Deer Trail Inn Saloon & Restaurant on US-2, photo from UpNorth Memories – Donald (Don) Harrison

Today is Opening Day of the 2013 deer season, and if you’re a hunter I doubt you’re reading this. Almost all of Michigan is potentially open to hunting, so  take extreme care over the two weeks of the November 15-30 Deer Hunting Season.

Confession: I usually root for the deer.

The Toledo Blade reports:

The 2013 “Michigan Deer Hunting Prospects” summary — which is essentially the scouting report on the season – states that deer hunter success in Michigan is sometimes tied to just “being in the right place at the right time,” and that is often the result of being in the field at the peak of whitetail breeding activity. During that fall period, normally ultra cautious bucks will drop their defenses and be on the move much more often.

The state experts say that the 2012 deer season in Michigan was better than the previous year, with hunter success rates showing increases in the Upper Peninsula (UP) and Northern Lower Peninsula (NLP). “Slowly but steadily growing deer populations” in those areas in recent years are credited with improving the harvest.

More than 700,000 deer hunting licenses were purchased in Michigan in 2012, and close to 600,000 hunters took part in the regular firearm season. Overall, deer hunters spent 9.4 million days in the field in Michigan last year, and harvested 418,000 whitetails.

Read on for more and click for the 2013 Michigan Deer Hunting Prospects report.

Check the photo out background big and and check out Don’s massive collection of hunting photos and memorabilia!