then and now! ?

[Seldom Drawn]

Muley 224,I not going to disagree with your post but back then not many hunters cared about putting an animal in the book. Now a days with the internet and the big egos there are way more people that will book an animal. I saw pics when I was a kid of my pops and his friends animals that would blow away some of the giants we see today and they didn't even keep the racks old farmers that hunted for the meat.

[Couesnut]

More Elk = less Mule deer ... simple

[coues32]

Always thought the coyotes ate the deer not the elk G F are working on that elk problem.

[mc68]

I live in Safford and the areas around here have been hit extremely hard from the prolonged drought that we are in. The mule deer numbers are not even close to what they used to be. I used to go out and do a lot of archery hunting 20 yrs ago during the Dec-Jan hunts, and you would see herd after herd of deer and every group had a good quality buck pushing them around. It was so much fun to see so many big bucks. Every year I would see a couple that would fit in with the bucks from up north. Now a days, you spend a lot of the day glassing and hoping to find 1 decent buck to chase. The numbers just aren't there. Its really sad, I tell my kids all the time what it used to be like and how much I wish it would get back to that so they could experience it too. Another critter that the drought has crippled is the quail. We used to have quail hunting that was world class around here. You could literally limit out within 30 minutes almost every outing. Now we hunt all day and will get maybe 10 birds between several of us. Its sad. The only thing to bring all the numbers of critters back is to break this drought and go into a wet cycle again. Pray for rain folks!!

[murfys69law]

I have hunted 21 for over 30 years it seems that there are less mulies and more whitetails, findind coues in areas that never had them before they seem to be getting closer and closer to phoenix

I too have hunted 21 for 30+ years. I have def. noticed the decline in mule deer. Not so much in WT. I really think the fire that devastated that area had a lot to do with it. Went to my favorite area 2 years ago and it still looks like the moon.

[WHT_MTNMAN]

3c has many many more mule deer than 20 years ago and not nearly as many as 45 years ago.

[BeardownAZ]

I think its easy to say other then north of the Colorado, its gotten worse for mule deer. I literally remember seeing herds of mule deer when I first started going out as a kid in 27. Its pathetic now compared to what it used to be. Could just drive up from Morenci to Alpine and count a 100 or more deer you'd see next to the road without trying. I've done that now and not seen a single one : ( Whitetail on the other hand, like a lot have already said, seem to be in areas I never saw them before.

[Non-Typical Solutions]

Back in the early 70's which is more than 20 years ago we spent a lot of time fishing Big Lake and Reservation Lake. The only time we would ever and I mean ever see elk was once we crossed the Reservation line.

We saw nice mule bucks right there in the Williamson valley all the time.

 

Then you jump to the mid 90's, Elk everywhere, you took your life in your own hands driving between Show Low and Round Valley and on to Alpine, Nutrioso was a winter haven for elk, hundreds of elk all over that country and the deer became the least visible of the two species.

 

Both the Rodeo/Chedeski and Wallow fires have changed habitat greatly in the rim country herds, where they hang out.

That Rodeo/Chedeski fire moved the elk from the dry lakes tree farm area almost over night. Not to say there aren't still elk in there, just not the numbers as previously.

 

I have seen more mule deer in these areas over the last 10 years than we were previously seeing, as to the size of antlers then and now.......I only see big antlers when I don't have a gun or a tag!!!

[Snapshot]

I remember some of the good old days in unit 27, back in the 70's & 80's. Always saw at least a couple hundred deer, and a fair amount of bucks on any given hunt. There is still decent hunting to be had, but nothing like it used to be.

 

Back then, I only saw a couple whitetail in all the years I hunted one of our spots. The WHitetail have seemed to flourish, even if G&F are putting out too many tags during for them on the October hunt.