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MONROE OUTDOORS by Terry W. Johnson
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or the majority of
Monroe County
hunters, all of the
various seasons that
have already opened are
but a prelude to the main
event--the Firearms Deer
Hunting Season.
1his year opening day
falls on Saturday, Oct.
20. The season extends all
the way through Jan. 13. To
the delight of
deer hunters
of all ages, this
marathon pro-
vides them with
85 days of deer
hunting.
During the first
14 days of the
season, Oct. 20 !
through Nov. 2)
hunters can bag TERRY
only antlered
bucks. Then, for
the remaining 71 days of
the 2018-19 Firearms Deer
Hunting Season, deer of
either sex are legal game.
The season bag limit is set
at 12 deer. However, keep
in mind only two of these
can be antlered. In addi-
tion, one of these bucks
must sport at least four
po'mts, one inch or longer,
on one side of its antlers. It
is important to remember
that during the buck-only
phase of the season, the
only bucks that can legally
harvested must possess
antlers visible above the
hairline.
Two common ways deer
hunters run afoul of the law
is improperly
removing the
head of a deer
and transporting
a deer bagged by
another hunter.
As such, once
you have shot a
deer, be mindful
it is unlawful to
remove its head
W. JOHNSONuntil the animal
is processed or
surrendered to a
storage facility for storage
or processing.
In addition, ffyou are
transporting a deer bagged
by another hunter, it is your
responsibility to possess,
in writing, the following
information regarding the
hunter that harvested the
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If you plan on hunting on
the nearby Oconee Nation-
al Forest, here are the dates
the forest will be open for
deer hunting: Buck Only -
October I through Novem-
ber 2, November 5 through
23, November 26 through
December 2, and Decem-
ber 31 through January 13;
and Either Sex - November
3 through 4, November 24
and 25, and December 26
through 30.
Although you will not be
able to hunt deer on the
Rum Creek Wildlife Man-
agement Area unless you
were previously selected
to participate in the areas
firearms deer hunt, there
are two other wildlife man-
agement areas located short
distances from Monroe
County you might want to
try.
Two hunts will be held
on the Cedar Creek
WMA. The first hunt is
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[ Home of "3G" GUYS, GALS & GUNS ]
A hunter shows his first
whitetail deer bow kill.
(Photo courtesy of Georgia
Wildlife Resources Division)
a Buck Only event slated
for November 26 through
December 9. The second
is a Buck Only/Either Sex
Last Day hunt that will take
place Nov. 8-10.
Two Quality Buck and
Anflerless Last Day hunts
ing regulations this year
relates to baiting. Begin-
ning this season hunting
deer over bait will be legal
throughout the entire state
except on state or federally
managed lands. Up until
now, baiting has only been
legal in the southern part of
the state.
In addition, if you hunt
deer over bait on private
land, you must have writ-
ten permission from the
landowner to do so.
In years past, those
caught hunting deer over
bait in Monroe County
and the rest of the counties
in the northern half of the
state were subject to a fine
of $5,000 and/or up to one
year in jail.
Generations of Monroe
County deer hunters have
spent their entire lives
successfully hunting deer
without bait. As such, even
though it is now legal,
sportsmen and women do
not plan on hunting over
bait this season. It will
be interesting to see how
many local hunters decide
will be held on the Big Laz- to adopt this controversial
er Creek WMA October 18 practice.
through 20 and November
8 through 10, respectively.
For information regard-
ing regarding deer hunting
regulations and directions
to these and other public
lands open for firearms
deer hunting, consult the
2018-19 edition of the
Georgia Hunting Seasons
and Regulations Guide.
The most significant
change in the deer hunt-
What will you do?
Terry Johnson is retired
Program Manager of the
Georgia Nongame-Endan-
gered Wildlife Program. He
has written the informative
column 'Monroe Outdoors'for
the Reporter for many years.
Email him at woodduck@
bellsouth.net.
