Hunting 2010

Idaho native Ryan Hatfield recently published “Idaho’s Greatest Whitetails,” which chronicles the game, the hunters and the hunts involving the best whitetail bucks ever taken in the state. The book shares the story behind every buck and uncovers the mystery behind Idaho’s state record buck. The monster whitetail was taken in 1955 by an unknown hunter until Hatfield tracked down the hunter’s identity.

While the Panhandle has stood out as Idaho’s hot spot for goose hunting, other waterfowl trends are similarly encouraging, said Jim Hayden, Idaho Fish and Game Department regional wildlife manager. “Hunters took about twice as many ducks and geese last year compared to 2008,” he said. “In 2009, the Panhandle had about 1,800 duck hunters who took 20,413 ducks for an average of 1.8 ducks per hunter per day. That was the second-best duck hunting in the state.”

Potential duck and goose hunters under the age of 16 have the chance of a lifetime in the Idaho Panhandle this month, while a few selected Washington youths will make waterfowling history. Idaho is signing up hunters under the age of 16 for its popular Youth Waterfowl Clinic and hunting trip set for the Sept. 25-26 youth waterfowl season.

Although they have virtually no money for formal surveys, Washington biologists speculate that forest grouse populations have been lower than average in the past few years. The harvest of ruffed, spruce and blue grouse for 2008 was 101,685, state surveys show. The average number of forest grouse harvested each year in the state during the 2003-2007 seasons was 117,686. Stevens County in northeastern Washington and Okanogan County produced the largest number of grouse taken in those years.

Time to start training for the harshest bird hunting terrain in the region, since chukars may be one of the saving graces in a season of mixed news for upland bird hunters. The highest chukar counts in several years were recorded in survey flights along the Salmon and Snake rivers south of Lewiston in late August.