There was a time when sending deer hunters to North Manitou Island with no bag limits might result in a slaughter.

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Results from 1985 hunts on N. Manitou.

In 1985, 584 deer were killed on North Manitou Island during
five 9-day bow hunts and two 5-day firearms hunts. Here is
a breakdown of the hunt results:
BOW SEASONS
Date             Deer kill Hunters
Oct. 1-9              87           98
Oct. 10-18          41           81
Oct. 19-27          67           98
Oct. 28-Nov. 5  36           79
Nov. 6-14           35           61

FIREARMS SEASONS
Nov. 15-29       176           87
Nov. 20-24      142          84

TOTALS          584        588
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The year was 1985, and the slaughter was needed.

That was the first hunt organized by the National Park Service after it had purchased the island, which for years was managed under private ownership to raise as many deer as possible.

With a third firearms hunt and extended muzzle loader and archery seasons still scheduled, the Leelanau Enterprise reported on Nov. 28, 1985, that 171 gun hunters had killed 318 deer. During five archery hunts held from Oct. 1-Nov. 14, some 417 hunters had downed 266 deer.

Behind every tree there seemed to be a deer who was standing on hind hoofs trying to eat the last buds remaining on the island.

The herd was in poor shape with mature does averaging 80 pounds and bucks at 90 pounds. With no hunters to cull their numbers, they were literally eating themselves out of habitat.

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore biologist Ken Hyde said the island has changed since that first public hunt — for the better. With fewer deer, the island’s vegetation has returned and flourished.

He estimates the North Manitou deer population at 80-100 animals, which leads to the main reason the Park Service is reducing the number of hunting seasons on the island.
Fewer deer has translated to fewer people willing to camp and participate in the primitive hunt. The odds last year of harvesting a deer were about one in 10. In 1985, each firearms hunter averaged returning with nearly two deer.

Hyde said the Park Service is still encouraging hunting on the island, but interest has waned. Until a few years ago a lottery was needed to select hunters from a large pool; now every hunter who applies is issued a $25 permit.

So far, few have filled out the paperwork. Hyde knows of no archery hunters on North Manitou as the Oct. 1-26 season winds down. About 40 have shown an interest in the lone firearms hunt, set for Oct. 27-Nov. 4 — providing about 375 acres per hunter on the 15,000-acre island.

Hyde is suggesting that hunters apply for permits by Friday, although park personnel will try to accommodate those who sign up late. They are available online at the Lakeshore’s website, or at the NPS headquarters in Empire.

In 2006, 50 hunters participated in one muzzle loader and two firearms seasons. They took 7 deer, including one 10-point and two 8-points.

Hyde is hoping that combining the gun seasons will place more hunters on the island, helping to move deer around. The Park Service selected its dates to take advantage of a later-than-mainland leaf drop on North Manitou and the impending rut.

The change makes sense logistically, Hyde added, as park service staff had basically kept island facilities open throughout the hunting season. This fall, most personnel have already left the island.

“There will be just a few basic services provided by rangers, so the hunters will be having a primitive hunt,” said Hyde. He estimated the savings at “thousands of dollars.”

Sarah Grosvenor with the Manitou Island Transit Service said combining the hunts will help keep down expenses for her company, which last year hauled 30 hunters to the island for two hunts. So far 30 have signed up for the one hunt on North Manitou, but “who knows, we could pick up some more.”

Another 15 hunters have reserved ferry rides on Oct. 28 to South Fox Island, which also holds a special hunt, she added.

Hunters need to harvest some deer from North Manitou to help control the herd, Hyde said, with coyotes also taking a good share of animals. Park Service personnel flying over the island in a helicopter in 2006 counted one coyote per five deer.

Among deer seen was one gigantic specimen that Hyde speculated could be the much-sought “boxcar” buck sought in island lore. “He had a big, wide rack. Both the (big) deer taken last year looked different,” he said.

This winter, the Park Service tried flying over the island in an airplane, which resulted in far fewer deer being counted.