The two areas mentioned by Robinette include the West Bay management area, which is located in Allen Parish and consists of 62,115 acres. West of it in Vernon Parish is Boise-Vernon WMA with 54,269 acres. Robinette noted that especially during the Thanksgiving holidays, Boise Vernon traditionally sees a significant amount of hunting pressure.

"During this period of the year, the rut has ended and you have to hunt trails, feeding or bedding areas to stand a chance at bagging a deer during late season," said Robinette.

For more information on hunting District 5, contact John Robinette at (337) 491-2575.

Parishes within this district include Lafayette, S. Landry, Pointe Coupee, W. Baton Rouge, Iberville, St. Martin, Iberia, Avoyelles, Assumption, Evangeline and a portion of Terrebonne.

Tony Vidrine, wildlife biologist with the Opelousas office, picks Sherburne WMA as offering the best chance for hunters to take a late-season deer for the freezer.

Sherburne consists of 42,500 acres and is a combination of bottomland hardwoods and cypress/tupelo gum swamp. Because of its location, Sherburne has lots of water, and, in winter, water levels are usually high, making boat access necessary for much of the area. However, according to Vidrine, some timber harvest activities have improved deer hunting on those areas where timberwork has been done.

"There are both clear cuts and selective harvest that have occurred recently on Sherburne. As a result, hunters might want to zero in on these areas because of the edge effect where deer prefer to travel as well as plenty of palatable forage plants, such as green briar and honeysuckle for browsing. Too," said Vidrine, "much of Sherburne is in bottomland hardwood forests, which means that in those years with a good acorn crop, hunters would be well advised to seek out those acorn-producing trees. Although the acorns will have fallen this late in the season, deer spend lots of time foraging for acorns beneath these oaks. Hunters who have scouted the area know where the best acorn producing areas are and have a better chance at a deer."

"We have a late either-sex muzzleloader season here in January that is popular with hunters, as well as bow season that lasts throughout January. The area is so big that hunters can usually get away from other hunters and have a quality hunt," he added.

For more information on late-season deer hunts on Sherburne, or any other management area in District 6, contact Tony Vidrine or Kerney Sonnier at (337) 948-0255.

Ben's Creek WMA consists of 13,500 acres of good deer hunting habitat, especially with recent timber cutting and thinning, according to Chris Davis, wildlife biologist.

"There has been some extensive timber cutting activity going on here this year, which is not good for the turkeys but is great for the deer," said Davis. "There's plenty of available browse that should attract deer to these areas.

"Also, we have an either-sex muzzleloader season that runs into late January and this is a good time to be on Ben's Creek for a chance at a deer. The rut in the Ben's Creek area typically starts the week after Christmas and runs on into mid-January. Therefore, hunters have a good chance at a decent buck during this time. I'd suggest going mid-week if possible since weekends see quite a bit of hunting pressure here.

"In addition," said Davis, "there is a bucks-only season for gun hunters that extends from mid-December into early January - check the latest regulations to be sure of the dates. There are usually some pretty good deer taken here during this late bucks-only season. Archery season runs into late January, but this is not one of the more popular areas for bow hunters."

Two other management areas within District 7 also offer good chances at bagging a deer or two during hunting season.

Tunica Hills, (3,300 acres) is located in W. Feliciana Parish. Only primitive weapons are allowed for hunting here and the area offers an excellent opportunity for a deer during muzzleloader season.

There are plenty of deer on this area, according to the biologist. The terrain is rough with some of the highest hills in the state. Because of the fertility of the land, deer quality is good. Annually, several quality bucks are taken off this area.

Pearl River is basically a swamp, consisting of nearly 35,000 acres with most of it accessible only by boat. High water can be a problem, especially during the rainy season, which can make hunting a real challenge. However, some good deer are taken from Pearl River each season, so the challenge seems worth the effort.

For more information on hunting Ben's Creek, or any management area in District 7, contact Chris Davis at (225) 765-2360.

Bubba Blue of Forrest Gump fame loved his shrimp cooked any way one could imagine. As much as I love shrimp cooked a variety of ways, make mine venison cooked just about any way. Venison backstrap is hard to beat, but so are venison shish kebab, venison pot roast, barbecued venison, venison chili ... you get the picture.

If your freezer's a little low on choice cuts of venison with the season winding down, take the advice and suggestions of these experts, head to one of these dozens of hotspots covering hundreds of thousands of acres open to public hunting, and perhaps you'll soon be talking like Bubba Blue.