Do the NF have specified dates and regulations like the WMA's or is it just whatever is legal season at the time?

State rules except doe days.

Except doe days? What do you mean by that?

There are only 6-8 doe days in gun season. You can kill does with a bow but doe days for gun season are from around Christmas till New Years. Look in the book and it will give you the days.

Doe days are Dec 15-Jan 1. Also you can only kill one deer per day on NF.

Where can i get a copy of this mythical rules and regs book( I assume this is the book to which you refer) with all of this information? I never be able to find what I'm looking for online with the exception of ask on here, which has the potential to be dangerous and expensive.

Here's the link to the online digest for the year. http://www.eregulations.com/alabama/pageflip/

I've been wondering for a while if this is correct. The wording of the rules has me a bit confused about whether or not taking does during bow season is legal on national forest lands, or only during the listed doe days. Anyone ever looked into this in detail?

which national forest?

TUSKEGEE

I'm wondering about Tuskegee National Forest in Macon county specifically.

http://www.eregulations.com/alabama/deer-hunting-seasons/

That link shows the dates, and specifies an unantlered deer season (Dec. 15 - Jan 1) but also says "same as open permit for county".


This link explains the definition of "same as open permit for county"

http://www.eregulations.com/alabama2011/hunting-regulations-info/

And finally there is this one, it appears to make a distinction about the hunting of unantlered deer as it pertains to the different seasons listed on the first link.

http://www.eregulations.com/alabama/deer-hunting/


So am I way off here to be confused about whether it is legal to hunt does on national forest lands during the seasons listed on the last link?

Thanks for the advice y'all!

It looks clear to me...Public land is unantlered deer Dec-15-Jan-1.

I'm glad I asked too...I would have busted a doe if I seen one between 11/22 and 12/15.


thanks yall

Ain't no deer on Tuskegee. Only packs of wild dogs especially the Macon county side

I saw a doe while "scouting" a couple of months ago. Saw quite a few tracks too.

I really do not see that as so straightforward, but maybe I'm just being a knuckle head.

If I go to the third link describing deer hunting I read that to say that during the unantlered deer gun season, special muzzle loader season, bow and spear season, and special youth season I am allowed to take does.

Realistically this is aligned with the first link that shows the chart, but the way they present the column of unantlered deer sure masks it confusing.

Oh and Kreger, there are plenty of deer in that national forest.

Well i am by no means an expert on the rules. This is my first year hunting and have never looked at the rule book before, so I could very well be wrong.

Side note: you seem to be familiar with Tuskegee NF. You mind if I bounce something off of you? I went with a buddy, that I thought knew a bit about hunting, to scout. His idea of scouting turned out to be walking 20-50 yards from the road and finding a tree he wanted to climb. So we didn't do very good scouting. I was thinking about walking in on the Bartram and looking for food/ water source off of there. You think that would be a good place to start or would that be over run with people?

There are some days, i think Tuesday and Wednesday, that you can't hunt the NF, except for the Tuesday and Wednesday before Thanksgiving and Christmas, they allow you to hunt them. This is how it used to be, if they haven't changed it.

Kreger,

Bartram is pretty crowded, and you have to be 150 yards from the trail to hunt. You're on the right track though. Go walk the horse trails, hiking trails and creeks. Looks for scrapes and rubs, and bedding areas as you try to piece together their movements. You'll find most are like the buddy you mentioned, walk a bit into the woods and set up.

The deer are there, just have to find the right areas. I would also suggest taking a ride through the forest on a Saturday or Sunday morning as it will show you which areas are regularly hunted, and may help you find some little bordering areas to capitalize on.

Good luck, maybe we will cross paths out there!

So I finally heard back from the warden for our district to straighten out my understanding of the rules and it is LEGAL to take does on the national forest at any time during bow season.

Whoever wrote the chart for the digest needs to reassess their use of unantlered.

Exciting news for me. I've been hunting this forest for 3 years now and never taken a doe because I thought it was illegal.