As days get short, hunters long for woods

October 2, 2008 12:16 am

DEER SEASON must be just around the corner. The bucks I saw sporting velvet on their antlers have scattered or gone more nocturnal; the bean fields are turning yellow; and the orb weaver spiders are cranking out their masterpiece webs.

Early archery season opens Saturday and many hunters will hit the woods and farms of the region. Bowhunting is increasingly popular and, with Virginia allowing everything from longbows to compound bows to crossbows, breaking into bowhunting has never been easier.

Many bowhunters love the unhurried pace of the October hunting and the opportunity to scout deer patterns and try to connect before the frenzy of the rut kicks in and hunting pressure ramps up.

I began bowhunting a decade ago and have come to believe it really does make a person a better hunter. With most shots coming inside of 30 yards, you have to be a stealthy predator to experience whitetail behavior up close.

Few things make you feel more alive than being in a treestand 20 feet up as a deer crunches acorns right below you. Bowhunters may pass on many shots waiting for just the right buck, or they may take advantage of a close-in quality shot on a doe or any deer. Either way, taking a deer with a bow and arrow is an achievement meriting congratulations.

Good luck and safe hunting.

Bass Pro Store Opens

The biggest of the "big box" outdoor retailers has launched operations not far from Fredericksburg with the grand opening of the huge Bass Pro Shops store just south of Ashland at the intersection of Interstate 95 and Lewistown Road in Hanover County.

The place is huge--about 150,000 square feet with big aquariums, dioramas with life-size game animal mounts worthy of the Smithsonian's Museum of Natural History, restaurants, and more.

The store had a "soft opening" this week and Wednesday night was dedicated to an "Evening for Conservation," with lots of celebrities, special deals and money being returned to conservation organizations.

Bass Prop Shops already has a store in Hampton and another just south of Baltimore, but this one really works to capture the Virginia outdoor experience from the Piedmont across the Blue Ridge. More than 3,500 area artifacts, antiques, pictures, murals, mounts and memorabilia are reported to grace the walls and halls of the store--somewhat creating a museum of Virginia's hunting, fishing, camping and other outdoor legacies.

There's even a Natural Bridge near the 24,000-gallon freshwater aquarium. A 12,000-gallon saltwater aquarium is in the 10,000-square-foot Islamorada Fish Company Restaurant.

The Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World in Hanover will also include a conservation room that will accommodate 100 people for various civic, educational or conservation functions.

Waterfowl Violators Beware

Special Agent Allen Hundley of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service passed along word of successfully prosecuted cases of duck poachers last year, many of whom paid hefty fines to the North American Wetlands Conservation Fund.

Here's his rundown:

On Dec. 11, 2007, four people killed 51 ducks in Spotsylvania County. That's 31 over the limit! The limit for one day is five ducks each. In addition, they had guns capable of holding more than three shotgun shells and possessed illegal shot. Total fines were $7,333.

Six people were apprehended Jan. 19 hunting ducks in Westmoreland County without hunting licenses, duck stamps or HIP registration numbers. They also had unplugged shotguns and illegal shot. Fines totaled $6,300.

One hunter in Stafford County was apprehended Jan. 18 for hunting without proof of his HIP registration, state conservation stamp and with an unsigned federal stamp. He was fined $750.

Two more people were caught Jan. 24 shooting at ducks on the Rappahannock River in King George County while they were under power from the boat engine and within 500 yards of a licensed blind. They each paid fines of $820.

Three others were caught Jan. 29 hunting in Prince William County, killing and hiding an over-limit of ducks, and without federal stamps. They paid fines of nearly $200 each.

Finally, three people were caught Feb. 2 hunting geese in Prince William County while not in possession of federal migratory-bird hunting stamps, resulting in a $235 fine for each.

Hundley said these apprehensions were made by Virginia conservation police officers and prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia with assistance from the Office of Law Enforcement of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Fredericksburg.

"The penalties are high because the consequences on our migratory waterfowl populations are significant," Hundley said.

Ken Perrotte can be reached at The Free Lance-Star, 616 Amelia Street, Fredericksburg, Va. 22401, by fax at 373-8455 or e-mail at
Email: outdoors@freelancestar.com.