Swakane

[huntnphool]

I had a dad that was a parapeligic after his accident.

That is a problem isn't it! I suppose exceptions could be made for cases like that but then again how many people are taking advantage of disabled parking at the local grocery store.

[bobcat]

The mainlines should be left open. No question about it. It's public land, the public should have reasonable access to use it. Gating off many of the spur roads is one thing, but to gate off the entire unit is wrong, and would never happen anyway so we don't need to worry about it. Why would they want to turn it into a unit that can only be hunted by hunters on horses...

[gasman]

Hunting the roads or hitting the canyons, is a choice i get to make.

I hunt plenty of gated areas and drive many roads. Yes, i do get out of my jeep and hike the canyons or roads that are gated, it is my choice.

There are plenty of areas that i camp that have nothing to with hunting or fishing, and if they became closed, the general public would have no access to them.

All this is just a reaction to a supposide low deer count that the WDFW say we have or a reaction to the WDFW taking away the hunting many of us enjoy during late archery hunts. This is all over  "money" the WDFW can get from permits being sold. Not building up the deer herd in a specific area.



Just a side note: A few years back i talked with a wildlife biologist (in Entiat Ranger Dist) that recommended the mule deer heard were back up to par and should be reopened to any buck hunts. He was informed from his bosses that if they did that they would lose a massive amount of income for the WDFW.
This all about the almighty dollar, not the deer population (the same is for the elk in the Yakima herd). (if the 3point min restriction is lifted you will get a higher success rate of the bigger bucks making it through the hunting season, most people will shoot the first legal buck they see, tag it and move on, witch will allow for many more 2 points killed by those that just shoot and leave the illegaly killed animal to rot, and allow more bigger bucks to survive with less hunters in the field).

[gasman]

The mainlines should be left open. No question about it. It's public land, the public should have reasonable access to use it. Gating off many of the spur roads is one thing, but to gate off the entire unit is wrong, and would never happen anyway so we don't need to worry about it. Why would they want to turn it into a unit that can only be hunted by hunters on horses...

Maybe the "GREEN DOT" system should be looked in to for the areas at question.

I do know that the "Little Naches" was a green dot system a few years back and removed it for lack of enforcement.

[huntnphool]

most people will shoot the first legal buck they see,

Perhaps, but at the same time MORE people will be harvesting bucks leaving the the buck/doe ratio worse each year until the restriction needs to be implemented again and putting us at the same point we are at right now, the difference being we will have wasted another 3,4,5 years.

[cle elum bowhunter]

Green dot doen't really work.  How about big double water bars put in by a dozer.  A lot cheaper than gates.  Yes, this is a revenue thing and I understand that.  Aside from that fact, it would be nice to see fewer roads drivable with vehicles up in the entiat and swakane both.

[Red Dawg]

ya green dot does not work at all.

[huntnphool]

How about big double water bars put in by a dozer.

This has no effect on quads though. A gate and vehicle restriction is the only way to keep 99% of vehicles out.

[Red Dawg]

quads

[bobcat]

ATV's aren't legal on National Forest roads anyway, or are they? Last time I checked, they were not. And I know the year I drew the late Entiat permit (2004), I never saw one ATV up there.  

[mossback91]

ATV's aren't legal on National Forest roads anyway, or are they? Last time I checked, they were not. And I know the year I drew the late Entiat permit (2004), I never saw one ATV up there.  

No actually the forest service used to say Im not sure if it still does but they stated you could ride on the land just not their roads now they have designated roads sometime which will ahve signs on them........

[huntnphool]

ATV's aren't legal on National Forest roads anyway, or are they?

 

[bobcat]

ATV's aren't legal on National Forest roads anyway, or are they? Last time I checked, they were not. And I know the year I drew the late Entiat permit (2004), I never saw one ATV up there.  

No actually the forest service used to say Im not sure if it still does but they stated you could ride on the land just not their roads now they have designated roads sometime which will ahve signs on them........

Yeah I know they have a couple designated roads in each Ranger District but that isn't much good if a guy wants to use one for hunting. Those roads are just for the guys who want to go out and play around on their toy in the mud.   

[Red Dawg]

I see them all of the time on the roads down here and in the blues. The fat *censored*s cant walk anywhere

[cle elum bowhunter]

Reddawg, I agree on the    for quads.  Was hunting elk in montana.  Spent 2 hours hiking up a large box canyon with no roads before daybreak.  Sitting in a beautiful meadow watching the sun come up when a guy came cruising through, rifle in the rack and helmet on(at least he was safe).  Never saw me sitting there in my blaze orange.  Turns out the divide road between idaho and Montana was about a 1/2 to 3/4 mile up the ridge and he came in from the top.  Pissed me off.  Shot a spike off that ridge the next day and was able to utilize the road to bring the truck closer and not have to use the horses to pack it the 3 miles downhill back to camp though.