Hunting Chelan, WA

[ianpadron]

I disagree. Everything about this state is pretty much the best in the US except the people, which are among the worst. Unfortunately, it’s those people who are ruining everything.

Bingo.

No other state comes close if you're a year round outdoorsmen. If Montana or Wyoming had salmon/steelhead and weren't 25 below zero all winter, there might be a closer race lol.

The politics here suck, but WA is 100% worth fighting for.

That bit aside, as a newb, WA can be intimidating for mule deer. I was one 6 years ago.

If I could do things over I'd do less reading about the good Ole days and focus on seeing as much country as possible. There are small pockets in this state that are every bit as good as the premier units in CO and WY, and I have pictures to prove it.

It's also not as hard as guys make it out to be to get away from crowds. Even the "steep and deep" fellas rarely venture more than a mile from a trail. Learn how to use terrain to your advantage and put together a plan during your summer scouting.

Get creative with your access, learn what to look for, make note of where you see bucks, and you'll have several cracks at legal bucks every hunt.

 

[jimmy33]

Bingo.

No other state comes close if you're a year round outdoorsmen. If Montana or Wyoming had salmon/steelhead and weren't 25 below zero all winter, there might be a closer race lol.

The politics here suck, but WA is 100% worth fighting for.

That bit aside, as a newb, WA can be intimidating for mule deer. I was one 6 years ago.

If I could do things over I'd do less reading about the good Ole days and focus on seeing as much country as possible. There are small pockets in this state that are every bit as good as the premier units in CO and WY, and I have pictures to prove it.

It's also not as hard as guys make it out to be to get away from crowds. Even the "steep and deep" fellas rarely venture more than a mile from a trail. Learn how to use terrain to your advantage and put together a plan during your summer scouting.

Get creative with your access, learn what to look for, make note of where you see bucks, and you'll have several cracks at legal bucks every hunt.

Unfortunately we cant push the politics aside in Washington...I wish, but that ship sailed years ago


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Aginor]

Bingo.

No other state comes close if you're a year round outdoorsmen. If Montana or Wyoming had salmon/steelhead and weren't 25 below zero all winter, there might be a closer race lol.

The politics here suck, but WA is 100% worth fighting for.

That bit aside, as a newb, WA can be intimidating for mule deer. I was one 6 years ago.

If I could do things over I'd do less reading about the good Ole days and focus on seeing as much country as possible. There are small pockets in this state that are every bit as good as the premier units in CO and WY, and I have pictures to prove it.

It's also not as hard as guys make it out to be to get away from crowds. Even the "steep and deep" fellas rarely venture more than a mile from a trail. Learn how to use terrain to your advantage and put together a plan during your summer scouting.

Get creative with your access, learn what to look for, make note of where you see bucks, and you'll have several cracks at legal bucks every hunt.

I moved out here five years ago and backpacked 2,000 miles before I got into hunting. During those hikes I very, very rarely saw people. I saw tons of animals though and that’s actually what led me to hunting. This was the last year before I got into hunting, which cut my miles down significantly because I was spending more time glassing and carrying heavier loads. Not to mention lots of shorter, quick scouting trips

 

[downtownbrown0610]

I have such a love hate relationship with WA. It has so much potential. It just seems to get worse and worse every year. I have lived here for about 30 years and it used to be good, actually it used to be great. So much has changed in the last 15 years. It absolutely blows my mind. I can only imagine just starting out hunting and having to deal with some of the BS that goes on in this state. With that said I still find a way to take advantage of the opportunities that I seek and have some fairly decent hunting opportunities each year. It does take A LOT of time and effort though. There are still a few good things that come out of this state, but I am sure those will not last much longer either. As soon as I get the chance to retire (8 more years) I am without a doubt moving away from here and never looking back. Good luck to all of my fellow Washingtonians out there.

 

[Aginor]

I have such a love hate relationship with WA. It has so much potential. It just seems to get worse and worse every year. I have lived here for about 30 years and it used to be good, actually it used to be great. So much has changed in the last 15 years. It absolutely blows my mind. I can only imagine just starting out hunting and having to deal with some of the BS that goes on in this state. With that said I still find a way to take advantage of the opportunities that I seek and have some fairly decent hunting opportunities each year. It does take A LOT of time and effort though. There are still a few good things that come out of this state, but I am sure those will not last much longer either. As soon as I get the chance to retire (8 more years) I am without a doubt moving away from here and never looking back. Good luck to all of my fellow Washingtonians out there.

It seems to me like there are excellent OTC opportunities here. Obviously nothing is a given, but just being able to go every year makes me happy. You can certainly always take a deer and I’ve gotten into elk (even if none were legal) both years I’ve hunted. Plus, being able to hunt two bears all fall is a huge plus. Aside from those, the point system blows and I know I’ll never draw a moose, sheep, or goat, but I guess I can live with that. This is coming from the perspective of a new hunter who’s never hunted outside of Ohio before moving to Washington. Maybe it’s because I don’t have the perspective of what things used to be or maybe it’s because I haven’t hunted other states to know

 

[jony770]

I would agree. I really love a lot of things about this state minus a lot of the people and a lot of the politicians, but in terms of climate and things to do the variety is wonderful.

Well if Chelan and the Methow are no good, I hate to be the guy that asks but can anyone give any general locations worth looking into for a decent shot at deer? Not looking for coordinates or even specific locations, just general areas. The truth is I’ve been hunting for 5 years without success, mostly due to not having a mentor and having to learn the entire sport in my own. I’ve gained a ton of knowledge in the process, but would love to finally put some meat in the freezer, especially since I likely won’t be able to hunt for the next few years due to being in residency. I can handle tough terrain and am willing to hike in. Would be happy to take PM’s as well if folks don’t want to post their spots on the internet which is totally understandable.

 

[Aginor]

I would agree. I really love a lot of things about this state minus a lot of the people and a lot of the politicians, but in terms of climate and things to do the variety is wonderful.

Well if Chelan and the Methow are no good, I hate to be the guy that asks but can anyone give any general locations worth looking into for a decent shot at deer? Not looking for coordinates or even specific locations, just general areas. The truth is I’ve been hunting for 5 years without success, mostly due to not having a mentor and having to learn the entire sport in my own. I’ve gained a ton of knowledge in the process, but would love to finally put some meat in the freezer, especially since I likely won’t be able to hunt for the next few years due to being in residency. I can handle tough terrain and am willing to hike in. Would be happy to take PM’s as well if folks don’t want to post their spots on the internet which is totally understandable.

I can sympathize with you - I had to do the same thing. Are you fit enough to hike in 8 miles or so fully loaded and then pack out a deer with your gear on the backside as well? If so, you can tag along with me this year. My High Buck plans are in the area you’re asking about, but I’ll be with a larger group. If I don’t shoot one myself I’ll be doing the general season in a Wilderness on the peninsula that I can guarantee you a buck.

If you don’t want to tag along, I’d highly recommend checking out any of the wildernesses. I’ve seen deer in all of them. You can even get high and glass in the cascade ones. You’ll be amazed at the results of just taking an extra day for hiking in a bit further away from the typical hiking crowds. Another trick: get on Caltopo or Gaia and look at the trails in a wilderness. Either find abandoned trails or areas with no trails. From there look for your typical deer areas and then get out there and scout it. Funnily enough I just did this today in an area I frequently hike and found a fantastic drainage that I remember being pretty open country, but didn’t realize there were no trails in

 

[ianpadron]

I would agree. I really love a lot of things about this state minus a lot of the people and a lot of the politicians, but in terms of climate and things to do the variety is wonderful.

Well if Chelan and the Methow are no good, I hate to be the guy that asks but can anyone give any general locations worth looking into for a decent shot at deer? Not looking for coordinates or even specific locations, just general areas. The truth is I’ve been hunting for 5 years without success, mostly due to not having a mentor and having to learn the entire sport in my own. I’ve gained a ton of knowledge in the process, but would love to finally put some meat in the freezer, especially since I likely won’t be able to hunt for the next few years due to being in residency. I can handle tough terrain and am willing to hike in. Would be happy to take PM’s as well if folks don’t want to post their spots on the internet which is totally understandable.

Don't take this as me coming across as a dick, because that's not what I'm trying to do, but if you've been hunting 5 years without killing a big game critter, you need to go back to the drawing board and reevaluate your approach.

WA state is a target rich environment if you are truly focused on the right things and hunting/scouting hard. 2 or 3 years max to be dialed in if you're anything more than a casual hunter.

General area questions are better left to PMs, and with a low post count, be warned that most experienced guys are going to be pretty tight lipped. Read the harvest reports, call some regional bios, then lace up your boots, and go have a look in-person.

Like anything, the snowball effect is very real, and once things start clicking, you'll find you can share valuable info. which in turn will lead to others doing the same for you.

You don't need a mentor, but the best way of finding one is getting in the mountains and running into guys doing the same thing. That's how I've met some of my best hunting buddies.

Good luck and stick with it. If you want to be good at it, you'll find a way!

 

[The Ri Guy]

Plenty of spots to get away from people if you put the time in.

My hunting partner and I have catalogued 11 bucks in the 160-200"+ range in WA over the last 5 years, and killed 5 of them -- they are definitely here, you just have to outsmart everyone else on top of outsmarting the deer. Half of those were in Manson just FYI.

Having been born and raised here -- don't waste your time on Hunt WA unless you draw a special permit, then people are happy to help. I've noticed that all the popular pumpkin patch spots are routinely discussed on Hunt WA and seem to draw in all the folks trying to "figure it out". High hunt is a joke unless you have horses or are willing to put 5-10 miles on your boots every day with a full pack and you're confident in your glassing skills, then you have a good chance. Most guys simply aren't willing to work that hard.

Honestly, if it was me and I resided on the West Side + had limited WA deer hunting experience, I'd be hunting Blacktails. I have seen a lot of DANDY bucks over the years in areas not far from the big cities.

The average Washington hunter seems to routinely do the following detrimental things, and this goes for elk, deer, you name it:

1. Get into the field way too late, and head back to camp way too early. Every single buck we've killed over 160" was because we were several miles from camp and in position before sunrise, or in position until the last minute of shooting light. Be prepared to hike deep and steep in the dark if you want to find those older animals, I generally plan to be hiking out of camp by 5AM and back to (or setting up) camp after 9PM.

1.A. They don't stay out all day glassing. The sun moves throughout the afternoon, and so do the deer. I glass up A LOT of bedded bucks in the middle of the day or early afternoon when everyone has decided it's nap time or camp time.

2. Stay within shooting distance of the road. I see 10:1 road hunters:backpack hunters, success ratio is the opposite. Last year I watched a group of locals in one of the Methow Valley units, 12 of them total on 6 different ATV's/CanAm's, drive a road less than 100 yards above a bedded buck, and completely miss him because their "hike" was to the edge of the road and back and they spent about 10 minutes glassing in one direction.

3. Run for camp at the first sign of rain or snow. All but one of 160"+ bucks that we've killed in the last 5 years has been during (or immediately after) hard rains or snows when not another soul was to be seen in the hills. It's Washington, if you're not used to being wet or willing to suffer through it, maybe this isn't a great state for you to hunt in.

4. Go REALLY FAST ALL THE TIME. I swear some of these newer hunters, especially the younger guys in all matching Sitka or Kuiu, are damn near running the ridges and hill-tops and walk right by me and plenty of game. Not sure what the deal is, in a rush to get to the next Selfie Spot I guess.

Pic of a couple Manson bucks just for shits and gigs. We killed the buck on the left during season, he broke off his dropper and ended up scoring high 160's as a 5x4 w/great eye guards.

 

[JohnB]

Thanks for the reminder Ri Guy. I'm all too frequently guilty of starting my walk at sunrise figuring I'm hunting my way in. Typically are you coming back for a deer you've already seen or picking your glassing spot then spotting a buck from there?

Thanks for the pic too. I can't wait to get back up into the high country.

 

[jony770]

Don't take this as me coming across as a dick, because that's not what I'm trying to do, but if you've been hunting 5 years without killing a big game critter, you need to go back to the drawing board and reevaluate your approach.

WA state is a target rich environment if you are truly focused on the right things and hunting/scouting hard. 2 or 3 years max to be dialed in if you're anything more than a casual hunter.

General area questions are better left to PMs, and with a low post count, be warned that most experienced guys are going to be pretty tight lipped. Read the harvest reports, call some regional bios, then lace up your boots, and go have a look in-person.

Like anything, the snowball effect is very real, and once things start clicking, you'll find you can share valuable info. which in turn will lead to others doing the same for you.

You don't need a mentor, but the best way of finding one is getting in the mountains and running into guys doing the same thing. That's how I've met some of my best hunting buddies.

Good luck and stick with it. If you want to be good at it, you'll find a way!

No offense taken, I've come to the conclusion that I've pretty much wasted most of those last 5 years because I simply didn't know what I was doing during most of that time and was learning by trial and error. I'm alright with that, but really hope to turn the experience into success between getting more time in on the ground and picking up tips from more experienced folks.

Thank you for the tips as well Ri, I feel like those are solid fundamentals and many of the mistakes you list I've made in the past, especially the bits about glassing and moving too quickly.

 

[JeffRaines]

Plenty of spots to get away from people if you put the time in.

My hunting partner and I have catalogued 11 bucks in the 160-200"+ range in WA over the last 5 years, and killed 5 of them -- they are definitely here, you just have to outsmart everyone else on top of outsmarting the deer. Half of those were in Manson just FYI.

Having been born and raised here -- don't waste your time on Hunt WA unless you draw a special permit, then people are happy to help. I've noticed that all the popular pumpkin patch spots are routinely discussed on Hunt WA and seem to draw in all the folks trying to "figure it out". High hunt is a joke unless you have horses or are willing to put 5-10 miles on your boots every day with a full pack and you're confident in your glassing skills, then you have a good chance. Most guys simply aren't willing to work that hard.

Honestly, if it was me and I resided on the West Side + had limited WA deer hunting experience, I'd be hunting Blacktails. I have seen a lot of DANDY bucks over the years in areas not far from the big cities.

The average Washington hunter seems to routinely do the following detrimental things, and this goes for elk, deer, you name it:

1. Get into the field way too late, and head back to camp way too early. Every single buck we've killed over 160" was because we were several miles from camp and in position before sunrise, or in position until the last minute of shooting light. Be prepared to hike deep and steep in the dark if you want to find those older animals, I generally plan to be hiking out of camp by 5AM and back to (or setting up) camp after 9PM.

1.A. They don't stay out all day glassing. The sun moves throughout the afternoon, and so do the deer. I glass up A LOT of bedded bucks in the middle of the day or early afternoon when everyone has decided it's nap time or camp time.

2. Stay within shooting distance of the road. I see 10:1 road hunters:backpack hunters, success ratio is the opposite. Last year I watched a group of locals in one of the Methow Valley units, 12 of them total on 6 different ATV's/CanAm's, drive a road less than 100 yards above a bedded buck, and completely miss him because their "hike" was to the edge of the road and back and they spent about 10 minutes glassing in one direction.

3. Run for camp at the first sign of rain or snow. All but one of 160"+ bucks that we've killed in the last 5 years has been during (or immediately after) hard rains or snows when not another soul was to be seen in the hills. It's Washington, if you're not used to being wet or willing to suffer through it, maybe this isn't a great state for you to hunt in.

4. Go REALLY FAST ALL THE TIME. I swear some of these newer hunters, especially the younger guys in all matching Sitka or Kuiu, are damn near running the ridges and hill-tops and walk right by me and plenty of game. Not sure what the deal is, in a rush to get to the next Selfie Spot I guess.

Pic of a couple Manson bucks just for shits and gigs. We killed the buck on the left during season, he broke off his dropper and ended up scoring high 160's as a 5x4 w/great eye guards.

View attachment 282943

You bring up a lot of good points. Especially the being in position at first/last light, and moving too quickly. You’re right - a lot of guys could use a dose of patience and slow down. It’s amazing how much more you’ll see! I get it - logically it seems like it would be the opposite, but it’s not. If you know through prior scouting that an area holds deer, I don’t know why you wouldn’t sit and wait for those deer to show up. Sure they’re not gonna be on the same rock they were standing on last week, but they’ll be in the general area.

On the flip side, I can understand the mentality that they may have been pushed out of the country as well... but again, it shouldn’t be too hard to figure out where they ended up. Think about it - a bunch of guys show up on quads, where you heading? For that nearby hellhole that they don’t ever go into.

 

[Huntnnw]

I disagree. Everything about this state is pretty much the best in the US except the people, which are among the worst. Unfortunately, it’s those people who are ruining everything.

seriously ? umm..not even close! some of the worst manged herds and the fishing dont even get me started on the epic failure that is. What is the best in west is predator hunting!

 

[JeffRaines]

One other thing i just remembered - right along the lines that Ri Guy was laying out - is that when I moved here and first got into hunting, I had a coworker who hunts up near Chelan. I remember him taking the week off for deer season and honestly I hadn’t hunted at the time but I was pretty excited to hear his stories when he got back.

A week later he returns to work. Turns out most of the time they were just drunk, getting out of bed late, drinking more. Barely seen any deer. This is the story for a LOT of “hunting” camps turns out.

Obviously, it’s a free country and people can spend their free time how they please - but it seems to me “hunting” for a lot of guys is code word for “getting away from the wife/kids time with the boys”. If that’s all I cared about, I could at least camp in the summer when the weather is nicer and forget wasting money on ammo and tags.

Another guy at the company I work for now told me stories about a elk camp that involved strippers. Apparently some of the owners of car dealers in the area hire strippers for their elk camp up in the colockum. Again, another story of not much hunting and a lot of drinking and partying.

Another guy at the last company I worked at echoed the same at his elk hunting camp - it’s more partying than hunting. No strippers at his camp though.

The point to these stories - when people are downing on hunting in general here, keep these stories in mind. Not everyone “hunts hard” - a lot of camps are just party camps. They go out for a couple hours everyday then bitch about how much hunting sucks here because they can’t just walk out of camp at noon and kill a buck/bull.

That’s not to say some guys don’t honestly bust their ass and fall flat - but that can happen in any state.

 

[The Ri Guy]

seriously ? umm..not even close! some of the worst manged herds and the fishing dont even get me started on the epic failure that is. What is the best in west is predator hunting!

Agreed, Eastside Elk has been hit especially hard, from the Blue's all the way thru to Peaches and every unit in between.

The cougar and black bear populations in many units are out of control, doubly so for cats in the Methow/Chelan units. We've even seen 4 cats in the last two years along Cle Elum and Ellensburg ridges during Archery Elk and Turkey...hadn't seen one there in 20 years previously.

Missed this cat with the recurve two years back...

 

[Jake”0”]

Love the state hate the left wing government the deer are few and far between. That being said there are toads out here your gonna have to earn them smarter and harder don’t give up. Didn’t kill my buck for wa last year but am learning a new unit for the early hunt. If you give up that quick good riddance if not would love to bull shit ya out on the trails I hunt the other side of the lake from what your after. It’s steep and dirty but the genetics are here. Don’t give up Don’t give up Don’t give up. There are honey holes but they are way off the road good luck hunt hard.

 

[Huntnnw]

Seeing what has happend in NE WA is truly sad with pretty much every specie across the board is down 50-70% in some areas. places just 10 years ago full of whitetails now you may see 1-2 per cam and some places none.

 

[slvrslngr]

Seeing what has happend in NE WA is truly sad with pretty much every specie across the board is down 50-70% in some areas. places just 10 years ago full of whitetails now you may see 1-2 per cam and some places none.

Blue tongue is what has knocked back the whitetails, not much WDFW can do about that. But yes, it's a frustrating state to hunt in many regards. What really annoys me though are all the guys bitching about the bear and cougars but don't hunt them. You hear all the excuses, didn't buy a tag, saw one but didn't want to screw up a deer/elk hunt, don't have time, don't know how to do it, blah, blah, blah...the quotas are quite generous so it's not like there isn't the opportunity. I've still not ever seen a cougar in the wild but would love to kill one.

 

[JeffRaines]

Blue tongue is what has knocked back the whitetails, not much WDFW can do about that. But yes, it's a frustrating state to hunt in many regards. What really annoys me though are all the guys bitching about the bear and cougars but don't hunt them. You hear all the excuses, didn't buy a tag, saw one but didn't want to screw up a deer/elk hunt, don't have time, don't know how to do it, blah, blah, blah...the quotas are quite generous so it's not like there isn't the opportunity. I've still not ever seen a cougar in the wild but would love to kill one.

Speaking from experience bears can be a tough nut to crack at first. Once you start seeing them and figuring them out they’re fairly easy.

I don’t blame people for not wanting to chase cougars - seems like trying to find a needle in a haystack. I would absolutely shoot one if I ran across it though, regardless of what I was hunting.

 

[Aginor]

Speaking from experience bears can be a tough nut to crack at first. Once you start seeing them and figuring them out they’re fairly easy.

I don’t blame people for not wanting to chase cougars - seems like trying to find a needle in a haystack. I would absolutely shoot one if I ran across it though, regardless of what I was hunting.

I agree. I hunted cougars 30 days this last season and only ever cut tracks in the snow once. Outside of that, nothing. I’ll take any excuse to get outdoors and explore, but man, did that feel fruitless