Deer Hunting

Mild Winters Lead to Great Opportunity for Deer Hunters. Many Idaho hunters are optimistic about taking a deer, or maybe even two, this fall. Steve Liebenthal told me "Three consecutive mild winters across most of Idaho are resulting in unusually high numbers of mule deer and whitetail deer. Survival rates have been higher than average in five of the last six years." Biologists say mild winters and good summer conditions allow bucks to put additional energy into antler growth, so 2014 will not only be good opportunity to take a deer, but also provides potential to bag a trophy. Even parts of the state which typically endure harsh winters have dodged the bullet, including the Central Mountains and the Upper Snake Region.

Some of the highest survival rates are in the Central Mountain area (Units 21A, 30, 30A, 29, 37, 37A) in the Mountain Valley area (Units 21, 28, 36B, 36A). In the Panhandle Region, hunters will find high numbers of whitetail deer including abundant does, but are reminded to carefully identify before pulling the trigger, as mule deer hunting is bucks only in that region.