Southwestern deer chasers without private land access will find their choices limited to Fort Cobb WMA and Fort Cobb State Park, where hunters took 56 deer -- 24 bucks and 32 does -- Waurika WMA with 11 deer -- six bucks and five does -- Altus-Lugert WMA, where hunters took three bucks and one doe, and Sandy Sanders, where three does were harvested.

Consult the 2007-08 deer hunting regulations, as some of the previously mentioned refuges are open for individual seasons, but closed for others. Some refuges are open only for nine days of the 16-day gun season, with the nine days varying. Some refuge harvest figures are exclusively from draw-in hunts, and closed to the general public during deer season.

For a complete listing of public hunting areas, contact the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation at (405) 521-3851, or go online to www.wildlifedepartment.com. Hunting regulations can be picked up at your favorite sporting goods store.

EXPERT PREDICTIONS FOR THE 2007 SEASON
Outfitter Danny Pierce, who operates Rush Creek Guide Service, (806) 323-3030, out of Reydon, is ecstatic about the upcoming deer season. He believes that the deer hunting in the western part of the state is better today than it's ever been before. In fact, the 56-year-old resident outfitter asserted, it wasn't until he was 14 that he saw his first whitetail in this area; now, he said, the numbers are so incredible that he recently had to erect a pair of scarecrows to keep deer from eating up the garden near his home.

"The much-needed rain has significantly improved the habitat, and I am seeing good antler growth," offered Pierce. "The quality of the bucks and the number of deer in my area are as good as they've ever been. There are some real trophies here!"

Pierce applauded the ODWC's reduced buck limit and encouraged hunters to do their part by taking does. "If a hunter books a buck hunt with me, he can take his limit of does for free," he said. "I will even make someone a special deal who wants to hunt does only." The outfitter reported his hunter success rates as usually running at about 85 percent.

Outfitter Jay Jack, of Roosevelt echoed Pierce's sentiments, agreeing that the upcoming season should be awesome. "I am already seeing a lot of big bucks in my hunting areas," he noted. "With all the rain we've received, I believe we are in for another record deer season. A year like this only happens once every 20 years or so."

According to Jack, the deer population in the southwest is exploding, but it hasn't always been that way. "When I was younger I'd leave home and go north to hunt," he said. "There were few deer around here -- but now you can't drive down the road without almost hitting a deer. We have 10 times more deer than we used to have."

Jack, who operates Kiowa Creek Outfitters, (580) 639-2518, can put clients onto some exceptional hunting on more than 30,000 acres of prime land intensively managed for deer hunting. His hunter success rates run 90 percent during gun season, and 65 to 75 percent on all combined seasons.

IN CONCLUSION
If this season's figures mirror last year's, an estimated 81,000 archers, nearly 107,000 primitive-arms hunters, and more than 159,000 gun hunters will take to the field in pursuit of the state's No. 1 big-game animal -- the white-tailed deer.

Optimum numbers of deer will be found in every locale, so be sure to take your legal limit of does in addition to that buck!