Region 7 check station traffic, harvest down on cold opening weekend

Nearly 400 hunters came through three check stations set up around FWP Region 7 on Sunday during the opening weekend of big game season. Overall, traffic and harvest numbers were down from 2018, but many still managed to harvest something on a very cold, blustery day punctuated by snow. The weather was a stark contrast to last year’s mild opener, and to shirt-sleeve temps just a few days ago.

“Most of the deer hunters admitted to not venturing too far from their pickups,” said Region 7 Wildlife Biologist Melissa Foster, who manned the Glendive station. “There were a couple of nice bucks from f...