Wisconsin’s traditional nine-day gun deer season, the “gun” season, has given way to muzzleloader, antlerless, and holiday seasons.
These, too, are considered gun hunts and require most hunters, including gun deer hunters, to follow a blaze orange dress rule, which includes a cap, if worn.
Registrations recognize the importance of the traditional hunt in helping to manage Wisconsin’s deer herd by reducing animals as necessary to maintain biological and social carrying capacity of habitat land and society.
Sharing memories should be on a list of recruiting hunters, educating non-hunters and service providers what gun deer season is, as well as revealing the few unethical, illegal acts by anyone.
In other parts of Wisconsin, primarily the northern forest, deer per-square-mile of habitat may be fewer deer than hunters, or even residents prefer. Here, the traditional hunt limits the taking of antlerless deer to allow the herd to grow closer to biological capacity.
Statewide gun-deer hunters registered 189,622 deer during the nine-day season, a 5.2% increase compared to 2023’s 180,296 animals. Of those 99,835 were antlerless, 89,787 antlered. One nonfatal incident (Vernon County) was reported. License sales were up slightly with 791,023 combination licenses that include a gun deer license were sold and 553,652 straight gun deer licenses compared to 653,479 in 2023.
Stories and memories are part of the season and to a greater extent attaches “traditional” to the hunt. Some memories stay with the hunter, never to be shared, while others come to light as grandsons and granddaughters join older, wiser hunters.
Part of that education, transferring excitement, and ethics, comes from stories, some from long ago.
Bill Been of Sauk County grew up in Illinois and moved to Wisconsin in 1975 to farm.
“I heard about Wisconsin deer hunting while teaching school when students talked of coming to Wisconsin to hunt and forgoing classes,” Been remarked after two of his grandchildren joined him for a second hunt on his farm. Daniel, 12, and Kasey, 14, had taken antlered deer in 2023 and had developed a friendly rivalry.
Been, who was hunting with Daniel, allowed that good-natured stance to continue but not get out of hand by stating that sometimes fellow hunters need help or may even get assistance from someone hunting the same area.
Daniel watched, while sitting with Grandpa , six antlerless deer walk past. Grandpa said, “If you want to, shoot, but there may be a buck following.” There was.
Been coaxed Daniel to wait until the deer stopped before going into the woods. Daniel took Grandpa’s suggestion then shot, but the deer didn’t react to the shot and went into the woods.
Again, with Grandpa ’s coaxing, the hunters waited, then came out of the blind to look for blood but found none. Been would not consent to going into the woods.
“There are others hunting there; it wouldn’t be safe, and we’d mess up their hunt. We’ll come back later and look,” Been said.
Sister Kasey, hunting with an adult relative, Billie Jo Larsen, shot a six-point buck, and during a track-and-find they found another dead deer, an 11-point buck.
The hunters called Grandpa, now waiting at the farmhouse, and after some revealing conversation Grandpa put Daniel on the phone, and he was told that Kasey and company had found his buck a short distance into the woods.
Daniel’s friendly rival hunter had found his buck for him. Grandpa was thrilled to see the smile on Daniel’s face when he heard the news.
Nic Been, Daniel’s father, took a portion of the venison from the two deer to give to a school teacher who needed the meat for his five-member family.
Darren Kuhn, an administrative warden, was called upon to help a field warden on opening day patrol in Kewaunee County, where Kuhn had been stationed for five years when he began his career in 1998.
Administrative wardens, and others who were once field wardens, usually get called upon to assist during popular openers.
“I was glad to help, which I’ve done since I was promoted from the field warden position,” Kuhn said. “A number of hunters I got to know recognized me, and one even pulled out my old business card from his wallet.”
Kuhn had only been at that post for five years and yet established relationships and now was hearing stories 15 years later.
“It was as though I had never left,” he said.
A gentleman from Pakistan recently immigrated to U.S. and was hunting for the first time. He told Kuhn he had seen eight deer but passed taking a shot.
“Why did you pass on shooting at the buck?” Kuhn asked.
The man said he remembered in hunter education being told not to shoot if you don’t have a good shot.
The hunter said he had a good shot but remembered, too, that at no time did the instructors say how far away was too far, even with a good shot.
“Okay then how far away was the buck?” Kuhn asked. “‘Oh, maybe 100 feet,’ the man told me.”
— Jerry Davis is an Argyle native and a freelance writer who lives in Barneveld. He can be reached
at sivadjam@mhtc.net or at
608-924-1112.
