Big Country Mule Deer

It was the old buck’s forked antlers that gave him away. The distinct “sling shot” shape was out of place in the dead mesquite bush. He was just 200 yards off the dusty ranch road. My 10X binoculars confirmed it was indeed a bedded buck, and a good one at that. I guessed the mature 10-point buck’s rack with deep forks would score 160 inches. A solid Texas mulie. He was fresh out of velvet with some red color to his antlers.

It was opening day of Texas’ short pronghorn season. I was hunting in the northwestern Panhandle. We were looking for pronghorns, but in that patchy brush on the south end of the ranch, mule deer often share similar habitat. Opening day of pronghorn season was also opening day for whitetail and mule deer archery season in that county last year. Just for such a possibility, I’d insisted that our host carry his bow.

The buck was bedded with his eyes to the south. He could see a predator coming that way and smell one if it came from behind due to the wind direction. The first part of the stalk went easy enough. My friend was inside 100 yards working into the crosswind and dodging behind mesquites. Watching through binoculars, I noticed the buck’s ears suddenly swiveled. Not his whole head, just his ears. He’d heard something out of place. The buck stood to his feet, glared behind him at my friend’s camouflaged form, then bounded for the horizon.

Months later, when the general mule deer season was over, I asked my friend if he ever saw that buck again. “Not once,” he said. As the old saying goes, they don’t get big by being stupid!

About Texas mule deer

Texas is home to scattered herds of mule deer. The majority live in either the Trans-Pecos or Panhandle regions. According to TPWD Mule Deer and Pronghorn Program leader Shawn Gray, mule deer numbers have been increasing over the last decade. Gray shared the following details about Texas mule deer and some interesting facts on a recent study conducted in the Panhandle to determine how far mule deer travel to feed on agricultural crops.

Expect rifle shots in open country from 100-300 yards. Attach a bipod to your rifle, carry shooting sticks, rest the rifle on a fence post or shoot prone with the gun over a backpack. Do whatever you can to steady the crosshairs before taking the shot.

Where to find big bucks

“In general, the Trans-Pecos mule deer population has been on an increasing trend since 2012 because of good range conditions and fawn production and recruitment from 2013-2017. In 2019, the Trans-Pecos mule deer population estimate was about 136,000, over a 30% increase from 2018. However, the recent drought in 2020-2021 has probably impacted numbers and antler development negatively for this year. Fortunately, the monsoon rains returned this summer and should help fawn production and recruitment.

“The Panhandle mule deer population trend has been increasing since 2011. The 2019 population estimate of approximately 92,000 was slightly lower than the 2018 estimate of about 97,000. Again, I would suspect that the recent drought of 2020-2021 impacted numbers, but I think rains came just in time to parts of the Panhandle to have good fawn and antler production for this year.

“Anecdotal evidence suggested that mule deer commonly traveled long distances to access agricultural crops for forage in the Texas Panhandle. However, data from our 5-year research project from across three study areas in the Panhandle indicated otherwise. Of all our 146 collared adult mule deer, 10% in the Western Rolling Plains (3-4 miles), 4% in the Canadian River Breaks (8 and 18 miles), and 4% in the Southwest Panhandle (3 and 15 miles) demonstrated any kind of seasonal movement involving agriculture out of their core range. Further, all instances were bucks and most of the movements coincided with the breeding season where does tend to congregate on crop fields for added nutrition during winter. Lastly, we observed that the further deer are from agriculture the less

likely they are to use it. This is especially evident at the Canadian River Breaks region where very few deer used agriculture; however, this is likely because we captured and collared most deer at far distances (8 miles or greater) from cropland.” I researched Texas mule deer trophies online at the Boone and Crockett Club’s Trophy Search. Their data shows that 12 typical and eight non-typical mule deer have been entered from The author with a big Texas mule deer from 2015. He ambushed Texas. The minimum for an the buck with a bow in a CRP field. Awards typical mule deer is 180 and the All-Time book is 190. Of the 12 bucks that exceeded those minimums they came from the following counties: Andrews, Bailey, Childress, Culberson (2), Dickens, Gaines, Jeff Davis (3) and Potter. Only four of those bucks net-scored over 190 inches. The state record typical was taken in 1996 in Potter County by Mickey G. VanHuss and net-scored 1956⁄8. The minimum for a non-typical is 215 for the Awards and 230 for the All-Time. Those 8 entries came from the following counties: Brewster, Gaines, Randall, Winkler, Culberson (2) and Jeff Davis (2). Only four of those bucks net-scored over the 230-inch minimum to make the All-Time Book. The state record non-typical was shot in 2019 in Culberson County by Greg B. Simons and net-scored 2921⁄8. (Notice that both the Panhandle and Trans-Pecos counties are well represented in the B&C Records.) Boone and Crockett-caliber racks are rare. What makes Texas special is the number of quality 160-180 type bucks produced every year. And unlike most western states, there is no draw to obtain tags. Texas is mostly private land, so the obstacle becomes finding the place to hunt. The plus side is many Texas landowners see the value of growing big bucks. They do things like limiting cattle grazing, brush control, controlling predator populations, adding supplemental feed, adding food plots, improving water distribution and limiting the harvest of bucks. All of these things work in favor of growing bigger bucks. The following bucks were harvested in the 2020 season and entered into the Texas Big Game Awards (TBGA). The biggest typical from last season in Region 2 was a buck taken by Dusty Anderson in Floyd County. The buck grossed 1781⁄8 and netted 1735⁄8. The biggest non-typical from that year was taken by Scott DeWitt in Dickens County. That buck scored 1926⁄8 gross

The author with a recent Texas mule deer taken with archery gear.

and 1893⁄8 net. Both bucks were not only the biggest in their category for the region, but also the biggest for the entire state. I know of a few others that were 180-200 inches that were never entered. A lot of hunters these days like to keep their favorite honey hole a secret! Other Panhandle counties with non-typical and typical mule deer entries in TBGA included Bailey, Cottle, Oldham, Childress, Yoakum, Foard, Cochran, Gaines, Terry and Randall.

Counties along the Texas/New Mexico line consistently grow a few whoppers each season. But big bucks come from all over the Panhandle. The Palo Duro Canyon area grows a few, the Canadian River drainage grows big bucks and even farm fields and CRP fields across the top counties and southern Panhandle counties harbor big bucks. Like finding big bucks anywhere, it comes down to having a piece of property where a buck can age to 5½-7½ years to express his best antlers. Good nutrition and good genetics can be found in many counties. Letting a buck get old enough is usually the limiting factor.

Hunt ready

Depending on the county, Texas mule deer can either be hunted during the archery season and a later general season or just a short general season. Check TPWD’s Outdoor Annual for details on the county you plan to hunt and exact season dates. For archery hunting, I like the last week in October. Mature bucks are more visible than they were earlier in the month due to cooler weather. In the Panhandle, I focus my time around crop fields like milo or wheat. In drought years, sitting near water can be productive. Feed stations baited with corn and alfalfa hay can also lure a buck into range. I don’t always get my buck in October, but the time invested in the early season always pays off. More than once, I’ve returned later in the general season and taken a familiar buck that I first spotted back in October.

This is big country. Bring quality optics to find deer. The go-to kit for a western hunter is a set of 10X40 binoculars and a variable power spotting scope. I like a big scope, one with an 80mm objective lens, with a window mount and a heavy tripod for scouting either from the truck window or close to the rig. In my pack I carry a lighter, 50mm or 60mm scope with a small tripod. Either a pocket-sized rangefinder or one built into the 10X binoculars will help pin down shot distance. Riflemen will do well with guns chambered in classics like .270 Win. or .30-06. Newer rounds like the 6.5 Creedmoor, .270 WSM or .300 WSM will work just as well. Top the gun with a quality 3-10X40 scope with a simple reticle and practice with it. Most shots at mule deer in the field will be either prone, the gun over a daypack or from a set of forked shooting sticks or atop a fence post. Few mule deer bucks are taken from blinds. Know where your bullet impacts at 100, 200 and 300 yards then use stalking skills to close the distance.

Mule deer memories

My fascination with mule deer started as a kid. My late father, DeWitt Ray, bagged a couple of fine bucks in his short life. The dusty horn mounts and shoulder mounts from those bucks

hung in our den. A couple of those racks came from my grandfather’s ranch in the Texas Panhandle. Today, I’m fortunate to hunt the ancestors of those same bucks on the same land. Dad hunted mostly with his Sako .30-06 rifle topped with a Redfield scope. I shot my first-ever mule deer buck in 1988 with Dad’s old gun. Today, I hunt mostly with a bow and arrow.

I’ve invested a lot of time to watching and hunting mule deer. One of the few perks of living on a rocky ranch in the middle of nowhere is you get to observe deer year-round. Where I live south of Amarillo is a harsh landscape where summers top 100 degrees, the wind blows like a hurricane and winters are mean with icicles hanging off barbed wire fences. Through all of those seasons I’ve managed to tag a few big bucks. I’ve traveled beyond familiar dirt in Texas and hunted in New Mexico, Oklahoma, Colorado, Wyoming, Montana and Alberta, Canada. If I had to pick only one place to hunt big-eared deer, even though there are certainly places with bigger racks, I’d pick hunting on my granddad’s ranch. There’s one that got away that I still remember.

It was the fall of 2009. In late November, a non-typical buck with 14 points showed up at 3:33 a.m. on my trail camera. I guessed his rack would score in the 170’s. The camera was barely past my front yard near the barn.

I glassed the nearby canyons at sunrise and sunset for a week, but never saw that buck. One afternoon, I decided to sit near the corral where I’d caught his picture. The rut was gaining momentum and does were crowding the water tank right at dark for a drink.

It was the end of shooting light, and I was just about to exit my hideout when I saw a silhouette of big antlers coming at me across the CRP field. It was the big 14-point! He slowly walked

Bring good optics on any mule deer hunt. Carry 10X binoculars around your neck and a spotting scope and tripod to scrutinize distant bucks.

within 20 yards of my hideout, and I could just make out his silhouette in the purple sky, but the clock said legal shooting time was over. I just stared through my binoculars at the ghost. I never saw that buck again. None of the neighbors reported taking him. As the old saying goes, they don’t get big by being stupid!