Deer Hunting - A Year Round Sport?

For some hunters there's more than just one season to deer hunting - the other one is getting ready for the hunting season. Deer hunting season lasts only a couple months for many people. The remainder of the year is a good time to indulge in memories of past seasons, and to prepare for seasons to come. But you can get a head start on the next deer hunting season by talking with other deer hunters, and doing some reading and planning for the upcoming season.

During the off season, my job as a wildlife biologist allows me to spend a great deal of time in the bush. It's during this time that I'll locate the sites I'll use next year for stands and photo stations. During the summer, once in a while I'll happen to meet a deer hunter in the woods. Here they are, carrying an aerial photo or topography map, more than a mile from the nearest road, despite the heat, deer flies, and mosquitoes. When they first see me, they look disappointed since they assume I'm another deer hunter in the territory they've staked out.

But when they learn I'm not a hunter, but a biologist, they relax and then start pumping me for any information I have on the habitat in the area. Often they are as familiar with the local habitat as I am. For example, come fall, they know the bucks they see during summer will be found in another habitat area. They're out there in the woods looking for everything from doe concentrations to last year's rubs. Looking at the ground as they move through the woods is how they spend a lot of time. Frequently they're also carrying special trail cameras and deer attractants. And if you ask a deer hunter about their past successes, you'll rarely get a straightforward answer.

These people are serious deer hunters. Sometimes one of these hunters will ask me for my card, and once they have it I know I'll start hearing from them once a year or so after that. From them I can learn a great deal about a habitat, and I value their observations. They'll frequently get in touch with me to ask questions when planning their hunting trips. I enjoy my interaction with these deer hunters because they genuinely love the outdoors, and they have a deep understanding of the relationship between wildlife and their habitats.

The deer hunting season continues year round for these devoted hunters. The season starts with scouting and ends with harvesting. Many hunters have told me that they prefer the solitude of the scouting season over the busier harvest season. Whether they're scouting, hunting, or simply reminiscing about past seasons, for them deer hunting is a sport that can be enjoyed year round.