I'm Looking for a Blacktail Guided Hunt

hound_hunter, are ya lookin' to bag a Columbia Blacktail or a Sitka Blacktail?

Sitka Blacktail are the ones in Alaska/Northern British Columbia coastal ranges and various islands. They are generally smaller and stockier then the Columbia Blacktail. Does will generally tip the scale at around 80-100 pounds and bucks around 120-140 pounds. Some will still approach 200 lbs but not usually.

The Columbia Blacktail are the ones in Southern British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, and California. A doe will generally weigh around 100-120 lbs and a good buck will weigh in around 140-150 lbs. Again, they can reach 200 lbs but that is a big Blacktail.

It seems to me that the California and southern Oregon Blacktail have taller and wider racks with thinner tynes on average. The Blacktail that frequent the northern Oregon coast and western Washington have shorter more compact racks with more mass...again on average. I don't have any "data" to back this up but have lived in both California and Washington and have seen my fair share of both.

Hope this helps and I'll do a little lookin' on guides in WA and OR if your lookin to bag a Columbia Blacktail. My mother lives outside of Anchorage and I can see if she knows of any good guides up there (I guess you've found plenty of Alaskan guides but in case you needed more info) in the event that the Sitka Blacktail is the one you want.

Reminder: If your lookin' for a TRUE blacktail you need to know that there are "dividing" lines that Boone and Crockett, Pope and Young, and the various game departments use when deciding if a buck is a Blacktail or a Mule deer (Or even a Muley/Blackie hybrid) in WA, OR, and CA. GENERALLY speaking, Interstate 5 in southern Oregon and northern California is a good thumb rule. If they are west of I-5 then they are classified Blacktail, if they are east of I-5 then they are Muleys/Hybids. In WA you can use the crest of the Cascade Mountain Range. (This is strictly a THUMBRULE. The actual dividing line is a bit more complex than that. BOHNTER, being a Pope and Young official, may be able to shed more light on this, especially for CA Blacktail).

Wow, thats some great information!

As dumb as this may sound I didn't realise it was a different species in alaska as opposed to oregon and washington and what not. So now i've got some thinking to do as to which one I want.

You've given some GREAT info though about both and its greatly appreciated..

Any opinions on which one I should go after this year?

hound_hunter, my opinion may be a bit skewed but I'll throw it out there.

I have already harvest a California Blacktail and would LOVE to bag a nice Sitka buck. In fact, I asked my mom to look into what it would take to head up there and try my luck. After all, I'll have a free place to stay(:

As for the CA, WA, and OR Blacktail, I prefer the thicker, stockier racks on the WA and N OR blacktail and am also working on bringing one of these home (Unfortuntely it keeps messin' up my Muley hunts).

I'll post some pics of all three (Sitka, WA Blacktail, S OR/CA blacktail for ya in a few minutes).

I prefer the Columbian Blacktail simply because I have hunted them for years. However, I too would like to someday hunt a Sitka Blacktail as well.

In terms of antler size, CA has been producing the biggest antlers over the last few years for Columbian Blacktail. Here are a few MONSTERS that were arrowed in the Golden State.

Here's the current archery state record at 151 1/8" net P&Y:

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Here's the pending state record arrowed this past season at 157" net P&Y:

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Hey BOHNTR, I'm glad you jumped in on the string here. I was just going to point out that California leads the pack in terms of "book" Blacktails with Oregon coming in second (Boone and Crockett). However, a Washington Blacktail leads the pack (I have heard rumors that a buck taken in Oregon may surpass it but nothing official as of yet.

hound_hunter, here are pics of some Blacktail. The first one is a Sitka, the second is a WA Columbia Blacktail (Took it myself) and the third is a CA Columbia Blacktail (BOHNTER also provided some great photos).

Personally I think the Sitka is the best lookin' of the three.

Never hunted any of them, but I'd have to agree those Sitka Blacktail are VERY good looking bucks.

The Sitka are by far the prettiest of them all, IMO. Double throat patches and dark foreheads make them unique.

As for the new record Columbian Blacktail.....time will tell. I "hear" of new world records every year that never pan out. :)

Good point Roy on the "pending record". We'll see.

If you go to blacktailguide.com they have a guide service up in washington on the kitsap penn.

If you want some info on a good place in WA to hunt blacktail just ask. One of my buddies took a buck that went 145 last year. Also if you want a trophy in Wa you better wait for the rut , because it is so thick you don't hardly have a chance at a mature buck. Oregon has some really nice bucks that are tall, wide, and heavy. Sitkas are the best looking. Blacktail hunting is harder then muley hunting so good luck.