Bruin Muley
New member
What do the people around here think is harder to hunt Big Muleys, or Big whitetails?
Muleys or Whitetails
- Thread starter Bruin Muley
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Bambistew
Well-known member
Depends on where... Big whitetails back east in the thick stuff are much harder than the big boys on the river bottoms in the west.
IMO big eastern whitetails and big muledeer are on the same level of dificulty.
IMO big eastern whitetails and big muledeer are on the same level of dificulty.
Harder? By my definition, I would say mulies on average. It may be more "difficult" to harvest a big whitey back east, but just getting into area to find big mule deer I would think is "harder" than where a person would need to go to find a big whitey.
Most of the stories I remember reading in NA Whitetail went something like, "I watched this deer all season on our 6th encounter, he made a mistake and walked under my tree stand". On the flip side, a big muley story might go something like, "I left the road with 60#'s on my back and on day 4 at about 9,000' I found my monster muley." "Only took two trips to get my deer back to the vehicle, but the 2, eight-mile round trips with a 3,000' elevation change took it's toll, I lost 9 lbs during those 4 days." "At least there was water on the mountain and I didn't have to drink my own urine."
Most of the stories I remember reading in NA Whitetail went something like, "I watched this deer all season on our 6th encounter, he made a mistake and walked under my tree stand". On the flip side, a big muley story might go something like, "I left the road with 60#'s on my back and on day 4 at about 9,000' I found my monster muley." "Only took two trips to get my deer back to the vehicle, but the 2, eight-mile round trips with a 3,000' elevation change took it's toll, I lost 9 lbs during those 4 days." "At least there was water on the mountain and I didn't have to drink my own urine."
DRAFTSTUD
Well-known member
mtmiller, Who wrote that Muley Article...ELKCHSR? I have seen alot of good Muley Bucks and I have seen alot of Whitetail Bucks, what mtmiller says is true, you do have to do the leg work for a Muley....but, if that big Whitey bust you that may be your only look at him. We don't have the open spaces to spot and review, let go and find another....Whitetails! John
Buckrub
New member
I think the hardest part of hunting either has become the EXPENSE !!!
The actual hunting is the fun part. The money expended to do it is where it gets hard!!hump
The actual hunting is the fun part. The money expended to do it is where it gets hard!!hump
Moosie
Grand poopa
One is over a Feeder, one is with your Danners.....
all good pts. If comparing to back east whitetail hunting and west hunting, two different beasts. East food plots, feeders, huge fields with small patches of timber, cages with remote control doors...let em out bubba rolling film! West steeper, thicker, no food plots, no feeders, no bubba. west more difficult, east, well you can figure that out. Muleys are far more physically challenged. Nothing to compare to back east, thank god, at least something is still pure in a sence. I archery hunt only, I would say they are both equally tough, just different types of hunting (forgetting about the east's bait and anililate approach.) i have heard people say muleys are dumber, don't think that is true when comparing a hammer whitie and hammer muley, they didn't get big being careless.
noharleyyet
Well-known member
Papa Moose said:One is over a Feeder, one is with your Danners.....
....or, in your case, new dorky white sneakers.
Seriously, gotta go with miller on this one although it wouldn't bother me one bit to see a book whitey at my feeder (without night goggles, of course).
BTW, miller, try the crystal light flavor pacs...takes the saltiness out.
DRAFTSTUD
Well-known member
Jezz, You have been watching too much Realtree shows. Most of the East is Thick and given an expanse of ground there are just a few area that will hold either a Muley or a Whitetail. And we do still have some Bottomland that will take your breath away. If I took a Die-Hard Muley hunter and put him on a Ridge overlooking a Hardwood bottom, you would have alot more respect for what we have in the East. John
DRAFTSTUD said:
hunted and lived in the East for 12 years, helped manage a 4500 acre hunting ranch. don't watch the high fence feeder shows. Teasing abit, but West hunting gave me a new perspective on whitetails. Lived in N ID for 10 years and strictly hunted whitetails, far more difficult then food plots and feeders
BuzzH
Well-known member
I think it depends on where you hunt.
The whitetails I hunt in Montana are about like hunting mule deer. My typical day of whitetail hunting starts with a 3 mile hike in the dark into this location here:
I spend the early morning glassing broken timber then still hunting thick lodge-pole mid-morning to early afternoon. Spend the prime evening hours hunting edges and broken timber.
I've killed whitetail bucks all times of the day from daylight to dark. Lately I've been finding 11:00 am to 2:00 pm during the peak of the rut (Nov. 19- end of the season) to be about the best hunting.
The bucks in this country roam a large area, they dont hang in one area for very long and typically when I kill a large whitetail its the first time I've ever seen that buck.
I've also shot a lot of elk while hunting whitetails in this country.
Whitetail in this country are no joke, no agricultural fields, no feeders, and all public lands. The country isnt as extreme as what you'd find mule deer in, but it isnt exactly flat either.
Heres another prime spot on just about a perfect day.
The whitetails I hunt in Montana are about like hunting mule deer. My typical day of whitetail hunting starts with a 3 mile hike in the dark into this location here:
I spend the early morning glassing broken timber then still hunting thick lodge-pole mid-morning to early afternoon. Spend the prime evening hours hunting edges and broken timber.
I've killed whitetail bucks all times of the day from daylight to dark. Lately I've been finding 11:00 am to 2:00 pm during the peak of the rut (Nov. 19- end of the season) to be about the best hunting.
The bucks in this country roam a large area, they dont hang in one area for very long and typically when I kill a large whitetail its the first time I've ever seen that buck.
I've also shot a lot of elk while hunting whitetails in this country.
Whitetail in this country are no joke, no agricultural fields, no feeders, and all public lands. The country isnt as extreme as what you'd find mule deer in, but it isnt exactly flat either.
Heres another prime spot on just about a perfect day.
Well I'm not gonna say cause I've only hunted whitetails in Kansas and it wasn't that difficult. But then again hunting muleys over there isn't tough either.. Hunting the muleys in the colorado rockies to me isn't in the same ballpark. Not even close. But thats just my experience.. which aint much.
Beautiful pics Buzz. Thanks for posting
Beautiful pics Buzz. Thanks for posting
Apples and Oranges....
From the flatlands here in ND....except for some good pocket ravines and of course the Badlands......we have good populations of Muleys and Whitetail........for our area the nod goes to the Whitetail for being tougher to hunt.....and I mean hunt....not bait.....
But I would agree that mile-high muleys present more of a physically and mentally challenged hunt than most river bottom whitetail outings.........they are two different breeds of cat, and I just love the opportunity to be able to hunt them both without having to travel so far......
From the flatlands here in ND....except for some good pocket ravines and of course the Badlands......we have good populations of Muleys and Whitetail........for our area the nod goes to the Whitetail for being tougher to hunt.....and I mean hunt....not bait.....
But I would agree that mile-high muleys present more of a physically and mentally challenged hunt than most river bottom whitetail outings.........they are two different breeds of cat, and I just love the opportunity to be able to hunt them both without having to travel so far......
Bambistew
Well-known member
I think we could all come up with scenarios that make one be tougher than the other... I've seen monster mule deer shot in grain fields after they where 'patterned' for a month. Same with whitetials. I do agree with Miller though, for the most part a mule deer will involve a fair amount more boot leather, but not always. Look at all the monster muleys that are shot every year after they were baby sat for a month or more...
All my whitetail hunting in the west revolved around hay fields and patches of river bottom. They are not particularly hard to hunt nor kill a decent mature deer in areas like that. Much more dificult out here in the east IMO for the same size class deer. Just the logistics of finding a place to hunt makes it challenging. Like Buckrub said, one of the hardest parts is finding enough money to hunt em.
IMO a big deer is tough to hunt and kill regurdless of species.
All my whitetail hunting in the west revolved around hay fields and patches of river bottom. They are not particularly hard to hunt nor kill a decent mature deer in areas like that. Much more dificult out here in the east IMO for the same size class deer. Just the logistics of finding a place to hunt makes it challenging. Like Buckrub said, one of the hardest parts is finding enough money to hunt em.
IMO a big deer is tough to hunt and kill regurdless of species.
DRAFTSTUD
Well-known member
Very well put, Any Deer that has encountered a Hunter and lives though it gets real smart, real fast! John
noharleyyet
Well-known member
Amazing pics Buzz.
Moosie
Grand poopa
Snow, We like Hunting snow !!
Draftstud, you're "south" not East, not mix that up
Draftstud, you're "south" not East, not mix that up
DRAFTSTUD
Well-known member
Actually They call us the Southeast! So You are right and I'm right, which if anyone has viewed any post on this website I do believe that to be a first! John
Moosie
Grand poopa
We should get married
