Are you looking to camp, hike, and explore the great outdoors of Illinois? If your answer is yes, lace up your boots, load up your pack, strap on the rack, and head for these four state parks.
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John S. from Illinois
writes to ask about CWD causing a drop in hunter numbers. "CWD is slowly
spreading in my home state of Illinois.
What effects might this have on hunter numbers here?"
Hayes W. from Chicago writes to ask about shipping antlers on planes.
"Next fall I’m planning a deer hunt where I was going to fly United
Airlines. However, I just read that United Airlines no longer ships antlers. Is
this true, and do you have any ideas for me if it is?"
Mike Stroff is the creator of an outdoor show called “Southern Outdoor Experience,” and he had several crews hunting with Central Illinois Outfitters, in Cass County. He had just settled back down in his treestand when he spotted a deer, coming across a CREP field right at him. In no time, the buck was standing in a mock scrape he made about 10 yards away!
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The windshield wipers on James’s big Ford thump back and forth in fruitless sweeps against driving rain, and it sounds like someone is pouring buckets of nails down onto the roof of the truck cab. The other hunter Joe and I had hunted through bad weather, wind and rain — every day! This day is the worst, but it is our last, so we’re going, monsoon or not. The woods begin to darken, as if controlled by a giant dimmer switch. Finally, deer begin to move … .
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Illinois bowhunter Ed Kruzan was on the ground close to a hog of a deer, which had a rack throwing one heck of a shadow. He got to full draw, and found himself lost in a moment that is the stuff of dreams — full draw on a massive buck, on the ground with him, just 7 yards away!
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I was pleasantly surprised to see deer in my first hour of the long archery season. I was even more pleased to see a second doe following. "Wow!" Then there were three, and then four and then five … and so on. In all, nine adult female deer came walking down the trail! Yes, hunting with Illinois Warsaw Bottoms Hunting Club was giong to be fun!
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Watching the morning light spill upon the area, it was good to be alive. At 9, the sound of distant scurrying jerked me to attention. Peering through the trees around me, a distant flash of movement caught my eye. Grabbing my grunt call, I let out a few short sounds. Sudden stillness enveloped the area,
quickly followed by a loud crunching of leaves.
I waited for the buck to enter my shooting lane. I drew back slowly, picked a hair on his vitals, and released the arrow. He had just taken a step forward when I shot so the arrow may have deflected off a small branch; however, the shot was dead center back in the vitals!
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