OTC arizona mule deer
- Thread starter Mwalczak
- Start date
BOHNTR
Very Active Member
I'm not sure I completely understand your question. You realize that late season archery hunts offered (DEC-JAN) in Arizona are ALL over-the-counter tags???
Graylight
Active Member
Most units in Az offer the opportunity to chase bucks in... There's plenty of BLM/State Trust Land/National Forest to hunt. The reality of having a high success rate during archery season with your bow is a stretch in my opinion... The desert is tough and after you simply pick an area to hunt, it will take you a couple years to figure it out...
We cover 5 to 6 units during our hunts there... I rarely hunt particular canyons day in/day out... I am the odd ball I suppose but we like to cover huge amounts of country and I may hunt the morning 50 to 100 miles from where I will spend my evening hunt... During the rut, the bucks are really transient and won't just stick around, so it's most important to find pockets of does and keep checking in on them to get your chance... Good glass, and stick with it because the desert does not give up it's critters easy... That's why you haven't gotten many replies... No one is going to give any handouts with such tough hunting conditions...
I will honestly say that every unit has deer and wether you choose the teen's, twenties, thirties or forties units, if you pick a place, stay till you figure it out because once you do find the animals, you will find that each year you will get luckier and luckier based on all of your knowledge... Good luck!
Just a tip... If you hunt the 40's units, focus on the greasewood flats near the edge of the foothills, these areas hold 90% of the deer and if you can, make sure you know where the early season monsoons hit the particular part of the mountains... That is where the does will be focused based on feed and the bucks will obviously be there too... The 30's units, you will want to focus more on the foothills, not up high, not in the flats, unless you have lot's of time to burn playing cat and mouse in the mesquites (frustrating) All simply my opinion as I am not by any stretch an expert but thought I'd try to help a fellow hunter
We cover 5 to 6 units during our hunts there... I rarely hunt particular canyons day in/day out... I am the odd ball I suppose but we like to cover huge amounts of country and I may hunt the morning 50 to 100 miles from where I will spend my evening hunt... During the rut, the bucks are really transient and won't just stick around, so it's most important to find pockets of does and keep checking in on them to get your chance... Good glass, and stick with it because the desert does not give up it's critters easy... That's why you haven't gotten many replies... No one is going to give any handouts with such tough hunting conditions...
I will honestly say that every unit has deer and wether you choose the teen's, twenties, thirties or forties units, if you pick a place, stay till you figure it out because once you do find the animals, you will find that each year you will get luckier and luckier based on all of your knowledge... Good luck!
Just a tip... If you hunt the 40's units, focus on the greasewood flats near the edge of the foothills, these areas hold 90% of the deer and if you can, make sure you know where the early season monsoons hit the particular part of the mountains... That is where the does will be focused based on feed and the bucks will obviously be there too... The 30's units, you will want to focus more on the foothills, not up high, not in the flats, unless you have lot's of time to burn playing cat and mouse in the mesquites (frustrating) All simply my opinion as I am not by any stretch an expert but thought I'd try to help a fellow hunter
In God We Trust
Very Active Member
I would recomend a good pair of binos and a spotting scope. If you want to be successful you will need to spend hours glassing. I agree with Graylight, this is a fun hunt but you need to be persistent. Where else can you hunt in a Tshirt in January. One more thing if you find a unit that holds both Muleys and Coues deer than that just increases your odds of spotting a decent buck.
Midwest to Outwest
New Member
In the high elevations it will bepend a bit on the weather I imagine. If you plan to hunt any of the lower elevations, it is a late hunt that is like an early season hunt anywhere else; Get away from the road, find some water that not everyone can glass or sit on(if a road or anything that resembles an ATV trail goes to it you will have company.) and put some miles on your boots and hours behind your glass. Seems if there is water, there are deer somewhere in that vicinity. But you may need to be patient to find them.