There were the big-eyed flying squirrels nesting in the box blinds. The swarm of hornets humming from their underground home. The scent of Carolina jessamine , the fresh white of blossoming dogwoods, the staccato hammering of mating-minded woodpeckers and the excitement of actually discovering a shed antler. Spring tramps can show hunters another side of the woods and fields, places they tend to explore only during the autumn and winter. And in Texas, there are plenty of places to explore.
Many hunters have year-round access to their hunting leases.
But they seldom visit them this time of year, preferring to focus on spring's fishing opportunities or other activities. There's a lot to see and learn out there, just now. And even if a person doesn't have a lease to visit, there are hundreds of thousands of acres of primo wild country for exploring. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department has 50 or so wildlife management areas scattered across the state. The WMAs are primarily used as research sites where the agency can develop and demonstrate wildlife and land management techniques.