Idaho panhandle white tails

[Taylord9]

I have an Idaho deer tag. I live In Spokane and I’ve scouted 3 days and found lots of elk but have not seen a whitetail. What am I doing wrong? Why are mountain white tails so hard for me to find!

 

[TheTone]

It can be really, really hard to find deer this time of year in the mountains. Look for good habitat and access. Deer densities really aren’t super high in much of the public ground but activity picks up during season

 

[huntnidaho]

They are around. North Idaho has a bunch of whitetails but walking around the woods in the summer isn't going to result in a lot of sightings, in my experience. I rode through 50 miles of woods this weekend and saw just 1 doe and a fawn. You would probably see some does/fawns/young bucks on private/ag land in the mornings and evenings. Find trails close to cover, think thickets, areas with brush, creek bottoms, edges of clear cuts, etc. Look for sign of where they are traveling. It's a different world in November.

 

[Bulldog0156]

Wait until it's cold and snowy in November.

 

[HUNTNNW]

If you are in the mountains scouting find clear cuts and glass them. First half hour and last half hour being the most productive. Running cams will tell you alot more

 

[smitty661]

I live in Coeur d'Alene and see more deer in town than in the woods! Im used to hunting areas where you can sit and glass. I like to see farther than 40 yards. I am new here but I focus on timberlands that are open to public, clear cuts, and last year I spent some time on the reservation. If you know somebody that hunts the reservation you would be in good shape.

 

[westbranch]

I live in Coeur d'Alene and see more deer in town than in the woods! Im used to hunting areas where you can sit and glass. I like to see farther than 40 yards. I am new here but I focus on timberlands that are open to public, clear cuts, and last year I spent some time on the reservation. If you know somebody that hunts the reservation you would be in good shape.

40 yards seems like a long shot at times! The deer on public lands are definitely like ghosts at times. Don't leave much sign due to dry summers but they are out there. These CDA bucks liked tomatoes apparently. Damn neighbors making some problem deer. Saw a big 150+ whitetail <1 mile from my house while driving out to to hunt some public lands and not seeing anything all day last fall.

 

[smitty661]

40 yards seems like a long shot at times! The deer on public lands are definitely like ghosts at times. Don't leave much sign due to dry summers but they are out there. These CDA bucks liked tomatoes apparently. Damn neighbors making some problem deer. Saw a big 150+ whitetail <1 mile from my house while driving out to to hunt some public lands and not seeing anything all day last fall.

View attachment 151566

Sounds familiar. I spent days hunting in November only to come home to a 10 pt buck chasing a doe in my front yard. Here is the guy I’m after this year.

 

[44hunter45]

Dodged more than a dozen in the road yesterday Evening

 

[Lasiocarpa]

Mountain whitetails in N. Idaho and W. Montana are really fun. My favorite tactic was to find some more open/thinned timber and still hunt through it when it was raining or snowing. November 15-25 is prime time in my opinion.