What happend to wisconsin???
 

Where did all the deer in wisconsin go the Dnr says there are too many deer! But this last Bow/Gun season sure dident seam like it too me. I hunt a lot every weekend plus some week days for bow and all 9 days for gun only saw 7 deer all season my dad saw 2 and my brother saw a glims of one. My buddy that hunts way up north said just a few years ago everyone in his hunting party put to gether saw 97 deer opening day and this year he was the only one to shoot a deer and that was the only deer they saw that day. My dad knows alot of hunters and there are only a few people that even saw deer this year so why dose wisconsin think there are somany deer here? When its hard to see a just one deer hunting as hard as you can. I know this sounds like im crazy but are the dnr makeing up numbers for there own reasons like geting payed off by car insuranc companys or because the deer eat farmers crops. There is just way too many tages given out for the amount of deer being seen by people that usaly get many deer a year and now dont see any. Sorry its so long but im just geting really tired of hear about too many deer and I cant even see any.

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

I blame earn a buck, and just overall....pee poor job on the DNR's part. No matter how it happened, I don't like it.[:'(]

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

Where does GregH shoot all his Bucks?

Hatchet Jack

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

GregH is an exception. It is a proven fact that deer flock to gods.

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

Ture he dose get great buck and wisconsin dose have some but there in small areas that truly do have a lot of deer but most of wisconsin is not even close to being like that.

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

Illinois. ;)

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

idk i had another successful year, despite having a new high line coming through. The numbers are declining around us a little bit, but all the better if you ask me. it was rediculous about 5 years ago (year before EAB in my zone) I sat during the early Tzone and counted 200 deer in a 4 day span. Granted many were of course the same deer, but that many deer sightings was rediculous. around me you can drive around and see 20 deer in nearly every field, sometimes up to 60 or more

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

Bow only;)

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

I have to agree that within the CWD areas it is taking a toll.
I recieved a Gun Deer Questionnaire regarding this past season and will be sending it back in completed.
1 question was do I support Earn A Buck and I checked no due to IMO that numbers are indeed down and that
CWD is here to stay because it lives in the soil. With that being said I will still do what the regulations state.

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

Both Wi & IL.

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

Wis.

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

What year?

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

Nevermind the Old Style hat says it all.:D

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

06 - gun
04 - bow

most recent.

4/8 p&ys are from Wi.

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

I dont know what you are talking about. I killed a dozen deer this year with my bow. They are everywhere!

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

i grew up in wisconsin and live in illinois now, but, go back for the gun season every year to hunt with my old man. i sat in my stand from dark to dark saturday through friday and saw one deer (a spike buck) twice on tuesday. that was it. i did however have four coyotes in range throughout the week. i missed twice, not happy about that at all. i've been hunting this area since i could carry a gun and i've never had such a slow year.

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

I had a great season this year! Seen TONS of deer and killed 2 with my bow, missed a buck of a lifetime as well, I couldn't pull myself together and take my time.[:'(] Over all I had a great season and more to come! All I need is my late season Christmas Eve deer and I'll have a winner!!!!!!!!!!

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

I've seen more deer this year than any other year. Hunting St. Croix County and Burnett county.

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

I get a kick out of it when people say there are no deer in WI, the DNR is wrong, EAB is bad....etc. The fact is, there are a TON of deer in WI...too many actually. Sure there may be pockets where the numbers are lower, but not overall.

As far as complaining about EAB...I thinks its GREAT. If hunters would have shot more does and less small bucks in the past, we wouldn't have this problem.

Here's another question for you.....does seeing MORE deer make for a quality hunt, in your eyes?

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

Actually, there are at least 3 times as many deer today in Wis, as there were when I first started hunting them. I guess that's the key word....hunting.

They're there, you just got to find them!!;)

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

Probably not the answer you'd expect from me, but.....NO!

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

Actually, brother, it is.;)

Its the same answer I have.

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

I hear ya, Dan. My numbers this year are gonna be WAY off last years.....but I have my suspicions "why". I'm also hoping it's a trend;).

I'd rather see 1/4 the deer I'm seeing now.....with the chance of seeing just a FEW more "quality" bucks. I'm "almost" to the point I'm going to have to let some impressive (for this area) animals walk. THAT will be a tough day in my woods.....knowing my neighbors. But...I'll do it.

Neighbor stops my wife, day before yesterday.....says to tell me she saw a MONSTER (OK....it's a relative term:D) coming out of one of my woodlots.

PLEASE let him make it two more weeks.....[&:]:)

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

You think its bad this year wait till next year. With the high amount of does killed this year there arent going to many deer around at all next year, just a hunch but maybe i can be taken for a fool next year.

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

I'll take your hunch...[8D]

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

I agreee with GregH and __Dan, you do have to look harder for them. I rifle hunted with 5 others and most of those guys did not see a deer. I, on the other hand saw one doe with fawn and one buck fawn, 3 spikes and a wall hanger at 325 yrds sneaking away from me down wind. Was it a successful hunt? Yep, am i the farthest from the road? yep again. They are out there, and letting smaller bucks does pay off. My brother saw 7 deer before 7AM opening day,shot a 6 point that I would have loved for him to let walk and taken a doe instead, but to each his own. He saw nothing after that for two days, but he also did not take the hunt as seriously after he had one on the ground. I would bet that if there ws snow on the ground the kill would have been much higher also, in fact, I'm sure the kill was higher, just not the recovered deer due to no tracking snow. Keep looking and changing little things and you will get your deer. I would rather see few deer and maybe a wall hanger than a bunch of 1-1.5year olds running around all over. Good Luck all!

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

It is going to be different depending on where you hunt, but I hunt in a pretty wide array of areas accross the state, and where I hunt the deer numbers are WAY down from just five years ago. And I'm not just talking about how many deer I have seen, the deer sign just isnt there. It was an honest accomplishment to see just one deer a night/morning this bow season. We have a cabin in northern WI (Sawyer County) and ussually have some awesome hunts up there, this year after a few weekends of scouting we figured out it wasnt even worth the trouble, to even find a freshly used deer trail up there took hours of scouting. I also hunt in northern Juneau County, deer numbers have been down there the last few years, but with some work it was possible to find some deer. I did also for the first time do some hunting in Western WI, onpublic land and did find some deer, I have not hunted there before soIdont know of thosenumbers are down or up. Ispend a lot of time talking toother hunters and in local sportshops, and most peopleby talking to these people you would think the deer have gone extinct. There are still deer around,but itthe numbersdo seem to have gone down. It just takes a little more work to find them.

I have mixed feelings about it, becauseI did see far less deer this year than past years, but I alsosaw a lot more maturebucks, (I missed2 130+ bucks on back to back nights). I hunt both public and private land, and since EAB has started we have taken more good bucks off publicland then in all previous years combined. I would say the quality of the deer herd has actually improved, but the nights of seeing15 or even 8 deer in a night (for me) are veryfew.

I am sure there are areas where deer numbers are a totally different story, but I spend a ton of hours in the woods, and I feel I have a pretty good idea of how many deer are in the areas I hunt. I also hunt MN andthere seemed to be a lot more deer over there this year.

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

Personally, I think deer numbers are down since the DNR started implementing T-zones, EAB, etc. several years ago. That's not saying there are no deer around...just means the DNR is closer to their management goals whether right or wrong. I harvested two deer this year, so no sour grapes here. One doe with my bow in Outagamie County and an 8pt. buck in Forest County.

One gripe of mine about the DNR is comparing deer harvested year over year, and using this as a reference to deer population. With the number of herd control and EAB units increasing, there should be more deer harvested. Just isn't apples to apples comparison in my opinion comparing deer harvested from 1990 to 2007 for example.

One other gripe is moving a couple units to herd control this year in the NE region, specifically unit 38. I hunt a little in this unit as well as other folks I know. The deer population just doesn't justify a herd control unit in my opinion.

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

It's hard to tell. I hunt in St. Germain (gun) and the pressure has to be at least double what it was when I started. I definitely see less deer. I did see a drive of about 20 people last weekend, though. I think stuff like this probably does more to reduce the deer herd in my area than the DNR does. And those guys will probably do the same thing next year and wonder why they don't get anything.

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

around me it seemslots have become nocturnal. shine feilds at night and theyre everywhere. daytime they disappear.

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

EAB is definately having a huge impact on antlerless numbers ...............I manage for mature bucks and low doe numbers,and in normal years i ask that anyone that hunts our place take 2 does..........well this season I have seen twice the number of bucks (of all age structure) than does and the majority of does i have seen have been yearlings...........this you might say is a good thing, more bucks than does who would complain, until you realize that w/o a healthy doe population those total deer numbers, buck and doe, will drop off to almost nothing! I do believe the method that the DNR uses for est. herd population is skewed, EAB is a good way to keep numbers in check , but over use will decimate a herd and in the zone I hunt it is starting to take a toll, where even last year i could drive a stretch of hi-way and see deer every nite along the road there are none.........during the rut you could count on seeing deer in the ditch in certain stretches of road at least one - two a week.........this year ,none (it is a good thing, but also an indication of a population drop) In certain areas of the state there has been a major population drop, just because you have yet to see it doesn't mean you won't.......Gregh, don't you hunt in S.E. wi? Ask any average joe that hunts in that area what they have been seeing for deer this year? As for the rest of you that claim there are more deer, there are more deer than there were 25 years ago, but there are also more hunters and in turn more deer killed every season. It kinda balances things out and actually turns the other way in terms that we are killing more deer today than in the 80's, but not nessasarily because there are more deer for us to hunt, but rather we have become more proficient in our killing.

I don't doubt there are pockets that have high deer densities in Wi. and these pockets would benefit from the use of EAB.......but in areas that have reached the lands carrying capacity and stated to go the other way, EAB is ruining the deer herd.

BTW I have killed my share of mature bucks,so it's not as if I don't know what it takes to kill deer..............but you can't kill what isn't there.

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

You cant tell me there are more deer the last couple years than there ever has been thats a crock. Who here really knows how the DNR gets their numbers....do they take the kill of lastyear and multiply it by 3???? Theres no real way to say how many deer there are. 5 years agoit was nothing to see 30-50 deer out in our fields in one night. Now were lucky to see 3-10. Something isnt adding up and I blame EAB for this crap. It has nothing to do with not harvesting does and taking too many young bucks. I balme on on harvesting too many does. If you kill the does you kill more than one deer atleast 70% of the time. I know alot of hunters that are not going to be buying licenses next year because of the EAB in zones that will be next year. I wish they would just put things back to the way they were :(when hunting wasfun and not a job. The DNR just makes me sick, sick I say.

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

Eradicate wisconsin shirt pal

http://www.bloodbro.com/forsale/

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

OIHH MAN i have to use that pic in my msn display pic ohh Eds going to love it!!!!

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

That answers my question.....more deer=a better hunt......:eek:

Sorry....WI has too many deer....just drive down the road and look in the ditches. I'm leaving for the cabin in an hour.....its a 56 mile drive and I bet I count at least 25 dead deer along the way.

I love how everyone wants to blame the DNR for trying to do what should have been done a long time ago....better ratios of deer.......traditional deer management is over. (Thank God)

If people aren't going to buy licenses next year...I say good. Those same people don't understand deer management....they just want to go out opening morning and be able to see 12 deer, let the 11 does go and blast the spike.....just to say they got their buck. I'll be happy 10 years from now when the old WI mentality is dead.

They ran DR. Alt out of PA and now they're happier than hell.......well most. Give WI 10 years and most will think EAB was the greatest thing that happened to WI.

Blunt but true.

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

I'm telling you there are as many deer in unit 60B and unit 11 as there have ever been. Yes that is only 2 units, but all the units around 11 BESIDES 11 are threatened to go EAB next season. That tells me the population surrounding 11 is even higher. Just stating facts as I see them around my hunting areas. I understand other areas are different. The mature buck hunting has been more difficult as a result of the higher population IMO.

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

OK, so here is how I see it. The DNR says there are too many deer, been saying it for years. They let us take more deer and now the numbers are going down. What this is saying is that the way they are doing it is working. We have less deer, just what the DNR wants. So to the DNR, it's working. Is it hard to determine where they are and how many? You bet it is. Do you have a better way to determine where they are and how many? If you do, tell the DNR your thoughts, I'm sure they are willing to listen to logical answers. I still agree with ___Dan though. If we keep seeing a lot of deer getting hit by cars, the DNR will want to get rid of more deer. If we get a hard winter, we may see it really hit home and have low numbers, but stick it out, EAB will help it out. Let the yearlings walk, get away from the crowd, the deer are there

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

Not saying they are right but I know a lot of people who are giving up hunting all together, because in their eyes there are no deer around. The sad thingfor me is that most of the hunters i know who say they are giving it up,or didnt hunt this year, most of them areyoung hunters...under age 16. Thereare deer around, but there is no doubt that you have to work harder for them.

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

This is an age old discussion amongst WI hunters. It is common to go hunting and not see deer, and assume that there aren't any/many. I've had thoughts in that direction myself.

The fact is that there are plenty of deer in WI. If you're not seeing any, choose a different stand or try stillhunting. If you're not finding sign, not many deer are moving in the area you're looking, look elsewhere. A lot of WI hunters are locked into a small area. It doesn't make sense because there is so much area. In many areas, it is not necessary to go far from the road. In fact, just the opposite can be true.

I think baiting greatly influences deer sightings in areas where it is happening. Baiting concentrates the deer, reduces their travel and makes them more nocturnal. A hunter using conventional tactics in a baiting area should not expect to see any deer. The DNR implemented baiting ostensibly to make it easier for hunters to reduce the herd. It didn't work, they should get over it and outlaw baiting.

I am strongly opposed to EAB. I don't even want to go hunting if I can't shoot a buck. I'll gladly shoot does, but I hate having my chances of shooting anything reduced by 50%. I would strongly support AR, but only if it was statewide. I don't think it will ever happen in WI, so I'll just keep on popping the first yearling or doe that offers itself.

RE: What happend to wisconsin???
 

Waiting for a gift


I agree with the baiting issue. It makes them noctunal. Sure it worked the first couple years before they got educated on why they get shot at over a bait pile. There are "hunters" who put out 100#'s of corn about a week before rifle season and keep it up til they drive home with or without their deer. I guess people are making money selling the stuff and that's great, I'm all for that, but I too would rather see no baiting like it was in the past. When it was not allowed, people were still doing it, a lot. Every deer I shot had a belly full of corn and there were not cornfields anywhere. I like to hunt the big woods up north, but I do not have to see a lot of deer to have successful hunts. If 12-16 year-olds are stopping hunting because they don't see the deer, that's too bad, they need another person to show them hunting does not have to be only about the kill. Just my thoughts. I don't think less of someone who baits either, I just think that if no one did, things would get better,at least up north.
Dandbuck