For those who hunt the wildlife areas

C

calamari

Member
Due to the drought, quotas have been reduced and areas closed for the duck season opener and potentially on into the season. Here's a list of the reduced quotas and closed areas that they should up date periodically. If you apply for a reservation for an area that is closed you get no refund. No refunds for any reason are possible so be sure you've got the right area and like your odds.

https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=57660&inline=1
 
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Man, those are some serious reductions and they're definitely going to cause the sweat lines to get a lot longer. You'd think the majority of people would just stay home, but I'll guarantee that's not what'll happen.

I think I'll just skip the whole thing this year. I'll hunt hard for 7 days in Montana and then dick around out at the club in Corning for the rest of the year, maybe devote the season to trying to get kids from my church and other places interested in hunting. It's all the same to the dogs (as far as I know, anyway).

Looks like I'll be doing more steelhead fishing this fall than I have for quite some time.

It'd be a real bonus if they created some pheasant-only slots at the WAs, but that isn't going to happen.
 
I should have mentioned that the reservations sent out anticipate 2 hunters per reservation. I think you can figure out the area's reduced capacity by doubling the number of reservations. Using Gray Lodge as an easy example it has a normal capacity of 400 as I recall. With the reduction it will be 238, a 40% reduction for that area.
The only good thing about this is as DP says, there's always fishing... and golf, and repairing the dry rot, etc.
 
It's still a bummer for us new upland hunters. Oh well, I'll still get out there so the dog doesn't get stale. Thought about doing some Chukar stuff up in the northeast corner.
 
Beniciahd said:
It's still a bummer for us new upland hunters. Oh well I'll get out there so the dog doesn't get stale. Thought about doing some Chukar stuff up in the northeast corner.
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I was a new upland hunter 6 yrs ago, now time is my limiting factor not lack of opportunities.
 
I agree. It just takes time and effort. If it was all about the take I would rather hunt in the grocery store. I enjoy just being out. Coming home with something is just a bonus.
 
This is the first year I have put in zero applications for the refuges and won't buy a season-long wildlife area pass.

I'll make a few November, late-morning visits to the wildlife areas during pheasant season, but that's about it. I'll spend more time at my local duck and pheasant clubs instead of chasing birds all around the state.
 
I should have thought it through more before I bought my license and would have passed on the season pass too. $156 is a lot of money to hunt dry fields but now that i'm committed I've got to go .
 
I'm thinking I'll be a single 2-day pass guy this year. I'll use one on the first Monday at Delevan and then the other one on some Sunday afternoon at Gray Lodge. Probably get the hell bitten out of me by mosquitoes on both occasions.

The more I think about coming back from Montana with that Lab puppy we spoke about, Cal, the more appealing it sounds. Having a little one would make the trips to the Corning club more fun since all I'd have to do to show it a good time is let it run around in some tall grass. Then, if conditions improve over the coming winter and spring, I could be back in business with my pointer/flusher combo attack next year.
 
I'm planning to be way up north for the opener and buy that special pass ($25) since I miss placed the one I bought last year but I'll still buy a type A season pass. I like being able to jump from Los Banos to San Luis without burning two day passes, I've even been known to hunt Mendota, LB and San Luis in the same day. Wednesdays on the refuge late season are my favorite, when the birds bunch up on those out of the way coverts.:cheers:
 
ditchparrot19 said:
The more I think about coming back from Montana with that Lab puppy we spoke about, Cal, the more appealing it sounds.
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It would take a better man than me to say no to a dog from the Smith line of Labs. Maybe just look at it in a mirror or something? A female is the only way to go if he has one. They fit in a sleeping bag perfectly.:cheers:
 
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