Tazman, sounds great and you illistrated in your story one the reason I choose to be who I am in hunting terms!!! Completely capture the essence just by reliving his experience with one deer. You know while describing that story i could almost picture it, why cause I been their in real life and many more times in my head.

I too had a ghost, he was the largest non-typical wt I have ever seen on the hoof. I only caught a look once in the daylight as it was fading and 8 times in the headlights of the truck over a 3 year period. In fact i thought he was dream, until the 2nd last time we saw him I had 3 others that verified he was no dream. Guess what guys, I never got him and he was found dead 2 winters after the last sighting...still scored enough to easily make B&C in both typical and notypical. When I drive that trail or sit in that area I still see him standing their, at night I think of him just peering off as the light faded the first time I saw him and when I think of why I choose to be who I am...he's the first to pop in my mind...not the ones i connected on but the one the ouwit, outplayed and outsmarter me (sorry to quote that terrible reality show...but true) He one many a battle with both animal and man...Monarch is his name. Now when I do connect I think of just how rare and great accomplishment I have done. But you know what that feeling of harvesting a doe or lesser is the same...it is all that a sense of accomplishment, outwitting him/her on her field. (if you have goals that are met...if your killing just to check the box (male)or succesful in your hunter survey than that is the wrong reason...imho)

I have stated this and will again, if you hunt for meat or hunt for horn it is all the same if you are happy with what you have accomplished. I don't want us all to be the same, life isn't like that in any other ways, why should it be in hunting. If you want a view point or back up on why a person does what they do, then be prepared for answers you may not want to hear or agree with. Trying to convince each other our way is the best is stupid and immpossible. Nor is it required to prove why you choose to do what you do...it is personal choice. If your proof or reasoning equals satisfaction then by all means do what you will. The last thing I (or you)want or need is to be told...no that is all wrong.

I can't comment on the trophy and lease thing since that is not the case here. But if the herd quality went up across the board then would it not be fair to say their would be less need to "Monger Land" and create your own TBM? Here it was largely thought the true trophies were only located in the central/south part of the province, largely in agriculture land. this was true to some extend b/c they for years offered a 2 Buck limit in the northern regions and forest to help in promoting hunters to hunt these areas and help keep the pop. in check. Well that proved to be a incorrect Management desicion, the limit was reduced to 1 deer all over the province and an added doe tag was put in place for those areas. If you polled the hunters of this province to get results on deer and mature whitetails you'd get the same answer...they are everywhere and your chances of bagging deer and good bucks are as good in the south to the north. Most people hunt here for convience (near home) most wouldn't travel to the bush to kill only 1 Buck and a doe. Results are a balanced herd & excellent opportunities throughout. (we don't have the numbers some of you have in deer or hunters, are deer herd (Whitetail/Mules) is pegged at million, about 55,000 tags are sold a year which includes mule, wt-either and doe and about 30,000 are harvested..of about 75% are indeed bucks..success rates for a deer are in that 60% range for deer in total)(but if you run the numbers for whitetail deer alone you'll end up in the 78% and mules about the same...the archery only mule deer tag drags down the harvest success rate due to about only 30% succes rate is accomplished) The 75% male rate is still the same with each catagory.

Why did i give you all this data, cause it shows that management of a herd shouldn't be based on numbers alone but the area and the herd as whole. Many think our DNR are way to strict on the management side and should allow for more does than they do, but they also know either sex tags are primarily used for bucks and that by introducing more doe permits puts more pressure on the buck population. Areas that receive less preesure or hunting activity need the available doe tag to encourage doe harvest. It all boils down to a great place to hunt, so good I am thankful indeed! But it should also help explain one reason why I choose to hold my tag, instead of use it on the first legal animal.



Edited by - skeeter 7mm on 11/29/2002 15:04:28