Deer Hunting
There are many traditions throughout the country including Thanksgiving, Christmas etc.  Yet in the state of Minnesota, there is one family tradition that gets many people out of bed at the crack of dawn and headed into the woods.  Of course, that tradition is whitetail deer hunting.  Whether it is bow, rifle or muzzle loader season, the thrill of opening day lies within many Minnesotans.  Every year over 500,000 hunters head to the woods to try and claim a trophy buck.  Yet hunting is so much more to the people who do it, than just shooting something.
Hunting in Minnesota has been around for over 150 years.  With the state being founded in 1858, the first years of whitetail hunting were of course for gathering food for the family.  Yet as years went on and the century turned, deer hunting became more of a recreational sport.  In the 1960’s and 70’s, the deer in Minnesota were not doing very well and the DNR was not closely regulating the harvest, allowing for hunters to take several deer.  In 1971, that would all change when the DNR realized that the population had collapsed and they closed the season entirely.  As the season was closed, the DNR held meetings to figure out what they could do to allow for a hunting season to still exist, while also properly managing the deer.  Well as time went on, the ideas of creating zones and managing based on population per area, came into play.  By the late 1980’s and early 90’s, the system that is still used in Minnesota today was developed.  This new form of management developed by the DNR kept an eye on the amount of antlered and antlerless deer taken out of a given area, as well as the weather conditions in the area effecting the herd as well.  Today, DNR and hunters work together to ensure that the popular sport can continue to go on.
Yet with all this change, one aspect of hunting has always remained the same.  The opportunity to spend time with family and friends is something that is second to none with hunting.  Every season offers the opportunity for generation after generation to get together and tell their old hunting stories, sitting around the table playing cards and being together, teaching the next generation the value of the sport.  That is what hunting is all about, building relationships, having fun, enjoying the outdoors and one another, and if by chance one shoots a deer, that is just a bonus.