Proposed Muzzleloader Season

[UTGrad]

Is everybody happy with the proposed two week MZL season that connects to rifle season? We will lose that second MZL season after firt gun closes, but this will be my first season bow hunting, so it would have been nice to have archery only the week before gun opener.

 

[mike243]

i like it so far,now will i like it for sure i wont know till the end of season,i dont normaly pick a bow back up once muzzleloader season starts,i look at it as backing up & dont want to bump deer that are already leary of hunters in the woods,i prefer something that can reach out there if they move off the normal trails 15-20 yards,mike243

 

[WestTn Huntin man]

I'm all for it.I think it gives more people a fair chance at hunting the Rut.I also like the simpler season. Bow,M.L.,and Gun

 

[strutandrut]

love it

ditto

 

[trealtree]

I like it.

 

[shopson]

Out of the six that have posted, how many of you would this proposed change affect?

 

[mike243]

its going to affect all of the hunters in Tn in 1 way or another,i think bigger deer will be taken in that time than normaly would with 1 week of mz & bow,i dont think i will kill more deer because of it but i hope to take a buck in unit B during that time for the first time in a long time ,time will tell if we need to back up or carry on,mike243

 

[shopson]

Very few unit A hunters would come to hunt unit b simply because unit a has more deer and more liberal limits.

 

[WestTn Huntin man]

Out of the six that have posted, how many of you would this proposed change affect?

M.L. is the weapon I prefer. Some years the rut hits during 1st M.L.week other years it has been during the off week.
As I stated earlier the change should give more hunters a FAIR chance to hunt the rut.
Like Mike I think it will affect all hunters .

 

[mike243]

thats true,i live in unit B but have been hunting cumberland county for the last 5 years or so,got out of the lease & want to hunt closer to home,still have access to the lease but will concentrate my efforts closer,mike243

 

[rrhoghead]

Looking forward to new change.

 

[trealtree]

I only hunt with a Muzzleloader so I guess I am Bias.

 

[UTGrad]

like it better than the week of bow season during prime time.Would like to see the week leading up to gun closed to make opening of gun looked forward to rather than switching from muzz one day to gun the next day.

Good point...

 

[Mathews Hunter]

I am all for it!

 

[PSE]

What Mathews Hunter said.

 

[TheLBLman]

I'm opposed to this proposal.

But mainly because of the 3-buck limit.
I also believe it's a little unfair to those many hunters who have never deer hunted with anything but a rifle (and shouldn't be forced to purchase a muzzleloader to get in on this greatly enhanced hunting opportunity).

From another perspective, one rifle hunter asked why shouldn't we just do away with the November muzzleloader segment and make the whole thing hunt with whatever you want?

As proposed, nearly the entire month of November will be hunting with a firearm, so why not just make it "any" firearm? In view of today's modern muzzleloaders, there is little counter-argument that will fly against just making it "any" firearm.

If this proposal goes thru, I expect this "muzzleloader" only segment will be eliminated in 2010 and replaced with a "firearm" segment instead. So we should be careful what we wish for, as in if it's an exclusive muzzleloader segment, it can be overdone, then done away with.

 

[TheLBLman]

Eventually, I expect to see both archery and muzzleloader hunting season segments eliminated in Tennessee. At some point we will simply have a "deer" season, and hunters will hunt with whatever weapon they prefer. I suspect most will choose a centerfire rifle.

In the meantime, I sure appreciate having both an exclusive archery and exclusive muzzleloader segment(s). But either can be overdone and cause a speed-up of the "deer" season coming.

 

[UTGrad]

I would not like a full season of any weapon. I like the challenge of hunting with a bow or a muzzleloader.

 

[mike243]

I would not like a full season of any weapon. I like the challenge of hunting with a bow or a muzzleloader.

& theres nothing wrong on wanting a tougher more challenge hunt,i thing about a firearms season is a bow can still be used,for years i have friends that bow hunted because they were the only person in the woods most of the time,when more folks took up bow hunting they have backed down on the bow,not all are able to shoot a bow or even a cross bow with enuf confidence to take deer,1 day it will just be a deer season & you will hunt with what you want,i will still use my crosbow at times & a few may never pick up a bow or xbow again,being commited to 1 form of hunting isnt for everyone,just like fly fishing some will only fling a fly,others will use the fly rod or spinning gear & any other gear that is needed to get what their after,the tools to get the job done matter less than the end result,i reckon i follow the end result crowd more,in small woodlots near homes i will use a xbow in order to safley hunt it,bigger open areas will see me bring some type of gun out,choices are needed to keep our stagnant # of hunters from dropping any lower,finding a way to secure the $ to run the programs becomes harder every year,mike243

 

[rrhoghead]

I am for the change