January 4, 2019 at 4:31 p.m.
Northwoods Youth Deer Hunt Challenge celebrates its 15th year
Northwoods Youth Deer Hunt Challenge celebrates its 15th year
By Jacob Friede-
"Basic license sales were down 2 percent, which was down 2 percent from 2016 to 2017," Department of Natural Resources warden Dave Walz said during the program. "Now with 2017-2018 we're down 2 percent as well, which actuates out to almost 12,000 hunters."
That astounding drop in numbers of those engaging in one Wisconsin's most long-standing traditions is exactly what the Youth Deer Hunt Challenge was meant to remedy.
Therefore, to promote participation, every youth hunter who signed up for the challenge, bought a license and went hunting this past season was eligible for a prize. And we're not talking ribbons and T-shirts, we're talking rifles and shotguns. Over 50 guns were given away, as well as trail cams, ground blinds, snowshoes, and gun cases.
While the banquet brought all the participants together to receive prizes and celebrate their time in the field, it was also designed to keep the flame of curiosity lit and have them craving opportunities to get back out there.
More than a dozen seminars and activity booths were provided for hunters to enhance their knowledge and skills in a variety of areas of the sport. In particular, there was an archery shoot, hosted by Wade Wentland, where participants were able to compete against each other's scores on the target.
Wentland said he has seen firsthand the effect of this part of the Youth Deer Hunt Challenge banquet.
"You know, sometimes you get kids that have never picked up a bow," he said. "If they pick up a bow and have a good time with it in five arrows, that might be all it takes for them to say, 'Hey I want to do this again, this is pretty cool, how can we as a family do it?' Joe at JD archery, one of the sponsors, said his sales and the interest either in his indoor league or in starter bows just goes through the roof right after this because all of the sudden kids are like I think I'd like to give that a try."
Cody Vojta won the shooting contest for the age 10-12 bracket. Logan Strasburg won in the age 13-15 bracket, and Judson Bybee won the age 16-18 bracket.
The winners received gift certificates to JD archery.
The event also featured a laser shoot, hosted by Walz, where kids shot a laser gun in video-simulated hunts.
Don "Blackie" Buss skinned and butchered a freshly killed doe and explained his methods while doing so.
Marty Kwiatkowski had his pelts laid out for a seminar on trapping. Marv and Jane Smith also had traps on display and the Youth Conservation Congress was there promoting kids to get involved in outdoor legislation.
Additionally, Rick Buckley and Mike McKenzie put on a shell reloading seminar, Jim Rehm had a gun safety/cleaning booth, Tom Oestreich was offering information on the high school trap shooting team, and Chris Thielman educated hunters on the importance of locating and tracking blood trails.
Thirteen-year-old Ryan Klappa visited them all and couldn't decide on a favorite.
"(I'm) just having a good time seeing all the different things," he said.
Finally, there were two banquet challenges with guns given away as prizes. In one challenge, hosted by Marv Smith, participants were asked to guess the amount of shell casings that filled an entire Otter sled. Ethan Snyder guessed the closest to the 3,358 and won the gun.
In the other challenge, hosted by official Pope and Young measurer Harley Benson, participants were asked to estimate the score of an eight point rack. Grace Kern was right on with her estimated score of 122 1/8 and she won a gun.
After the challenges and seminars, the Minocqua Lions Club, with a generous donation from Trig's grocery store, prepared and served up brats and hot dogs and all the fixings of an all-American barbecue.
Then it was on to the prizes.
Prize winners
In the big buck contest, Charles Gahler's eight pointer that scored a 23 7/8 was the winner. In second was Donavin Schillinger's 23 1/2 eight pointer, and in third was James Albee's eight pointer that scored a 21.
In the Mentor Hunt category, Caden Schillinger's 18 3/4 eight pointer was the winner. That was followed by Drake Richey's 15 3/8 eight pointer and Erik Anderson's five pointer that scored 14.
Alex Meyer won the Archery category with a 21 1/4 eight point buck, while Trentin Bell won the Crossbow category with a four pointer that scored 11.
The hunters with the three biggest bucks and overall biggest mentor hunted buck received a free mount courtesy of Strasburg's North County Taxidermy.
The prizes, however, with the most significance where the memorial guns. These guns were given away in memory of deceased hunters who either participated in the challenge or contributed their time and efforts to it.
Talon Haling won the Michael Wanty memorial gun. Thomas McCumber won the Danielle Gorectke memorial gun. Alex Myer won the Tom Handrick memorial crossbow. Tyler Wallace won the Jeremy Ritchie memorial gun, and Austin Wanty won the Zeke Jonas memorial gun.
These firearms were among the over 50 guns given away at the event, and while guns are a vital tool used to complete a hunt, Gregg Walker, who first envisioned and set into motion the Northwoods Youth Deer Hunt Challenge, reminded those in attendance that hunting is about more than the kill.
"I probably spent hundreds of hours in the deer stand this year and I didn't kill a thing," he said at the event. "I saw a lot of nice bucks. I didn't kill anything, but I had just as much fun as if I would have. Until the day I die I will fight for hunting because of that tradition. The stories. The fun. That's why we're here tonight and that's why we've been here for 15 years."
Because they have been, while the rest of the nation and state sees a disturbing decline in participation numbers, at least in this small part of the Northwoods, the youth deer hunt is alive and well.
After experiencing all the fun and facts and prizes and passion of the event, to not be fired up to go hunting would be, well, a challenge.
Jacob Friede may be reached at [email protected] or [email protected].
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