ND Mule Deer Rifle

[Multi-SpeciesHunter]

Well after 7 years I drew my rifle tag for 4C. I've been doing tons of research and think I'll be alright but I know there's guys on here that could probably help. I read most of the threads on here and try to help when I can but I'm a young guy at 19 and mainly just learn from you guys.

Well I'll be hunting opener with my dad and 2 of his buddies. Of course they're older guys who aren't as much for trophies so I could be limited on how I hunt at first. But my buddy who has far more western hunting experience is gonna come down and go with me for probably a week (depending on work and school at the time).

Should I take a weekend and go scout for bucks in the unit? Or what do you guys think? Should I do that soon or wait till during the fall? Since I can pretty much go anytime... I have hunted deer a lot but not much for out west sadly. At first I'll probably have my sights set higher 160"+. I won't have any trouble holding out for nice buck.

Thanks in advance for any help anyone can provide. Send a PM if ya need.

Thanks again, Justin

 

[ando_31]

Good luck Justin. If you're not familiar with the land then you should go scout mostly to learn the land and look for the does. If you know the public or private land you plan on hunting like the back of your hand then I don't think scouting is as important. In my experience the big bucks are not in the same area when rifle season starts. I've found the same buck over 10 miles away from bow season to rifle season. So finding a big one while the bucks are still in bachelor groups guarantees nothing. Once the bucks split apart from their bachelor groups, which is only a couple weeks before rifle season, they seem to become much more difficult to find until they begin to rut hard..

It wouldn't hurt to go scout the land so you aren't wasting time looking at maps and questioning where to go next after you have finished glassing and still hunting an area. The days are short during rifle season and you have to make the most of them when public land hunting. Don't forget to bring your bow with if you do scout. Bow hunting muleys all day long becomes quite addicting compared to the passive sunrise and sunset whitetail hunting. 160+ is an achievable number if you are patient, determined, and a little lucky.

 

[wisconsinvette]

You should for sure go scout to get the lay of the land down. Find glassing points and get familiar with the roads and access. This will save you time. You want to be hunting during season not trying to find the road that gets you to that ridge only to find that ridge is not a good glassing point after you get there. You can do this anytime. If you want to know where the deer will be you should go the right before the opener as their movements can change a lot from summer to fall. I have hunted next to 4C 3 times and it is a great area. Wish I could go back.

 

[Multi-SpeciesHunter]

Thanks guys! Yeah I think my buddy and I will for sure go out in the unit with our bows once a couple weeks before opener. Depending on work and school we might get out here in a few weeks with our bows for early season and learn the unit. It turns out my buddy shot a 150" mulie here about 3 years ago in the same unit. So hopefully that really helps. I'm really excited.

Thanks for the responses guys.