“The season runs on out into January, but the deer kill drops drastically. As you move to north Louisiana, the rut is more in November and December. The season is a little different from southwest Louisiana. As you move to the east, the Mississippi River and the Atchafalaya the deer rut is December-January. Check the different WMAs’ Web sites for season dates.”

Experienced WMA deer hunters say that if you want to be successful, you can’t be a slacker. Many first-time WMA deer hunters hunt the existing roads and trails -- along with everybody else.

The posse at Ron’s Guns in Bossier City, all of whom have hunted many different WMAs, claimed that most people are pretty lazy, and don’t prepare properly. Avid hunters who do hunt public land will go in to scout and to mark trails, and will go deeper into the woods.

“A lot of our hunters, for whatever reason, don’t get off the beaten path,” said Moreland. “They don’t want to get out in the thick country. I guess they are concerned about getting lost. These areas provide some good hunting and some good hunting opportunity. I try to go into an area where our forestry crews have been doing some timber cutting and there is some escape cover available for deer.

“Find some areas where there are some oak trees that are dropping acorns; go and set up on something like that. Try to find some travel areas, maybe around some sloughs where deer might be moving through, going to the thick cover or the feeding sites.

“If you are hunting a WMA that is harvesting either sex deer, the key is to just get in there and stay put,” Moreland continued. “A lot of people, after they have been on the stand, start moving around. And they will jump deer -- spook deer. They keep the deer moving for the hunters who stay in their stands.”

SPECIAL WMA HUNTING RULES
Hunter Orange
You must wear a hunter orange shirt or jacket and a hunter orange hat. “We had some hunting accidents with the use of ground blinds,” said Robinette. “It’s mandatory that you have 400 square inches of hunter’s orange on top of your ground blind. We had some instances where deer walked between the (ground) deer blind and somebody in a tree stand. They didn’t see the stand, the blind on the ground, and shot some people accidentally.”

Tagging System
“What we have done in the past in Louisiana, we have been on a one per day or two per day, six per season limit of deer,” said Keith LaCaze with LDWF Law Enforcement. “That has been basically a honor system -- no real means of documenting a kill, no required validation of a kill. The state for several years now has been moving towards a carcass-tag system similar to what they do in Texas and several other states.

“What we did here in Louisiana last year was take the initial step in that direction: a deer harvest card that was made available to hunters provided in our hunting regulations brochure. Our limit for deer this year will be three buck deer and three antlerless deer. Those six carcass tags will be attached with the license.”

The hunter will be required to attach the appropriate tag to the carcass and fill out the required information as soon as he or she takes the animal. This can be done by calling the LDWF, or by going online within 72 hours.

SUMMARY
Jackson-Bienville, Clear Creek, Sabine, Three Rivers, Red River, Peason Ridge, Fort Polk, and West Bay WMAs all offer great opportunities for hunting deer in Louisiana. Make sure that you have the required permit ($15 and the state big-game license) for hunting at a WMA. Check the different WMAs before going out for season hunting dates. Hunt the rut, get back into the woods, and stay put. Let the deer come your way.

Find more about Louisiana fishing and hunting at: LAgameandfish.com.