Aldeer.com Forums Alabama Deer Talk Aldeer Bow Talk Southern Zone bowhunters?

Here's a small rant for my fellow southern zone bowhunters. Season comes in on Sunday, the 25th. So we really just get two weekends before youth gun season. Then the fireworks really begin the weekend after that.

I personally don't hunt Sunday's, but no problem if you do. That's not my point. I just think the amount of time before gun season is really short, especially when opening day falls on a Sunday. I like the early season when we get a good front.

And I like the February days, even as a bow only hunter, cause the bucks were getting cranked up where I hunt last year about that time.

Nighthunter - get creative - help us out!

Agreed. Would have been nice if the season started on a Saturday instead of Sunday...

Would dropping the youth season correct your problem?

Can't have it both ways

I'm not in favor of dropping the youth season. It is set a weekend before regular gun. I get that, no problem. Heck - I'll be out there with my seven year old this year trying to re-learn how to rifle hunt.

I always wondered why AL had a shorter time to bowhunt without a gun season than most states. Before or after.

I would be fine with this for the southern zone. Don't have the December 1st - 10th dead period for gun season. Then let the February days be bow only.

He won't. He just thinks we are cry babies that can't hunt. I'm betting he bases his judgment of gestation on too broad of an area to get a good grasp of our specific area.

Well - I've never met Nighthunter. But I hope to one day!

That's something that really needs to be addressed with the CAB. I know in the past if the 15th fell on a Sunday, they would open the season on the 14th. Since we have different zones, I'm not sure if they will do it now. Personally I would love to see them bring the north zone in on the 1st and the south on the 10th.

The only upside i see is we don't have to take that break in DEC when gun hunters do.

You are right, but here's a couple thoughts on that. The biggest change in deer movement here is during and after the opening gun weekend through the Thanksgiving holidays. If a deer doesn't smell a human during that period, he's lost his sense of smell. I also ran into some hunters this summer who had no idea about the southern zone season dates last year. Gun hunting didn't stop those 10 days. Some never will.

I said from the start that I wanted bow season to open the 15th and season close completely for the ten days in December.

You know, you've got two guys on here that really listen to you folks and go to bat for you. Patronizing them doesn't help. And we shot hundreds of deer in the southern zone on dozens and dozens of locations. If it were my districts I could tell you how many deer and how many sites but I don't shoot D-4 or D-5 and rarely in D-3.

To the question. There have been options brought up by some biologists/committees but to be honest it doesn't look promising for the near future.

Some of us hope to revisit having smaller zones in the future but that is a wait and see thing. We have to have enough data to back it up and currently we just don't have enough to make a strong case. That and hunters are not vocal enough about wanting something done about it. If hunters aren't vocal we don't have problems... That kind of thing.

You know me bro!
I don't have a clue why dude said what he said.

Now I do think the new southern zone season is rough on bow hunters. But you know how I already feel about our bow season vs gun season throughout the state.

Nighthunter, I don't often apologize but if my comments truly offended you then I'm sorry. I know your fishing comment was just a little comical jab but y'all don't understand the frustration we have about not being given the chance to enjoy the rut to the fullest. I hear some guys on here talking about December being the prime time. If the season were to end for them on Thanks Giving day, they would be raising holy hell. But when us southerners bitch about it, we're just a bunch of cry babies and if we can't kill a buck from October-February then we should just quit hunting. The 2nd most common comment is "well they should just let y'all hunt year around so you can kill every deer that walks". Sthu


Now I have killed a few decent bucks but no 5, 6 or 7 year old mature bucks. It ain't from lack of trying, know how or experience. It's just not likely going to happen here. I got the chance to hunt north Mississippi last Season and that is a different world than south Alabama. The deer do not act the same. They seem to be oblivious without a care in the world and this was on public land so you know they had some pressure.


As for our season, they can cut out all of December and give us till the end of February for all I care. December is dead. That's when I look for yotes and pigs. It just seems to me that we get put in a group (south al) that is just too broad. Now I do understand that it's not feasible to have 15 custom hunting seasons for one state but an extra 10 days was almost insult to injury. A further shift in opening and closing of the season isn't going to hurt folks slightly to the north of my area.

But hey, I'm just a dumb Floridian.

Yes I was thinking the same thing. My birthday is the 14th. Bow season in the past has started before, on and a few times even after my birthday. I don't see any reason they could not have started it on Saturday. But people complain no matter that you do. I do think we need to take this up with the CAB over the summer.

Sure you can. Open bow season on the 15th... and totally close the first 10 days of Dec. Problem solved.

This is definitely the easiest solution. For many different reasons.

if bow season still opened on the 15th I bet you could take down some gooduns on that prime property you hunt

Sounds like you have something against everybody?

Also - it sounds like you want to rifle hunt the entire month of February.

That's not at all what this is about.