Whether it is a large tract of huntable private or public land, Johnson said the big bucks that have survived several seasons have done so not on the outskirts of this land but deep within where hunting pressure is minimal. Getting in there and locating them is the key to being successful.

DON'T BE NORMAL
Johnson said when a person starts hunting trophies they need to look at their own techniques and not just be a "normal" hunter. This includes scent control, noise factors and eliminating visual distractions.

More hunters are beginning to make the connection between shooting the first antlered deer that comes their way and the lack of trophies in the area. Studies have shown that most bucks produce trophy-class antlers by the time they are 5 1/2 years old. A lot of hunters are also quick to blame the DNR for the lack of trophy deer in their area. Johnson said hunters can do a lot of balanced management on their own and see results within a few years.

"I try to shoot does because they need to be culled, and I happily let a lot of medium and small bucks go by so they can get larger," he said.

While there are arguments inside and outside the DNR as to the best deer management practices, Johnson said the membership of MDHA has largely said they prefer to make their own management choices, not have the state tell them what to do.

TOP PERMIT AREAS FOR BUCKS IN 2004
*Permit Area 284 Is Now Permit Area 184; **Permit Area 211 is now Permit Area 111; ***Permit Area 409 is now Permit Area 241.
County or Counties	Permit Area	Buck Harvested	Total Harvest
Zone 1
1. Itasca	170	3,233	7,154
2. Mille Lacs/Kanabec	157	3,030	7,606
3. St. Louis	178	2,756	5,267
4. St. Louis	115	2,663	4,417
5. St. Louis/Pine	181	2,493	4,490
Zone 2
1. Hubbard/Beltrami	284*	4,322	10,947
2. Cass/Wadena	246	2,527	6,782
3. Hubbard	245	2,449	6,377
4. Becker	244	2,527	6,782
5. Beltrami/Lake of the Woods	211**	1,408	2,621
Zone 3
1. Houston	349	1,675	3,607
2. Winona/Houston	346	1,237	2,870
3. Olmsted	343	1,139	2,626
4. Goodhue	341	1,043	2,341
5. Fillmore	348	974	2,321
Zone 4
1. Otter Tail/Clay/Becker	410	2,177	5,145
2. Otter Tail/Todd	411	1,938	4,984
3. Otter Tail	409***	1,621	4,449
4. Todd	414	1,452	4,125
5. Douglas/Pope	412	1,394	3,387

The folks at Minnesota Quality Deer Management Inc. say that the biggest complication of doing your own management is that because of its timing with the rut, bucks are very mobile during the deer season. During this process they will cross property lines several times a day, and could be killed by an adjacent hunting party. Additional information about QDM can be found at www.mnqdm.com.

Johnson said his brother, who is a wildlife manager, told him a story about a large buck that lived in a tiny swamp the size of a small house just off Highway 59. "He'd see that buck there whenever he drove that direction in the morning, and that area was never checked by any deer hunters," he said.

Another piece of advice is to change your hunting patterns. No doubt many bucks are taken by 9 a.m. opening morning, but some of the largest bucks are taken in the middle of the day when most hunters are moving around to another stand or heading to and from lunch. Johnson told of just such an experience.

"I was driving back from Backus last year just north of Remer and saw one of the biggest bucks of my life standing alongside the road, waiting for the cars to clear," Johnson said.

The buck had antlers as wide as his body, and once the cars cleared, he ran across the road, into the cattails and disappeared into the brush. This happened on a busy hunting weekend, and the time on Johnson's watch read 1:45 p.m., which is when you were probably taking an afternoon nap.

Don't forget that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. You can chase that dream buck all your life and never get a trophy, but don't let that get you down. Just get out there and enjoy the hunt. And don't forget to smile when your photo is taken with a spike or a doe!

Next Month:
STATE HARVEST FIGURES