Gun Deer Hunting Season Starts Saturday
November 15, 2011
Darren Marsh, Parks Director
608-224-3766
Land & Water Resources
As a timely reminder, Dane County Parks Director Darren Marsh suggests that patrons of the County Parks make themselves more visible by wearing brightly colored clothing through the fall and winter hunting season. Marsh says there’s still considerable public use of the parks through the fall and early winter, especially visitors hiking, skiing and walking dogs.
The 2011 Gun Deer Season opens on Saturday morning, November 19th, and runs through November 27th, followed by the muzzleloader season, November 28th through December 7th. Since Dane County is located within the Chronic Wasting Disease Deer Management Zone, there are additional gun deer hunting seasons from December 8th through December 11th and then December 24th through January 8th.
There are several opportunities to gun hunt on designated County Wildlife Areas, lands open for public hunting (similar to State public hunting areas). These properties include Black Earth Creek, Door Creek, Donald, Dorn Creek and Walking Iron Wildlife Areas. The property and any associated rules may be found here
At this time there is no gun hunting within the designated County Parks, but there is gun hunting occurring on adjacent lands that the public should be aware of, said Marsh. Marsh noted that there is a Limited Access Archery Program for the county parklands where archer’s holding a valid Limited Access Archery Permit, may hunt within designated areas of the County Parks through the end of the State Archery Season.
Hunters using the County Parks to access private lands or County or State Public Hunting Grounds are reminded that all firearms must be unloaded and in a carrying case until they are outside the park property. If a deer is shot outside the park and enters the park the hunter may retrieve the deer, however, again all firearms must be unloaded in a case. If the deer needs to be dispatched within the park, the hunter is asked to contact the Dane County Sheriff’s Department at (608) 255-2345 so the deer can be dispatched safely.
For more information on the County Parks and hunting opportunities please see the County Park website