Hunting Mule-Deer and Related Thoughts

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The favored tactic for mule-deer hunting — a tactic that is aided rather than hindered by the West's great expanses of sparsely vegetated terrain — is spotting and stalking. That is, locating an animal from a distance through binoculars or a spotting scope, then stalking carefully to within shooting range. While this is certainly not the only workable system for hunting mule deer, nor even the best in all situations, it has proven to be the most productive in general.

The American West is blessed with millions of acres of game-rich public lands, and this is where most mule-deer hunting takes place. Therefore, when planning a trip to an unfamiliar part of the West, start by sending for BLM (Bureau of Land Management) and Forest Service maps for the area you plan to visit. With maps in hand, phone the wildlife department of the state you plan to hunt, and ask to speak with the terrestrial wildlife biologist. Request a hunter's regulations and in formation packet, and if you have a particular region in mind, inquire about the deer hunting thereabouts. If you've yet to select a hunting area, ask about zones that need more hunting pressure; hunting is the primary deer management tool, and a competent state biologist will direct you to those areas currently carrying more deer than they can support and suffering the various woes this situation entails (including frequent deer-auto collisions, crop damage, and overgrazing of natural forage, which leads to a high winterkill from starvation and disease). Pinpoint these zones on your public-lands maps, then send for the corresponding USGS (U.S. Geological Survey) topographic quadrangles, and study them until you have a feel for the terrain. Finally, visit the library for a good book on the natural history and hunting of mule deer. In short, do your homework.

Plan to arrive early for the hunt, and invest a day (at least) in scouting. Using what you've learned, select a few likely vantages upon which to park yourself at daylight and from which to glass for-what? For movement along game trails, for a flash of polished antler from the shade of a piñon pine, for a white spot (rump patch) on a dun hillside, for birds startled from their roosts, and for other telltale signs of deer activity. Know that mule deer generally, during early or midmorning, move up from feeding and watering areas to day beds near the tops of timbered ridges and brushy draws, then drift back down again toward evening. Once bedded, if undisturbed, most muleys will stay put throughout midday, allowing ample time to run a careful stalk.

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