Hunting seasons are off to mixed start

By Bill Bartusek

The Labor Day weekend was good one for hunters as well as Lake goers. The weekend marked the start of the bear season and early goose seasons.

Early reports show mixed results for both species. Going in, it looked good for bear hunters, but it turned out be just average. The Bears are getting a bumper crop of acorns and that slowed activity at the bait stations. So hunting success was very spotty.

The first day of goose season was excellent, but the geese learned quickly to avoid hunters and things have slowed down considerably. Hunter's will have to monitor goose activity and find fields that are being hit. If they do that they should do well. There are a lot of Geese around.

Coming this weekend are two more hunting openers. One is bow-hunting for deer. The deer population is excellent throughout most of the state.

Hunter's that do their homework will probably get their deer. The hunt may be slow at first with all the cover available. After the first killing frost the hunt should improve considerably. Also, opening this weekend is the small game season. rabbit's and squirrel's will be fair game as well as grouse. The rabbit and squirrel numbers are good and hunter's should find a lot of action.

Again, there are a lot of acorns. and that usually relates to an abundance of squirrel's. With all the leaves, the hunter's who sit and wait will have the most success.

The grouse population statewide is on the upswing. For some reason these birds follow a 10-year cycle. We are on the upside now so hunter's should encounter quite a few more birds than last year.

Fall fishing is starting to pick up as fish prepare for the winter. Most fish species feed heavily in the next two months and fishing success is usually good. Look for the greenest weeds for the best results.