To use my points or not...

[Russell M.]

Its application time and I'm out of ideas. I have 10 points for deer and 11 for antelope. What would you do if you were in my shoes?? I plan on holding out a couple years for a Warner antelope tag but what about deer? 10+ years is a long time to wait for an OK mule deer hunt. I feel pretty confident I can get a nice mule deer out of a unit I know well that only takes one point for a guarantee draw. So I'm having a hard to using 10 points on a mule deer hunt. Any suggestions or advice on past experiences on some of the high profile hunts?

 

[Tim McCoy]

You already have your antelope plan, but make sure to put in for the hunt, not points, assuming you can hunt it this year, you could get lucky in the random part of the draw.

If I knew of a place in OR to get a nice mulie with one point, and I had 10, I'd probably go hunting there, often. You might look here, for the high profile units you are interesfed in, and pay attention for the years to draw with 10 points: https://sites.google.com/site/oregontags/

 

[Timberstalker]

Possibly you could "pull in" some others with your surplus points?

 

[ore hunter]

I would look at upper end units and ya never know when a random might come your way?10 deer should put you in pretty good shape,,Whitehorse,Owyhee,n warner,juniper could all be good deer units,,stay s e for your antelope too.

 

[EOHunter]

If I had 10 points to burn on deer, I would look into the muzzleloader tag in whitehorse or the beulah archery tag. The Beulah tag used to be hit and miss when it was just west, but this year they included the east side of the unit as well. I have seen some very nice bucks during that time period when hunting elk in that area, just know where you are at. There is plenty of public land, but also a lot of private. That whitehorse muzzleloader can bring in some nice bucks off the Idaho side to winter.

 

[tttoadman]

I would go for one of the few rut hunts in Nov and get a chance to hunt by yourself. Perhaps burn it on Trout Creek. I think 10 res gets you there. You are in a place where the quality and the solitude of the hunt is what you are also buying.

 

[QuazyQuinton]

If you have 10 deer points now, I would find something fun and worthy to cash in for. It sounds like you could be back into the unit you know well within a couple of years.

For antelope, yes, wait a few more years.

QQ

 

[ore hunter]

be aware trout creek burned up bad a few years back,,i don't know if its recovered yet,might be worth a scout trip to find out

 

[Russell M.]

I was thinking either N Warner or Trout creek. It would be nice to get into an area that doesn't get hunted much and be away from people as well. I've been in the Warner unit twice during the September youth hunt. It's some really nice country and we did see a few nice bucks. I would like to take a trip to the trout creeks to scout, the furthest SE I've ever been was a day trip to the Steens. Haven't really checked out any of the muzzleloader hunts but maybe I should. Does anyone have any experience on the late Mt Emily hunt?

 

[Tim McCoy]

You might want to check the points needed, if rifle, the only one of the three you are likely to draw is N Warner. The others usually take more points. I'm in MT Emily most falls, chasing elk, there are some very good bucks in there, can be very tough to find. If after a 170+ class buck, you'd need to be very lucky, scout a ton, have local knowledge or get a guide, IMO. There are a few locals that find and watch a few whoppers every year. I don't know that it is really any better in terms of quality bucks than the other units you mentioned, but hunting the rut is what really makes that one have potential. Lots of timber in that unit.

 

[ore hunter]

the late juniper muzz hunt is the best in the state but takes like 17 points?again ,never know if a random might fall your way,,,your in line for n warner rifle w 10 pts,,just time of year isn't the best .