Goose Prairie Early Archery

[Chase 1]

I know it's late in the game but I need your help! I sent a request for the attached proposal to be considered as part of the three year regs plan. Please read the proposal and consider getting behind it by sending a letter to the dfw and the game Commissioners via the comment line (wildthing@dfw.gov.wa). I need supporters to get behind this request and push to have it addressed as part of the three year package. This request was filed with the game dept. in Sept. and has received little attention. It was most recently published in the WSB (Washington State Bowhunter’s) newsletter as a letter to the editor and I have received a lot of positive feedback. I want to further the conversation with your help. This unit was changed mid-three year package and involved very little public impute when the decision was made to allocate all archery antlerless opportunity to a late season. I realize that the process has minimized the allocation issue due to the Governors moratorium but requests from the public should still be considered by the dfw.

Nearly 1500 archers utilized this unit for the early season and I would like to amplify the voices of those people to lend support to this request. The population numbers support this change and it should be implemented in the three year package. Please take a minute and read the attachment and then drop a letter to the process through the comment line. Public comment will be accepted until Feb. 21st and I am asking that anyone who used to utilize this unit for your general archery season opportunity to please express your feelings to dfw staff and the dfw Commissioners.

Thanks for your consideration of this issue.



To: Jerry Nelson Ph.D.
CC: Dave Ware, WDFW Commissioners
From: Ron Chase
RE: Goose Prairie- Nile and Bumping Elk Allocation

Dear Dr. Nelson,
Thank you for the opportunity to meet with you at the public meeting in Federal Way and our discussion regarding elk allocation and the rule changes affecting archers in the Goose Prairie Unit. As you requested I have enclosed my research of the issues surrounding the changes along with a list of questions. Thank you for your concern and attention to this issue and I look forward to continued dialogue as we move forward in the three year planning process.

Requested Rule Change for the 2012-2014 Seasons: Re-establish the Goose Prairie Unit as a spike and antlerless season for early archery and reinstate the 53 bull permits lost during the 2009 and 2010 adjustments of the three year management plan. 

Reason: The following information shows an inconsistency in the allocation of elk hunting opportunity to each user group between 2008 – 2011 seasons in Goose Prairie: the Nile (352) and Bumping Units (356). The following information also highlights the affect to archers hunting opportunity following the total closure of early season antlerless elk hunting. 

BULLS - Adjustments were made to the three year management plan in 2010 that reduced the bull permits to each user group in the Goose Prairie Unit. The changes were far more impactful to archers than to firearm and muzzleloader hunters.
Archers lost 51% of bull permits, from 123 to 60 permits
Firearms lost 29% of bull permits, from 77 to 55 permits
Muzzleloaders lost 23% of bull permits, from 13 to 10 permits.

In 2011 the bull permit numbers were restored to the 2009 levels for firearms and muzzleloader hunters yet they were left significantly lower for archers. Archers were issued 53 less permits, 43% below 2009 levels.

Question #1 – Why have archers lost 53 bull permits while the permits allocated to firearm and muzzleloader hunters have been restored to 2009 levels?
Bull Permit / Kill Ratios - When you compare the bulls that were killed in Goose Prairie to the permits issued to each user group in the 2008 – 2010 seasons, a vast difference emerges in the harvest success rate between the user groups.
2008 – 2010           Archery                    Firearms                    Muzzleloaders
Bull Permits               310                            222                                38
Bulls Killed                  28                              92                                 11
Kill Ratio                       9 %                          41 %                             29 %

Considering the incredibly high success rate of firearm and muzzleloader hunters, it is difficult to understand why archers have been the focus of tag allocation cut backs to meet management goals.

Question #2 – With firearms and muzzleloader hunters having harvested 103 bulls compared to 28 by archers in 2008 - 2010, why have archers been the primary user group targeted for reduction of bull tags allocation and reduction of opportunity?

ANTLERLESS - Adjustments were also made to the three year management plan in 2010 to the early season antlerless hunting in Goose Prairie that closed the unit to archers.
2008-2010 Archers averaged less than 6% harvest success of the antlerless opportunity. 
2008-2010 Rifle hunters averaged 28% harvest success of the antlerless opportunity. 
2008-2010 Muzzleloader hunters averaged 23% harvest success of the antlerless opportunity.   

Early season antlerless opportunity has been greatly reduced for all user groups since the last three year management plan was implemented. Despite the incredibly low success of archers, early antlerless archery opportunity has been completely taken away.   

Question #3 – Why have archery hunters been completely stripped of the early season antlerless hunting opportunity in Goose Prairie while opportunity for other user groups has continued?

Question #4: Do current elk populations indicate that the early archery season in Goose Prairie will be restored to the 2009 levels as part of the new three year management plan?

User Groups – The most accurate information of the numbers of hunters from each of the user groups hunting in Goose Prairie comes from the 2009 harvest report. The following information shows that archers and firearms hunters were nearly equal in the number of hunters utilizing Goose Prairie in 2009. The 2010 harvest report shows the dramatic effects that the rule changes had on archers that had previously utilized Goose Prairie.
2009              Archery                      Firearms                       Muzzleloaders 
Nile                   896                              700                                181
Bumping           560                              640                                235
Total                1356                           1340                                416
2010              Archery                      Firearms                       Muzzleloaders
Nile                  566                               758                                126
Bumping          151                               715                                192
Total                717 (-639)                   1473 (+133)                    318 (-98)

This user information shows that the rule changes in 2010 dramatically diminished the opportunity for archers in Goose Prairie, yet did not affect the firearms hunters.

Question #5: In 2009 archery and firearms hunters were equal users of Goose Prairie for elk hunting, so why have the rule changes primarily been directed at and affected archer’s opportunities?

Conclusion
I realize that big game management is a complex issue with many factors involved in determining user group allocation. Yet it is difficult to overlook the significant loss of opportunity for archers as compared to rifle and muzzleloader hunters in Goose Prairie during the last three years. I have patiently waited for the three year management planning to begin so that this issue could be addressed. The changes that were implemented to the Goose Prairie unit were done mid three year management plan and involved minimal public comment. My efforts in this matter are in attempt to open the dialogue and public impute process in determining the allocation of elk hunting opportunity in Goose Prairie. I would request that this issue continue to be part of the three year planning discussion as we move forward with public comment and finalization. 
On a personal note, my extended family and friends have archery hunted the Bumping unit for the last thirteen years. Since the regulations changed we have not had the opportunity to return to our traditional hunting grounds and therefore not hunted elk. I hope that with your facilitation, our hunting opportunity will be restored as part of the next three year management plan.
Thank you for your time and attention to these issues. I look forward to your response and a continued dialog during the process of completing the new three year management plan.

Ron Chase
chasecoach@yahoo.com
425-931-6784
PO Box 221
Granite Falls, WA 98252

P.S. The information below was retrieved from the WDFW and used to provide the statistics contained in this report.

[coachcw]

Nicely done !

[D-Rock425]

Yeah nicely done.

[Sawbuck]

Good job on the letter. Personally I don't think the WDFW is too far off with the rule changes. The elk numbers are down and a good way to bring them back up is to stop harvesting the cows. This logic is why the 346 boys are upset that when they closed 356 they opened 346 to spike or antlerless. If antlerless is open to any user group with a general tag the hunter numbers increase and the elk population decreases. I don't understand why they don't make antlerless permit only for everybody and adjust the permit levels to meet their population objectives. Since archery success rates are lower they should get more permits. In your #3 question you mentioned being completely stripped of antlerless permits and I would agree that that sucks. They did almost close the other users also, only offering 5 permits each from something like 300, but if the WDFW wants to increase the population it would make more since to completely close antlerless for a time and then open it up to everybody permit only. I do wonder why they didn't offer ten permits to archery and zero to modern and muzzleloader in 2010? It probably has something to do with the $$$. Hopefully your letter will have an impact on the 2012-2014 rule changes and give archery some antlerless permits to apply for in 356/352.

[dreamingbig]

Ron,

I had already sent other letters supporting this same argument but NOTHING this thought out!  Thanks!  I sent your findings on to them again in another email.

Lets start praying!

PS I have also hunted the bumping for 10+ years...  Good times.

[HoofsandWings]

Did you read the proposed permit levels and rules posted on the WDFW site?
With the mild start of winter, native hunters were able to travel much further up the roads and from what I have heard killed many more elk than in years past.

[deerslyr]

With the mild start of winter, native hunters were able to travel much further up the roads and from what I have heard killed many more elk than in years past.

Here we go again 

[SniperDanWA]

Someone has to stir the pot.

[colockumelk]

It's not stirring the pot. It's stating the obvious. Just because its not PC doesn't mean it shouldn't be mentioned. Nothing in that post was inflammatory or disrespectful. No names or racial slurs where used. It was just stating what is happening. So that's why I don't think he stirred the pot.

[HoofsandWings]

I was not stirring the pot.  Due to lack of snow, the harvest was higher than average.
We will have to wait and see how the permit levels compare when the regs come out.
I was hunting Oak Creek during modern rifle. Not many shots. I know it snowed the second weekend.
I had to get back to work, so I was not there the last few days of the season.

As many of you know, WDFW bought some adjacent properties to Oak Creek. Not sure where they are.
There may be some opportunities or we may have already been hunting those lands.

[bobcat]

It's not stirring the pot. It's stating the obvious. Just because its not PC doesn't mean it shouldn't be mentioned. Nothing in that post was inflammatory or disrespectful. No names or racial slurs where used. It was just stating what is happening. So that's why I don't think he stirred the pot.

 

[SniperDanWA]

Hoofs,
I agree that there are animals taken by the Native American people; however, the treaties do allow it and honestly WDFW does not manage the herds near reservation and ceded lands.  They try, but it is too hard with the resources they have and yes I know that illegal kills are made every year by Native American and non-natives.

That said, I was near Bumping and Oak Creek during modern too and there were few shots.  I did attribute a lot of that due to the mild weather.  The herds were still up high.  No snow, warm weather and plenty of feed.  Looking at the feeding station pictures (I have not made it over yet), there are quite a few animals that have migrated lower, so I guess I'm thinking we still have some herd to hunt.

[dreamingbig]

They can hide like crazy in gmu 356.  The animals we hunt never leave the timber during day light hours.  I am to surprised mf would not see many without the snow pushing them lower.  Put some time in the timber and you see plenty.

[Chase 1]

Ain't that the truth! The year before this change was made, the count samples were taken in traditional wintering grounds. Problem was the snow pack was none existant, elk didn't need to come that far down. The elk report sites the issue but the numbers were still used as is. I spent a ton of hours on horseback and hiking and that was one of the better population years in the 15 that I have been going there. Our camp had an above average year. Regardless of what happen two years ago, the current numbers show recruitment is at or above department objective and that was the reason sited for the closure and reductions. Archer's should get this early season back!

[blacktaill]

Very well done!! I love the Bumping area!