I drew a North Dakota archery tag
North Dakota
I have been trying to get a good muley buck for years .... not been successful and though the odd's were low, I applied for one of the non-res archery North Dakota tags and drew.
I'm 1250 miles away in Arkansas, I've been through ND but never hunted there or spent any time. REALLY looking forward to hunting there.
Anybody have any tips/comments etc on mule deer there? That's my focus
Congrats! On a high level, you should start looking at the rugged terrain in western ND. This is not necessarily a exclusive MD territory, but the National Grasslands is public land and that is where many deer call home. As far as hunting them, glass and glass. The one thing you will find is the terrain is very broken and there are many nooks and crannies that hide deer. If you see 4 deer, you are likely missing at least as many if not more. Reposition yourself to glass from different vantage points. It is not like CO. If you think you can glass and cover a large basin, the country isn't like that. Way more broken. When covering ground, DO NOT SKYLINE yourself. Move ~ 1/3 below the top of the buttes if at all possible. Coming over the top is the best way to see 0 deer. They are hard to pattern, but they have tendencies. They love to use saddles to move from drainage A to B. (When not pressured). When they escape, they will bust out anywhere. (Unlike WT which tend to stay close to cover) Get yourself a grassland map. It will show your public (Grassland and school section land). I love the country and hunt it every year. Good luck.
Words well said, Z Barebow.I too drew a tag and last year as well. Ive been going to the National Grasslands off and on for twenty years, it has become a habit. Last year I started my hunt north of I94 seeing some quality deer. I moved my camp south of 94 opting for a open terrain and that proved to be a big mistake in planning. This years planning curtails rough land, close to water and a good source of grazing. I'll be enjoying this trip as a solo adventure, enjoy your trip. You can PM for more information.
Stealthycat - How did your hunt go? Z barebow & Backwoods54 - I too am driving over 1000 miles from MI this September, I have never been to ND and have been E-Scouting everyday and am having difficulty judging good whitetail pinch-points due to confusion of cattle tracks on earth view maps. I am just really looking for advice, is focussing on Killdeer WMA river bottom a good use of my time or would going up and over to the West around little Missouri river be more beneficial. Not looking to scalp hard earned info, just want a little advice on where to start. Thank you in advance.
How many years does it take to draw a nr mule deer tag ? Is it a draw for archery and gun?
Sorry for tardy replies as I don't visit my own state forum too much (Since not to many folks post!) and I was out elk hunting.
JF- You didn't mention if you have a WT tag or any deer tag. If you have a WT tag, you are definitely upping your odds by hitting the bottoms, but don't discount the farmland before the land breaks up. The farmland is private, but many folks are ok with shooting WT's. They sometimes are more protective of MD on their land.
Boone- I believe NR any deer is a lottery. (Assuming there are more applicants than tags). No PP for deer archery.
Mule deer rifle for NR. They have PP's. But your odds are not good. I will wager most units are greater than 10 PP's needed for MD buck rifle tag. Some units a resident is waiting ~ 7 years. I have an NR buddy who has been applying since 2008. Follow link for 2020 guidance on archery app for NR.
A NR anydeer deer tag is by lottety only, not sure but I believe preferance is given too those who didnt get a tag the previous year? I was fornuate two draw two years in a row. My 2019 , late October hunt was cut short by the weather, I had to complete the roof on my home which was delayed by rain and 3 days into my hunt, bad weather was in the forecast. I did ,however ,see a herd of Whitetail does, and several Muledeer. Seeing is the easy part, very rough and broken terrain and the Mule Deer have such acute eye sight..Thats why love it.I've been at it since 1998 . The last trip was my 7th trip. I use a recurve and ground hunt only, that makes it tougher yet. If I get lucky and fill my WI archery buck tag, you can bet I'll headed to ND for whiteatail.
I went through a terrible time with a cheating wife, divorce .... I canceled my hunt and worked hard to repair something irreparable (adultery is a killer of families, don't do it).
Regret that - and am planning 2021 now back to ND hopefully !
