Charlie

6,933 Wisconsin’s 2012 Fall Wild Turkey Harvest

January 22, 2013 by Charlie Leave a Comment

Wisconsin fall turkey hunters harvested 6,933 wild turkeys in season 2012. This is an increase of 1,500 wild turkeys from 2011 fall total of 5,433 turkeys.

Due to a mild 2011 winter and a drier warmer 2012 spring, turkey nesting success was indeed excellent leading to a 28% increase in the fall harvest. In the final weeks of the 2012 season many hunters reported large flocks of jakes which should indicate an excellent 2013 spring wild turkey season.

The total 2012 harvest summary break down is:

3,896 female turkeys which includes 2,399 hens and 1,496 jennys

3,037 male turkeys which includes 1,913 gobblers and 1,124 jakes.

Here is a chart of Wisconin’s 2012 fall wild turkey harvest numbers by management zone, age and sex.

Interested in talking more turkey?
Then don’t miss the Talk’n Turkey Expo in Howards Grove, WI.

Wisconsin 2013 Spring Wild Turkey Permit Drawing Completed

January 15, 2013 by Charlie Leave a Comment

Great News–This is the earliest Wisconsin DNR has ever completed the wild turkey spring drawing. Kudos to those at WDNR for making this happen. Sure will make spring turkey hunt planning easier. You can check your spring turkey application results at Wisconsin’s Online Licensing Center.

Turkey licenses not claimed by drawing will be sold OTC. The availability of OTC 2013 spring turkey tags will announced later.

Good luck.

Update 12:50 1/15/2013 from WDNR press release today:

Leftover spring turkey permits go on sale March 18

The 99,612 remaining permits for the 2013 spring turkey hunting season will be sold on a first-come, first-served basis starting Monday, March 18 at 10 a.m. Leftover permits will be first issued for sale by zone, one zone per day, with each zone having a designated sales date.

Hunters should check the turkey zone map (PDF) to verify where they want to hunt and then check the turkey permit availability page to see if permits are available for the period and zone in which they wish to hunt.

The following zones have leftover permits, and the scheduled sales dates are as follows:

Zone 1 – Monday, March 18

Zone 2 – Tuesday, March 19

Zone 3 – Wednesday, March 20

Zone 4 – Thursday, March 21

Zones 5, 6 & 7 – Friday, March 22 (due to the low number of permits left in these units, sales have been combined into one day)

There are no leftover permits for time periods A or B in the regular turkey management zones listed above.

Wisconsin Mississippi River Backwaters Turkey Hunt

January 13, 2013 by Charlie Leave a Comment

At least they were there

2011 Spring, unit 1 Wisconsin Turkey Hunt somewhere north of La Crosse on the Mississippi River

Hunting some flat lowland was a treat after all the snowy, wet slippery hill climbing of season 2. I could only hunt the weekend of season 3 and still had the snow mixed with rain plus a little high wind just to keep things interesting. I found a sheltered area where the turkeys were hanging out in very good numbers and responded well to lost hen yelping. Truth be told I whiffed on a bunch of gobblers Saturday they just kept picking me out and walking off before I could shoot. Apparently I was wearing the wrong tree so I vowed to change camo for tomorrow’s hunt.
Even though I was damp and cold Saturday I stayed until a gobbler roosted, marked the spot on the GPS and arrived back at the boat landing just darkness settled in.

Oh dark something Sunday morning:

The choppy waves banging on the jon boat’s front made enough noise that I was sure would scare away all the turkeys before I setup. He flew down Sunday in the early dawn light at 5:30 gobbling like crazy in the 20+ mph wind and sleet. He circled to my right side within 6 ft where there was no way to shoot, then circled back around the fallen tree top to the front. At 8 feet he was head on gobbling at me non-stop for what seemed an entirety, my gun drooping from the sling hanging on my knee. He was so close turkey spit was soaking my headnet with each gobble. No chance to even blink. Finally he raised his head up turned it sideways with a branch blocking his eye, my gun was mounted as he juked his head for a better look; the wad never had a chance to open.

Gun Show in a Wisconsin School

January 12, 2013 by Charlie 1 Comment

“For this town, no big deal to have gun show at school”

This is an AP headline from yesterday that is a spot of sanity in the insane world of gun control hype.

The AP reporter Dinesh Ramde writes:

Wisconsin — where children as young as 10 years old are encouraged to
grab a gun and shoot a deer — one community is embracing its hunting
heritage by gearing up to host a gun show in a high school gym.

Most people think guns are simply banned in schools however according to Chippewa County District Attorney Steve Gibbs “Federal and state law bars guns in school settings under most circumstances, but there are provisions in federal law that allow guns with the permission of school administrators”

AP reporter Ramde continues:

Paul Schley, Cornell School District superintendent, said he received
emails from five Wisconsin residents living outside Cornell who
expressed disappointment that the show was taking place on school
grounds.

2012 was my 52nd year hunting and thereby my 52nd year since being taught to shoot. During my time in high school it

52 years ago there were no minimum age requirements to hunt or learn to shoot. charlie was shooting a Red Ryder BB gun at age 3 by the time he turned 6 charlie was profiecent with 22 rifle and successfully hunted small game.

was common for schools to sponsor student shooting teams, skeet, trap and rifle. The school I attended even had an indoor shooting range. We would keep your guns in our lockers and get them out when Phy Ed time came for firearm training and proficiency.Perhaps some will be surprised to learn there were no school shootings then. Firearms were really nothing special just the equipment of another sport and the results of the school’s shooting teams were read over the P.A. system right along with the baseball, basketball or football scores.

2012 Wisconsin Fall Turkey Harvest Up

January 4, 2013 by Charlie Leave a Comment

WI wild turkey taken during a winter snowshoe hunt

Wisconsin’s 2012 fall turkey harvest is up over 2011 as of December 12, 2012 5500 turkeys had been registered. This compares to 5433 wild turkeys registered at the end of 2011 fall season. The final 2012 fall turkey harvest numbers will be released shortly. Given the mild December weather and increase in the reported turkey population Wisconsin fall turkey harvest should increase more.

Share your experiences and observations if you hunted fall/winter turkeys.

How Do You Setup for Winter Turkeys?

January 2, 2013 by Charlie Leave a Comment

Even though Wild turkeys can only see in two dimensions they have good eyesight, no make that excellent eyesight. Any wild turkey hunter knows this after only a few encounters with this king of birds which is why camouflage is so popular among hunters. Although there are a few die-hard traditionalist do not wear camo.

So how do you hide from a turkey’s keen sight in a snow covered landscape?

Snow camo is a big help when a hunter is out in the open or open brushy terrain. This is a typical setup I use for winter turkey hunting.

One snowshoe is used as a backrest, the other is laid flat with a cushion on top for a seat.

Add in the hunter dressed in snow camo and you can see the human lines are nicely broken up. Notice the shotgun is also taped with white first aid tape to break up its outline.

If I were to have picked any of the larger trees in this area the snow camo would have stood out against the dark trunk and the turkeys may have likely been out of range. Turkeys can see in color just like us.

In case a more traditional tree setup becomes required I wear an outfitter camo vest under my snow camo jacket and then zip open the outer jacket so my chest will blend with the tree trunk.

The Sun Sets on 2012 Wisconsin Fall Turkey Season

January 1, 2013 by Charlie 2 Comments

I have a personal tradition of hunting the last day of a season to reflect and say “good bye”. This is the sunset of the final hunting day of 2012. Vic and I had just flushed a flock of 50 turkeys, the last we saw they were flying off into the sunset; a fitting end indeed.

What a great season 2012 was and many of us are sorry to see it end. There are high numbers of game birds across the landscape especially turkeys. After an easy 2011/ 2012 winter followed by a spring with just right weather recruitment was outstanding.

I think the wild turkey in Wisconsin has not only recovered from the devastating losses suffered during winter 2010 but also significantly increased above the population level of 2009. There is no official census just my gut feeling after fall hunting turkeys over 3 months’ time in units 1, 3, and 4.

Vic became much more polished in 2012 I am very proud of his progress I lucked into a very fine turkey dog, in October he earned his turkey dog diploma with pair of unit 1 turkeys.

Vic did a text book scatter, barked to call me other to the break area where we setup. I called in the first turkey on a hen wingbone made from a turkey we killed last year. Vic laid low next to me as the turkey approached within gun range and waited for the “get turkey” command. We retrieved the first turkey and called in the second. Both times Vic lay very still next to me, waited for the shot and “get turkey” command.

This was the first time Vic had done it all right; usually his excitement would get the best of him causing movement or noise at the wrong time whereby saving the turkeys life.

Back to the day of the last sunset we started morning hunting in unit 1 and killed a turkey at 9 in the morning after a very cold setup. Back in unit 4 we killed another turkey at 3 in the afternoon after a slightly warmer setup.

With one 2012 tag remaining we watched the sun set on 2012 hunting.

Fall Turkeys and Kids

September 25, 2012 by Charlie Leave a Comment

We covered the 100 yards to where the turkey had disappeared. The quivering of Vic’s legs and tail indicated the turkey was near, the electricity of excitement crackled through the air between the kids and dog. I whispered to my grandson tell Vic to “Get em up Vic; TURKEY!” his young voice quivered as he gave the command. Vic launched charging uphill, but I had seen the turkey go down towards the creek. The sudden chain cackling, putting and large wings beats certainly proved Vic knew more than me at that moment. He busted a big flock; turkeys ran by us, flew overhead and some landed in trees all around us; the kid’s eyes bulged with excitement as they gleefully giggled with delight.

Then it was quiet even the creek seemed to stop for a moment, the kid’s mouths were agape with no sounds and their wide eyes darting around to catch another glimpse of a turkey.

Breaking the silence in a trembling whisper my grandson says “what now grandpa?”

I told him to watch and listen this is what grandpa does when hunting-“kee, kee, yelp, yelp, yelp yelp”

Turkey talk exploded everywhere around us, we stayed, watched and listened for about half hour as the turkeys regrouped giving the kids a lesson in turkey flock reorganization.

My 9 year old grandson begged me to take him hunting with me this fall, he even promised to carry the turkey for me; of course I readily agreed to take them both.

There is no doubt fall turkeys, turkey dogs and kids go together.

What Ate My Deer?

September 20, 2012 by Charlie 1 Comment

While in a ground setup along the edge of a cornfield overlooking a bean field, waiting for the deer to show up Monday evening; something growled at me. I don’t mean like a little doggie groan; I mean a seriously deep growl, coming from corn rows behind me, judging by the sound just a few rows back.

I held my position while keeping a cautious eye out for the growler; probably needless to say no deer showed up that evening.

The Tuesday morning I went back to look for some sign in the corn field to try and figure out what the heck it was; found nothing.

On Wednesday morning I shot this doe. The shot did not feel right, so I decided to wait a couple of hours just in case. No hurry I thought the temp was coolish so the meat would be okay. However, a lot of the meat was not there. The shot was good so I could have recovered this deer earlier and sure wish I would have.

What could have eaten this deer in a little less than 3 hours during the day?

What could possibly have eaten a half a deer in 3 hours? None of the bones had teeth marks, as you can see the top side of deer’s hide is gone, lots of meat was removed cleanly from the skeleton. The top half of the hide along the backbone looked as if it has been cut off and I could not locate it anywhere in the area.

A lone coyote could not eat this much meat. A group of them would have fought and left the vegetation ripped up, plus they would have made a lot of noise, I was about 200 yards away and heard nothing. A bear or wolf would have left teeth marks on the bones; right?

A neighboring farmer claims his son has trail cam pics of a cougar. I have not seen them but have no reason not to believe it.

I am wondering if the growl and this deer have any connection.

Do Deer Eat Aquatic Plants?

September 4, 2012 by Charlie Leave a Comment

The short answer is yes.

Deer feed on many things including aquatic plants.

These are plants the deer were eating.

The seemed to be eating the broad-leaf plant pictured here. As I observed them feeding there were times when the does would submerge their noses and come up chewing a lot of plant material. Leaving the impression they may have been consuming all the plant material.

It is easier to list the things deer do not eat than to list the things they do eat. On a couple of occasions I’ve witnessed deer eating dead fish. In one case a deer caught a stranded 6-8″ sucker chewing it from head to the tail much the same as they would chew an ear of corn.

These deer stayed and fed on water plants for a long time.

Trespassing, A Problem

August 30, 2012 by Charlie Leave a Comment

Gun Deer Season in Wisconsin can be challenging in many different ways. Even if you’ve spent the money, time and effort on your won land to avoid the crowds; things can still happen which will cost you a day of hunting.

Wisconsin 2011 Gun Deer Season:

A trespasser stumbled into view at 8 AM. He was very excited claiming he was tracking a deer he shot earlier that morning. After introductions I informed him he was deep onto private propery, that being, my property during prime hunting hours. Waiting until later in the day and calling for permission would have been the courteous thing to do.

Many hunters when caught on private propery claim they got turned around, lost their way. following a wounded animal or some such excuse. However, in the case he showed me the blood trail. We following the blood trail a short distance I quickly concluded it indicated a bad hit; gut shot with maybe a liver nick. I informed him the deer needed some time to settle down. He wanted to charge ahead to find his deer. I would not let him, its my land, I am trying to hunt and he is not making that easy.

I insisted on escorting him back to his stand setup. He starts telling me about all the deer he saw while on stand and just had to risk a shot he was not sure about. A neighbor had given him permission to hunt but he traveled a long way off the neighbor’s land crossing another’s land then set up in a tree 200 yards on my land which placed him within 50 yards of my son’s stand. My son was not hunting this morning. I showed him the boundaries he crossed and he claimed confusion in the morning dark and promised not to trespass again.

I found his deer a nice doe early that afternoon, called him to come get it and helped him haul it out. The trespasser ends up with a nice deer and no charges filed for his violation that burned up a day of my hunting.

Was I too nice?

Now that he clearly knows the property lines will he honor them?

More Marijuana Fields Found in Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest

August 30, 2012 by Charlie Leave a Comment

Hunters should be aware this fall in state and national forests. For the third year in a row pot-growing operations have been discovered, investigated and busted in the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest.

A fisherman notified WDNR when he found out of place plants and suspicious activities going on.

JSOnline reports

Authorities are destroying an estimated 15,000 marijuana plants worth approximately $15 million, said Ed Wall, chief of the state Division of Criminal Investigation, and Justice Department spokeswoman Dana Brueck. It will take until Thursday to airlift all the pot plants out of the remote, forested Oconto County area by helicopter, Wall said.

On Saturday, authorities stopped the Grand Prix and a red pickup also seen near the growing site and arrested Garcia and five others believed to be staying at her Brandon apartment: Miguel Sanchez Garcia, Jose Alfredo Sierra-Aguilar, Pedro Enfante-Ramirez, Guillermo Chavez-Carrion and a Livingston, Calif., man named Juan Carlos Cervantes-Contreras, the complaint says.

Many of us hunt in these remote areas so we must stay alert to our surroundings. If you come across drug operations which could include planted fields or processing equipment to avoid booby traps leave the area by the same path you traveled in on and report to the authorities.

In addition to their archery gear or shotgun some hunters may feel the need to carry their CC weapon for personal protection. Just remember a CC permit is not a junior G-Man badge; its best to let the trained professionals deal with these situations.

Wisconsin 2012 Fall Turkey Permit Availability

August 21, 2012 by Charlie Leave a Comment

Fall turkey limit in Wisconsin is dictated by the number of tags in your pocket.

As of today August 21, 2012 Wisconsin fall turkey permits have been drawn. You can log on to the online licensing system to check your status.

With the exception of unit 6 and 7 applicants everyone else who applied should have been awarded a permit. Those who did not apply will be able to buy one of the remaining 58,979 permits which go on sale beginning Saturday, August 25 at 10 a.m. Leftover permits can be purchased at the rate of one per-day until sold out. Units 1,3,& 4 did not sell out in 2011 by season’s end.

2012 Fall Turkey Leftover Permit Availability

Wisconsin Wild Turkey Management Plan Survey Part 2

August 3, 2012 by Charlie Leave a Comment

You can see the survey in its entirety by clicking on the link below.

Public Input Survey – Summary of Results

Fall Wild Turkey Hunting Season Survey 66.1% of responding turkey hunters also hunt turkeys in the fall.
By the zones Wisconsin fall turkey hunters hunt:

WI wild turkey off a snowshoe hunt

26.1% responded “Zone 1”

25.5% responded “Zone 2”

23.5% responded “Zone 3”

11.7% responded “Zone 4”

7.0% responded “Zone 5”

3.5% responded “Zone 6”

2.7% responded “Zone 7”

63% would like the fall season to open on the same time as it does now and 55% would have it stay the same length of time. Only 10% would like the season extended into January.

Currently a drawing is conducted to issue hunters their first permit. Many wonder why when there are tens of thousands of permits leftover for over the counter purchase. Hunters can buy one permit per day until they are sold out. By season’s end there are still thousands left unsold. Many dedicated turkey hunters buy extra permits they have no intention of filling just to support Wisconsin’s turkey management efforts.

A good sum of money would be saved by eliminating the fall drawing. 56% favor eliminating it.

If Wisconsin eliminated the fall permit drawing, what would you like the fall season bag limit
(total turkeys allowed for the entire season) to be? Assume that any hunter wishing to purchase a fall turkey
license would be able to do so. Please answer this question for the zone in which you typically
hunt during the fall turkey season.

50.5% responded “1 turkey”

29.7% responded “2 turkeys”

2.9% responded “3 turkeys”

1.2% responded “4 turkeys”

6.2% responded “unlimited with a tag”

9.4% responded “unsure/not applicable”

Again, like with the spring question I do not understand this correlation of answers if the drawing is eliminated then 80% want a one or two bird limit. But if the drawing continues the limit will continue to be “unlimited with a tag”.

I don’t understand the logic here.

In the big picture Wisconsin has very few dedicated fall turkey hunters, most fall turkeys are killed incidentally while hunting

Closing out 2011 Turkey Season in Wisconsin

another species, mainly deer. Perhaps the archers who shoot their turkey or 2 while on stand consider that’s enough and would like all other hunters out of woods by “rut time”. As a long time archery deer hunter I hate to admit the treatment directed by some archers at me while I was turkey hunting was very disrespectful. If I were a weaker personality I would have considered it intimidating. It was quite apparent they considered me a trespasser on their piece of public land.

Wisconsin Wild Turkey Management Plan Revision Process

August 1, 2012 by Charlie Leave a Comment

Wisconsin Wild Turkey

Yep, that is what they call it. When you have so much opportunity to turkey hunt a title like that surely makes a dedicated turkey hunter nervous. But since change is one of life’s certainties we must make the best of it. So far, there are no changes proposed, some are being thought about and the public input survey is the first step. The next step is a draft plan that will be submitted this fall with the final plan being submitted for approval by the summer of 2013.

Lets all hope the public survey is not the driving force in the new plan because only 2,124 surveys were completed. Unfortunately, in my opinion, that too small of a sample and a random sample at that. Krista McGinley and Scott Walter traveled the state of Wisconsin last spring to share information about Wisconsin turkeys and to collect public input. Sadly for all the travel and time they spent only 77 folks showed up at the meetings, charlie being one of them. The meeting I attended had 1 newspaper reporter, 1 warden, 1 biology professor, and 3 turkey hunters. The meeting was very informative and with so few there we had a good wide ranging discussion with Scott Walter. Scott and Krista are good people with their hearts in the right place.

Anyone who has followed my comments on Wisconsin turkey hunting sites know I am very concerned with the sharp decline in the number of turkey hunters. Those hunters who dropped out of turkey hunting are not included in the yearly hunter satisfaction surveys nor are their opinions in this plan revision survey. The survey’s respondents averaged 13.3 years of turkey hunting, we might call those hunters dedicated.

Some highlights from the survey:

80.9% strongly support the current spring season structure and drawing schemes.
97.4% respondents stated they hunt spring turkeys

During the spring turkey season, which time period (A – F) do you most prefer to hunt?

35.6% responded “Period A”
30.7% responded “Period B”
17.4% responded “Period C”
7.9% responded “Period D”
2.9% responded “Period E”
1.5% responded “Period F”

No surprise most of us want to hunt the first 2 time periods.

If Wisconsin eliminated the spring permit drawing, what would you like the spring season bag limit (total turkeys allowed for the entire season) to be?

49.3% responded “1 gobbler”
41.2% responded “2 gobblers”
5.1% responded “3 gobblers”
3.8% responded “4 gobblers”
0.7% responded “unsure/not applicable”

OK this one surprises me. 90% want a limit of 1 or 2 gobblers however 80% said they don’t want the current system changed at all. But it allows 1 per permit and there are quite a few hunters who take more than 4 per spring now. If someone can explain this please do.

Reason for the Loss of Hunters?

July 31, 2012 by Charlie Leave a Comment

Across the country the number of hunters continues to decline. If trend continues at its present rate wildlife conservation will dramatically suffer due to the lack of funding via hunting license purchases. No other outdoor user group as stepped up to the plate to willingly pay the fees and taxes required to maintain wildlife populations. If think this is wrong thinking feel free to comment.

As hunters we continually contemplate reasons why this hunter decline is happening:

Historically hunter numbers ebb and flow peaking about every other generation. So perhaps this current decline is part of that natural ebb and flow.
Modern education is demeaning and derogatory when it comes to man’s role in the natural evolution of development.
The technological advances have made would be hunters more comfortable in their homes so the incentive to go and spend extended periods of time in inclement weather without all conveniences of modern life.
Hunter population is aging and quitting for health reasons.
Fractured families and the increase in single female parenthood households are not conducive to introducing kids to hunting.
There are too many other entertainment distractions that are more fun than hunting.
Is this young hunter a hunter for life?

Distractions, hmm.. Who is getting distracted? The potential young new hunter?

Or is it us old-timers?

How could that possibly be so? “I love hunting and love to share it with beginners.” OK I understand, but hang with me a minute.

Many of us old-timers or experienced hunters if you prefer, jump at the chance to introduce kids to hunting. After all isn’t that what WI learn to hunt program and all special youth hunts are all about? Well, yes, that is the intention of these programs. But there are times I will hear a father comment about taking the kid out on the youth hunt, get them their deer or turkey and then “I” get to “really” hunt. Responsibility discharged. Of course not all verbalize it this way.

Thinking back on my introduction to hunting I realize there is more to it than that.

Where are the stories told anymore? Adults have a lot of things going on, we get tired and on those occasions when our adult children come to visit with the grandkids do we mostly talk to the kids or our adult kids? Hey, I miss my kids so I talk to them along with the grandkids but not as much. My 9 year old grandson on his last visit said he was “going to play because adult talk is boring.” This raised no eyebrows, pretty normal, kids like to play. Something about this comment stuck with me and when that happens I reflect.

After arising before the sun I was enjoying a quiet moment reading an old book of hunting stories, when my grandson’s words popped into my head. It hit me then. Many of today’s hunting books and articles are how to, or if they make an attempt at a story it is a description of the kill with plugs for the latest products used to make the kill and you must have these if you too want to be successful. Uff.

Hunting allows you to be a participant in nature rather than just a casual observer

Do we tell the stories any more? The stories of hunts successful or not sets off sparks of desire, they did for me as a young lad. Those recounted tales of the hunt sparks ignited all that dry rambuncous tinder into a raging fire of desire to hunt.

Raccoon Color Phases

July 29, 2012 by Charlie 6 Comments

Picture Courtesy of Ticklish Tom Custom Calls

Everyone knows what raccoon looks like and what color they are, right?

This Wisconsin raccoon is different, looks to be blonde says Randy, the fellow who caught him raiding his chicken coop.

According to Scott Craven Professor of Wildlife at University of Wisconsin wild raccoons colors can “vary from buff brown, black, yellow or orange variations can occur.”

Advanced Wildlife Control in Southeastern Wisconsin report they have caught and released 100 yellow phase raccoons.

The raccoon population in West Central Wisconsin seems to be significantly reduced this year. During the spring I found dozens of dead raccoons lying about woods probably due to them getting distemper which is fatal to raccoons. There are many accounts of raccoon populations dying off due to this. Raccoons can pass on canine distemper to dogs including coyotes and fox. My sightings of these during the summer months are sharply down.

Back to our blonde, in case you are wondering what happened to the yellow chicken coop raider; he was released in an undisclosed location and hopefully he will not find his way back to the coop.

Round About to Turkey Hooked

July 29, 2012 by Charlie Leave a Comment

To me hunting is not a sport, it is not a hobby and certainly not just another pastime; rather it is a “way of life”. Hunting is woven into every fiber of my being I must hunt in order to be whole, much as in the manner religion fills the yearning voids of spiritual need.

When a hunting season is not open I am planning my next; I am out there watching, learning and listening. More importantly, I am always hunting for that insight; you know; those fleeting moments when you see clearly the reasons…Then it’s gone just as fast as it came and on goes the hunt. But there are epiphanies, those moments when you understand a small piece of the driving force.

Turkey hunting did not grab me or more accurately infect me for several seasons. Originally turkey hunting started as an add-on hunt; in other words turkeys are only thing in my neighborhood available to hunt in the spring unless you consider bowfishing a form of hunting. Some do, some also consider fishing a substitute for hunting, but alas, for me, fishing does not quench my parching thirst for the hunt.

For several years, in the spring, when a 5 day permit could be drawn I’d halfheartedly turkey hunt and at times accidentally kill a turkey. Oh, I thought I was really turkey hunting mainly because I did not know any better and no one would ever have convinced me that dead turkey was an accident.

Until… A realization dawned; there was more to successful turkey hunting than hearing a gobbler, setting up, scratching a call and blasting him.

In truth turkeys are dumb, random in action and down right complex all at the same time. That is assuming you go out to kill one on purpose and not by accident.

What is an accidental turkey kill?

You come around a bend in the trail to find a strutting gobbler – Bam.
You set up on a trail, do no calling, turkey flies off roost and walks the only trail to the only food source – Bam.
You lay against the trunk of a tree sunning yourself to nap, crack an eye see a bird – Bam.

Nice but accidental kills none the less. Yea I have had some “easy” turkeys but more often than not they have required some work, a lot of work plus strategy. These easy turkeys do not hold a candle to; putting one to bed, arriving before the hint of light, setting up and being part of the first turkey conversation of the day. Hooking that bird with your calls and bringing him in on the audio string, playing him like a fiddle or like fish on light test line careful not to break it before – Bam. Walking through the big woods lush in bloom of spring flowers; casting out your audio line anticipating the strike—set the hook and play in the string – Bam. The turkey offers a complexity like no other game. It needs to grow inside the hunter like a fragile seed planted in fertile ground. No one can place it there and you can not force it. Be patient. In the meantime enjoy your hunts with open heart. Mr. Turkey will take care of the rest and you too will be become “turkey hooked.”

Here is the moment I got turkey hooked.

Dawning of an understanding

One of the hardest things for me – a hunter is explaining why I hunt. Like those who have tried to justify hunting before me I feel a certain humble inadequacy with the subject. My insight into this question is no better than any others and you can learn from the greenest of hunters…….While elk bugling into Circle Creek Valley from high up on Saddle Mountain in Colorado; the young lad upon hearing a response exclaimed “he is talking to me, he’s talking to me!” Whereas my thoughts had just turned to a satisfying meat-laden pack biting into my shoulders. The lad was more right in his assessment of that for which I am forever grateful for that epiphany. A subtle and at the some time profound observation, for at that moment we had truly become a part of nature as participants. It carried forward into my next spring turkey hunt – “he’s talking to me!” In quiet moments I’ve thought how strange to have gotten “turkey hooked” on an elk hunt with one so inexperienced.

Correcting the Wisconsin Wolf Hunting & Trapping Misunderstandings

July 27, 2012 by Charlie 7 Comments

The wolves in Wisconsin must be elevated to game animal status to prevent them from being viewed as just pests.

In some quarters hysteria is developing over the thought of the wolf elevation to big game status. Which by the way is a good thing for the wolf’s long-term outlook.

No matter how you feel about wolves in the wild, they are here to stay so get used to hearing and seeing them. The protection, preservationist extremists, also must get used to the idea that wolves have entered into the royal order of the respected game animals.

We have argued about wolves long enough so for the sake of the wolf let’s begin proper management enabling the wolf to live within the carrying capacity of the available habitat; this goes for some of my fellow hunters too.

The established wolf season framework is useful and makes sense. There are some controversial points that I feel compelled to address.

Here is a brief outline of Wisconsin’s wolf regulations-

These are not too controversial unless of course, you oppose wolf hunting:

• Season dates: October 15 to end of February
• Legal Weapons: Firearms, bows, crossbows
•Shot size: Larger than BB allowed

Use of dogs is controversial even some hunters are up in arms:

• Dogs: May use up to 6 dogs in a pack to track or trail wolves beginning day after Nov. gun deer season

Some deer hunters have concerns about dogs running during the gun deer season, that is not a problem due to dogs not being allowed until after the Nov gun deer season. Others including those who do not hunt and some misguided hunters just plain do not like the use of dogs for any hunting let alone wolf hunting. Some of your minds are most likely closed and not open to change, that is too bad; while others may be on the fence or think “to each his own” good for you guys and gals.

It takes a very specialized dog to run wolves, and I am not sure there are very many wolf hounds in Wisconsin. The wolf hounds that may be here are probably not trained for wolf hunting. I wonder if there any trained wolf hounds in the United States other than those used by government hunters whose job it is to eliminate problem wolves in the West. (good work if you can get it)

If any hounds-men think they can use their bear hounds for wolves be very careful, the required training is different. Wolves are territorial in the extreme, packs of wolves fight each other when one pack violates the territory of another. Wolves kill each other in these battles so the average pack of hounds unfamiliar with “fight to the death tactics” will be at a disadvantage. A wolf being chased is not going to come to bay or tree like a bear does, rather it will find the rest of the pack to engage the trespassers. There are plenty of sad stories here in Wisconsin of hounds and other hunting dogs being killed by wolves.

Once hounds-men do their research I doubt they will run their dogs after wolves, so the concerns of those opposed to wolf hunting with dogs are overblown.

• Baiting: Shall be allowed but regulated

• Calling: Allowed including electronic calls
• Night Hunting: Legal option beginning day after Nov. gun deer season
• Use of Lights: Flashlights only at point of kill

Night hunting wolves raised some hackles; again not allowed until after the gun deer season. Coyotes and raccoons are hunted at night. So what is the problem here? Most night time wolf hunting will most likely be done from a calling setup as is with coyote hunting.

• Cable restraints: Shall be allowed as a trapping method
• Trapping: Shall be allowed with specific regulations

Trapping too gets under the skin of some who are just plain anti-trapping. Others worry about their bird dogs, yeah me too, but then if an area is known to have a lot of wolves they are a bigger threat to my bird dog than a few traps lying about. Currently during bird seasons trapping season is also open so I am already on the lookout for sets to steer my dog away.

Most wolf trappers will probably use a cable restraint so that non-target animals can be released unharmed.

Here are the preliminary wolf trapping regs-

Methods for Trapping
Traps: It is illegal to set, place, or operate steel-jawed traps
with a maximum spread width of more than:
• 7 inches from Oct. 15-Nov. 30 unless it is a water set.
• 8 inches from Dec. 1-Feb. 28.

Cable Restraints: It is illegal to set, place, or operate any cable
restraint for wolves except from Dec. 1-Feb 28. To be a legal
set, the cable restraint must:
• be 10 feet or less in length with a diameter of 3/32 inch or
larger and be composed of multiple strands of wire;
• have cable stops that ensure that the portion of the cable which
makes up the noose loop may not be longer than 48 inches
when fully open or less than 8 inches when fully closed;
• be set with the bottom of the cable loop 6 to 14 inches above
the surface;
• include a reverse-bend washer lock with a minimum outside
diameter of 1¼ inches and a 1,500 pound roller swivel that
acts as the maximum opening cable stop; and
• be staked in a manner that does not allow the restraint device
to reach any part of a fence, rooted woody vegetation greater
than ½ inch in diameter, or any other immovable object or
stake that could cause entanglement.

The 2012 wolf hunting season proposal is a temporary framework, known as an emergency rule. During next year, the department will begin work on a permanent rule.

Information on the hunting season proposal can be found on the DNR website dnr.wi.gov search for keyword “wolf.”

Hunting for Sustainability: A course for novice hunters

July 24, 2012 by Charlie 4 Comments

Man has been hunting since the beginning of his time. Hunting is the natural state of nature which is why hunting is commonly considered “a way of life” rather than just a sport or hobby.

Madison College is offering a continuing education course Hunting for Sustainability. This sounds like a great course which is directed at the new or novice hunter.

Madison College, in partnership with the Department of Natural Resources, is offering this continuing education course that aims to show how hunting plays into conservation and healthy living. You’ll also learn hunting skills, ethics, tools, and techniques from experienced hunters. And, you’ll be able to participate in a mentored deer or pheasant hunting experience. Become a more sustainable omnivore. Learn from experienced hunters.

Kudos to Madison College for making this course available.
Hunting is critical to funding conservation and perhaps more importantly hunting makes you into a participant rather than just an outside observer of nature and your food.

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