Deer Hunting Season Forecast in Wisconsin
Hunters eagerly await the arrival of the annual nine-day gun deer season in Wisconsin. To help prepare for the hunt, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources shares helpful information and resources for a successful outing. Read on for what to expect in the fields and forests this year and for tips on a safe and memorable hunt.
For the full, in-depth forecast, explore the newest annual Fall Hunting & Trapping Forecast from the Wisconsin DNR.
Learn on the Go with Wild Wisconsin
The DNR’s Hunt Wild Wisconsin mobile app is free and can help you find new public lands to explore, brush up on regulations, locate a CWD sampling station and much more. With mobile mapping, up-to-the-minute shooting hours and other helpful information, they’ve given you all the tools to focus on what’s important – enjoying your time in the outdoors.
Quick Tips for a Successful Hunt
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Use Go Wild. Wisconsin's online licensing system is a one-stop shop for purchasing deer hunting licenses, selecting antlerless harvest authorizations, checking and submitting CWD testing results and printing all of your license and permit documents right from home. And it's free!
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Keep all the factors in mind. Even with increasing deer populations in many units, hunter success during the gun season can vary based on a wide range of factors. Hunter effort, weather events, rut activity, hunting pressure, and stand site locations in addition to deer numbers can all play influential roles in whether or not individual hunters see and harvest deer.
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Don't let deer distribution get you down. Deer are not distributed evenly across the landscape and their movements vary greatly from one day to the next. Some hunters simply have access to better hunting and more deer. While some hunters will see lots of deer, their neighbors may struggle to even see deer for a variety of reasons.
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Stay for more days. Of course, spending more days hunting means more deer opportunities. But there's been an increasing trend of hunters spending fewer days in the field than in years past. So now's the time to take advantage of staying more than just opening weekend — you'll be glad you did.
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Keep hunting after the weekend. Although deer sightings can be fewer after opening weekend, there are still deer to be hunted and the later part of the season can be more relaxing than the high pressure of opening weekend.
Do you know about the Wisconsin Deer Hunt for Hunters With Disabilities program? Thanks to generous landowners willing to sponsor hunters with disabilities on their land, the state has an October Hunt for Hunters with Disabilities Season. You can find more information about this season here.
Visit the Department of Natural Resources website for weekly harvest numbers, rules and regulations and more information on planning a successful hunt.
