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ABOUT OUR HUNTING REPORTER

Steve Albers, is a recognized authority on local hunting and will be providing some interesting and enlightning information that can be used by our hunting and outdoor readers to help them enjoy some of what our beautiful area has to offer.

Steve is a local Hunter Safety Instructor and conducts classes that are a requirement to obtaining a hunting license. Classes are held at the Kernville Chamber building. Mr. Albers hunts waterfowl, upland birds, deer, and small game in the Kern Valley and surrounding areas as well as some of the State and Federal Refuges. Steve is also the current President of the local Fish & Game Habitat Club. This highly respected organization does many habitat improvement projects in the Valley such as: Christmas tree lake structures; wood duck nest boxes; sponsoring the Junior Pheasant Hunt; and they also raise trout for the annual Lake Isabella Fishing Derby.

We are pleased that Mr. Albers has joined with us at Canyon Connection to provide our ever growing readership with weekly hunting tips, hot spots, and gun sports safety information applicable to our local and surrounding areas. You can reach Steve via e-mail at: Stevealb@lightspeed.net

Hunting Directory

LOCAL GAME

Hunting Directory

| Small Game | Big Game | Doves | Upland Game | Waterfowl |

Reported: 7/6/2002 Rabbit season opened on July 1st. Should be a pretty good year in the area due to the spring rains we had this year feed should be plentiful. Limit is 5 per day with 10 in possession. There is no closed season or bag limit on Jack rabbit.

Tune up your guns, enjoy some target shooting and keep your self tuned up for next season. The range in Cyrus Canyon is open top the public on Sundays and there is a trap field as well as rifle and pistol ranges available. Come out and join us for some good fun and support the shooting sports.

Small Game:

Report: 7/6/2002 Rabbit season opened on July 1st. haven't heard any reports but have seen quite a few bunny's around in my travels around the lake and up canyon. Should be a pretty good year in the area due to the spring rains we had this year feed should be plentiful. Need to concentrate on the areas close to water, hills around the lake are ideal areas to find the cottontailed critters as well as some of the canyons up river. Remember you can't shoot between the river and the road so watch where you're hunting. Limit is 5 per day with 10 in possession. There is no closed season or bag limit on Jack rabbit.

Best Areas: Watch for Reports soon.

Hot Spots: No Reports

Tips: No Reports

Local Game Directory

Big Game:

Report: 7/2/2002 Well by now most of you should have put in for your deer tags and already received the results form DFG. Archery seasons will be opening in most of the D areas next month and there is no better way to know what the deer are doing than get out and hunt them, so if you're an archer or know someone who will be hunting your zone during the archery season hook up and do some preseason scouting. A lot of the areas are quite dry already with seasonal creeks low or dry so it will take some extra work on you part to find the deer this year. Scouting is the best way to stay on top of where the deer are and what their doing, get out there and look around, besides it's always a little cooler in the mountains this time of year. It's not too early to start getting re-familiar with your hunting tools, sighting in your guns, sharpening knives, check out camp gear and be ready for the upcoming season instead of rushing at the last minute (like I usually do).

Best Areas: Not Reported

Hot Spots: No Reports

Tips: #1: Be sure to sight in your rifles prior to going hunting, it's not a good idea to wait until you're in the area you want to hunt to start shooting, deer seem to be more cautious when they hear guns firing in the area.

#2: If you shoot a deer with a bow, don't start trailing right away, sit down and wait to give the animal time to go somewhere and lie down, this will prevent you from possibly pushing a wonded animal to the point that you can't find it. Wounded animals can and will run a long way on adrenelin if pushed.

Local Game Directory

Upland Game:

Report: 8/22/2002 Here is an update for the upcoming Dove season: There will be a split Dove season again this year running from September 1st through September 15th and the second half runs from November 11th through December 25th. The daily limit is 10 per day with a possession limit of 20 after the first day of the season. DFG is predicting an above average season as the nesting and reproduction was up this year, they say it could be the best season we've had in the last 10 years. With predictions like that, it would be a good idea to get out now and start sharpening your shotgun skills to make for a more enjoyable hunt. It's also a good time to start reloading for the upcoming seasons or looking for the pre season ammo sales. Any standard target load is fine for Dove and Quail no need for the high base or magnum loads on these small fast targets. It's also time to secure permission to hunt if you plan to hunt private property, remember that you have to have written permission from the landowner to hunt any private lands. Please be respectful of the property of others and leave gates as you found them, pick up your trash and empty shell casings before leaving an area and practice safe gun handling. We don't want to lose or injure any of our hunting companions or any ones animals. Due to the extreme heat in the early part of the season most hunters don't use dogs for dove, please mark your birds when they fall and make every effort to retrieve them before shooting another one. Clean the game as soon as possible after bagging it to make for the best possible eating. Post those results in the Fishing & Hunting Forum. Hope everyone has a safe successful hunt.

Best Areas: Not Reported

Hot Spots: No Reports

Tips: No Reports

Notes:Please remember If you pack it in, pack it out. The mountain areas don't have trash pick-up. I saw a couple of camps that were left a mess and it reflects badly on all of us and our sport, there is already enough bad publicity and each of us must do out part to prove that we are truly responsible and ethical hunters. Don't allow others to jeopardize our sport by leaving their trash, shooting signs or poaching.

Local Game Directory

Dove:

Reported: 7/6/2002 Watch for reports in September

Best Areas: South Fork

Hot Spots: No Reports

Tips: No Reports

Local Game Directory

Waterfowl:

Report: 7/6/2002 No Reports

Best Areas: South Fork

Hot Spots: No Reports

Tips: No Reports

Local Game Directory

Hunter Safety

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General Hunting Information

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Individual Hunting Reports

Reported: 7/6/2002Please let us know via the Hunting & Fishing Forum how your hunting is going, we need all the help we can get to keep people informed, if you have some not so secret spots that are doing well, drop me a line, I am always looking fon new places to try. We are also looking for some farm or pasutre land in the Kern Valley area to hold our Junior Pheasant Hunt after this year, the area we are currently using is for sale and getting choked out with cactus. If you know any property owners that might be receptive to a hunt on their property please let me know via address below. Thanks, Steve

You may direct comments and individual inquiries to Steve at: Stevealb@lightspeed.net with subject header: "CC Hunting".

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Area Hunting Events 2002

November 23rd - 24th - LAKE ISABELLA Jr. PHEASANT HUNT - LAKE ISABELLA

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Fishing & Hunting Forum

On June 3, 1998 we added a special forum, dedicated to fishing and hunting sports in the area. The forum allows sportsmen and women to ask questions and exchange information about their favorite areas, methods, baits, fly tips, reels, poles, guns, bows, etc. The forum is monitored on a regular basis by Rich Zimmerman, our fishing reporter, and Steve Albers, our hunting reporter. But, the idea behind forums are the participation and sharing of experience and knowledge by it's collective readers. Anyone with interest in the subject/topic can ask, answer or respond to any posting. We hope you will contribute your experiences and skills in these two very popular local sports.

Hunting Directory