My plan is to book a 2019, USA, rifle hunt for a trophy Mule Deer. I put this question to AR in hope of obtaining pointers to the right hunt. I have sought info from one outfitter member here who seems non contactable currently and have recommendations from hunting consultants, but haven't quite got a positive enough vibe to feel "yes, that's the hunt I want." Of course like any passionate hunter my dream is to take the "big one", on a free range hunt in a location with the genetics, habitat and management for producing big bruisers. I do not want any success guarantee, but to hunt where the chance for a big boy is a real possibility. Either public or private land is OK but I realise odds may be ( much ? ) better on private land. Being a NZ citizen it would help if OTC tags were available or if guaranteed landowner tags were available, or if by draw, the odds were favourable. I presume a hunt timed for the rut might present additional opportunities for buck sightings but I know not all management units include rifle hunts during the rut.
Would appreciate any info assisting my research with advance thanks to all who care to post.

Do you have an approximate budget? There's a huge range on mule deer pricing.

RAVENR or drummondlindsey.

Your budget will dictate the hunt. How much do you want to spend? How big is a bruiser? Tell us more and some of us can point you in the right direction.

Thanks for the questions. Agreed, budget is a consideration. Hopefully I can find the right hunt for max USD $ 10,000.00 but hopefully a bit less considering additional costs like international airfares, trophy prep / shipping etc.
To me a big boy is somewhere in that 200 B&C class but score is not necessarily the most sought after factor. I appreciate good mass and even non-typical features have appeal. I do want to improve on my best, and only, to date.
https://drive.google.com/file/...SFk/view?usp=sharing
Mine on picture left, my son's on picture right

'06:
Just some spare off the top info: IMO!
A 200pt buck is so damned rare you'd better forget that big to start with. In 65 years hunting them here I don't think I've seen a live one that big but, I'm not a point hunter and likely wouldn't know one if I saw one. About the biggest I've seen while hunting would be equal to those in your pictures. I have a dandy that's only 187pts. And it was killed in 1946 up in the NW corner of CO.

Ok, forget Colorado to start with, seasons are way too short, most are 5 days, one is 9 days and they're all draw tags to begin with.

Pick a state like NM, Utah, Wyo, Idaho or Montana and study the length of seasons, racks and prices. Connect with Ray Atchison, he lives among 'em and posts on A/R a lot.

Your '06 with 150- 165gr would be perfect. Zero for 5-5 1/2" high at 100 for this wide open country and PRACTICE! Drop will be right near 12" low at 400, and 19" @ 425yds. Shoot it enough to KNOW what you're doing and you'll be good over here until you start stretching the range, then it's iffy.

Figure a plane ride will run close to $2000 R/T at present.

Best of luck to you.

George

If you're willing to fork over some hard earned money, it's tough to beat Alberta for large mulies. I've been there twice, and have come away more than satisfied each time. Check out Ameri-Cana expeditions, they have big mulies

According to Boone and Crocket a Trophy Buck scores 180. I agree with Gracedog look at Alberta!!!

Contact Aaron Neilson or ravenr.

They are members of this forum and have a reputation of killing big
mule deer.

Another vote for Alberta. I hunted there with a buddy three yeas ago and took a 193 gross typical and my buddy a 213 non-typical. But 170 to 185 is probably what you could expect. We had a ranch hunt near Claresholm, AB.

Try Frank Simpson Outfitting: http://www.franksimpsonoutfitting.com

I'd contact Aaron Neilson and look at his CO eastern plains hunts. Not too far from where you'd land in Denver, and i believe a lot of his units are easy, low preference point draws. You've already missed putting in for a point this year by a few days (bummer) but you'd have 2 years to gather them. Vouchers are possible. Those plains bucks are monsters, 99% private land.

quote:

Your '06 with 150- 165gr would be perfect. Zero for 5-5 1/2" high at 100

That is a recipe for missing quick closer shots.

And yes I do hunt open plains country.

A much better idea is a ballistic compensating scope and a laser range finder.

https://www.guidefitter.com/ironmountainoutfitters

Dennis is an old college friend. Wyoming requires preference points, but by 2019 you might have enough if you bought them each year now to then. I'll be hunting there in 2019 for mule deer.

I wouldn't leave out Sonora Mexico for big muleys.

quote:

Originally posted by ted thorn:
Contact Aaron Neilson or ravenr.

They are members of this forum and have a reputation of killing big
mule deer.

This is excellent, accurate information.

I have a hunt that would be right up your alley! Hunt takes place on the Eastern plains of Colorado. No preference points needed as landowner vouchers are included in the cost of the hunt. We have worked with this outfitter for over 10 years and he produces year after year!

Here are 3 very nice Mulies that our clients took last year on this hunt. We did have one hunter not harvest but he chose to hunt closer to camp and did have 2 opportunities. Missed and passed on another.


Colin - taken with Muzzleloader. Should go over 200"



Gary - Rifle



Clark (Gary's Son) - Rifle




I can e-mail or PM more pics. of some of the great bucks they harvested last year, just PM me if interested.


Thanks
Brett

Really great looking bucks.

If you are not a horseman, be extremely careful about booking a hunt that requires substantial time in a saddle. A guided hunt on horseback can be very rewarding, but can also be extremely taxing on the body.
Good luck
A word about Alberta: I hunted elk and moose there a few years ago. In considering Alberta, be sure to ask whether the hunting area will be unrestricted and open to the public which could be a serious detriment.

I would do the Sonora, Mexico hunt. Very flexible with dates and don't have to worry about a draw.

For what you're looking for, your best bets are eastern Colorado, Kansas, Alberta and Sonora. There are some hunts in Idaho and Wyoming, but I would not consider either place this year after the winter they've had.

Outfitters to contact would include Aaron Nielson, Drummond Lindsey, Ravenr, Jeremy Gugelmeyer (JeremyKS on AR) and perhaps Mark Young as I believe he has a good connection in Sonora. Also, definitely consider Matt Schimberg of A3 Trophy Hunts for Sonora, he has some very good ranches.

You got one piece of terrible advice, and that is to sight your rifle in for 5" high at 100 yards. I'm sorry, but that is stupid advice. Sight your rifle dead on for either 200 or 250 yards and you'll be fine at all reasonable shooting distances.

A 200" buck is far bigger than you realize and in fact, any buck of 180" class or bigger is a heck of a nice buck. A 180" buck is not that common either, they don't grow on trees anywhere. A realistic goal would be to look for a buck larger than 180 and be happy (very happy) with a buck noticeably bigger than the one you already have.

You've received some good advice on areas and some limitations. 200 is a number you probably should forget. $10,000 is the key.

Most CO Plains hunts will push that budget when you figure in the hunt, voucher, tag, tip, etc... To hunt Sonora you would have to find a deal for less than 10k. And Alberta is so hit or miss. Of those I think CO is best.

Don't overlook Utah and their CWMU program. You can get contact info on the Utah Division of Wildlife web site. Bucks and Bulls, Western Lands, Shane Ford, Hightop, Tom Land would be good to contact.

While exceeding your budget by at least half, the Jicarillo Apache reservation outside of Chama, New Mexico has a reputation for outstanding Mule Deer. They are expensive but well worth it. Some huge deer.

I completely forgot about the Utah CWMU opportunities. MC has given you a good lead as those CWMU operators can probably put together a reasonable deal for a mule deer hunt and give you a good opportunity at a very nice buck.

There is a high fence ranch in New Mexico that is a mule deer place. They have some really great genetics if you want a monster.

http://www.hdrmuledeerhunting....-usa-new-mexico.html

30.06:

As others have said, 200" is tough. As was previously suggested, Utah has some good CWMU's.

One of the mentioned CWMU's is just a few miles from where I live. If you would like, send me a PM and I can tell you what I know. There are good and bad CWMU's. The one that is near to where I live is one of the good ones.

I am not a guide or an Outfitter. However, I am very glad to help where I can.