It is a busy week for many of Wisconsin’s deer hunters.

The traditional nine-day gun deer hunting season starts at sunrise on Saturday, and most hunters are getting ready. There is plenty to do.

It is no chore for me, however. Like many hunters, I look forward to deer season all year round.

The blaze orange will be hanging outside this week. I’ll be checking the weather forecasts, double-checking my equipment, and making sure I have my ammunition, clothing and hunting license.

Much of my preparation is to avoid trips to the store for 11th-hour purchases, and I have found that the hunting stand on opening morning is not the ideal place or time to realize I have forgotten something.

Will my preparation help me shoot a deer? It can’t hurt, but most of my experiences with the gun deer season have involved only dumb luck. But there is something special about the gun season.

I get out hunting plenty in the fall. I already have turkey and venison in the freezer from hunts in October. But gun deer season is different.

What makes deer season a special time is the camaraderie and tradition. There is nothing like the thrill of heading out into the woods and successfully killing a deer, but not every hunt produces a deer. It is the people, food and drink, country roads and familiar stories that make the gun deer season an unofficial “holiday” for me.

Have a successful and safe hunting season.

Paul Medinger is a staff reporter for Tomah Newspapers.