Balconies Canyon Lands?

[Phorizt]

The application says:
"All adult hunters must possess a current Annual Public Hunting Permit (APH) to apply."

So are you able to apply without it and buy it later or can you not apply without the permit now?

The drawing doesn't open until 8/15 and I assumed it didn't open until then because you had to buy the permit first which isn't available until August. There's only a 2 week window to apply for any of those archery hunts which seems strange.

[WinslowBoy]

The application says:
"All adult hunters must possess a current Annual Public Hunting Permit (APH) to apply."

So are you able to apply without it and buy it later or can you not apply without the permit now?

The drawing doesn't open until 8/15 and I assumed it didn't open until then because you had to buy the permit first which isn't available until August. There's only a 2 week window to apply for any of those archery hunts which seems strange.

The TPWD electronic system WILL NOT allow you to enter any E-Postcard Drawn Hunt PRIOR to purchasing the Annual Public Lands Permit ($48). Since your hunting license, public hunt permit and any draw applications are ALL tied to you TPWD ID number, the system knows if you have (or haven't) purchased the Public Permit when you attempt to apply for a drawn hunt. Also every person listed on the application must have purchased the Annual Permit or the application will not be allowed. That was a change that was implemented last year.

Now as others have said above, the $48 Annual Public Lands Permit is not just for the drawn hunts. It gives you access to a bunch of different public lands which are open to hunting (NO DRAW REQUIRED). Examples are all of the public dove hunting spots and some of the National Forest lands. Info on the locations are readily available on the TPWD website. As mentioned before, I probably wouldn't pay $48 just to apply for an E-Postcard Drawn hunt but I do hunt a few of the Public Dove spots so the $48 dollar fee is worth it to me.

[Ungawa]

The TPWD electronic system WILL NOT allow you to enter any E-Postcard Drawn Hunt PRIOR to purchasing the Annual Public Lands Permit ($48). Since your hunting license, public hunt permit and any draw applications are ALL tied to you TPWD ID number, the system knows if you have (or haven't) purchased the Public Permit when you attempt to apply for a drawn hunt. Also every person listed on the application must have purchased the Annual Permit or the application will not be allowed. That was a change that was implemented last year.

Now as others have said above, the $48 Annual Public Lands Permit is not just for the drawn hunts. It gives you access to a bunch of different public lands which are open to hunting (NO DRAW REQUIRED). Examples are all of the public dove hunting spots and some of the National Forest lands. Info on the locations are readily available on the TPWD website. As mentioned before, I probably wouldn't pay $48 just to apply for an E-Postcard Drawn hunt but I do hunt a few of the Public Dove spots so the $48 dollar fee is worth it to me.

Well explained. Thank you.

[Ungawa]

Ok so lets explain. The $48 annual public hunt permit gives you access to a large amount of public hunting land that does not require a draw. Just get the permit and go hunt. In addition to those lands, they also offer free E-postcard hunts. There is no entry fee and no permit fee if drawn. If you are not planning on using the permit for any other reason then to apply for a single E-postcard hunt I would say pass on it. With that said it offers plenty of hunting opportunities both through the draws and general lands the permit offers. You don't buy a $48 permit for each application so you can apply to as many of those E-postcard hunts as you would like. When looking at what you get access to for $48 dollars the permit is actually well worth the money.

True, well explained also, new to me. Maybe not such a bad deal after all.

[ctom87]

True, well explained also, new to me. Maybe not such a bad deal after all.

For me I don't have a lease right now (still looking and want one, but it's looking slimmer and slimmer each day.) since I have no lease, I will probably end up with an AHP to hunt some of the places around here. It happens to also be a requirement. So I might as well apply.

[Ungawa]

For me I don't have a lease right now (still looking and want one, but it's looking slimmer and slimmer each day.) since I have no lease, I will probably end up with an AHP to hunt some of the places around here. It happens to also be a requirement. So I might as well apply.

Good deal. I guess I was surprised to see the price hike, but it really could make for a good deal especially for those that hunt dove.

[RShockley]

Good deal. I guess I was surprised to see the price hike, but it really could make for a good deal especially for those that hunt dove.

Also a really good deal for us duck hunters. A lot of the places I hunt ducks require it. The E-postcard hunts are just an extra benefit for me.

[cy100]

I hunted at Balcones several times many years ago. There were many deer, but it was different than other places you hunt. Even, it does not like the private land of its neighbor. One of the major challenges is that you cannot bait, so you must figure out the pattern of deer's movement in a short period of time. The second challenge would be how you can cover a large range of the land with limited time / efforts. The refuge lands are very wild. Hard to drive around, and hill country terrain limits how far you can walk and view. My experiences are all gun hunt, it would be more harder to use bow.
I think it is a very interesting place to hunt, I enjoyed it.

[Reaper]

I hunted at Balcones several times many years ago. There were many deer, but it was different than other places you hunt. Even, it does not like the private land of its neighbor. One of the major challenges is that you cannot bait, so you must figure out the pattern of deer's movement in a short period of time. The second challenge would be how you can cover a large range of the land with limited time / efforts. The refuge lands are very wild. Hard to drive around, and hill country terrain limits how far you can walk and view. My experiences are all gun hunt, it would be more harder to use bow.
I think it is a very interesting place to hunt, I enjoyed it.

Did you fill any tags?

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[cy100]

Did you fill any tags?

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I got one only. But I saw deer (or spook some while walking in the wood) most days I were out. Missed a shot as well.

[justletmein]

It's a big place so deer population is going to vary wildly depending on the compartment you end up in but there's success to be had if you know how to hunt without a feeder. Kiddo drew it years ago and his mom took him out there without me, they had some lady on private land that would scream bloody murder all morning and all evening banging pots and making a ruckus. They found sign and moved around a bit, kiddo was asleep in the popup one morning and had a nice buck cruise through with about a 20 second shot window and he couldn't get a shot off quickly enough after his mom woke him up. Fast forward a couple years and wife drew a hunt there, this time I went to assist. This compartment had private land bordering 3 sides of it and highway on the front, with the long border being a completely open range cattle ranch with a house in the middle. The other two sides had feeders lined the fences and had piles of uneaten corn under them. We shared the unit with two other hunters and they got in there first and got the bottom land which is where I would have gone. Worked hard to find deer and found some sign eventually but for the most part it was barren of tracks and trails of any kind. Setup the wife in an opening next to a thicket on the last morning and she had a shot at a really nice buck, but I had her setup in a brush blind with a shooting stick and she couldn't see his body over the grass so she stood up and tried an off-hand standing shot at about 100 yards. We heard a shot pretty soon afterwards coming from the bottom area. Talked to the other guys in our unit later on at the station and they'd killed a nice buck, said it was the only deer they saw the whole time and it came bombing in on them. Didn't hear any other shots anywhere around us that whole hunt.