During a recent family gathering, I was exchanging notes with one of the many bowhunters in my extended family. He told me that this season he had (also) hunted public land (several thousand acres) that starts just five or six miles south of where I hunt.

I told him that I had not hunted public land but for two or three years of my 39 years of bowhunting, and gave him the reasons why; the chief reasons being that too many hunters equates to stolen gear and having to get on a hit sooner than may be appropriate to prevent your deer from being stolen or claimed.

He told me that he had had the same concerns until he talked to a conservation officer that is assigned to the area, and that he (family member) had observed large populations of deer and many big bucks.

According the CO, in the past several years the number of bowhunters that used to hunt the area has drastically declined but that the number of gun hunters has increased considerably. Family member said that what the CO had said about decline in bowhunters in the area was confirmed. He said that he hunted the area many times during the season and rarely saw another bowhunter. I personally know this was not the norm in the past. This large conservation area used to receive many bowhunters.

There has been past talk that Illinois has considered extending the gun season. A decline in bowhunters may be one reason.