Black-Tailed Deer hunting
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Where to hunt Black-Tailed Deer
Black-tailed deer is a close relative of mule deer that inhabits the Pacific Coast of North America. Accordingly, the opportunities for black-tailed deer hunting are limited to Alaska, British Columbia, Washington, Oregon and California. Two distinct subspecies of black-tailed deer are the Sitka deer that inhabits some Alaska islands, and the Columbian black-tailed deer that covers the most of the Pacific coast from British Columbia to California. Trophy books also recognize Baja black-tailed deer, which is hunted in the southmost part of its range.
Price distribution
With limited distribution, and most of the range in remote areas, black-tailed deer hunts are in short supply, and we all know what it does to prices. A black-tailed deer hunt starts with about $3,000, and may go up to $8,000 for boat-based hunt in Alaska. A large part of the price of such hunts is the travel to these remote destinations; one way to save is to book a combination hunt or go with a few friends.
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Learn more from our blog story
When most Americans say “deer”, they mean “whitetail”. But there are other kinds of deer in North America. How many are there? Three? Six? 58? 80? Select your answer and read our blog story to check yourself. And don’t forget that no matter how many kinds of deer there are, each of them represents an exciting opportunity for a challenging hunt.
26 Apr 2018 How Many Kinds of Deer Are There in North America?When to hunt Black-Tailed Deer?
Black-tailed deer seasons are usually generous. The archery season starts in California as early as July; rifle hunts begin in August, and often run well into December. The best times to hunt, however, are the rut and post-rut hunts in late October or November, however, in some state the rut time is reserved for a special draw season.
Hunting methods All hunting methods (11)
Black-tailed deer prefer dense cover, and seldom move far from the spot they settle in. In coastal rainforests, where most of the hunting takes place, the most popular hunting method is still-hunting, that is, moving slowly and quietly through the likely places, hoping to see or jump a deer. Light, quick-handling weapons are better for this sort of hunting than precision long-range weapons. Hunting from a stand is also possible, and during the rut black-tailed deer generally respond well to calling. In the more open areas of the Alaskan islands and part of California the hunt can be spot-and-stalk, with spotting in Alaska often done by cruising the coastline on motor boats.
Why hunt Black-Tailed Deer?
If white-tailed deer is the most common hunting quarry, with more people harvesting more whitetails than any other big-game animal in North America, black-tailed deer is the exact opposite. People from the East will have to overcome a lot for their Sitka or Columbian trophy. Complicated logistics required to reach its habitat is only the beginning. Most black-tailed deer habitat, in the months when the season is open, features constant cold rain, occasionally turning to wet snow. The elusive creatures leave but a few seconds for a hunter to estimate the antler size and take a quick shot, and processing and dragging the deer through prime brown bear habitat is something else again. Some may ask why go through all these problems for, well, just a deer. But true hunters know the answer. Book your black-tailed deer hunt today.
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