I got up early Wednesday, which turned out to be a spectacular day.

Spring was at its best as I carried a 30-pound pack up my back hill, part of my preparation for hiking the 131-mile Northville-Lake Placid Trail this summer.

Turkeys gobbled in every direction as the sun rose above the horizon. White flags waved as deer ran for cover, and every songbird filled the air with melodious mixtures of whistling harmonies.

I stopped for a short breather when I reached the top of the hill, then wondered about the upcoming hunting changes as I looked out over the green, wooded hills toward Laurens and beyond.

The Department of Environmental Conservation has proposed a bear hunting season in three new Wildlife Management Units this fall. On[an error occurred while processing this directive]e of them is unit 4F, so if this becomes law, I can walk across the road and hunt bears.

Unit 4F encompasses an area including parts of Laurens, Morris and lands northward to Route 20. The other units are 4G and 4H, which continue eastward through Schoharie and Greene counties.

I know many of you see bears on occasion. Sure, they rip down a few of your bird feeders and get into some beehives, but opening a bear-hunting season really surprises me.

According to the DEC: "Wildlife Management Units 4F, 4G and 4H have demonstrated an increasing trend in the number and frequency of bear nuisance problems in recent years corresponding directly to the increased bear populations in these areas. Bear activity and complaint levels have risen by over 100 percent since 1999. The proposed expansion of the bear hunting area is aimed at the stabilization and/or reduction in the number of bears in the area and thus the reduction of negative interactions between bears and people."

I have mixed feeling about this plan.

I’m not sure there are sufficient bear numbers in this area to warrant a season, but I only see a small part of the area on a regular basis. Honestly, I have never seen a bear around here.

My neighbor had one in his backyard last fall, and my son-in-law and grandson saw one on Brewster Hill Road a year or so ago. I have heard stories of regular sightings in Morris and Mount Vision, so maybe there are more bears around than I realize. I’ve been hoping that they would get a good foothold in the area so we could hunt them some day. I just didn’t realize that it could happen so soon.

If this becomes law, it will allow bear hunting during the regular, muzzleloading and archery seasons this fall.

Another change proposed for this fall’s hunting season is the expansion of the three-point antler restriction pilot program to two more wildlife management units in the Catskills. This proposal received a lot of local support last fall from the residents of Ulster County. It seems to be working, so it will be expanded.

The three-point restriction program is designed to expand the age structure of the buck population in that area. By only shooting larger-antlered bucks, the young deer get a chance to grow up. In the future, there will be more mature deer, therefore increasing the deer quality and numbers.

The DEC will host a public meeting — to discuss the proposed changes and accept public comment — from 7-9 p.m. May 17 at the Schoharie County Cooperative Extension Building in Cobleskill.

The DEC also will accept comments via mail and e-mail. You can send them to Jeremy Hurst, NYSDEC, Bureau of Wildlife, 625 Broadway, Albany, NY 12233-4754 or e-mail fwwildlf@gw.dec.state.ny.us. You should include a subject heading of "Comments on Deer and Bear Hunting Regulations."

Rick Brockway writes a weekly outdoors column for The Daily Star. E-mail him at robrockway@hotmail.com.