wyoming mule deer & antelope info.

catfishlouie

catfishlouie

Member
Ok should start by saying I have never hunted any out of the state of ohio.but this year will be different .i was drawn for mule deer in area y & and antelope in 021-1 does anyone know the area? i believe near kaycee .if so are there good populations of both. should i concentrate more towards one than the other? is this a good area? and are there any coyotes in case i tagg out?
 
I know the area.
If you are needing a place to hunt, access will be the biggest problem, unless you have private property lined up. There are always leftover tags in those areas because of the access issue. Last year I saw a guy get a tresspassing ticket for being about 40 feet on the wrong side of the property line. He was trying to work a small piece of public ground and strayed over. Had his young teenage boy with him, so it made it tough. Remember, there are not a lot of fences to mark the boundaries, so you better know where you are at.
The trouble with the public spots in that area is that they tend to be small, real small by western standards. And they are irregular shaped which can make navigating a nightmare if you are not used to map reading. And there is not a lot in the region, so those small spots get hit really hard by nonres and locals. Deer zones 163 & 169 only have a week-long season because of the pressure. May be the only 2 zones in the state with such a short season. You will often hear "Wait till after opening week and then the pressure lets up", but opening week is the ONLY week in those two deer zones, which have the most public land in that part of your region Y tag. Some of the big chunks of public ground (like many other zones in that part of Wyoming) are not accessible from a public road, so you have to have permission (read that "open your wallet") from the landowner to get to them. Several of the roads in that area are not public roads.
I would describe the antelope population as good and the mule deer population as fair. I would say it is not an area known for trophys, but the potential always exist. I am sure someone can show you a picture of a monster that came from those areas, it's just that there are better areas for both, population and trophy potential wise.
Now, all that being said, you already have the tags and there are definitely deer and antelope there, so go have a blast. I am not trying to rain on your parade, just telling you how it is. The nice thing with your "region" deer tag is that you can always move to another zone up north if you want to. You are not limited to only one zone as with the antelope tag. The Big Horns offer a large piece of ground to hunt within your region if you need places to go. The good thing with your zone 21 antelope tag (which encompasses deer zones 163 & 169 with their public lands)is that the antelope season is runs long, not just a week like the deer season does.
 
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Have you considered trying to get on a ranch out there? It is very late to be getting started, but might be an option. Especially if you are interested in muleys.
When are you going?
Would you be willing to settle for a whitetail instead of mule deer?
What type pronghorn are you after (trophy, anything with horns, etc.)?
Are you planning to camp, stay in a motel?
 
i do have access to what i consider ranch but im sure not as far as western standards 40000+ acres with access to 45000 blm land.we are leaving oct.12 planning on being there on 13th,season starts the 15th. what type of terrain can i expect and what is the best method for hunting? we will be camping on the ranch for the whole week of season. i plan on being somewhat pickey on both animals but standards can come down easily. just really curious onwhat to expect i guess, and trying to get some good info before i get out there and get hit with the unexpected.also weather that time of year is a concern also being as we are camping.
 
Sounds like Fernekas.
21 is rough, broken country. Won't look much like Ohio. lol. The first thing that strikes many people is "brown". Yep, the color brown, everywhere as far as you can see. Although the red wall is kind of neat looking. You will probably be able to see the big horn peaks. Elevation runs up to about 8000 feet the further west into 21 that you go, starting at around 5000 at I25.
Pine ridges down in that country instead of just sagebrush knolls. Some spots are really pretty. Around the bentonite mines it can be otherwise.
Travel under the rim of the hills. The most useful piece of equipment you bring may be spotting scope and binocs. Look, look, look- let your eyes do more hunting than your feet. But you will probably cover a lot of country if you want a wall hanger.
 
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Typical view of the country...east of Kaycee in 2003.

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This area is usually rough, broken country, although there is quite a bit of agricultural land mixed in. Lots of cattle/sheep in the area. You'll find deer near the ag land early and late, and they literally hole up through the heat of the day. If it's hot, look for water. In the daytime, deer will be in the deep cuts/ravines, holed up under a rock ledge, or even out on the flats...look in the shadows behind clumps of sage. Get high early and glass. You can't imagine watching an area for hours with nothing, then suddenly a deer will stand up next to a 3 foot clump of sage, move around and lay back down in the shadow. Mid afternoon can be productive, hunting them like rabbits...walk the edges of draws and cuts, they'll often jump up and run aways, and stop and look back.

There are more antelope in the NE portion of Wyo than there are anywhere. You'll most likely see hundreds...no kidding. Don't shoot the first one you see. Browse the net, looking for info on field judging the animals. Look for long prongs above the ears and mass for a good animal. Oh, and spend the $36 for a non-res doe antelope tag. It's well worth it, and does are better eating anyway. The best advice I can give you is to take a cooler with ice and pack the cavity immediately to cool the meat. Proper meat handling makes the animal taste much better. There's a meat locker in Kaycee that does a great job with reasonable rates.

Good luck...wish I was going this year...maybe next.

Bownut
 
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Bownut, I trapped near the Upper Sussix rd the first yr out there. I'll remember the sheep man's name, after I sign off! Joe reculusa? Been too long!
 
Originally Posted By: Tactical .20Bownut, I trapped near the Upper Sussix rd the first yr out there. I'll remember the sheep man's name, after I sign off! Joe reculusa? Been too long!

the ranch we hunted was owned by the Meike's, right at Powder River, near Sussex.
 
When you get there,if boundaries are confusing,or access seems impossible,stop and ask!The people may or may not help,but you really won't know without help.Stop a game warden if you see one.Good luck.
 
Ive hunted north of Kaycee back in '04. that is awesome country. Hunted on a private ranch 18,000 ac. we filled our tags in 2 days. After I shot my buck (3x4), a monster raced out of the bottom of the draw, he was close enough to see at least 30" width and 6x6 with extra stickers and mass. Totally awesome buck. No kidding, I had 4 witnesses but no more tags. So they are out there. Now I hunt south of Casper in the Shirley Mtns, lots of DIY federal land. This will Be my 10th year. So I will be headin West on Oct 13th as well. So good luck to ya. Oh forgot to tell ya Enjoy the Wyoming mid afternoon breezes. 40 mph++. (Lost a few hats over the years).
 
How is the Hunting in Shirley mts? I drove through the Shirley Basin a few yrs back. Trapped on Joe Rescalusa's first yr trapping, near kaycee. Man sounds like a dandy buck you saw!
 
Hunting is great in the shirley basin, never left Wyoming with an empty antelope tag. Awesome place for a DIY antelope hunt. there are literally thousands of Antelope. Shot a 15 1/2 inch buck in '08. Mule deer in the mtns is good depends on the temp. My best buck so far is a 3x4 with 25 in sprd. The single tine was 19" tall. Decent mass. I go out there for relaxation and not trophy hunting. Always a great time, except the year they got 16 inches of snow on the 3rd day of deer season. That sucked!
 
I've never understood how anyone would not fill a goat tag out here. Only slightly harder to find than the ground itself
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ND Ya gotta get drawn first. I'm in my 5th year of rejection right now.

Oh, I suppose I could get into an area thats very liberal with the licenses, however, I know these goats here pretty well.
 
5 rejections? Really? That sucks dude. I've got 3 tags this year for 35/38 and another 3 for deer, 1 general and 2 for 55. I'm taking a break from elk this year so I'm going for quantity. Where are you putting in?

It's not the same as hunting but I'd be glad to share the meat if you want one processed, around $100 for the best processor I know of.

Same token if anyone is coming out this way I've got BLM maps and wouldn't mind driving you around to the public spots. I've got a rancher who lets me on in both areas, can probably talk him in to another hunter as long as he's with me.
 
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Side note. I've taken a few hunters goat hunting, many from out east where 100 yards is a loooooooong shot. In goat country 100 yards is close. Real close. There's no cover, no trees, at best there's a little terrain to kind of maybe hide behind. Basically prairie. I dropped my goat last year at 440 yards by laser. It was out of range of my laser rangefinder, I had to track back to my truck and range it, range the goat, and do the math.

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Year before at 275 by laser
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So practice at least 200 yards
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there's no % of orange required, just 1 main piece so a hat does you fine. IMO goat hunting is the safest big game hunt out there, fewer people than anything else and you can usually see if there's anyone else on the section you're hunting.
 
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