowly inch your way through the woods. Examine every possible hiding spots for anything that might be a small part of a bigger deer (antler tips, flick of an ear, horizontal line of the back) You'll likely only see a small part of the animal. Your brain must try to identify that small bit as possibly being part of a bigger animal. You'll be amazed the first time that it works out for you and suddenly, there is an animal right there that moments before you couldn't see at all. Talk about an Ah Ha moment! Later in the season, the bucks will be up moving more during the day and it gets a bit easier.
Closer to the rut,
Post by: fishnfur on September 14, 2019, 09:12:59 PM
I am kind of getting the sense that few people attempt to archery hunt blacktail on archery opener. How many folks are going out today?there are more people out there than you think. took my son's father in law out last year opening day and took him until 9:30 to kill one. He tagged out this morning at 8:23. saw a couple yotes but couldn't get a shot at them. jumped 2 grouse walking in to recover his deer. It's not that hard if you are not particular. Back home recharging the batteries and will head out in a couple hours for the evening shoot
I agree with that comment about not being that hard, with the caveat being that the deer population is robust in the area you're hunting, and that you have a good guide (like Brew) to put you in a spot where you're likely to see deer. Going out as a novice and unguided in Ryderwood from the Columbia River side - you might disagree with sentiment pretty strongly after a couple of days of seeing nothing.
Post by: ljsommer on September 14, 2019, 09:45:14 PM
Post by: TriggerMike on September 15, 2019, 02:30:51 PM
Post by: ljsommer on September 15, 2019, 03:02:02 PM
Post by: WSU on September 15, 2019, 03:37:43 PM
Post by: Turner89 on September 16, 2019, 11:04:10 PM