Friday, July 31, 2009
Lucky hunts
Hunting seasons are still a couple of months away, but now is the time to apply for special permits.
MATT GENTRY The Roanoke Times
Managed hunting has proven to be an efficient, cost-effective way to control deer populations in areas such as parks and wildlife refuges, where general season hunting is not practical.
Mark Taylor is outdoors editor at The Roanoke Times.
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@roanoke.com
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Mark Taylor
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For even the most serious hunter, luck is part of the game.
And luck will be really important for many Virginia hunters over the next couple of months as lottery drawings are held for special hunting opportunities around the state.
Several dozen hunts are being offered for a variety of game species, with dates stretching from September well into 2010. Host properties include wildlife management areas, public parks, and even designated wildlife refuges, where hunting helps control certain species that could otherwise devastate the habitat.
Here's a look at some of this year's special hunting opportunities in Virginia:
Deer hunts
Lottery hunts for deer are held at a number of locations throughout the state, with the general priority on controlling whitetail populations while also carefully managing hunting pressure.
Most lottery deer hunts in Virginia are held in the central and eastern part of the state, but a few hunts are held in Southwest Virginia.
One of those hunts is by far the most popular special opportunity hunt in the state.
Each year more than 1,000 hunters apply for slots for the annual Radford Army Ammunition Plant deer hunts, a program administered by the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries.
The reason for the hunts' popularity? The fenced, secure facility is home to some trophy bucks.
Hunts at the so-called Arsenal focus on controlling deer numbers through the taking of significant numbers of antlerless deer.
Hunters are required to apply for and participate in an antlerless-only hunt before being allowed to participate in an either-sex hunt.
Hunters who participate in buck hunts must adhere to minimum antler size standards.
This year's archery hunts are Oct. 17 and 24, with shotgun hunts on Nov. 14, 18, 21 and 28, and Dec. 2 and 5.
Applicants who aren't selected build up preference points, so pulling a tag isn't simply luck. Hunters who keep applying will eventually get selected.
Participants in the shotgun hunts must have proof of completing a hunter education course, while archery hunters must pass a qualification test.
The application fee is $10, and the deadline for this year's drawing is Aug. 14. Applications are available in the new DGIF hunting regulations digest, or online at www.dgif.virginia.gov.
For more information, call the DGIF office in Blacksburg at 961-8304.
An intriguing new deer hunting opportunity is on the Nature Conservancy's 2,300-acre tract on the North Landing River, a Virginia Beach property where deer population control is needed to protect the habitat.
Fifty hunters will be issued permits, which are good for the entire 2009/2010 deer season. Each selected hunter will be allowed one guest.
This is not an easy hunt. The property is dense, snaky and accessible only by boat. But for a hunter from Western Virginia looking for a unique, challenging opportunity, traveling to the coast for a week-long hunt would be quite an adventure.
The application deadline is Aug. 28.
Multi-species opportunities
A few years ago when the DGIF acquired the Featherfin Wildlife Management Area, agency officials recognized the opportunity to offer a special public hunting experience because the previous owners had already laid the groundwork for a quality deer management program.
Since, firearms deer hunting at the area near Appomattox has been controlled by a lottery system during gun seasons.
Eighteen separate hunt date windows are being offered this season, starting with the early muzzleloader season opener on Oct. 31 and running until the final day of the firearms season, Jan. 2. Fourteen hunters will be selected for each hunt date, and each will be allowed to bring a guest.
While deer will be the focus species, hunters are allowed to hunt other game species that are in season.
The application deadline is Aug. 28.
The annual feral hog and whitetail hunts at Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge and False Cape State Park are another popular opportunity, and this year's hunt has been expanded.
In addition to the normal shotgun hunts for deer and hogs in October (Oct. 3, 5, 6, 29-31), a late-season hog hunt has been added in early 2010. The dates are Jan 9 and 23, and Feb. 6 and 20.
Hunters drawn for the False Cape State Park hunt must have proof of hunter education certification.
More information is available at dcr.virginia.gov/state_parks/hunting.shtml.
State parks
Fifteen state parks offer deer hunting programs to keep whitetail numbers in check.
A few hunts are offered through lotteries, but most are managed through reservations by calling (800) 933-7275. Once the reservation period opens, hunt slots are offered on a first-come, first-served basis.
Douthat, Claytor Lake and Smith Mountain Lake state parks are those in Western Virginia that offer reservation hunts.
The muzzleloader and shotgun (slug) hunts at Claytor Lake are Jan. 8 and 9, with 20 hunters per day. The fee is $20, and the reservation period opens on Oct. 16.
At Smith Mountain Lake, the dates for archery and muzzleloader hunting are Nov. 2-3 and 9-10, with 30 slots available per day. The reservation period opens Sept. 3.
Douthat's muzzleloader hunt will be Nov. 10-12, with a general firearms hunt Nov. 17-19. The reservation period starts Sept. 11.
Scenic Grayson Highlands State Park offers two lottery hunts. Youth hunters get the first chance with a firearms hunt on Nov. 14. The regular firearms hunt will be Nov. 16-17.
Thirty spots are available for each hunt, and the application deadline is Sept. 23.
Proof of hunter education certification is required for all state parks hunts.
More information on the hunts is available at dcr.virginia.gov/state_parks/hunting.shtml.
Other opportunities
The Department of Game and Inland Fisheries issues a limited number of tundra swan permits, which are valid from Dec. 1 through Jan. 31 in the designated hunting area east of Interstate 95 and south of the Chopawamsic Creek.
Spring gobbler hunts at Featherfin Wildlife Management Area are managed through a DGIF lottery system. Although the hunts aren't until April 2010, the application deadline is Oct. 2.
Fifty permits will be offered for a shotgun (with slugs) bear hunt at the Great Dismal Wildlife Refuge. The hunt, for permit holders and one guest each, is Nov. 20-21, with scouting allowed on Nov. 19. The deadline is Aug. 28.
More information on all of the hunts is available at www.dgif.virginia.gov.
