Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting Trophy Mule Deer Hunt

JGRaider, I wasn't dissing your preferred hunting grounds. I'm sure there's great hunting down there for you. I was chuckling about the claims made above, the ones Drummond again brought back into check with reality. There's some history there, which I find pretty funny.

You are right, your chances are probably going to be better where there's limited hunting and you can pay trespass fees, an outfitter, a native guide, etc.. Nothing wrong with that, not my cup of tea, but to each their own.

Most western states have 190 "class" bucks to hunt.. some states have them even for hunters on a shoe-string budget.. although the odds of success are typically lower. Montana has them - I've taken several myself.

How big is that buck in the picture, walking away, ears back? From the photo, cannot tell a thing other than the seemingly sizy frame. Did you get a better look at it?

I never got a great look, but his left side was weak in the back. I figured him to be about 29" outside in th 180 class. I really did not want to get into a pissing match, so my apologies to you Greenhorn. You are absolutely spot on about a few things my friend, big mules are hard to find anywhere, B&C mulies are extremely rare (more extremely rare in TX I'll grant you), there are good bucks scattered out in lots of places, great tags are very hard to get.

Speaking of weak back lefts - here's a MT buck with one, around 28" outside, - I think the good antler taped 90. Note the Aggie garb.. I did submit it to B&C. Most that actually qualify are submitted.


I was thumbing throug a few of the Fair Chase issues at home, which now list gross and net scores. In the typical mule deer category it seemed the avg gross score was over 200, that's for those entered netting 180 and up. It takes one heck of a deer to make the grade. I'm unsure if that listed gross score is the gross typical, or the gross typical plus trash? When somebody says 190 class..it varies. Either way, 190 is a lot.

The Jicarilla Reservation claims to put B&C bucks into the book annually, and that I do believe.

JG, didn't you take a really giant MX buck a few years ago?? Please share a couple photos..

Greeny-many the neck on that bugger has to be booner alone...gross and net!

Dober

Yep his neck looks like it came from a rodeo bull.

The main thing to me about this thread is I am really grateful everyone doesn't want to hunt in the same place.

Greenhorn, that's a super buck, one that I'd shoot in a heartbeat. I dug up a few more pics of that buck I killed in Mexico. I know I'll never see, much less shoot another buck like this......

My two buddies were with me.
[img][IMG]http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t32/JGrimes_2007/Copyofphoto1.jpg[/img][/img]


He had 22" backs, and was in fact a little weak in both fronts
[img][IMG]http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t32/JGrimes_2007/Copyofmd7101bigboydown.jpg[/img][/img]


Just for numbers sake, this buck was 35 1/4" outside, 27" main beams, 31 1/2" inside on main beams. This buck grossed 213 2/8". I lost 4 4/8" on spread credit, and 4" diff in sides, netting 204 6/8". Truly the buck of 5 lifetimes, and I know how lucky I was.
[img][IMG]http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t32/JGrimes_2007/CopyofPC150107.jpg[/img][/img]

W.O.W. !!! Holy back tines!

Thanks for sharing the photos..

You better start looking for non-typicals, or maybe whitetails.

GH, I need your birth date please. I'm needing to send you some Texas Tech gear....

I remember your seeing your deer a couple years ago in Muley Crazy I believe. What a buck! Congratulations, that deer is just a stud!

I'll try to post up a few Mexico pictures if I can figure out how to get it done.

Guys, please share mule deer photos. That Mexican deer is freaky out of porportion - rack doesn't match the rest of the animal sort of like Dolly Parton. JG, my sister would disown me if I wore Texas Tech colors.

My dreams came true last season when I was able to take this remarkable and rare "switch buck". Note the amazing non-matching elements to his antlers, forked in the back on one side, forked on the front on the other. Best to remove these from the gene pool.. he had some neckitude though.

I'm amazed at the bodies on those brutes you kill. What's your best guess on live/field dressed weight? That MX buck probably dressed 180lbs or so, not real large by muley standards. Was that last buck of yours exceptionally old or what? I've never seen one anywhere close to that.

Not sure on the weight. Don't think he was real old -just cursed with crap genetics and obesity. I was pretty stoked to take him though. I actually passed a nice one with him. I think he outweighed the other one by 200lbs. I was called a retard by my hunting buddy - mostly because it was a backpack hunt and I had to carry all the meat out on my back. He was happy I was so odd about my harvest choice, as he tagged along the next day and shot the other buck - which is the best he's ever taken. Here's the other one, along side my amazing "switch buck".

Here is a few of the deer we have killed the past few years, burro y cola blanca
















[img]http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c11/drumdaddy/Picture7.jpg[/img]


[img]http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c11/drumdaddy/Picture9.jpg[/img]


[img]http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c11/drumdaddy/Picture10.jpg[/img]

Wow! Some great bucks here! I love big body size on mule deer and whitetails,and have shot some "old" pigs like Greenhorn's because they were BIG,but on the downhill side.

Some really nice mule deer out of Mexico,too.And those Coues deer are fabulous!

huntsonora, thanks for the MX pics. I can't get enough of big mule deer!

I really like that whitetail in the last photo, and the tripod backed muley, and the first one - great photos!

Thanks, those pictures are all I have on this computer. All of those deer were killed in a 2 week stretch a couple years ago. I'll post a few more here in a minute and I'll have to figure out how to get the pictures of 2 big non-typicals we killed in '03 and '04, they were the highest grossing deer to come out of Sonora those years as far as we know

Drummond

Drumm--man I love those Coues!!!

Thx 4 sharing.

Dober

Heres a few more then I'm going to need to get my home PC hooked up

A fight I photographed













[img]http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c11/drumdaddy/sonorapics018.jpg[/img]

[img]http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c11/drumdaddy/sonorapics019.jpg[/img]

[img]http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c11/drumdaddy/sonorapics020.jpg[/img]

[img]http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c11/drumdaddy/sonorapics021.jpg[/img]

[img]http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c11/drumdaddy/sonorapics022.jpg[/img]

[img]http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c11/drumdaddy/sonorapics023.jpg[/img]

[img]http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c11/drumdaddy/sonorapics024.jpg[/img]

[img]http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c11/drumdaddy/sonorapics026.jpg[/img]

[img]http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c11/drumdaddy/sonorapics028.jpg[/img]

And a few deer we killed the very same week

[img]http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c11/drumdaddy/sonorapics069.jpg[/img]

[img]http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c11/drumdaddy/sonorapics076.jpg[/img]

[img]http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c11/drumdaddy/sonorapics112.jpg[/img]

[img]http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c11/drumdaddy/sonorapics034.jpg[/img]

[img]http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c11/drumdaddy/sonorapics064.jpg[/img]

The 2 deer on the far right were also pictured in the previous post of mine.
[img]http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c11/drumdaddy/Picture12.jpg[/img]

I'll get a few more up when I get a minute to load them onto Photobucket

Drummond

Great pics, got anymo of the lil whitey's I so love?

Thx
Dober