Hunting blinds up for grabs in lotteries
Some 250 years ago, Ohio was virtually all forest and wetlands, intersected here and there by streams and bison paths. These days, our state rocks a more contemporary look.
Of the state’s 28.8 million acres, agriculture — mostly corn and soybeans — accounts for 15.9 million acres, or about 55 percent. Woodlands encompass 8.3 million acres (29 percent) and urban areas 1.4 million acres (5 percent).
Open waters and wetlands cover the remaining 11 percent — some 3 million acres, three-quarters of it being Lake Erie.
In pre-settlement days, the state held about 5 million acres of wetlands that covered a bit more than 17 percent of the landscape. Draining mostly for agriculture has left 483,000 acres of wetlands that cover less than 2 percent.
Ohio lies on a main route for neotropical birds during spring and fall migrations, but in terms of ducks that hunters pursue the state is on the fringe of the Eastern Flyway, one of the four north-south superhighways recognized in North America. Some years, though, plenty of ducks blow in on a persuasive push from stormy autumn weather.
Preliminary reports suggest duck populations nationally might be lower than last year but many species remain far above the long-term average dating to the 1950s.
All of which is to say waterfowl hunters have more hurdles than rising at 3 a.m. and setting decoys in the pre-dawn dark of a marsh. Finding a place to hunt continues to be a problem, though waterfowlers will get an annual assist this month from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.
Numerous sites at state parks and at the Ohio Division of Wildlife fish hatchery in Hebron will be up for grabs during lotteries scheduled Aug. 19. Drawings take place at the park office unless otherwise noted. Locations and times include:
■ Alum Creek State Park (Delaware County), 24 blinds. Registration starts 8 a.m., drawing at 8:30 a.m. For details, call 740-548-4631.
■ A.W. Marion State Park (Pickaway County), three blinds. Registration begins 8:30 a.m., drawing at 9 a.m. Details at 740-869-3124.
■ Buckeye Lake State Park (Fairfield, Licking, Perry counties), 13 blinds. Registration begins 7:30 a.m., drawing at 8 a.m. Applicants may apply for Hebron drawing listed below. Details at 740-467-2690.
■ Deer Creek State Park (Pickaway, Fayette counties), 14 blinds. Registration starts 8:30 a.m., drawing at 9 a.m. Details at 740-869-3124.
■ Delaware State Park (Delaware County), 25 blinds. Registration begins 8 a.m., drawing at 8:30 a.m. Details at 740-548-4631.
■ Hebron State Fish Hatchery (Licking County), four blinds. Registration and drawing immediately after Buckeye Lake drawing at 8 a.m. Applicants may apply for both Hebron and Buckeye Lake drawings. Details at 740-467-2690.
Drawings for blinds also will be held Aug. 19 at West Branch, East Fork, Caesar Creek, Cowan Lake, East Harbor, Hueston Woods, Indian Lake, Lake Loramie, Rocky Fork, Adams Lake, Shawnee Woods and Buck Creek. A drawing will be held Aug. 17 for blind sites at Portage Lakes.
Applicants must bring proof of a 2017 Ohio hunting license, an Ohio wetlands habitat stamp endorsement in the applicant’s name and a signed 2017 federal duck stamp. Lottery winners must pay a $50 nonrefundable permit fee.
More information about the drawings, hunting seasons and regulations is available at wildohio.gov or by phoning 800-945-3543.