ESCANABA — Watching whitetails in the winter time is a favorite U.P. pastime.

Like bird watching, deer watching is an educational hobby. As “old man winter” dishes out blinding blizzards, below zero temperatures, sleet and wind chills, the deer have ways to cope with it all.

In November, the deer were a sought after game animal. In January the deer become our neighbors. We are both trying to survive another winter.

Many of us have deer right in our backyards. We watch them come in at dusk to feed on hand outs or under the bird feeder. Other folks go to their camp to see the deer as they browse on the cedar trees.

Some of the bucks still have their antlers. Bedraggled from the mating season, it is so cool to see a mighty buck come back and eat his fill. As winter wears on, first one and then the other antler will drop off into the snow.

Yoopers can identify with the whitetails. We shovel and plow our driveways and roads so that we can go about our business. The deer make a line and march through the deep snow packing down their runways and trails so that they can go about their business.

Us humans are well prepared for winter. The firewood is piled high, the furnace is running, snow tires are on the car, the snow blower is full of gas and the kitchen pantry is stocked full of food.

Whitetail deer are pretty well adapted to survive the northern winters too.

When we zip up that nice warm down filled parka it is good to remember that the deer have special winter coats as well. The dark grey heavy fur on the deer contains hollow guard hairs for insulation with fine hair underneath for warmth.

Some deer, in the heavy snow areas, migrate south to find cedar swamps to yard up in. Deer also follow the loggers browsing on tree tops in the cuttings.

To conserve energy, deer reduce their activity content to stay where the food source is. Cedar trees not only provide their number one winter food but also offer thermal cover to shield the whitetails from the frigid winds.

Another amazing thing about deer in winter is that their metabolism rate goes way down. They only need to eat about half as much as they eat in the summer time. Their fat reserves keep them going during the long cold months.

Me on the other hand, after a nice wintery day on the snowshoe trail, has worked up a huge appetite. I eat more in the winter!

It is time to dish up a hot bowl of homemade soup and watch the deer gather outside of camp. First comes that big dominant doe followed by her two fluffy-looking fawns, then a spike horn and some more yearlings.

U.P. winters can be rough. Watching whitetails can make it seem a little less cold.

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Karen (Rose) Wils is a lifelong north Escanaba resident. Her folksy columns appear weekly in Lifestyles.