Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, July 31, 1995 TAG: 9507310004
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BILL COCHRAN
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
1 The best way to prepare for the fall hunting seasons, which open a little more than a month, is to take a hunter education class. Two have been scheduled for the Roanoke Valley in August:
The first begins 7 p.m. Tuesday at Preston Park Recreation Center. The instruction lasts for four nights, 7 to 9:30. To register, call Mike Barnhill 981-2236.
A second course is scheduled Aug. 28 by the Roanoke County Parks and Recreation Department. It will be taught over four evenings from 7 to 9:30. Call Paul Nester, 561-8019, to register.
All first-time hunters ages 16 and older and hunters who are 12 to 15 years old must present proof of completion of a hunter education course before they can purchase a hunting license.
Taking aim at bowhunting
5 Hunting with a bow and arrow isn't the handicap it once was. Modern bows shoot flat and hard, and with amazing accuracy. Deer are more numerous than ever.
Even so, you have to earn bowhunting success. A good starting point, for established and new bowhunters, is to attend one of the programs sponsored by the National Bowhunter Education Foundation. Two are scheduled for this region. One is Saturday, 8 a.m to 4 p.m., at the Sherwood Archers range near Hanging Rock. To register, send a $10 check payable to Steve Smith, 3762 Long Meadow Ave., Roanoke, 24017. That's just to make certain you show up. The payment will be refunded at the door. Smith's phone number is 345-4945.
A similar program will be presented Saturday and Sunday at the Izaak Walton Park in Amherst County, noon to 5 p.m. The fee is $7.50. To register, call Al Baughman, 804-525-7427.
The programs cover a wide range of bowhunting topics, from equipment selection to game trailing.
A magical world for hiking
6 In the Mount Rogers high country, a hiker can leave behind the Northern hardwood ridges, climb past the 4,500-foot mark and enter a magical world unlike anywhere else in Virginia. The experience is a delight, even in the heat of August.
The Roanoke Appalachian Trail Club has scheduled two hikes in the region, giving members and guests an opportunity to explore this state park-national recreation area with fellow hikers.
On Sunday, a hike has been scheduled from Fox Creek to Massive Gap. It is a nine-mile trip that begins at 7:30 a.m. On Aug. 20, a 10-mile hike has been set for Whitetop Mountain to Massive Gap, beginning 7:30 a.m.
The leaders are Lucian Metayer, 344-1877, and Maurice Turner, 540-334-2128.
Dear me, look at the deer!
11 If you like deer hunting, the Virginia Outdoor Sportsman Show in Richmond on Aug. 11-13 is the place to find everything from live trophy bucks, to seminars on butchering venison, to the latest on modern muzzleloading.
And there will be trophy heads everywhere, including a collection of 13 world-class Boone and Crockett heads. Hunters are invited to enter mounts of trophy bucks killed during the past season. Each contestant receives a free pass to the show. Others pay $6 daily or $10 for a three-day pass. Held at the Showplace, 300 Mechanicsville Turnpike, the hours are 4 to 9 p.m. Aug. 11; 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Aug. 12; and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Aug. 13. For additional information, contact Denny Quaiff, 804-743-1290, or Hugh Crittenden, 804-748-7529.
A chance to ogle classic craft
12 The grand old ladies of the water will be on display at Smith Mountain Lake during a boat show sponsored by the Smith Mountain Lake Antique and Classic Boat Club.
Craft made in the solid mahogany and teak era will be docked at Bernard's Landing on Aug. 12. The display will feature the Heritage, a 1956, 35-foot Chris Craft Constellation owned by Capt. ``Seaweed'' Berube of Smith Mountain.
Several of the boats will take a cruise from Bernard's Landing to Hales Ford Bridge before the show on Aug. 11, begining around 10 a.m.
Something to quack about
24 When the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries meets Aug. 24 in Richmond to set waterfowl hunting regulations, there will be something to get excited about - for a change. Duck numbers are up; in fact, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service officials say the 1995 breeding population is the largest in 15 years. That means the fall migrations into Virginia will be the best that many hunters have observed.
Even so, it still is too early to expect any major liberalization of hunting regulations. The hearing begins 10 a.m. at the Department of Environmental Quality headquarters on Cox Road.
by CNB