Patoka Sportsman 10-17-20
Patoka Sportsman 10-17 & 10-18-20
The Dubois County Sportsmen’s Club is again sponsoring the Hunters for the Hungry during this years deer season. Hunters who legally harvest a deer can donate the entire deer by taking it to either Sanders Processing in Celestine, Ohio Valley Caviar in English or Cannelburg Processing. The deer should be field dressed and you must donate the entire deer not just parts of it. The processing will be paid for through a grant from the Sportsmen’s Benevolence Fund. Several deer have been donated so far this year and we thank you for your donation. Each time you donate a deer you will be eligible to win a gun donated by Dr. Greg Gordon and Jasper Optical Lab.
As sportsmen we have a moral obligation to show proper hunter ethics and pass them along to younger individuals so they truly become sportsmen and not just hunters. There is a big difference! A trophy deer is truly in the eyes of the beholder but a certain moral code should be followed. For example: I’m taking my grandson deer hunting this year. He got his first turkey last spring and I went over several things that happen when you shoot wildlife. I had him prepared for the death of that animal and how important it was for him to know about the experience before he pulled the trigger.
Same thing applies to deer hunting. I had a talk with my grandson about what happens when you shoot a deer and the situations that might come up and what to avoid. For instance if a doe comes in with a fawn close behind, you don’t shoot. You don’t shoot a fawn with spots under any circumstance. Even if it’s a first deer for a very young hunter fawns are out period.
Several fawns have been turned in to local processors and donated to the hunters for the hungry this year. After processing the small deer only had about 25 pounds of meat. They only weighted 40-50 pounds in the beginning. I don’t know what would possess someone to shoot a small deer like this. In my mind they are not sportsmen and aren’t setting a good example. Again it is legal to shoot any size deer but that moral compass should guide you in your actions before you pull the trigger. Please keep this in mind this hunting season and set a good example for others to follow.
The Dubois County Sportsmen’s Club will be holding their next monthly meeting on Monday, October 19 at the Jasper K of C. It will be deer antler measurement night so if you’re a club member and have a deer that you harvested in 2019 and would like to see what the antlers scored there will be a couple deer scorers on hand that night to do that. It’s free and you can also enter your deer into the big buck contest. Doors open at 6 and the meeting will start promptly at 7. Please turn in any sold raffle tickets and if you didn’t get any or would like some more you can pick them up at the meeting. Please wear a mask and social distancing will be observed.
State Park Deer management draw dates are November 16-17 for the early hunt and November 30-December 1, 2020 for the late hunt. Applicants must possess any valid license to take a deer in Indiana at the time of the application, not including apprentice licenses. Applicants must be Indiana residents (or possess a valid lifetime comprehensive hunting license to take deer in Indiana), be 18 years of age by the date of the first hunt, and must possess the proper licenses to hunt deer in order to apply. Once you have submitted your application online, you cannot change your information.
For successful applicants, deer harvested at a State Park Management Hunt are in addition to regular deer-season bag limits. You do not need to purchase additional licenses to harvest deer if participating in the management hunt. For questions regarding State Park Deer Management Hunts, please contact DNR's Division of State Parks at 317-232-4200.
Available state parks locally in 2020 include Brown County, Harmonie, Lincoln State Park, McCormick's Creek and Spring Mill State Park.
If you hunt in more than one season, this is the license deal for you! A deer bundle license can be used in all seasons (except the deer reduction zone season) using legal equipment during that season and gives the hunter the privilege to harvest up to three deer (3 antlerless OR 1 antlered and 2 antlerless deer). Season dates, legal equipment, and all other deer hunting laws apply. Antlerless deer taken with a deer license bundle can count toward the archery season bag limit, muzzleloader season bag limit, or as a bonus antlerless deer in that county, depending on the season and equipment used.
Signing in to buy hunting, fishing, and trapping licenses looks a little different now. A new state online portal called Access Indiana, which allows citizens to interact with multiple Indiana state agencies through a single login, has launched. If you haven’t already purchased your hunting license for this fall, we suggest creating your Access Indiana account today.
The Indiana CheckIN Game system allows hunters and trappers to check in their harvested game from any device connected to the internet. You will receive a confirmation number that must be written down on a temporary transportation tag for the harvested game species (turkey, deer). Be sure to check your information to ensure accuracy before submitting. Deer and wild turkeys must be checked in within 48 hours of harvest; river otters must be checked in within 24 hours of harvest. Have your Customer ID and harvest information ready. Remember, you don’t need to log in to your account to check in game for this fall – you can do so by clicking Game CheckIN and entering your Customer ID number and date of birth.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, some Indiana deer processors may have adjusted hours, may not be taking full carcasses, or may not be taking deer at all this fall. Indiana DNR recommends you plan ahead and contact your processor before taking a deer to them. For the do-it-yourselfer, videos about skinning, butchering, and preparing your meat are available at deer.dnr.IN.gov under Field to Freezer: Meat Preparation. Remember to wear gloves, wash your hands after processing, and clean and disinfect your instruments after use.
Wild turkey fall archery season runs through Nov. 1. Wild turkey fall firearms season is from Oct. 21. – Nov. 1. Deer Archery season runs now through Jan. 3. Red and gray fox season runs from Oct. 15 – Feb. 28, 2021. Coyote and striped skunk season is Oct. 15. – Mar. 15.
Youth free hunting days are November 28-29. Any resident age 17 or younger on the date of the hunt can take any legal game in season during these youth free hunting days. To participate, the youth must be accompanied by an adult who is at least 18 years of age. The youth hunter does not have to possess a hunting license but must comply with all other hunting regulations.
The DNR would like to remind everyone to be aware of their surroundings. Hunters are not required to wear hunter orange until firearms season in November, and could be hard to spot. If you see a bowhunter, give them space to ensure that everyone has an opportunity to enjoy the outdoors. Consider wearing hunter orange when entering areas where hunters are present, especially when venturing off-trail. Please note that state parks only allow deer hunting on certain reserved draw dates. Other DNR properties, like state forests and fish & wildlife areas, allow hunting throughout the seasons. Questions about deer seasons and regulations can be directed to the Deer Hotline at [email protected] or call 812-334-3795, 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. ET, Monday through Friday.