Whitetail hunting (Unit 66) in Idaho

[rmf166]

Hey everyone,

As a first-time hunter I thought I'd share some lessons learned this past October after my less-than-stellar hunting trip. Perhaps in the process I can acquire some wisdom from people here. Sorry for the novel below.

My buddy and I showed up at the end of October for a weekend hunt, tent camping and all (a little cold at night and the morning, which kept us from getting out earlier than 7 AM). Anyhow, I got a resident tag for mule and whitetail deer, which I thought would be fairly easy to fill (Ha!). The first day we went out glassing for 3 or 4 hours, try and see if we could spot for deer up the hills below or near the tree line, but no luck. We did find a seasonal ATV trail, so we decided to come back the next morning and start hiking up between the ridges. After walking for 3 miles, and spotting some deer droppings, we started to hike up a hill with some promising grassy areas where it was clear a large mammal had bedded between the brush. However, by the time we reached the top of the hill for some more glassing, we heard some noise coming down from the trail. Back on the trail the noise morphed into several four-wheelers and motorbikes speeding past us. The ATV trail was indeed seasonal, but still open in October! At this point the daytime temperature had reached 60 F, and we decided to head back to camp and go fishing on the South Fork (not a consolation for prize for anglers...)

The last day we headed down from Unit 66 to 63, where the only mammals to be found were doing target practice, so we joined them. But that's another story.

Several lessons come to mind in hindsight, all of them most likely obvious. So here are some observations by Captain Obvious. First, visiting the hunting location is crucial, but also in the correct (hunter) mindset. I had driven around and even camped with my family earlier in the summer, but never took time to do some glassing during the summer. Second, check regulation twice, as several other motorized trails nearby were off limit, but we decided on taking the "wrong" one, so to speak. Third, we were only able to hike a total of 7-8 miles until the afternoon, as we were unfamiliar with the terrain and should have done some hiking in the area earlier in the season. Fourth, the success rates for 2017 in the unit were 11%, so odds do matter.

I'm curious to hear from some experienced hunters in forum. I'm also wondering whether using trail cameras are used by most deer hunters. My intent for the hunt was to go stalking for a deer, but most likely there are better strategies out there. Do most deer hunters consider going on horseback for terrains such as unit 66?

Thanks everyone!

 

[rmf166]

Below shows the terrain and view of area.

 

[psycho]

I'm not "experienced" by any means but I have filled plenty of tags with low odds. I just figure I have to work harder than 89% of other hunters in your case. Even though I don't like it I have learned that stopping and glassing is key. I get antsy and want to make something happen but you have to stop and glass when you get to a good area. I don't stop hunting when its noon. I understand you are unlikely to find anything when its hot but I have still found plenty of animals when they are bedded. So I hunt all day every day when I am hunting, well maybe other than an occasional nap on the mountainside. I try not do walk down roads, closed or not as sooner or later some jackass will come tearing down it even if its in the wilderness. Every hunt I learn something new and apply it to the next one, collect it all and apply it next year. Even when you come up empty its still a good time in the mountains. I am not familiar with your area but I bet you don't need horses, you just need to get a little further away from people. Get another tag next year and give it another try. Good luck.

 

[LCH]

Sounds like you are sorting some of this out for yourself. I've never been to that area, but my general recommendations would include:

-Find hunting spots close to where you live. Spend a lot of time scouting in the offseason, looking for sign, finding decent vantage points for glassing if they exist in that country, etc. Trail cams could be of some help, but you really need to do a lot of leg work prior to placing the cams or they're not likely to be productive, and would be a much lower priority to me than just learning the area.

-Don't assume that just because a trail is "closed" that people won't ride it. Unless there's an unbreachable physical barrier, odds are a quad will be down it sooner or later. Use your maps to find areas out of sight of the trails, maybe just a ridge over, that are likely being ridden right past by most of the atv users. I often use ATV trails or even full-sized 2 tracks through the forest to get in a ways on foot, then hop a ridge or crawl through some deadfall and am in to good hunting.

-Once you've dialed in an area through your scouting, plan to be at your glassing spot, or at the beginning of your stalk, at daylight. Certain times of the year mid-day breaks may be warranted, but anywhere close to the rut and I'm hunting all day if possible. I'm also hunting all day if there's some irregularity in the weather that may have deer on their feet midday, such as a cold front or impending rain. Start your walk back at dark, don't spend some of the most productive parts of your day busting trail to/from camp.

-It's taken me several years to get my camp dialed in, but now with the Kodiak Canvas, a big cot, a shower system, and a propane heater, I sleep just as well there as I would at home. It's easier to stay focused and hunt all day when you're well rested, and easier to crawl out of your cot when you can reach over and crank some heat.


Good luck and stay with it, if you're stubborn enough you'll find success eventually.

 

[rmf166]

Thanks for your comments! Good point on continuing on even during the hottest part of the day. I will certainly go back during the season, pick up another tag and try again!