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Deer Activity on the Rise; Motorists Reminded to be on the Lookout

Published on 11/10/2025 under News It's that time of year when deer become more active, and safety officials remind motorists to be on the lookout. While hunters would love to see a big buck cross their path in the field, it's not something we want when driving. According to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation deer/vehicle crashes typically during the fall as days shorten and bucks pursue potential mates. According to the DoT statistics, there were more than 17,000 vehicle-deer crashes last year, about a third of those occur in the months of October and November. Locally, we've seen an increase in the number of deer-collisions as well. Over the past three weeks, the Lincoln County Sheriff's Report has listed more than 50 such crashes on Lincoln County roadways alone. Motorists are reminded to buckle up, slow down, and scan the road ahead, particularly at dawn and dusk when deer are most active. If you see one deer cross the road, anticipate more may follow. If a collision with a deer is unavoidable, they recommend braking firmly and staying in your lane. They said you should avoid swerving which can lead to leaving the roadway and a more serious crash. If you strike a deer, pull off to the side and remain in your vehicle until help arrives.

Published on 11/10/2025 under News Students from several Northwoods schools came together this past week for a unique career exploration experience. Rhinelander hosted high school students from Lakeland, Three Lakes, and Tomahawk for 'Building Bridges'. Unlike a traditional career fair, Building Bridges gave students the opportunity to sit down one-on-one with local employers to learn about real-world career paths; covering topics like training, education requirements, wages, and future opportunities. Those employers represented careers in a number of industries including healthcare, law enforcement, banking, and education. It was an event organized by Lexi Radtke, the College and Career Counselor with the School District of Rhinelander. The district said, "We're so proud of our students for their curiosity and engagement, and we are incredibly grateful to all of our Rhinelander Partners in Education and participating school districts and employers for making this event possible." They added, "This investment of time and collaboration helps our students build bridges to brighter futures — and that's something worth celebrating!"

Published on 11/10/2025 under News Plates have been cleaned, votes cast, and Tomahawk has chosen its next 'Best Burger in Paradise'...and it's back-to-back winner. Each summer, the Tomahawk STAR Foundation invites area restaurants to grill up their best burgers as part of a friendly fundraising competition. This year, seven restaurants stepped up to the challenge. Over the summer, hundreds of burgers were served up. In the end, cardholders selected B's Landing in the top spot for a second consecutive year. Their entry, the B's Benedict Burger, featured a 1/3 lb. burger on top of a crispy hash brown patty, topped with American cheese, pickled jalapeños, bacon, an over easy egg & smothered in their homemade hollandaise sauce all on a toasted onion bun. While B's claimed bragging rights, the real winner is the STAR Foundation. Proceeds from the contest support their ongoing mission to provide funding to local non-profits and community organizations. They'll be celebrating next weekend, as the STAR Foundation will host their Burger Bash Wrap Up at B's Landing on November 22 from 5-9.

Published on 11/10/2025 under News Those flying out of the Rhinelander-Oneida County Airport this holiday season will be able to check out artwork created right here in the Northwoods by local artists. The airport partners with ArtStart to host rotating art displays throughout the year, highlighting local artists and entertaining weary travelers. The latest airport exhibit features the work of the Lakeland Art League, an organization hosts regional workshops, educational programs, and group exhibitions to support artists and engage their community. The newest airport exhibition features thirty original works they said captures the beauty and character of the Northwoods from serene winter scenes and vibrant fall landscapes to striking wildlife and floral pieces. It was unveiled this past week, and it will remain on display through January 12.

Published on 11/10/2025 under News The DNR is reminding waterfowl hunters to know their target to avoid shooting protected birds. Officials focused on large white birds that may appear similar to the untrained eye including swans, pelicans, and whooping cranes what are all protected species in Wisconsin. Thanks to reintroduction and protection efforts, native swans are more abundant and widespread in Wisconsin than they were a generation ago, and other swans will be migrating through the state over the next few weeks. This includes trumpeter, tundra and mute swans. The population of the once-endangered trumpeter swan now exceeds 15,000 in Wisconsin. One exception is snow geese, legal to hunt, but snow geese are infrequent in Wisconsin and much less abundant than native swans. The DNR notes the swans are much larger than snow geese. For more information about swan identification, photos and tips for how to tell swans apart from other large white birds, visit the DNR's Swans In Wisconsin webpage. Photo credit: Tom Koerner/U.S. Fish and Wildlife

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Sports Headlines

Hatchet Football Seasons Ends With Sectional Championship Loss

Published on 11/10/2025 under Sports Tomahawk's football squad's dream season would end in the WIAA Division 5 Sectional Championship against three-time defending state champion Stratford at Hatchet Field Friday night, 29-0. The Hatchet defense stepped up in the first half and forced three turnovers, including intercepting Tiger quarterback Brady Berg twice. However, Tomahawk would fail to score off of those three turnovers and mustered just over 100 yards of offense. Jett Reilly would lead the Hatchets in rushing, running for 31 yards on eight carries. Tomahawk was also held under 100 yards for the first time this season. The Hatchets finish the 2025 season with a 10-2 record, the most wins in school history. Tomahawk also graduates 11 seniors. They are Wally Horabik, Jason Watkins, Rex Reilly, Jonah Dickens, Nathan Reimer, Logan Norman, Kenny Turner, Ethan Gibeault, Kaiden Kapellusch, Nathan Norman, and Michael Samundsen. The Hatchets also finished with their first playoff win since 2015 and their first trip to the Sectional Championship since 2007.

Published on 11/03/2025 under Sports In the WIAA Division 5 Football Playoffs, #1 Seed Tomahawk would advance to the Sectional Championship for the first time since 2007, defeating #5 Seed Spencer/Columbus Catholic Halloween Night at Hatchet Field, 34-12. The Hatchets jumped out to a 21-0 Halftime lead thanks to a stout defense and two time-consuming touchdown drives. After Spencer/Columbus Catholic cut it to nine heading into the fourth, Tomahawk forced two of the Rockets' three turnovers on the night. Jonah Dickens would come up with a key interception that would pave the way for touchdown runs by Tiegan Sarazin and Max Larson. Sarazin would rush for 100 yards and two touchdowns. The Hatchets also got a touchdown run from Rex Reilly and a 19-yard scoring pass from Jett Reilly to Jonah Dickens. The win gives Tomahawk its first double-digit winning season in school history, moving to 10-1 on the season. The Hatchets will play for their first state semifinal berth since 1990 in the Sectional Championship next week against three-time defending state champion Stratford. Tune in for the Fehrman Orthodontics Kickoff Cabin at 6:10 and the opening kick at 7:00 next Friday. Alex Koch and Jon Long will be in the broadcast booth.

Published on 10/24/2025 under Sports On Friday night, the Tomahawk Hatchet Football Team won their ninth game of the season, with a 41-14 Level One WIAA Playoff victory over Omro. Tomahawk dominated the line of scrimmage all night, as they rushed for 290 yards and had over 35 minutes of possession offensively. On the other side of the ball, Tomahawk held Omro to just 39 yards rushing. Rex Reilly had three rushing touchdowns, and carried the ball 13 times for 59 yards. Jonah Dickens also had three touchdowns, two touchdown catches, both from Jett Reilly, one from 43 yards out the other from ten. Dickens also added a nine yard touchdown run. Jett Reilly, along with those two touchdown passes and 72 yards through the air, had 76 yards on the ground. Tomahawk is now 9-1 on the season and will host Spencer/Columbus Catholic on Friday night at Hatchet Field. Spencer/Columbus defeated New Holstein 31-12. The #1 seed Hatchets and #5 seed Spencer/Columbus will play at Hatchet Field on Friday night at 7:00 pm. Northwoods 92-5 will have the Fehrman Orthodontics Kickoff Cabin at 6:10 pm, and the opening kickoff at 7:00 pm. In other scores from Level One action: In D-5: Stratford beat Richland Center 41-9 In D-4: Mosinee defeated Turner 41-7 In D-3: Merrill defeated Lakeland 38-12, Rhinelander lost to Edgewood 35-7, Wausau East lost to Mount Horeb/Barneveld, and Medford lost to Grafton 49-14

Published on 10/24/2025 under Sports The Tomahawk Hatchet boys and girls cross country teams competed in the Division Two WIAA Sectional Meet at the MARC in Merrill on Friday. The Hatchet girls will have an individual qualifier at the WIAA State Meet next Saturday at the Ridges Golf Course in Wisconsin Rapids, as Freshman Charlee Lund in fifth place overall and will competed at state. The Hatchet girls finished in fourth place overall, Abbie Rosenmeir was 18th, Lydia Shaney finished 20th, Faith Derleth was 35th, and Elise Gibeault was 38th. Wittenberg-Birnamwood finished first and Shawano was second. On the boys side, Tomahawk was fifth. Lakeland ran away with the boys race scoring 45 points and Shawano qualifies for state with their second place finish. Caiden Reichelt let Tomahawk and finished just one place out of qualifying. Reichelt was 10th overall, Connor Zorn was 37th, Jordyn Carew was 39th, Dawson Jones 42nd and Ryan Montag was 48th. The WIAA Division Two Girls State Race will be at 2:25 pm next Saturday and will feature Hatchet freshman Charlee Lund.

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