Deer Unit 34

[HalfAce]

Hey guys,

It's that slow time of the year for me, where I have no hunting to do, but everyday I'm thinking about next year?s season and doing my research.

I have enough points to draw WY Mule Deer unit 34 this year if I wanted to apply for it. But I am a little confused on why this unit takes so many points for a NR to draw, but has so few entries in the book when there are units that require less points but have more entries in the book? Not that I am looking for a B&C animal or nothing, but it's a good way to get an idea if I do end up running into a mature animal that it has the potential to be big.

In the last 30 years, Natrona County has only one Mule Deer entered into the books. So why does it take 8+ points in the regular draw to draw this tag? (I know unit 89 is in Natrona County as well but I don't have enough points to draw, which is why I'm not asking about it)

-Is it because of unit 34?s close proximity to Casper, where I am sure a lot of the people from that area apply for the unit, making it seem popular so a lot of NR?s put in for it as well?
-Is it a tough draw because it's simply a fun hunt that allows a hunter to see a lot of animals every day?
-Are there Big Mule Deer in the unit, but they just can't seem to grow antlers that net enough to make it into the book minimum?
-Or are people taking BC caliber bucks in there, but just not entering them, keeping the area out of the spotlight? (if that's the case well then I don't expect anyone to say anything)

I'm not a book type of person, but I like looking for a big racked Mule Deer buck. Whether a deer does or doesn't net a BC minimum, I don't care. But I sure would like to know your thoughts on why this unit is so difficult to draw. For the record, I am considering burning my points on a unit this year that takes significantly less points than 34 does, and it might take upwards of 15 years before I would be in the position to draw 34 again. So I don't want to make that type of mistake unless I ask you guys your thoughts.

 

[TOPGUN]

The number of animals entered in "The Book" has nothing to do with the number of PPs it takes to draw a tag. If you have enough PPs to get a tag for unit 34 and you are looking for a good chance at a big buck you have a lot better odds at getting one by applying for Region G than Unit 34. Region G is about as good as it gets for the chance at a big buck in Wyoming and actually anywhere out in the western states right now.

 

[lostinOregon]

Top Gun nailed this one. Points don't necessarily correlate with the Boone and Crockett record books. There are always differing reasons on why a tag is hard to draw.

Rich

 

[jm77]

This a 2015 buck from area 34. Any questions?

 

[oilcan]

That's a great Buck from any unit

 

[Largebull]

Great Buck above. Congrats. I would like to here more on 34 as well as I was going to put in there this coming year. I have 8 points and think I can draw it. Have a Buddy that lives in Casper that will go with me but He doesn't say much about it. He takes some descent Bucks out of there ,but nothin Great. Still Curious.Thanks Guys. I would go G but at 60 , everyone talks You need horses and or pack in. Not sure if I can get in far enough at our age. In Casper I get to sleep in a warm bed each nite. Just lookin for thoughts. They do get some great bucks out of 34 but don't know how overall quality is there. Thanks again.......BULL!

 

[TOPGUN]

LAST EDITED ON Dec-18-16 AT 07:55AM (MST)[p]As oilcan stated, that is a great buck with beautiful symmetry and you don't see many with great fronts, as well as back forks on a buck like that one very often. I hunt every year not too far from 34 on a Region M tag and 34 has some good deer in it IF you can find them just like in a lot of units. However, it's just not the same type of hunt like we had on horses up in the high country down in G the last two years. IMHO you would have a lot better odds at killing a big buck in G right now if you can take horses to get up into that high country that will eat your lunch real quick compared to the much easier hunt like down in 34. If you want to stay real comfortable at night and not stress yourself like G can do, then IMHO 34 would be a decent unit to use your points on.

 

[oregonmuley]

Interesting timing, I also plan on putting in for 34 next year, from what I can tell from the draw odds it should take 7 points which is what I have - or I hope that will do it! Anyway, 34 I think is more of a fun hunt with a chance at a respectable buck, maybe not a 190" but you will likely see several bucks a day and have a good time. Its a big unit with plenty of public land to access which is maybe why it takes a few more points to draw. It can also be done as a non-res without the need of going with an outfitter so that's a plus since I hunt solo out of the back of my 4Runner and think I can do that in this unit.

Topgun I may PM you if you don't mind, have a couple really general questions for you on the unit.

 

[jm77]

This year the harvest in 34 was unimpressive compared to 2015. Post season counts in Nov however proved a good number of mature bucks and good quality also. 2017 should be a good year in 34. Hunter density is also very low in the area compared to what I hear about G.

 

[TOPGUN]

>This year the harvest in 34
>was unimpressive compared to 2015.
>Post season counts in Nov
>however proved a good number
>of mature bucks and good
>quality also. 2017 should be
>a good year in 34.
>Hunter density is also very
>low in the area compared
>to what I hear about
>G.

I'd like to know where everyone hunts in G to make it so crowded like you hear people saying. We were up in the Salt River Range for two days and the Little Greys for two days in late September 2015 and only saw two guys on horses the 4th day after I had shot my buck out east of Alpine. This past season the first four days of October we did not see anyone else in the Salt River Range during the combo moose/deer hunt that my buddy booked. All that country in G appears to be so wild and big that it seems like there would have to be many hundreds of people before you would be bothered by other hunters or maybe we were just lucky both years!

 

[jm77]

>
>I'd like to know where everyone
>hunts in G to make
>it so crowded like you
>hear people saying. We were
>up in the Salt River
>Range for two days and
>the Little Greys for two
>days in late September 2015
>and only saw two guys
>on horses the 4th day
>after I had shot my
>buck out east of Alpine.
> This past season the
>first four days of October
>we did not see anyone
>else in the Salt River
>Range during the combo moose/deer
>hunt that my buddy booked.
> All that country in
>G appears to be so
>wild and big that it
>seems like there would have
>to be many hundreds of
>people before you would be
>bothered by other hunters or
>maybe we were just lucky
>both years!

It seems everyone always complains of tons of guys in G, but I can't confirm that.

Mike, the bucks you and your buddy killed, while good ones for sure, are found in 34 every year. If a guy is looking to break 190, most likely won't happen in 34.

 

[TOPGUN]

>It seems everyone always complains of
>tons of guys in G,
>but I can't confirm that.
>
>
> Mike, the bucks you and
>your buddy killed, while good
>ones for sure, are found
>in 34 every year. If
>a guy is looking to
>break 190, most likely won't
>happen in 34.


I think we're on the same page Jeff. All I was trying to say is that the odds of taking a good buck like those or bigger is better in G than in 34, but there are certainly good ones in 34, as evidenced by the picture you posted. I wish I could have seen one that big in G because he is a beauty and much bigger than the G bucks we took in 2015. The one my buddy shot this year in G grossed 193" as a nontypical and would be hard to beat in 34.

 

[HalfAce]

All, thank you for the replies.

Jm77, that's a Helluva buck! No questions! Thank you for posting that. Between your post and Largebull's friend staying "quiet" about the unit, I'm kind of reading between the lines about what that unit may be like. 2016 was a pretty tough year everywhere in general because of how warm it was, so I'm thinking there will be a better chance at some more mature bucks in 2017. But I don't need to see a 190 to have a great hunt.

As far as points being an indicator of B&C potential, I understand that there isn't always a direct correlation. That's why I was wondering why this unit is a tough draw. I didn't know if its because there are large bucks in the unit, or because there may be a lot of deer in the unit making it a fun hunt, or because of its proximity to a large population of hunters in Casper, or something else like lots of public access that makes it high in demand. Which is why I started this post.

Topgun, thank you for your insight on Region G. I originally started building points so I can hunt G, and still haven't completely thrown it out of consideration because I hear it's such a beautiful place and there are big bucks taken every year. But hearing about what goes on up there the last few years has turned me away from it a bit. Between the outfitters that scout it for a living, the airplane spotters, the professional residents that hunt it annually, the professional nonresident hunters that team up with max point holders every year so they can hunt it every year, and all the 1,000+ yard shooters (just look on YouTube) I have been a little turned off from it. I understand that a 170" buck can be a realistic expectation up there, and that if you scout and have horses or go guided, you may shoot one bigger than that. But I'm not going guided, I live too far to scout more than once, and I don't have horses. Ide rather hunt bucks that few people scout, bucks that don't have names and aren't already assigned to some guided hunter. I feel like going up there, and getting lucky and stumbling onto a big buck is a lot more rare of an occurrence than would be possible in other units. But even after all of that, ide still like to try G. Which is making my decision on where to apply next year a tough one. Good thing is its still a long while before the application deadline.

Topgun, did you go guided? Drop Camp? DIY? If guided or dropped off, how do you think you would have done if you went DIY?

 

[TOPGUN]

HalfAce---We went guided and stayed in a cabin down in the Star Valley next to the outfitters home. That 2015 hunt was only the second guided one I've ever done because at 69 years old and living in MI with no way to do any scouting I decided to take the plunge one last time and go on horseback with someone that knew the country. I would not do a DIY up there unless I was a young stud living close enough such that I could scout it a lot. I do know one young member that has hunted it the last several years on foot with many scouting trips before the hunt and he finds a lot of big bucks and took a huge one this year.

If a guy knows horses and rented one and the tack from the outfit in the Star Valley that advertises on this site, that may be an alternative for you, but I have no idea if you would be capable of a safe hunt on your own like that. I did two DIY horseback hunts in the late 90s in the BigHorns and they are a pain in the butt with all the extra time taking care of them, making sure they have good feed and water available, etc. That's why I left that all up to an outfitter last year so that I could enjoy the hunt itself a lot more and was glad I went that route. A drop camp would be a possibility if you can find an outfitter that would do that and I don't think one particular area is any better than others up there in G.

 

[HalfAce]

Topgun, thank you.

I've seen that Region G country from the Idaho side, and it definitely looks like horse country. I could do it on foot, but I've hunted horse country on foot before and I just felt ide be more effective if I had horses. Anyway, I live almost a 1,000 miles away, so there is no chance of me being able to compete with the guys that live a lot closer who scout it multiple times a summer. Lots to think about for 2017...

 

[Triple_BB]

I've elk or deer hunted in 34 every year for the past 5 - 6 years. Best buck I've seen over that time was in the low 180's. This year I was helping family on both deer and elk hunts in 34. Best buck I saw was in the low 170's. Didn't see anything else much better than 160. I tell family and friends to apply for 34 because its an easy hunt and you can always fill a tag with a decent buck if you have a few days. If I had the points, I'd apply for 89. We saw far better bucks in 89 while elk hunting last year...

 

[jm77]

Word from the G&F after post season deer classifications in November is they are proposing to cut tags in 89 due to lower numbers and quality of bucks.

 

[Conrad8899]

Didn't G&F just up the buck tags in 89? I know they did in 34.

 

[dz]

I think the reason it takes the points it does is because it has the most public land of any units that far East. When people travel from the east side they want to hunt as soon as they can. If you come from east of the Mississippi and have never hunted Mule deer before you are not looking for a buck that is named or has inches tied to him. Most of those folks couldn't tell the difference between 150 and 190. I've seen those groups with 5 forkeys and one 3 point and one 4 point and they are all tickled to death.

DZ

 

[midwesthunter]

I can't speak for 34 but hunted G for the first time ever this year. I can attest for the number of people you can run into. I did a DIY hunt and only way I would do it again would be with horses. If I had horses I could have maybe gotten away from the crowds. I left after three days of hunting, and came back the last week of the season in a different unit and got lucky and bumped into a low 170's 4x4.

I believe 34 takes as many points as it does because it has a higher then normal success rate.