Tuesday, October 27, 2009
New freedom for whitetail chasers
Mark Taylor is outdoors editor at The Roanoke Times.
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The Wild Life blog
When the early muzzleloader deer season opens Saturday, hunters west of the Blue Ridge Mountains will be finally be on even footing with those in the eastern half of the state.
For one thing, western hunters now have two weeks instead of just one to hunt, a change that began last year.
For another, this marks the first year in many that western hunters will have the freedom to use both of their two either-sex tags -- the tags most hunters reserve for antlered bucks -- during early muzzleloader season.
For years, hunters in the west have been allowed to shoot only one buck during the early muzzleloader season.
The one buck limit dated to a time when some rifle-only deer hunters complained -- justifiably so -- that muzzleloader hunters were downing a disproportionately high number of bucks before the firearms season opened.
Times have changed. Rifle-only deer hunters have gone the way of grouse hunters, more history than reality.
So expanding the season to two weeks and lifting the one-buck-only restriction is a benefit for most whitetail chasers, and was the right and fair thing to do.
But that's not to say the one-buck rule, in particular, had its merit.
When deer were fairly scarce and hunting pressure heavy and concentrated, hunters usually shot the first antlered buck they saw. And for good reason.
Yes, their deer hunting season might be over at that point. But if they didn't shoot, they probably wouldn't get another chance.
But as deer populations grew, hunters gained the luxury of choice.
When a yearling buck showed up early in the muzzleloader season the hunter had to ask himself, "Do I really want to shoot now and be done?"
Over time, more and more began to say, "no."
The result was something of an informal quality deer management program, with plenty of those hunters who passed up smaller bucks later rewarded when a bigger, so-called "shooter" buck appeared.
As more hunters enjoyed the fruits of their patience, that ethic transferred to firearms seasons, too.
In fact, it could be argued that some hunters have gotten a little too hung up on the big-buck-only thing, to the point of belittling hunters who shoot yearling bucks.
If a hunter has plenty of time to spend in the woods, access to good hunting ground in a county with liberal either-sex seasons, and shoots a young buck rather than a mature doe, that criticism might be deserved.
But for other hunters, a young buck might as celebrated a trophy as a 10-pointer is for a fanatic who spends most of October, November and December in the woods.
Is there a chance that some hunters who have been patient in recent years will be more willing to drop the hammer right away on a small buck now that they have more freedom?
Sure.
But my bet is most hunters who have been patient will keep being patient.
They don't see this new rule as an excuse to start shooting younger bucks. They see it as a way to keep hunting for an even bigger buck after they tag their first shooter.
Few will fill that second tag.
Those who do? Good for them.
Brief closure at Cascades
One of the more popular day-hike destinations in the region will be temporarily shuttered soon.
The U.S. Forest Service plans to close the Cascades Recreation Area in Giles County on Nov. 2 for a reconstruction project on the parking area, which is prone to flooding.
The planned reopening is Dec. 17.
A contractor will install a larger culvert at the lower end of the parking lot, then resurface the parking lot in a project paid for with funds from the economic stimulus package.
Timing is actually about as good as it could be for a temporary closure of the Cascades area, falling between two busy seasons.
The area is extremely popular during the fall foliage season, which is peaking now, and is also a popular hiking spot during frigid winter spells when sub-freezing temperatures turn the falls into a gorgeous natural ice sculpture.
Stimulus money will also be used to fund upgrade and repair work on the two trails to the falls. That work is scheduled to begin after Jan. 1.
Patterson Creek update
To repeat information published recently in our news briefs section, the Forest Service has reopened the road along Patterson Creek in Craig County.
The area, site of several well-established annual deer camps, had been closed while the Forest Service repaired damage from illegal off-road vehicle use.
