Photo by Mark and Sue Werner

Few could argue against the fact that Oregon offers more deer hunting excitement than any other state in the country. From coastal blacktails to big east-side mule deer, to Columbian whitetails in Douglas County to the wary whitetails of the northeast, hunters have difficult choices to make when they pick up the new synopsis at the start of each year.

Information is the key. And we have it. Interviews with successful hunters and outfitters, and conversations with game biologists from around the state have helped us complete the picture of Oregon's deer hunting possibilities for 2005.

This year, a mild winter and a long growing season have hunters looking forward to a great hunt in most areas of the state. There's no doubt that Oregon deer hunting is changing and that many factors are involved in those changes. Hair loss syndrome, habitat loss, drought, poachers and predators have taken their toll in some herds, but numbers are good in many areas. The key to success this season will be flexibility and the ability to move or change techniques to adapt to conditions.

Here is our forecast for Oregon's best deer hunting. We will tell you which units offer the most animals and where you've got your best chance at tying your tag on a big buck when the sun comes up on opening day.

WESTERN OREGON
On the last weekend of rifle season, like many late October days, it was raining and foggy -- perfect blacktail weather -- as Tracey Rhodes carried a bolt-action .243 and a general-season deer tag into the woods of southwest Oregon. She and her husband Mark drove to the top of a ridge and parked at a dead end, walking 1.5 miles down into a ravine choked with scrub oak and manzanita.

Clearings in the brush opened windows into the habitat. Mark and Tracey stayed on the high side, hoping to see into the clearings with their binoculars. Once they glimpsed several does and what they thought might be a buck, but the animals were too far away, and before they could make a move, the fog rolled in and swallowed the animals.

Now the fog was so thick, the pair could only see 100 yards in any direction. Mark led Tracey downhill. From experience, he knew where the deer bedded and where he might hope to get another look at feeding deer.

They stopped, looking into a clearing about 100 yards wide. A spike stood up to Mark's left and he pointed it out. Then Tracey saw two bucks, a 4-point and another deer, quite a bit bigger. When the spike spooked, the other two bucks headed up over the hill and out of sight.

But Mark thought he knew where they might be going. The pair walked up through the clearing, stopping from time to time to glass. That's when Mark saw the big buck and a doe just 75 yards away. "It's a good b…" he started to whisper to Tracey. Her shot interrupted him.

By the time they'd walked up on the buck, Mark knew this deer was special. As Tracey knelt and breathed a prayer of thanks, he told her that she'd taken the buck of a lifetime. On one side, Tracey counted seven points. There were eight points on the other side. Later, a tape measure would show the spread to be over 25 inches wide -- a true Cascade blacktail trophy.

Southwest Oregon has always been a great bet for a chance at a big blacktail. Last year, Doug and Janet Gattis of Southern Oregon Game Busters (541-770-5050) helped their muzzleloading hunters to eight bucks and went 5-for-5 with their rifle-hunting clients. Bucks ranged in size from 115-class 3-pointers to nice 4-pointers, including one beauty that scored 148 Boone and Crockett.