Hunting - Snake River Connection

Whitetail and Mule Deer

Dec 2, 2023

2023 – Season overview. We had 7 hunters in 2023, all 7 of them took great Whitetail deer. The mule deer numbers are good, but we didn’t get a shot on one. Two very nice mule deer were seen during the hunt, but were craftier than we were. Estimate about 35% mules to 65% whitetail deer. All of our hunters were successful inspite of overall number of deer in Nebraska are down. We’ve been blessed by not getting droughted as bad as some areas and missed the EHD in 2022, which was 25 miles north of us. Having said that our give deer population a firm B- comparted to historical numbers. Also, the winter of 2022 was something else (extreme cold and lots of snow).

Online 2022 deer tags go on sale on Aug 1, 2022 !!! Don’t be late!!

Aug. 1 – Residents and nonresidents may buy any remaining draw unit deer permits. Here is the link to make that purchase: https://ngpc-home.ne.gov/

Curious about the 2022 Recommendation for our “Sandhills” unit:

https://outdoornebraska.gov/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/2022-Big-Game-Recommendations.pdf

TAKE NOTE: When you buy a tag for 2022, there are AD (Any deer) permits and WT only permits.

We suggest purchasing the AD so you can have the option for a Mule Deer or Whitetail buck. This is new for 2022!!!

Deer hunters will delight in the abundance of both whitetail and mule deer at the Snake River Connection. All guides have many years of experience, so they are intimately familiar with the ranch and the deer hunting patterns and areas frequented by deer. Our hunters are normally provided with many opportunities to make that trophy kill. One of the keys to our success is we limit the number of hunters. Each year we typically allow only 8 hunters. Our family has been providing guided hunts on our family ranch since 1997.

At the Snake River Connection, we have a approximately 50/50 ratio of whitetail to mule deer. We are careful not to overbook for two reasons — we believe our hunters should not have to compete against each other for their kill and due to the low hunting pressure, bucks have a chance to age (grow to at least 4 1/2 yrs old) in order to produce trophy racks. See our photo gallery for recent pictures. Hunting Gallery

The Snake River Connection books hunters interested in pursuing big game with rifle, muzzle loader and archery deer hunting. We are happy to book small groups of hunters and will work with you to accommodate your needs. We specialize in hospitality and work hard to provide a relaxing and rewarding environment in which sportsmen can thoroughly enjoy themselves. If you decide to book a trip with us, we’ll be happy to assist you with your Nebraska hunting application.

As a valued customer, we are committed to giving you the very best hunt and experience for your money. We know there are many outfitters to choose from. We feel privileged that you are considering the Snake River Connection for this year’s hunt. A successful hunt is no accident. Preparation and planning are key ingredients and go a long way toward ensuring a rewarding and productive time. Safety is our number one priority at the Snake River Connection. We are dedicated to ensuring that your experience is a safe and memorable.

2020 Season Overview:

Very successful season. 7 hunters and 7 bucks taken. The rut during the 9 day rifle season was consistent. From day 1 to day 9 deer were in pursuit of the doe. Bucks were taken on days (1), (2), (3), (7), (7), (9), (9). The two largest bucks were taken on the 1st and last days. 2 mule deer and 5 whitetail. The outlook for 2021 looks very promising as we saw many Whitetail and Mule bucks which needed 1 to 2 years.

2014 Overview:

Overall a great season. We reduced our number of hunters to 6 because of the impact of EHD in 2012/2013. The Whitetail deer were still down in numbers, but the mule deer have really bounced back. We are expecting 2015 to be a very good mule deer year. In the late spring, the number of mulies was strong. Likely for 2015 we’ll go with 6 total hunters. Thank you to all of the guys who hunted with us. We had a ton of fun, and had some great hunting stalks. https://snakeriver-connection.com/hunting-gallery/

2012 Overview:

Nebraska always surprises us when it comes to weather. Day one brought a fog early and a storm in the 2nd half of the day. Day two brought wind, wind and more wind. Day 3 and on were great. We had a very successful season. Once the deer started moving, we had great success. Fortunately for us, EHD has not decimated our area in Nebraska. Certainly it is in the area, but we were very fortunate. Certain patterns definitely held true. The mule deer were found in the hills, and the whitetails were on the river (and in the hills). Please check out our great deer harvest. https://snakeriver-connection.com/hunting-gallery/

5×5 2012 Whitetail 5×5 2012 Mulie

2011 Overview:

Thanks to all of our hunters for another successful season. We marvel at the great people we get the privilege to hunt with, and get to call friends. The 2011 season was definitely a success. We took two whitetails that were very nice, and two mule deer that were extremely nice. The Sandhills of Nebraska have never looked better. Typically, the Snake River is a hot bed of activity for both species; however; the deer seemed to favor the hills. – mainly because of the lush grass. We don’t have any more opening for 2012, so if you’re thinking of 2013, let us know! Be sure to check out our photo gallery: https://snakeriver-connection.com/hunting-gallery/

2011 mulie

2011 Outlook:

Mother Nature has been good to the Sandhills. We’re off to a great start. The hills look really good because of the nice rains. We will actually be delaying putting up hay because of the wet meadows. The cattle look great, and so do the deer. We’re looking forward to seeing what we can find with the game camera’s in the upcoming early fall. We have all of the fall 2011 rifle hunts filled. If you have any thoughts of hunting with us in 2012 don’t wait to contact us!!

2010 Overview: 6×7 Whitetail

The 2010 season was the year of the Whitetail. The weather was cool enough to keep deer moving, yet not extreme. The wind gave us a break too – which in the Sandhills is not usually the case. The rut for the Whitetails was strong from the beginning, and continued through the week. We harvested 7 Whitetails and 2 mule deer. Typically we are a little more 50/50 between the two species – but this is fair chase hunting. The new blinds were very successful, as we thought they would be. Two of the nice Whitetails that we had pictures of from the game camera were tagged. One of them in the first 45 minutes of the rifle season. The prospects for next year look great. Both the Whitetail as well as the mule deer herd are both strong and look healthy. I hope to post more game camera pictures from early winter.

2009 Overview:
The 2009 rifle season was very successful. We harvested 2 mule deer and 6 Whitetails. We had four large deer ‘dodge’ their bullet, which would have made this year a banner. That is what fair-chase hunting is all about. Deer like those keep you coming back for more. We had good weather which made each day promising. The largest deer was taken with 15 minutes of light left on the last day of hunting (go Roger!). The rut seemed stronger is the second half, which really helped. For ’09 Pat and Bob added a new blind (fondly called: 2 1/2) on a river meadow area that we wanted to hunt more – it was great. Since the ’09 season ended, we’ve already added blind number 6 (this will be highly sought). We really enjoyed and appreciated each of our friends who hunted with us in ’09 and looking forward to 2010 already. God Bless.

2008 Overview: 5×5 mule ’08

The 2008 was a good one. The weather was windy as heck. This kept the deer bedded and out in the rough hills, but rut would not be denied. Seven bucks were tagged from eight hunters. Four mule deer and three whitetail were tagged. Several of the mule bucks were found out in the hills with their doe. We saw good numbers of deer, with a very good buck to doe ratio. Next year looks very good as we saw good numbers of medium sized bucks.

2007 Overview: 5×6 mulie.

The 2007 season was another great year. The weather was warmer than we like, but the rut was very active the entire time. Seven bucks were tagged from eight hunters (no shortage of opportunity). Four mule deer and three whitetail were tagged. Pat and Bob upgraded the blinds for ’07, and they were awesome on some of those windy days. We really saw a plentiful number of deer (both whitetail and mule) that look very good for next year. The best whitetail taken was a very high 5×5; the best mule deer was a heavy deep-forked 5×6 (above).

2006 Overview: 8 point shed from ’07.

The 2006 season was a banner mule deer year. Generally, the whitetail out number the mule deer, but this year was an exception. From day one of the season, the mulies were rutting like there was no tomorrow. We saw several mule deer go antler-to-antler showing their dominance. Generally, the whitetail are providing the fighting, but the mulies really were pressing each other. We did tag one very nice whitetail. He was a nice 5×4, with what appeared to be a second main-beam growing. He was a very smart buck, with a strong instinct to breed that doomed him. This buck was actually ‘grazed’ by a hunter in the first hunt, and tagged in the second hunt, 4 days later. Based on what we seen this year, next year looks really exciting already.