We turned to Michael Pearce, a life-long Kansan who has covered the Kansas deer hunting situation for the Hunting Report since the first nonresident seasons opened in the mid-90s. Pearce not only provided some important tips for anyone eyeing one of these leftover permits, but he dug up two established operators with openings. E-mail Extra subscribers received an early-bird version of this report, but there is still time for other subscribers to make some quick calls for a Kansas deer hunt this season. Here's what Pearce reports:
"That there were leftover Kansas deer licenses after this year's drawing was of no surprise. Last year's draw saw leftovers in most units, with more than 2,000 leftover permits overall. Yet again this year, Kansas Wildlife and Parks made substantial increases in permit numbers in an effort to appease landowner groups. As I wrote this, there were permits available in all 18 units. Unit 11 in southeast Kansas had more than 800. Famed Unit 16 had more than 300. All of the permits were whitetail-only.
"Hunters applying for leftover permits will be wise to know the following facts before buying one. First, leftover permits do not guarantee good hunts, and do-it-yourself hunts might be tough to arrange this late in the season. There are about a million-plus acres enrolled in a walk-in hunting area program, but it's mostly upland bird habitat. Shots here will be for jumped whitetails. Still, guys who........(continued)
