GRAND CHUTE, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – The start of Deer Hunt 2017 is on the horizon.
“There’s bow hunters, but gun hunting is just a different thing. You got thousands and thousands of people in the woods waiting. They wait all year for this,” said Andy Sroka, Scheels Archery Manager.
And about 600,000 gun-hunters say the time for waiting is over, almost.
Daybreak Saturday brings the start of the nine-day, gun deer hunt.
Hunters will be huddled in their shacks, or in other prime places across the state.
Anticipation builds as hunters make last-minute preparations.
Hunters combed the aisles at Scheels in in Grand Chute Friday morning,
“Doing some last-minute shopping. Some orange t-shirts,” said Dan Draheim, Greenville.
Draheim was gearing up, and burning off some nervous energy too.
“The night before opening, you have a lot of anxiety. It’s almost like Christmas morning, or Christmas Eve, where you can’t sleep and you’re excited about the anticipation of the sun coming up and first light,” he said.
Draheim hunts with family and friends in Outagamie County.
“It looks like a typical year. Farmers are just getting the crops off now, so the deer have been moving around a little more, coming into our game cameras,” he said.
But what are the chances of bagging that trophy buck? Wildlife biologists say opportunity opening weekend typically is pretty good, opening morning, even better.
“We’ve had multiple mild winters in a row, and that’s allowed for better productivity. And we’re seeing that on the landscape. We saw a nice bump in the buck harvest up north last year, and we anticipate that trend to continue this year,” said Jeff Pritzl, DNR District Wildlife Supervisor.
Back at Scheels, business was brisk
“It’s been crazy the last couple days, and even for a couple weeks already,” said Sroka.
Sroka says hunters shop according to the weather. Popular items include hats, gloves and those warmers too.
“The hot hands. The little things you put in your gloves, in your feet. You shake them up and it gets you warm,” said Sroka.
And there’s even a full-body heated hunting suit.
“It’s like a big sleeping bag, where you can crawl in it. They have a blaze orange cover for it,” said Sroka.
Hunters will put their gear, and the weather conditions, to the test beginning early Saturday morning.
“Once the sun comes up, and you start getting tired, then deer start moving around, you hear the first gun shot, and then your heart races a little bit. So, good times,” said Draheim.
