The Rhinelander Daily News - Online news and information for the Rhinelander, Wisconsin region

Roger Sabota
Northwoods notebook

I have now been back in northern Wisconsin from our high country elk hunt in Colorado for two weeks. My body is still in the process of adjusting. It feels great to turn on a faucet and get warm water to wash my hands. In Colorado we had skim ice in the water jugs for most of our hunting trip. Of course a hot shower each morning was a luxury that we had to do without.

We slept quite comfortably in sleeping bags on cots. Now it is nice to roll over in bed without a sleeping bag holding your shoulders back.

Each evening we would put another piece of firewood in the woodburner prior to crawling into the sleeping bag. The fire only lasted for an hour or so. Three mornings the temperature in the tent was 12 degrees at 5 a.m. when we got up to go hunting. We learned years ago to put our underwear under our sleeping bags at night so they would not be extremely cold when we put them on in the morning. Several of us wore stocking hats at night to keep our heads more comfortable as the temperature dropped.

Another distraction that I miss to a limited degree usually occurred about 3 a.m. Everyone knows that a tent is not very sound proof. Most of the mornings that we camped on that mountain we were entertained by a pack of coyotes. They sounded as though they were right next to our tent. The symphony would usually last about 15 minutes then we would hear them as they moved on. The one morning when we had snow on the ground we found coyote tracks within ten feet of the tent. They were loud enough that we all woke up to listen. After discussing our trip with my wife, Judy, she thanked me for not inviting her to join us on this trip.

The hunting conditions are very different in the mountains as compared to hunting in our area. Of course the thin air at elevations in excess of 10,000 feet made climbing very difficult. Packing out elk meat with backpacks was a real challenge. We have found that no matter how much we workout to get our legs in shape our lungs are still used to the air at the elevation here at home.

Since we have returned to Wisconsin we have talked with quite a number of hunters who have been hunting in our area. In general the grouse hunters are having an excellent fall. Those hunters who are archery hunting for deer and those who are hunting waterfowl are disappointed.

It sounds like there are more geese in the area than ducks. On most ponds that we glass when looking for ducks we see geese swimming in small flocks. If there is green grass near the water it will be black with geese grazing on that grass.

Archery hunters in general are disappointed because they are not seeing many deer. Several archery hunters have mentioned that they are seeing more bears than deer. Again we have heard the stories that hunters stayed in their tree stands longer than planned while they waited for several bears to leave their corn or apple piles. There are also numerous archery hunters who have seen wolves from their tree stands.

In the latest issue of the “Wisconsin Outdoor News,” Mike Zechmeister, who is the DNR Northern Region Wildlife Biologist, may have described why archery hunters are not seeing many deer.

Zechmeister said that, “The Northern Region recorded heavy snowfall last winter.” Those deep snows affected herd survival and recruitment. He expects a significant reduction in the 2008 harvest as a result of last winter.

Zechmeister went on to say, “Thirty-one units east of a line from Ashland to Ladysmith had winter severity indexes well above 90 (severe) and many others above 100.” Historically fawn-to-doe ratios have been 20 percent lower after severe winters. Of the 46 deer management units in the Northern Region, 28 are included in herd control. In spite of this information there are large quantities of antlerless permits available.

Those of us who hunt the Monico area are seeing very few deer and almost no deer sign. Since the deer population in the Monico area is so very low we are asking deer hunters to refrain from killing antlerless deer in that area. The deer in that area have a tough time with deteriorating habitat, wolves, bears and hunters.

Anglers are loving the mild weather we have been experiencing recently. It is comfortably warm in the boat and the fish seem to be biting quite well. We talked to a walleye angler who is fishing the Rainbow Flowage. He said that the water is 14 feet below normal and just before dark they are catching walleyes in two feet of water.

A safety note in one of the “big three” outdoor magazines cautions hunters about eating rabbits. If you shoot a rabbit that has fine white or creamy spots on the liver the rabbit should be discarded immediately and not eaten. It is most likely infected with tularemia, a disease that is transmitted by ticks and fleas. Hunters are advised to wear latex gloves when field dressing rabbits and hares.

Tail Feathers

It is well known that hunting whitetails is huge business. An outfitter in the Buffalo County area has released photos of what appears to be a live buck that may beat the present world record whitetail. That outfitter is booked solid for the season.

Tell us what you think...

Comments »

The comments above are from readers. In no way do they represent the views of the Rhinelander Daily News.