Moving into its third year, Lake
Metroparks' controlled archery deer hunt program is expanding to
include one additional property.
Besides allowing controlled archery
hunting at its River Road Reservation in Madison Township the agency
is also setting up an archery hunt for a portion of Indian Point Park
in Leroy Township.
This parcel is bordered on the west by Vrooman
Road, to the south by I-90 with a steep hillside delineating the
remainder of the controlled section.
Here the parks system will make
available four sections, each ranging in size from 16 to 20 acres.
While the parks system will provide electronic game feeders at each
of the four locations – just as it has always done at River Road –
selected hunters will be allowed to set up their own either
commercially made tree ladder/climber or ground blind anywhere within
that person's designated hunting unit.
The parks system will again at River
Road provide commercially made two-person stands near maintained
electronic feeders along with one-handicapped accessible ground
blind.
Each location traditionally seen little
human intrusion, both being historically closed to public access.
Lake County residents and Lake County
business owners only are eligible to apply. The on-line and in-person
lottery-only application process begins tomorrow, Aug. 1, says Tom
Koritansky, Lake Metroparks' Natural Resources Manager.
“We're looking forward to a good
third season, especially in light of this expanded hunting
opportunity,” Koritansky said. “But the program is essentially
open only to those who pay property taxes in Lake County.”
Tom Adair, the parks system's Park
Services Director, notes as well that this new hunting zone is home
to a small band of self-sustaining sika deer, the offshoot of a tribe
of such animals that had escaped years ago from a nearby private
sanctuary.
Hunters will be permitted to take a
sika deer.
The application process (once again)
begins Aug, 1 and continues through Aug 25, A drawing to determine
those selected to hunt is scheduled for Aug, 27 with on-line
notification set for Aug. 30.
As has been the case for those picked
to hunt River Road in the past, selected hunters for each property
must successfully pass an archery proficiency test, available at
either Great Lakes Outdoor Supply in Madison Township or else Gander
Mountain's Mentor store.
This test can be taken beginning Aug. 1
but must be completed no later than Sept. 13.
“We encourage hunters who are
interested in participating to get proficiency test out of the way so
you're ready to go if picked,” Adair said.
Likewise, all selected hunters will
once again need to attend a mandatory pre-hunt rules and regulation
meeting. The parks system will establish times, dates and locations
for these required meetings.
Returning is last year's well-received
rule change that allows a lottery applicant to name a designated
partner. Such a set-up will mean that on days in which the primary
selected hunter is unable to participate than the back-up partner can
take over, though both persons are not allowed to hunt at the same
time.
“We're really trying to promote this partner program
because we want to see bodies in stands; people hunting,”
Koritansky said.
Both Adair and Kortansky said a primary
hunter can name a partner on an application, and vice-verse,
increasing the odds of being selected.
That said, any one person can hunt just
once during the duration of the program with all those persons being
selected having a two-week predetermined slot.
Similarly a hunter may request a park
preference, though no guarantee is promised, Adair says.
“Applicants may indicate their
preference but any assignment is dependent upon the order in which
the applicant's number is drawn in the lottery,” Adair says. "That's
because the number of available slots – four for Indian Point and
eight for River Road – are limited.”
And as in the past a selected hunter is
permitted to “buddy up” with a non-hunting observer, Koritansky
says.
An electronic set of rules and
application package will be available beginning Aug. 1 by accessing
Lake Metroparks' web site www.lakemetroparks.com.
Go to the “Conservation/Wildlife Management” link.
- Jeffrey L. Frischkorn
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