Start gun season on the 1st Monday after the 15th of November .. a lot of people use that time to do safety checks on their stands .. get their camp in order .. sight the gun in .. etc .. More people have a negative impact as a result of the Saturday opener. Local fund raising events see less money generated. In general, there was nothing wrong with a Monday opener and there are few things right with the Saturday start ..
And what about the next generation of hunters?
I live on the border of northern and southern zones so I can hunt that weekend either way but many people don't get enough time to hunt with busy schedules that we all have and the Saturday opener adds 2 days to the hunting season. It is plain selfish and irrational to argue that time is needed to do your prepwork and expect others to miss out on actual hunting time while you do what should already be done. Not everyone is able to take the Monday opener off due to work and school schedules. Many people only get to hunt on weekends and that one may increase their hunting time dramatically due to other commitments. As for your fund raisers, we are talking about hunting season not fund raiser season, they can have their fund raisers all year long, and they will adapt to the changes. The ones that hurt the most are the bars as people won't be spending all day Saturday and Sunday checking in on their old friends while getting hammered. How many people here remember the no Sunday hunting line and shotguns only, now there is Sunday hunting, pistols, muzzle loaders and they are opening areas to rifle. The churches weren't happy with Sunday hunting, many people are opposed to anything other than shotguns so lets go backwards there too. I don't hear you complaining about those changes. You got that right jigger. This is the most important reason. They are talking about lowering the age for big game licenses to 14 and you people want to take away 2 days they can hunt? For what, a fund raiser? So you can check your treestand and sight in your gun? Tell you what, leave the opener on Saturday and you just check you stand, sight in your gun and go the the fund raiser and you can start hunting on Monday if it make you feel better, but don't take away opportunities from those that will benefit most, ALL HUNTERS, not just a few. The change increases hunting opportunities for many people, and I feel the majority of people that object just don't want to share the woods with people that can't hunt Monday openers.There are more reasons to leave it a Saturday opener with 2 additional hunting days than there is to go back to Monday, unless you own a bar!!!!!!!
Throughout your diatribe of me, you didn't mention if you knew of any new recruitment into the sport as a result of Sunday hunting, Pistol hunting, Rifle areas, etc .. ?? Pistol hunters were the rifle hunters (who either converted to or carried a pistol in addition to their rifle) who couldn't hunt deer with a gun on Sunday until several years ago. Throughout all the changes, license sales #'s continue to decline despite all of the "positive" impacts you've noted that have occured in recent years. I can say for a fact though that I do know many individuals that purchase a license with the intention of hunting and that is directly related to the fraternal bonding, rural travel, marksmanship (ham / turkey shoots - ie. sighting in the gun) etc .. And many of these guys haven't gotten a deer in years yet it doesn't make or break their love of the sport. Their selfishness is that they like to socialize with like-minded individuals and have gone about it in this manner ( again .. I'll give you an example .. the weekend before gun started on Monday) for a couple of generations at this point. Most guys truly are not die-hard hunters but if socializing in your mind is deemed "getting hammered". then you have a point .. but if you don't drive "hammered" .. who cares ?? (p.s. - getting hammered isn't illegal btw !) Living in Pulaski, I would imagine you have noted the economic impact that the industry of fishing has had in your region ? The "bar and grill" owners, stores, gas stations, etc .. probably don't mind people getting hammered or spending money on whatever they feel they need as that is what makes the world go round ! As far as younger hunters, if they have a desire to go hunting, they are going to go hunting on Monday. A lot of school districts have staff development days set for that Monday ( which is sort of like the churches holding things holy .. it's still a big deal in the countryside as to who got a buck, etc .. ) and the schools where I live realize they're better off doing their staff day when it coincides with gun season. Missing school is missing school .. regardless of what they were doing while not in school. The only way to get youngsters involved in hunting is to take them. You can babble on and on about it but unless you actually do it, you're just talking nonsense. Again, I can speak from experience because I take kids hunting a lot , put them in known hotspots .. and ensure they have the opportunity to be successful. I take them scouting ( not just my own kids either !) setting up treestands and shooting lanes and I work with them year round .. not just the 3rd Saturday in November .. Being an outdoorsman doesn't just happen .. hasn't for a good 20 years at this point .. there are too many distractions to draw them away from it .. I do agree though that by 16, most kids have missed the bus if they haven't started small game hunting at this point. Tug and Irish .. how many 12-15 yo's have you taken out for Spring turkey the past few years ? That's the gut check that sportsmen need to ask themselves ?? If you don't have one, find one .. !
at first i didn't like going from monday to sat. but then i realized how seelfish i was a lot of young hunters would have ben in school, alot of other hunters would have had to work,not everyone has the ability to take a vacation that week.i say leave it sat and lets all enjoy a great opener every year with as many other sportsman as we can
Quoted from New York Bowhunters Inc http://www.newyorkbowhunters.com/New_Folder/future.htmFuture GoalsAlong with Our Continued Efforts we are Striving for the Following:1. Southern Zone, late, archery/muzzleloading season - create an archery-only season2. Expand early archery-only seasons* Southern zone - October 1st* Northern zone - September 1st3. Lower junior archery age from 14 to 124. Establish a set opening date for the Southern Zone “regular” season on Monday of Thanksgiving week5. Establish license parity between resident and non-resident big game hunters6. Change the license year from October 1st to an earlier date 7. Allow for use of DMP’s (Deer Management Permits) during the early archery season in the Northern Zone8. To continue to develop adaptive gear for physically challenged hunters while educating the public on its use
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Topic: NY Big Game Hunting Seasons - Saturday vs Monday Opener (Read 5173 times)
