Island deer hunt

[michihunt]

I am sure its a long shot but have any Roksliders done the North Manitou island deer hunt? As far as i am concerned, its as close to a backcountry hunt as Michigan has to offer. You are dropped off by a ferry and are there a week. No amenties and foot traffic only. Its a late october rifle hunt and the island is in Northern Lake Michigan so the weather could be interesting.

Anyways, i was wondering if anyone had any stories, pointers, or experiences worth sharing.

My buddy and I planning on going this fall. This will be our first "backcountry" hunt so any advice would be appreciated.

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[Steve O]

Sounds like an adventure. I believe some kayak or take their own boats to the island too, no?

 

[michihunt]

I have heard of people kayaking there in the summer. It is 12 miles out which in my opinion is too far, especially in the fall. As someone who owns an 18ft boat and fishes Lake Michigan often, i wouldnt take my own boat that time of year. Its just too unpredictable. There also isnt any protected harbor area to moor your boat. Just a dock for the ferry and you cant keep it there. I'll spend the $100 on the ferry!

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[Cedarsavage]

I've never been there, thought about a couple times. I can't remember where but with a little digging I found harvest statistics for most of the years they did the hunts. My dad knows a guys who did it, didn't see a single deer and he's a good hunter, but of course that doesn't necessarily mean anything. From my research
The pros
-extra tags that don't count against regular harvest
-extra rifle hunt
-probably a great time at a great price

Cons
-from memory it seemed like harvest varied alot from year to year
-you'd be there a week regardless and if you killed one on day one and its a hot year that could be bad, or if weather turned miserable

I'd be interested to see what you turn up and hear what you think if you do it. I think I found a couple youtube videos of guys who did it as well.

 

[michihunt]

I think your pros and cons are spot on. Either way, its whats fits my schedule and is in the budget. Should make for an interesting first "backcountry" hunt!

I've never been there, thought about a couple times. I can't remember where but with a little digging I found harvest statistics for most of the years they did the hunts. My dad knows a guys who did it, didn't see a single deer and he's a good hunter, but of course that doesn't necessarily mean anything. From my research
The pros
-extra tags that don't count against regular harvest
-extra rifle hunt
-probably a great time at a great price

Cons
-from memory it seemed like harvest varied alot from year to year
-you'd be there a week regardless and if you killed one on day one and its a hot year that could be bad, or if weather turned miserable

I'd be interested to see what you turn up and hear what you think if you do it. I think I found a couple youtube videos of guys who did it as well.

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[MIedge]

North Manitou Island Hunt | Michigan Sportsman - Online Michigan Hunting and Fishing Resource

That's a link to a thread on MI Sportsman about the North Manitou hunt (hopefully it works). For me, the main thing that makes me hesitant about doing the hunt is the claims of absurd amounts of ticks. Some people say they're out of control and others, like the guy who started the thread, said that he only found two on his clothing all week. Just a little more food for thought, I would personally like to make that trip happen as well but I can't fit it in any time soon. Good luck!

 

[pods8 (Rugged Stitching)]

I backpacked on the island in my teens. If you have the time I'd certainly take a trip there and whatever hunting you get out of it great. Its a nice place to backpack and has history so just enjoy it and keep an eye out for deer.

 

[michihunt]

North Manitou Island Hunt | Michigan Sportsman - Online Michigan Hunting and Fishing Resource

That's a link to a thread on MI Sportsman about the North Manitou hunt (hopefully it works). For me, the main thing that makes me hesitant about doing the hunt is the claims of absurd amounts of ticks. Some people say they're out of control and others, like the guy who started the thread, said that he only found two on his clothing all week. Just a little more food for thought, I would personally like to make that trip happen as well but I can't fit it in any time soon. Good luck!

Thanks for the link. I have heard there are ticks everywhere and i have heard people say they saw none. I was worried enough i am going to sell my floorless Mountainsmith Mountain Shelter and bought a Luxe Tipi with an inner tent. We will find out.

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[michihunt]

I backpacked on the island in my teens. If you have the time I'd certainly take a trip there and whatever hunting you get out of it great. Its a nice place to backpack and has history so just enjoy it and keep an eye out for deer.

Everyone i have talked to says the same thing. I am really excited to take the week to hunt and see the sights. Should be a great trip regardless as long as the weather isnt terrible.

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[Brandon Pattison]

PM coming...

 

[michihunt]

PM coming...

Pm Sent

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[Marmots]

I used to work on North Manitou island in college. I saw lots of deer and it's a beautiful place. There's also great small mouth fishing on the interior lake.

The biggest caveat: I was on Manitou island because I had a job studying Lyme disease. There are A LOT of ticks.

The best advice I can give you is to duct tape your pants to your boots, tuck your shirt in, and generally think of your clothes as a line of defense. You can treat your clothes with deet and permethrin, I was always soaked in the stuff and still jumped a lot of deer.

Visually check yourself and your hunting partner often. Ticks show up pretty well on blaze orange. Carry good tweezers. Finally, remember that Lyme disease is much more easily treatable if you catch it early. See a doctor the moment you have symptoms and it should just be a quick run of antibiotics.

You can get away from the ticks at night by camping on the beach, though wind can be a problem in that case. I had a tent with a bath tub floor and never had any problems.

 

[Chesapeake173]

Curious to hear the story


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[MallardMaster]

How did your hunt go on Manitou? I read the stories every year on other forums but haven't heard anything this year in regards to the hunt.

 

[Adam Gibbs]

Call me ignorant, but I've never heard of this hunt that takes place there. Now that I've looked into it after seeing this thread, its on my list to do. Unfortunately I probably cant make it happen until 2021 because of other trips and the time off work that they and this trip require. It looks like an extremely cool hunt by Michigan standards.

 

[michihunt]

Sorry for the delay! I thought i had gave a brief write up but i guess not. First, i appreciate everyone's insight prior to the hunt. I had a great time and was really happy with all my gear. I did a ton of research prior and most of the gear stuff was here. Its a great forum! Now for the trip, we had great weather, 30's to 50's everyday, minimal rain and wind. My buddy and i seemed to be the only ones without deer carts as we just had everything in our packs. Once we got to the island, we hiked a good 5 miles across and set up camp.



We only hiked with nalgenes so after camp was up, we set off to Lake MI for water. Beautiful view..

[url=https://flic.kr/p/2dLDw1L]20181027_174538

For the next few days, we tried to get the lay of the land. I spent a lot of time still hunting/scouting as i had never been there. I was very surprised by the amount of buck sign i saw. Tons of active scrapes and fresh rubs. It was really thick so it was hard to see very far at a time. On Tuesday, my buddy got this buck as he worked a scrape line. It was pretty convenient to skin and quarter him out and hike the 1.5 miles back to camp. I am glad we did as it was covered in ticks!

20181030_200936

I never got a shot at a buck, but i feel like i learned enough to get a shot next time. This was my first "back country" style hunt and I loved it. We hardly saw other hunters, saw a fair amount of deer and just got to enjoy the solitude. All totaled, i figured we hiked over 50miles that week. I am excited to do it again.

20181031_125927

20181027_174419

 

[Ac338]

Congrats. Definitely looks like a fun way to mix it up from our typical treestand hunting.

 

[MallardMaster]

thanks for sharing. How bad were the ticks there?

 

[ChrisAU]

Looks like a lot of fun!

 

[michihunt]

thanks for sharing. How bad were the ticks there?

They weren't bad. I found 3 on me all week. They were the smallest ticks i had seen. I talked to a few guys that were in more open areas and said they were worse. The deer my buddy shot had lots on its head. Didnt look at the rest of it as we skinned and quartered it were he shot it.

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