The weather is hot and humid outside. Let’s spend some time thinking about colder weather and activities. There are only 101 days until November 22, 2014 – Opening Day for whitetail rifle hunters. For those of you who are regular hunters you will want to know about some changes in hunting regulations. Perhaps the biggest change you are going to see is a complete re-organization of deer management units. Gone are the numbered units so many of us grew up. The state now has four hunting zones that are designed to better match county boundaries.
The new zones reflect hunting opportunities. A new crossbow specific license is available with crossbow season matching archery season. Antlerless tags are not going to issued for free in the northern half of Wisconsin but are available for purchase. The free, statewide, antlerless tag that you used to get with your license will NOT be issued this year. A final big change that you should watch for is alternative registration options. The DNR is moving towards phone, internet and smart phone registrations. Some hunters will be asked to voluntarily participate in alternative registration methods.
For more information about the changes to management units, seasons, and licensing requirements, visit the DNR website. The site has some helpful Q&A’s. It also contains a very informative twenty minute video. A brochure about changes can be found here: DeerRuleChanges2014.
People who know me well know that I am more of a snow bunny than a beach bum. I’ll take a wind chill advisory over a heat index warning. On a day like today when the heat index is hitting the area of 90 degrees, I find my inner calm by thinking about a snowy morning in a deer stand. For the 2014 season, that means knowing about the changes to regulations, seasons, licenses, and registration options.
Johanna R. Kirk; Kirk Law Office, LLC. Superior, WI