It is always a good idea once you get on the ground in your unit to know how much rain the area has received. Deer densities in the low country can be fewer. BaseMap, Hunting. June 20, 2011 By Eddie Claypool For most of my bowhunting life, I considered the last day of December the end of my season. Heavy brush areas along the washes can hold deer all day long while they wait for dusk. If you are looking for a horseback hunt, this is NOT the hunt for you. When crossing ridges, make sure you are not the tallest feature on the skyline. Call local biologists that work for AZGFD and ask them about unit recommendations and tell them exactly what you are looking for in a hunt whether that’s Coues deer, mule deer, mountains, or low desert. Over eons of time, water has cut what they call washes into the sand and gravel creating depressions that make it easy for animals to migrate in keeping out of sight from anyone above them. From the high desert of the Arizona strip, to the high alpine of the Rockies and Cascades, there’s no other game animal more emblematic of the American West than the mule deer. The cooler full of beer or coke back at camp can wait, you have a buck to kill. Often times you can use your wind and the terrain to your advantage to stalk and sneak into a sleeping buck and take them in their beds. These two phrases grab our attention and pull us in with visions quaking aspen at 10,000 feet dancing in our heads. You see the fish, so you keep trying. Given that you’ll be hunting in the desert, you’ll need to be cautious of how much noise you make. Resist those temptations. Be Physically Prepared. Across this vast range, mule deer behave very differently. var referer="";try{if(referer=document.referrer,"undefined"==typeof referer||""==referer)throw"undefined"}catch(exception){referer=document.location.href,(""==referer||"undefined"==typeof referer)&&(referer=document.URL)}referer=referer.substr(0,700); You should also research the best time to hunt during each state’s respective mule deer hunting season. Start searching online for the best places to hunt trophy mule deer, which often includes states like Colorado, Utah, Idaho, Nevada, Wyoming, New Mexico, and Arizona. But, I like to target bucks that are 150 inches and larger. Try walking the brushy bottoms below ridges just out of sight. Deer will feed on the sunny side of slopes in the mornings so be sure you’re in a position to see the northeast slopes in the morning. This is the reason, you need lots of patience and hard work for mule deer hunting. “Low country” hunts can be just as exciting, are overlooked, and provide unique opportunities and challenges. Another great Arizona mule deer hunting tip is that, if you are shooting for a buck, when you see a group of does there will generally be a buck either behind them or with them. Bucks conserve energy during the day, and since they likely have to travel further for water, they do so under darkness when it is cool (obviously this applies to warmer weather hunts). Not so. Our most productive methods of hunting these muley bucks is by glassing and stalking with an emphasis on glassing. To conclude, a mule deer hunt in one of Arizona OTC units is often overlooked by hunters who think they need to draw a tag in order to experience a quality hunt. Follow the rules. As the temperatures cool down, the hunting can certainly begin to heat up. For your own safety (and to avoid legal troubles), as well as for the benefit of a mule deer population that is in decline, hunt only in season and according to the regulations established by that state, province, or territory. From seeing bucks fighting and chasing does all over the place, to the simply fantastic weather, this is a hunt that every bowhunter should experience one day. Much of the low country is open with vegetation shorter than yourself. Over the Counter Archery Mule Deer Hunts in Arizona are the most overlooked in the west with opportunity at trophy caliber bucks with an average 160 – 180 class bucks, with annual bucks exceeding 180+ and our biggest archery buck to date being 223 inches! It was hard to believe a whole year had passed since last deer season and, as this one approached, I considered it with great excitement tempered with a little sorrow. Staying out all day is tougher in the low country because of several factors like heat, boredom, and easier access to roads for a quick trip to camp. A mature desert mule deer buck tries to hide in an ocotillo forest in the Davis Mountains of Far West Texas. Mule Vs Whitetail Deer: Understanding Their Intelligence and Behavior; Deer Behavior Patterns; Weight of Deer; Movement of the Mule Deer; A Good Pair of Binoculars is Needed; Choose a Binocular that Matches with Bows; Hunting Deer in Snow; Hunting Deer in River Bottoms; Stealth Techniques in Deer Hunting with Bows Mule deer hunting in the low country can be a game of checkers. Reading Tracks. Big bucks are aware of this and visit only when necessary. Some of these low country mule deer areas feel like they have a road on every ridge. Some of these low country mule deer areas feel like they have a road on every ridge. While the Southwest has an abundance of public land that is available to a very large number of hunters, water is a luxury and therefore a huge determining factor in where deer and other wildlife congregate. We do not use or own horses and pack animals. These open country mule deer can see you skylining yourself on a ridge from miles away. Big, flat open areas should be avoided. Do your homework prior to stepping foot in the area. They are going to where the food holds more protein and moisture. Avoid their nose and ears, because they are prone to smell and movement. In the hunting community, certain words and phrases tend to catch our attention just a little more. The only time I’ve really encountered other hunters in the field is when hunting on weekends. Do what no one else wants to do in the low country, stay out all day. Not only does that cold drink taste better on the hill, use it as motivation and something to look forward to while you grind it out all day looking for a big buck. One thing we have done is put a favorite drink right next to the ice block in the cooler the night before so it is ice cold. Our site uses cookies. Trophy Sonoran (desert) mule deer bucks range in size between 140 inches and 210 inches and average about 150 inches. Finding water doesn’t necessarily mean you can sit on it and kill though. The vegetation and topography is more conducive to road making, legal and illegal. Therefore, you can generally count on this when you're hunting for mule deer, and you can go after some of the biggest here you can find. Knowing where to park and where your high elevation points are to glass from is integral for getting into position in a timely fashion. I don't care if you're hunting the desert floor of Arizona or the 13,000’ high country of Colorado: only a small percentage of any given area will hold big mature mule deer. The cooler full of beer or coke back at camp can wait, you have a buck to kill. It is a good idea to know where deer are entering and exiting fields as these can be great places to hide and wait for a buck to cross in front of you. The more scarce water becomes, the closer life clings to it. An az desert mule deer archery hunt to remember with an epic spot and stalk of about 1500 yards. It has all the land ownership boundaries, clearest resolution of any phone mapping app out today, has super cool 3D Google maps, and several other hunt based layers. Hunters can choose an arizona hunt thats either super easy or super strenuous or any level of difficulty in between. Tips for Scouting Mule Deer With BaseMap. var rcds = document.getElementById("rcjsload_8b0be0"); If there has been heavy rain in the summer months, there can be free water in rocky pockets all over the desert and animals will not need to frequent these man-made water holes. We ended up killing a buck in one of these bottoms right underneath a road where several ATV’s passed by just out of sight. The fact is that hunting in cold weather can provide a hunter with opportunities to … While it is the desert, sub-freezing temperatures are not uncommon. Trail cams are great for finding and patterning deer, we all know this. For this article we suggest a different purpose for trail cams. It may take time, effort and luck, but nothing compares to being in the desert during winter chasing mule deer bucks. rcel.id = 'rc_' + Math.floor(Math.random() * 1000); My wife Tia and I both drew Arizona rifle mule deer tags for November 2018. Deer Hunting in Arizona Game Management Unit 36A. var rcel = document.createElement("script"); Don't Miss: A Big Mule Deer and a 7-Year Itch. When the hum of ATV’s stops mid-day in the low country, deer will feed out. rcel.src = "https://trends.revcontent.com/serve.js.php?w=111055&t="+rcel.id+"&c="+(new Date()).getTime()+"&width="+(window.outerWidth || document.documentElement.clientWidth)+"&referer="+encodeURIComponent(referer); Google Earth is your friend. Learn more about our use of cookies: cookie policy, Don’t Overlook the Small Fields for Geese, Home Protection for Seniors? Rifle Mule Deer Success . As discussed earlier, hunting the low country can be hot, mundane, and not always the most action-packed type of hunting. Our strategy was to park way at the bottom and walk up the mountain in these bottoms. You’ll need to get into your glassing spots before daylight and even before pre-dawn light when deer are moving. Thermals change throughout the course of the day and can come from one direction before sunrise and change when the sun hits the ground. We hear a lot about “backcountry” and “high country” mule deer hunting. These habitat types occur at elevations below conifer/aspen communities, are often water-limited, open, and warmer. Desert Mule Deer Hunting The first and least expensive is to take your shoes off, but watch out for cactus and other prickly plants, they hurt. Deer won’t stray too far from a good water source, natural or man-made. The vegetation and topography is more conducive to road making, legal and illegal. What we do is drop our pack, put RimRok Stalkers in our pocket or under our belt, and get to within a couple of hundred yards of our intended buck. The ability of a hunter to read a track has led to the demise of many big deer over … Arizona Desert Mule Deer Hunts: The wily and elusive trophy mule deer bucks of the Southern Arizona desert offer the mule deer hunter a unique trophy hunt as several of the Arizona desert mule deer units have firearm mule deer hunts that take place right during the peak of the rut. Because hunting the low country frequently means you are hunting out of a base camp near a road, you have the ability to pack items you wouldn’t even think of packing miles into the backcountry. Mule deer hunting requires lots of strength and heavy weapons. When fewer water sources exist, the risk of predation at water increases. Big, flat open areas should be avoided. There isn’t much cover in the desert and you’re not going to catch any deer in the open flat areas during any daylight hours. Younger, healthier, greener plants are higher in protein than older, drier vegetation, which is why deer move so often from June through the end of July. rcel.type = 'text/javascript'; Go To YouTube Channel  Deer Feeder HogLight Systems | Advanced Online Source and Top Search Online Web Resource for "FACTS ON HUNTING FERAL HOGS" in Texas, texasboars, TexasWildHogs, Wild_Hog_Feederlights, Hunt Sports and the National Hunting Consortium, U.S.A., California, Florida, Texas, wild boar and pig hunting highest numbers, feral hog hunting night light plans, Wild Hogs in … Take a special treat for lunch. Water sources can be streams, springs, seeps, holes in rocks, guzzlers, and livestock ponds and troughs. Low country ground is hard, rocky, prickly, and dry. Bowhunting deer is always fun, but these particular seasons allow us to chase mule deer and coues deer during the rut with OTC(over the counter) tags. Once a buck is spotted, getting into … The vegetation in these habitat types includes sagebrush, bitterbrush, cliffrose, mountain mahogany, and pinyon and juniper woodlands. In our opinion water sources in the low country get visitation more often during the night than compared to higher elevation water sources. Hunters have the most success finding the mule deer in the foothills and the lower hills throughout the unit as well as the deeper ravines and canyons in the central portion of the unit.