Wes_55

I am from Mississippi and plan on coming to Alberta to hunt whitetails this year in November. Has anyone seen any trophy deer yet? Does anyone if the harvest of trophies is predicted to be high or low? Any info would be greatly appreciated

vanden10

Where in alberta are you planning to hunt?

gopher slayer

Alberta is a great place to hunt, i hunt mainly on farm land so the deer taste great heres a site with some pics of the 2003 harvest

http://www.albertabucks.com/2003harvests.htm

Nicholal

All deer here in alberta are trophies big or small as the bodies are huge!!!!!! better read alot of books that show pics of big albeta or Sask deer....so you know what to look for. As the bodies are bigger then most deer in the states due to climate. big body deer hide or can fool you on rack size.

As this pic of my der shows. Scored 155 with a 32 " neck

skeeter 7MM

Maybe not alberta but through my scouting it looks in everyway to be a great year on the prairie's for a deer hunter. Finally after a few years of nill in the moisture department we have lush green pastures/grasslands, great crops and yes actually more than dugouts for the deer to drink. Last nights scouting expedition produces several deer sightings including a number a very nice whitetail and mule bucks. We saw the big boy I was chasing last fall during Mule Deer draw in full glory. With hopes I can T up in archery or my partner gets pulled for this year's MD Draw in that zone. Also some real respectable MD bucks, 2 for sure shooter whitetail bucks and decent to a few years down the road wt bucks.

Like Al mentioned get your hands on as much info on our larger bodied/racked deer before you come. Get yourself a copy of the summer edition Big Buck Magizine, it has a good number of Alberta Whitetails featured and a different hunting mag that offers live deer photo's and hunting stories about hunting trophy animals.

If big bucks are your game then western canada is a great place to play!

Best of luck and be patient!

Wes_55

I am going to be hunting around Slave Lake, Alberta with Northern Wilderness Outfitters. Has anyone heard anything good or bad about them?

Wes_55

I have been watching several hunting shows to see the deer and try and judge them to see if they are a shooter or not. Is there any way to determine quickly if a deer is a 160 class buck(such as the spread, etc.)?

skeeter 7MM

Wes to assess a trophy deer that runs 150 or better it will take a bit of time, although when they are truly big not much will stop you either. For me I look at all characteristics of the antler make up:
a) Beam Length -24" is want your looking for on a 150 + class WT (I want to the nose with a nice sweeping beam or high past the nose with the tight rapper beams)
b) Spread 2" of daylight on eitherside of the ears will put you in the 18-20" spread depending on his crown. Also make sure you note if his ears are straight or slightly cocked, this can really throw you off.
c) Tines - number and size When looking for a 160 class buck you'll need 5 a side, now their are expection but that will fall into the "Truly big not much will stop you" category. I look for the stair step and wall(which also indicates mass to a degree). Basically on our mature bucks from the eye to the tip of the nose is 9", put the tines into that spot in your mind and you'll be able to guess how big each tine may in fact be. You'll want G2's and G3's to be double digits to make 160 or better - magic number is in that 12" range for G2's or G3's - don't be alarmed as many will exhibit larger G3's than the G2 position, perfect if he's got 12" g3 and 10's for G2's, if the others fallow suit down not usually much need to count the bottom 2 or brow in your mind.
Symetrics is nice but hard to really judge, unless really lopesided I don't let it bother me much nor do I have time to try and guess at a net score.
d) mass most deer that exhibit some of the traits listed above will have decent mass, exceptions of course apply for loads of mass and spindly tines.
Finally Nontypical, I am a sucker for these deer and if I see one that just looks right I rarely field judge and just pull the trigger to find out the results. I am not talking a kicker here or their, but rather a deer that exhibits unusual growth that just looks to darn good to pass.

I know so much for the quick and easy method but probably the best judge is the man behind the scope, not everything is in score when you see him if he just looks the part and you'll be 100% satisfied with him mounted on your den or office wall then you have been affirmed...not only that I have seen guys nit pick a 160 right out of their wall by not going with that gut instinct on first sight. Your doing the right thing look at mags and videos of these big and small deer. Whole doing so try to pick out features that elude to a trophy animal. Not one element but several, b/c as mentioned you need to truly measure every inch in a very short moment to come up with a decision of safety on or off. I may also say do not be affraid to ask your outfitter or guide for tips on judging the deer.

Best of luck and sorry can't help you with your outfitter on his rep. I am sure you called his reference list and chatted with previous clients before picking him? If not then I suggest you do, so you know what to expect when the plane lands! These folks can also be help in your quest to field judging deer.

Nicholal

Wes you will know a shooter when you see him...your knee's get kinda weak and you stare at him in awe and go WOWWWWWWWWWW, FORGETTING YOU HAVE A RIFLE WITH YOU.

really all joking aside a good 160+ deer is a buck thats been around a few years so your only going to get a glimse of him during morning day break or at sunset, unless he's chasen a "really hot doe"
Like skeeter say
MASS MASS MASS if you glass the buck and his rack is not out passd his ears or stretchn out to his nose....well then he's a nice buck but no booner. Although it may be difficult to judge out at 200+ yards picture this

If you figure he's thick say like your wrist or has high tines and lots of points he's a shooter. but only you can judge what your going to call "your trophy"

Happy hunting

JD IN ALBERTA

I'm seeing BIG deer already and they still are growin!! unfortunately it's only mule deer so far. My whitetail place is further up north so I'm hoping they are growing up there too. I'm sure you won't be dissapointed with whatever size deer you get, just remember to dress appropriately. It can get bitterly cold up there and really ruin your hunt if you aren't prepared, a couple of my buddies found that out last year the hard way[&:] Needless to say, they both dropped some coin on some real good cold weather boots and clothes in the off season. Good luck and let us know how you make out...JDinAB