Season & Tags
Missouri muzzleloader whitetail deer hunting is
after the regular firearms season and overlapping archery in
December.
Missouri allows only one-buck tag total for the regular firearms and
muzzleloader seasons combined. If you do not fill your buck tag during
the regular firearms season, you can use your firearms buck tag
muzzleloader hunting.
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Missouri's muzzleloader season is the middle
muzzleloader season of our three states and offers colder weather, trail
of the rut behavior and vacant land.
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For the Association Missouri lease land, this is a highly
underutilized season averaging few hunters.
Without whitetail unit management restrictions and over the counter
tags all pre season scouting will payoff later during the hunt.
Or, the deer hunter can wait to the last minute to plan a Missouri
muzzleloader deer hunt as under our system if allocated a membership
that deer hunter will never be denied the opportunity to deer hunt.
Stand or Stalk
During December with tree branches bare the deer are sensitive to movement
and unnatural noises, especially after surviving the previous regular
firearms season. To find that one trophy deer for a wall mount will
mean a bit more walking during mid day. Aiding that stalking deer
hunt is the weather this time of year in Missouri varies from 20 to
40 degrees and snow and rain are common making a warm up walk an
anticipated daily event. Missouri muzzleloader deer hunting during this
period the deer tend to move little and settle down into
the heavier cover and timber, especially in secluded areas where
access is difficult by mud roads. For the avid muzzleloader stand hunter, sitting
stand all day in thick cover can be productive, especially if the
weather is cold because the herd and individual deer tend to move at different intervals
of the day. For those that don’t enjoy sitting long periods of time,
working the edges of crop fields next to heavy cover or timber early
morning or late evening can pay off, but wind direction is critical.
Also, with quail and pheasant season at their peak, it’s not uncommon to
have bird hunters on adjacent land jump bucks in your direction. If
stalking is your style, just imagine how many ditches, crp
fields and small patches of woods are available for hunters to
prowl on.
Depending on the weather conditions, the rut is usually at the tail
end of its cycle during Missouri's muzzleloader, but rattling and grunt calls can still be very
effective since many of the young doe will be in season.
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Few actually muzzleloader hunt as most prefer modern firearms and the primitive
hunter the bow. |
Advantage
Compared to a deer hunting guide services, a private
deer lease or the
hunter owning his own hunting land, MAHA self guided deer hunting has a tremendous flexibility being able to hunt
3 states for all deer seasons at will. If a deer tag is filled in Kansas a drive of 1 to 2 hours to Missouri for a
muzzleloader
deer hunt is one more option to consider. If muzzleloader deer hunting for 3 or 4 days and don’t find
a buck of choice, all can reserve another deer lease in the same area or relocate to another
region in Missouri where the weather or habitat is more desirable.
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Muzzleloader
Hunter Patience Pays
Several years ago this hunter was recognized for
holding out until the last day of the season and
pulling a rabbit out of his hat with a 160 inch
buck. This year was similar, but he switched
locations mid way through the season to a farm that
typically gets a lot of attention during the
firearms season. The landowner tipped him to also
check out an 80 acre farm across the street because
there was a lot of pressure early from surrounding
hunters and the tall crp grass was ideal cover for a
big buck to hide out. David put up 2 tri-pod stands
and saw what he was after the second evening, but it
dropped into a ditch and slipped away in the tall
grass. At dusk, on day nine this impressive buck
presented itself with a 50 yard shot to make this
hunters season a success.
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Continue this
Missouri muzzleloader deer hunting article |
