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Post by freedomhunter on Aug 11, 2010 12:11:28 GMT -5
IDNR needs to stop talking about herd reduction when their plans are geared toward 'trophy management" would agree with you that the "trophy management" is there and DNR should admit the result of a more balanced buck to doe ratio is more mature bucks, otherwise there is some credibility to the reasoning that shooters will have a sense of urgency and not pass does (and then not be able to kill one later) as was done it the past personally, nine days is enough time for me with a firearm
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Post by tenring on Aug 11, 2010 12:24:22 GMT -5
Then knock of the last week of gun instead of the first week, and there will be more does passing in front of a gun due to the bucks trying to nail them, and less getting hit with vehicles.
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Post by steve46511 on Aug 11, 2010 13:12:27 GMT -5
Pretty much what I said above but let me make it more simple.
I WILL FIGHT ANY LOSS OF TIME TO HUNT IN ANY SEASON WE NOW HAVE......for you, for me, and for any future hunters whom wish to enjoy as much time within our sport legally hunting fair game.
Even if I don't HUNT THAT SEASON!
The time "hunting" is the main loss......it's the HUNTING that gives us the most bang for our buck, that is the actual amount of time doing so..........not the meat hanging come the end OF IT!
THAT is icing on the proverbial cake.
I enjoyed hunting decades ago even knowing I would only SEE 7-10 deer in all seasons combined. Those were still days of success, doing what I love to do.
Any loss of time to do so, for any season is indeed a loss to US ALL.
God Bless Steve
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Post by omegabl on Aug 11, 2010 13:51:53 GMT -5
IDNR needs to stop talking about herd reduction when their plans are geared toward 'trophy management" would agree with you that the "trophy management" is there and DNR should admit the result of a more balanced buck to doe ratio is more mature bucks, otherwise there is some credibility to the reasoning that shooters will have a sense of urgency and not pass does (and then not be able to kill one later) as was done it the past personally, nine days is enough time for me with a firearm Do not think there will be much sense of urgency, as a matter of fact, I predict just the opposite! If passed, many firearm hunters will say I only have (X amount) of days to buck hunt. I will WAIT for the last antlerless season to go after a doe. WAITING equals NO URGENCY. My prediction: This will backfire in their face if the proposal passes. I know if I do not have my buck yet, this is exactly what I will do. Last year it took me until the second week of muzzleloader to get mine, it was the FIRST (not first decent) buck I had a shot at, and I hunted 14 days before that. Never had a doe close enough to shoot either, only buttons . Not typical for our area, bad year, bad luck.
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Post by catahecassa on Aug 11, 2010 13:57:01 GMT -5
I will never tell anyone how much they should hunt, as it is a matter of personal choice. There are plenty of guys that hunt until they "get their deer" and that's it. Whatever works for you. I hunt when the season is open. Heck, you can't hunt when it's closed, so might as well hunt. Beats watching TV. Perhaps I like to hunt more than the average guy, but I've never NOT hunted more than 5 days in a gun season. I hunt the weekends, both days, and take a day off work here or there too. I've even gone out when I knew I had no intention of shooting a deer. But, that's just me (and probably a lot of others like me). !!! Let’s put it this way…I take the first couple days of bow – always. Just HAVE to be out there... because I can. Then I usually take advantage of Columbus Day & make it a 4 day weekend to bowhunt – hopefully with slightly cooler temps. Other than that I may sneak a hunt or two in on the weekends, depending on the weather. Next I usually try to take advantage of Veterans Day & take a vacation day or two to make it a long weekend to bowhunt when the pre-rut is really in high gear. I then take the first two weeks of gun. Always. Do I need to – no… but I can. I then save one week for muzzle loader – but I take it only when the weather, work etc. allows. So YES, I do need 16 days...ONLY because they won't give me 17. ;D
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Post by huxbux on Aug 11, 2010 17:10:18 GMT -5
Its a fact that 78% (thats avg. of past 5 years) of the modern firearm harvest comes in the first 9 days of firearm season. With less than 22% of the harvest coming from the next 7 days of modern firearm season, you can see that this shortening of the season will affect a much smaller percentage of hunters than you might think. "Need" should not be the question. There are a lot of things you have that I'm sure you don't "need". Would you be OK with it if we took them away from you? The question should be "Why is a shorter season needed?"
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Post by duff on Aug 11, 2010 18:34:01 GMT -5
Its a fact that 78% (thats avg. of past 5 years) of the modern firearm harvest comes in the first 9 days of firearm season. With less than 22% of the harvest coming from the next 7 days of modern firearm season, you can see that this shortening of the season will affect a much smaller percentage of hunters than you might think. "Need" should not be the question. There are a lot of things you have that I'm sure you don't "need". Would you be OK with it if we took them away from you? The question should be "Why is a shorter season needed?" Exactly!!!! I might not need 1 day to deer hunt very soon. Goose season comes in Sept 1 and there is waterfowl in season dang near until Feb 15. My gears have been shifted. You all can shoot and eat my share! I might go out once or twice since I can hunt out of my back door but I am tired of having a small loud exclusive group pushing our DNR around and blaming it on legislators! I think they have taken Obama's motto of never letting a crisis pass without taking advantage of it. It started out belitteling everyone for not being involved. Now they are spitting out spite and discourging everyone from writting into the real stakeholder (DNR, NRC) saying you are wasting your time. I've had it. If you don't want to hunt all 16 days of gun or mzl, fine stay home. If you want people to get out there and kill does then for pete's sake don't shorten the seasons! Add extra bonus seasons if anything, doesn't that give the effect of "opening day bliss" they were touting so much... I don't understand any sportsman or group that claims to represent sportsmen being happy about fewer days in the field for anyone! It agrevates me to no end to see the hate those guys spew towards gun hunters and the average sportsmen of our state. Goose season T minus 20 days...take em boys!
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Post by lugnutz on Aug 11, 2010 19:44:58 GMT -5
Excellent research Steve, but i think you are missing my point. Of that 80% of us that use shotguns to harvest deer, how many of us are still in the field during those last 7 days? The biggest portion of shotgun hunters are finished with the season during the first 9 days of the season, and the harvest info proves that.
For those of you that demand that the season stay they way that it is (and i wish it would) its not going to happen regardless what you think about it. Its inevitable that "significant changes" will be made. You can attempt to fight for what you think is right, but we as hunters don't hold the cards. I think we should be finding a solution that would best fit our needs as hunters along with their wants as well, before the hammer is dropped.
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Post by Woody Williams on Aug 11, 2010 19:54:56 GMT -5
Excellent research Steve, but i think you are missing my point. Of that 80% of us that use shotguns to harvest deer, how many of us are still in the field during those last 7 days? The biggest portion of shotgun hunters are finished with the season during the first 9 days of the season, and the harvest info proves that. For those of you that demand that the season stay they way that it is (and i wish it would) its not going to happen regardless what you think about it. Its inevitable that "significant changes" will be made. You can attempt to fight for what you think is right, but we as hunters don't hold the cards. I think we should be finding a solution that would best fit our needs as hunters along with their wants as well, before the hammer is dropped. Ah Lug....being a crossbow advocate I am very used to fighting windmill single handed . I've learn that if a person wants something bad enough then don't go down without a fight. That something might not happen, but we feel better "fighting the good fight". Stay the course... this ain't over till it's over.. .
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Post by Woody Williams on Aug 11, 2010 20:01:38 GMT -5
"Need" should not be the question. There are a lot of things you have that I'm sure you don't "need". Would you be OK with it if we took them away from you? The question should be "Why is a shorter season needed?" Exactly!!!! I might not need 1 day to deer hunt very soon. Goose season comes in Sept 1 and there is waterfowl in season dang near until Feb 15. My gears have been shifted. You all can shoot and eat my share! I might go out once or twice since I can hunt out of my back door but I am tired of having a small loud exclusive group pushing our DNR around and blaming it on legislators! I think they have taken Obama's motto of never letting a crisis pass without taking advantage of it. It started out belitteling everyone for not being involved. Now they are spitting out spite and discourging everyone from writting into the real stakeholder (DNR, NRC) saying you are wasting your time.
I've had it. If you don't want to hunt all 16 days of gun or mzl, fine stay home. If you want people to get out there and kill does then for pete's sake don't shorten the seasons! Add extra bonus seasons if anything, doesn't that give the effect of "opening day bliss" they were touting so much...
I don't understand any sportsman or group that claims to represent sportsmen being happy about fewer days in the field for anyone! It agrevates me to no end to see the hate those guys spew towards gun hunters and the average sportsmen of our state.
Goose season T minus 20 days...take em boys! Man, Duff and I go back a long way and what he is saying is the gospel. The very person that always said that all hunters should give input and "the sportsmen should decide" is now saying that if the DNR accepts the input for changes from all hunters and changes something his group just might not support the changed proposal.
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Post by Woody Williams on Aug 11, 2010 20:03:35 GMT -5
Brings back memories of Art Spancake... I never goose hunted with him but I can't read about goose hunting without thinking about Art..
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Post by duff on Aug 11, 2010 20:19:50 GMT -5
Brings back memories of Art Spancake... I never goose hunted with him but I can't read about goose hunting without thinking about Art.. You, me and a blind full of others out there! We lost a heck of a sportsman there! He had some dandy bucks hanging on his wall, along with moose, elk, cariboo, ducks but I don't think he ever had a goose mounted! He had a barn full of toy soldiers though. Even after a year and a half I still look to call him up to see what his birds are doing...
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Post by lugnutz on Aug 11, 2010 20:46:51 GMT -5
Woody, its great that you and others are willing to fight to keep things they way they currently are. They already know that they are/were going to get a backlash from hunters, and do you think they care? Their is a very small chance that nothing will be done with the seasons, but their would be a better chance of them giving a lil' if we where to give a lil'. We can say we fought a good fight, but we will still have 9 straight days of modern firearm season and thats that. I still think we should be thinking of ways to give them what they want without screwing us totally in what we want as a majority.
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Post by omegabl on Aug 11, 2010 21:36:52 GMT -5
;DI heard that because the local goose populations are still too high they are proposing to shorten the early goose season to 3 days next year. ;D Who needs 15 days to kill geese?
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Post by duff on Aug 11, 2010 21:40:32 GMT -5
With that said, why will fewer days in the field change our harvest to reach the DNR stated goals of more does killed? If the DNR thought they were going to slide this by without a fight or some serious explanations to the legislators I have given them way too much credit.
The shortening of the regular gun and muzzleloader seasons is a mistake. I just hope the DNR is capable of convincing the legislators they are making the right changes. Otherwise they have shot both feet for what?
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Post by omegabl on Aug 11, 2010 22:04:26 GMT -5
I have said this before, OVER 90% of the hunters surveyed said MONEY was the REASON they did not shoot more antlerless, so the way I look at it, "they" can cut the season in half or "they" can extend the season a month, and it will make no difference. Until "they" address the cost issue, nothing will change.
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Post by duff on Aug 11, 2010 22:13:08 GMT -5
;DI heard that because the local goose populations are still too high they are proposing to shorten the early goose season to 3 days next year. ;D Who needs 15 days to kill geese? Alright, those are fighting words. When and where, mess all you want with goat season leave the sky carp alone ;D Glad our Indiana waterfowl biologist doesn't drink the same coolaid as the guys proposing the deer rules!!!! Just think it was a few years ago the IDNR opened up more days and higher bag limits so hunters could thin those pesky resident birds during Feb season. Dang didn't the fall turkey season get expanded too?
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Post by lugnutz on Aug 11, 2010 22:24:01 GMT -5
With that said, why will fewer days in the field change our harvest to reach the DNR stated goals of more does killed? If the DNR thought they were going to slide this by without a fight or some serious explanations to the legislators I have given them way too much credit. The shortening of the regular gun and muzzleloader seasons is a mistake. I just hope the DNR is capable of convincing the legislators they are making the right changes. Otherwise they have shot both feet for what? I understand your point as well Duff, but they also took a buck tag away from us a few years ago, but yet we somehow kill more bucks now.
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Post by lugnutz on Aug 11, 2010 22:48:09 GMT -5
Its a fact that 78% (thats avg. of past 5 years) of the modern firearm harvest comes in the first 9 days of firearm season. With less than 22% of the harvest coming from the next 7 days of modern firearm season, you can see that this shortening of the season will affect a much smaller percentage of hunters than you might think. "Need" should not be the question. There are a lot of things you have that I'm sure you don't "need". Would you be OK with it if we took them away from you? The question should be "Why is a shorter season needed?" My bad, instead of need, it should have been, used. To answere your question, if i don't use it often more than likely i'm not gonna throw a fit, when it gets taken away. Shorter season needed? Who knows? But its coming around the corner. Just seems amusing to me how they came up with nine days? And by looking at the harvest info over the last 5 years, the first 9 days where the strongest, on the 10th day harvest drops off the table. Less hunters, less harvest.
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Post by speckle on Aug 12, 2010 6:08:53 GMT -5
State parks only need 4 days to reduce the herd. now look at them
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