Wingshooter

Either AK or shotgun. A shotgun is also very good at closer ranges and in thick cover. Just remember in TN you can only use a slug for deer hunting - no buckshot. A deer hit in the vitals with a slug will not go far, if anywhere.

I called a wildlife officer a couple of times when I first moved here to understand the WMA rules and quota hunts. I'm not sure they understand them either... Fortunately, the WMA's that I hunt are all listed as "Same as statewide season", so that simplifies things a bit. Plus, getting the Annual Sportsman's license and a Federal Duck Stamp pretty much includes everything. My advice: re-read the particulars of a certain WMA every time you hunt there. This will keep you from forgetting something important. Some are only open on certain days and have unique rules. Each WMA is managed by a different person that can set different rules, from what I understand. I usually only hunt the WMA's during bow season because I'm allergic to lead . Edit: To answer your question, you can hunt anytime during the relevant season if it says "same as statewide seasons". If it says something like, One hunt- on whatever date then I think that it's only open during that time for the quota hunt. I usually start scouting when the squirrel season opens (if the WMA allows squirrel hunting) in late August and I have the license to be there. There are some WMA's (like North Cumberland) that are open all year for scouting.

I agree. I was very confused on the regs when I first moved here. I paid lower license fees in states that had much bigger deer on average (OH, MD, KY) when I lived there, but no TN state tax makes up for it, IMO. The Annual Sportsman's license for $136 is by far the best value if you plan to hunt a variety of game on WMA's and apply for the quotas. If you buy the individual licenses, you will pay more.

That's what irritates me so much about the resistance to carrying in the woods around here. Whether it's a WMA, State Park, National Forest, whatever I want my gun. At least we got some new legislation to address that. Although we don't have brownies here, there have been a few fatal black bear attacks recently here on the East side. I know that would be extremely rare, but who knows what other critter might be having a bad day.

I saw that clip on a show called "When Animals Attack". It was on Animal Planet or Discovery, not sure. That had to be terrifying. I bet those guys were afraid of their shadows for the whole trip. That was a good show. It also had some clips of people getting attacked by deer (one was a doe ).

I'd say he probably shot too early out of fear and missed. As it turned out, shooting the water was sufficient. I bought a .44 mag back-up last year because I was planning a float moose hunt in Alaska. The trip got canceled for unforeseen circumstance, but I hope to go next year. Scary stuff with that bear, especially given the remote conditions.

Yeah, I've got a few questions I would like to ask him.

Only one from TN that I found on the lists is Zach Wamp, but there are no details listed. To be honest, I have not contacted his office on this matter because I just figured he would not fall for this Commiecaid bill. I'll look it up soon, but how does he stand on the health care bill?

I do wish Lamar would hold a town hall meeting. He (or his staff) did however respond to me with a lengthy email about how he could not support the current healthcare bill. His only reasoning was the cost and made no mention of the other negative aspects of the bill.

Why don't you go start a racism thread - you're clogging this one up. You seem to be hung up on that topic.

I wonder what kind of "decisions" they can make. You would think that the legislature and governor made the decision for them. Interesting...

Why bring up white or black in a town hall meeting thread?

I used to hunt them with a 20ga O/U. Hunting them with black powder has to be fun, but I only have a .50cal After my son and I get a few hunts in with the .22, I am going to have to try my bow. That has to be awesome practice for the deer bow season.

Thanks! The law reads clearer than the bill. I'm going to print it and keep a copy in my hunting pack. http://state.tn.us/sos/acts/106/pub/pc0606.pdf

Good deal on the special order stuff - that clears that up for me! After re-reading the verbage of the bill (law), I think the last sentence in the amendment is what has caused uncertainty among some of the TWRA folks. Some of those opposed argue that wildlife laws/rules say you can only have the appropriate firearm when the season is open. For my own clarification, does that last sentence just mean that you have to be legally able to be on the WMA in the first place (appropriate license, during open hours, etc)? Sorry if I'm beating a dead horse - this info might be contained somewhere within the last 20 pages. I'm just trying to make sure I know all the details.

How do you guys cook 'em? I'll be doing it for the first time this year, so it could be interesting. I've hunted them but always gave them to friends. It seems like you can't get very much meat for the effort. I know that a lot of people love them, so I will give it a chance this year. Pan fry with some gravy?

I am going to take my son this year. He is 6 and so far he has only been on a couple of scouting trips with me for deer. I told him that we would go squirrel hunting when the season opens. Now, that's about all he can talk about. We are both looking forward to it. I have hunted squirrels before, but I have never cleaned one. I've gutted a lot of other types of animals but no squirrels. Maybe I can find a little how-to on YouTube so I don't feel like such a newb . What kind of cuts do you get from a squirrel anyway, fillets? I plan to take the .22 or maybe .410 depending on how he does with that at the range and the size of the stock.

That's going to be my new hobby. I have been wanting to wrap and fletch my own arrows for years. I'll probably start off with a Bohning fletching jig. Is that a decent jig (the price is cheap)? Does the front edge of the wrap ever snag on the arrow rest?

That's good news! I need to start printing the verbage of some of the newer laws to keep with me. It might help a great deal if I encounter this type of officer deep within a WMA while carrying. I might contact Nashville about the officer's comments. Nothing really "happened" other than a conversation, so I would just be interested in making sure everyone is properly educated on the law. I have heard (or read somewhere on this board) that an officer could issue a "special order" or something to that effect to restrict firearms. Hopefully that's not true, but my concern was that he might be talking about something like that in the works for this WMA...

I think you are right. He was stumbling around with his explanation as to why I couldn't exercise my HCP in the WMA. I think he was even confusing the Parks law with the WMA law because he mentioned Knox Co. voting to opt out (or not). I almost couldn't even have an intelligent conversation with him about it because he knew so little about it... only that they would take my gun and give me a ticket. Please let us know if you get any info from your contact.

Hasn't the TWRA had enough time to learn about the WMA/HCP law? I got pretty much this same response from a TWRA guy today about the North Cumberland WMA / Royal Blue: I don't know how the deer hunting is there, but I was planning to go scout the area soon. He said that if I was caught with a handgun (HCP or not) while riding on the ATV trails, that I might get my weapon confiscated and ticketed although it would be legal for me to be there in the WMA. He said the reason it is not allowed is that they prohibit firearms except during the hunting season (and then only what is legal for the game). He also said that it is such a new law that they have not made any decisions on what to do . He also informed me that "nobody had any use for a handgun there". The way I understand it, the law is in effect. Can they just choose to ignore its existence forever because it is a "new law"? Has anyone received any different information about this WMA? It's 146,000 acres, and I would like to be able to carry more than a slingshot during the off season.

Hey, I'm pretty sure I saw that family at Walmart!

what grain field tips do you shoot? If your arrow shoots well with the field point, use the same weight of broadhead. The arrow should balance at about 10% forward of the center of the arrow. For example, if you shoot a 30" arrow, the balance point should be at about 3" forward of the center (12" from the front). This will be affected by the size/weight of your fletchings and broadhead. As someone else mentioned, the length and stiffness of the arrow are important considerations. the more mass on the end of an arrow, the more it will tend to "flex" when fired. An arrow with less spine will need a lighter broadhead.

Not exactly the kind of road runner that Wiley Coyote was looking for.

Easy + good = I lke it!