Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, February 9, 1995 TAG: 9502100063
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BILL COCHRAN
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Hunters reported killing a record 209,373 deer, according to preliminary figures released by the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. That represents a 4 percent increase over last season's count of 201,122.
It was the seventh record in a row, but hunters shouldn't expect it to go up forever, said Matt Knox, deer research biologist for the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries.
``We have reached the crest of the hill,'' said Knox, who believes the 4 percent increase represents a stabilization of the deer herd. ``Which is what we have been trying to do,'' he said.
The turkey kill of 14,681 was a 31 percent increase over the previous season and the second highest ever recorded for the fall season. The record was set in 1990, when the kill totaled 16,861.
The only decline in big-game figures was the bear kill, which fell 34 percent to 518. Even though that figure represents 271 fewer bear than the previous season, it still is in line with the 10-year average. No one really expected the 1993 record of 789 to be topped.
OVER THE HILL?: The Mississippi River at Quincy, Ill., has been chosen as the sight of the Wrangler/B.A.S.S. National Championship April 20-22. Virginia's only entry is James Dudley of Lynchburg. At age 53, Dudley is a member of the Over the Hill Bassmasters club.
Although Dudley never has fished the Mississippi at Quincy, he hopes to be one of the five contestants out of the Wrangler championship to qualify for the BASS Master Classic. If he does, there is a good chance he will compete against his son, David, 19, who is expected to qualify through the pro circuit.
Last year's winner of the Wrangler event, Bryan Kerchal, 23, won the Classic in Greensboro, N.C., the first Wrangler angler to do so. He was killed in the American Eagle commuter plane crash Dec.13 in North Carolina.
Smith Mountain Lake and Roanoke played host to the Wrangler championships in 1990 and '91.
SLOW FISHING: This week's fishing report is about as poor as it gets, with one bright exception. The sun has been shining on Merlin Winkler of Bassett, who used a jig-and-pig to catch five bass at Philpott Lake. The fish weighed up to 5 pounds apiece.
BILLS FAIL: Efforts to regulate the use of telescopic sights and blaze-orange clothing during the muzzleloading season have failed in the General Assembly.
Legislators appear content to let the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries handle game-and-fish issues, which may be one of the best decisions to come out of the 1995 assembly.
GETTING DEEP: How accurate is the ski report? One day this week the Southeastern Ski Areas Association reported 12 inches of new snowfall at Canaan Valley resort in West Virginia. In the same column of figures, it reported 8 inches at Timberline.
The two resorts are within sight of each other.
by CNB