Eau Claire (WQOW) - This weekend marks the start to a Wisconsin tradition 161 years in the making. We talked to
a few local hunters as they registered their deer to find out how their hunt
has started out.
"Well it's an
eleven pointer, he's a ten point mainframe and he's got a little kicker coming
out of the base of him, which is pretty unique," said Tyler Schoettl of Eau Claire.
For Tyler Schoettl, the gun deer
hunt got off to a better start than he could have asked for.
"This morning we
got in pretty early, about a half hour before daylight, and we just sat in the
stands figuring other people would be moving deer. And that's what happened.
Someone walked through some land adjacent to us and kicked him out of there.
That's what gave me the opportunity," Schoettl said.
He was not alone, as hunters here
and across the state took advantage of the warm weather and active deer.
"The rut was still
in play, where as in past years it seems to me the rut had been over. Both me
and my cousin tagged out already so we had a great opening weekend. We had a
pretty mild winter last year so I've been seeing bigger deer than I normally
do," said Schoettl.
"Well the weather
has definitely been warmer. Usually you like snow for tracking purposes, and it
kind of helps you see the deer in the woods too when it's all brown with the
leaves and the ground, the snow gives you a little background to be able to see
the deer better," said Chuck Oelig of Tomahawk.
Most hunters are looking for a buck
like Tyler's.
"I've never shot a
deer that big. I haven't seen a lot of deer that big, other than on camera,"
said Schoettl.
But some hunters say they are happy
just to be back in a tree stand, enjoying time with friends and family.
"It's a good
bonding experience; we have a lot of fun, give everybody a hard time on missed
shots, or shooting too small of a deer. It's just fun," Oelig said.
Hunters we spoke with say they saw
about the same or slightly more deer than last year. The DNR says numbers from
the hunt are expected to be a little better than last year.
