Stevens County Petitions Wildlife Commision for 4 pt. minimum restriction

[Skyvalhunter]

Yea I know how it is I don't shoot anything less than 8 point mule deer myself!!

[yelp]

If I recall last year, The Stevens County Fish and Wildlife Advisory Committee made a big stink about too many deer..They met with the WDFW to see if they could increase deer permits along the highway 395 between Loon Lake to Colville.  Why? because they felt that too many deer were being hit by vehicles..too many deer.  Not sure how.. 4 pt or better fits here.. Hard to follow their logic.

So the WDFW now has this in the regulations..The Colville River permit 2nd deer tag..25 antlerless whitetail permits (wow) (won't solve any vehicle collision problems)

Here is the deer area description..

Deer Area No. 1035 Highway 395 Corridor (Stevens County): That
portion of GMU 121 beginning at the intersection of US Highway
(Hwy) 395 (State Route 20) and State Route (SR) 25: S on SR 25 to
Old Kettle Rd; E on Old Kettle Rd to Mingo Mountain Rd; S on Mingo
Mountain Rd to Greenwood Loop Rd; E on Greenwood Loop Rd to the
bridge over the Colville River; S on the Colville River to the
bridge over Gold Creek Loop/Valley Westside Rd; W and S on Valley
Westside Rd to the Orin-Rice Rd; E on Orin-Rice Rd to Haller Creek
Rd; S on Haller Creek Rd to Skidmore Rd; E and S on Skidmore Rd to
Arden Hill Rd; E on Arden Hill Rd to Townsend-Sackman Rd; S on
Townsend-Sackman Rd to Twelve Mile Rd; S on Twelve Mile Rd to
Marble Valley Basin Rd; S on Marble Valley Basin Rd to Zimmer Rd;
S on Zimmer Rd to Blue Creek West Rd; E on Blue Creek West Rd to
Dry Creek Rd; S on Dry Creek Rd to Duncan Rd; E on Duncan Rd to
Tetro Rd; S on Tetro Rd to Heine Rd; E and S on Heine Rd to Farmto-
Market Rd; S on Farm-to-Market Rd to Newton Rd (also known as
Rickers Lane); E on Newton Rd to US Hwy 395; N on US Hwy 395 to
McLean Rd and Twelve Mile Rd (also known as Old Arden Hwy); N on
McLean Rd and Twelve Mile Rd to US Hwy 395; N on US Hwy 395 to Old
Arden Hwy (again); N on Old Arden Hwy to US Hwy 395; N on US Hwy
395, through the town of Colville, then W on US Hwy 395 (SR 20) to
SR 25 and the point of beginning.

[NWBREW]

I've hunted Stevens County for over 30 years and have never shot a buck with less than five points on at least one side. I'm sure even some of the 4 x 5's I've taken weren't more than 2 1/2 years old. I think it's a good idea to let 'em grow up a bit.

Yea I know how it is I don't shoot anything less than 8 point mule deer myself!!

I may be wrong but are these quotes a response to my post? If so all I am saying is there are a lot of whitetails that put points on there heads at a young age. Last year I killed a 3x4 that was 2 1/2 years of age. No he was not big but would have been legal in the 4 pt. rule. I am not claiming to be the almighty trophy hunter. In 97' I killed a 1 1/2 year old buck that would have been legal for the 3 pt. rule....again, not big but legal. I believe whitetails to be different then mule deer in the reasoning that they put points on earlier. So I am not sure what your trying to get at. I'm just saying that a whitetail doesn't have to be old to meet the 3 pt. or 4 pt. criteria. It would be nice to see them get past the first year....that's all I was trying to say. No B.S.   just my opinion and  .

I think if you want to shoot a buck with a nice BIG rack you need age. not so for points....at least not for whitetails.

[Skycruiser]

I've hunted Stevens County for over 30 years and have never shot a buck with less than five points on at least one side.

I wasn't being a wise guy, what I posted was true. I hunt on private property, a timbered ridge about a mile long above wheat and alfalfa fields. I routinely pass up smaller deer and regularly go home empty handed. Personally, I don't mind waiting for a good buck.

The last couple of years though have been particularly slim though, because of the string of bad winters and the high coyote population. The farmer who owns the property tells me he hasn't seen a fawn in the past two years. He's lived there his entire life (he's 70 now) and he says he's never seen a deer drought like this, even though the habitat hasn't changed.

[boonerboy]

I think it would be a good idea. I hunt the neighboring Ferry county and have noticed a significant drop in the whitetail population over the last few years. I don't know how much impact it would have but these deer need all the help they can get. I would like to see them shorten the late archery season for GMU 101. It is an area that I archery hunt but would gladly give up a couple weeks of the late season. November 10th thru december 15th seems pretty generous and didn't make any sense to me when the whitetail #'s have been falling the last few years.

[bearpaw]

Suggest giving up season with the caveat that when numbers recover, the season length should be re-instated.

[Skycruiser]

Considering this further, I'd like to see the late season hunt extended from the present November 19 to November 23rd. If we're going to let the little guys live longer so they get wiser, at least give the hunters a chance to hunt them during the rut, even if only for a few days. We haven't seen any good bucks the last few years until the 18th or 19th. Even then, they're pretty rare.

[bobcat]

The petition was denied at the Commissioner's meeting.

One thing they are doing to help whitetail deer recover in the NE region is the youth/senior/disabled hunter general season in which they are allowed to harvest antlerless deer has been reduced from 14 days to 4 days. The 4 days will fall on the second weekend of the general season. This is a step in the right direction. They have also reduced antlerless special permit opportunity accordingly. The one thing they are doing that I'm confused on, is to address the antlerless deer archers take, they have taken away the antlerless opportunity in the early season and moved it to the late season. I don't understand what this is meant to do. Will it actually reduce the number of does killed by archers, or will it just move the harvest back to a later season?