sturmruger
Member
We are still in the regular season deer hunt here in WI. I sat the morning in a tree stand and got out of the woods about 10am. I had time for a short cat nap and joined my favorite party for a few well orchestrated drives. On our first drive of the day I was sitting on the edge of a bean field. About 20 minutes into the drive a very nice 8 point buck came running out into the field I was watching. I shot at him once while he was trotting about 75 yards away and then again while he was running. The second shot was just as he was cresting a small rolling hill about 150 yards from where I was standing. I thought I saw him cartwheel and started to run after him to see if I had dropped him on the other side of the hill. A buddy of mine who was standing on top of a high point said he saw him go down, and that he was hit good. He recommended I wait and give him time to bleed out. After 30 minutes of waiting I hiked out into the field to start looking for blood and any sign that he had gone down. I looked through the whole field for sign of blood but was unable to find any. The small patch of woods that he was running towards was very small maybe 4-5 acres at most. The problem was we did not have permission to enter this patch of woods.
We went over to talk to the landowner to ask permission for two of us to follow the trail into the woods where the deer I had shot was most likely laying down. As soon as she came to the door she was pissed. She told me that if I set one toe on her land she would call the sheriff on me!! I explained that I did not want to hunt her land just recover the deer that I had shot. She told me her son was going to go out there and make sure no one entered her land for the rest of the day!
I am so mad that I can’t go in and get this deer. I have shot nice bucks before so it isn’t even that I am missing out on a nice rack. I just hate to see a nice deer like this go to complete waste. I was really looking forward to some venison in my freezer this year. I guess the coyotes have to eat too.
In hindsight I should have just kept looking for the deer. She doesn’t have her land posted so there is no way I could have gotten a ticket for walking on her land. In WI you have to be notified that trespassing is not allowed or they can’t give you a ticket. Notification can be via signs or verbally. Since I was verbally told not to enter her land if I had trespassed at that point I could have been ticketed. I guess it all goes back to the saying “ is easier to ask for forgiveness then permission.”
It crossed my mind to go out there with a good flashlight, but I really don't feel like a $500 tresspassing ticket.
We went over to talk to the landowner to ask permission for two of us to follow the trail into the woods where the deer I had shot was most likely laying down. As soon as she came to the door she was pissed. She told me that if I set one toe on her land she would call the sheriff on me!! I explained that I did not want to hunt her land just recover the deer that I had shot. She told me her son was going to go out there and make sure no one entered her land for the rest of the day!
I am so mad that I can’t go in and get this deer. I have shot nice bucks before so it isn’t even that I am missing out on a nice rack. I just hate to see a nice deer like this go to complete waste. I was really looking forward to some venison in my freezer this year. I guess the coyotes have to eat too.
In hindsight I should have just kept looking for the deer. She doesn’t have her land posted so there is no way I could have gotten a ticket for walking on her land. In WI you have to be notified that trespassing is not allowed or they can’t give you a ticket. Notification can be via signs or verbally. Since I was verbally told not to enter her land if I had trespassed at that point I could have been ticketed. I guess it all goes back to the saying “ is easier to ask for forgiveness then permission.”
It crossed my mind to go out there with a good flashlight, but I really don't feel like a $500 tresspassing ticket.