Outdoors

Texas Parks and Wildlife Department is proposing a minor adjustment to the late dove season in South Texas. Other than that, hunters should be familiar with the dates being recommended for the first fall hunting season.

The proposed dove seasons are: North Zone, Sept. 1-Oct. 30, with a 15-bird bag and not more than two white-tipped doves; Central Zone, Sept. 1-Oct. 30 and Dec. 26-Jan. 4, with a 12-bird bag and not more than two white-tipped doves; and South Zone would run Sept. 20-Nov. 2 and Dec. 26-Jan. 20 with a 12-bird bag and not more than two white-tipped doves.

Possession limit statewide is twice the daily bag.

The move in the South Zone is being proposed at the request of a few hunters who would like to hunt more into January. To accommodate this request, the department is proposing to move one week from the end of the first season segment and put it in January. This would allow hunters to continue to hunt dove along with quail and deer in the region.

The Special South Texas Whitewing Zone would open to white-winged dove afternoon-only (noon to sunset) hunting the first two Saturdays and Sundays in September and reopen Sept. 20-Nov. 2 and again from Dec. 26-Jan. 16. The daily bag limit is 12 birds, not more than four mourning doves during the first two weekend splits and two white-tipped doves.

The zone includes the area west of I-35 and south of U.S. 90.

The department is also proposing a statewide early teal season running Sept. 13-28 if a 16-day season is granted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. If not, the department will recommend a Sept. 20-28 season under a nine-day framework. The bag limit will be four.

The public is urged to comment on the proposals online at www.tpwd.state.tx.us/business/feedback/public comment before June 26.

The department is also looking at the regular duck and goose seasons for 2008-09. At this time the only change would be to reflect calendar adjustments from last year.

Charlie Pack of Waco will be inducted into the Texas Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame at a banquet at the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center on Saturday.

Pack was nominated in the angler category in recognition of his fishing accomplishments, fishing inventions and work with introducing young people to fishing.

In 1996 Pack founded the Tadpole Charitable Foundation, a nonprofit organization that has given more than 40,000 children the chance to fish. All equipment is furnished, and the annual free day of fishing attracts several thousand attendees. The foundation also maintains a fishing equipment lending library. Its motto is “Off the streets and on the creeks.”

Pack integrates fishing into every aspect of his life. As a salesman for American General Life Insurance, Pack sold many policies by taking potential clients fishing. His “Fishing Country” television show has aired on several Texas stations for 18 consecutive years and won a Telly Award in 1992. He makes frequent public appearances at schools, civic organizations and other venues, giving fishing demonstrations.

Pack has won several bass fishing and crappie fishing championships and is the inventor of the “Pack Pole,” an 11-foot telescoping crappie rod.

Described in the nomination as “one of Texas’ best athletes and fishermen, a fierce competitor,” Pack was a high school All-American basketballer at Waco High and still holds the records for most points scored in a game (49) and free-throw percentage (92). He graduated from Baylor University, where he was an All-Southwest Conference basketball player in 1955.

Pack and his wife, Lynn, have been married for more than 40 years and have four children and six grandchildren. The Texas Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame honors legendary anglers, fisheries professionals and organizations that have made a contribution to freshwater fishing in Texas.

Texans looking to get out and about, but not go broke at the gas pump might want to consider visiting one of 90 state parks and historic sites around the state.

To help find which park is just right, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department is offering the fifth edition of its free Texas State Park guide. The 112-page booklet gives a review of parks around the state.

As a result of additional legislative funding for state parks in 2008-2009, park visitors will be noticing improvements to aging facilities, reopening of campgrounds, and in some cases, increased interpretive programming and security thanks to the hiring of more than 200 new park staff.

A state map occupies the centerfold of the new guide, and an information-packed park directory is organized into seven sections corresponding to the state’s seven travel regions. Each section has a regional map that locates parks and historic sites within that region of Texas. The guide’s Symbol Legend provides a ready reference to the type of facilities and amenities to be found at each of the 93 sites.

New to this year’s park guide is a section titled “Plan It Outdoors, Online!” that helps direct readers to TPWD’s informative Web site that provides a plethora of information about new places to visit, how to make reservations, download park maps and learn more about a host of outdoor learning opportunities, such as the new “Texas Outdoor Family” program, archery skills, boater education and how to become a Master Naturalist. You can even “Shop The Outdoors” online for conservation license plates, wildlife posters, maps and other featured products.

The park guides are available at any state park or state natural area, as well as TPWD law enforcement offices, Sea Center Texas, Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center, Texas Department of Transportation travel information centers, convention and visitors bureaus and chambers of commerce throughout Texas. You also can print your own guide from the TPWD Web site. In addition, while supplies last, you can go online and request that a guide be mailed to you by visiting: www.tpwd.state.tx.us/parkguide/.