The eight-day firearms deer hunt on North Manitou Island will begin Saturday despite the ongoing shutdown of the federal government,.
Captain Jim Munoz expects to take about 125 hunters to the island over several trips aboard the landing craft “The Bear..”
“Looks like a windy start, so we’ll see how it goes,” Munoz reported.
The hunt is limited to 200 applicants who signed up in the spring. For several years the primary source of transportation for hunters was the Mishe Mokwa, but the ferry owned by Manitou Island Transit Service has not been servicing the island due to an unsafe docking situation, Munoz has stated.
The Manitou deer hunt for a few years waned in popularity due to a low kill rate, but the island herd has rebounded. Hunters are licensed by the National Park Service, which has no limits on how many deer each hunter may harvest.
The hunt ends Nov. 1.
