Steens

grog3 · 03-08-2004, 07:31 AM

I have enough points to draw for deer, Has the hunting been any better or is it still tough. Any info would be great.

Elkhunter · 03-08-2004, 08:13 PM

I have been in the Steens the last 4 years, the hunting has gone way downhill. Even the ranchers say the same thing. As you can see the number of tags has dropped each year also. With 4 points I would hunt Mt. Emily for deer, I saw some real brusiers the last few years while Elk hunting. Good luck.

grog3 · 03-09-2004, 06:37 AM

MT. Emily EAST OR WEST...... Thanks I never really thought of that unit for deer. The biggest buck I have ever seen was standing along side Int. 84 just out of Lagrande.

Kenia · 03-10-2004, 05:19 AM

grog3

I have hunted the Steens for 15 years....It has been getting worse every time we go. There are still some monster bucks available...but be ready to hunt from dawn till dusk to find them. Look in brushy and rocky canyons and sage areas with miles of sage.

skein · 03-10-2004, 06:10 AM

You can't just go by past seasons either. With the heavy storms this winter and the subsequent die-off, it's anybody's guess. Of course the worst storms seemed to be up north but I somehow suspect the whole state got hit. Coming off a drought into four feet of snow and ice - that's gotta have an effect.

In short, think about the whole picture, not just the last couple of years. There's lots of us in the same boat.

Skein

Mello-Yello · 03-10-2004, 12:18 PM

I've been told in years past that how big of a snow you get isn't always as critical as when/how the storms hit. If you get rain or snow, followed by a warm spell, everything gets real wet. If you then get hit with a hard freeze, it builds an icy crust over the deer's everying and the deer can't dig and scrape to get to the food.

Just what I've been told...

M-Y

OregonSportsman · 03-11-2004, 07:05 PM

Hey everyone this doesn't have anything to do with hunting, but I'm going on a trip with my dad and brother this summer to the Steens just to check it out. Is there any particular place that we should go see, or something that is a must when you do this? We will be there for about 3 full days, any info. is greatly appreciated, thanks.

BrianMaguire · 03-11-2004, 07:19 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by OregonSportsman:
Hey everyone this doesn't have anything to do with hunting, but I'm going on a trip with my dad and brother this summer to the Steens just to check it out. Is there any particular place that we should go see, or something that is a must when you do this? We will be there for about 3 full days, any info. is greatly appreciated, thanks.

<font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helv">Big Indian Gorge has to be in the top 5 most beautiful sites in Oregon. Take the road all the way to south steens. Wildhorse Lake is very cool but don't hike it unless you have a fishing pole. Its high elevation so you get out of breath quick. Depends on how much time you have but if you can get into the back country. Arrow heads, Antelope, etc. Way cool. Also make sure you get out at night to look at the stars. You won't get a better place in the lower 48 for looking at stars, French Geln really does not put out that much light :smile:

horseskull · 03-11-2004, 07:37 PM

Look down into Kiger Gorge, always a bunch of elk on the north slope.
Drive the refuge road from the P Ranch to Krumbo either early morning or late evening. Tons of deer feeding. I had big bucks just yards from the truck just standing, not even scared.
Round barn is neat, also the Kiger Mustang herd is awesome. Also look for the cowboy herding his cows, BIG silhouettes located on the east side of the highway close to Krumbo. Just plain neat country.

OregonSportsman · 03-11-2004, 08:29 PM

Hey thanks for the input, I'll let my dad know what you guys said and see what he wants to do. Like I said we will have 3 full days to screw around and do as much as we can. I'm sure we will check out the stars, I'm just gonna throw my sleeping bag in the bed of the truck and sleep under them.

If anyone else has some input please let me know, thanks.

[ 03-11-2004, 09:30 PM: Message edited by: OregonSportsman ]

Salty Walty · 03-11-2004, 08:52 PM

Haven't been back in awhile but Mann Lake on the backside had some big Cutthroats in it and the Alvord Hotspring was great too.

Bait O' Eggs · 03-12-2004, 06:17 AM

Be sure to drive to the top and look down those canyons.

If you drive one, I hope your diesel likes the elevation better than mine did. cough spit sputter, need oxygen, cough spit sputter is how it was for us on top. I am talking about my diesel truck

Round barn is pretty cool, and driving out on the alvord desert is just an experience.

Wife wasnt much up for the hot springs as there were several naked people in the water

I could spent a lot of time in that area just relaxing and doing nothing but looking.

grog3 · 03-12-2004, 06:58 AM

We know the sceenery is great......But hows the deer hunting. Thats part of the reason I want to put in for the Steens, its a beautiful place. Thier are worse places to get skunked !!!!!!

StickFish · 03-12-2004, 08:41 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by grog3:
We know the sceenery is great......But hows the deer hunting. Thats part of the reason I want to put in for the Steens, its a beautiful place. Thier are worse places to get skunked !!!!!!

<font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helv">It is tough hunting. Lots of things have changed, Like Kenia said they're there - just don't expect them to stand by the side of the road during legal hunting hours. The big'ns got big for a reason - they use advanced doe scouts and like 100's of yards of clear open country that is moments from a big deep hole.

If its hot, you get about an hour in the morning and an hour in the evening, unless you kick the canyons.

Get some good tough supportive boots - you will need them!

grog3 · 03-12-2004, 10:41 AM

Thanks StickFish, Yeah I know its steep and very tough hunting, just wondering if people had been seeing any quality buck and if its better to hunt high in the canyons or stay low in the sagebrush flats. I will scout 3 - 4 times over the summer. I think their are still good bucks over their...... but like you said they are not dumb and you have to hunt hard and long to get them.

Mello-Yello · 03-12-2004, 06:02 PM

A word of advise. If you have hubcaps on your rig, take them off before you leave home. If your mirrors have any wobble to them, fix 'em or lose 'em. If you have any loose filling in your teeth, visit your dentist before leaving town! The washboards have got to be the worst in the country...hands down!

That being said...I don't know of a more grand, mysterious place in the state. You better believe there are still monster bucks there. But expect to work hard just to find one, let alone get a crack at one. To me, that's what makes it all the greater.

M-Y

mcknerkneykak · 03-12-2004, 06:45 PM

Last fourth of July a friend and I headead north from Fish lake area to the closest paved rd. Had maps--had no idea where we were until we came out on to the blacktop. Could have hidden 200 wild-eyed, crazy deer hunters along the route that we took and never seen any of them. This is big-auwsome country to ge lost in. Lots of deer tracks-something was making them. Wouldn't go back without a GPS so that we would have some idea where in the world we were. If I didn't already have an awesome place to hunt deer, this would be pretty high on the list.

StickFish · 03-13-2004, 06:15 AM

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Mello-Yello:
[QB] A word of advise. If you have hubcaps on your rig, take them off before you leave home. If your mirrors have any wobble to them, fix 'em or lose 'em. If you have any loose filling in your teeth, visit your dentist before leaving town! The washboards have got to be the worst in the country...hands down!

I'd hands down agree, I've even bent a wheel rim coming down in the mud one year - lost all my wheel weights as well. Good thing there is a Les Schwab in Burns.

Also the dust - WOW! it gets into everything. Every so often a blast of steens dust comes out of vents when I turn up the AC - that crap makes you whole truck sqweek