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NOTE: THE 2008 INFORMATION IS STILL UNDER CONSTRUCTION. PLEASE CHECK BACK LATER.

Hunting
Please refer to the specific Archery/Firearms/Waterfowl sections to determine what type of hunting is allowed at each site.

Thank you for your interest in the McHenry County Conservation District’s 2008 Hunting Program. The most frequently asked questions are answered in the following documents, so carefully review all the information before you contact us. If you find that you still have questions, please email your question to hunting@mccdistrict.org or call the District at 815-338-6223.

Changes to the Program

The 2008 program contains a number of changes from last year. Make sure you are familiar with all program requirements or you could jeopardize your hunting opportunity!

General
-Any participant who has never hunted in the MCCD program must attend the orientation meeting.
-As we expand the hunting program with the same number of staff members, we must ask the participants to help by being more conscientious with their paperwork. All applications must be complete or they will be returned.
-As more and more people apply to the program each year, we must eliminate duplicate applicants in order to give everyone a fair chance at a hunting opportunity. If your name appears on more than one archery or more than one firearms application, the duplicate application will be returned to you.
-Because of the stricter enforcement of the application acceptance rules, it’s a good idea to get your application in early in case it is returned to you – you’ll have time to resubmit it before the deadline.
-We formalized the rule for charging the county resident rate vs. the higher out-of-county rate. Basically, if 50% or more of the people in your partner group live in McHenry County, you will be charged the in-county rate. This rule only applies to opportunities where there is a per zone charge, such as the full season archery program and any waterfowl opportunity.
-There will be no hunting or scouting on Christmas Eve.

Archery
-We’ve gone back to one application for all three archery programs, so you only need to submit one application even if you are applying for two or three of the archery programs.
-We are giving preference to partners in the lottery for all three archery programs. To increase your chances of getting into the program, apply with a partner.
-We’ve added a few new sites to the program and additional zones to some previously hunted sites.
-We are allowing up to three people in an archery zone. You can have one, two or three people on one application.
-Because the archery deer tags are not available before the application deadline, and it’s been difficult to collect them after the fact, we are asking hunters to bring a copy of their deer tags to the orientation meeting. We won’t give you your MCCD hunting permit until we have a copy of your deer tags.
-We’ve added one more thing for you to do when you harvest a deer – you must call a designated number and report the harvest to a MCCD police officer.
-Eastside hunters will have until the following Saturday to remove their tree stands.

Firearms
-We have increased the fee from $40 to $50 for in-county hunters and from $80 to $100 for out-of-county participants.
-We are hunting Marengo Ridge only one season and Brookdale two seasons.
-We’ve had trouble with hunters not showing up for their firearms deer hunting opportunity. We are requiring you to call us as soon as you know you cannot hunt so we can reassign the opportunity.

Archery and Firearms
-There is no longer a limit to the number of tree stands you can put up in your zone.
-We are allowing hunters to help each other set up and take down stands.

Waterfowl
-We’ve added new sites for marsh and field hunting, including adding more “open” first-come-first-served opportunities.
-Marsh hunting ends November 30.

Safety Education Requirements
Please note that the successful completion of a state hunter’s safety education course is a requirement of the program, regardless of age. To find out about class availability, call the Illinois Department of Natural Resources Safety Information Hotline at 800-832-2599 or check their website at http://dnr.state.il.us/lands/education/safety/index.htm.

Packet Availability (SEE BELOW)
Information packets will be available July 1, 2008. Packets may be downloaded from this website or picked up at Brookdale, 18410 U.S. Hwy 14, Woodstock, IL 60098 from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, or at Prairieview Education Center, 2112 Behan Road, Crystal Lake, IL 60014 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Sunday.

Notification of Selection Status
Applicants will be notified by mail of their status within 30 days of the application deadline. Those selected in the lottery will receive additional information at that time.

To view Harvest Statistics for the 2007 Hunting Season, click here.

Download a printable map of all hunting sites here. Please note: All hunting requires special permit.

Important Dates in 2008 Hunting Season

2008 HUNTING SEASON HUNTING PROGRAM ADMINISTRATIVE DIRECTIVE

The Board of Trustees of the McHenry County Conservation District does hereby designate the following Administrative Directive as the parameters and rules and regulations for the 2008 District Hunting Program. This is done in accordance with the requirements set forth in General Use Regulations Ordinance No. 03-415, Chapter II, Section 2, and Chapter III, Section 13 and Section 14.

 

HUNTING PROGRAM PHILOSOPHY

The McHenry County Conservation District supports hunting practiced in a legal, responsible, safe, and ethical manner. Regulated hunting is the utilization of a renewable resource and fits within the definition and framework of conservation.

The District’s hunting program operates on the basis of three philosophies. The philosophies serve as the foundation of the program and are as follows:

1. Safety is the top priority of the hunting program. The highest standards of safety are demanded from all participants and staff involved in the program. Safety shall not be compromised.

2. Only ecologically self-sustaining wildlife populations are included in the scope of the program. The definition of “ecologically self-sustaining” is those populations naturally found in viable numbers on District sites. These are populations that, through their own natural reproductive rates, can sustain their population.

3. The District strives to integrate hunting into the list of recreational opportunities available on various sites it owns and manages. The activities of the hunting program will be tailored to prevent significant changes to the District-established pattern of public use on its sites.

GENERAL PARAMETERS

Types of Hunting Permitted:
Archery Deer Hunting
Firearms Deer Hunting
Waterfowl Hunting

A non-refundable $10.00 application fee must accompany every hunting application. Additional fees will be collected for each hunting opportunity if the applicant is selected to participate in the program. Those fees will be due at the orientation meetings.  In most cases, fees are reduced for McHenry County residents. In the case of a partner group application, the in-county rate will be charged if 50% or more of the applicants are McHenry County residents. For example, if a waterfowl group contains six people and three of them live in McHenry County, the group will be charged the in-county rate. If only two of them live in-county (including the primary applicant), the group will be charged the out-of-county rate.  Youths age seventeen (17) and younger are free with a paying adult. No refunds will be given unless the District suspends hunting. Fee structure is as follows:

• Waterfowl Hunting fee Fee for Out of County / Fee for McHenry County Resident

  Adult                                                    $120 per opportunity        /         $60 per opportunity
  Youth                                                   $ 10 per opportunity        /         $ 5 per opportunity

  
  

  For per zone and per opportunity fees: In the case of a partner group where applicants live in various counties, the in-county fee will apply if 50% or more of the applicants live within McHenry County.

Evaluation:
As identified in Ordinance 03-415, Chapter III, Section 14, an annual evaluation of the program will be conducted and presented to the Board of Trustees. The Board of Trustees retains the right to eliminate hunting on any or all District sites.

Management:
MCCD reserves the right to close sites to hunting for certain periods of time during the hunting season due to management activities. All participants will be notified prior to any closures.

GENERAL RULES AND REGULATIONS

• All participants must comply with all Federal and Illinois State rules and regulations, unless the District regulations are more restrictive.

• Violation of any rule or exhibition of unethical conduct by a participant may result in revocation of that person’s District-issued hunting permit or a fine, or both.

• No participants shall hunt without a District-issued hunting permit.

• Participants may enter their assigned District site one and one-half hours before legal shooting time and must exit within one hour after legal shooting time.

1. To be eligible for a District-issued hunting permit, every applicant must show proof of possession of all valid licenses, stamps, and permits as required by Federal and Illinois State law. All hunting licenses, permits, tags, and numbers (except for archery tag numbers) must be included at the time of application for a District-issued hunting permit, or the application will not be accepted. The exception to this rule is for out-of-state applicants, who may wait to see which dates, if any, they are drawn for in the lottery before applying for a temporary Illinois State hunting license. Archery hunters must provide a copy of their deer tags at the orientation meeting.
   
   
2. To be eligible, all participants must show proof that they have successfully completed a state- or federally-approved hunter safety education course. Only first time applicants must submit a photocopy of the applicant’s Hunter Safety Education card with the application. Returning applicants will have a copy of their Hunter Safety Education card already on file. For more information about Hunter Safety Education, contact the Illinois Department of Natural Resources at 800-832-2599 or http://dnr.state.il.us/lands/education/safety/index.htm.
   
   
3. No participants shall go on private property bordering any District hunting site without first notifying District police.
   
   
4. All participants must clearly display a District-issued parking permit on the dashboard of their vehicle. They must also carry with them their District-issued hunting permit while on the site.
   
   
5. All harvests must be reported. Rules for reporting are specific to each type of hunting and are listed in the Rules and Regulations for each hunting type. Failure to report harvests will result in the loss of hunting privileges for the next hunting season.
   
   
6. No participants shall be under the influence of or be in the possession of illegal drugs or alcohol while hunting.
   
   
7. All participants must use established or designated parking lots. No parking is allowed along county or township roads.
   
   
8. The District reserves the right to suspend hunting at any time in any area for any reason.
   
   
9. Any participant under the age of eighteen (18) years of age must be accompanied by a person twenty-one (21) years of age or older, who will be in the immediate area (100 feet).
   
   
10. Participants must have reached their ninth (9th) birthday by October 1of the current year to be eligible to hunt.
    
    
11. Non-permitted individuals are not allowed on the site.
    
    
12. Persons with disabilities may be allowed special privileges. Each case will be handled on an individual basis. The definition of a person with disabilities is as per state statutes.
    
    
13. Participants may harvest only those game animals designated on their permit.
    
    
14. A participant’s failure to show up for their designated hunting event may prevent them from future hunting opportunities with the District.
    
    
15. For the purpose of this program, residency is defined as the official place of dwelling. Proof of residency is required. Acceptable forms are a copy of a recent utility bill or driver’s license.
    
    
16. All hunters must sign in and out when hunting on District property.
    
    
17. Blinds or stands provided by the District cannot be moved.
    
    
18. There will be no hunting or scouting Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve or Christmas Day.

ARCHERY DEER Parameters, Rules, and Application

FIREARMS DEER Parameters, Rules, and Application

WATERFOWL Parameters, Rules, and Applications

 

 

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