Well this weekend kicks off Iowa Shotgun Seasons, while I won’t be hunting this weekend I will partake in a few deer camp activities. Deer camp, what about it makes it a great time is the fact that is it a man’s get away. A weekend with the boys, well in some case it might be. I know when I started it was just that, but a great thing has happened in as many years. Women at deer camp? Sure why not!! Wives, sisters and even mothers. Hunter recruitment as been less and less for a number of years and so anyone who is taking up hunting – it’s a great thing.
Most of the hunting groups I’ll be visiting with this weekend are really family traditions that have been hunting this way for years. See in Iowa this is the first opportunity to hunt with a gun the only earlier gun seasons are a short youth season in late September and an Early Muzzleloader season in mid October. Early Muzzleloader season is limited to the first 7500 resident hunters and is only 9 days long.
The two shotgun seasons in December are the season that we see the largest deer harvest. It is three weeks of gun hunting. In most cases hunters “party hunt”, meaning they hunt using the method of deer drives. Sometimes called the orange army. To say it is effective is an understatement more deer will be shot in the next three weeks in Iowa then all of the other seasons together. Shotgun harvest is has been right around 100,000 deer for many years. If you would like to watch the numbers here is the site to do so: https://jc.activeoutdoorsolutions.com/iowadnr/harvestdata/realTimeHarvest.do
Iowa Shotgun 2007
Ok getting back to my point I enjoy the deer camp aspect as much as the hunting part. Sure I love the hunting but the time sitting around with family and friends talking about the days hunt and past hunts is time well spent. If you’re hunting this weekend good luck and hunt safe. Please remember that second part.
