Monthly Archives: October 2016

iSportsman daily hunt permits

Kansas hunters should be aware that iSportsman Electronic Daily Hunt Permits are required on 24 wildlife areas (check the2016 Kansas Hunting and Furharvesting Regulations Summary or kdwpt.isportsman.net for a list). The electronic permit system has been in place for two years, and is normally fast and efficient. However, the software company that manages the host servers experienced technical difficulties this week that slowed the check-in procedure. Hunters utilizing iSportsman may experience slow processing or may find the system entirely down for the next few days.

iSportsman replaces the old paper permits and allows hunters to conveniently check in and out using a telephone, smartphone or home computer. As with the old paper system, information gathered helps area managers tailor management practices specific to an area and hunter preference. The paper system was inconvenient for hunters and labor intensive for managers. However, hunters who experience difficulties this weekend with iSportsman are encouraged to check wildlife area offices and kiosks and use paper forms where available.

Repairs should have the iSportsman system fully functional soon, and KDWPT staff want all hunters to enjoy hunting this weekend. If technical problems persist, KDWPT encourages hunters to go hunting but keep trying to check in with iSportsman or check with area offices and kiosks for paper cards.

Tip of the month: NWR Week

National Wildlife Refuge Week is celebrated each year during the second full week of October. This month, the event occurs from 9-15 October, and it is an ideal time to visit a National Wildlife Refuge to bird, photograph, hike, fish, paddle, or simply enjoy time in nature. Discover how refuges conserve your natural heritage and how these refuges highlight the “Big Six” wildlife-dependent activities on refuges – wildlife watching, wildlife photography, fishing, hunting, wildlife-associated education, and interpretation. There are a number of special events and local festivals, many appropriate for the entire family, hosted on NWRs in October.

You access more information on National Wildlife Refuge Week, including special events, here:

https://www.fws.gov/refuges/visitors/RefugeWeek2016.html

Little Apple glow paddle October 29

Anyone can sign up for a glow run, but to say you’ve spent an evening on a glow paddle is sure to have your social media friends neon with envy. If you’re looking for a one-of-a-kind experience, sign up for the Little Apple Glow Paddle on Oct. 29 from 5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Paddlers can light up the river on a canoe or kayak, and even finish out the paddle with s’mores by a campfire. Need we say more?

Rental vessels are available for $15-$30 per person by contacting Ryan at (785) 587-2768. Paddlers wishing to use their own vessel may participate for $10. Lifejackets are required.

Paddlers will park at the Linear Trail Head where a bus will transport everyone to Fairmont Park at 5 p.m. From there, paddlers will depart at 5:30 p.m. and float their way the 2 miles back to Linear Trail Head.

For more information and to register, contact Marcia Rozell at (785) 776-8829 or [email protected].

Youth waterfowl seasons perfect introduction

There is something magical when a flock of ducks with wings set, sail into a hunter’s decoy spread. That sight will set even a veteran hunter’s heart to stuttering. Imagine what it can do to a young hunter. The Kansas youth waterfowl seasons provide the perfect venues to introduce young hunters to duck hunting, opening prior to the regular seasons in all zones: Oct. 1-2 in the High Plains and Low Plains Early zones, Oct. 22-23 in the Low Plains Late Zone, and Nov. 5-6 in the Low Plains Southeast Zone.

Youth 15 and younger may hunt under the supervision of an adult 18 or older, who may not hunt. Youth hunters may take ducks and geese, and daily bag limits are the same as those during the regulation duck and goose seasons.

The youth seasons provide mentoring opportunities under uncrowded and noncompetitive conditions, even on public lands because hunting pressure is light. And hunting waterfowl over decoys from a boat or blind is a very safe, controlled hunting method for a young hunter who may be just learning to handle a shotgun.

Take advantage of the youth seasons to get a young hunter hooked on hunting. They say there are no casual duck hunters; either you live for it or you don’t care for it. When a young hunter discovers how much fun duck hunting is, he or she may develop an outdoor passion that will last the rest of their life.

Find out more about the waterfowl seasons and regulations in the 2016 Kansas Hunting and Furharvesting Regulations Summary, available wherever licenses are sold and online at KSOutdoors.com.

Duck hunters invited to free breakfast at Wetlands Education Center

It’s sure easy to work up an appetite during duck season, and no one may know this more than the staff at the Kansas Wetlands Education Center (KWEC) located at the southeast corner of Cheyenne Bottoms along K-156 Highway. To show their appreciation for the contributions duck hunters make to waterfowl conservation, KWEC staff invite all duck hunters to enjoy a free breakfast on opening day in the Low Plains Early Duck Zone, Oct. 8, 2016. A free breakfast of biscuits and gravy, coffee and juice will be served from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m.

“Hunters are an important constituent for the past, present, and future of Cheyenne Bottoms,” stated Curtis Wolf, KWEC site manager. “It is great to be able to celebrate this tradition.”

The free breakfast is sponsored by Great Bend Regional Hospital, with the help of the KWEC, Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism, and Ducks Unlimited.

After filling up on good eats, hunters can learn about Cheyenne Bottoms’ history, peruse through items in the Cheyenne Bottoms Ducks Unlimited Chapter raffle and silent auction, visit waterfowl identification and hunting information booths, and enjoy some friendly shooting competitions with the Laser Shot hunting simulation system.

Hunters can also get their waterfowl boats safety inspected for free, courtesy of KDWPT Boater Education staff.

Contact the KWEC at (877) 243-9268 for more information.

Instructor certification opportunity for angler ed

Thousands of Kansas youth have yet to experience the joys of fishing and the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism and Fishing’s Future aim to change that. If you have a love of fishing and are happy to share that passion, consider attending the next Angler Education Instructor Certification course on Oct. 8, beginning at 9 a.m., at Fort Hays State University. The class will be held at 509 South Campus Drive, in Albertson Hall, Room 305.

Much like hunter education, the angler education program seeks to find qualified volunteers to teach the ins and outs of fishing to new and inexperienced anglers. During this course, potential instructors will learn about working with children, as well as receive sample curriculums and tips for preparing a class or clinic. Other subjects covered in the four-hour class include current fishing regulations, species identification, fishing ethics, equipment, knot-tying, casting, fish habitat, aquatic nuisance species, and conservation practices.

For more information, and to sign up for this class, contact Stuart Scott at (316) 648-9847 or [email protected], or David Breth at [email protected] or (620) 672-5911.