By Glen Wunderlich

To be or not to be afield, that is the question:  Whether it is better to hold off during archery’s early season and wait for the rut or to take part in opening day.

There are those trophy hunters that would never begin hunting the archery deer season until the third week in October so as not to run the risk of messing up a chance at a more careless buck later on.  Their rationale may even make a fair amount of sense.

To me, however, opening day reminds me of Christmas morning when I was a boy.  My parents would remind me not to get up too early so they could sleep in.  I knew Santa Claus had dropped off the presents, just like he had done faithfully in prior years.  Maybe just a little peek toward that decorated conifer that graced our living room by the picture window.  That’s all it took.  “Mom!  Dad!  Santa was here!  Get up!  Get up!”  That sleeping-in thing never went past 7am.

Over five decades later, little has changed.  The “presents” are still under the trees and, if nothing else, October 1 means time to peek into the whitetails’ world.

My hunting partner, Joe, decided on a half-mile walk Read more

By Glen Wunderlich

As a lifelong Michigan resident, getting prepared for the brutality of winter seems to be a never-ending exercise.  It seems like the fruit trees just recently escaped a late frost and now we are protecting our tomatoes from an early one.  And, if that’s not enough, hunting season brings its own set of priorities.  Choices, choices. Read more

The 2013 Deer Hunting: Status and Prospects report – available for download below – provides information about resources and approaches for preparing for deer season each year, some background on deer in each region of the state and perceptions on hunting activity up to this point in the season.
For more information about deer hunting seasons, opportunities and resources, visit www.michigan.gov/deer.

• Deer Hunting Prospects 2013.pdf