Public land mule deer hunting
 

I have never been out west to hunt. Does anybody have any suggestions on where to go for mule deer on public land?

Wyoming, Montana, Colorado, Utah??? Each state has multiple opportunities but different ways to obtain licenses. Look into that and narrow the state down and work from there.

Thanks!
I'm trying to go as cheap as possible. I was hoping to find a state that I can get a tag over-the counter. I heard Utah has some quality bucks there

Mike, you can come to western Nebraska. Tags over the counter fairly cheap and lots of public land out west. Check out Nebraska games and parks for info and Maps.

Colorado is Drawing only. Some units may have leftover tags, but usually not the quality units. Tag will run you $344.

Nebraska will be the cheapest tags as well. When I lived there a few years ago they were $165 versus the $300-$400 for the surrounding states. Utah has some monster mule deer as well. I jumped a 30 to 33" wide buck along with another monster that was heavy and stickers all over last year in Wyoming as well. I think all states out here have them you just have to be in the right place at the right time.

What are some of the areas in Nebraska where you would encounter both mulies and whitetails? Is there public land in those areas?

In general, what is the quantity and quality of animals seen on public land in NE?

Thanks for any info!

A buddy of mine was saying something about a restriction on Mule deer hunting in Nebraska so you may want to look into that. I am not sure if it is just the area where he lives or what. I have seen monster whitetail on public land in Nebraska. Not very many mule deer though I did see some here and there. This was around Lake McConaughy when it was down low. I hear the hunting is not very good now that it is back up to a high level. There used to be brush galore out there and now it is all under water. Up around Chadron I believe is where you find the most mule deer in the state.

I've hunted some in the NW part of Nebraska, public land there you will be hard pressed to find a big mulie buck, plus it gets hunted hard. Better hitting the mountains of CO,WY, ID, etc....

one of few places people over look is the state of new mexico,weve got reasonable hunts here so please check out new mexico and all its hunting opportunities

We have hunted unit 161 in routt national forest in Colorado in 2004, 06, 08 & 10. We hunted Elk but saw many mule deer and several shooters. Colorado is an all draw state for mule deer and time to submit applications for 2011 has passed. However you can check in late july for the leftover list. Some units are not so hot so there are leftover tags. If there are any for 161 I would for sure suggest there.

I been seeing a lot of mulies and some Elk in CO GMUs 511, 501 and 51 while fishing this year. A lot of the area I been seeing them is in Pike National forest.

You can get over the counter archery tags in AZ for most of the state.

New Mexico does have some great mule deer hunting. You can get tags pretty easily if you are a bowhunter. The rifle tags in the best areas can be tough to draw though.

Id go with MT or WY.

Unless things have changed with in the last year or two, Nebraska over the counter tags are archery or black powder, gun has alway been drawings in assigned hunting areas. The National Forest and Nat. Grasslands out by Fort Robinson on Hwy 20 has alway been a good area for mule deer and antelopes in Nebraska.

I'm looking for a cheap muledeer hunt. Me and a buddy want to spend a week hunting on public land but have rarely left Minnesota. We are looking for over the counter tags early Oct 2011 archery. Any help will be much appreciated. Thank you

Region Y in Wyoming still has leftover buck tags and if you also buy the $30 nonresident archery permit you can hunt with your bow the entire month of September. The rifle seasons are in October.

Tags are over the counter, lots of public land out west near Chadron, check out Fort Robbinson, Pine Ridge, grass lands etc. Lots of land to hunt out there. You can stay at the campsite at Fort Robbinson for pretty cheap(most camp sites have electricity, showers etc.) or get a motel in Chadron. You should have fun doing some spot and stalk on deer, it won't be easy but it's fun.

Bang for the buck, NM by a long shot they've got some bruisers running around.

I can offer some advice. Do not hunt the Bridger Nat. or the Caribou Nat forest in Idaho or Wyoming. They got hit with allot of snow in the past 2 years and the deer heard is down 80%. Still some big mulies left but the local hunting pressure will make you wanna puke! And don't listen to that "get way in the back country" crap because when the hunting is hard close to the roads hunters move back farther and farther. Sometimes coming back with horses where the ATV trails end miles back. SE wyo has some nice bucks as well as region R in the Big Horns in Wyo and pressure is down a little. I would plan my hunt by scouring the Web and look for a rancher that is willing to let you hunt on his private ranch for an access fee. Say 1500 or so depending on the area. The other thing that some don't understand is that 90% of the time the ONLY tags that are hard to draw are the ones with GOOD LIMITED HUNTING ON PUBLIC LANDS. All the private ones are good drawing odds. Now there are exceptions to the rule like Wyo's $485 dollar rape me deer tag. Which they say puts you in a different drawing than the $285 tag (what a crock).

OK, now the biggest secret of all. DO NOT GO OPENING WEEK! Why you ask? Because the local hunting pressure that will be non-existent the next week and the fact that the deer start going back to normal patterns around the the 5th-6th day of the opener (on public land that is) So resist the urge to be there on the opening day. Also another biggie is if you can wait till the mountains have snow in the higher elevations. I mean 12''+ if you are hunting the foot hills of the bigger mountains.

If you ever decide to come to Colorado like your sig says. Make it worth your while, and hunt for elk. The tags are much easier to get, and I find it much easier to get an elk over a mature muley buck.

Whatever you decide. Good luck.

I would have to agree. Unless you do a combo mule deer are way harder to hunt. Now elk, I could have shot more bulls scoring between 200-275 than you could shake a stick at! Saw a hundred head of elk in one day!