For each of the past three years, Monroe (and its area of 466 miles) has led District IV in the kill per square mile statistic. Those figures from 2004 through 2006 are 9.06, 6.53 and 6.98, respectively. Obviously, the herd has decreased some and that is because of the desire of the DNR to have more liberal antlerless regulations earlier in this decade. The regulations were more conservative in 2006 and may well be that way in 2007. Be sure to check out the DNR's Web site at www.wvdnr.gov.

The major public land in Monroe County is the Potts Creek WMA of the Jefferson National Forest. However, Sharp stated that the public land is "probably not" a good destination for the archer looking to see large numbers of whitetails.

DISTRICT V: MASON COUNTY
Gary Sharp opts for Mason County in District V, which covers much of southwestern and western West Virginia. It's easy to see why he has such enthusiasm for this county (and its 407 miles), as it has easily led the district from 2004 through 2006 with figures of 14.80, 15.04 and 13.25, respectively. To contrast, last year, the second-place district finisher in the kill per square mile listing was Putnam with 7.21. The last place finisher was Mingo with 0.68. That wide disparity leads to this statement.

"District V is a district where there are large differences in the deer herds of the individual counties," Sharp said. "On one hand, you have Mason County, which has a very large deer herd; on the other, you have counties such as Logan and Mingo that don't.

"Mason has had a very liberal antlerless season for some years now and the kill per square mile is still high. I would expect the regulations to remain comparable for 2007. The county has both quality habitat and a diversity of it. There are pastures, hayfields, bottomlands and wood lots. In addition, the county is very rural with a low human population. There's not much else to ask for."

The biologist lists the Chief Cornstalk WMA as a viable public-land destination. This 11,772-acre area near Gallipolis Ferry features rolling hill country and hardwood forests.

DISTRICT VI: WOOD COUNTY
Sharp picks Wood County and its area of 309 miles as his choice for District VI, which sprawls over much of northwest West Virginia.

"When you eliminate Parkersburg, which is the major metropolitan area in Wood County, you have a lot of rural land left," Sharp said. "And that's one reason why this county has so many deer. The other is that the county is part of the Ohio River drainage and all that rich bottomland."

From 2004 through 2006, Wood has been either at or near the top of the deer kill per square mile figure with marks of 16.89, 15.17 and 15.30, respectively. The latter figure led the district in 2006. Sharp related that the district as a whole hosts a very strong deer contingent with a figure of 9.83, well above the state average of 6.00.

One of the few drawbacks is the lack of large tracts of public land in Wood and in some other District VI counties, as well. Sharp said he couldn't list a public land for Wood County. The district lost much of its hunting land when Mead purchased Westvaco. That property either became off-limits to hunters or was leased by clubs. Unfortunately, a growing trend among timber companies (not only in West Virginia but also in the Southeast) has been for these businesses to divest themselves of timberlands.

West Virginia's deer harvest fluctuates up and down, as does the kill per square mile of habitat figure. But one constant is the West Virginia DNR and its staff is dedicated to managing the state's deer herd as well as they possibly can. I mentioned to Gary Sharp that as an outdoor writer, I receive many suggestions from deer hunters on how the state's deer herd should be managed.

"Then you can imagine how many suggestions the DNR gets," he told me. "We get an earful. What to keep in mind is that our goal is to manage West Virginia's deer herd for the long term. Sometimes we have to liberalize antlerless deer regulations; sometimes we have to make them more conservative.

"While we are making these management decisions, we have to keep in mind the habitat that is available. The habitat can only support so many deer and other animals. We continue to try to educate the public on what we are trying to accomplish."

Like many if not most sportsmen who bowhunt in West Virginia, I have certain places that I go afield on every year -- regardless of overall county harvest figures or any other statistic for that matter. For example, I already have a good idea of where some potential stand sites are on my land in Monroe County and on nearby places where I have permission to hunt.

The kill per square mile of habitat figures, though, will give me -- and hopefully, you the reader -- a different perspective on some counties that might be worth checking out this October. After all, the more information and possibilities we have, often the better chance we have to bring home some venison for the freezer.