JohnMoney makes the world go round, right? Therefore, spending money is a key variable in a healthy economy – and hunters do a whole lot of spending. Let me break it down a little.
Licenses
First, let’s talk about hunting licenses. In Michigan, after the purchase of a base license for $10, the average Joe can purchase up to 12 whitetail tags at $20 a pop; a combo license that allows you to harvest two bucks and 10 universal antlerless licenses (otherwise known as doe tags). According to the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR), in 2022, there was an estimated 516,336 hunters that were issued licenses at an average of 2.2 (fun fact, I personally average four tags a year). Round it up, I’ll call it total of three tags, which I am assuming is a combo and a doe. (Side thought – I’m presuming people are purchasing the combo because there are certain DMUs that allow you to tag a buck or doe, depending on the season).
- Base License – $10
- Combo Deer License – $40
- Antlerless Deer License – $20
Total: $70
Hunting Gear
Secondly, now that people have purchased their licenses, let’s talk about everything else you need to hunt. I’m referring to guns and bullets, bows, arrows, broadheads, and awesome camouflage clothes. Assuming this is a new hunter that is going to hunt archery and gun seasons, I’m going to ballpark some of these items:
- Gun – $500
- Ammunition – $2/round @ 20 rounds a box = $40
- Bow – $700
- Arrows – $100
- Broadheads – $60
- Hunting Clothes – $500 (this is bare bones cheapest clothes that will get you through all seasons)
Total: $1,900
The Trip
Thirdly, you probably aren’t going to drive an electric vehicle to the woods, yet. Therefore, I’m going to assume you’ll need gas for your car, you’ll need snacks when you get to the gas station, food for the trip, hotels/AirBnB/housing, and other items to get to your destination, survive, and get back home. Again, I’ll ballpark for a two day trip where one way is 100 miles:
- Gas – $3/gallon * ( 100 Mile Trip / 20 MPG ) * 2 Trips (to the woods and back) = $30
- Snacks – $20
- Food – $50
- Housing – $100/night
Total: $200
The Post-Hunt Services
Fourthly, now that you killed two 180” bucks and a monster 5 year old doe, you may be in need of taxidermist or processing services. For simplicity and a bit of reality, I’m going to calculate services for one of the bucks:
- Taxidermist – $600
- Processing – $200
Total: $800
Conclusion
Now, if you add up all the totals, you’ll get something like $2,970 for a very successful two day whitetail hunting trip in Michigan – for someone that needs to buy everything new. It can be argued that items such as bullets/arrows/clothing can last a long time. Regardless, the $2,970 may not seem like a lot. However, if you multiply only the cost of a base license with three deer licenses for the 516,336 Michigan hunters in 2022, that’s $36,143,520 alone! And that is why hunting is good for the economy. Imagine including all the other items listed above for each hunter.
Also, after writing this post, I’ve come to realize that even though most of the time I’m sitting during the hunting season, these costs are precisely why I’m penniless.
