You may have the sound of more gunfire in the past week or so, and the sound of rusty beagle packs getting geared up for the upcoming months. November is the start of several hunting seasons here in our area.

The gun season for whitetail deer opens Nov. 19 and closes Dec. 8.

Cold mornings, no leaves, and the lack of mosquitoes makes rifle season feel like deer hunting should be.

Polk County has achieved and maintained a healthy population of deer for several years. A far cry from when I was a boy, in the days when someone drew a small crowd of listeners at the local store for just seeing a doe. Now most hunters pick and choose what size deer they want to shoot. That’s a good testimony to the NCWRC and good hunting practices by hunters.

The first half of bear season runs from Oct. 15 thru Nov. 17, then reopens Dec. 10 thru Jan. 1. Black bears seem to either be on the increase, or are moving into our area more. Once seen little more than  black panthers, now folks see them on a semi-frequent basis.

Rabbit and quail season open Nov. 17 and closes Feb. 28. I must admit, there is something exhilarating when a beagle first hits on a jumped rabbit, then is joined by a symphony of his brothers and sisters as the race is on.

Rabbits seem to be numbering fairly well the past two or so years. Its interesting how nature keeps itself in check, when the rabbit population is high for a few years the foxes will increase, and after they have flourished a few years and the rabbits decline, so do they. It’s a pretty good system of checks and balances God has put in place.