Region G: strategy, tactics, tips

[ss13]

Over the past few weeks I have read through as many posts and articles as I could find about this hunt area. It seems that whenever someone starts a new post they ask for a "general area, not your honey hole" to start hunting. They also all say they are willing to hike 3-5 + miles to get away from crowds. I will not be asking that. I am starting this thread in the hopes that people can share their strategies, tactics and tips used while hunting the region. I am interested in how much elevation you cover from trailhead to hunting area, how many true miles you cover, what elevation you prefer to camp at, what plants or geography you look for, etc...

Here are a few interesting tips I have read about recently.

-The region is huge, so pick an area and focus there.
-Find an area that people cant or aren't willing to access.
-If your trail has a river, go up trail a ways, then cross the river and head up mountain.
-Get on the mountain a day or two early to acclimate and possibly find your buck before the shooting starts.

Also, I have made a few observations while internet scouting with google earth and other area maps. It seems that with all the roads, ATV trails and motorcycle trails, it is impossible to be further than 3-5 miles away from another access point or tail. It also seems like there are not a ton of 10,500 to 11,000 ft peaks that everyone says they hunt. It appears that the primary peaks barley reach 10,000+ and that the secondary peaks around them top out at about 9,000 to 9,500ft.

Please share you thoughts on the above comments and some of your strategies to tactics for the area.

I have never hunted this area, but plan on hunting it this fall. My mule deer hunting experience is limited, with only one hunt under my belt. I currently have 5 NR points and plan of applying for a special tag. Through my research I have identified 3 specific areas on the western front which I am interested in hunting this fall. If you have experience hunting the western side of the mountain and are willing to share information please send me a PM. I would love to speak with you.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. I look forward to hearing everyone's response.

 

[mntnguide]

First off, you should head over the the new members section and introduce yourself. . We see plenty of people this time of year who show up, ask for help, then never come back. So it will benefit you to participate in the forum a bit before you are asking a bunch of questions, especially if you want good help. . Otherwise a few basic answers to some of ur questions, its not uncommon to gain 3-4,000 feet of elevation, it is not an easy hunt, You will not get away from other hunters, no matter how remote you think you got, you will see other hunters especially during the opener of the rifle. Region G is a circus plain and simple. Scouting will be the best bet you can have to score a good buck, expecting to walk into G with no knowledge of the area and score a big buck is possible but very unlikely no matter how far you hike or camp. The die-hard guys who hunt this area year after year successfully do so by pounding the hills every summer non-stop to find the bucks. Its an awesome hunt, but will be tough for someone with very limited experience in mule deer hunting the high country.

 

[ss13]

mntnguide,

Thank you for you reply. I will head over the the new member section now to introduce myself. I have been a eastmans member for 5 years, but a new member the the forum. I look forward to hearing others responses.

 

[gasman]

I hunted it this past year for the first time, I scouted a handful of times over the summer and found some great bucks. Between my last scouting trip about August 28 and the opener, every buck, with the exception of one, left the area. The area I hunted was 9500-10000 feet. I did run into a few guys, watched a guy shoot a decent buck, and saw one really good buck in a week. If I had it to do over, I would wait out the opener crowd. Lucky for me I moved to Kemmerer last February and will be hunting it again this year, I just have to figure out something different.

 

[Triple BB]

Get ya airplane and then a horse...

 

[ss13]

Gasman,

You bring up an interesting point regarding hunting the opener or waiting. This year the 15th falls on a Thursday, which will give guys a 4 day hunt by Sunday. I wonder if waiting until Monday after the opener will dramatically reduce the pressure.

I'm hoping someone who has hunted both the opener and later in the season gives their opinion.

 

[spark]

I'm from PA and the year I hunted G was the year after I retired. I picked my area from home by talking to biologist and warden for that area. Mostly confirming access points and found that detailed info was not going to be had in talking to them. In others words no new information was gathered by talking to them(maybe I didn't ask correct questions). I arrived a week before season opened and when I stopped at forestry office they were amazed at the maps I had and asked how I got them. I made them off of a home mapping software that I have. Anyhow a worker there was a hunter and told me of a couple areas to try also. My wife when along with me and I rented a cabin for the entire season. Talking to some of the locals at grocery store or wherever I met them during that first week prior to season netted me a few more spots to try. For two days I just drove around getting acclimated to area and then started serious scouting. Leaving before daylight and coming in after dark. During this time, I only saw three bucks. One of which I would hunt. First morning there before daylight and a resident comes along shoots as it's just getting daylight missed the buck and never saw him again. While there I had 3 chances to shoot bucks but d

 

[spark]

Problems with posting entire message didn't post

 

[spark]

Observations I made during my time there: locals shoot a lot of small bucks( to each his own). I didn't see another hunter until the second week of season but I did hear a few shots. Hunters I saw were outfitters clients and they all asked me where my horse was at. Horses make as big a mess out of the hillside as a mountain bike or atv ( it just not as wide but the rocks are just a loose and it makes tough walking). Moose are fun to watch when there is nothing else around. Elk eyes glow in the dark the same as our white tails do. Coming off a mountain in the dark, you can see and hear for a long ways. Good way to tell if anyone else is around because you can see headlamps for a long ways(I only saw two others on two separate nights). People with horses don't necessarily use lights but you can hear them. I hunted high open and low thick and didn't notice any difference in number of deer that I saw( about one for every 3.5 miles traveled) I changed hunt area 4 times and still looking when I left. Came home without a deer, my choice. Left tired as hell. Can't wait to get drawn again

 

[spark]

When I left I knew what area not to hunt

 

[ss13]

Spark,

That's too bad you didn't have a more successful hunt. If your willing to share, what mapping software did you use? Also, it has been covered a little in other posts, but what type of cell coverage, it any, do you get in region g?

 

[spark]

Can't tell about cell coverage. I used a SPOT because my wife wanted to keep track of my late arrivals. Delorme topo is the mapping software that I used. It's an older version but has served me well over the years for various states. I add my gps coordinatesto it when I get back home. Also SPOT allows you the same thing but I didn't renew my subscription since I wasn't using it anytime soon.

I had a terrific hunt. I'm not one of those guys that has to bring something back "to pay for his license" so to speak. I had3 chances at legal bucks. Beautiful country.��

 

[ss13]

It is beginning to get real now, I have a region G tag in my possession! I drew the tag with 5pts in the special draw. (Shh, the wife doesn't know I splurged and spent the extra money!) I have been driving her crazy with all the hunting talk and research I have been doing.

In August I will be heading out for 4 days of scouting before I return in September to hunt. I will be sure to keep up with this post after my scouting trip and hunt.



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[HiMtnHnter]

Climb mountain, hunt deer.