More than the hunt: Deer opener will draw thousands for tradition, camaraderie

Hundreds of thousands of hunters clad in blaze orange garb are expected to flock to the woods Saturday for the Minnesota firearms deer opener, where many will reunite with friends and family, swap stories around campfires and likely take home a few more deer than last year.

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources expects hunters to shoot between 165,000 and 185,000 deer this fall, up slightly from last year.

"I think hunters are going to have a good year," said DNR big game program leader Adam Murkowski. "We've had some mild winters and some conservative harvest regulations, which is very conducive to population growth."

Every deer hunter, of course, hopes to shoot a deer. But almost every hunter will tell you, that's not the principle reason they hunt.

"If we catch deer, that's OK, but if not, it's the same difference," said Dave Shrader of Hermantown, who volunteers at the United Northern Sportsmen club's shooting range about 20 miles outside Duluth. "We can probably buy it at the store cheaper than we can hunt for it. It's all about the event, and the camaraderie."

Hundreds of hunters came to the shooting range this week to practice before Saturday's opener, including Nolan Miles, 20, a University of Minnesota Duluth student from Bloomington who's been hooked on hunting since he first went with his family at age 12.

"The whole adventure about it," he said, "just knowing where my meat is coming from, and being able to process my meat myself, and the camaraderie aspect, deer camp, getting along with everybody, having bonfires — you can't beat it."

Nicholas Moder, a 21-year-old hospital security officer in Duluth, agreed.

"It's not all about the hunt," he said. "But we like to get a buck or two once in awhile."

That's become more difficult in recent years, though. The state's deer herd was hit hard by severe winters in 2012 and 2013. Hunting groups also say the DNR allowed too many deer to be killed in the early 2000s, when the agency was trying to reduce the herd's size.

For Murkowski, that criticism comes with the job.

"I think you'd last about an hour or so working as the state's deer biologist if you took offense to every time someone didn't agree with you," he said.

Still, the agency has agreed for the first time to create a statewide deer management plan. That's a step that was recommended earlier this year by the state legislative auditor.

It's meant to be a big picture approach to managing deer, not just for hunters, but also for managing the impacts of deer on forests and farms — and even drivers, who can have dangerous encounters with deer on the road.

The DNR needs to be more transparent with the public about how it manages deer, said Craig Engwall, executive director of the Minnesota Deer Hunters Association. "

"As long as it's transparent and open, and many people are involved in establishing that plan, we'll be happy," he said.

A new statewide committee will begin meeting next month to begin to advise the DNR on what a plan should look like. It includes members of hunting groups, but also representatives of agricultural, forestry and conservation groups.

The plan will include a new statewide harvest objective for deer. The DNR says that will be a range of numbers, although the deer hunter's association has pushed for an annual harvest of more than 200,000 deer.

While the number won't reach that high this year, the mild weather should help hunters, said John Chalstrom, who runs Chalstrom's Bait and Tackle outside Duluth.

"If it's 10 degrees out, guys don't make it more than a few hours, then they're back in the shack, drinking coffee and cocoa," he said. "But this year with this kind of temperatures, people are going to spend many hours in the woods, and the more time you're out in the woods, the better chance you're going to have some success."

And hunter success means economic success for Chalstrom, who depends on processing deer meat for nearly all his business in the fall. Federal figures put the estimate of how much the deer hunt kicks into the state's economy at more than $1.3 billion every year.

The last couple years Chalstrom has processed around 200 deer. He anticipates handling a few more this year.

"I think it's going to be a very good season," he said. "It's not going to be a record year for us, but it's not going to be a low year either. We're going to have plenty of animals to deal with."