30 minutes ago, gim said:

I saw 8 deer today, 7 antlerless and one pretty decent 8 point buck.

 

I am holding out for Mr Big for now.  As the season wears on I might lower my standards.

Never pass today what you would shoot tomorrow!  

I do not use any rattling antlers, grunts, decoys, etc when I hunt @12poundbass.

I've had pretty good luck with a buck growl  grunt tube and those primos can "bleat" calls .  I bleat a.few times, then wait a bit, give a big loud snort wheeze and a couple drawn out deep grunts.  

 I've pulled deer off the top of ridges from 200 yards away.  Doesn't work every time but it works enough to be worth it.  Make sure you're brushed in good because they pinpoint on the noise immediately 

16 hours ago, gim said:

I saw 8 deer today, 7 antlerless and one pretty decent 8 point buck.

 

I am holding out for Mr Big for now.  As the season wears on I might lower my standards.

 

Are wolves still a problem?

 

My memory might be off, but I thought several years ago they were reintroduced and deer hunters were not happy about it. Or you couldn't trap them?

 

Like I said, I could be wrong. I'm trying to remember from maybe a decade ago.

 

I just remember deer hunters weren't happy about wolves.

Gray wolves are present in the northern 1/3 of the state.

 

I hunt just south of the very southern edge of their range, so they are not an issue where I am.  But in the northern heavy timber of the state, they are present.

 

I used to hunt in prime wolf country for 25 years at a traditional "deer camp" with 9 other people.  For as much time as we spent there hunting, no one ever saw one.  Ever.  I heard some howling one morning on my way into the stand and I also saw old tracks in the snow.

 

The issue, at least how I see it, is that there are simply too many now.  They've soared past their population goals here and affected both deer and moose numbers.  They've also lost their fear of us in some areas because they are federally protected.  I am in the camp that they need to be managed by each individual state with a limited quota-based hunting and/or trapping season.  They are no different than any other game or predator; they should be controlled.  Not eradicated.  They are an apex predator that is an essential part of the landscape.

 

They were removed twice from the endangered species list, only to have it reversed in federal court.

 

Right now, the only legal way you can address a wolf is in the defense of human life.  If they are attacking livestock or pets, you have to call in a specialist from the US Fish and Wildlife Service to address it.

 

Wisconsin and Michigan also have gray wolves, but Minnesota has way more.  I'd love to see one in the wild someday.

I’ve heard a few people say they have put a major hurting on the deer population in Michigan’s UP. Some friends of ours have property up there and showed me trail cam footage of a pack of 9 running on their property. They (the humans) target bear up there but said they rarely see deer. 
 

 He was told a story of a guy up there who was so tired of the state doing nothing about the wolf mess, he decided to take matters into his own hands. He trapped a couples wolves, loaded them on a cattle trailer and hauled them down here and released them. Seems highly unlikely but, there was a wolf shot south of me a couple years ago by a hunter who mistook it for a coyote. 
 

I too would love to see one in person. I don’t want a population of them down here destroying the deer population though.

I had a good hunt today.  I saw 5 deer and dumped a corn fed doe for my bonus antlerless tag with a relatively easy shot at 150 yards.  I also saw some rutting activity - a fork horn chasing a doe and then a decent 8 pointer chasing a doe.  The 8 pointer may have been the same one I saw on Sunday.

 

 

My Father shot a big 10 pointer today.  We tracked blood (not a lot) for hundreds of yards through brush, red sumac, cattails, and canary grass.  Eventually the trail took us up a hill and out into an open plowed bean field where the blood ended.  Never found the deer.

 

The old man is gonna have buck nightmares about this one until he dies...

 

I'm gonna hang it up for the season.  I saw a spike buck and a doe today.  It's gonna be 65 degrees tomorrow which is WAY too warm to hunt.  In total I saw 22 deer in 6 days of hunting, including 6 different bucks.

Tough break on that buck...happens sometimes.

 

At least you got something for the freezer this year, I know a couple guys who got completely skunked....mainly because they didn't get an antlerless permit and never saw a buck.

17 minutes ago, MN Fisher said:

Tough break on that buck...happens sometimes.

 

I know it does.

 

That's the first wounded deer between the two of us that we've lost in 64 combined years of deer hunting.  Sucks that it just happened to be a quality buck too.  Pure coincidence.

@gim, I don’t hunt but I know seeing 6 bucks in 6 days is good hunting! Plenty of my buddies go several days without seeing anything but chipmunks 

Although seeing 3-5 deer per sit, I have been waiting for one of these two, to show up but this one did the other morning so I decided to tag it. I still have another buck tag so we shall see.

Nice buck @Ski

On 11/11/2025 at 5:39 AM, 12poundbass said:

I’ve heard a few people say they have put a major hurting on the deer population in Michigan’s UP.

 

So I sort of have a cool story, at least I think it's cool.   

 

I have a client (also from Iowa), and every summer he goes on a moose research outing.

 

I'm pretty sure it revolves around the moose and wolf populations.

 

I could be wrong, but if I remember correctly, it's actually on an island.

 

 

Isle Royal.  It's in the northern sector of Lake Superior.  The closest mainland is Minnesota but it falls under Michigan jurisdiction.

 

It's actually a national park too.

 

If I'm not mistaken, @TnRiver46 may have camped there.  I think they allow limited, primitive camping on the island.

This was the first year I've taken my oldest son deer hunting. I haven't been in the last 4 years since we moved from our last place and I didn't have anywhere to hunt except public land. Lake showed an interest and I told him if he got his hunter's safety permit, I'd take him. Well he did his Hunter's Safety classes last January and still said he wanted to go, so I did my best Google Maps scouting and found a small piece of walk in hunting near our house that looked like crop field with some tree rows. I was pretty surprised it actually looked pretty good when we drove out to hunt it. We never saw a thing, not even a squirrel. It was pretty warm and windy, but Lake's chair was comfortable.

We got extremely lucky and got invited out to hunt private land about 25 minutes away that had a couple blinds already set up with feeders on it. Our first night we saw one nice 8 point cruise by out of range and had a doe cruise right up to the blind, but winded us about 10 yards away. No amount of cover scent could hide the cologne he'd doused himself in before school that morning I guess. 

Our second sit was pretty exciting with a really big buck chasing a doe all over through the trees about 100 yards out. It had quieted down and we were running out of light when I saw movement through the blind behind Lake. A little 8 point slipped in on us and he tried to get the crossbow up and steady but I guess it was heavier for him than I realized and that combined with his shaking and uncontrollable heavy breathing made me pull his arm down. I was afraid he'd make a bad shot and we wouldn't find the deer. The landowner sent me a picture off his trailcam asking if we were tracking the deer yet.

The third night I brought a doe bleat call and we weren't in the blind 30 minutes when a little fork horn buck came in to check out the call. It was pretty much a replay of the night before but Lake wasn't going to give me a chance to tell him no. The bolt sailed right over it's back but I wasn't looking at the deer when he shot so I didn't know if he'd hit it. It wasn't until Troy sent me the video from his trailcam later that night I got to see the bolt miss completely. We went straight to Academy that night and got a monopod for him to rest the crossbow on when he was aiming. He really liked how much easier it was to aim with it at the house so I was hoping that would be the solution to our problems.

The next night the weather was a little warm but the wind was perfect, blowing right back down the trail we walked in on and out into the cut bean field, away from the feeder and woods the deer usually came from. Then 10 minutes after we got there, someone started shooting nearby. They must have gotten a new rifle, because they started shooting and they just kept shooting, over and over. On top of that, Lake had developed a cough and even though he tried, occasionally one would slip out and I was 100% sure we wouldn't see anything. About when I was ready to pack it in and leave early, I heard movement to my left and I was 100% sure it was a deer. I had Lake get the crossbow up and steady and we watched the deer come out of the trees and start working towards the feeder. It stopped and starred at us a couple times, and I realized he had taken his face cover off, so his glowing white face was sticking out of the opening of the blind. I was sure the deer would run off, but it kept working in. I was trying to record and coach at the same time, and right when I told him to wait for it to turn broadside "whack!". I knew from the instand blood spurt that it was a solid hit, a heart shot I was pretty sure. We both celebrated and moments later, I could hear the branches and leaves thrashing not far down the path the deer had gone, I knew it was down. 

You know you're not going far when the leaves look like this.

I told Lake we were going to walk our stuff to the truck and then go find his deer, but we ended up doing both.

Almost the exact same size as the first deer I ever killed, makes it easier on me when he doesn't set the bar too high right away. Made some great memories and he's already looking forward to next season.

 

Then I stop this morning for my quick morning fishing before work and see this brute drinking from the water's edge not far from me.

 

 

 

Congrats Lake on your first deer!

@gim and @HawkeyeSmallie, I indeed camped on isle royale for 6 days. They have the world’s longest predator/prey study ongoing there. We walked quite a bit of the island but you can’t see much, the bushes are 8 feet tall, it’s like walking thru a car wash. Saw some otters and a fox, and plenty of wolf and moose scat but it’s too thick to see much . Good pike fishing ! Also saw a giant brook trout they call a “coaster” but it was very smart and wouldn’t bite, I think it briefly chased a fluke. 
 

@Bluebasser86, congrats!!!!

Guys, I've been hunting for 15 years. Shot a lot of does, but I've always said I wasn't going to shoot a buck until it was one I would be proud to put on the wall. Well, last night it finally happened. So grateful, and absolutely worth the wait!! 

This guy was a fighter. Broken tines, shredded ear on the right side, scars on his face... a deer with character. 

 

Nice buck sir! Congrats.

@JackstrawIII congrats. Bucks like that come around once or twice in a hunters lifetime. It took me 18 years to get my first wall buck too. You’ll never forget it.

 

You should post a photo of the finished product mount when it’s done.

3 hours ago, gim said:

@JackstrawIII congrats. Bucks like that come around once or twice in a hunters lifetime. It took me 18 years to get my first wall buck too. You’ll never forget it.

 

You should post a photo of the finished product mount when it’s done.

Thanks Gim. I just dropped off the rack and cape at the taxidermist today. He's widely regarded as the best in our area, so there's a long wait. Won't get him back till May/June... but I'll report back with a pic when that day rolls around. 

Finally got one this morning. Been trying to get one with my pistol and got it done this morning. 21.5 yards broad side with my sig p320 full size 45acp. Perfect behind the shoulder she went 53 yards and piled up. When gutting her I hit lungs and top of her heart. 
 

Nice shooting!

At the store.