Gary Engberg Outdoors

Local Column River Currents The Tradition Continues 11-23-09

gengberg November 23rd, 2009

River Currents The Tradition Continues

This past weekend, November 21 and 22 was the opening of the 158th Wisconsin Deer Gun Season. There have been many changes in all of these hunting seasons with some of the major and significant changes from the 1980’s and on being; the movement of large numbers of deer from the northern third of the state to the southern agricultural counties, the growth of the deer herd to over 1 million deer in the late 1980’s, the creation of antlerless deer permits, the allowed use of handguns for deer hunting, extended seasons, the beginning of hunter discontent over the “announced” DNR deer herd numbers in the 1990’s, the addition of the Earn-A-Buck (EAB) requirement in the mid 1990’s, the early antlerless deer hunts in October which began in 1998, record deer harvests in the late 1990’s and into the 2000’s, a record 528,494 deer harvested in 2000, the discovery of Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) in 2001, the millions of dollars spent on CWD testing and research, increased deer populations in many of the state’s deer management units (DMU), unlimited antlerless permits in 2005 for Zone T and CWD units, over 1 million antlerless permits issued in 2006, and this year a traditional buck only hunt in 13 northern units and the new Mentor Hunting Program allowing children over 10 years of age to hunt one on one with a ‘Mentor” even before taking Hunter Education. These are just a few of the many important changes and landmarks that have occurred in the last few decades which have impacted deer hunting and deer hunters.
After spending all of Saturday and Sunday registering deer in Sauk County, I got the opportunity to talk to hundreds of deer hunters of all ages and sexes. This year, there is a couple of questions on the registration forms that ask deer hunters how many deer were observed while hunting, how many hours were spent hunting, and how one would rate the weather while hunting. As with most questions, there are always a couple of different ways that hunter’s interpret the questions and answer them. Saturday, many hunters complained about the early morning fog which was intense depending on where you were, the above normal temperatures were welcomed by some and disliked by others, many hunters wished for a little snow as always, some hunters reporting seeing many deer while others saw few, many hunters reported seeing numerous “smaller’ bucks, and there was a continuation, from the bow hunt, of large trophy bucks being harvested. In talking to hunters, hearing their stories, and seeing the deer harvested showed me that people (hunters) can “see’ things differently. There are many varying and diverse opinions of the deer hunt, the rules and regulations, and the deer numbers among deer hunters.
It’s impossible to satisfy and keep all hunters happy, but I believe the DNR is trying to do its best for the 600,000 plus deer hunters in the state. With deer hunting being an economic boom to Wisconsin, the DNR is reaching out to hunters for suggestions and ideas in its never-ending search for the perfect deer hunting program. Hunters are now being asked to report their hunting experiences and the game that they see while in the woods and fields. Many Wisconsinites are taking advantage of this opportunity for online reporting where individuals can tell the DNR what they are actually seeing in the field. Continue Reading »