DNR's Deer Management Plan

[bigbucks]

I'll just say I definitely DON'T agree with Jameson.

I want to hunt DEER every year, realistically I want to deer hunt every month or day, but I'm kind of glad I can't. If I don't get one, that's my fault, but I want to be able to hunt them. I want to be able to hunt them with my family, but if I had to hunt totally solo I still would. Deer hunting is my #1 favorite pastime, to only do it every other year, is not acceptable. It would mean I would HAVE to hunt out of state every other year, where I could of course hunt every year, unless it was ND.

[Spike76]

Bigbucks, I agree with you. Deer hunting is my favorite thing to do, and spearing is a close second. I will deer hunt every year, and a fawn is enjoyed as much as a big buck.

[bigbucks]

Well I can't say I enjoy a fawn as much as a big buck, at least as far as the shooting part go's, but I still enjoy it a lot. Now on the table & in the butcher shop I like the fawn a lot more...

[slimngrizzly]

Quote:

It is June 15th and we are starting this topic already?????

No kidding!

But, i'll say that in Central MN and south into the farmland, I think our age structure and buck/ doe ration is bad. We're seeing a small fraction of this lands true potential. I think the DNR does "ok" at very best.

The DNR manages people and the attitudes of Minnesotas hunters and fisherman. The deer take the back seat.

[Drillbabydrill]

slimgrizz. good point! age structure is skewed in those areas!

[Bear55]

All I really ask from the DNR is a decent population to work with, if there is enough deer around a few bucks will slip through the cracks and I can get on them. When the population is down there are far far less mature bucks to hunt and finding one on public land becomes an extremely hard task. One area I hunt has a decent population so thing are ok there, the other is hurting for deer numbers so it makes things hard, even on the regular hunters who can't even find young bucks to shoot.

[picksbigwagon]

When I started deer hunting in the mid 90's (yep late in life I started this passion) there was a doe lottery in he area I hunted, then it became a management zone and then became intensive harvest. As far as I know, 346 is still intesive harvest, right smack dab in the MN big buck zone.

So how did this happen? How did the state manage to get all those big bucks down to the Houston area? APR only started a couple of years ago, SO that tells me that HUNTER CHOICE was the large determining factor to the success. Not state management practices or state laws.

I now choose to go to Iowa (Dubuque county, not my home county of Allamakee) to hunt with friends and family, Iowa does no buck lottery, in fact they have county doe lotteries for residents that rarely get used up in the big buck producing areas. Iowa hunters will let the little ones walk, not by law but by hunter choice, I think MN should follow that process, like they have in the past, and the lobby groups should spend more time educating instead of so much of their membership fee's for changing legislation.

[BLACKJACK]

All I really ask from the DNR is a decent population to work with, if there is enough deer around a few bucks will slip through the cracks and I can get on them.

I agree 110%!!!

When the day comes that I want to shoot a big buck, I don't need the DNR legislate a big buck tied to every tree, I'll go hunt one down.

[gurkster]