Who else here is hunting deer in WDFW Firearm Restriction areas?

[Chad McMullen]

Is anyone else here hunting in WDFW Firearm Restriction Areas? (FRAs).
I'm in Kitsap County - the north end.  While I can still legally hunt with a modern centerfire rifle in the SW corner of the Kitsap Peninsula, pretty much all the rest of it is in an FRA. I also hunt in San Juan County - and that whole place is on FRA lockdown. 

I can still hunt with firearms in an FRA - muzzie, shotgun, revolver - but nothing so effective as a high-powered rifle.  I'm trying to get up a head of steam with WDFW to get them to add pistol-caliber rifles -- something a number of shotgun-only mid-West states have done in the past decade or so.  Similar range limitations as a shotgun but better accuracy, easier to shoot for smaller hunters...plus who wouldn't want to increase their style points by hunting with a lever-action .45 Colt cowboy gun, am I right???

Interested to know more?  Check out this thread:
https://hunting-washington.com/smf/index.php/topic,246525.msg3311727/topicseen.html#new
-- Chad

[Skyvalhunter]

I would think you would need potential hunters numbers to justify a change in the rules

[Bob33]

That sounds like a worthy goal.

I've hunted deer in San Juan County for 40 years: the first 25 with centerfires and the last 15 with a shotgun. Although I miss the ability to use centerfires, I don't believe that using a rifled shotgun with a scope has limited my success. At 100 yards the shotgun is capable of sub 2 MOA groups which is more than sufficient for where I hunt.

I'm not sure I would purchase another firearm if pistol-caliber cartridges in a rifle were to become legal, but if I were starting over it would be a nice option to have.
 

[Chad McMullen]

I would think you would need potential hunters numbers to justify a change in the rules

Yep, yessir - that's why I'm here: introduce people to the idea, maybe convince 'em to write to WDFW in support of the idea. And not necessarily because you cannot handle a 12-gauge with slugs, but because  being able to handle a mule-kick isn't what should be keeping women or younger or smaller-framed hunters away from the harvest.  If a pistol-caliber rifle is a suitable option with reduced range, why shouldn't it be an available option?

Cheers!

[dreadi]

I do.

It’s quite silly that in the zones during a modern season, I can’t hunt with 300 Blackout but, I can with 458 SOCOM.

[hunterednate]

Awesome idea, Chad. Yes, I know some midwestern states have adopted this rule change, and from what I've heard, its been well-received. I wonder if they have some data available concerning hunter recruitment and/or safety that you could pass along to WDFW to support your argument.

[Chad McMullen]

Awesome idea, Chad. Yes, I know some midwestern states have adopted this rule change, and from what I've heard, its been well-received. I wonder if they have some data available concerning hunter recruitment and/or safety that you could pass along to WDFW to support your argument.

Hey - that's an interesting angle! Who knows if other states have before/after recruitment data to demonstrate higher interest in new hunters...but it certainly seems like it could have a positive impact on increasing licence sales and getting more teens and women interested in harvesting a deer.

Please consider checking out the other thread I've started (see above) and sending WDFW an email voicing your thoughts on the subject.  I'm sure a few sentences of support have an impact when WDFW begins drafting "major rule-making" changes later this year.
Again - thanks
 --Chad