Montana Deer Season Question ???

[FEENIX]

I responded to a thread posted at different site. This guy apparently shot his second doe with a shotgun. However, I am not familiar with the season (Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks :: 2010 Season Dates) he is referring to below.

Originally posted by montanajoe

quote:Originally posted by FEENIX

152 yards? Obviously, not with bow ... what state are you hunting from?

LOL, no bow. Shotgun- in a weapons restriction distict that I live in the middle of. Runs sept 4 through jan 15th. And I still get to do regular rifle season. All as a resident of Montana.

Any thoughts?

Ed

[RockyMtnMT]

Some of the river bottoms have extended shotgun, handgun, and bow seasons. I did not look in the regs, but the Bitteroot comes to mind. I think you can shoot 5 does on top of your A tag.

Steve

[bigngreen]

In all of the areas around me, he'd be in trouble! There are several wepons restriction areas and it's bow only for bow season and shotgun and pistol and muzzle loader during general. But there may be some weirdness in an other region.

[RockyMtnMT]

Looked in the regs. It is area 260. The river bottom in the Bitteroot. Along with some adjacent areas. There is so many deer there that they will wind up dieing of a plague. Too much private land in the bottom that do not allow hunting.

Steve

[FEENIX]

Originally Posted by bigngreen

In all of the areas around me, he'd be in trouble! There are several wepons restriction areas and it's bow only for bow season and shotgun and pistol and muzzle loader during general. But there may be some weirdness in an other region.

That's exactly what I thought too. Anyways, I talked to my local FWP and they too had reservations on interpretation. They admitted to the regs ambiguity and should have been much clearer. Having said that, I didn't feel too bad not knowing it.

I'm very clear on the weapons restrictions, as in during rifle season but not during archery, except for the handicapped and special needs issue. Apparently, for most districts, during archery season, it clearly states archery season only and for the hunting districts with weapons restrictions, i.e., HD 309, it does not say archery season only even though they fall on the same time frame.

You learn something everyday.


Ed

[Fiftydriver]

There is a small shotgun/muzzle loader area just west of me. You can use any legal tag issued in Montana in this area but there are no special tags released for use in this area only.

You can get the following tags here in Montana, at least in my area:

Deer A tag
Deer B tag Whitetail doe tag
UP to 7 additional whitetail doe tags
Special permit for mule deer doe
Special permit for mule deer buck (specific units only)

Now, I believe if you draw the special mule deer buck tag, you can hunt anywhere in Montana with your A tag but if you kill a buck, that voids your special mule deer permit as well.

If you kill a mule deer in the special unit you draw the permit for, you are done hunting for bucks in Montana as it cancels out your A tag. That is how I understand it.

They change this crap every year so who knows whats right, hell, half the time the game wardens have no idea of all the regulations, or at least you as 10 of them and you will get 10 different OPINIONS from wardens!! Thats the scary part.