Nebraska deer herd questions.....

[Dewey]

I am looking into a few options for an out of state deer hunt the last week of October-early November. One state I am considering is Nebraska since I have hunted out there in the past and somewhat familiar with some decent areas.

I know they got hit pretty bad with EHD last year so the herd is down but before that they were at record levels in many areas. Wondering if it is as bad as many are saying?

Been doing some research and it looks like the age structure is pretty good. 34% of whitetail and 42% of mulie bucks harvested last year were at least 3 years old.

The low hunter density and reasonable over the counter tags appeal to me. Only 13,000 resident and 2,800 non resident archery tags sold last year with a kill of 2300 whitetail and 250 mulie bucks.

I am considering mule deer in the NW since I am familiar with that area but would also consider whitetail anywhere else in the state. Sounds like EHD took about a 1/3 of the herd everywhere except the SW corner.

Been working on this the last week or along with a few other states. I filled my WI buck tag so this all came together since then and I am not as prepared as I would like to be for an out of state hunt. I love spot and stalking mule deer and had a blast last time I was out there. Thought it would be a good change of pace from whitetail.

Any thought would be greatly appreciated. I know a few guys here hunt out there and was hoping I could get so firsthand knowledge of what is going on there.

[ Post made via iPhone ]

[PLB]

Spysar hunts out there. Send him a pm. He'll help ya out..

[ Post made via iPhone ]

[Spysar]

It was bad there last year. There were dead deer everywhere. At least 50% of the deer were gone from my area. Mature bucks were hard to come by last year. I'm sure it will recover, but it's gonna take 4 or 5 years to be close to what it once was. They cut tags mid season last year, and they cut tags this year. No extra doe tags given at all this year. That being said, not all the deer were wiped out. Just makes the hunt a little more challenging, that's all....

[Dewey]

Thanks Spysar. Unfortunately that was the news I expected but was hoping I wouldn't hear. Not sure if I want to invest too much into it if it's really that bad given my short planning window I have. I will keep doing my research for alternate plans.

Are you headed out there on your Venison Tour this year?

[ Post made via iPhone ]

[Spysar]

I'm still going. I like it there, so I'm gonna take the good with the bad. Like I said, there are still deer there. They died in pockets, so some areas got wiped bad, but other spots weren't as bad. I wouldn't let what I said stop you from going.

[Dewey]

I'm still going. I like it there, so I'm gonna take the good with the bad. Like I said, there are still deer there. They died in pockets, so some areas got wiped bad, but other spots weren't as bad. I wouldn't let what I said stop you from going.

I will call the local game biologist and get more detailed info on specific regions. I am more concerned about mule deer but it sounds like the NW corner I am familiar with got hit pretty hard as well.

[ Post made via iPhone ]

[JakeJD]

Like Spy said, EHD wiped out pockets out deer while leaving other areas completely untouched. Check out this link:

http://outdoornebraska.ne.gov/hunting/EHD.asp

The eastern half of the state seemed to get hit the worst. I noticed a few dead deer in the areas that I hunt (Central / South-Central), but most of my hunting spots seemed to be untouched.

Feel free to pm me with any specific questions.

[Spysar]

I'm still going. I like it there, so I'm gonna take the good with the bad. Like I said, there are still deer there. They died in pockets, so some areas got wiped bad, but other spots weren't as bad. I wouldn't let what I said stop you from going.

I will call the local game biologist and get more detailed info on specific regions. I am more concerned about mule deer but it sounds like the NW corner I am familiar with got hit pretty hard as well.

[ Post made via iPhone ]

As far as I know, EHD doesn't affect the muley's.

[Bigb]

If you head to the Lake Maccaugnahey (ogalla) area let me know. Been there over the summer the last few years and found a great bunch of cabins right on public land that seems like they are pretty focused on deer hunting when its not the summer fishing season. I can send you the information on the area, I think its a great option if you are heading to Western Nebraska.

[Dewey]

If you head to the Lake Maccaugnahey (ogalla) area let me know. Been there over the summer the last few years and found a great bunch of cabins right on public land that seems like they are pretty focused on deer hunting when its not the summer fishing season. I can send you the information on the area, I think its a great option if you are heading to Western Nebraska.

Now that sounds like something I would be interested in checking out. PM the info when you get a chance. Thanks.

[ Post made via iPhone ]