Last Saturday kicked off the start of Minnesota’s bowhunting season, which runs from Sept. 14 through sunset on New Year’s Eve. We’re also in the middle of bear season, which runs Sept. 1 through Oct.

A heavy-antlered 12-point buck materializes on the trail. He’s only five steps from bow range, but then he throws his nose in the air, goes rigid with nervousness, and waves the white flag. Game over.

It’s the end of October as I write this, midday, and I just spotted a deer while driving home from a quick trip to town. Smack in the middle of a wide-open cut cornfield, with the sun high in the sky, ...