Doug Horn, the new owner of Basin Meats, donated 500 ground meat bags to the Moses Lake Food Bank to use when salvaging wild game. Volunteers respond to Fish and Wildlife request to help salvage any big game animal, but usually deer.

Other volunteers then bone and grind the meat, place it in the bags, seal the bags and then deliver it to the Food Bank.

Thanks for the donation, Doug. Your assistance is appreciated. Doug is getting ready to process deer, elk, moose and other game meat. Plus he will have a sausage-making program this year.

Sunday big day for hunters

September is a big month for hunters. A variety of deer and elk seasons begin, as well as the cougar season. Bird hunters are not left out. The forest grouse season opens on Sept. 1 and continues through Dec. 31. The daily limit is four birds of any species.

The crow season begins Sunday also and there is no limit. Also starting Sunday is the mourning dove season. It will run through Sept. 30 and the limit is 10 per day. Remember there is no limit on Eurasian collared doves. If you happen to bag one of these, it will not count as part of your 10-per-day limit.

Also on the docket, is the Sept. 14 and 15 Canada goose season, with a limit three and possession limit of six. The youth seasons for ducks, coot, geese, pheasant, quail and partridge is Sept. 21 and 22.

The old-timers' pheasant season, those of us over 65, will be Sept. 23 through 27. I need to take advantage of the season this year.

From Fish and Wildlife:

Hunting

General hunting seasons for black bear opened Aug. 1 in the East Cascades and Columbia Basin zones, and Aug. 15 in the Okanogan zone.

Bear hunters will share the field with other big-game hunters scouting early-season hunts for deer, elk and cougar in September.

Meanwhile, hunters have until Aug. 15 at midnight to apply for an opportunity to hunt deer this fall on the 6,000-acre Charles and Mary Eder unit of the Scotch Creek Wildlife Area in northeastern Okanogan County. Eighteen applicants will be chosen during a random drawing to participate in the "limited-entry" deer hunt for bow hunters (Sept. 1-28), muzzleloaders (Sept. 29-Oct. 7) and hunters using modern firearms (Oct. 13-21).