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Early ML Tags Gone

blake

Life Member
NEWS!

From the Iowa DNR:

Early Muzzleloader Tags Gone

Iowa hunters took only a week to buy out the 7,500 deer tags available for the early muzzleloader season. Statewide, most deer tags went on sale at midnight, Saturday August 15. The last of the early muzzleloader tags was purchased this past Saturday, August 22.


The tags have been popular over the years; allowing gun hunters their first chance to get into the woods. This year's early muzzleloader season is October 17-25, with only Iowa residents allowed. "That quota of 7500 tags keeps it an uncrowded hunt, especially for hunters interested in harvesting a buck before the peak of the rut," noted Tom Litchfield, deer research biologist for the Department of Natural Resources. For the first month, hunters may purchase one 'any deer' gun season tag-and a similar bow tag--as well as one county and season specific antlerless tag.

Beginning September 15, residents may purchase as many county antlerless tags as they wish, until quotas fill. A quick check of the availability at noon Monday (August 24), the antlerless quotas in Butler, Floyd, Franklin, Mitchell, Plymouth, Webster and Worth counties did fill.

Each county had only 50 to 150 available, in the first place. There are 22 counties, mostly in north and northwest Iowa with no county antlerless tags offered this year; with biologists determining that deer numbers were in line with target populations.
 
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i bought my early muzzleloader tag on the 15th at noon, the lady at the courthouse said there were only 2400 tags left. they had sold 5000tags the first two days.
 
My early muzz buck from last year was grunting and chasing a doe. Hoping this year "especially with the cooler temps we've been having" will be the shizznitt! :grin:
 
The later dates convinced me to give up the late ML tag and buy my first early ML tag ever. I bought mine on the 18th and there were less than 1500 remaining at that time.
 
I don't think it will have much of an impact. It will most likely be warm out, buggy, and the crops willl still mostly be in. I have hunted early muzzleloader many years and never had much luck. Also October 25th is still no where near the peak rut. All the ground I can hunt, the farmers claim the corn isn't coming out until November up until Thanksgiving which is a big change. Hopefully it will save some giants during bow season and be one heck of a late season!! Goodluck guys!!
 
Landowners tags are outside this quota, so those folks still have time to decide which season to use their LOT.
 
the farmers claim the corn isn't coming out until November

The cool summer has slowed the maturation of the corn crop. It is going to dry down slowly. Corn prices have been sagging, farmers aren't going to want to pay the LP prices to dry down wet corn. The only thing that would change this now is a couple weeks of above average temp "Indian Summer" and I don't see that happening. So yeah, I'd guess it's going to be a late corn harvest.
 
Good, I no longer can contemplate breaking my late muzz routine. Although, if I'd have known the season was later, I would have thought a lot harder.

Hopefully these unseasonably cold temps continue through mid January! Nothing would make me happier than a foot of snow on the ground and single digit temps!
 
Early Muzzy isn't exactly a week later, at least not in the sense that someone "decided" to make it later.

It's always 2 weeks before the pheasant opener just like this year it's just that the calendar cycle jumped back to the latest dates in the cycle.

I've hunted early muzzy when it got into the Oct 23-24-25 dates and by then you'll usually see quite a bit more chasing activity than early muzzy season usually sees.
 
There will definitely be some pigs killed Early Muzz this year. I can't count the # of times I'd have a 150 + inch deer on the ground the 23,24,25 if I had a gun instead of a bow the past few years.

Quite a few of my buddy's switched and are going early this year. I'm sticking with late. We'll see what happens.
 
Forecast is actually for frost to be later than average date. That Elninio is suposed to kick in sometime in Nov. and actually have a mild winter. But Who Knows?? Usually not the Meteorologists "Experts"!!
 
I've had shooters in gun range almost every year towards the end of early muzz season but haven't mustered the confidence to buy a tag... with the season a little later in the year this fall I'd expect to see more bucks shot for sure. If there is any kind of cooler weather towards the end of October the hunting is going to be good.
 
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