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A few West Texas Mule Deer

Posted By: stxranchman

A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/12/20 04:42 AM

I spent 6 days looking for mule deer in the rut this week. I found a few but was really disappointed in the quality of bucks I found. See some rutting activity but also found a lot of doe groups without any bucks around them at all. Found some doe groups with 1 to 6 bucks pushing them around. I did see a couple of bucks running a doe also but not near the rutting activity with some good mature bucks that I thought I would see. I had decide to not take my Ranger and only use my truck to drive around in. The truck really limited my access to a lot of the better areas of the ranch so I could only glass from a long distance. I think had I taken my Ranger I would have found some better quality bucks and covered more ground in the better areas.
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Posted By: Dodge_Rock

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/12/20 11:59 AM

Enjoy reading your WTx annual muley adventures and seeing what you've found. Fantastic photos as always, especially the buck following the doe in this series.
I'm curious why you decided to leave the SXS home this year. Maybe too loud or broke down? Just didn't feel like haulin' it?
Regardless, that's some interesting landscape and looks like the deer could easily disappear at any time. I don't see any field equipment, windmills, powerlines or other structures - just a great place to hunt! Congrats on the trip.
Posted By: don k

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/12/20 12:23 PM

Thanks for the pictures Ranchman
Posted By: SnakeWrangler

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/12/20 12:28 PM

Originally Posted by don k
Thanks for the pictures Ranchman


Always excellent pictures
Posted By: stxranchman

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/12/20 12:44 PM

Originally Posted by Dodge_Rock
Enjoy reading your WTx annual muley adventures and seeing what you've found. Fantastic photos as always, especially the buck following the doe in this series.
I'm curious why you decided to leave the SXS home this year. Maybe too loud or broke down? Just didn't feel like haulin' it?
Regardless, that's some interesting landscape and looks like the deer could easily disappear at any time. I don't see any field equipment, windmills, powerlines or other structures - just a great place to hunt! Congrats on the trip.

Thanks. I left the SXS at home for two reasons: one I was planning to only stay from Monday afternoon till Thursday at noon and two is that I had already killed my mule deer buck during the season. I planned this trip to ride the rough ranch roads to only take photos and look at deer in the rut. I ended up staying till Saturday at noon and had I known I was going to stay I would have taken the Ranger. 95% or more of the deer out on this ranch are not bothered by the sight or sound of a SXS or any vehicle for that matter. Vast majority of the deer have already seen the vehicle or heard it way before I see deer. They have tremendous eyesight. Most of the deer will not even pick their heads up once they know you are there and get within very close range of them. There are not many places on this ranch where you can get over 1.5 miles from a windmill, solar well or water trough. They are just hidden down in draws or in cover.
I think the rut was over for the most part since most of the bucks had already lost a lot of weight. Last year they were in rut around the 5th-6th of Jan. I got to the ranch Monday afternoon and first group of does I found did not have a buck with them. The next group of does had 6 bucks with them. It was like that the next five days with does being with bucks or alone. I only found bucks traveling the second afternoon real late. I found 3 bucks scattered over a mile stretch from west to east that were all moving from south to the north. The next day I found those bucks with groups of does. One of those bucks I found again on Friday evening about 3 miles to the north coming out of a drainage and he was alone. The group of does he was with the last time I had seen him with were no where in sight. So I am thinking another buck had taken them from him or they were all bred. All in all I saw a lot of deer, bucks and does. Just did not see any really upper end mature deer that we know are out there.
Posted By: Creekrunner

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/12/20 12:51 PM

Tough country. Great pictures. up
Posted By: kry226

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/12/20 12:51 PM

coolpics as always!
Posted By: redhaze

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/12/20 12:59 PM

Thanks for sharing and nice photos.
Posted By: pop r

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/12/20 02:27 PM

coolpics up
Posted By: Stompy

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/12/20 02:50 PM

up
Posted By: stxranchman

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/12/20 04:36 PM

A few more pics. I saw this buck very late on Tuesday afternoon traveling from the south to the north.
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The next morning he had already been in a fight and broken off part of his G3.
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Within minutes of me seeing him and getting some photos of him pushing does around this guy showed up and pushed the buck off the does.
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I could see his left eye was gouged out and still bloody from a fight. I think the buck with the broken tine and this buck had been in a fight right at daylight when I first saw them about a mile from me.
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A few other bucks I saw during the trip.This young buck was with a few does and another buck when he left them and started traveling west.
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This buck I found the first afternoon with a group of does and 5 other bucks. These photos were the next day.
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Posted By: dogcatcher

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/12/20 05:01 PM

cheers
Posted By: stxranchman

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/13/20 01:50 AM

A few more pics.
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Posted By: Bee'z

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/13/20 01:58 AM

Great pictures as always Sir cheers
Posted By: mbavo

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/13/20 02:50 AM

Great pics as always!
Looks like you had a good time!
Posted By: MikeC

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/13/20 02:57 AM

Originally Posted by mbavo
Great pics as always!
Looks like you had a good time!
Posted By: Stub

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/13/20 11:54 AM

coolpics up
Posted By: TKandMike

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/13/20 02:32 PM

You sure saw a lot, just not the one. That's still a pretty cool experience and some great pictures
Posted By: QuitShootinYoungBucks

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/13/20 03:11 PM

Simply amazing! Thank you for sharing the pictures, STX.
Posted By: redchevy

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/13/20 03:16 PM

Great pictures as always. That one with the lazy ear makes me smile
Posted By: hook_n_line

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/13/20 03:54 PM

up
Posted By: CCBIRDDOGMAN

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/13/20 06:21 PM

up awesome pics
Posted By: Mr. T.

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/13/20 07:28 PM

Originally Posted by 2Beez
Great pictures as always Sir cheers
Posted By: LG

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/13/20 10:05 PM

frigging awesome!
Posted By: DXB

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/14/20 02:23 AM

Awespme pics!
Posted By: stxranchman

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/14/20 02:25 PM

Thanks again everyone. This was quite an unexpected find on the lease the first afternoon I was there. He was traveling from south to the north the first day. No one had seen him during the 3 weeks we were there during the mule deer season. I saw him almost everyday in the same general area till the Friday evening. He had moved into another pasture, he either jumped the net wire low fence or the cattle guard to get where he was at.
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Posted By: Pitchfork Predator

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/14/20 06:19 PM

cheers coolpics
Posted By: Ktexas14

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/15/20 08:23 PM

Pretty awesome. Great pictures.
Posted By: TXHOGSLAYER

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/15/20 09:22 PM

Originally Posted by SnakeWrangler
Originally Posted by don k
Thanks for the pictures Ranchman


Always excellent pictures
Posted By: Herbie Hancock

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/15/20 09:25 PM

Originally Posted by TXHOGSLAYER
Originally Posted by SnakeWrangler
Originally Posted by don k
Thanks for the pictures Ranchman


Always excellent pictures

Posted By: NDN98

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/16/20 12:00 AM

coolpics
Posted By: txshntr

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/16/20 12:23 AM

Great pictures as always cheers
Posted By: Wilhunt

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/16/20 12:43 AM

Thanks for sharing the info on the trip and the great pictures.
Posted By: landsurveyor

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/16/20 03:52 PM

up
Posted By: EddieWalker

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/16/20 05:16 PM

Really enjoyed the pictures. Thanks for sharing!!!
Posted By: hawk

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/16/20 07:00 PM

Beautiful pictures!
Posted By: stxranchman

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/19/20 06:54 PM

Thanks again everyone.
Posted By: NOCOOLNAMETOO

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/20/20 08:35 PM

Thank you for sharing the pictures, STX coolpics
Posted By: Gunmetal

Re: A few West Texas Mule Deer - 01/29/20 08:51 PM

Awesome photos!
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