Any washington hunters with advice

[Slammer14]

Ok so my dad drew a quality buck tag for the Sinlahiken unit in Washington. Just wondering if anyone on here has any tips, we have never hunted the unit. I believe there are only 10 or 15 tags so pressure shouldn't be an issue.

 

[Niobium]

Pick a rifle that you are comfortable with, bring an extra layer of clothing, a poncho, and don't be afraid to use an improvised rest when taking your shot. Ranges will most likely be less than 200 yards and the deer are a little spooky, so bring good binoculars and don't be afraid to sit quietly and glass the area thoroughly. Be patient and be quiet, you will have good success as there are lots of deer in that area. You are going to be hunting along the edge of a lake in that area, use that to your advantage, lie up along the edge and glass the beach thoroughly early morning and late evening, best luck usually as the sun rises, I try to be in place by 5:30 am with my binos out and up. I live on the west coast of Washington and harvest deer every year for the freezer, I recommend head shots. No adrenaline dump, the meat is fantastic. Have fun and be safe sir!

 

[Slammer14]

Thanks for the response, what caliber of bucks can we expect there

 

[Niobium]

Thanks for the response, what caliber of bucks can we expect there

I usually see a lot of medium to smaller bucks in that area, I have not seen any really big suckers rack wise out there. They will all be fairly big through the body and have plenty of meat though. That's a really good meat hunting area. The last deer I took out of there delivered over 90 lbs of packaged meat to the freezer, which is really great for a black tail of medium size. Gutted out it weighed about 170-180lbs and had a nice layer of fat on its back. Try for a quick clean kill, trying to track through the brush there is a biatch.

 

[Slammer14]

I think you are thinking of a different unit, we will be hunting mule deer north of conconelly

 

[Niobium]

Closest town to that hunting area is 'Loomis', right near Palmer lake, yes, there are mule deer there, but the majority that I have seen are black tail or black tail hybrids. Should be a fun hunt with a really good chance of success!

 

[Niobium]

Maybe I'm looking at the wrong hunting area, if so, scratch all that...

 

[Slammer14]

Yep that's the area, this is a mule deer tag, I have never seen any blacktail in eastern Washington, I know there are some whitetail in the area

 

[Slammer14]

We will most likely be between Loomis and conconully

 

[Slammer14]

Maybe blacktail up north? You have a pic of one?

 

[Niobium]

this was a doe from Palmer lake from a couple years ago, delicious!

 

[Niobium]

I ate it's heart with some fava beans and a nice Chianti...