• Monday-What'sUP December 2 - 03:48 pm

When Sally Sarazin Beaudette saw this small group of deer crossing Portage Lake near Dreamland, she had a good chuckle, since all the hunters she knew, were out in the woods, trying to get their deer before the firearm season ended and here were five of them crossing the ice in broad daylight. She did say though, that it didn't look like any of them had antlers, so they would have only been fair game for someone with a doe permit.

Then Melanie Hakala Rossi spotted these two deer as they was making their way across the road. At least I think it's two different deer from the coloring. Again, no antlers, so these two were safe for the most part and if they make it through the winter, will hopefully replenish the deer herd with young ones in the spring.

I think the deer look like different colors because one is in the shade. They better get off the road...getting hit by a vehicle isn't pretty.

love looking at them.

I love deer watching!

I have nothing against hunting but I think this is the best way to 'shoot' a deer.;>
Great 'shots', Sally and Melanie!

Amen, Shirley!!

Good point, Shirley.

First photo...they pledge allegiance every morning.
Why did the deer cross the road?
To show the hunters that it wasn't chicken.

On our morning walks, Kipp & myself run into what seems to be the same herd of 7, 3 bucks, 3 doe, and a yearling. They are passing through our farm and heading towards my dad's other farm which is now DNR public hunting grounds near the Cedar River. At dusk the same herd pass through our farm again now heading some where to the east. Doesn't make much sense as in the day they are moving into DNR public hunting grounds and at dusk they are heading away from the DNR grounds.

The best tasting venison ever was in Illinois. Corn fed. I wonder, Janie T, if that is the case in Iowa. They must be corn fed, too. Big difference in the taste when compared to those in the UP.

Tom, I agree the corn fed makes a difference in taste. Iowa deer are also soy bean fed as the Illinois deer as well I bet.

Driving with my daughter to her work, we went through a lot of farm areas with corn etc. growing.I was telling her that she had to be carefull about deer crossing the road and that when there was one there was more. We saw a lot of deer and they would just walk right into the roadway. It was crazy. We drove mostly at night.

So what is the ratio of does to bucks? I almost
never see a deer with antlers. (I do know that
they shed them in the spring, but I should see at
least one sometimes, don't you think?)

Believe it or not, back when I was working in Texas in the early 1980s, I actually caught a deer by hand. It was night, and the deer was apparently blinded by the trucks headlights, so when he ran towards the field on the side of the road he ran into the fence bordering the road, bounced off and fell down right in front of me. I somehow managed to dive on top of him and pinned him to the ground. He froze (fortunately for me)and made no attempt to kick or get away. After a good laugh about catching a deer, I lifted him over the fence and released him. If I'm not mistaken, this was the first time "catch and release" techniques were used on a deer...

Marge anytime other than rutting, I rarely see bucks. They seem to stay to themselves. I think they are territorial, at least from what I see on our farm. But a pretty sight on our farm is the doe's and their fawns grazing in our fields with new, lush spring grass among my horses.