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Patrick Durkin

Patrick Durkin: Wisconsin’s Tom Tiffany can’t tell trivial from crucial on conservation issues

Fishing, Hunting, National Fishing, National Hunting, Opinion, Wisconsin /

Unlike some politicians who pander to hunters when seeking their votes, Wisconsin gubernatorial candidate Tom Tiffany doesn’t pretend to be a hunter or angler.
He’s to be commended for that. President Bill Clinton and wannabe president John Kerry once play-acted as waterfowlers, and former Gov. Scott Walker feigned interest in deer hunting. Walker bought his first deer hunting license at age 39 in 2007, three years before running for governor. Two years after losing that job, he bought his last deer license on Nov. 20, 2020, and shot his only deer the next day.

Patrick Durkin: Wisconsin’s Tom Tiffany can’t tell trivial from crucial on conservation issues Read More »

Patrick Durkin: Satellite-linked phones guide rescuers to remote areas

Featured, Fishing, Home Page News, Hunting, National Fishing, National Hunting, Nature Page & Night Sky, Wisconsin /

A family friend who loved spending weekends on his motorcycle insisted that safety rested mostly on himself, even though a bumper sticker on his car advised “Watch for Motorcycles.”
As he often said: “You die when you quit fearing them.”
He didn’t mean you must be too terrified to ride motorcycles. He worried that complacency would kill you, while respectful caution kept you safe. Such wariness applies to most outdoor recreation we love, whether it’s paddling rivers, hiking the Northwoods, canoeing remote lakes, hunting Western mountains, fishing on the Great Lakes, or cruising the countryside on ATVs, UTVs or snowmobiles.

Patrick Durkin: Satellite-linked phones guide rescuers to remote areas Read More »

Patrick Durkin: Wisconsin Natural Resources Board should worry more about helping deer than hurting CDAC members’ feelings

Featured, Home Page News, Hunting, National Hunting, Opinion, Wisconsin /

When the Natural Resources Board (NRB) tried mopping up Wisconsin’s 2026 deer management plans during its June meeting, members merely rearranged the dust and debris while wishing for better things next year.
Such futility isn’t new. That’s been the script each June since Wisconsin hatched its “new age” of deer hunting in 2014, a do-nothing system crafted by Gov. Scott Walker’s administration and then acquiesced by Gov. Tony Evers’ “I see nothing” regime the past eight years.

Patrick Durkin: Wisconsin Natural Resources Board should worry more about helping deer than hurting CDAC members’ feelings Read More »

$10,000 bond set for Wisconsin deputy in shooting that injured turkey hunters

Featured, Home Page News, Hunting, National Hunting, National News, News, Wisconsin /

Bond was set at $10,000 for the Racine County Sheriff’s Department deputy who faces four felony charges after his 3-year-old daughter triggered a shot that wounded a turkey-hunting mentor and that man’s 7-year-old son April 12 during Wisconsin’s youth-only turkey season.
James D. Lehman, 35, of Union Grove, made his initial appearance Sept. 17 before Racine County Circuit Court Commissioner Sally Hoelzel, who ordered him to have no contact with the shooting victims while free on bond.

$10,000 bond set for Wisconsin deputy in shooting that injured turkey hunters Read More »

Record EHD death toll hits 1,600 deer in southeast Wisconsin

Featured, Home Page News, Hunting, National Hunting, National News, News, Wisconsin /

The death toll from Wisconsin’s worst outbreak of epizootic hemorrhagic disease (EHD) climbed past 1,600 the past three weeks, with the virus killing at least 500 more white-tailed deer while spreading into two more southeastern counties.
As of Sept. 22, the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) listed 1,100 EHD-killed whitetails in Washington County, up 57% from 700 on Sept. 4; 360 dead deer in Waukesha County, up 140% from 150; and 80 dead deer in Ozaukee County, up 166% from 30.

Record EHD death toll hits 1,600 deer in southeast Wisconsin Read More »

Patrick Durkin: Crossbows help Wisconsin set third highest arrow kill last deer season

Featured, Home Page News, Hunting, National Hunting, Opinion, Wisconsin /

As Wisconsin bowhunters returned to the woods Sept. 12 for the 2026-27 opener, let’s review the 2025 hunts, which toppled 113,620 whitetails, the state’s third highest archery kill on record.
Crossbow hunters registered a record 71,387 (63%) of those deer, a 10.6% increase from 64,555 deer in 2024. The previous crossbow record was 65,731 in 2020. The 2025 kill was also the first time crossbow hunters shot more than 70,000 deer since crossbows were legalized for all bowhunters in 2014.

Patrick Durkin: Crossbows help Wisconsin set third highest arrow kill last deer season Read More »

Record EHD deer deaths piling up in three southeast Wisconsin counties

Featured, Home Page News, Hunting, National Hunting, National News, News, Wisconsin /

Deer in southeastern Wisconsin are suffering the state’s worst outbreak of epizootic hemorrhagic disease (EHD) since this viral disease first appeared in 2002, with nearly 900 whitetails likely dead as of early September.
Confirmed reports of EHD-killed deer as of Sept. 4 put the count at more than 700 in Washington County, more than 150 in Waukesha County and more than 30 in Ozaukee County. Department of Natural Resources (DNR) disease specialists list only firsthand reports of dead deer in the agency’s totals.

Record EHD deer deaths piling up in three southeast Wisconsin counties Read More »

Patrick Durkin: Wisconsin’s Ben Gruber campaigns for wardens’ healthy work culture

Fishing, Home Page News, Hunting, National Fishing, National Hunting, Wisconsin /

Assembly candidate Ben Gruber thinks the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has a detached, centralized command structure that ignores an often-toxic work environment for Wisconsin conservation wardens.
Since January, Gruber has been on leave from his DNR law-enforcement duties and his role as union president of Conservation Wardens Local 1215. That’s because he’s the Democratic candidate for the 51st Assembly district in southwestern Wisconsin and will face Republican incumbent Todd Novak in the Nov. 3 election.

Patrick Durkin: Wisconsin’s Ben Gruber campaigns for wardens’ healthy work culture Read More »

Racine County deputy faces four felonies stemming from mentor turkey hunt in Wisconsin

Featured, Home Page News, Hunting, National Hunting, National News, News, Wisconsin /

A 35-year-old Racine County Sheriff’s Department deputy faces four felony charges after letting his 3-year-old daughter trigger a shot that wounded a 40-year-old turkey-hunting mentor and the man’s 7-year-old son April 12 during Wisconsin’s two-day youth-only turkey season.
James D. Lehman, of Union Grove, was charged Aug. 17 in Racine County Circuit Court with two counts of second-degree reckless injury with a dangerous weapon, and two counts of injury by negligent use of a dangerous weapon.

Racine County deputy faces four felonies stemming from mentor turkey hunt in Wisconsin Read More »

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