How's Opening Weekend Going?

[DonBo]

I'm sitting it out this year, so hoping for some good stories. Let's hear 'em.

[muskiemanAD]

Cold and windy.... Was hunting between Siren and Grantsburg and it was quietest opener ever for shots. I saw 3 does this morning nothing tonight.

[WalleyeChaser]

I sat this year out also. Word from camp was SLOW. 1 small buck and about a dozen does and fawns all passed on for 3 guys. Most does were bedded and jumped on the way to stand for afternoon sit. Not much movement from all the other reports from friends spread around NW region.

[MJ1657]

I'm hunting between Siren and Grantsburg. Seeing 5 to 7 deer during the morning and evening sit. Every one of them has been a doe or fawn. Not much shooting but were hearing the most shots right around 4 pm.

[tunrevir]

We hunted over near Bruce last weekend and didn't hear a lot of shots but both days the 3-5 pm hours were when most of the shooting took place around us. My daughter sat with me and she hunted while I accompanied her. Saw 3 does sat am, 6 does Sat pm, nothing Sunday am, small six and a couple does Sunday pm. My son sat with my father in law and didn't hunt Sat am, Saturday pm he shot a nice 8 point with a 15" spread and 6 inch tines that we figured at 3.5 years old at about 4 pm. My father in law and son went back to the cabin to get the tractor and came back and there were 3 does feeding right near where the buck had fallen when they were driving up. Sunday am they stayed in the warmth and slept in and Sunday night about 430 my son shot a nice sized doe. My daughter is headed back to the cabin Thursday night with my father in law for the weekend. She has her sights set on a large 8 we call the chocolate 8 or another buck that hangs on the tip of the property we call tiparillo. One guy in our party shot a small 6 Sunday afternoon a bout 230, the rest of the guys saw some does and smaller bucks but didn't shoot.

Tunrevir~

[mwal]

Hunted in the Barnes area. I shot a mature dry 140lb doe Largest I have ever seen . It was the only deer I saw for the season. I hunted the 1st 2 days and the last 3. IT was the least amount of shots I have ever heard on opener. We heard 6 all day that's it. The registration station had only registered 254 deer as of 1pm Sun the 1st. Lowest ever. I had only 3 deer tracks in the fresh snow all at night and all had wolves join up with and the chase was on I did not follow to see what happened. That doe was my first kill in 5 seasons. I almost feel guilty taking it. It was alone and was barren after checking its bag. Most of the camps in the area got no deer and cleared out early this year. I have been hunting the area since 1976 and this is the least amount of shooting I have ever heard. I knew it would be poor as all summer we saw more bears on the roads than deer sightings. It used to challenging driving up to the cabin from the Cities it was a true obstacle course of deer from Gordon to Barnes Spooner to Minong etc. Now it is rare for me to see a deer on the road. You are more likely to see a bear May thru October. Deer were not even on the roads during the rut. I wonder if the extreme amount of predators is also compounded with a disease outbreak. I am not seeing the amount of hunters archery or gun in the last 5 or 6 years and the harvest records will show they are not being shot. Where are they. We did a lot of driving Saturday afternoon and there are not many tracks in the snow anywhere.

Mwal

[J_D]

I took off yesterday, hunting every day taking the pm off on turkey day. Saw 13 mostly does and fawns. camp ended with 8, 3 bucks and 5 does. 4 of those deer came on Friday, not sure why but there was a lot more shooting Friday than on opener. There is definitely less deer than the good old days but we worked hard and did OK. First year for a 12 yo in camp ended taking a doe, great experience to be a part of. I could tell folks gave up early, after opener we had public woods to ourselves. North of Hayward.

[klecker]

My twelve year old son with a second weekend doe.