Texas Mule Deer

[cuerro viejo]

I know this thread isn't about whitetails but got drawn for one last year in January. Cool thing about that was it was so far south that they were rutting that week.

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The chap?

Some really unique opportunities out there like The Nilgi Archery hunt is tough but a very rewarding hunt if you stick with it.

Think I'm going to start putting in for some gator hunts also

 

[BrianID]

I hunted Big Bend Ranch State park a couple years ago. I didn't pull the trigger during the hunt but had plenty of opportunity. In three days of hunting I saw about 20 different bucks. I also did one of the whitetail hunts about 8 years ago.
Success rates on these hunts are low because most hunters that draw them don't know how to hunt mule deer. You should be able to scout any of the state parks before the hunt but you won't know what "compartment" you will be hunting until the orientation day. You will feel like you are being babysat by the Texas Park and Wildlife employees during the hunt. All of the Texas Park and Wildlife people I have come across on these hunts are friendly, helpful and want to see you successful on the hunt. They just seem overly concerned about your safety. I wasn't able to pick up any of the shed antlers I found on these hunts which was disappointing. It is just my uneducated guess but I believe the bucks on Big Bend Ranch State Park and some of the other state parks die from old age much more often than they do from hunters. This isn't true of most places with mule deer. For example, over the counter units in Idaho have very few mule deer bucks dying from old age. The restrictions are annoying but I would do one of the hunts again if I could ever overcome the terrible draw odds.