Living
Al Brown | Tracking the Seasons
Confused in more ways than one
A strange thing happened to me the other day. I got temporarily lost in my own backyard.
Truth be known, the backyard I was referring to is a thick second-growth mix of ash, elm, maple, oak, buckthorn and honeysuckle in a 10-acre patch of bottomland woods on our farm.
My intent was to cut a trail through the thick underbrush that would tie into the north end of an existing trail. This connector would make the task of dragging out deer less of a chore.
The trees were mostly bare of leaves, but those of the buckthorn and honeysuckle brush were hanging on tightly.
The distance I had to travel was less than 300 yards, but the dense underbrush was so thick at times I seldom could see more than 50 feet.
With no compass and an overcast sky, I somehow managed to get turned around and temporarily lost in my own woods.
It was a strange feeling considering I've been walking this land since the early '50s when it was planted in corn.
A hand-held GPS (global positioning system) would have been a big help. But without recognizable waypoints such as a tall tree, a barn or even a honking horn to relate to, I was completely turned around.
After about 15 minutes of searching, I spotted the top of a century-old swamp white oak tree and I suddenly knew where I was.
But for a time, I couldn't see the forest for the trees.
And that's sort of how I felt last week when I attended the Department of Natural Resources' 2010 deer season proposal hearing at WCTC in Pewaukee.
For a subject as important as today's deer hunting and its future, the meeting was poorly attended.
Add to this the fact that there were three proposals on the table, but only one, the DNR's, in printed form that was handed out to each attendee.
The other two proposals, one from the Conservation Congress and the other from the Natural Resources Board-appointed 11-member Special Advisory Study Committee which did not include the DNR, were presented live over a sometimes hard-to-hear microphone.
With a timed three minutes to state your recorded position on the proposals, and no hard copy of the other proposals for comparison, it was confusing to say the least. Never mind whether you supported or opposed any or all of what had been presented.
As someone who sat quietly through the entire evening's hearings, with no debating, trying to understand who wanted what, for when and where, three things were abundantly clear.
The DNR is on the hot seat when it comes to managing Wisconsin's deer herd. Knowing the state Legislature has the last word on our season structure is like opening the hen house for the fox, and being lost in my own woods wasn't so scary after all.
- Don't know what you've got …
- Survival of the fittest
- If you can't stand the heat …
- Let's talk turkey
- Inclement weather!
- Snowmobiling and driving - not a good mix
- Sun, wind, earth and snow
- Survival of the fittest? Or survival of the doe?
- Don't worry, I've got your 'beak'
- The year that was
- Hey Santa: From crimson red to blaze orange
- Where are all the deer?
- Late freeze extends muskie season
- The smell of failure didn't last long
- Happy hunting!
- Bucks come a running
- Ready ... Set ... Fire
- Sit back and relax - for now
- Not for lack of trying
- Here ducky, ducky …
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