Although I am new to this forum (and state), I have enjoyed reading the stories people have posted. I have also noticed an understandably wide gap in terms of attitudes toward the growing wolf population in Washington. Having recently moved from Wisconsin where we have our fair share of wolves, I thought I would add a couple wolf encounter stories from far northern Wisconsin. Although I am not opposed to all wolves, I understand why many people are.
First, some background on location: the area in these stories is about 20 miles west of the Michigan border and about five miles south of Lake Superior. This is just about as north as you can get in Wisconsin; there are few people and lots of wooded space.
My first out-of-car encounter occurred while I was on a dirt road and about 40 yards from my car sitting on a bridge. I was technically trying to catch some brookies but I was having no luck. Basically, I was daydreaming. I happened to catch some movement near my car and looked up in time to see a couple deer dart across the road. I thought this was unusual because I wasn’t making any noise and they had no reason to run. After returning to my daydream, I noticed more movement and ignored it at first assuming more deer. When I happened to glance toward my car, however, I got quite a surprise. The wolf was about 20 yards away standing in the middle of the dirt road between me and my car. I had no idea they were so big having only briefly glimpsed them in the past. It just stared at me. I had a fishing pole, my Leatherman, and nowhere to go if the wolf became more interested - so I simply froze. We stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity before it casually walked off the road in the direction of the deer. Needless to say, I immediately b-lined for my car and switched my fishing plans for the day. I am still not sure why it stared at me for so long, but I imagine it might have been wondering the same thing about me. At least we parted ways in an uneventful manner.
My second encounter was much more hair raising. I have a 20 minute walk to my tree stand where I hunt whitetails. I first walk along a meadow on the edge of a 400 acre plot of forest on private land. Then I turn and walk about 50 yards to my tree through the dense woods. At best from my stand I can see 40 yards into the brush before everything is obscured by branches. This particular morning started out like most others – bacon, eggs, coffee with my grandfather, and my cold trudge in the dark to my tree. It was overcast and my headlamp only provided enough light to find my bootprints in the snow from the previous day. As I was walking the edge, I thought I heard something walking with me just inside the treeline. I would stop and after a few more steps the extra walking stopped with me. At first, I thought I had spooked a bedded deer, but they generally don’t continue walking with you like this animal was. When I shined my light into the trees I could see nothing. I knew it wasn’t a bear because it was walking quietly – almost like it was stalking – it was walking like I was. I continued walking and every 10-20 steps I would stop and the walking would stop too; it continued with me the entire time I skirted the trees. This was too creepy; I started to sweat and my nerves wavered. I don’t generally chamber a round on my walk in, but I did this morning. I got to the trail that leads to my tree and decided I would briskly walk and scramble up the 15 feet to my safe tree. I still had not confirmed what was following me, though I had my suspicions at this point. Once I was up my tree I could hear it circling me; it walked around my stand just out of the range of my headlamp. This continued until just enough light was breaking that I could make out the shape of the wolf leaving my area.
My grandfather enters the property from a different side and said that he saw the wolf bound past him not long after daybreak – it paid him no mind.
Since these two first encounters, I have seen many wolves; including this year when a wolf and I were simultaneously scared by each and both jumped – the wolf turning and running in the opposite direction. The first wolf wanted nothing to do with me but I am not sure what to think about the second. If it had wanted to it could have made my morning much more interesting.
Thanks for reading – I hope this wasn’t too long.
