Mule Deer/Antelope hunting

wildcat3

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
Starting to get the itch to hunt out west. For those that have hunted Mule Deer and Antelope out west, where did you hunt and who was the outfitter ? At this point I'm not interested in a DIY hunt, maybe after some experience out west and some ground time but defiantly want to start with an outfitter. Also what caliber gun did you hunt with and at what distance did you set up for? More than likely I'd want to fly and rent a car from the airport. I'd be going by myself and don't want to drive that far alone. Might be fun with a group but sounds painfully long and boring alone, although I've known some that did it. Anything else you can think of I need to inquire about or anything you'd like to add that I might need to know is greatly appreciated.
 

genesis27:3

Old Mossy Horns
First, start buying points. It doesn't take alot of points to hunt antelope. I've got a few points accumulated which I'm itching to cash in. Second, when you go, it won't be your last trip!
I've never hunted antelope or mulies, but have hunted elk and travel to various western states a few times a year, it's addictive!
 

entropy

Twelve Pointer
Nebraska is over the counter tags each good for a muley or whitetail. 2 tags max.

Nice deer out in western NE.
270 is plenty
 
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Blackwater

Twelve Pointer
If going for antelope there's little reason to spend the money for an outfitter if you can get a few points and use them for an area with plenty of public land. Areas that are easier to draw usually don't have much public land but there are ranchers who will let you hunt their property by paying a kill fee or similar charge. For antelope I use a .243 zeroed at 265 yards but any reasonably flat shooting caliber will do fine. Mule deer and elk I use a 30-06 or .280 Rem usually zeroed at 200 yds.

With some planning and sense of adventure you should be able to find someone here on the forum to hook up with and drive out and that way you can bring back your meat. Antelope meat is much better eating than deer if taken care of immediately after the shot. Camping on BLM land is legal but not state land in WY., though some people stay in motels since you can easily drive to the area you'll be hunting and the goats are around and visible for the most part all day long so there's no reason to be out there before day unless you've found a gonzo buck and want to return to that spot in hopes of connecting before he chases some doe or other buck into the next county.
 

Randy

Ten Pointer
If you haven't already, I would suggest going to the Wyo Game & Fish webpage and look at their Hunt Planner. It has a lot of good info. including unit maps, season dates, past draw odds and harvest success reports. If you decide to fly, be careful about renting a a lot of rental companies will not guarantee you a 4WD vehicle, which you will definitely want. I found this out the hard way when I flew to Neb. last spring to turkey hunt. However, if you fly into Denver you should be able to get a 4WD without much trouble. They normally keep a good supply around because of all the folks going skiing.
 

Eric Revo

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
My suggestion would be to research the states that you plan to consider as the population of mule deer has changed drastically in the past few years and outfitters don't seem to advertise that fact. Antelope are fairly easy to access on public or private land and aren't affected negatively by the same factors that devastated the mule deer population in some areas.
I used to have really good success in the lower mountains of Co within a couple of hours from Denver, but now a lot of that BLM land is a mule deer desert, whereas antelope are plentiful. So plan your hunt accordingly, you may have to either determine which species you prefer to take...or plan to drive a ways to have a chance at both.
 

BiggestSpikeYouEverSeen

Ten Pointer
Contributor
I've hunted some combo of deer/elk/antelope in the west for the past 5 years. I've done DIY Private, DIY Public and guided....Be careful - It's on the addictive end of the spectrum :cool: Your seasons probably won't jive to do a pronghorn/muley combo in CO which is sad because that state is the mecca for for big Mule deer and you can get an antelope buck tag/voucher in an average (for the state) unit without much of a challenge. Most CO outfitters have the ability to put you on a 150+ mule deer and in a decent area you may see a handful of legit booners as well. CO isn't known for huge antelope, but they do have their units. Wyoming is also a strong state for both of your target species...So is New Mexico. Once you start getting into Nevada, Utah, Arizona, Montana etc. I feel you move more into big elk country. Still great mule deer and pronghorn to hunt there but based on the accessibility to tags/land owner vouchers I would probably stick with CO/WY/NM.

Average shot will probably be 250 yards. On another note, we've had some shots big time close and others 400+. For me to shoot much more than that, conditions need to be perfect and out there - that can be a tall order. 270/308/300 or similar would be fine for what you're pursuing.

I suppose to summarize and stop rambling....Based on your ask - I'd hunt guided for mule deer in CO/WY/NM. Depending on the season you might can add on an elk hunt if you desired. I'd hunt with a caliber similar to the afore mentioned and lean towards the larger end if you chase elk. You can fly to Denver, Albuquerque or Billings (MT) and get to a lot of places in these three states with less than 4 hours on the road. If you like all the west has to offer and want to do one without guides, following up the next year with a DIY (public or private) pronghorn hunt would be a good place to start.

Good luck!
 
I went to Wyoming on my last trip west. Flew into Sheridan, hunted area 22 for antelope. Big horn outfitters. We didn't even have to rent a car since the outfitter picked us up at no cost. Excellent trip. Took 2 guns but only used my 243 sighted in 3 1/2 inches high at 100 yards and it allowed me to hold dead on out to 325 yards. Shot my lope at 384 yards. Area 22 has a ton of private land so there was no need to buy preference points since there were more tags than people needed because unless you had access to private land you weren't hunting that area. Great experience for anyone looking for an affordable 1st time western trip. You see a boatload of game. Another perk was after we took our buck antelopes the outfitter took us back to town, we bought doe antelope tags and took does and paid an additional $50 directly to the landowner, who BTW owned 32,000 acres. Camp was great, food was great and I'm even still friendly with my guide, emailing and texting regularly. Cost was 1800 in 2012. It's up to 2150 now. I'm planning on going back next year on a cow elk hunt. It costs $2200 but based on my experience it's well worth it. After we tagged out the guides took us to the big horn mountains and they showed us their wall tent base camp they use for elk. If you have any questions you can either post them here (but I dont get on here much) or email me scaponi1@hotmail.com either way go do it and enjoy every part of the hunt.
 

dpc

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
My oldest brother is stationed out in Clovis NM and did a guided hunt for both last year. He saw a bunch of both. Problem being, he saw the antelope during the mule deer hunt and the mule deer during the Antelope hunt.

He got a cow elk tag this year and filled it solo this past Saturday, mentioned he would never do that again without a guide or another hunter.
 

Helium

Old Mossy Horns
Some buddies and I have been to WY 2x on successful pronghorn DIY hunts. Had free access to tons of PLPW land if you know how to work the system. It's private land enrolled with the state to allow hunters access via permit.

.270 and .243 were our choice weapons. Practiced out to 350-400 yds and I actually shot some in that range but on average 250yds is the range.

We flew into Denver from charlotte...rented 4x4 trucks for solid week (cost $350/week) and drove into WY.

No way I would pay for a guided antelope hunt unless I wasn't otherwise physically able.

Currently sitting on a lot of mule deer, several antelope and elk points for WY
 
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manybeards

Ten Pointer
Lived and practiced in Casper for 5 years during the early 90's..... DIY opportunities abound and you can certainly be successful if public land is your cup of tea! But, if you want your first experience to be with a quality guide, then you would be in great hands with Sy Gilliland in Casper. Sy runs SNS Outfitters.... The largest operation in the state. His license number is BG#001 which should tell you something. He runs 95-100% success on his hunts and you can do a combo Mule Deer/Antelope management hunt for $4,495. Trophy hunts are about $2,000 more. Check out their webpage. Hope things work out for you........
 

SpearDiver

Button Buck
I went to Wyoming on my last trip west. Flew into Sheridan, hunted area 22 for antelope. Big horn outfitters. We didn't even have to rent a car since the outfitter picked us up at no cost. Excellent trip. Took 2 guns but only used my 243 sighted in 3 1/2 inches high at 100 yards and it allowed me to hold dead on out to 325 yards. Shot my lope at 384 yards. Area 22 has a ton of private land so there was no need to buy preference points since there were more tags than people needed because unless you had access to private land you weren't hunting that area. Great experience for anyone looking for an affordable 1st time western trip. You see a boatload of game. Another perk was after we took our buck antelopes the outfitter took us back to town, we bought doe antelope tags and took does and paid an additional $50 directly to the landowner, who BTW owned 32,000 acres. Camp was great, food was great and I'm even still friendly with my guide, emailing and texting regularly. Cost was 1800 in 2012. It's up to 2150 now. I'm planning on going back next year on a cow elk hunt. It costs $2200 but based on my experience it's well worth it. After we tagged out the guides took us to the big horn mountains and they showed us their wall tent base camp they use for elk. If you have any questions you can either post them here (but I dont get on here much) or email me scaponi1@hotmail.com either way go do it and enjoy every part of the hunt.

That's really cool, Sheridan is my hometown. I just drove out there in October for my elk hunt and hated having to leave.
 

nhn2a

Ten Pointer
What are your expectations out of the hunt? Are you wanting trophy or are you wanting good opportunity? That will really decide the area you'll want to target as well as the number of points needed to draw.

My mom and I went to CO this year and went to unit 3/301. They are known for great opportunity but not necessarily trophy animals. We killed an Elk and two mule deer on a 5 day DIY hunt on public land. Shots ranged from 450 - 700yrds. Her deer was mid 130s, mine was mid 150s. We originally planned to go with the outfitter at the link below because they offer a guaranteed opportunity hunt fairly cheap and if you dont get an opportunity at an animal, they refund your money. I verified their reviews and talked to previous clients who all had great things to say. I even called and talked to them and asked how they could offer guaranteed hunts and their response was that there are just so many mule deer in that unit that they never had someone not have an opportunity. Thats actually what convinced us to set out on our own and not go with an outfitter ... lol.

http://muledeerspecialists.com/
 
That's really cool, Sheridan is my hometown. I just drove out there in October for my elk hunt and hated having to leave.

It was actually my 2nd trip there. It's my favorite place I've ever visited. I'm prob going back in 18 for the cow elk hunt. I'm thinking of driving because the cost of shipping that much meat home is very cost prohibitive. Figure I'll take my time and enjoy all the scenery and America along the way.
 

SpearDiver

Button Buck
It was actually my 2nd trip there. It's my favorite place I've ever visited. I'm prob going back in 18 for the cow elk hunt. I'm thinking of driving because the cost of shipping that much meat home is very cost prohibitive. Figure I'll take my time and enjoy all the scenery and America along the way.

Its not that bad of a drive depending on your route. if you go I90 west through South Dakota (looks like the most likely route from New York state) there is nothing to see until the black hills. When you have some down time make sure you go up Tongue River canyon in Dayton Wyo. Beautiful place with amazing rock formations right at the base of the Big Horn mountains and amazing trout fishing and a really nice hiking trail.
If you have any questions feel free to ask, since I grew up there and all of my family is still there I'm sure there wont be many questions I cant answer.

Rick
 
Its not that bad of a drive depending on your route. if you go I90 west through South Dakota (looks like the most likely route from New York state) there is nothing to see until the black hills. When you have some down time make sure you go up Tongue River canyon in Dayton Wyo. Beautiful place with amazing rock formations right at the base of the Big Horn mountains and amazing trout fishing and a really nice hiking trail.
If you have any questions feel free to ask, since I grew up there and all of my family is still there I'm sure there wont be many questions I cant answer.

Rick

Much appreciated sir !! Left a message with the outfitter today
 
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