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Opening weekend of deer-hunting season is a family affair

Posted November 16, 2007 10:00 pm

Chris Young

John Staab's deer season got off to a successful start, just minutes after sunrise Friday.

"I heard some twigs snap behind me," said Staab, age 17. "I turned around and I saw the antlers coming and thought, 'Here we go.'"

John bagged a nine-point buck, and his brother Daniel, 13, took a doe, both in the first hour of the first weekend of the traditional firearm deer-hunting season that runs through Sunday. The boys were with a group of nine hunters made up of family and friends on 200 acres near Athens.

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources expects about 200,000 hunters to take part in the firearm deer season. The second weekend will be Nov. 29 to Dec. 2.

Last year, hunters killed just over 115,000 deer during the seven-day firearm season. Illinois has about 800,000 deer living among its more than 12 million people.

Patriarch George Staab said all of his four kids had chances Friday morning.

"They all had shot opportunities, but they were all looking for the big doe or big buck they want to shoot," he said. "We usually don't start getting serious until Saturday.

"I'm the only one that didn't see a deer today."

The hunt is a tradition for family and friends on Staab's acreage, which is managed for wildlife, overlooking the Sangamon River valley in Menard County.

"We meet together at around 5 a.m., have some hot coffee, a few minutes of prayer, and get everybody set," Staab said. "This land has been in the family for about 30 years, and we've been hunting it for a long time.

"I enjoy watching my kids hunt."

Thirteen-year-old Daniel saw a small four-point buck during the morning hunt, but passed on it.

"I didn't want to shoot it because it was too young," he said.

Staab said he lets his children come to their own conclusions about whether to pull the trigger.

"They set their own limits, and they usually exceed mine after a few years," he said. "They are out there to have fun."

Daniel was planning to head back into the woods Friday afternoon.

"I've seen one that I wanted," he said. "A 10-pointer with a drop tine."

He knows it will take patience.

"I'm going to go back out tonight and keep going until I get a buck," he said. "That's how it's going to go."

Chris Young can be reached at (217) 788-1528 or chris.young@sj-r.com.

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