Deer Hunting Coming to an End in Michigan

Hey all,

Got some news in from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources today. It seems that CDW (Chronic Wasting Disease) has been confirmed in two wild deer on a gaming ranch in the souther peninsula of Michigan.

I have been keeping an eye on the news about hunting lately as it seems the state is determined to end all hunting, drive the deer herd numbers to incredible heights by doubling the price of a hunting license, adding a gun hunt to the list of seasons, and now eliminating all baiting for deer in the lower peninsula.

I am in just about the lowest county in the state, save one. The CDW was found several miles north of me, and now my hunt will be severely crippled by this latest ban imposed by the DNR. The first sign that the DNR was suffering was when the state closed several checkpoints. We had one in Jackson for several years, until about 15 years ago. The checkpoints were a place to take your game in to have it checked for any serious diseases as well as to get a patch. My dad had several of these patches sewed onto his hunters orange vest, dating back into the mid-70's. As I did not get my first deer until 2000, and the DNR checkpoint had long been removed from the county, I have never received a patch. I have done my part though, by successfully tagging eight of these majestic creatures to fill the freezer and feed my family.

The next sign came in last year where it was announced that the cost for a combination license was going to increase by double. Where does this line of thinking come in to play? This dramatic price increase will result in two endings: 1) Only the employed, die-hard hunter will pay the price to keep hunting, and 2) there will be an increase of poaching and unlicensed attempts at getting the meat to put on the table. With Michigan being the hardest hit state, in the union, with the recession, and the unemployment rate tickling the 9% region, it's really not that hard to imagine how many unlicensed hunters will be taking to the fields this year.

Everyone is used to rising costs as of late, but usually they are gradual and easy to adjust to. This one is not. It takes a serious consideration and decision as to what is highest on your priority list and how to get around the laws in place to get what is needed to survive. Venison is counted on as a primary source of food in a lot of homes around the state.

It was announced that the DNR was adding another gun season to the roster of seasons available to just about every kind of hunter out there. The typical seasons start with the bow and arrow season, which is placed prior to the rut. The season goes into the rut, beginning on Oct. 1, and ending on Nov. 14. Late in the rut, gun season kicks in (Nov. 15 - Nov. 30). It only lasts 15 days, but the movement by the deer is high as this is the season that most of the hunters take to the field. After the gun season is finished, bow season resumes and doesn't end until Jan. 1.

During the bow season, there is a muzzle-loader season and a late firearm season for doe only. It seems that this year, the DNR is adding a doe only gun season prior to the regularly scheduled bow season. It is known by every hunter that as soon as the deer realize they are being hunted with firearms (not hard to realize since guns make a lot of noise), they escape from their daily lives to properties they know to be safe. In my case, that means they retreat to some prison property, not to be seen again until the following year. with this season in place, the deer will conduct their rutting season off property, in the safety of their new homes.

The latest action posed by the DNR has limited our way of patterning the deer herd for a successful hunting season. Baiting has been changed throughout the years. I remember going out with my dad and dumping hundreds of pounds of bait all over the place, thus changing the directional patterns of the herd to come near to where we are positioned to get off a successful shot. In the past few years though, baiting has been restricted to so many pounds spread over so many feet, in a sparingly pattern. The deer still changed their patterns, and I was still able to put meat on the table.

Ok, a lot of non-hunters would lobby to say that a good hunter should be able to take the game without the use of bait, and they would be right. I can clean the glass on my car with the use of windshield wipers alone too, but the blue water that shoots out of the car sure does help in making it successful. Call it a luxury that we all got used to, and use effectively. Guess I will have to rely on the scent packs I have until they ban those to, as the deer develop ultra sensory issues with their sinuses in accordance to the rocks floating around Saturn.

I understand the problems with CWD, but a ban state-wide (erm, I mean in just the entire lower peninsula) is plain mad. Another aspect of this complaint could be coming from the local farmer that is now up a creek as his Fall and Winter income has been banned throughout the LP of the state. But I will let them rant on that one.

Take care,

Dave