BECKLEY, W.Va. — What amounts to one of the state’s unofficial holidays arrives again Monday with the opening of the 2014 gun deer season.
Gun season lasts two weeks through November and December, officials said.
“It lasts from Nov. 24 to Dec. 6,” the Department of Natural Resources’ Colin Carpenter said. “During that time, you are limited to killing two bucks if you have the extra buck stamp and your hunting license.
“Check the 2014 hunting and trapping regulations if you are unsure whether you need a hunting license or not. Some people, like landowners hunting on their own land, don’t need a hunting license.”
And in Wyoming County, of course, it’s archery-only, Carpenter said.
The first day of hunting this year could be a tough one, officials said.
The mast crop this year, unlike the last one, is much better, and that means deer won’t necessarily be in the same locations.
“Mast is the natural food abundance,” Carpenter said. “Mast is either hard or soft. Hard mast are things with a hard shell, like hickory nuts, acorns and chestnuts. Soft mast is things like apples and cherries. The acorn mast is more abundant than normal.
“That makes bucks harder to kill because deer are harder to find…
