Deer season opens Saturday in New York state. What you need to know before going afield

“Opening Day is here.”

That phrase sends waves of excitement through millions of deer hunters throughout the country.

But it is especially poignant to those of us whitetail hunters who are fortunate to live and hunt here in deer-rich Western and Central New York.

Deer season starts here Saturday, Nov. 18, now always the third Saturday in November, though the actual calendar date changes each year.

Other changes to the season include:

Hunting now starts one-half hour before sunrise and ends one-half hour after sunset. Traditionally it had been sunrise to sunset.

And, deer hunters are now required to wear florescent orange/pink while hunting deer or bear with a firearm.

And the state has extended the bow/muzzleloader season from Dec. 26 through Jan. 1, 2024.

The regular deer season in New York’s Southern Zone runs from Nov. 18 to Dec. 11, 2023. Then the late bow/muzzleloader season kicks in Dec. 12 to Dec. 19, closes for six days, then resumes the day after Christmas.

There are other specific date changes for deer hunters too, including for Youth Hunters. The current New York State Hunting and Trapping Regulations Guide has these newest changes detailed and can be found online.

Those of us old timers should be used to change by now.

I guess change has been the constant thing about deer seasons, from timing (we used to have Opening Day on Monday, which I still prefer) to all the changes in terminology … we used to call DMU permits doe permits.

And on and on.

I could fill this page with all the regulation changes I have seen in a half century of deer hunting.

But what other changes are we going to face come opening weekend?

For one thing, the weather forecasters are calling for temperatures in the upper 30s and low 40s Saturday and Sunday.

When temperatures are mild, we do not need to overdress. Nothing worse than trying to move around in the woods with a heavy, insulated blaze/camo suit when the temperatures are stretching upwards of 60 degrees.

With mild temperatures, deer hunters will tend to sit and stay put longer.

On cold days it’s easier to justify moving around. And those of us who have the most patience can look for action during mid-morning and mid-afternoon.

During warm temps, whitetails don’t move as much, either.

It’s important for successful deer hunters to take precautions with their deer during warmer temperatures.

If the sun is shining, make sure the animal is out of direct sunlight. Body temperatures should be brought down as quickly as possible to preserve the fine quality of venison. I like to use water, frozen in two-liter plastic bottles, to fill up the body cavity ASAP.

Plastic bottles, kept in a cooler, are a lot less messy than bags of melting, frozen ice in the truck bed and last longer, too.

Another change that needs to be addressed is the higher incidence of tick bites in warmer weather. I can’t believe the number of ticks I have picked off my camo this bow season.

Usually, heavy frosts and freezes knock down the nasty little buggers, but this year … we really haven’t had much of a hard freeze yet here in Western NY. And the better the concentration of deer sign, seems the more ticks are there.

Back in the old days, I sprayed my camo with Non-Scent spray, only. Now I use heavy doses of Premethrin. The little buggers still climb on my legs, so a tick inspection is warranted every time afield, even though the spray helps a lot. A careful inspection is just habit with me now after hunting.

More: Sorting out the whitetail rut: Timing is everything

And with the warmer temperatures expected for Opening Day, that means one more time we won’t have a tracking snow.

I love deer hunting in the snow, not just because it makes tracking and trailing easier, but because seeing a deer against a white background is a lot easier than trying to make out movement in a brown/gray world.

Yes, it’s harder to find sign on bare leaves on a forest floor with no snow, but good hunters are diligent and always should inspect, to their best ability and effort, any sign where the animal ran after the shot.

— Oak Duke writes a weekly column.

This article originally appeared on The Evening Tribune: Hunting tips for the opening day of deer season in New York state