Hunting Season Arrives at King Range

It's a sure sign of the changing seasons. The summer seasonal rangers have gone back to school and the hunters have come out for deer. If you plan to visit at any time during the month of September, expect to see hunters and don't be surprised if you hear a rifle shot early in the morning or just before sundown. The best time to hunt is dawn and dusk. It is illegal to hunt for deer at night. Hunters will most likely be near camp during the day. If you are hiking--in the upland areas especially--and you meet hunters, don't hesitate to tell them where you plan to go! They expect to see people on the trails. If they know where YOU will be, they will probably avoid areas you are headed for--after all, you'll scare away the deer.

With hunting season also comes an increase in vehicle traffic in the King Range Wilderness.
Private landholders, whose lands are entirely surrounded by wilderness, are permitted under the 1964 Wilderness Act to continue to access their properties by the method which they commonly used prior to wilderness designation. So. The Smith and Etter cabins, which were routinely accessed by motor vehicle via the Kinsey Ridge and Smith-Etter Roads are still allowed to drive in. They have a key to the gate at the Kinsey Ridge Trailhead. Many of these landowners are hunters and you are likely to see them at or near their cabins with vehicles in the coming weeks.

Note that this land-owner priviledge does not extend to the general public and it does not mean that in-holders are permitted to drive anywhere in the wilderness. Landowners and their guests ONLY are permitted to drive TO and FROM their properties only within wilderness. They may not make detours or choose alternate routes. Should you witness a vehicle travelling somewhere where there are no inholdings--such as those on Big Flat and Spanish Flat--and the vehicle is not travelling to or from these inholdings from Kinsey Ridge... they are probably making illegal use of YOUR wilderness. Don't hesitate to contact the BLM with a description of the vehicle, where it was, and plate numbers if possible.

There were several trucks and ATVs in the Wilderness this past weekend, both on Spanish and and Big Flats. Be prepared for these legal landowners and don't let them spoil your trip. If you don't want to see motor vehicles, plan to camp somewhere other than Spanish or Big Flats...