Hunting is different today, Germaine, but it is still hunting. When I grew up, small game was everywhere. I cut my teeth on pheasants, rabbits, and squirrels in the 1950's. Of course things are different today on the farms we used to hunt. If the farm is still a farm and hasn't sprouted houses, the farming methodology is a far cry from what it used to be. A cornfield this time of year is as bare as a baby's behind. There is nothing for a self-respecting pheasant to eat or hide in. Fencerows are gone. Where are the quail? Check the fencerows. The quail are where they are. Rabbits are plentiful, but only in areas that you can't hunt them. I got two yesterday in my backyard with the .22. I live in the country, but housing developments are making my six acre spread an island in a sea of houses.

Now, as to the deer hunting, yes it is different than it was ten years ago, but let me give you some idea of my experiences over fifty years. I started hunting in 1954 at the age of 12. I killed my first deer, a doe in doe season, in 1964. My first buck, a spike, was taken in Cameron County in 1968. Occasionally I would get lucky and draw a doe license, which was incredibly easy to fill if I drew one. Does and fawns were everywhere, but rack bucks were really scarce. One buck season opener in Black Log Valley, I saw over fifty deer. None had antlers. Of course seeing deer is fun, and it keeps one interested, but I would still rather see one nice rack buck than ten does. My second buck was also a spike, taken in 1972. During all of this time, I hunted everytime I had available. Nearly every evening in archery season and every Saturday. We got the first day of buck season off, so I could hunt then.

Our first season hunting out of our present cabin was 1987. Our cabin is located near state gamelands, and we hunt almost exclusively on that gamelands, but also on unposted land bordering it with permission of the owners. The owners are very free in giving such permission. We hunted there three years before anyone took a buck. I got my first one from the land around the cabin, state gamelands, in 1991. It was a six point. We saw lots of does, but as usual, very few bucks. The doe tag allotment got a bit more liberal by then, and we usually drew one, so we were taking does for meat. I have a record of every year we hunted at the cabin, who killed what, and during what season. From 1987 through 2000, we took a total of 19 deer. Only eight of them were bucks, and only one was an eight point. This averages out to less than two deer per year, with four guys and sometimes guests hunting an average of three days of rifle season and perhaps six to eight days in archery season. We also usually hunted the entire week after Christmas in flintlock season. That was the good old days.

Since the year 2000, we have taken fifteen deer. This is an average of three per season with four to five hunters hunting out of the cabin at most. Here is the breakdown. Please note that in 2001, no deer at all were taken. If you are interested, there are reasons for this, but they have nothing to do with whether or not deer were there.
2001-no deer taken.
2002-3 does
2003-two does, and one six point buck (first year of AR).
2004- two does, and two bucks (both six points)
2005-four does and two bucks. One 4-point (youth hunter) and one 8-point.

The absolute best year we have had hunting out of the cabin in the 18 years in which we have owned it was this past year, Germaine. We had two kids hunting with us this year. They seem to have little trouble maintaining interest in hunting, but I'll grant you, these two aren't typical kids.

The average kid raised in the suburbs or cities today has plenty of stuff to do that doesn't require both patience and lots of physical effort. He can sit in front of his TV and watch programs and be entertained without lifting a finger except to stuff his face or work the remote. He can play endlessly with his game boy. Lots of music to listen to. What does the woods have to offer than can compete in excitement with Grand Theft Auto? Still, most years I can find a kid to take out hunting, and most of them end up being hunters after the age of 21. That is another story for another time.

It is true that the future of hunting is the youngsters of today. What example do we set for them if all we do is gripe about how terrible hunting is today? They start out with a defeatist attitude. While it is true that there are few deer in the northwoods, some friends of mine who have cabins there tell me that turkeys are abundant. Grouse are there, but hunting them is always tough. I took four this fall and worked my butt off for them, since the best grouse hunting is in the old gypsy moth cover at the top of the mountain. I can always take a kid out for squirrels. there seem to be just as many of the old tree rats as ever. Pheasant hunting is a thing of the past. Even the stocked birds hold little interest to me, but I usually manage to get in one day with a bird dog. Sometimes it is at a preserve, which pales in comparison to the bird hunting in the 1960's.

Yes, hunting is different today, germaine. We might as well face facts. In some ways, it is better. In some ways not as good. It is still hunting, and I love doing it.