Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting Wisconsin deer hunters - some questions

What firearm and cartridge are you going to use?

What is the weather prediction for opening day in your neck of the woods?

Any snow on the ground north of Hwy 29? Hwy 8?

In my area, no snow, mid 30's, good chance of rain later in the week. As to rifle, .350 or .308. If we get a snowstorm, I'll use an older 30-30 with a peep sight.

Wayne,
For the WI opening weekend, I'll be hunting in Illinois.

My 20" Criterion AR-15 and 260 Rem for sure. Maybe my uncle's Winchester pumpkin thrower that he gave me 2 days before he died.

Weather appears to be 40 for a high. Could change though.

Well at least there won't be any wolves around. Good luck.

Around here we are waiting for someone to shoot one of the Elk with the bright orange necklace. Wolves are abundant about 15 minutes from my house. Fortunately I hunt 25 minutes south of my house, not many sightings.

I'll have the 30-06, Remington 7600 carbine, shooting 165gr fed fusions. The Remington m700 mt rifle, in .280rem will also make the trip. That also shoots federal fusions, 140gr.

We'll be up north in Douglas Co. Doesn't look like any snow but there are some wolves.

Mauser x in 358 win. Custom model 700 in 7wsm chuckin 160 nabs and 168 vlds if somethin gets stupid in a far field. And my 7mm08 ai with 162 amax @2900 incase I need the extra magnification from the viper hd 5/20

Mid 30s no snow

Mid 30's here just west of Green Bay. 30-30 H&R Topper
loaded with 160 grain flex tips.

Kimber montana 25-06 vx3 2.5-8 with Hornady 117 grain interlock.

Mid 30's for a high.

Real high pressured public land in Rock county. 2 doe tags and a buck tag.

No snow and none in the forecast around Hwy 8.
Model 99 Savage in 300 Sav!

Want to bloody a new to me Marlin 336C 30-30 topped with a Leupold Vari-X II 1-4x20mm. A Savage 99-A 250-3000 topped with a Redfield Revolution 2-7x33m in reserve.

High of 31-32 degrees with some snow possible on opening day.

No snow in the forecast in Price co. but I wouldn't be surprised if we got some. We got 1/2" last Friday. My .243 Thompson Venture Youth model is my gun. I am hunting alone this deer season. My son said he wants to go but said he needs to study for college. I dont think he really cares to go. The hunting is so terrible. up there.

M760 .358Win...and I'll be wearing hip boots if this rain keeps up!

Hey 'hookem' you just never know about that country.

A couple of my 'spies' up there tell me there are some reasonably decent bucks roaming around.

Good luck, and 'bag a biggn'!

Whelen, We have a bruiser we got on the cam but have not gotten a pic of it since August 1. We also have a few more that I would deb happy to shoot. It is looking up, a little. Last year was the bottom of the bottom. Next year should be better yet. My best years there were barely except able, but most a dismal , and some , like last year were the worst. This bigger buck seems to only have one front leg. Not sure though.

WN, Scott will be in Illinois opening weekend...who is going to drag out your buck?

Well, I've got twin 14yr old grandsons that I've been training!

Are you going to train them to shoot a 35 Whelen at some point?

Gonna be breezy with a real feel of 14 degrees...I'll be carrying my VZ-24(yugo barrel, 4x38 Weaver, Micky stock) in 8x57 using 200gr Speer Hot Cor's...unless the new baby shows up on opening morning.

If the baby does show up on opening morning, and it's a boy, consider "Buck" for a name (or at least a nickname.)

"Buck" would be good. I grew up with a kid that had the nickname "Tag".

If he does, you'll be carrying all that and a new baby.

Cork it before you go to bed.

How about hunting styles? stand hunting, still hunting, or drives. Mostly stand for me, with some still hunting if conditions are right...wet leaves. Maybe some drives later in the week.

I'll be toting a Model 600 chambered in 35 Rem. Supposed to be 25* - 30* and windy by us opening weekend. I like the temps but the wind can [bleep] off.

They already have 7600's in 35Rem.

However, if they ever decide to step up, I just happen to know where two 7600's in 35Whelen are located.

The torch has been passed.

'hookem

That's encouraging. With that big country, they have a lot of room to roam, for sure...think, 'Tinks'.

WN

I have decided to use Tinks this year . I got a bunch for free. It might be old though.

I'll be hunting in taylor co again this year. I'll be using either my marlin 45 70 or my 264 win mag with 140 partitions. I'll also have my Blackhawk 44. Good luck to all the deer hunters

Did you ever sell the one you had listed Paul?

I'll be toting the carbine this week. I'll have the .280 along as well.

We'll be up in sand country in Douglas Co. Neat area that I've been around all my life but never hunted anything but grouse around there.

I have an itch for a 45-70. That's a cool close cover gun. I have one for a 35 Whelen as well.

Good on ya for honoring your Uncle by bringing his slug gun out of retirement. Great to see the "tire iron" hit the field one more time.

In October I started a thread on Tink's and there were some interesting comments, pro and con. I happen to be a con man and will be using it this season.

I soak a round cotton makeup pad and apply it to the bottom of my LaCrosse Iceman's and walk to my stand. Time and time again, deer have followed the scent trail.

No, I got tired of the low-ball tire kickers and decided to keep it. Twin grandsons, twin Whelens. Not too sure they would ever use them BUT ya never know.

27 for a low 32 for a high in La Crosse.
I'll use my Tikka Superlite 30-06, I have many different choices but at less than 300yds, we know how great they are.
No wolves here yet but they keep me from hunting at a friends cabin in Winter Wi.

Wolves will be in La Crosse soon enough. Roundoaks friend shot one south of La Crosse a few yrs ago.

I have heard of sightings on thee north end of Fort Mc Coy.
Had a nice verified picture of a mountain lion last year, but for some reason an occasional cougar doesn't bother me so much as a Wolf pack.

M77 in .30-06 and Win 94 in .30-30.
Marinette County, no snow, 30*s or so.

I have relatives just south of La Crosse that swear they have been seeing a cougar around their farm for the last 2 months. DNR says that would be very "unusual" behavior, they are more prone to roam, and won't take them serious unless they can produce a picture.
I would take a cat over a pack of wolves as well, will see if the hunting activity produces any cat sightings.

I will be near Nelsonville/Rosholt and it is supposed to be about 30.
First time with the 7600 30-06 and corelokts out as I will be in heavier cover this time then later in the week I will use the 7-08 on the fields running Splatt's special recipe.
The attached 10pt was downwind of my Tinks the last two Sundays and never showed an interest in it. Unfortunately for him a small doe led him close enough and I did not miss, his big brother was about 100yds a week ago. We had seen this buck living in a cornfield most of the fall about a half mile away from where he was taken.

Interesting tidbit, the 80 I am hunting is next to 1200 acres of public and my cousins farm and nobody has been allowed in there in over 30 years. We call it the sanctuary and the owner let me in so I will keep an eye on it for him. The second time I sat there the 10pt was taken and I see very few hunters on the public make it more than 300yds from the road.

Good luck everybody!

Talked to a good friend tonight that lives East of Wausau a piece. He had a woof in his yard along the Little Eau Claire River on Tuesday afternoon. He and his wife saw it while raking leaves.

I've made the executive decision that if the step-son and I tag a deer, we're getting a new freezer. He actually has the opportunity to pop a few deer. Being a youth, he can shoot a doe, even in the "bucks only" we'll be hunting in. As well as use his buck tag on da turdy pointer. So....

Come on boy!! Shoot em up!

Tzone, we have land west of SHawano and the DNR said there are established wolf packs in the area. My cousin has heard them already, just 8 mi. west of Shawano, in Red River.

Randy, nice buck...congrats.

Supposed to be high of 30 in So. Wi. Couple short 700s in .308 will go with me. No wolves…yet. Bruce

T zone..
You need to get a 45 70. I've only tried one load so far. Cast 405 with H4198. Accuracy was better than I expected. I'm not a purist so mine wears a 1 to 4x leupold. Seems like a perfect combo to me. Good luck

We'll have one in camp as well. It's a good cartridge for the area we'll be in.

I have one stand up that you could stretch a shot to 200, but most are 1/4 of that.

I call BS. How did the woof hang on to the rake with no thumbs??

GOOD ONE!

Cv540,
Over the years there have been several pictures of Cougars in the area. Coon Valley, Viroqua, Dresback, Mauston, some of them have been verified by the DNR.

Several years ago 1 was hit by a car near Viroqua, the DNR dismissed it as a prank brought back and dumped by hunters that did a Fall hunting trip out West.

Looking like 6 or more inches of snow for the opener now. I'll be trading rifle for a snow plow for day 1.

Where is that?

Traitor

Far south central wi if you're asking me.

Looks like as much as a foot is possible.

Thanks, I had a bunch of Coyotes close on Sunday morning so hopefully that means the wolves have moved out of the area.

Randy, very nice buck.

Only little bucks see so far for us. Nephew got a small 8pt his first. I had a coyote follow a group of 6 deer by me, she didn't make it. Cut a wolf track,too old.

I have a lot of time to go yet including muzzleloader so hopefully things quiet down like they normally do. I have a 80 that nobody stepped foot in yet, I will be in there this weekend.

Rant: Since when do kids complain about seeing 5 bucks by 8:30 on opening morning all within 75 yards and getting one?

Well I'm buying a freezer. Step son shot a 3pt opening afternoon and a doe sunday. I've seen deer most days I've sat including 5 opening day. I don't think I've ever seen 5 during one day in a gun season.

I also saw the 7 luckiest turkeys in WI this morning.

A lot of deer sightings in the area I hunt plus the deer kill numbers for the opening weekend is up 47.3% compared to 2014.

2014 - 2,190

2015 - 3,227

There is no doubt the six to 12 inches of snow Friday night into Saturday morning had a lot to do with it.

Bump for one of the all-time great slips o' the tongue on this site.

Classic LOL!

Tee hee.