Buck season opens Saturday
Friday, October 10, 2008 10:04 AM PDT
By The Daily News
Printable version
E-mail this articleOne of the biggest social/sporting events of the year gets under way Saturday with the opening of Washington’s modern rifle general buck season.
In past years, about 23,000 people have hunted deer with modern rifles in Southwest Washington, according to the Department of Fish and Wildlilfe. The most popular hunting area last year was the Coweeman game unit east of Kelso, where 2,405 people hunted deer.
Hunting is popular in these parts. In most recent years, about 6,000 Cowlitz County residents have purchased some type of big game license, according to the DFW.
In the coming weeks, about one in five hunters will likely be lucky enough to bag a buck. The past few years, success rates have bounced around between 15 and 20 percent.
Last winter’s harsh conditions were likely tough on older bucks, but a plus for hunters is improving deer habitat in the Ryderwood and Coweeman game units because of increased timber harvest.
The main modern firearm season for black-tailed deer will continue through Oct. 31.
Though opening day is busy in the woods, some of the best hunting is during the late buck season, which this year runs Nov. 13-16. in past years, from 35 to 50 percent of the deer kill has happened during late buck.
Related articles:
Mature bucks expected to be elusive this hunting season (Oct. 3)
Winter dealt blow to some Eastern Washington whitetail areas (Oct. 3)
More Oregonians picking up deer rifles (Oct. 3)
Mr. Chinook wrote on Oct 10, 2008 7:40 AM:
One thing is for certain...if you can't make it in the newspaper business, you can always run for county commisioner. "
Tom Paulu wrote on Oct 10, 2008 9:42 AM:
We usually run a fishing report from the Washington DFW but it wasn't available this week, perhaps because the bios are out hunting.
With all the boaters around here and the interest in alternative energy, I think quite a few readers will be interested in an electric boat. "
Mr. Chinook wrote on Oct 10, 2008 10:04 AM:
anotion wrote on Oct 10, 2008 1:05 PM:
Atrucker wrote on Oct 10, 2008 1:10 PM:
Fishing: The signs of fall are everywhere in the Columbia River Basin, and they arent confined to falling leaves and chilly mornings. As experienced anglers know, this is the time of year when:
Catch rates for sturgeon start to eclipse those for salmon on the lower Columbia River.
Chrome-bright late coho start to take the place of early runs in the mainstem Columbia and its tributaries.
All or part of several key tributaries are closed to retention of chinook salmon to avoid interfering with spawning fish.
"This is truly a time of transition for area fisheries," said Joe Hymer, a WDFW fish biologist. "The summer season is morphing into fall, with a whole new set of fishing opportunities."
Opportunities to catch white sturgeon are clearly on the rise. Boat anglers fishing upstream from Longview averaged one keeper for every 4.6 rods, while bank anglers fishing just below Bonneville Dam averaged a legal-sized fish for every 8.6 rods. Boat catches were spread throughout the river. Approximately 150 boats and 480 bank anglers were counted during a Sept. 27 aerial survey.
Salmon fishing in the mainstem Columbia River has also been holding up well between the lower end of Bachelor Island near the mouth of the Lewis River upriver to Bonneville Dam. In that area, boat anglers have been averaging one adult chinook for every six rods. Anglers there may retain up to two adult chinook salmon as part of their daily limit.
Anglers fishing the "
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