MCVILLE, N.D. - I have almost no aptitude, and even less ability, for hunting. But I do have relatives who hunt deer, and so I go along with them every fall on family land in North Dakota’s Nelson County.
Most of the hunting is walking on heavily wooded pasture along or near the Sheyenne River. But this year, for the first time, I’ll do little hunting from this new straw bale blind built my younger brother, an avid deer hunter. It’s a beautiful day, though, so I’ll be mostly outside.
I know, I know, some people don’t approve of killing animals for sport, even when you use the meat, as we do. If you’ve come to that way of thinking after careful consideration, I won’t argue with you. I respect your position. But I’ll also point out that wildlife management professionals say the deer population needs to be thinned - and that I’ve seen starving deer late in long, hard winters.
Thousands of folks in Agweek country - some involved in ag, some not - will be hunting deer this fall. Good luck to all of you. And remember, shooting a deer isn’t nearly as important as being safe.
Maybe you were fooled by the image of the bale blind, maybe you weren’t. The important thing is, will the deer be fooled?
