season recs

[bobcat]

How about a minimum age to hunt on public lands in August? Since that "accident" is why they are proposing this change in the first place.

[SHANE(WA)]

yeah its great to get out that early, but the hides are junk

[billythekidrock]

How about a minimum age to hunt on public lands in August? Since that "accident" is why they are proposing this change in the first place.

The minimum age (14) requirement to hunt alone will be discussed/decided today. Also a possible "visible clothing" rule for everyone in the outdoors at that time.

yeah its great to get out that early, but the hides are junk

A lot of us don't care about hides, only meat.

Is this topic is referring to the lady that got shot near rockport last year?

The topic is about the proposed closure that is a knee jerk reaction to an unfortunate incident.

[saylean]

They should change the definition of "Public" and "use" in the dictionary.

If they are concerned about the population in decline, they should have limited the bag limit to 1 bear. (personally, I have never seen so many bears as I have in the past few years)

If they are worried about too many females being taken, they should re instate baiting.

If they are worried about saftey, they should look at the previous 20+ years and 1,000's of hunting hours in the woods that were safe, not the one poor decision on a foggy day but an adolescent.

With that said, I think muzzleloader or archery would be better than nothing, but frankly this is BS. There are what...hundreds of thousands of public land in this state and we are not allowed to use any of it in August because of others using it.

I am headed to Ellensburg for the meeting, thats for sure.

[strutnrut1984]

our licese dollars and taxes pay for that land along with everyone elses. it was an unfortuate accident. but we should not all be punished for it.

[saylean]

Just emailed my brother (an avid bear hunter), he might be able to make some noise on this cause he's in the media.

[actionshooter]

I think we need to fight this. I agree we should be prepared to negotiate and we might need to give a little, but when push comes to shove we will loose against the greener/hikers. They are more organized and out number us.
 I hope everyone is sending a letter to let WDFG know how they feel.

 Its not much but here is mine.

 I need to vent my frustration with the proposed rule change that would stop bear hunting on public land in August. While I do agree that there can be conflicts in certain areas, there are huge amounts of public land where there is little to no conflicts. In areas of the Olympic and Wentchee National Forests which I am familiar with, I will not see another person all day with the exception of people driving on main lines. For people who are actually hunting bear (not those who just carry a tag just in case), August is the best month with some of the best areas being in the public lands.

 Please reconsider this proposed change.

[Ray]

It's horrible. I am so upset about this one change. Even more than the archery changes...

[actionshooter]

I just sat down tonight and started reading the changes. I can't believe what I'm seeing, this one and the goat changes have me fired up 

 AND I have only read 3 so far!!
 There gonna ban me e-mail address before I'm done!!!   

[hunterdadandgirls]

Just reading it makes me feel sick and just this part to (NO HUNTING ON PUBLIC LAND) not so public when they close it to a certian group of people. Please right in to the wdfw to get this stopped.

[Houndhunter]

They should change the definition of "Public" and "use" in the dictionary.

If they are concerned about the population in decline, they should have limited the bag limit to 1 bear. (personally, I have never seen so many bears as I have in the past few years)

If they are worried about too many females being taken, they should re instate baiting.

If they are worried about saftey, they should look at the previous 20+ years and 1,000's of hunting hours in the woods that were safe, not the one poor decision on a foggy day but an adolescent.

With that said, I think muzzleloader or archery would be better than nothing, but frankly this is BS. There are what...hundreds of thousands of public land in this state and we are not allowed to use any of it in August because of others using it.

I am headed to Ellensburg for the meeting, thats for sure.

exactly if they are worried about females being shot, for bear or lion, then re instate hounding and baiting

[Abolt338]

Guys,

On principle, compromise would be just as bad as closing the whole month.  If we compromise, we're saying, "yes, it's okay that you can manage wildlife based on emotional outbursts."

We have to fight this tooth and nail, showing why the August season is so important to bear hunters and demonstrate that there is really NO justification on the grounds of conflict between hunters and "other recreational users."

My letter:

Dear Commission,

I am writing in opposition to the proposed season change for Washington State fall bear season.  Moving the season opener on public lands from August 1 to September 1 significantly impacts hunting opportunity while does little to mitigate conflicts between hunters and other recreational land users.

The August 1 bear opener provides an opportunity to hunt when no other big-game seasons are available.  As a positive consequence, bear hunters have an entire month to spend in the woods before the majority of big-game hunters - deer hunters, elk hunters, etc. - fill popular public hunting grounds.  Because of this, August is the ideal month for serious bear hunters to fill their tag – long before bears become spooked by a massive influx of other hunters.

The proposal states that moving opening day to September 1 aims to “reduce conflict with other recreational users on public lands.”  In theory, this makes sense.  It begs the question, however, “what is the actual justification for the decision?”

In my experience, as the season currently stands, there is very little conflict between these two groups.  Most bear hunters make it a point to access areas away from people.  When they do encounter other people, most hunters – who are well aware that they are under a microscope – make certain to act with respect and avoid any negative interaction.

Is it a coincidence that just this last season, a young bear hunter accidently shot and killed a hiker during the August season?  I would wager not.  But let us not forget that this accident was the first of its kind in the last twenty-five years.  That’s a quarter century of harmless interaction between hunters and other recreational users.  Is the season change justified based on one accident and the emotional public discourse that followed?

Some hunters, like myself, are limited in their hunting opportunities.  For some, the August bear season is the only opportunity to pursue big-game.  College students who have to return to campus before September, high-school students who have extra-curricular commitments once the school year begins, these are just a couple examples of people who this change affects.

Bear hunters in Washington are already a significant minority.  This change will only reduce our numbers, similar to the elimination of bait and hounds.

The WDFW states that hunting is its most-effective tool for game management; but that tool is only available if there are hunters who choose to partake.  Reducing the bear season by delaying the opener significantly impacts the opportunity for a very specific group of hunters and fails to address any real conflict.  Because of this, I ask that the commission forgo this rule change and maintain the general bear season, keeping the opener on August 1.

Sincerely,
Rylan Weythman
Cashmere, WA

[WDFW-SUX]

This bear thing is weak...........I love going out in August and looking for bears. Pretty soon this whole "hunting" thing will be considered too dangerous if we allow them to cherry pick our seasons.

Bear baiting / hounds

OTC archery

August Bears

Its all going the way of the Dodo..........

[saylean]

This bear thing is weak...........I love going out in August and looking for bears. Pretty soon this whole "hunting" thing will be considered too dangerous if we allow them to cherry pick our seasons.

Bear baiting / hounds

OTC archery

August Bears

Its all going the way of the Dodo..........

not if i can help it.

[CJ-5]

Nice letter Abolt.  I sent one in a couple days ago and i hope alot people do the same.  This is absolute *censored* that they are trying to take away our public land for August because a 14 YEAR OLD KID failed to identify his target before he shot...