Deer hunting is an exciting experience. Deer hunts at Squaw Mountain Ranch are not only adventurous but also reduces the cost incurred on meals for the days to come. However, deer hunting in Texas is not easy. You need to get your supplies ready and early. You got to get out there in the vegetation, navigate the landscape and topography.
What kind of food deer eat and where? Most importantly, you need to know what time of the year and the day the deer are frequent. The whitetail deer, for example, is commonly seen in early November and sticks around until January.
Cool Weather Is the Best
Like humans, deer prefer cool weather. They move around less in extreme weather conditions. When it is too hot, windy, and cold or in the rainy season, you will rarely see them. The best time to hunt in Texas is when the rains stop or when the hot weather cools down. This means, head out to hunt either early in the morning or late in the evening. You are likely to get good stock for your fridge during these times of the day.
Squaw Mountain Ranch gives you a lifetime experience. Here you can hunt from a herd of more than 30 species of deer from five different continents. This is the place for trophy whitetail deer hunting; the does are as many as the bucks.
Deer Hunting Gear
As the deer season approaches, it helps if you start preparing to hunt. Apart from identifying a ranch and booking a hunt, you also need to buy hunting supplies. Some of the gears you will need include:
- Hunting stand to get a better view of the terrain
- Ground blind to prevent the deer from seeing you
- Hunting knife
- Deer drag to transport the deer to the camp
- Hunting clothes (preferably orange jacket and cap)
- Scent elimination to prevent the deer from smelling your scent
- Game camera (optional)
- Optics to make aiming easy
- Deer decoy to attract the deer to your hunting range
As you go for deer hunts at squaw Mountain ranch, it is important to know what you want. Would you like a mature or baby deer? These two have distinct characteristics.
How to Identify an Adult Deer When Hunting
Identifying a grown deer may be an easy task for biologists. However, for an average person who is hunting for fun, it may prove to be a daunting task. If you do not look out for many critters, you may end up with what you did not want.
Here are some of the key characteristics to look out for.
- Body type
The overall body type of a mature deer from head to toe is muscular. Their bodies are so muscular that their legs appear to be shorter than those of a young buck. The skin and belly normally appear to be sagging. You will also notice a clearly visible potbelly.
- Head, face, and neck
If you see a buck that appears to have many wounds on the head, that is a mature deer. A Roman nose is common on the face of an adult deer that has a full profile. Its neck is full and looks like it is swollen, particularly during the rut. The neck, shoulders, and chest have the same camouflage.
- Shoulder and chest
From afar, you will see that mature deer’s chest and shoulders appear to be thick and heavy.
A few other characteristics you can look for include the tarsal glands. During the rut, these glands look big and darker than usual. You can also closely look at the hind legs, they black. Look out for the deer’s behavior. Mature bucks tend to be more dominant, chasing the younger ones around. They will also mark territories using scrapes of trees in most cases.
Final Words
Congratulations on your catch! Would you like to butcher the deer in the camp or transport it? There are regulations for butchering a deer defined by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. If you have no idea how to go about butchering or where to find these rules, call the warden at Squaw Mountain Ranch for assistance.
Texas, no doubt, offers the best destination for whitetail deer hunting. Most of the hunting in Texas is done on privately owned ranches like Squaw Mountain Ranch. You can always feel free to ask a landowner for a hunting package.