Info Wa Grayback unit 588
03-30-2006, 10:04 AM
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Nontypical Buck
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Join Date: Feb 2003
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Info Wa Grayback unit 588
Grayback deer season changes proposed
Thursday, March 23, 2006
By ALLEN THOMAS Columbian staff writer
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Deer season in the popular Grayback unit of Klickitat County would be shortened slightly and a three-point antler minimum required under the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife's final proposals for the 2006-08 hunting regulations.
Members of the state Fish and Wildlife Commission will adopt hunting rules for the next three years when the panel meets April 7 and 8 at the Comfort Inn and Conference Center in Tumwater.
The shorter season and new antler requirement is an attempt to boost the survival of bucks, said Eric Holman, a department biologist.
Grayback is among the most heavily hunted game units in Southwest Washington.
In 2004, there were 3,488 hunters and a harvest of 831 deer, a good 24 percent success rate. The kill was 92 percent bucks.
But Grayback is not meeting the state's post-hunting season goal of 15 bucks per 100 does by a wide margin.
Postseason counts in 2003 tallied 14 bucks per 100 does. That dropped to six per 100 in 2004 and just two per 100 in 2005.
Grayback has been open for general hunting from the deer opener in mid-October until month's end. That was 21 days in 2004, 17 days in 2005. Grayback also had a two-point antler restriction.
The proposal for 2006-08 shortens the season to 14 days. In 2006, the season would be Oct. 14-27.
Grayback's two-point rule was intended to protect yearling bucks, but did not work well, said Holman.
In Western Washington, about 80 percent of the yearlings are spikes. But in Grayback, about 40 percent of the yearlings are spikes and 60 percent are two-points.
"As the biologist, the best management would be conservative, permit-only hunting,'' Holman said. "That's not the way the public wants it. They want to maintain a general season.''
For archers, Grayback would be open Sept. 1-30 and Nov. 20 through Dec. 8 for three-point or larger bucks, plus antlerless deer.
Hunting regulations for Grayback were the hot topic at a public meeting in late January in Vancouver.
The department also got 1,381 responses regarding Grayback on a written and online survey about hunting seasons preferences.
Thirty-one percent wanted no change in the rules, while 31 percent also wanted a three-point antler restriction and all late-season hunting by permit. Twenty-six percent favored a three-point restriction, late rifle hunting by permit and a late general archery season. Thirteen percent supported no antler minimums and all late hunting by permit.
Dan Cox, 62, of Chinook, a long-time former Vancouver resident, has been hunting Grayback annually since 1959.
He supports the three-point antler minimum, but not shortening the season even a few days.
"We like to hunt, and getting a deer is not that important,'' Cox said. "It's all about the experience. ... Once in a while, we get lucky and get some quality animals coming through there.''
Hunting in Grayback is best late in the season, he said. To lose four to seven days in late October is a major cut.
"Those first 10 days are dry and dusty and there's no hunting except for two-points in the farmers' fields near Goldendale,'' Cox said. "Maybe only one year in six has the migration of larger animals from the high country started by late October.''
A 14-day season means only two weekends of hunting, he said. If the season must be 14 days, he suggested, start hunting on the Monday after the statewide deer opener and thus get a weekend in late October rather than mid-October.
He also urged the Department of Fish and Wildlife to eliminate the 65 special permits valid in mid-November.
Bear Perkins, a Vancouver archer, said he can live with the three-point antler restriction and is satisfied with the Nov. 20-Dec. 8 late archery season.
"This is my ninth year up there and we see it getting better and better hunting each year,'' Perkins said.
Wind River-West Klickitat -- Initially, the department proposed dropping the two-point antler restriction in the Wind River and West Klickitat game units. Wildlife managers do not believe the two-point restriction protects yearling bucks, but actually focuses hunting pressure on two-points.
The final recommendations to the Fish and Wildlife Commission call for retaining the two-point minimum for deer in Wind River and West Klickitat.
Sixty-nine permit of the respondents in the survey wanted the status quo.
The agency has dropped the two-point minimum in the former Marble unit on the south side of Mount St. Helens. Marble unit No. 558 has been added to Lewis River No. 560. The Lewis River unit has no two-point restriction for deer.
Toutle-Margaret elk -- Archery and muzzleloader permit hunts in these two highly coveted units near Mount St. Helens are being moved back a week to try to shift them out of the fire season.
All hunting in the two units is by permit. Thousands apply annually for the approximately 200 permits offered. Hunter success is very high.
Historically, archery permit holders in Toutle and Margaret hunt in the middle of September, muzzleloaders get the first week of October and rifle hunters get their chance during early November.
The problem is that more than half the time archers in September are facing access restrictions due to fire danger.
Much of the land is owned by Weyerhaeuser, which has concerns about fire, vandalism to equipment and liability when hunters are in the midst of logging.
For 2006, archery elk season in Margaret and Toutle would be Sept. 15-30, a week later than the Sept. 8-21 season of 2005. For muzzleloaders, the 2006 season would be Oct. 7-13 compared to Oct. 1-7 in 2005.
Thirty-eight percent of the hunters surveyed by the department favored the proposed change, while 35 percent wanted no change. Twenty-seven percent wanted archery permits delayed until early October, with the muzzleloaders following later in October and rifle hunters in November.
Thursday, March 23, 2006
By ALLEN THOMAS Columbian staff writer
Advertisement
Deer season in the popular Grayback unit of Klickitat County would be shortened slightly and a three-point antler minimum required under the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife's final proposals for the 2006-08 hunting regulations.
Members of the state Fish and Wildlife Commission will adopt hunting rules for the next three years when the panel meets April 7 and 8 at the Comfort Inn and Conference Center in Tumwater.
The shorter season and new antler requirement is an attempt to boost the survival of bucks, said Eric Holman, a department biologist.
Grayback is among the most heavily hunted game units in Southwest Washington.
In 2004, there were 3,488 hunters and a harvest of 831 deer, a good 24 percent success rate. The kill was 92 percent bucks.
But Grayback is not meeting the state's post-hunting season goal of 15 bucks per 100 does by a wide margin.
Postseason counts in 2003 tallied 14 bucks per 100 does. That dropped to six per 100 in 2004 and just two per 100 in 2005.
Grayback has been open for general hunting from the deer opener in mid-October until month's end. That was 21 days in 2004, 17 days in 2005. Grayback also had a two-point antler restriction.
The proposal for 2006-08 shortens the season to 14 days. In 2006, the season would be Oct. 14-27.
Grayback's two-point rule was intended to protect yearling bucks, but did not work well, said Holman.
In Western Washington, about 80 percent of the yearlings are spikes. But in Grayback, about 40 percent of the yearlings are spikes and 60 percent are two-points.
"As the biologist, the best management would be conservative, permit-only hunting,'' Holman said. "That's not the way the public wants it. They want to maintain a general season.''
For archers, Grayback would be open Sept. 1-30 and Nov. 20 through Dec. 8 for three-point or larger bucks, plus antlerless deer.
Hunting regulations for Grayback were the hot topic at a public meeting in late January in Vancouver.
The department also got 1,381 responses regarding Grayback on a written and online survey about hunting seasons preferences.
Thirty-one percent wanted no change in the rules, while 31 percent also wanted a three-point antler restriction and all late-season hunting by permit. Twenty-six percent favored a three-point restriction, late rifle hunting by permit and a late general archery season. Thirteen percent supported no antler minimums and all late hunting by permit.
Dan Cox, 62, of Chinook, a long-time former Vancouver resident, has been hunting Grayback annually since 1959.
He supports the three-point antler minimum, but not shortening the season even a few days.
"We like to hunt, and getting a deer is not that important,'' Cox said. "It's all about the experience. ... Once in a while, we get lucky and get some quality animals coming through there.''
Hunting in Grayback is best late in the season, he said. To lose four to seven days in late October is a major cut.
"Those first 10 days are dry and dusty and there's no hunting except for two-points in the farmers' fields near Goldendale,'' Cox said. "Maybe only one year in six has the migration of larger animals from the high country started by late October.''
A 14-day season means only two weekends of hunting, he said. If the season must be 14 days, he suggested, start hunting on the Monday after the statewide deer opener and thus get a weekend in late October rather than mid-October.
He also urged the Department of Fish and Wildlife to eliminate the 65 special permits valid in mid-November.
Bear Perkins, a Vancouver archer, said he can live with the three-point antler restriction and is satisfied with the Nov. 20-Dec. 8 late archery season.
"This is my ninth year up there and we see it getting better and better hunting each year,'' Perkins said.
Wind River-West Klickitat -- Initially, the department proposed dropping the two-point antler restriction in the Wind River and West Klickitat game units. Wildlife managers do not believe the two-point restriction protects yearling bucks, but actually focuses hunting pressure on two-points.
The final recommendations to the Fish and Wildlife Commission call for retaining the two-point minimum for deer in Wind River and West Klickitat.
Sixty-nine permit of the respondents in the survey wanted the status quo.
The agency has dropped the two-point minimum in the former Marble unit on the south side of Mount St. Helens. Marble unit No. 558 has been added to Lewis River No. 560. The Lewis River unit has no two-point restriction for deer.
Toutle-Margaret elk -- Archery and muzzleloader permit hunts in these two highly coveted units near Mount St. Helens are being moved back a week to try to shift them out of the fire season.
All hunting in the two units is by permit. Thousands apply annually for the approximately 200 permits offered. Hunter success is very high.
Historically, archery permit holders in Toutle and Margaret hunt in the middle of September, muzzleloaders get the first week of October and rifle hunters get their chance during early November.
The problem is that more than half the time archers in September are facing access restrictions due to fire danger.
Much of the land is owned by Weyerhaeuser, which has concerns about fire, vandalism to equipment and liability when hunters are in the midst of logging.
For 2006, archery elk season in Margaret and Toutle would be Sept. 15-30, a week later than the Sept. 8-21 season of 2005. For muzzleloaders, the 2006 season would be Oct. 7-13 compared to Oct. 1-7 in 2005.
Thirty-eight percent of the hunters surveyed by the department favored the proposed change, while 35 percent wanted no change. Twenty-seven percent wanted archery permits delayed until early October, with the muzzleloaders following later in October and rifle hunters in November.
04-10-2006, 04:40 PM
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RE: Info Wa Grayback unit 588
