The best counties in the western U.P. for bowhunting this fall will be Menominee, Delta, Dickinson and Iron. Other counties in the district are Gogebic, Ontonagon, Houghton, Keweenaw, Baraga, Marquette and Alger.

Bowhunting pressure is so light in the U.P. that good success with bow and arrow can be found in any county, and there’s no shortage of trophy bucks either. Last winter was the second mild one in a row. Overall hunting pressure is so light in some areas that bucks die of old age -- if they aren’t killed by cars or predators first. One of the biggest bucks I’m aware of being killed last fall in the U.P. was claimed by a vehicle on U.S. Highway 41 a few miles west of Marquette. The 13-pointer had a gross score of 162 1/8 inches and was at least 9 1/2 years old.

Bowhunters managed to drop some trophy bucks in the U.P. last fall, too. Sean Racine from Negaunee killed his biggest buck ever on Oct. 22 in Delta County. He was in a tree stand that morning overlooking a marsh near a beaver pond where he always sees rubs and scrapes. Racine used a grunt call to bring a 12-pointer within 20 yards. The rack was a main-framed 10-pointer with a pair of stickers. Racine said the antlers grossed 144 inches and netted 136, easily qualifying for a place in state records, as well as national archery records maintained by the Pope and Young Club.

After a number of years of declining bowhunter numbers in our state, there was a slight increase last year. According to DNR estimates, 312,633 hunters tried their luck with bow and arrow during 2006 compared with 307,928 in 2005. Lowering the minimum age for bowhunting from 12 to 10 for youths could have been a major factor responsible for the increase, and that’s a good thing because we need more youngsters afield to keep the sport strong.

Although whitetails only have to have spikes at least 3 inches long to be considered a legal buck across most of Michigan, there are a few areas where special antler restrictions are in effect. Bucks must have at least 2 points on one side to be legal on Drummond Island and South Fox Island, for example. The same is true for Deer Management Unit 135 in eastern Iosco County.

There are two DMUs in our state -- one in the U.P. and the other in Region 2 -- where bucks must have at least 3 points on one antler to be legal. The unit in the northern L.P. is DMU 45, which is Leelanau County. The U.P. unit is DMU 122, which is mostly in southern Dickinson County but also encompasses part of northwestern Menominee County.

There are seven counties in the northeastern L.P. where baiting deer for hunting is not legal. They are Presque Isle, Otsego, Oscoda, Montmorency, Crawford, Alpena and Alcona counties. Where baiting is legal, hunters are limited to two gallons of bait per day per location.

Enjoy your season, and hunt safely!