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Show Better Conditions Await Utah's Hunters Salt Lake City Better .. hunting conditions and about ., the same number of buck deer as last year on most of the state's units await hunters when Utah's , 2002 general rifle buck deer .. hunt kicks off Oct. 19. About 70,000 hunters are ; expected afield for Utah's most , popular hunt. "The rain that fell in . September has really helped hunting conditions," said Steve . Cranney, big game coordinator for the Division of Wildlife' Resources. "It may still be drier ; than hunters are used to, but it won't be as dry as last year. The ... wetter conditions will make it easier for hunters to move . around quietly, which will help them as they stalk animals. "Another storm or two between now and the opener ;. would further improve condi-,. condi-,. tions," he said. "Also, the leaves are just starting to fall off the trees in the higher elevations, which will make it easier' for hunters to spot deer. The leaves that are still on the aspen trees are a bright yellow right now, and are as pretty as can be." In addition to improved hunting hunt-ing conditions, Cranney says hunters will find about the same number of deer in Utah this season sea-son as last season. Taking into account the num-.". num-.". ber of deer lost this past winter, ' the DWR estimated the total number of deer in Utah at 300,000 before this year's archery hunt in August. That's about 20,000 animals under the ,- estimated 320,000 that were in I Utah before- last year's archery hunt. "The number of bucks per ' 100 does is good, with most of our general seasons units at or over the objective of 15 bucks per 100 does," Cranney said. "Depending on the area they hunt, hunters should see good numbers of bucks this year." To give themselves the best chance of taking a buck, Cranney encourages hunters to be patient. "There are a lot of hunters afield during the rifle buck deer hunt and that can work to your advantage," he said. "The key is to find an area where you know deer are, and then to sit down and be patient. With all of the other hunters afield, there's a good chance they'll push deer to you, if you'll just be patient and wait." Cranney encourages hunters to be sure of their target before shooting and reminds them that written permission must be obtained from landowners before hunting on private land that is posted. Hunters with all-terrain vehicles vehi-cles are also encouraged to obtain travel maps from the agency (usually either the U.S. Forest Service or the Bureau of Land Management) that manages man-ages the public land they'll be hunting. "There are two important impor-tant reasons that hunters obtain these maps," Cranney said. "First, they'll know the areas where they can and can't take their ATVs and other vehicles. Second, they'll know when other people are in areas they shouldn't be, and they can report them to the proper authorities. "It's very important that hunters know and obey travel restrictions," he continued. "When people violate OHV rules, they often damage wildlife habitat and ruin the hunting experience of those who have hiked into an area where OHVs aren't allowed." It's not too late to get involved in this year's hunt, as Northern Region permits remain available. Resident and nonresident nonresi-dent hunters my purchase them at the Division of Wildlife Resources' six offices. Last year Northern Region permits were gone two days before the hunt started. Until 7 a.m. on Oct. 11, hunters who have an American Express, Discover, MasterCard of Visa credit card can also purchase pur-chase a Northern Region permit on the DWR's Internet Web site (www.wildlife.utah.gov). Permits will not be available on the Internet after 7 a.m. on Oct. 1 1 because there won't be enough time to mail permits to hunters who purchase them that way. The following is a look at deer hunting prospects in some of the Division of Wildlife Resources' five regions: Central Region Deer hunters in the Central Region should expect to see fairly good numbers of buck deer. "Rifle hunters will have a much different hunt from the archers, who found deer tied to obvious watering areas during the drought months of the late summer archery hunt," said Scott Root, Central Region conservation con-servation outreach manager. "Recent storms have provided more water sources and have scattered the deer." Central Region Wildlife Biologist Grant Jense says recent storms have also initiated a late season green-up of vege-' tation, such as cheat grass, which may draw deer to those areas for food. "Deer are found in all of the very diverse vegetative areas in the region, such as stands of scrub oak, aspen, conifer, piny- on and juniper, and sage brush," Root said. "All of these areas have decent numbers of deer. "It's not just your knowledge of deer habitat but rather the habits of deer that is the key to success," Root said. "Because deer often migrate to the same general area each autumn and have established feeding habits, knowing these habits can greatly great-ly increase a hunter's odds of harvesting a buck deer. "For the hunter who doesn't scout before the hunt, a good technique may include getting to a high overlook before sunlight, sun-light, scouring the hillsides with binoculars during the early day-. day-. light hours when deer are active, and then stalking a buck once you've located him," he said. Root urges hunters to sight in rifles before shooting at a deer and to only shoot from an ethical ethi-cal distance. "Some hunters shoot at deer from far away and because they don't see the deer drop immediately, they don't make an effort to track it," he said. "They don't realize that they've actually hit the deer and mortally wounded it, and an animal ani-mal ends up being lost." Root reminds hunters that the Manti-Nebo deer unit is a 5-day hunting area that is only open Oct. 19 - 23. The boundary description for the unit is found on page 50 of the 2002 Utah Big Game Proclamation. DWR conservation officers in the Central Region remind hunters to avoid common violations viola-tions that the officers often encounter during the hunt, including all terrain vehicles in areas that are closed to ATVs; failure to obtain written permission permis-sion to hunt on private property; not wearing the proper amount (See HUNT on page 7a) Hunt From Page 6A of hunter orange; loaded firearms in vehicles; failure to tag deer; and, problems associated associat-ed with alcohol while driving or hunting. Southern Region Deer numbers are down slightly in the Southern Region but buck to doe ratios are good and hunters should see good numbers of bucks through most of the region, says Lynn Chamberlain, Southern Region conservation outreach manager. "Because of the drought, the deer will be in less than optimal condition, however," he said. Chamberlain says deer will be scattered , at all elevations, with some deer hanging out in agricultural areas. "The region received some rain recently, so conditions won't be quite as dry as they were a few weeks ago," he said. For more information, call the Southern Region office at caw RfiS-fiinn |