Every November, Wisconsinites move around quite a bit. Usually it’s up north. Why would all these people be traveling up north? For some good ol fashioned deer hunting. It can range from someone driving ten minutes away or some driving all the way from Kenosha to the sand bay area. All of the hunters having a similar goal in mind; get da biggest buck. My hunting drive takes me from Hartland all the way to around the town of Winter in Sawyer County. It’s considered Winter, even though the town is about a half hour drive away but that’s how it is up there. 

My Aunt, Uncle, and I always start the trip with my Uncle saying “five minute warning Linda, that means in the car and driving, not still packing.” And then my Aunt Linda would say back “I’m making sure Dixie has her medicine because she is an old lady dog.” And most times we would be driving back to the house after a couple of minutes for some reason, because someone always forgets some small thing. 

For the long drive, we listen to one station, Hair Nation Channel 39 on SiriusXM, where you get very familiar with Ratt, Motley Crue, Poison, Queensryche, Cinderella, Dokken, Great White, you get the idea. 

It’s exhilarating driving up and seeing the small towns, the blue signs for all the exits with all of the BP’s, Culvers, Taco Bell, McDonalds, and Kwik Trips a man could ask for, and then how it gradually turns from urban into complete forest. 

Then the forest thickens, it’s further to go from town to town, very windy roads, and mainly seeing trucks on the road. See if it were summertime, me and my dad would take the Harley and ride those roads, but in November it’s a little too cold for that.  

The first time being on County Highway W, we drove past a place called the Flambeau Forest Inn (FFI). It wasn’t open at the time but my Uncle said “One of these nights, we are going to eat there and it’s going to blow you away.” I didn’t know what to expect and was more excited about deer camp. 

A couple miles up the road, we took a left turn and that’s when we really became secluded. We first hit a gravel road, then the power lines stop going and then it’s completely dark, except for the headlights of the truck. And then finally, after four hours you roll up to an unlit cabin. We did the usual things of unpacking and then sleeping because of the long day, and then the long day tomorrow. We all figure out the stand we are staying at, and then go to another bar called the Big Bear Lodge. There is this huge bear that stands outside, and when you walk in you feel as if you stepped back into the 70’s. It’s a cool thing, the chairs, the bartop, it all has that 70’s feel. And the only other color is fluorescent orange, so you are in the same boat as all the rest of the people. 

Then the hunting comensces the next morning and not a single soul would wake up after around 6. And the day goes by just like this, wake up, sit around in the cold, take a nap, wake up, look at trees, watch the birds, if you're lucky see a deer and then get down and go back. That’s about it. And after a long day of sitting around in the cold, what could be better than eating warm food and talking with other hunters about their hunt? Nothing. And that’s exactly what we would do every night. The 15 minute car drive would take us to the FFI. 

I didn’t know what to expect from this place, it seemed like it would be normal like any other bar in Wisconsin. But I was wrong. As soon as I walked in, my eyes filled with the sight of hundreds of deer antlers, not just on the walls but on the ceiling as well. And it doesn’t stop at just deer antlers, there are humongous fish, bear, foxes, and turkey. It’s just like being outside with all the animals without being outside. The food was terrific too, the first time I got chili and cheese curds and that hit the spot after a long day of hunting. Usually hunting season is through thanksgiving, so the FFI will have a free turkey dinner to all the hunters during thanksgiving, which is a generous thing to do for all the hunters out there after the long day. 

Whenever me and my family go hunting in the small town of Winter, there is always one place we must go to, the FFI. It’s a tradition that won’t be broken unless we stopped going hunting but that wouldn’t happen to us. We might not get any deer, or even see a deer for that matter, but at the end of the long days, there will always be the FFI for us to dine and chat at.