“Tag: Mule Deer”

Fifty years ago it was tough to find a mule deer in West Texas, but today it seems like they’re everywhere … unless you’re hunting them, of course. Last year, the author scoured the area’s red rock canyons and mesquite-covered ridges to learn what has led to their abundance.

The Idaho Fish and Game Commission on November 22 authorized the Director of Fish and Game to establish emergency hunts for increased sampling for Chronic Wasting Disease.

Two mule deer bucks taken in the Slate Creek drainage near Lucile in October have tested positive for chronic wasting disease.

Here are five steps you can take to get your rifle in shape and ready for hunting season this fall.

Any of these five cartridges will set you up for a successful mule deer hunt anywhere they reside.

A record-book mule deer is one of the most coveted trophies in North America. Here’s a list of states and provinces that consistently produce big bucks.

Faced with back-to-back hunts this past fall—the first in pursuit of pronghorn on the rolling prairie outside Casper, Wyo., the second combing the rugged Idaho mountains for mule deer—I knew I would need a balance between wide field of view, detailed clarity and precise ranging capabilities. Luckily for me, a pair of Leupold’s BX-5 Santiam HD 10x42mm binoculars and an RX-2800 TBR/W rangefinder were on hand, ready to be put to the test.

Weighing in at a mere 3.8 pounds, an almost unheard-of number for a load-hauling external-frame pack—much less one with a 4,000-cubic-inch capacity—I had high expectations for the PRO LT going in. It exceeded them.

How do you determine whether the buck you’re looking at is good, great or a monster? Here are a few tricks you can use to quickly and confidently judge a mule deer’s real proportions.