K/D hunters already close to 900 whitetails

A growing farm country deer herd is offering plenty of chances at venison for Kewaunee and Door County hunters this year.

Through last weekend, KC license-buyers had already reported 367 whitetails while Door archers, crossbow users and youth gun deer hunters had 489.

With five more days under their belts since, it’s likely the K/D Peninsula total is now somewhere north of 900 deer taken in the first 40 days of the fall seasons.

K/D numbers include 77 (37 bucks) and 104 (50 bucks) during the youth hunt; 129 (67 bucks) and 192 (90 bucks) with crossbow; and 161 (69 bucks) and 193 (74 bucks) with vertical bows.

For those who really like to crunch numbers, that’s 173 antlered bucks and 194 antlerless deer from Kewaunee County through Oct. 18 and 214 bucks and 275 antlerless in DC.

Statewide, the youth hunt produced at least 7,239 deer (3,346 bucks), crossbows 10,192 (4,929 bucks) and vertical bows 17,028 (6,850 bucks). That’s a total of 34,459 — 15,125 bucks and 19,334 antlerless whitetails.

Of course, that’s a minimum number. Those totals don’t include deer that weren’t reported, or deer taken with firearms on damage tags or disabled hunter permits.

The biggest body count will come, as always, during opening weekend of the nine-day firearm deer season Nov. 21-22. That’s four short weekends away, so don’t delay if you haven’t yet purchased your license, readied your favorite stands or sighted in your trusty firearm.

Hunt age bill

State lawmakers have introduced a bill that would allow parents to decide when their child is ready to hunt instead of the current 10-year-old minimum. In addition, the bill would allow two firearms between the mentor and beginner instead of one as is currently allowed.

The last time legislators tried to let kids younger than age 10 hunt, there was a rule proposed around the same time that would require kids up to 8 years old use booster seats. That led to an editorial cartoon with a youngster in a car seat holding a firearm, and caused a firestorm of backlash against the proposal.

While I believe there are some kids younger than 10 who may be  physically and emotionally ready to hunt, far fewer — in my opinion — are not.

That said, Michigan got rid of minimum age rules in 2012, and has not seen any increase in hunting accidents involving the youngest hunters. Dozens of other states, with restrictions, also allow parents to decide when their kids can start hunting.

Salmon update

Low water and reduced stockings slowed this year’s salmon run, but Wisconsin’s three egg-taking facilities were still able to gather enough chinooks to supply not only our hatcheries, but provide some to Illinois and Indiana as well.

Northern Lake Michigan fisheries supervisor Dave Boyarski said staff at the Strawberry Creek Chinook Facility in Sturgeon Bay met their goal of 1.5 million eggs needed to produce the approximately 810,000 fish planned for spring 2016 stocking.

In addition, the Root River Steelhead Facility in Racine provided 450,000 eggs to the state of Indiana and the C.D. "Buzz" Besadny Anadromous Fish Facility in Kewaunee provided 100,000 eggs to the state of Illinois.

• Recent surveys by federal researchers using high-tech sonar and a trawl to check suspended baitfish on Lake Michigan found a fair number of young of the year alewife in some locations.

That’s good news, since the bottom trawl of adult alewife done in late summer produced the lowest numbers seen in decades.

• If we get heavy rain in the coming weeks, more cohos and brown trout should work their way up the Ahnapee and Kewaunee rivers.

Walleye Tour

Cabela’s National Walleye Tour has announced its 2016 schedule.

Two Wisconsin stops are scheduled, the first May 26-27 on Lake Winnebago and the second June 23-24 in Sturgeon Bay.

New for 2016, all NWT events will feature a Friday finish. The change from the traditional Saturday conclusion was a popular request among anglers and will apply to regular season events as well as the championship.

Learn more about the tour at www.nationalwalleyetour.com.

Kevin Naze is a freelance outdoors writer. Email him at wildtimes@wizunwired.net.

This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press Gazette: K/D hunters already close to 900 whitetails