Idaho Unit 39-bouncing some ideas off anybody willing to read

[Coastiecreation]

Never hunted 39 before. Been in the Selway, pioneer mtns, sawtooths, and some areas in the Lolo region. Chose 39 for chance at a good mule deer and the seasons work best for me this year and the area is appealing to me. Looks like the terrain I enjoy hunting in. I know some of the other units I have been in offer the same thing but Ive purchased the tag I am committed. I know there is a lot of hunters in this area but I’m from Washington so it’s not rare to name a ridge pumpkin ridge due to its abundance of hunters. Also I was told the same thing for unit 49 and spiked in there last year had a great time only saw two horse groups around the area just never found that buck I couldn’t live without. So getting past that right off the bat I’ve done as much internet research as I can possibly stomach without making my scouting trip coming up. I’ve focused on the eastern portion of the unit towards Atlanta looking up towards the queens river trail area. It looks like it holds some rugged country which in my experience cuts your crowd in half from the start. More importantly I hear of the horror stories of the motorbike trails in this unit which can pose a serious problem to a guy that hikes in 5 miles to set up camp to have four bikes pass by every hour or minute for that matter. I’m wanting peoples opinion on whether I’m on the right track in the area north of Atlanta which I believe has more trails of no motorized vehicles if I’m reading the maps correctly or should I still consider some of the trails with motorized activity but just look to spike camp off the trail a good way. Anyways if anybody wants to chime in or maybe give me some advice or share their experience to help me with my scouting effort that’d be great. Appreciate the help

 

[PNW_ChrisB]

I've hunted unit 39 two years in a row. Hunted the last week of October both years. First year was amazing and last year sucked... From my experience its mostly weather based. Yes, there are a ton of deer, but without weather it can be difficult hunting. I know exactly what you are talking about with the motorized vehicle access. I hiked in 5+ miles in last year and every single morning 10+ motorcycles would drive by my tent. It was pretty discouraging for me. I spent more of my time just south of Atlanta. I had a really hard time not pulling the trigger on a 39 tag this year. BEAUTIFUL country for sure.. Good luck this year!

 

[sneaky]

You had a pretty solid post going until you mentioned the specific area of a specific unit on a Google searchable forum. Now you've shifted the attention of a lot of lurkers that area. Might want to edit your original post and handle details like that through PMs.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

 

[wyojdubya]

What sneaky said.

 

[Coastiecreation]

Roger that. Do understand though guys who are new to this site, such as myself, can’t just post something very generic of a unit because you draw the complete opposite response of people responding saying you are just poking for information or looking for a handout. I do understand what you mean though I could probably be a little less specific but in my experience I get generic responses with generic questions. Not arguing with you just sharing my experience thus far. I have had some guys reach out and personal message me already and helped me with my plan for next season but I will keep it in mind in the future.

 

[seananigans]

I've hunted unit 39 two years in a row. Hunted the last week of October both years. First year was amazing and last year sucked... From my experience its mostly weather based. Yes, there are a ton of deer, but without weather it can be difficult hunting. I know exactly what you are talking about with the motorized vehicle access. I hiked in 5+ miles in last year and every single morning 10+ motorcycles would drive by my tent. It was pretty discouraging for me. I spent more of my time just south of Atlanta. I had a really hard time not pulling the trigger on a 39 tag this year. BEAUTIFUL country for sure.. Good luck this year!

The skills those guys have to ride those bikes is amazing. Those are not easy ridges or trails to ride. But yes, tough hunting mentally with those guys around. Good hunting.

 

[Mule3006Elk]

Roger that. Do understand though guys who are new to this site, such as myself, can’t just post something very generic of a unit because you draw the complete opposite response of people responding saying you are just poking for information or looking for a handout. I do understand what you mean though I could probably be a little less specific but in my experience I get generic responses with generic questions. Not arguing with you just sharing my experience thus far. I have had some guys reach out and personal message me already and helped me with my plan for next season but I will keep it in mind in the future.

Very true but Atlanta is all over the internet. It's gets a lot of interest b/c it looks like an area you can get away from people. Reality is probably not the case. If I were 5 miles back and motorbikes were passing my tent that's great. As long as I hear them go way off in the distant I don't care too much. Further back doesn't always mean better opportunity. As long as their not hunting in my vicinity.

 

[sagebuster]

Been hunting 39 for 40 years. Shanks mare , that's the only way you are going to get away from the crowd. Backpack in, find a pocket or a hole high up where only you can go...and own it. Big Queen's and Little Queen's have popular trails...you know what that means. Ditto the entire Atlanta area. Get creative. You want a decent buck, you gotta bust your butt in 39.

 

[TwoRedDogs]

I’m a local and always remind myself to “play the pressure”. A lot of the work of finding a critter is figuring out where they aren’t. Use the pressure to help with that. All around Atlanta is a decent spot, just have to get away to a quiet spot. Also, those animals are somewhat habituated to people on ATV/Dirtbike/UTV. They sometimes will be around an area that people just pass through. They don’t mind them riding by but once one stops, they are gone. Stay away from the end of trails where people park and hike from there.

 

[KLWild]

There are bucks in there, but I haven’t ever been in there during October. A lot of the stuff where you would imagine getting away from other people isn’t super good deer habitat. There are other areas of the unit that will carry larger deer populations.