9/24/07...Sullivan Daily Times

Hoosier hunters used to be able to lollygag about until November, but those days are over now that we have fall turkey hunting, ruffed grouse and deer hunting seasons opening Oct. 1

Fall Wild Turkey: Indiana's two-year-old fall turkey hunting season continues this year under similar regulations and locations. For southern Indiana, that means that fall turkey hunting with bow and arrow is open in every county on Oct. 1. and continues through Oct. 21. The turkey firearms season begins Oct. 17 and ends Oct. 21.

Firearm hunting during the fall turkey season is limited primarily to those heavily wooded counties south of U.S. 40. The strip of counties along Indiana's western border, the "prairie" counties from Vigo and Sullivan counties all the way south to Posey County, have no firearms season. Only archery is allowed in these counties. Greene County is split with archery only west of U.S. 231 and firearms allowed Oct. 17 east of U.S. 231. There is a one-gobbler limit in all counties.

During the 2006 fall turkey season, county harvest rates in this areas included: Clay, 2 birds; Greene, 14; Sullivan, 5; Knox, 2; Owen, 23; Daviess, 2. The best fall turkey hunting was found in the usual counties of Harrison (39), Clark (35) and Crawford (30). Owen County hunters bagged 23 birds last fall.

Hunting wild turkey with bow and arrow has to be, by far, the most challenging hunt available in Indiana. Such a hunt requires the utmost in stealth, patience and marksmanship. Remember, be sure of your shot before you let fly. Nothing does more to create ill-will against hunters than a beautiful wild turkey running around with an arrow that didn't make a clean kill sticking through it.

Deer Early Archery: Early archery season for white-tailed deer begins Oct. 1 and continues through Dec. 2. Besides the Indiana one-buck limit, there are bonus permits designed to help control the deer herd by culling does and fawns (known as antlerless deer in DNR jargon). Bonus anterless deer licenses may be purchased and used during early archery season. Each county has a state-designed quota on how many antlerless deer each hunter may kill.

County antlerless quotas in this area are: Sullivan, 2; Knox, 3; Greene, 3; Clay, 4; Vigo, 4; Owen, 2; Daviess, 4. Bonus antlerless permits may not be used on several state properties listed by the Div. of Fish & Wildlife: Chnook FWA; Fairbanks Landing FWA; Hillenbrand FWA; Greene-Sullivan State Forest; Glendale FWA.

Ruffed Grouse: Our ruffed grouse season opens Oct. 1 and ends Dec. 31 with a 2 bird daily bag limit. Don't get excited, grouse hunters. You might see two grouse in southern Indiana over a five-year period of intense hunting, but don't expect to bag a grouse here. Indiana's ruffed grouse are at or near record low numbers. Only a few counties are open to grouse hunting, all of them forested counties in southern and southeastern Indiana. If you want to go ruffed grouse hunting, head to northern Wisconsin, Minnesota or Ontario.

You can email Don Jordan by clicking the email link at http://realindy.com

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