"It has been no secret in recent years that northwest Alabama is producing a lot of quality deer," Cook said. "Counties in that region, such as Lamar, Walker, Winston, Fayette and Franklin, will continue to be good this year. They've never had the overpopulation situation to contend with that we've had in some other parts of the state."

The rich, fertile soil of the Black Belt prairies in central Alabama also continue to produce better-than-average deer. Counties in this region that Cook likes include Dallas, Pickens, Marengo, Bullock, Macon and even Barbour.

In northeast Alabama, Jackson County has historically been a producer of nice bucks. But Cook said that in his book, it's not as good as northwest Alabama or the Black Belt. Jackson still produces some nice deer, but has a lot of hunting pressure.

"Quality deer can show up anywhere," Cook conceded. "We have some killed in the poorer soils of places like Covington and Geneva counties every year. But by and large, the places with better soils produce the better deer."

Just what kind of deer is a solid one for the Cotton State? Bucks with racks scoring 125 to 130 on the Boone and Crockett Club system are the kind of deer that make your season in Alabama -- and most hunters don't get one that big every year.

"A 125-inch buck is the more common size when someone tells you they got a good one," Cook confirmed. "You've got a lot better chance of getting a buck in that size-class. To be an exceptional buck, I think you have to throw it up there to 140 or better. Instead of a 3- or 4-year-old, you're looking for one that is 5 or 6."

With that said, here are some locations in each region of the state where you can look for your own 140-incher or better this fall and winter:

NORTH
As noted, the northwestern corner of the state continues to be one of Alabama's best producers of top-end racks. District biologist Ron Eakes sees no reason why that won't continue this year.

His region covers Lauderdale, Limestone, Madison, Colbert, Franklin, Lawrence, Morgan, Cullman, Winston, Marion, Lamar, Fayette and Walker counties. With its big wildlife management areas and national forests, there's an estimated 180,000 acres of public land available for deer hunting in this region.

Eakes said that last year, warm weather during some of the hunts in his district resulted in fewer sportsmen afield, and the buck harvest was down somewhat.

"It should help our buck retention, with more bucks carrying over to this season," he added.

Black Warrior WMA continues to be an excellent place to hunt bucks. Keep in mind that much of the area sees a November rut. Even during bow season, you can see bucks chasing does.

Eakes noted that Freedom Hills and Lauderdale WMAs now have quality-deer management regulations in place. On those areas, a legal buck must have at least three points on one side.

"It's doing what we wanted it to do," Eakes pointed out. "We're seeing fewer 1 1/2-year-old bucks being taken, and more bucks making it to 2 1/2 years old. We're not seeing as many 3 1/2 and 4 1/2 year olds as we would like, but it is improving our age-structure."

For private-land hunting, some of the best potential for bucks is in Marion, Fayette and Lamar counties.

"We're seeing some nice bucks coming out of these areas," the biologist agreed.

The northeastern corner of the state is made up of Jackson, Marshall, DeKalb, Blount, Cherokee, Etowah, Clay, St. Clair, Calhoun, Cleburne, Randolph and Talladega counties. Randy Liles is now the acting supervising biologist, following the retirement of Keith McCutcheon.