Steve Johnson shot this dandy blacktail while hunting the southern Oregon Cascades units in 2008. Photo courtesy of Steve Johnson.

High above the valleys of both western and eastern Oregon sits the majestic Cascade Mountain range where the air first becomes crisp with the sweet smells of autumn in early September. Here, the landscape of late summer is some of the earliest to change with lowering temperatures and the first storms.

Likewise, these mountains provide one of the season's earliest opportunities to harvest a blacktail deer. As an outdoorsman, I have been blessed to spend my whole life in western Oregon. Here I have come to realize that both the serenity and solitude offered by these mountains high above the valley is priceless.

Playing the game of cat and mouse with blacktail deer, I have learned that you need to go where there is a high number of deer, low hunting pressure and be persistent in doing so. However, finding that combination is a very daunting task. Usually where the deer populations are highest you will also find a lot of hunters. Many people like to roll out of bed, grab themselves a cup of joe, breakfast burrito and drive 20 to 30 minutes to their favorite area.

But if a person is willing to put a little extra gas in the tank, pack some essentials and spend a few days farther from town, the job of putting meat on the table is even more enjoyable. Whether you are just looking to fill your freezer or looking to locate a large mossyhorn monster, you may be in luck spending your time above 2,500 feet where there are many different seasons and tag options available.

Biologists will tell you that the highest deer numbers are at the lower elevations in the Cascade foothills and the coastal mountains.

While these areas provide great access to plenty of public and private land along with soaring deer numbers, they also continue to have the highest number of hunters. I have spent many mornings glassing large clearcuts along old-growth timber tracts searching for legal deer only to find the meandering hunter in blaze orange.

Yes, I have harvested bucks from these areas, and seen some very nice ones that managed to stay out of rifle and bow range. However, years ago, I searched my soul for a new area to focus my efforts. I was tired of scouting hard for solitude only to come up short by running across other hunters.

In 1998, I was fortunate enough to have some time to hunt the McKenzie and North Indigo units with my rifle. I had bowhunted there with my father the previous two seasons. I had seen many nice bucks in mid- to late November while using different calling and rattling techniques from various ground blinds. All of the bucks we encountered unfortunately managed to stay out of bow range.

So, in order to increase my range, I opted for the .308 with 165-grain magnum loads. I was fortunate enough to harvest a young 3-point from a stand of 10- to 15-year-old secondary growth.

Ever since, my addiction to these high-country blacktails has kept me coming back for more.

Deer here have fewer clearcuts to feed in. Many of your hunting opportunities are located on the edges of old-growth timber and inside secondary-growth canopies from old logging operations. You have to be willing to change your tactics from spot-and-stalk to a more ambush type of style in many areas.