[Matthew7]

This year I will be doing my first archery antelope hunt in Montana. Looking for tips and tactics. I am currently looking at getting a bow decoy, spot and stocking trying to close the distance. My only other plan is to us concealment and crawling to the animals. Any help would be greatly appreciated.


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[horsehands]

Blind hunt a waterhole.

 

[Sasquatch87]

Decoys can work great but it’s timely. I just about wouldn’t use one until you start seeing bucks with a herd run off other bucks. If you there for the rut you will see what I’m talking about.

Stalking isn’t that complicated but you have to find some in what I’d call stalk-able terrain. Aka, not FLAT
Any slight hill, ditch, or burm will open up your odds a lot. Even fence rows, stalking from post to post works.

Also, don’t stop and park where they can see you, if they see that car stop they gone, even from 5-800 yards away. Their eyes are like 10x binos so it’s close to them and they’ll be gone. Keep going and find a spot to Park where they can’t see you.

Also, as good as their vision is it’s almost like their close range vision isn’t as good, I personally think they just so confident in their eyesight they just don’t pay attention to things inside 100 yards, they focus on things way out from they. I assume being confident there’s no way something snuck up on them. So once you in close you got a lot going for you.

Also, first and last light it seems their vision drops off. So use those times more aggressively.


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[GB3YO]

Stalk,stalk and stalk never be afraid to try a stalk sometimes it pays off i thought no way I could get close to these 3 bucks but I got close enough

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[cs1983]

I'm curious what the opinion is on the efficacy of flagging?

 

[mod-it]

I've never hunted them but have a couple friends that go quite a bit in southern Idaho.
One set of friends sits in blinds on a water hole (his wife too) and one if not both tag out every year.
Another friend likes to stalk them, his favorite method is to spot them hanging out just over the crest of a hill and he then stalks up the back side of the hill. Once he gets close to cresting over he moves very slowly, exposing more and more of the other side with half steps, with his bow already drawn until he can see enough of them to view their vitals. He gets them here and there, but not as consistently as the water hole friends.

 

[Matthew7]

I'm curious what the opinion is on the efficacy of flagging?

I’ve herd of this from what I have heard it works really well in the beginning of the season.


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[57Loader]

I’ve hunted them 3 times, never sat water, probably never will. I would rather chase them around for a week and not shoot one than sit in a hot blind for days.

Every time I got inside 100 yards I had some kind of cover or terrain to keep myself hidden.

I have never had much luck with decoys but the population has been pretty weak in the areas I’ve had tags. I know some guys that hunt in areas with super aggressive bucks and have bucks chasing them down all day wearing a home made decoy suit.


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[123 4/8 P&Y]

I like to put my blind in an area where the antelope frequent. Like a food source where you see them daily. Set it up in the dark so you don't spook them off. Then put out a couple decoys and wait. Bigger herd bucks are a little hesitant and skittish but they usually eventually come close enough for a shot with a compound. The satellite bucks and dinks will run right in. Be ready because they will show up out of nowhere. Mid to late September has been the best time for me.


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[Matthew7]

Thank you all for the help!!!! Currently I will be hunting sept 1-11


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[Bob H in NH]

You WILL blow stalks! But that's part of the fun! One thing I learned is from a distance you think that cover over there is close enough, then you spend an hour getting there, only to find out either they moved, OR it's not as close as you thought!

It is fun trying though.

Best luck I've had with a decoy is have a partner on a different sight line, pop the decoy up, it may just "stall" the pronghorns enough for you to close in on them

 

[HonkAddict]

Use a rifle Works amazingly well!



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[mez]

1-11 decoy likely won't work that well. Hunting with a decoy is pretty hit and miss. I'd guess about 1 in 20 encounters works with a buck decoy. Most of the time they stare at the decoy, start blowing and run off.

I have had better luck with a doe decoy than a buck. Find a herd with a dominant buck, follow them until they bed down. Once they lay down get within 100 yards of them. When the first doe stands up pop up a doe decoy. Buck will come in almost every single time. He thinks one of his does has gotten up an wandered a little too far away.

With a buck decoy it is best if you can find a herd with a bunch of satellite bucks tailing the herd. You tail the herd until the dominant buck runs off one of the little guys. They tend to chase them a long ways when they do this. Try to slip in between the dominant buck and his does and pop up your decoy. They don't like that.

I've had more luck with decoys in those two scenarios than simply sneaking close to a herd a popping one up.

I prefer to spot and stalk them.