Western Hunter Magazine July / August 2025 by westernhunter

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VOLUME 25 • ISSUE 4 • JULY/AUGUST 2025

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GEAR • TACTICS • INFORMATION Insights for the Western Hunter

The Monetization of Hope: Cash Cow for Wildlife Agencies ~ Mike Duplan

Archery Ballistics – Part 3: Arrow Trajectory and Accuracy ~ James Yates

78 Backcountry Packing for Rookies – Part 2 ~ George Bettas

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Routes and Logistics: A Roadmap to Putting Meat in the Freezer ~ Cody Barnes

Moving Mountains: Packing Options for Backcountry Hunting ~ Nick Gehring

Quail of the Western Coast ~ Edgar Castillo

Head Injuries in the Backcountry ~ Lindsay Persico

Grease the Groove: Travel Workouts ~ Matt Ward

100 Owyhee Winter Chukars ~ Richy Harrod

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The Forgotten First Love ~ Andrew Marlin

K9 Summer School ~ Heath Seiner

DEPARTMENTS More information to complete your hunting arsenal 8 From the Publisher ~ Chris Denham 10 The Big Picture ~ Luke Renard 12 Room to Roam ~ Isaac Augedahl 48 Gear & Product Highlights ~ Western Hunter Staff 108 The Wild Kitchen ~ Lindsay Persico 110 Featured Artist: Will Stelter ~ Pedram Parvin 114 Dialing It Back ~ Chris Denham

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North America Super Slam Series: Dall Sheep ~ Fred Eichler

WING HUNTER Western wing hunting adventures and information

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110 www.westernhunter.net

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RANGEFINDING FOR THE MODERN HUNTER The RX-5000 TBR/W combines an extremely accurate 5,000-yard ranging performance with the ability to drop location pins right to your phone using the Leupold Control app and popular maps like onX Hunt.

ADVENTURE Our readers share their stories

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On the Cover – Chris Denham

PUBLISHERS Floyd Green, Chris Denham

ASSOCIATE EDITOR / ART DIRECTOR

Good Buck! — Chris Denham 22 The Bitter End — Isaac Augedahl 28 Lucky Number Thirteen — Kyle Greene 34 Snowflakes & Sonora — Rod Fogle 38 Perspective is Everything — Kyle Reedy 44 Nostalgia — Jeremy Ley 16

Randy Stalcup 602-228-4601 randy@westernhunter.net

MARKETING/ADVERTISING Chris Denham chris@westernhunter.net Dave Bond 602-695-8282 dave@westernhunter.net

GRAPHIC DESIGN Randy Stalcup 602-228-4601 randy@westernhunter.net

EDITORIAL STAFF Nate Simmons – Backcountry Editor Remi Warren – Hunting Editor Mike Duplan – Hunting Editor George Bettas – Hunting/Conservation Editor Fred Eichler – Hunting Editor James Yates – Archery/Hunting Editor Kyle Greene – Hunting Editor Nick Gehring – Hunting/Taxidermy Editor Lindsay Persico – Hunting/Health & Fitness Editor Matt Ward – Hunting/Health & Fitness Editor Cody Barnes – Hunting Editor Edgar Castillo – Wing Hunter Editor Heath Seiner – Wing Hunter Editor

FIELD EDITORS Dave Bond • Ben Britton • Mark Denham Kevin Guillen • Brody Layher • Douglas Morales Pedram Parvin • Levi Sopeland

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Isaac Augedahl • Rod Fogle • Kyle Reedy Jeremy Ley • Richy Harrod • Andrew Marlin

WESTERN HUNTER MAGAZINE 16851 East Parkview Avenue Fountain Hills, Arizona 85268 480-993-6972 info@westernhunter.net www.westernhunter.net Western Hunter Magazine • 16851 East Parkview Avenue, Fountain Hills, AZ 85268 • 480-993-6972 Copyright ©2025 Western Optics Hunter • All rights reserved. • Printed in the USA

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THEY SAID NOBODY WOULD BUY A $1,400 TRIPOD. But, as it turns out, they would. You would. Why? Because you don't want another copycat tripod manufactured overseas. You don't want a tripod that breaks three seasons in – only to be met with diﬃcult-to-reach support and a laughably long runaround on why it's out of warranty. You want a tripod that withstands the harshest of hunts, a tripod that is serviceable in-ﬁeld for when things get a little too western, a tripod that's 100% designed, manufactured, and built in the United States, and a friendly voice to answer the phone when you have a question about it. So, we made one, and we can't keep it in stock. KEY FEATURES

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pplication season 2025 is finally a wrap. After spending dozens of hours analyzing my strategy in multiple states, I came to a brutal realization. It isn’t just difficult to draw a quality tag; it has become near impossible. Personally, after spending hundreds of dollars for the application, I don’t consider 1 in 100 odds a wise choice. I am not a good gambler; I rarely drop a quarter into a slot machine and when I do, I feel like a loser. I struggle to buy tickets at fundraising banquets even though I know it is going to a good cause! I hate throwing money away and that is the reality in many state draws for many species. I am opening this issue with this message. Mike Duplan follows up on page 54 with an in-depth look at the application systems, then I talk about it again in my Dialing it Back article on the last page. We do not intend to cause major depression, but to shine a light on the reality we live in. Western hunters who want to enjoy a substantial amount of time in

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the field with family and friends need to look hard at how we are going to accomplish this. I am in the process of redefining what a “quality tag” looks like. Given the photo on the cover, you might be wondering what the heck I am talking about, but that hunt is a perfect example of what I’m trying to communicate. It was an easier to draw tag, with hundreds of other hunters, plenty of public land, but I hunted hard and got lucky. Believe me, I would have shot a smaller buck, but I found this buck first. My only regret was that I found hundreds of chukars, pheasants, and grouse, but I did not bring my shotgun. The hunt was challenging and the adventure was top-notch; a big buck was just a cherry on top. What I am trying to convey is very difficult, because it is very personal. What constitutes an adventure to one person may sound like a waste of time to another. Some may say, “to heck with adventure, I want a big buck”, and that’s okay too,

that is their prerogative. My guess is that most of you are hunting for an adventure with a potential meat reward at the end. Regardless of the draw odds, adventure awaits the creative... seek it out. It is our goal to improve Western Hunter Magazine with every issue and to make sure our content and delivery evolve. Our editorial team has been working for months on a refreshed look and enhanced reader experience. In the next issue you will see and feel the fruit of this labor. I speak for the entire team when I say that we cannot wait for you to see it. Thank you for subscribing and reading Western Hunter. We literally couldn’t do it without you. As always, if you have any thoughts, questions or comments, feel free to reach out to me personally. I will read and respond to every email. Chris Denham Chris@westernhunter.net

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ROOM TO ROAM A tribute to wild western places

Isaac Augedahl

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GOOD BUCK! — Finding major success in a not-so-promising unit —

he 13th season of The Western Hunter is now airing Thursday nights on The Sportsman Channel, which is a very long run in today’s world. The key to our longevity is great sponsors, but that is a result of a large audience of dedicated western hunters like yourself. The overwhelming majority of comments we receive about the show mention something like, “You guys do it just like I do.” By this, they mean we pack our own trucks, set up our own camp, cook our own food, grind out each day, and pack animals out ourselves. We wouldn’t have it any other way. Taking it back one more step, just like you, we depend on each state’s draw to get the tags we need each year. In January, Nate Simmons and I update our spreadsheets with current bonus/preference points and start the process of deciding what to apply for. Each year, we need to produce 13 original episodes without exception. Ten years ago, we spent our time picking the best hunts to fill our fall schedule via the draw, knowing we had a dozen places we could pick up leftover or OTC tags. But I don’t need to tell you that drawing tags is increasingly difficult, leftover tags are almost non-existent, and OTC opportunities have disappeared for non-residents.

Striking Out

As the 2024 application season progressed, my situation was looking bleak. Once we were down to only a few states, I had not drawn a single tag yet. I was building deer points in Oregon for a specific unit, but we figured I was at least two points shy for that area. So, as much as it hurt, I burned some points on a less desirable area. A few weeks later, I did the same thing for deer in Wyoming and even paid the “special” price just to make sure I had a tag. I had plenty of points to draw my Arizona Coues deer tag to round out my season. So, three deer tags, all three in areas not known for trophy quality. If you watch the show, you already know that I am not a big trophy hunter. I like to hunt, I like to explore new country, and I like meat…pretty much in that order. If the old saying, “Only a fool would pass a deer on the first day that he would shoot on the last” is accurate, then I am a fool. Truth be told, I tend to sabotage the first few days of a long hunt so that I don’t have to make that decision! Hence, I did not have high expectations on the two-day drive from Arizona to Oregon.

Chris Denham – OREGON – 2024

info@westernhunter.net

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I hadn’t gone more than a few hundred yards from there when I found a deer feeding all alone across a shallow ravine about 1000 yards away. It was a buck, and he looked like a good one." Not only would this be all new country, but it would also be the first time I ever worked with Luke Renard as my videographer. In conversations with Nate, I knew Luke and I would hit it off. He has filmed multiple western hunts and, as Nate put it, “He is just a fun guy to hang out with.”

Burning Rubber

I had two days to scout before opening day, and I burned both days driving the dustiest roads I have ever driven on. But this eastern Oregon terrain had my imagination in overdrive, so much so that I almost ran out of gas! I burned an entire tank on day one and rolled into the gas station with eight miles of range showing on the trip computer. This area had it all, bright yellow grass hills, ag land, pine-covered peaks, and miles of broken terrain that should hold a great mule deer population. Five days later, I was wondering if a single buck lived here besides the spike I almost made a hood ornament out of in the dark. To make matters worse, almost every camp we drove by had a deer hanging. None of them were big, mature bucks, but they were not spikes with tire tread marks either. I had spent hours upon hours on great glassing points from first light until dark and had not seen a single buck with optics. The other thing I was not seeing was other hunters in the field. I saw them on the roads, but I didn’t see them out of their trucks and ATVs. Could road hunting actually work here? Two days later, I concluded that I must suck at road hunting, too. I found more deer but no mature bucks.

I did find a piece of country that was a long way from good camping spots, had a rocky 4-low road for access, and showed a few deer tracks in the dust. There were shallow draws with no more than 100 feet of elevation, but no high spot to glass any of it. The only way to hunt it was to put on my pack and cautiously work my way through, knowing I could bump a deer at any minute. This is not my favorite style of hunting, and it can be very difficult to film. Things can happen fast, so getting the camera up to capture the action requires an equal amount of luck and skill. But this was the only tactic we hadn’t tried, so we committed ourselves to giving it a shot.

Changing Tactics

The next morning, I parked my rig under a big juniper at grey light. Before I even got the pack and rifle out, I checked out a large sage flat and immediately spotted a few deer, and one was a buck for sure. I scrambled to get my tripod out and the spotting scope mounted. I saw just enough to know that there were three bucks before they disappeared through the trees. They were not spooked, so we headed straight at them. 18

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As soon as we cleared the line of junipers, I spotted the bucks feeding with their heads down a few hundred yards away. I slowly dropped to my knees and grabbed my tripod off my pack. Using a dense bush, I slowly stood and mounted my rifle to the tripod. Between the flat ground and tall sage, my best option would be a standing shot off the tripod. The bucks cooperated. Each had their head down, so I waited for them to take a look around. On cue, the first buck showed me his two points on each side. The second buck proudly displayed his three points. The last buck had a noticeably larger body, and I could see antler tips bobbing above the sagebrush. I will admit, I got a little excited. Finally, he took a break from foraging to look around. He was a four point, but a young buck at best. My head told me that, but my heart tried to make him grow before my eyes. Was I greedy? Was I turning into a trophy hunter? Probably a little bit of both. But I finally felt like I had stumbled onto a good hunting strategy and wanted to give it more time. As we worked that area the rest of the morning, I was becoming more confident in my decision. We found more deer sign that morning than we had seen in the previous week altogether. I decided we would spend the next few days methodically hunting this area.

Good Buck!

It took almost two hours to drive from our base camp to this area – and two hours back. This also meant I would have to drive another hour to town for gas every few days. So, with clear skies predicted, we spent the rest of the day gathering our cots, sleeping bags, enough food, and water for three days so we could live out of the truck. I had forgotten how much I enjoy this style of camping/hunting. My son and I used to call it “gypsy hunting,” camping in a different place each night, covering as much country as we could. When the sky began to show the first signs of dawn, we headed out for a long day of sneaking around. I headed straight to the area I had seen the young bucks the day before. I hadn’t gone more than a few hundred yards from there when I found a deer feeding all alone across a shallow ravine about 1000 yards away. It was a buck, and he looked like a good one, but even with Swarovski binos, I couldn’t see enough detail hand-holding in the low light. I franticly got my tripod out and mounted them for a better look... good buck! My brain went into overdrive. The buck only had to move 50 yards in any direction to disappear, and we needed to cut the distance in half before we had any hope of getting a shot. I quickly opened OnX and located a clearing slightly below us but a little more than halfway to the buck’s current position. I told Luke to stay right behind me as we methodically worked our way through the junipers, moving quickly when we had cover, then at a snail’s pace when we were exposed. Finally, we hit the clearing. A quick glance told me the buck was still there and in range. I rolled around on the ground, looking for a clearing through the trees that also offered me a good platform for the bipod. It was a long shot, so I wanted to be in as perfect a shooting position as possible. A second after the shot broke, I heard the thump of a solid hit. The buck trotted about 20 yards and just tipped over. As we packed up to head over, Luke asked me if it was a big buck. I had one look early on that told me he was the buck we were after. From that point on, I was so focused on getting into range and squeezing a good shot that I never analyzed him to any degree. As we walked up, it was perfectly obvious that I exceeded all my expectations. I couldn’t take my eyes off the huge front forks and the huge body. This buck had survived many hunting seasons by tucking himself into tricky spots, and I was just lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time.

The two-day drive home gave me plenty of time to reflect on this hunt. It wasn’t a great deer hunt until the last day, but it was an incredible adventure. I’d never hunted in terrain quite like this. I’d seen hundreds of chukars, dozens of grouse, geese, turkeys, ducks, pheasants and quail. I watched a herd of almost 100 elk, with a dozen bulls, cross miles of open terrain to their secret hole, as well an untold number of antelope. It was one of the most soulsatisfying hunts I have ever been on. None of this would have happened if I held out a few more years for a “better” unit. I can’t wait to hunt here again, even knowing that it was a minor miracle to see a buck of this quality. Note: This episode of The Western Hunter will air on the Sportsman Channel the week of July 14th.

CRITICAL GEAR Rifle: Browning X-Bolt 2 6.8 Western Ammo: Browning 175-grain Long Range Pro Clothing: Browning Riflescope: Swarovski Z5+ 3.5-18x50 Binoculars: Swarovski 8x32 EL Range, 14x52 NL Pure Spotting Scope: Swarovski STX-65 and BTX Tripod: Outdoorsman Gen 2 Carbon Innegra with Gen 2 Pan Head Wall Tent: Davis Tent and Awning Boots: Kenetrek Bridger High Backpack: Exo Mtn Gear K-4 3600

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THE BITTER END WHM

Three tags punched over 10 days in Alaska Isaac Augedahl – ALASKA – 2024

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f you enjoy hunting, odds are good you have dreamt about doing so in Alaska. I am no different, and I entertained the idea of an Alaskan DIY moose hunt for nearly four years before I finally sent a down payment to an air taxi, forcing my commitment. I knew I could not do it alone since I decided to buy a moose tag and a black bear tag, so my brother Ivan joined the dream hunt and bought his own moose tag. Our airline flights to Alaska were uneventful. Once there, we met with the air taxi service to confirm details with the pilot and caught a shuttle to the local Game and Fish office to ensure we had all our paperwork in order. Shortly after that, we began to ready our gear and packs in the hope of getting into the field before opening day. We packed as light as possible with hopes of being somewhat mobile if we needed to. Our packs were about 90 pounds apiece with our tipi tent, stove, raft, waders, gear, and food for the entire 10-day season. Unfortunately, we were delayed by weather until opening day, but it was worth it because the views from our bush plane were beautiful. After landing, we decided to head toward a hillside bench to set up camp, as it would give us some elevation for glassing.

A Quick Start

Once camp was set up and our gear organized, we hiked to a ridge about 500 feet above camp with about an hour of light left to glass. We located a cow and calf moose nearby as well as several black bears. The next morning, we hiked back up the ridge and resumed glassing. Again, we located several black bears in a nearby drainage, so I decided to take my bow and put a stalk on one about a half mile away. After plowing through some thick alders, out into the open tundra, I quickly relocated the bear, as he had gone over a small rise a few hundred yards out. It took a few minutes of creeping over the rise to spot the bear feeding in my direction. I knelt down, took a few ranges, and waited for the shot to present itself. Once the bear was inside 50 yards, I drew back. As I was settling my pin, the wind swirled. The bear stood up, looked in my direction, and bolted just as I released. I could see blood mid-body as the bear bolted toward the alders about 100 yards away. Confident I had made a good shot, I waited about an hour before trailing the bear into the thick stuff. Trailing through the alder brush was tough going, but we found the bear after about 80 yards. The shot was a double-lung, clean pass-through; a success on my first archery black bear.

Ups and Downs

On our second day of hunting, we only spotted several bears, but nothing too exciting. So, on day three, we decided to split up and hike to different vantage points about a mile in opposite directions. We spent the entire day glassing separately but yielded no moose sightings. On day four, we hiked back up to the ridge and began glassing in the early morning light. info@westernhunter.net

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I was about 90% sure he was, and through the scope, he looked great, but I just couldn’t make myself take the shot. So I took video footage through my spotting scope, anxious to show Ivan. We both watched it several times and figured the bull to be around 52-53" after further inspection. It was an extremely tough decision, but shooting and asking questions later is not an option in Alaska. I didn’t sleep much that night, watching the video over and over, knowing I may have passed a legal bull near the end of our trip.

Good Things Come in Threes

A couple of hours after light, Ivan spotted a bull moving through the timber below us. With a decent look at him, we knew he was a giant. This bull was cruising through some timber about a mile away, and there was no way to catch him. We watched him walk away, amazed by the sheer size of both his body and antlers. Days five and six were lost to constant rain, fog, and wind. On day seven, we decided to move camp about a mile since the weather was pleasant. We saw two smaller bulls that evening, but neither was legal. The morning of the eighth day held rain, but later cleared, giving us the afternoon to glass. The weather forecast had called for high winds and rain overnight, so we decided to move our tent into a small sinkhole area that was surrounded by alders. It was a small move but proved to be worth it. As we finished setting up the tent, I spotted a big black bear only a few hundred yards from camp. With only two days left in the season, Ivan decided that if he could kill the bear, he would use his moose tag to tag down and put it on the bear. We closed the distance, and I hung back at 100 yards with the camera as Ivan crept in. He got to about 40 yards before setting up as the huge black bear fed toward him. With bow in hand and arrow nocked, he waited for the right shot. Just as he was about to draw, the wind stopped, the bear looked right at Ivan and bolted. I still am not sure how he did it so fast, but he dropped the bow, grabbed the rifle, and shot the bear as it was running toward the alders at full speed. He got one more shot off as the bear entered the brush. After waiting an hour, we picked up the blood trail and found the bear in the thick alders, about 150 yards from where we last saw him. He was a giant, with the skull later measuring over the B&C minimum. Since it was late afternoon, Ivan was gracious enough to let me head back to my glassing point while he skinned his bear. With about an hour left of light, a good bull stepped out of the timber about a mile away and started heading my way. As he closed within 500 yards, I questioned whether he was over 50". 24

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The last morning was beautiful. We left camp early to get to our glassing points and planned to hunt hard until the last minute. At my position, I didn’t even make one full pass with my binos before spotting a moose paddle in the timber below me. As I watched, there appeared three bulls in a lightly timbered meadow about 1000 yards away, and one looked legal with good paddles. I let Ivan know that I was bombing off the hill in pursuit, and he headed in my direction. Once I got into the timber, with the wind in my face, I stalked toward the bulls. It became apparent I was going to have to get close to find them since the brush was so thick. I slowly approached and saw the smallest of the bulls looking in my direction. I shouldered the rifle, watching the second-largest bull step out. I could tell he wasn’t quite 50" either. I waited for the third bull, and when he stepped out I knew he was

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We took all our gear and a little meat on our first trip. On the second trip, we took the hindquarters that we later weighed at 125 pounds each. The third trip was the front quarters and some boned-out meat. After the third trip that day, we were spent and figured we could do one more load the next morning before pick-up.

Extra Time

over 50". I put the crosshairs on his chest and fired. The bull ate the first shot but started walking. I shot again and he stumbled; then, with the third shot, he went down. Ivan was able to watch the whole thing from his vantage point! We were pumped as we headed back to camp to load up gear and then return to the kill spot to begin processing the bull. We had a lot of work ahead of us, and we were expecting a pickup the next day. After three hours of knife work to get the bull quartered, skinned, and boned out, we headed to our pick-up point which was about 1.5 miles through thick brush, swamp, alders, and elevation. We had a beautiful day for packing meat, with high winds that kept the bugs off us and the meat cool.

The next day was gorgeous as we handled the final load of antlers and boned-out meat bags. With everything at the pickup point, the pilot informed us he wasn’t going to be able to get us out that day because he was behind from the previous day’s high winds and minimal flying capability. We set up our tent again, thankfully, because the weather moved in with heavy rain and high winds through the night into the next day. In the middle of that day, the pilot notified us that he was headed our way, but it had to happen in a very small window of time. He landed on the lake just as the clouds parted and the rain stopped. We threw all our meat, antlers, and some gear in for his first trip. He made a quick turnaround and was able to get us with our remaining gear on that second trip. We were thankful because the weather had turned for the worse again. Alaska is amazing. It takes serious planning to have a good hunt, but it is extremely rewarding. We have extensive Rocky Mountain hunting experience, but Alaska just hits differently. It is a mental struggle to deal with the terrain, bugs, weather, and few animal sightings. We saw eight bulls in 10 days of hunting, only two or three of which were legal. It’s a struggle to stay the course and trust the process, but I was able to harvest my bull on the morning of the last day of the season – a reminder to keep on grinding and hunting until the bitter end!

CRITICAL GEAR Rifle: 300 Win. Mag. Bow: Hoyt Ventum Arrows: VAP Broadheads: Iron Will Knife: Argali Optics: Swarovski Tripod: Outdoorsmans Clothing: KUIU Tent: Seek Outside Tipi Raft: Alpacka Meals: Peak Refuel

info@westernhunter.net

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WHM

LUCKY NUMBER THIRTEEN The elk hunt that almost wasn’t

Kyle Greene – MONTANA – 2024 28

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uring the spring of 2011, I decided that I was going to start applying for out-of-state elk hunting permits. I’d always dreamed about hunting in Montana, so I did some research and submitted my first ever out-of-state controlled hunt application. Thirteen years later I still hadn’t drawn a tag, but I had a lot of bonus points for elk. My old college friend and I discovered we had the same number of points, so we started applying for elk hunts together. In 2024 we finally drew tags, and I was finally going to get the opportunity I had been waiting for.

Setting Goals

I started thinking about what I really wanted out of the hunt. Of course, I wanted to kill a big Montana six-by-six, but I wanted more out of this hunt. I wanted to test myself. My real goal was to do it independently. The scouting, planning, hunting, horse packing, everything. I wanted to prove to myself that I could step outside my box and perform in an unfamiliar environment.

New Country

One of my good friends had hunted in this unit before, so I reached out to both him and George Bettas to start gathering some more info. After a lot of phone calls and scouring maps, I set some dates to go scout. My June scouting trip entailed my daughters and I going to meet George, which was the start of a friendship I cherish deeply. We stayed at my friend’s house nearby and spent the next day driving most of the unit with the kids. It wasn’t much of a scouting trip, but the kids had a blast, and laying eyes on the unit helped me refine my map studies. When we returned in July, I brought my whole family and a KTM motorcycle. The girls stayed at the hotel where they could hang out at the pool, and I headed into the mountains at 330 in the morning. For eight hours I rode, glassed, and marked things on my GPS. The motorcycle was a huge asset, and I really narrowed down where I wanted to hunt. We headed home the following day after stopping to visit George again.

Archery Season

As the sun came up on opening day, I was standing on top of the mountain I had labeled number one on my map. I pulled my tube off my back and let out my first Montana bugle. Instantly, two bulls answered from the timber below, and I started down the ridge with a smile on my face. My first setup was a great example of what the next 10 days would be like for me. I got the wind on that bull and called him right in, but he circled me at a wide berth and went back to his cows. For the next few days, I had close call after close call. I got into elk almost every hunt and heard bugling every day. The results were the same each time. Bulls were hanging up out of bow range and retreating to their cows. I needed someone to call for me. On day five my brother showed up to hunt with me. Even with large setbacks we still had similar results. The forest floor was much more open than we were used to, and as I’ve said before animals don’t commit to calling as well in open terrain. One night, we spotted a magnificent 6x6 coming out to feed his cows. They were headed for a natural funnel, so we decided to lay off the calls and tried to ambush him as he traveled. Just as we got in position, one of his cows spotted us and a great opportunity slipped away. Later in the week, I got into one of the most intense elk hunting encounters I have experienced. We were working a bull when a whole herd got up to feed for the night. There were three bulls bugling at each other non-stop for over two hours. We slipped in between them, and everything converged right where we were standing. I had multiple bulls in bow range, and we estimated that we had probably heard 200 bugles in two hours. One of the highlights of my hunt was having George Bettas in camp. He provided sound advice, good stories, and a constant supply of grouse for the frying pan.

Suddenly, I heard something to my left. The bull stood up from his bed about 60 yards above me, and the only parts of his body that were visible were his head and neck."

info@westernhunter.net

WESTERN HUNTER

Archery season was full of exciting encounters, but I never got a shot at a bull I was interested in killing. Eventually, I decided to return home to my family. I hunted the remainder of my archery season in my home state and ended up killing a nice bull with my bow.

WESTERN HUNTER

Rifle Season

In 25 years of hunting elk, I had never killed a bull with a rifle. When I returned to Montana for rifle season, I brought my mule, a horse, and a 7mm, something I wasn’t used to. To be honest, I was excited about it. I had wanted a different experience out of this hunt, and that’s exactly what I was getting. The bull I had tried to ambush during archery season was the biggest I had seen all fall, so I decided to focus my efforts on finding him. On the day before rifle season opened, I saddled up my mule and rode into where I had seen him in September. It was a beautiful morning, and I rode along silently, watching the hillsides for elk. Suddenly my mule stopped, and I turned my head to see what got her attention. There he was, standing 40 yards away from us. He trotted away and I quickly dismounted and tied my mule to a tree. I climbed the opposite hillside until I spotted him across the canyon and watched him feed for the next two hours. That night, my buddy Kyle showed up and we located another herd to hunt the following day. Neither of us filled tags on opening day, but on the second morning, Kyle was able to kill a nice six-point. After we packed out Kyle’s bull, he headed for home. The rest of the week I would be hunting by myself, and I was excited about the challenge. Hunting slowed down and I wasn’t seeing as many elk as before. My big bull had vanished, and I was working hard to find elk. It seemed like everywhere I went and everywhere I looked wasn’t where I was supposed to be. www.westernhunter.net

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The Eleventh Hour

It finally came down to my last day of hunting, and I decided to make one more trip into where I saw the big bull. I saddled up my mule and rode to all my previous glassing locations but was unable to spot him. Reluctantly, I pointed her back down the trail. I couldn’t believe it was going to end this way. Thirteen years of waiting and I was going home empty-handed. As I rode back towards the pickup, I spotted an elk in a small meadow on the ridge above me. It was him! My butt flew out of the saddle, my gun flew out of the scabbard, and I tied up my mule and started jogging, cutting the distance between us. My plan was to climb to the elevation of the bull and sidehill into him. He was 800 yards away, but I could easily sneak to within 150 yards for the shot. When I reached his elevation, I eased off my pack and started sneaking around the hill. Slowly the meadow where the bull was started to materialize through the trees. My eyes scanned frantically for yellow hide, but nothing was there. Suddenly, I heard something to my left. The bull stood up from his bed about 60 yards above me, and the only parts of his body that were visible were his head and neck. Well, I thought, this is it. I wrapped my sling around my arm and put my crosshairs on the upper third of his neck. The gun went off and the bull went down, but that wasn’t all. It was so steep that the bull slid down the hillside for 150 yards before a downed tree stopped him from going to the bottom of the canyon. I navigated down to where he lay and sat on the hillside, admiring him. After 13 years of waiting, I had my Montana six-point. Things had played out just as I had hoped they would, and I couldn’t have been happier. It took me six hours to quarter the bull and pack the head and meat to the creek. I climbed onto my mule and rode her back to the pickup where my dad was waiting for me. With darkness fast approaching, we quickly retrieved the other horse and hiked back in for the meat. We returned with the bull two hours after dark, tired and happy.

Reflection

When I started this hunt, I thought it was all about testing myself and killing a big bull. Even though I did those things, that’s not what had the most meaning. What really made this hunt special was the journey and the people that were a part of it. What I remember most is taking my family to Montana; seeing my friends and making a new one in George; getting to hunt with my brother and watching my buddy Kyle kill his biggest bull. I remember the ones that got away, the sweet lady at the lookout, and coming back to camp and spending time with my dad. In the end, that’s what made this hunt so special.

CRITICAL GEAR Rifle: Winchester Model 70 Custom 7mm Scope: Leupold VX5 HD Ammo:Nosler Accubond 160-grain Binoculars: Swarovski 10x42 SLC Spotting Scope: Leupold 12-40 HD Rangefinder: Leica R-1000 Boots: Whites Lochsaw Clothing: KUIU

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SNOWFLAKES AND SONORA A tale of Coues and cold Rod Fogle – SONORA, MEXICO – 2024

WESTERN HUNTER

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nowflakes swirled around me as I lay prone in the rocky terrain, my rifle steady but my body stiff from the cold. This was Mexico, right? The land of sunbaked deserts and sweltering heat? Instead, I found myself buried under an unexpected winter assault, fingers numb, scope fogging, and a stubborn Coues buck locked onto a doe across the canyon. The shot was lined up, but could I even pull the trigger? The wind howled, biting through me like an ex-wife’s lawyer. I started to wonder if my hunt would end with a tag filled – or frostbite. The new year was fast approaching, and with it, my highly anticipated trip to Sonora, Mexico, in search of the elusive “Grey Ghost,” otherwise known as the Coues deer. I was accompanied by five of my hunting buddies, two of whom had never hunted Coues nor been to Mexico. The plan was to meet in Tucson, overnight there, and rendezvous with our outfitter, Dan Bishop of Cola Blanca Outfitters. Along with his guides, Kyle and Brandon, Dan would drive us south through Douglas and into our ranch for a week of hunting. There’s always a bit of anxiety when crossing into Mexico with firearms, but having done it many times before, I was confident we wouldn’t have any issues. However, our early morning departure from Tucson was delayed due to some vehicle registration problems, costing us several hours. Instead of arriving at camp around 4:00 p.m., we rolled in at 1:30 a.m. – tired and grumpy. Despite the short night, we were all up early and eager to start hunting. We divided into pairs for our two-on-one hunt. I was partnered with my buddy John, and our guide was Kyle, whom we had just met. His brother Brandon would be guiding James and Ken, while the outfitter, Dan, guided Doc and Randy. The morning was clear and mild as we loaded into our rigs and spread out across the vast ranch to start glassing for our quarry.

The A-Team

Kyle turned out to be a real character. A man of deep faith, he wouldn’t say “crap” even if he had a mouthful. He was incredibly knowledgeable about Coues hunting and long-range shooting. John and I immediately connected with him – except for his choice of music. We assumed he’d be into country, given his background, but instead, he blasted music with lyrics we couldn’t understand. He cranked it up loud, which gave us plenty of laughs. We glassed for hours that first day, moving between vantage points. About an hour before dark, Kyle spotted a good buck, estimating it to be in the 100-inch class (with Boone & Crockett minimum at 110 inches). Since John had never taken a Coues before, we agreed he should go for it. The buck was over 400

yards away. John had a solid rest and felt confident. He made a great first shot and anchored it with a second. Just as Kyle had described, it was a beautiful 100-inch typical. From that point on, we selfappointed ourselves the “A-Team.” The weather had been unusually warm and dry, causing many of the ranch’s water holes to dry up. Doc, rarely one to be right, suggested sitting over water. To our surprise, his plan paid off when he harvested a beautiful 100-inch buck after seeing around 40 bucks in a single day. Inspired by his success, Randy gave it a shot as well and ended up with a great 105-inch buck. James, on the other hand, filled his tag using the traditional method – glassing, stalking, and getting within range.

Bullets to Spare

I had told Kyle beforehand that I’d been fortunate over the years, having taken several Boone & Crockett Coues deer, so I was willing to hold out for something truly special or go home with tag soup. Like many hunters, I have drawers full of unfilled tags, yet they are attached to some of my fondest memories. It’s not always about the kill. On the final morning of the hunt, Kyle suggested I try sitting water on the backside of the ranch, where he had previously glassed up a large buck from miles away. However, I woke up to an unexpected snowstorm. This is Mexico, isn’t it? Instead of sweating in the desert sun, I was huddled under a tree, shivering like a Chihuahua in a freezer. Meanwhile, Kyle and John went up to a vantage point to glass. An hour later, they returned, having spotted several bucks, while I had only seen a couple of does. It didn’t take much convincing for me to switch tactics. We drove up a ridge and parked, just as Kyle’s radio – blaring as usual – played a song we had never heard before: “Bullets to Spare.” We laughed and took it as an omen. The rut was kicking in, and deer movement was everywhere. John and I stayed back to glass while Kyle climbed higher to scout more country. info@westernhunter.net

WESTERN HUNTER

Suddenly, Kyle’s voice crackled through the radio: “Rod, get up to this saddle as quickly as you can and keep quiet.” John and I grabbed our packs and hiked up the ridge, a solid 30-minute climb. Kyle had his spotting scope set up and was glued to his binoculars, looking across the canyon.A driving snow and hailstorm made it nearly impossible for my aging eyes to locate the deer. After what felt like an eternity, I finally found a lone doe. “Look for the dark spot in the mesquite above her,” Kyle instructed. “That’s your buck.”

Snowy Standoff

I settled into a prone position for the shot. The buck was locked onto the doe and refused to move. As the snow piled up on me, I began locking up myself. Minutes ticked by, and doubt crept in – was I going to lose this buck to the weather? Could I even pull the trigger in time? Finally, Kyle whispered, “Get ready – he’s moving. Smoke him when you can.” I found the buck in my scope and whispered to Kyle, “If I need a second shot, I’m not sure I’ll even be able to work the bolt – I’ve been lying in the snow for 45 minutes.” Kyle just chuckled. “You won’t need a second shot.” I calmed my breathing and slowly squeezed the trigger. The unmistakable whack echoed across the canyon. Kyle shouted, “You smoked him, he’s down!” The three of us pack up and made the long hike to recover my buck. There was no ground shrinkage – he stretched the tape to a tick over 121". The fitting ending to the buck recovery was when we fired up the truck to head back to camp, and what should come on the radio? None other than the theme song to the A-Team.

Fitting End to a Great Trip

As if the hunt needed a final exclamation point, Doc provided it. Every hunting camp has a character – the guy who somehow, someway, always finds himself in the most absurd situations. On this trip, that was Doc. If something could go wrong, it happened to him, providing endless entertainment along the way. The final morning in camp, he outdid himself. Sometime in the night, he managed to flip out of bed, landing on the concrete floor with the entire box spring and mattress on top of him. He staggered into breakfast sporting a large abrasion on his face, claiming there had been an earthquake and that his bed had been directly over the fault line. We all had a good laugh as he shook his head and muttered his signature line, “Things just happen to me that are unexplainable.” And with that, the hunt was complete – filled with adventure, unexpected snow, and the kind of stories that make every trip unforgettable.

CRITICAL GEAR Ammo: Hornady Precision Hunter 143-grain ELDX in 6.5 PRC Scope: Leupold VX-6HD Pack: Kuiu Divide 1200 Binoculars: Leica Geovid 10x42 Rangefinder Spotting Scope: Swarovski STC 17x40 Knife: Outdoor Edge

WESTERN HUNTER

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A debilitating injury creates major obstacles preceding a caribou hunt Kyle Reedy – ALASKA – 2024 38

WESTERN HUNTER

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ackpacking right after winter has retreated is a beautiful way to witness wildflowers in bloom and the verdant mountains. It offers opportunities for exploration, wildlife viewing, and preparing my body for the fall hunting season. This year, I was especially anticipating a DIY barren-ground caribou hunt in the Alaskan Arctic. Little did I know a summer trek would bring a devastating injury and a hardship unlike any I’d faced. My wife and I planned to visit the Chinese Wall within the Bob Marshall Wilderness. I’d hiked to “The Wall” with a friend the previous year, and my wife was eager to witness it herself. With four days off, we had ample time for the 55-mile planned loop. The first two days, we averaged nearly 20 miles in gorgeous weather. We had spotted pika amongst the high-altitude rocks and elk in meadows. The only challenges were a blister on my wife’s foot and a four-mile stretch of trail swarming with mosquitoes so dense and hungry that we felt like Kevlar was required to protect ourselves.

Freak Accident

Day three was more relaxed with breaks when I could wet a fly in the river. A nice riverside campsite was where we would call home for the night. We had tallied a little over 48 trail miles since we left the vehicle. The site had a fire ring containing spotted knapweed. Though I rarely build fires, I felt compelled to burn the weed seeds to prevent their spread. The dry knapweed burnt quickly and intensely like kindling. As I broke smaller branches for the fire, I braced a thicker piece against the fire ring and stomped on it. Instead of snapping cleanly, it shattered. A wood shard shot directly into my right eye. There was no slowing time like I was in The Matrix – the impact was immediate and intensely painful. I feared the worst as I felt liquid on my cheek. My wife confirmed it was tears, not blood. After a tense wait, I opened my eye slowly. My vision was already foggy and fading. My wife had me lay down in the tent where I went into shock. I was very cold despite being bundled inside my sleeping bag with my wife’s bag draped over me. I briefly lost consciousness, which terrified my wife that she might lose me, so she activated the SOS on my Garmin inReach. After short communication with Garmin’s Emergency Response, she was in direct contact with local dispatch. Just over an hour later, an emergency helicopter landed very close by.

Escalating Issues

By the time I arrived at the ER, I had developed a trauma-induced cataract over my right eye. An ophthalmologist wasn’t able to determine if I had any retinal detachment without being able to see past the cataract.With the concern of infection, I was prescribed antibiotic drops and told to follow up in 24 hours.

info@westernhunter.net

The next day, my eye was worse. The white of my eye was now fire-engine red, and my normally brown-colored iris was baby blue. I could no longer even discern the number of fingers held up close. I was blind in my right eye. My wife took me in for a follow-up Monday morning, and the Doc was astounded at the condition of my eye. The infection was severe, and I was recommended immediate transport to Salt Lake City (SLC). Before leaving, I was administered three intravitreal injections into my eye; one with an antibiotic, one with an anti-fungal, and one to take a biopsy to identify the culprit raising havoc. I didn’t know what to expect from never having a needle stuck into the back of my eye. I tried to keep my composure, as emotions are derived from inside, not external sources. However, the needle brought such displeasure that I was unable to control those emotions. My wife heard my displeasure from outside the room, which brought tears to her eyes. This needed to happen in order to save my eye. Two more injections to go. With nothing but the clothes on our backs, my wife and I were medically transported to SLC that afternoon. I went through another wave of eye examinations, and I was told I had a hole in my cornea and my iris was plugging it, so I needed surgery to correct the issue. Surgery was scheduled for the following morning, yet that evening they wanted to give me four more intravitreal injections to combat the infection and do another biopsy. Here we go again! After a long week in SLC, we flew home Friday afternoon. Before we could leave, I received three more intravitreal injections. The first biopsy results identified a species of Bacillus, an aggressive anaerobic bacteria, and the docs wanted to give my eye another dose for good measure. Subsequent biopsies were negative, but my retinal state remained uncertain. The wood shard had damaged my lens (which my eye absorbed) and left my pupil permanently dilated.

WESTERN HUNTER

Road to Recovery

For the next month, I was severely limited. I had multiple drops to be put in my eye every two hours while awake. At first, my wife did all the administering of drops, but eventually, I needed to be able to do it myself. I was extremely light sensitive, I couldn’t run, I wasn’t to be rucking, and I wasn’t to lift more than 15 pounds. I lost eight pounds in the first week following the accident. I pondered the question: Will I still make Alaska? Four weeks post-injury, I began daily walks through my neighborhood which were about 1.75 miles. Six weeks post-injury, I started wearing my backpack with 35 pounds a few times a week as I did my loop through the concrete jungle. I had also been doing a lot of dry firing from different shooting positions in my basement. I had never shot left-handed. My hunting partner made sure to get me out to the range a couple of Saturday mornings before our departure date for some live fire. My accuracy surprised me and my point of impact didn’t change. My rifle is very accurate and shoots better than what I’m capable of. A final SLC visit at the end of August would determine my Arctic fate. In two months, I had four trips to SLC and 13 total intravitreal injections. My leading SLC doctor had initially feared I would lose my eye entirely upon my arrival, later telling me. I am immensely grateful for the care I received and the resilience my eye showed. The final visit brought the all-clear for the Arctic, and we would schedule my next surgery in early October. I was reminded to continue the eye drops four times a day, not to let the drops freeze, and to wear safety glasses since I only had one good eye left. Humor and truth to the matter, but I was ecstatic!

North to Alaska

On any hunting adventure, the journeys to and from the destination are also part of the experience. We were scheduled to fly out of Kotzebue the same day we arrived, but the Alaskan weather had different motives. We spent the first evening in town but really hoped for the green light the following day. The bush flight in was spectacular – we saw grizzlies, moose, and caribou as the breathtaking scenery unfolded below. Anticipation was high the first hunt morning, and despite it being slightly foggy and a bit misty, we spotted a respectable bull within a mile of camp. The bull was with a small group of caribou that fed into a creek bottom, which made for a perfect stalk, allowing us to get within 75 yards. Logan opted to shoot and made a clean kill. The three of us made quick work of breaking down the carcass and loading our packs. Day two brought intermittent rain and fog most of the day. It felt like a stereotypical September day while in the Arctic. A grizzly bear was making its way up the river when it noticed one of us move. Associating people with danger, it retreated to the alders, never to be seen again or bother our meat pole. With few caribou sightings, we explored in the afternoon, spotting a majestic muskox cruising the tundra – such cool animals.

It’s a game of patience when you are targeting one animal amongst a herd for a clear shot. Resting in the ready position, the bull I shot at previously offered a clear shot." Day three dawned clear and brisk. My condensation coated the tent walls with frost. As I crawled out of my temporary living quarters, the bright blue skies were welcoming. Enjoying our breakfast and glassing the countryside, the thermal energy from the sun felt amazing. We hoped the caribou would be back on their hooves, moving about with the clear weather. As we glassed, a jet-black wolf trotted across the open tundra effortlessly. It moved as if it needed to get somewhere important, and just like that, it was gone. We then spotted a few bulls across and down the river a couple of miles that we wanted to check out. Navigating through the alders, there was clear evidence of bear activity with all the rocks flipped over, but we kept following the meandering bear trails in what felt like a maze. Emerging from the alders, we weren’t immediately able to relocate the three bulls. After some searching, we realized the caribou had circled back to the other side of the river. We were close enough that Chris confirmed he liked what he saw in one bull and wanted to continue our pursuit. We went back across the nowdeeper river, and after an hour and a half, Chris had his bull. Some congratulations were given, photos taken, and after a quick animal breakdown, our packs were loaded for the two miles back to camp.

Up to Bat

With only my caribou tag remaining, I already felt content if we weren’t to find an old mature bull for me to chase. I enjoyed the prior stalks and packouts with the guys. The scenery was stunning and I was grateful to be there after everything, but the hunt wasn’t over. Caribou numbers seemed to be dwindling day by day. After lunch the following day, we crawled our way through the alders and out of the river bottom to gain a little elevation out of the stream bed. Not long after getting set up, a half-dozen cows and calves ventured precariously past us at darn near a stone’s throw away. We could see for miles in all directions, but we saw only a few nursery groups across all that country. Logan commented that a small group of cows and calves were further up the mountain behind where I was focusing my efforts. I turned to take a look, and a half-mile to the right of them, a couple of bulls were skylined, coming our way. Both Chris and Logan looked through their spotters and said, “We need to go.” 40

WESTERN HUNTER

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We hastily navigated on the edge of the tundra and the alders to remain out of sight for as long as possible and not fight the entangled mess of branches. The terrain was saturated, unstable, and unforgiving. However, those bulls were flying, probably covering twice the distance we did in the same time. The bulls had ventured across the river and intertwined themselves with the herd of caribou Logan had spotted earlier. We were close enough to tell that both of those bulls were undoubtedly mature. I positioned my rifle on my tripod and the guys focused their spotters. How do you pick which one to target? One bull was incredibly wide with long top points, and the other had more mass throughout his antlers with palmated tops. I liked the mass and character of the second bull and was going to target him. I settled myself in the prone position, left-handed as I had practiced, adjusted my rifle as Logan whispered the distance, and waited for an opportunity. The wind felt faint from the 5-6 o’clock position, and I didn’t feel like I needed to compensate for it. I fired and instantly the bull scurried slightly uphill and stopped, facing straight away and turning his head curiously about. A complete miss with no indication as to where the bullet hit in the soft tundra. The group of caribou continued to work their way uphill and were nearing the maximum range I was comfortable shooting at. The bull provided a second opportunity, I fired, and the wind pushed my bullet wide from the evidence of the impact. I was finished shooting. We just watched the caribou work up and over the saddle. My mind was already formulating a plan. I’m persistent, but could we persevere?

section that was knee-deep. Having secured our waders to our packs, I informed the guys of my intention to ascend the mountain with maximum speed. I emphasized that if they were unable to maintain my pace, I would meet them up there. As I made it up to a bench, I slowed my pace, keeping a watchful eye for caribou. From around the corner the first caribou appeared, they took the anticipated path! Directly in front of me was a perfect flat spot to use as a shooting perch. I was positioning my tripod as the guys crept in behind. I whispered, “We’ve earned a second opportunity.” I got down in the prone position, and Logan again fed me distances as Chris watched through his digiscope. I took into account what the wind had done previously to my bullet’s trajectory. This time, the wind was coming from the 8 o’clock-ish position and was stronger since we were more exposed on the side of the mountain. It’s a game of patience when you’re targeting one animal amongst a herd for a clear shot. Resting in the ready position, the bull I shot at previously offered a clear shot. I fired. I had gauged the wind correctly this time, but the bullet’s impact indicated I was a tad low. I adjusted my rifle as the caribou continued to work into the wind. The target bull positioned himself in front of the herd. Standing broadside, I fired again. This time, the bullet connected perfectly behind the shoulder. The bull ran 10 steps ahead and just stood, looking around, as if he was thinking, what was that? Excitedly, Chris said, “Perfect, perfect, perfect. You hit him perfect!” The bull staggered slowly backward, blood seeping from his mouth, and finally collapsed, lifeless. A wave of emotions washed over me. I was so happy in that moment for our effort, a second opportunity, and the whole experience. I had endured so much since having a stick impale my right eye and steal my vision. You never know what challenges life will bring, but how we respond is what defines who we are, for every challenge presents an opportunity. “Keep in mind that no one loses a life other than the one they are living, and no one ever lives a life other than the one they are losing.” ~ Marcus Aurelius.

Second Opportunity

I suggested a bold plan: We would race off the tundra, fight our way through the alders, find a spot to cross the river, gain a steep 300 feet of elevation up the mountain, and hope to intercept them on an estimated escape route. The guys were skeptical, but we agreed to go for it. There was no guarantee this was going to work, but I sought the unforeseen. To me real luck isn’t accidental, it’s earned through hard work and the creation of opportunities. With urgency, we rounded up our belongings and scanned for a path leading from the spongy tundra to the tangled mess of alders below. Upon reaching the river, we donned our waders and made quick work of the wide, peaceful 42

WESTERN HUNTER

CRITICAL GEAR

Rifle: Christensen Ridgeline Ti 300 PRC Scope: Leupold VX6 3-18x44 Ammo: Barnes LRX Bino: Swarovski EL 10x42 Boots: Schnee Beartooth Backpack: EXO K3 Tent: Kuiu Mountain Star 2P Sleeping Bag: Kuiu Sleeping Pad: Therm-a-Rest NeoAir XLite NXT

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NOSTALGIA WHM

A hunt with a generational weapon blends new memories with old Jeremy Ley – COLORADO – 2024

ostalgia: A sentimental longing for the past, typically for a period or place with happy personal associations. I often daydream about days past, simpler times, forgetting the stresses that were omnipresent in those situations, and focusing on the great memories. The duck hunts of my youth with family come to mind. I remember mallards cupping into the decoys, sunrise over the half-frozen water, great retriever work, and jacking around with the cousins in our makeshift tamarack blinds on slow days. It was very easy to forget waking up at two in the morning, freezing toes and fingers, and burying the suburban in the “quicksand” around the reservoir. After building up some deer points, I decided to try to delve back into a nostalgic hunt that I had never experienced but felt was woven into my life as a hunter by my Dad. He often talks about the hunts he and his brothers would go on in the ‘60s and ‘70s, leaving the ranch on their horses for the high-country basins in search of mule deer and elk. On one hunt, he made a great shot on a running 4x4 buck with his lever-action 32 Winchester Special. I have hunted these same basins in years past both with a rifle and a bow, and although they were great hunts, there still seemed something missing. I drew the “above timberline” tag for the unit and dusted off Dad’s old iron sight lever-action “32” to try to recreate that experience. Shooting that rifle in the summer felt uncannily innate. Life is full of change but the high country, gun, and the deer I would be hunting had not changed much in the last 50 years.

Familiar Territory

My brother-in-law, Jeff, always up for an adventure, was all in for the hunt. We loaded up our backpacks the day before the season at a familiar trailhead and headed for the same string of basins Dad hunted all those years ago. Jeff and I have managed to be pawns of some of our own great “nostalgic” hunts full of adventure and tribulations. My archery moose hunt (let’s not talk about the 12-mile pack out) and his archery mountain goat hunt (oh yeah, forget he had pneumonia chasing goats at 12,000 feet), to name a few. Five miles and plenty of vertical later, we had camp set and a buck of interest in the spotter. I’ve never been one to have the fortitude to pass on legal animals, so a sleepless night was in store as I tried to decide on what to do opening morning if the buck was in a good spot. Sure enough, at first light, we glassed up the buck in a hanging basin with a couple of other, smaller bucks. I had missed a buck with my bow in that same spot 10 years prior, so I had a pretty good idea of how to get within range.

Head-to-Head

Out of principle, we checked the next drainage for deer. When that came up empty, I couldn’t hold out any longer and headed to the hanging basin. The buck and his two partners took turns bedding and browsing in the thick willow basin while I made my way over and started up an almost cliff-like chute to a knob that should put me within my 100-yard comfort zone with Dad’s gun. About a 1/3 of the way up, my 48-year-old self was reminiscing with my 38year-old self about how easy it was for him to get up that chute when I was surprised to see someone headed up the only other access to the basin. At first, I thought it was Jeff and couldn’t figure out why he left his glassing point and was seemingly racing me to the buck. I soon realized this was a random hiker, likely looking to notch another 13,000-foot summit. Well, the yard sale began as I unloaded everything unnecessary from my pack and began my race against this new buck buster headed straight upwind of the bucks. I managed to make it to my target knob, legs shaking and heart pounding, with time to find the buck’s antlers jutting out of a deep patch of willows 70 yards away. info@westernhunter.net

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Right at Home

The other two bucks were up and feeding, and my hope was he would stand and start feeding on his own before the hiker entered the other side of the basin. Soon, I could see the buck’s antlers starting to twist back and forth as the wind foretold of the hiker entering the basin. Instead of standing and giving me a shot, the buck bolted out of his bed and took the other two bucks bounding away from me. Fortunately, all I can guess is he felt his best bet was to exit the basin in the chute I came in on and looped around headed straight towards me. Things got western real quick! He busted out of the willows in those big bounding hops mule deer do, and with the gun shouldered, I felt like I was trying to get a shot at darting green wing teal with a BB gun. I knew this was not the shot I could take, but when I tried to stop him at 15 yards, he hit the brakes, turned inside out, and raced the other way. Now the simplicity of the open sights and the quick feel of the lever-action felt so natural in my hands. When the buck hesitated before diving back into the deep willows at 40 yards, I hit him at a quartering-away angle. In an instant, my inner John Wayne came out of nowhere, jacked another round into the chamber, and dropped him with a shot to the neck a step before the willows swallowed him up. Walking over to that buck, I felt almost overwhelmed with the feel of that rifle in my hand. It’s hard to explain, but it all just felt “right.” Jeff met me over at the buck, and we celebrated with a six-mile pack out (I won’t mention the hail, rain, and lightning that kept us company for the entire trip out). A trip back up with our wives to pack out camp on a beautiful fall day perfectly capped off a hunt full of adventure and quickly forgotten difficulties. I hope a hunt like this would inspire my kids someday to take a step back in time for a simple hunt, not allowing the trials that come with it to discourage them from creating a bit of their own nostalgia. James described this mindset well, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” ~ James 1:2-4

CRITICAL GEAR Rifle: Dad’s 32 Winchester Special Ammo: Custom Reloads – Hornady 165-grain FTX Binoculars: Cabela’s Euro 10x42 Spotting Scope: Vortex Razor HD 27-60 85mm Clothing: Stone Glacier / KUIU / First Lite Boots: Crispi Colorado Pack: KUIU Pro LT 4000

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WESTERN HUNTER MAGAZINE

GEAR & PRODUCT p HIGHLIGHTS Zenbivy ZipBed Trek By Chris Denham, Publisher

’ve been using the Zenbivy sleep system for six years now, but my wife hasn’t been as enthusiastic. When we’re backpacking on the Arizona Trail, I’m in charge of setting up the tent while she handles the interior. The Zenbivy quilt system can be a bit tricky to assemble, especially when we only use it a few times a year. After a 15-mile day, cold hands just add to the frustration. On our last trip, she joked, “If they’d just put a zipper right here, this would make a lot more sense.” Apparently, Zenbivy heard her because, for 2025, they’ve added a zipper.

ZIPBED TREK FOOTBOX DETAIL

Now with a Zipper The new ZipBed Trek weighs just 2 lb 4 oz in the 25-degree regular version, and 3.0 lb in the 10-degree model. Based on our field testing, the temperature ratings are spot on. The new zipper and the Fast Footbox™ design make setup much simpler – Carla-tested and approved. The semirectangular shape moves with you, creating a sleeping experience that feels more like your bed at home.

What Makes It Different? Zenbivy designs quilt systems rather than traditional sleeping bags. The concept is based on the idea that a high-quality sleeping pad provides insulation. Once you compress down feathers with your body weight, they lose their loft – and their ability to retain heat. Anyone who’s ever slept on a

deflated air mattress can vouch for that. A Zenbivy quilt uses a soft sheet system that fits over your mattress, attaching the quilt in place, just like your bed at home. This setup lets you move freely or sleep on your side without feeling trapped like in a mummy bag.

Give It a Try Zenbivy offers complete sleep systems, including mattresses, pillows, stuff sacks, and dry bags – perfect for both backpacking and car camping. If you’re tired of feeling like a burrito in a mummy bag, I highly recommend experiencing the comfort and freedom of a top-quality quilt system. p Price: Starting at $319 Contact: Zenbivy.com

ZIPBED TREK SHEET

ZIPBED TREK QUILT

ZIPBED TREK SYSTEM

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GEAR & PRODUCT HIGHLIGHTS

NEW GEAR AND PRODUCT INFORMATION

Outdoorsmans Tripod Holster By Pedram Parvin, Field Editor

OUTDOORSMANS TRIPOD HOLSTER

his little piece of gear is going to be your new favorite upgrade. The days of laying expensive binoculars, spotting scopes, or cameras on the ground are long gone. The Outdoorsmans Tripod Holster is a simple and convenient way to store your equipment where it can easily be accessed when needed. The patent-pending design accepts any standard Arca-Swiss plate, Outdoorsmans bino adapter, or adapter plate and is offered in right facing or left facing options. Made from an extremely durable and weatherresistant carbon-fiber-infused polycarbonate, it will withstand the test of time or anything else you throw at it. It is simple to install and proudly made right here in America. If you spend a lot of time glassing in the West, I’d highly recommend checking these out! p Price: $49.99 Contact: Outdoorsmans.com

Camp Chef Alpine Heavy Duty Cylinder System

Kodiak Canvas Truck Tent

By Douglas Morales, Field Editor

By Ryan Berg, Field Editor

amp Chef’s Alpine Heavy Duty Cylinder System has proven to be dummy-proof. Out of the box it comes with everything you need to get a hot fire going, except the firewood – that’s on you. The included damper is easily installed into the pre-drilled holes on the first section of the chimney pipe, which is also included! I have no worries about the build quality or materials used as the stove really does feel like it’ll last me for a few decades even with a bit of abuse. That being said, keep in mind that the stove itself

CAMP CHEF ALPINE HEAVY DUTY CYLINDER SYSTEM

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is not light. The entire package weighs roughly 74 pounds. That weight includes; the stove, a fivepiece nesting pipe, an internal log grate, spark arrestor, damper, and finally 2 accessory shelves. My favorite thing about the stove, aside from the way it looks, is the massive flat plate which provides plenty of surface area for a little bit of cooking and heating up plenty of water at once. I plan on maximizing that surface by buying the water tank accessory that attaches to the side of the stove, and overall this stove has served me well thus far. p Price: $279.99 Contact: CampChef.com

he Kodiak Canvas Truck Tent is a great option for the weekend warrior when you only have a few days to scout/hunt. I have been in some pretty serious rain storms and never had any issues with the cotton duck canvas tent keeping me dry. I have even managed to fit a family of 4 plus a dog in the tent pretty comfortably. Even when I am alone, I can set this tent up in about 20 minutes. I’m off the ground, out of the elements, and sleep like a baby on my cot. As far as camping gear goes, this tent is one of my all time favorites and has certainly withstood the test of time thus far. p Price: $459 Contact: KodiakCanvas.com

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PANGA® WATERPROOF DUFFEL BAGS

GEAR & PRODUCT HIGHLIGHTS

NEW GEAR AND PRODUCT INFORMATION

Bakcou Insulated Game Bag By Ben Britton, Field Editor

lk hunting involves bringing home copious amounts of meat to be processed, and that meat needs to get from point A, the field, to point B, the freezer, all while remaining cold. The Bakcou Insulated Game Bag is an oversized soft cooler with a 60" zipper across the top. This last fall I drew my first elk tag in Nevada and was stuck in the dilemma of what to do about a big enough cooler to transport the 215 lbs of meat home. The coolers I have weren’t anywhere close to big enough, and the idea of buying a 110 qt cooler that will take up space in the garage 99.9% of the time didn’t excite me. I saw a post on Instagram with someone lying down inside one of these coolers and I knew it was my solution. It weighs 9 lbs and when I am not using it I can roll it up into a 2' x 1' cylinder shape. It has 2 drain holes located in the bottom corner to prevent water from pooling up, and four handles for getting it up onto the tailgate as a team. So far it has worked well for me without any issues, and has helped me clear up some space in my garage. p Price: $229 Contact: Bakcou.com

Pecos Outdoor Table By Pedram Parvin, Field Editor

his may be the last outdoor table you’ll ever have to buy. At first, the price may appear steep but the level of quality on this table is instantly apparent when you see and handle one in person. I have only had this for a few months, and can already tell it’s going to be my go-to workstation for just about everything. It’s lived in the back of my Jeep Wrangler and is a fantastic addition to any on-the-go rig that’s made for adventure. Hunting camp, gutting/filleting fish, breaking down game, the shooting range, vehicle workstation, cooking tabletop, a garage bench table, and family BBQs are just a few of the many use cases for this tank of a table. It’s made in the USA with premium materials, and it’s very well built with durability and performance at the forefront of it all. This solid table weighs 25 lbs, is 34" high for standing work, can withstand up to 60 mph winds, and has a 3200 pound weight capacity (what?!). The aluminum legs have a 1/4 twist locking mechanism that is super satisfying to deploy and breakdown, and the legs can be stowed into the table itself. There are a bunch of different accessories you can use with this table including heat shields, cutting boards, trash bag holders to catch liquids from the table’s integrated blood river, and much more. The only “negative” things that I have heard about this table are the price point (which once you see it in person isn’t as big of a pill to swallow) and the size of it. It’s not a massive table, but it’s also not meant to be. It’s designed to be able to take with you anywhere and deploy in a matter of seconds. I do think that they should make an accessory that allows you to attach multiple Pecos tables together, but they may already know this and might have something in the works. Do you absolutely need a $700 table? That’s for you to decide, but if you spend a lot of time working on various things outdoors and like the best quality gear, then it is 100% worth it. I can promise you that you won’t have any buyer’s remorse, and will probably be asked to bring your table along by all of your friends and family. Price: $689 Contact: PecosOutdoor.com

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PECOS OUTDOOR TABLE

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STABILITY WHERE THERE IS NONE.

ZULU6 HDX PRO - OMNISCAN™ ADAPTS OPTICAL IMAGE STABILIZATION TO YOUR ENVIRONMENT - HDX PRO™ LENS SYSTEM INCREASES LIGHT TRANSMISSION WHILE REDUCING GLARE - FULLY WATERPROOF AND BACKED BY SIG SAUER'S INFINITE GUARANTEE™ FOR LIFE. PERIOD.

THE MONETIZATION OF HOPE MIKE DUPLAN HUNTING EDITOR

THE EVOLUTION OF HUNTING APPLICATIONS INTO A CASH COW FOR STATE WILDLIFE AGENCIES

’ve seen and participated in the evolution of western big game hunting in my lifetime. Having been born in the ‘60s and coming of age in the ‘80s, I’m a part of Generation X. We grew up with Saturday morning cartoons on black & white televisions, rotary dial telephones, and vintage muscle cars in the high school parking lots. We have witnessed and participated in almost the entire technology revolution into the digital and cyber age. As hunters from this era, we have seen and hunted with mentors who revelled in the “Golden Era” of mule deer hunting in the ‘60s, when states offered unlimited deer tags, often allowing multiple tags per hunter when deer were taken for granted and elk were coveted because of their relative scarcity. We have a perspective that newer generations don’t because we saw it with our own eyes and it was a part of our lives. Now, all of us have in our pocket a device that allows us to apply for hunts and tags, manage our finances, access unlimited information, navigate freely without paper maps, see property boundaries, and cypher ballistics, call our families from remote locations, and share photos instantly via text message.

to “be like Mike” to reference the ‘90s marketing of Michael Jordan. As a result, many more people are wanting to participate in hunting and have a desire for a quality experience. There is currently an exponential increase in applications and competition for hunting opportunities with no regard to societal opposition by anti-hunters to the endeavor of hunting. Hunter recruitment no longer seems to be an issue.

Then and Now 30 years ago, we took photos, had them developed, put them in an envelope, and mailed them in order to share with friends and family. The cursed blessing of technology is that information is not only easier to access but also contributes to the unintentional promotion of an aspirational life. Being a successful and competent hunter is an admirable trait, and it’s appealing to want 54

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Decades ago, state wildlife agencies started compensating for the increase in demand for hunting opportunities by using a multi-pronged approach. Units were established to confine hunters to smaller areas, seasons were shortened and sometimes split up to spread out hunting pressure, and eventually, licenses were limited to quotas to further control pressure. The changes were not consistent from state to state, yet many states followed the changes and innovations established by others in an attempt to try and inject control and fairness into a world and system that saw increased demand and participation. At one point, there was a serious conversation being held about the recruitment of young hunters to pass on and preserve these traditions, but at this point, there doesn’t seem to be a big issue bringing new people into the world of hunting. Instead, we are managing a level of demand that is both frustrating and discouraging to those desiring more opportunities for participation in hunting. In the ‘80s and ‘90s, state wildlife organizations took a new approach to address the increasing issue of supply and demand of hunting opportunities with the advent of preference and bonus point systems. Essentially, those who were unsuccessful in drawing a limited license would be given a preference point, and those with the most points would get the first available licenses. It was a way to reward those who consistently applied, essentially “paying their dues,” and an attempt to inject a sense of perceived fairness. Bonus point systems are “names-in-the-hat” scenarios where you get a “chance” for every time you apply and don’t draw. Apply for 20 years without drawing, and you have 20 chances to draw versus one chance for a first-time applicant. The first-timer isn’t completely eliminated, mathematically, but faces much higher odds in drawing. States realized they could start charging for this privilege of accumulating bonus or preference points to gain a long-term advantage. Hypothetically, the longer you participated, the more points you accrued through unsuccessful draws, and the higher the odds were you would finally get that special tag. In the electronic information age of websites, magazines, and social media, these systems of points have been overwhelmed by a massive number of hopeful applicants, and the outcry from the public is starting to get louder and resonate. Impossible Odds Colorado has the most non-resident opportunities of all western states and is my home, so it’s a state I cover frequently in my articles. Our preference point systems have experienced increased participation and the term “point creep” has become ubiquitous across all species other than black bear. When not all of the high point holders draw tags, the rest get another preference point and, in turn, the unit takes a higher number of points to draw the following year. Two units in particular experience the most application pressure and point creep. Those are units 44 for deer and 201 for elk. Unit 201 for bull elk in the early rifle season took 28 points for residents and 32 for non-residents in 2024, and that will go up in the 2025 draw. Unit 44 for third-season mule deer took 18 points for residents and 27 for nonresidents. This unit took 2-3 points two decades ago, and the number will also increase for 2025. info@westernhunter.net

What is interesting is the lack of awareness and due diligence by applicants in regard to applying for these hunts. There are hundreds of people applying for each of these and still, every year, new applicants apply with virtually no statistical chance of ever drawing either tag in their lifetimes based on the number of applicants ahead of them. The state requires you to purchase a license and pay application fees for something you might never get. The preference points are species-specific, so at some point, when this applicant gains awareness of their plight, they can switch units that might have better odds. However, this information is not provided by the state without some detective work by the applicant on the state’s website. Policy Exclusion Wyoming has what might be considered the most glaring example of “buyer beware” when it comes to hunting applications. Non-resident bighorn sheep tags were reduced from 25% of the total to 10%, effectively choking off anyone with less than 24 preference points from drawing in the next 2-3 decades. With no available tags in the random draw pool last year, thousands of applicants bought preference points and further invested in a system where the changes gave them no statistical chance of drawing a tag.

Demand for the best mule deer hunts across the West have reached sheep tag level draw odds and mature mule deer are coveted highly because of the lack of quality hunt opportunities. Without drastic changes in management strategies by the state agencies, this problem will only grow with time.

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Mike Duplan with a nice non-typical mule deer taken in the early 2000’s on a second choice tag. Demand has increased to the extent that this same tag now takes 5 points to draw as a non-resident and the buck to doe ratios are cratered from CWD management tag allocations. Mature deer are almost nonexistent on much of public land in the unit.

This brings up an ethical conundrum that is worth discussing. When a person buys a raffle or lottery ticket, there is a presumption that the odds are ridiculously low and your chance of winning is not worth getting your hopes up over. But, when you continually invest in preference points over decades, accumulating thousands of dollars in cost, yet have virtually no statistical chance in drawing, one must consider if the “juice is worth the squeeze.” The state is not going to altruistically disclose how poor your chances are, if any, because their bias is towards funding and revenue. I have two friends who are heavily invested in the Wyoming bighorn preference point game. Both are two points below the maximum, and at the previous percentage allocation of 25%, had a statistical chance of drawing in his lifetime. Now, both are in their 50s and two points below max points with over 400 people ahead of them in preference point total. They will not draw unless many applicants of the high point pool give up or die off with thousands of dollars invested in the system. False Hope Even with this ridiculous scenario, lower-point applicants continue to buy preference points and apply out of ignorance to a system in which they have virtually zero chance of ever getting a tag. Instead of investing thousands over decades, these people would simply be better off buying a single raffle ticket for bighorn to have a “name in the hat.” One of these hunters described this system of preference point purchase as “complete fraud perpetrated on unknowing hunters to pad the state coffers.” It’s hard to argue otherwise. Colorado is experiencing its own problems in regard to applications but it is reaping massive rewards from preference point purchases. Over 44,000 people applied for a little over 300 sheep tags in Colorado last year with over 25,000 of those being preference-point-only purchases. There is easily over 90% participation of preference points 56

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for second or third-choice options, with the only outliers being desert sheep applicants because there are no preference points issued for desert sheep. Also, an applicant does not need a minimum of three points to draw. The unintended consequence of this is there is an odd statistical overrepresentation of youth hunters for desert sheep, simply because they make up a large portion of the random applicant pool. For speculative reasons, even with the preference point issue, there was a 7.5% increase in applicants for bighorn last year in Colorado. The state benefits handsomely from this recruitment, as it is also a 7.5% bump in revenue from preference point purchases, adding hundreds of thousands of dollars to the already impressive totals of millions of dollars of income from mandatory qualifying license and preference point purchases. Ironically, in many units, tags have been reduced due to die-offs from suspected interactions with domestic sheep and goats. Pay-to-Play Preference point creep is an absolute unrelenting juggernaut at this point. Applications across the board in most states continue to climb in numbers and costs. State wildlife agencies make decisions

Shiras moose might be the most desirable tag in the lower 48 as in some states, applications for moose outnumber bighorn sheep applications by substantial numbers. In Colorado, there are roughly 100 applicants for every moose tag. This provides reasoning for some random draw tags and a bonus point system as opposed to preference points. The author and Bill McEwen with Mike’s 2014 51" Shiras moose from Colorado.

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in the back rooms, and the biology and wildlife management side isn’t always in congruence with those who make the financial decisions. Salaries, pensions, and hard costs are all going up, and since most agencies are funded primarily by license sales, there is an obvious and inherent bias toward maximizing revenues available through tag and license sales. Many states require a mandatory hunting or fishing license purchase to apply for tags in the application process with no regard to whether or not you will draw that tag or even hunt in that state that year, and there is an incentive beyond those actual license sales dollars. The Pittman-Robertson Act (PRA) apportions a percentage of funds generated through mostly firearm and ammunition sales to states in a formula of the percentage of paid hunting license holders in that particular state as compared percentage-wise to the total number of licenses sold nationwide. The more hunting licenses a state sells, the more federal PRA funds they are entitled to receive. This obviously creates an incentive to maximize license sales at the expense of applicants who may not have a statistical chance to ever even draw the license they are applying for in their lifetime. It sounds convoluted, but to make it simple, you are being forced to buy a license to apply for a tag you will never draw so the state wildlife agency gets both the revenue from the license sale and also PRA funds from that sale. It’s a “win-win” for the government agency, yet most reasonable people, when informed, view this as an absolute gouging of the hopeful hunter who is ignorant of the realities of the situation. There is an emerging shift in license allocation processes, preference and bonus point purchases, and how they are utilized in draw processes. There are

likely to be more states with licenses allocated for random draw as a percentage, simply as an attempt to counter the out-of-control point creep all states are experiencing. There is genuine interest by some state employees to try and create a higher sense of fairness in tag allocations, but simply put, there is a supply and demand issue where demand far outstrips supply, and many people who have decades of investment in the purchases of licenses and points will die having never drawn a tag. This is the harsh reality we all need to understand and accept. There is no entitlement based on your perceived investment into the system, and at some point, a hopeful applicant must honestly assess whether it’s worth it to continue to apply and buy or cut their losses and swallow the bitter taste of wasted investment.

Following the Money In Colorado, all raffle and auction license dollars generated by these programs go into a fund that allocates the money for species-specific enhancement, research, and habitat programs. This is one of the most reassuring aspects of the purchase of raffle tickets for sheep and other species, as you know this “donation” is going to potentially help that particular animal. The same cannot be said for preference point purchases. Using back math and always rounding downward to avoid exaggeration, I added and estimated the amount of money generated by preference point purchases for sheep, goat and moose in 2024 because not all data is available for 2025 at this point. In 2024, roughly $9,000,000 was generated through preference point purchases, and these numbers absolutely annihilate the money totals generated by tag sales for the same three species. This money goes into the Colorado Parks & Wildlife general budget and is not allocated or specifically earmarked for the propagation and management of the said animal species the preference point is purchased for. This factor suggests that revenue is of greater importance to those who make financial management decisions behind the scenes as opposed to embracing the idea that $3,000,000 generated by preference point sales for 300 bighorn tags would go to management and underfunded disease research where the money is very much needed. This might be an overly simplistic view from an armchair biologist such as myself, but I firmly believe, if asked, that a vast majority of applicants purchasing preference points would feel less bitter about the money required if it was actually directed toward that species. This is a long and complex discussion, and to list what is required and how much money is spent in individual western states could fill a magazine and not just an article. The information is there, and I do believe we will see greater awareness of the futility of investing in some of the point systems and possibly a higher level of attrition from frustrated and aging hunters. Just like the state lottery programs being labeled as a “tax on the poor” by some who understand odds, hope, and human nature, one can easily conclude that preference points and license purchases are a tax on the uniformed Hopeful applicants for bighorn sheep generated over 3 million dollars in revenue for the state of Colorado and designed to generate easy money for wildlife alone in 2025. Other Western states also participate in a “points purchase” scenario but with the expodepartments. These are hard truths in the evernential increase in applications every year and a corresponding drop in draw odds, many are questioning evolving world of western big game their decision to buy licenses and buy points. hunting.

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ARCHERY BALLISTICS PART 3

ave you ever felt completely lost building and designing arrows? After all, there are more ways to build an arrow than I could possibly describe here. There’s seemingly an infinite number of component variations from vane shapes to vane materials and fletching configurations. There are different arrow diameters, arrow lengths, and arrow weights, and don’t even get me started on the number of different field tips and broadheads. All of these individual components together form a complete arrow, and each component influences the trajectory or ballistics of that arrow because of aerodynamic drag and weight. With so many different options, does it just feel arbitrary what vanes you’re using with what arrow diameter and what broadhead? Well, the purpose of this article is to scientifically study the effects of these different components on arrow flight and to provide recommendations for arrow designs based 58

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OPTIMIZING ARROW TRAJECTORY JAMES YATES HUNTING EDITOR AND ACCURACY

on actual data. To facilitate the discussion, I partnered with Easton and Precision Cut Archery to conduct a large-scale arrow ballistics study to research the effects these different components have on arrow flight. Fundamentals An arrow’s trajectory is dominated by three main factors: arrow launch velocity, arrow weight, and aerodynamic drag. Drag is a force that opposes the arrow’s forward motion because of air resistance and causes the arrow to slow down, which alters its trajectory. Fundamentally, an arrow follows a parabolic trajectory based on the launch velocity, arrow weight, and gravity. Once the arrow is launched, however, another force starts to act on the arrow: air resistance.With air resistance, arrow drag comes into play and has a major effect on the parabolic

trajectory curve, as well. Since arrow weight and arrow drag both affect the arrow’s trajectory simultaneously, it can be a bit complicated trying to determine how each one affects the trajectory individually. To do this properly, some high-order math needs to be used to solve simultaneous nonlinear equations. The effects of gravity on the arrow and arrow drag itself are both quadratic functions. My friend, Tristan, is the founder of an archery software company called Precision Cut Archery (PCA). Precision Cut Archery is the first company to produce archery ballistics software (think sight tape program) that uses quadratic drag in conjunction with the quadratic gravity equation to model arrow projectile motion. I have used the software for several years now, and it is an incredibly accurate program for making archery ballistics and sight tapes. PCA is a robust www.westernhunter.net

The trajectory of an arrow or any projectile motion is parabolic, as seen in this trajectory plot, showing the maximum height the arrow obtains over its flight path.

ballistic engine, similar to a sophisticated firearm/ bullet ballistics calculator. One of the most impactful things about this is that, because PCA actually uses a proper drag model, the software can actually determine a specific drag coefficient for each and every unique arrow design. To put it in relevant hunting terms, think of a drag coefficient for arrows like a bullet’s ballistics coefficient (it’s not quite the same thing but close

enough for this discussion). These drag coefficients can be used to compare the ballistic efficiency of different arrows. This means that using the PCA software, we can compare the ballistic efficiency of different arrow designs apples-to-apples, independent of the arrow build’s weight and launch parameters. This is a critical part of a ballistic study because it would be impossible to standardize arrow weight as things change in an arrow study, and arrow weight has a major impact on arrow velocity/ trajectory. The Why The purpose of the ballistics study is to gain a science-based understanding of the fundamental governing aspects of arrow external ballistics. In

Precision Cut Archery is an archery ballistics software that focuses on making the most accurate custom sight tapes (arrow trajectory modeling) available.

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particular, to study how an arrow’s components (vane configuration, arrow length, arrow diameter, point/broadhead) affect ballistic properties such as aerodynamic drag and corrective lift (how an outof-tune arrow corrects itself).With this data, we can determine how an arrow build can be optimized for specific purposes, such as hunting different species or various target archery events. Specifically, this study will provide insights to optimize arrows for their intended purpose by providing data to make sight tapes (arrow trajectory modeling) more accurate and easier to calculate; calculating an arrow drag coefficient for different arrow diameters and lengths; and providing a science-based means to make fletching configuration recommendations for various purposes (field tip, mechanical broadhead, fixed blade broadhead). For example, this study will provide the data to recommend a minimum vane configuration to steer a fixed-blade broadhead. Or, for mechanicals, the study can recommend a different vane configuration to minimize drag and maximize trajectory. Corrective Lift It should come as no surprise that any fletching on the back of the arrow increases drag. To minimize drag completely, we would be shooting bareshafts, which would be completely unreasonable. Vanes on the back of the arrow are critical to stabilize the arrow. There is another force at play here called lift. Lift is a force perpendicular to the airflow and is the force that stabilizes the arrow. It is generated based on the shape of the vanes, which creates a difference in pressure on the two opposing sides of the vane. This difference in pressure causes stabilizing effects, similar to how an airplane wing

There are so many subtle differences in archery, like different vane configurations (with the same vane) that produce different effects on the arrow. The ballistic study has produced data to quantify the effects of these subtle differences.

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Are you a fixed-blade bowhunter or a mechanical bowhunter? This study has produced data to help design an arrow for each intended broadhead! The amount of lift necessary to correct the flight of an arrow tipped with a mechanical broadhead versus a fixed blade is very different.

generates higher pressure below the wing and low pressure above the wing, resulting in flight. Another example is how airflow across a wind turbine blade causes the blade to turn. Drag and lift are not the same thing in fluid dynamics.A vane produces both drag and lift, though. Think of lift as the corrective force trying to stabilize the arrow; it’s a good thing to help the arrow fly true. Drag is like an undesirable byproduct of the vane that opposes the arrow’s motion and slows it down. Unfortunately, lift and drag kind of go hand in hand. In an ideal world, the perfect fletching configuration would maximize lift and minimize drag. A big reason for this study is to determine vane shapes and fletching configurations that minimize drag while maximizing lift. Most bowhunters understand that the need for vane stabilization increases when you screw on a broadhead, especially a fixed-blade broadhead. This essentially means you need to find and use a fletching configuration that generates more lift to overcome any instability generated from the broadhead so that the arrow remains accurate. This concept introduces the need for the second part of the study, which opposes the ballistic efficiency side; the study not only needs to quantify an arrow’s drag but also needs to understand the effects of its corrective lift. It does you no good to maximize the ballistic efficiency of the arrow if the vanes don’t produce enough lift to quickly stabilize it. So, there is a balance that needs to be met, and that balance is different depending on the intended purpose of the arrow (think different broadheads or target archery events). 60

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To calculate an arrow’s drag coefficient using the PCA software, the Easton Precision Shooting Machine was used in conjunction with Doppler radar Garmin Xero C1 Pro chronograph to produce launch and terminal velocity data for each unique arrow build.

The How – Drag The first step in the study was calculating an arrow’s drag coefficient. This was done by shooting the arrow out of Easton’s Precision Shooting Machine and using Doppler radar (Garmin Xero C1 Pro chronograph) to determine a launch velocity and a downrange velocity (60 yards) for that arrow. To ensure accuracy, each unique arrow design was shot 12 times by the shooting machine. Then, that averaged data was used by PCA along with the arrow’s weight to calculate a drag coefficient for that arrow. The shooting machine is critical to this study both to remove natural human inconsistency and so that drag coefficients could be compared very accurately among many arrow designs. The shooting machine provides the control, ensuring that each arrow is shot the same way every time. Each distinct arrow design (iterating on arrow diameter, arrow length, vane configuration, and broadhead/tip type) had six arrows built in that configuration (two shooting rounds of six arrows each). The following arrow build components were tested during the ballistic study: 1. 3 Different Arrow Diameters 2. 3 Different Arrow Lengths 3. 35 Different Vane Configurations (various vane models and different configurations) 4. 25 Different Point Tips (field tips, various mechanical and fixed-blade broadheads)

In total, 35 different vane configurations were tested during the arrow ballistics study.

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In total, 25 different arrow tips (field tips, mechanical and fixed blade broadheads) were tested during the arrow ballistics study.

Each distinct arrow build was shot in two sets of six arrows for a total of 10 shots (determined to be the statistically meaningful quantity based on the accuracy of the chronograph), and the corresponding launch and down range velocities were recorded.

The Easton Precision Shooting Machine is extremely repeatable, shooting a group of 12 arrows in a 2" circle at 70 yards.

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To test different arrow diameters, a single standard/baseline vane configuration was used, as well as a single standard arrow length and point tip. In other words, six arrows of each diameter were built up at the same length and all with the same vane configuration. To test arrow lengths, a baseline arrow diameter, vane configuration, and point tip were used so that the only thing changing was arrow length. To test vane configuration, a baseline arrow diameter, arrow length, and point tip were used so the only thing changing was vane configuration between arrow sets. To test point tips, a baseline arrow diameter, arrow length, and vane configuration were used. The following arrow components were chosen as baseline configurations: 1. Arrow Diameter: 5mm Easton Axis 2. Arrow Length: 27" (carbon to carbon) 3. Vane Configuration: Three AAE Max Stealth, Bitzenburger Right Helical, 2.5° offset 4. Point Tip: Gold Tip Ez-Pull Field Tip

The How – Lift For the lift recovery testing, all 35 fletching configuration iterations (the same arrow builds as discussed above) were tested with a field tip, a mechanical broadhead (100 gr Sevr 2.0), a and fixedblade broadhead (Iron Will Wide 100). The Sevr 2.0 was selected to represent mechanical broadheads because it has a long ferrule, is very consistent broadhead to broadhead (spins true), and is very durable (repetitive shooting). The Iron Will Wide 100 was chosen to represent fixed blade broadheads because it is one of the largest fixed blade broadheads on the market, is consistent broadhead to broadhead (spins true), and is very durable (for repetitive shooting). To eliminate inherent human error in shooting, the Easton Precision Shooting Machine was used once again so each shot could be controlled as much as possible. To test the effects of corrective lift of every vane configuration, the bow was intentionally brought out of tune. Bringing the bow out of tune puts a lot of pressure on the vanes to correct the arrow’s flight, especially with broadheads. The rest position was adjusted and cam alignment was altered to produce approximately a 0.5" paper tear at 10 feet. Furthermore, the bow grip was torqued in the shooting, which augmented the paper tear to over 1" at 10 feet. The bow was consistently torqued the same way for every shot during the lift recovery testing. This was a real-world test that simulates the average bowhunter whose bow isn’t perfectly tuned, as he/she might be susceptible to torquing the bow in the heat of the moment when shooting at live game. Each fletching configuration was shot out of the shooting machine with two field tips first (serving as the baseline control), then two mechanical broadheads, and lastly, two fixed-blade broadheads. This round of six arrows was repeated for every

For the lift recovery testing, each vane configuration was tested out of an untuned bow to see how effective it was at correcting the arrow flight when tipped with a field tip, mechanical broadhead (Sevr 2.0), and fixed blade broadhead (Iron Will Wide 100). The horizontal displacement difference was measured for each arrow shot.

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An arrow tipped with an Iron Will Wide 100, shot out of the Easton Precision Shooting Machine.

vane configuration, giving a total of 12 shots. Since the bow was out of tune, the mechanical and fixed blade broadheads landed differently than the field tips. The measured distances between the field tip impacts (baseline control) compared to the mechanical and fixed blade broadheads were recorded. Comparatively, the greater the lift force of a particular fletching design, the lesser the measured displacement between field tips and broadheads. This is a practical way of measuring the effects of the lift force for bowhunters. This test is not intended to quantify the lift force itself, but the effect the lift force of the vane has on its ability to correct the flight of the arrow. Results We built 300 different arrow shafts for this project. We conducted the study for back-to-back 12hour days and shot more than 1,300 shots. We collected 3,400 velocity readings and captured over 100 photos that need to be analyzed for arrow group size and impact displacement for all arrows. We need to use PCA to calculate drag coefficients for every unique arrow design. To say there is a mountain of data that needs to be analyzed and calculated is a complete understatement. PCA and I are well into the data analysis, but it’s still going to take many weeks to complete – not to mention the many graphs and charts that need to be prepared to visualize the results. What I can tell you is that the data that we got is very, very good, and the results are going to be epic. We saw strong trends in both the drag and lift testing that will really enlighten the bowhunting info@westernhunter.net

community. Beyond the vanes and broadheads, we did get great data on various shaft diameters and arrow lengths as well. A sneak peek for my Western Hunter readers: If you are an open country hunter where you may be taking 80-yard shots or hunting in windy environments, you need to highly consider shooting

4mm arrows. The drag data showed a 4mm arrow build cuts drag by 10-15% compared to the same 5mm arrow build. Since archery is a game of inches, this is a real benefit that is easy to take advantage of simply by shooting a smaller-diameter arrow. I’m writing this article on May 27, 2025, which is way past my normal article deadline and encroaching on our print deadline for the July issue. That means this article won’t have the results that I am sure you were hoping for. Be on the lookout for the results to drop later in July. I’ll be writing a summary of the results, including visualizations (graphs and charts) as well as sharing my interpretation of the results with the western hunter in mind. This will be published on the Western Hunter website in July.

This study produced a mountain of data that not only needs to be interpreted and organized into charts and figures but also needs to be used to calculate more in-depth results like drag coefficients for every unique arrow build.

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North American Super Slam Series

DALL SHEEP ONE OF THE MOST COMPLICATED YET REWARDING HUNTS IN THE WORLD

FRED EICHLER HUNTING EDITOR

he Dall sheep is easily recognizable as the allwhite sheep with dark, graceful horns that is only found in Alaska and western Canada. Its name is synonymous with difficult hunts because of the steep country it inhabits in order to avoid wolves, grizzlies, mountain lions, lynx, wolverines, and us. I was bitten by the sheep bug after I first hunted bighorn sheep with a bow in Colorado. Sheep hunting certainly isn’t for everyone. I have had sheep guides tell me that they have had more hunters give up on sheep hunts than any other type of hunt. After guiding for sheep, I would agree that it is one of the more physically challenging hunts with any weapon. I also feel the four species of sheep are some of the toughest animals to hunt with a bow.

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All sheep are found in rough terrain, but Dall sheep have always fascinated me. Not only because of the remote country they are found in but also because they are all white except for their horns and hooves. My respect for this beautiful sheep also stems from the fact that I had a more difficult time harvesting a Dall sheep with my recurve than I did any of the other sheep. It took me three hunts before I was able to take a ram. One for Three My first two unsuccessful hunts for Dall sheep were in Alaska. On my first hunt, we got hit with a huge snowstorm that left me and my guide cowering in what was advertised as a two-man tent for four days. Realistically, the tent barely had room for

one of us, and it became even more difficult after that many days with no more than a military shower – a quick wipe-down of the essentials with a cold towel. When I could smell the tent as we walked back in the dark from the downwind side, I knew sneaking up on anything was going to be difficult. The storm left ice on the rocks, and we were using ice axes to get to the higher country. I was scared of sliding off the ice faces and falling to my death on multiple occasions. I did finally get close to a nice ram, but between the freezing cold and my contorted position on the cliff, I couldn’t make the shot. My second attempt involved similarly horrible weather conditions. When my guide and I finally found a legal ram to make a stalk on, a resident hunter came in from below on the same ram and blew it out of its bed. End of story. For my third attempt after Dall sheep, I went to the Northwest Territories. I was starting to think that taking a Dall sheep with a recurve was just too tough of a goal for me. My guide Slim did an amazing job of finally locating a big ram. The problem was he was in a spot where slipping in unseen was going to be impossible. So, I pulled my secret weapon out of my pack. I had brought an all-white outfit like a painter’s smock because, years before, an experienced Dall sheep hunter told me that he had used a white outfit to fool a Dall into thinking he was another sheep. He told me he was able to get within bow range in open country using this tactic. So, I put on my all-white suit, despite Slim questioning the strategy, and I attempted a stalk. I was hoping the ram would be curious to see if I was www.westernhunter.net

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I know that I look ridiculous, you don’t have to point it out. I was willing to try almost anything to get in range. Needless to say, my sheep suit did not work.

another sheep, but in reality, I looked more like the Pillsbury dough boy crawling across open terrain, and the ram immediately retreated to steep country that I had no chance of following him into. A few days later, we spotted what we thought was the same ram. We took turns watching him for 30 hours straight until he and another ram bedded in a spot where it looked like I could try a stalk. Luck was with me as Slim and my cameraman Mike watched me crawl into range and make one of my best shots ever through the chest of the closest bed-

ded ram. To say I was excited would be an understatement. The hard work, the weather I struggled uncomfortably through, and the money and time spent chasing this amazing sheep all made me appreciate the ram that much more.

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Logistical Difficulties The challenge of Dall sheep hunting is not only the weather but often just getting to the areas these sheep reside in. I’ve been in bush planes, on horses and even boats just getting to where I could start wearing out boot leather to get to where the Dall sheep actually were. This is why it’s important to pack super light and only carry the bare minimum. On most Dall sheep hunts, you are surviving and not glamping. Since you may also return carrying a sheep out on your back, you have to be able to manage to pack so you have all your essentials but it’s light enough that you can still carry meat, horns, and a cape out if successful. When figuring out what gear I will take, I often leave out small things that would be nice to have but I can do without. Things like an extra pair of gloves, extra changes of underwear, or a tripod for my spotting scope. I don’t skimp on socks because blisters are not fun and can literally keep you from being able to get where you need to go. Blisters can also slow you down considerably. I learned the hard way on my first Dall sheep hunt that my guide skimped on both socks and underwear because there was no way that smell was all me. Good clothing, boots, and binoculars are a must, and because it can sometimes be difficult to assess a legal ram from a distance, a good spotting

THE SUPER SLAM IS COMPRISED OF THE FOLLOWING SPECIES: Whitetail Deer • Mule Deer Coues Deer • Columbia Blacktail Deer Sitka Blacktail Deer Rocky Mountain Elk • Roosevelt Elk Tule Elk • Alaska Yukon Moose Canadian Moose • Shiras Moose Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep Dall Sheep • Stone Sheep Desert Bighorn Sheep Barren Ground Caribou Central Barren Ground Caribou Woodland Caribou Quebec Labrador Caribou Mountain Caribou Rocky Mountain Goat Pronghorn Antelope • Mountain Lion Polar Bear • Brown Bear Grizzly Bear • Black Bear Muskox • Bison

scope is also mandatory. I like to consolidate where I can, so instead of taking a rangefinder and a pair of binoculars, I use the Leupold BX4 ranging binoculars in 10x. I also like a spotting scope for super detailed spotting, like counting growth rings on a ram’s horn, or for determining if a ram is legal. Although tripods are nice, I often opt to glass off of my pack or a rock on really remote hunts to save the room and weight. I am a fan of a small 60x spotting scope. I will often take just one spotting scope between myself and a guide or a buddy to conserve weight. Weapons of Choice Although I do the majority of my sheep hunting with a recurve, whether you are choosing a broadhead or a bullet, the goal is something that will put the sheep down as quickly as possible. I know this is always our goal as hunters, but sheep are often found near ravines or unscalable cliffs that can make recovery impossible.

Third time’s the charm. After two failed attempts I was finally successful on my third hunt and connected on this beautiful Dall sheep.

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Rain, sleet, snow, cold temperatures and fog are synonymous with fall sheep hunting so prepare and pack accordingly.

I would say that when sheep hunting, your choice of broadhead or bullet is more important than almost any other species you will hunt – except for dangerous game, where the wrong choice could be deadly. I advise using a broadhead with a wide cutting diameter that will still fly well in windy conditions. I am also a fan of a heavier arrow to help with penetration so you can get a pass through which equates to more blood loss quickly. This will help drop the animal in the shortest distance possible. We all have our favorite broadheads, but I like the Wasp CBW 4-blade cut-on-contact because the back of the main bleeder blade is sharpened in case the arrow doesn’t pass through. This translates to more damage and hemorrhaging in the wound channel. For rifle sheep hunters, bullet type is more important than many people realize, and bullets are designed for different purposes. It’s not a onebullet works-for-everything deal. Having guided sheep hunters, I am a big fan of Hornady because if you google,“Best bullet design for long-range penetration,” even AI will list Hornady as one of the best. I am a fan of the Hornady SST (Super Shock Tip) or the ELD-X bullet which was designed to perform and expand at longer ranges and slower terminal velocities. Since you may be dealing with steep angles of inclination or declination, a rangefinder that can help take the math out and give you yardage to hold for is a must in my opinion. So is a riflescope with a CDS that allows you to dial the yardage and hold right where you want to hit, leaving just a windage adjustment or hold to figure out. I also feel that shooting in all kinds of unorthodox positions with a gun or bow is essential. The Dall sheep 66

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pictured in this article I shot with my recurve, almost horizontal, to keep the sheep from seeing my limb as I slowly rose just enough to clear the rocks. For archery equipment, a bomb-proof bow that can take a beating is essential because I have slid (fallen) down rock slides and taken some good spills in the rocks, and I have watched my guides do the same. So, make sure you have equipment that can take a little abuse. It’s the same for a rifle, scope, and scope mounts. I have seen cheap scope mounts be the issue in many cases where a gun fell over or was fallen on. The gun and the scope were fine, but the cheap scope mounts bent. If you are going to make the investment to go on a guided Dall sheep hunt, spend the extra money on good quality equipment. I don’t usually make bow and rifle recommendations because I think those are personal choices, and I rarely offer suggestions on them besides sharing my personal favorites. I also truly feel the components are the bigger choices to be made. Things like the bullet type, broadhead, arrow, and scope, for example. I feel that way because, in my opinion, every major manufactured rifle brand on the market is pretty dang accurate. Just like all the bows on the market are really good. Sure, you can pay extra for an aesthetically pleasing wooden stock, a synthetic one, a custom trigger, or other tweaks. But really, they are all pretty dang accurate.

I can shoot a minute of angle group with my Mossberg rifle, and I can do the same with my Weatherby. I can shoot a good three-inch group with my Palmer custom recurve at 20 yards, and I can do the same with my Bear recurve. I feel bows and guns are like trucks. Ford, Chevy, and Dodge all make great trucks, but a six-ply over-the-road truck tire versus a 10-ply off-road tire makes a world of difference – especially in the mud, sand, or snow. That’s why I tend to really stress the components I take with me more than the actual bow or gun. Notes On Booking Unless you live in Alaska or Canada, be prepared to hire a guide. For good deals, try getting on cancellation lists. Since many deposits with outfitters are not refundable and unfortunately health issues, job issues, and family issues can cause people to cancel hunts, you can sometimes go for half price by picking up a cancellation hunt at the last minute. Dall sheep hunts are tough hunts where if you aren’t tired, physically exhausted, cold, and often hungry, then you may be smarter than me, in better shape, or better at packing. Either way, I can tell you the reward is worth it, even if you don’t get one. The amazing country, the incredible views, and spending some time watching these amazing sheep are worth it.

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EL RANGE 42 GROUNDBREAKING PRECISION

12x R C LO SEENE W

H W I T H TG E 1 2 x 4 2 N EL R A

ROUTES AND LOGISTICS T

A ROADMAP TO PUTTING MEAT IN THE FREEZER

he scraping of nylon panniers against stiff, leafless vegetation was all I could hear as we steadily gained elevation on a moonless morning. The occasional break was met by a fog of condensation drifting through the beam of my headlamp as the llamas and I attempted to gain control of our respirations. My father trailed shortly behind. While no facial expressions were visible in the darkness of morning twilight, the stream of light from his headlamp, pointed to the ground at each stop, perfectly captured our current state. A thousand-foot gain in less than 3/4 of a mile on slick terrain had the makings of an interesting start to our season. A thin layer of mid-November ice blanketed the ground. I began to wonder if this untested route would prove to be unobtainable as the angle of the mountain began to sharpen and the ice thickened. Halfway up the mountain, the dull sound of a door being pushed shut rang through the air. I turned in angst and saw the dim yellow warmth of truck headlights. My initial anxiety was soon relieved as I scrambled to see if a stock trailer was attached to the truck below. Phew, no stock. Still, the feeling of pressure mounted, as we would need extra time to secure llamas. The faint sound of off-road vehicles buzzing on distant private parcels began to fill the morning air. As the morning light began to illuminate the landscape, we sat in silence, peering into thick pockets of public land scrub oak that quickly descended into small expanses of private land agriculture fields. Two small bucks appeared nearby, sparring and thrashing winter wheat in a feverish attempt to let all know the rut was nearing. I turned, looking toward the thick country we had walked through at the beginning of first light. Up the ridgeline, I noticed two hunters decked out in orange. A look through my binos was greeted by a gentle salute from the two. It appeared they had a similar plan to ours.

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Luckily, they respected our position and turned, walking in the other direction. Not long after their departure, my tag was filled. As I began separating hide from carcass, I noticed the same two hunters headed back down the face of the miserable hike we had all completed earlier that morning. I continued working away, feeling grateful that things had panned out. I concluded that pre-hunt logistical planning and routing had made the difference between filling this tag and heading back to the truck empty-handed. I’m sure this short story will resonate with a lot of us. At some point in time, we’ve all miscalculated a route or didn’t plan at all and have been forced to settle with the mediocrity of the location we have found ourselves at first light. I believe successful hunts can be attributed to well-planned and executed logistics. Much time can be wasted trying to figure out how to successfully access an area. This

CODY BARNES HUNTING EDITOR

fact is only magnified on hunts where you’re unable to put boots on the ground before season. Year to year, I attempt to add one new area to explore in old haunts I’ve hunted for years. If you looked at my mapping software, it would appear as a spider web stemming out of a central location. I make it a point to focus on locating “replicas” of areas where I’ve been successful in the past. Most of my hunts range from five to seven days of boots-on-the-ground hunting. Some of that is dictated by season structure, but it is mostly due to time off availability and family life obligations. On those hunts, I almost always have a family member and a close friend or two joining me. Multiple freezers needing to be filled often makes for a tough hunt, as there is no time to be picky and also no time to waste, logistically. There are a few pre-hunt and game-day details that I always pay very close attention to.

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This trail allowed the author to access a pocket of public land that was unreachable by other means without access through private property. These are three different aerial images from three different imagery platforms showing various times of the year.

Locating Game Trails Locating game trails is something I do very often when considering routes, logistics, and how to hunt an area. Besides the obvious advantages (stealth, access to remote locations, opportunity for ambush), using game trails to access an area you’d like to hunt can be your only option for getting into a favorable position. Careful examination of aerial imagery across as many platforms as possible gives you several looks from various images and times of the year. The three images above depict part of the game trail used in the initial ascent of the short story you just read.You’ll notice that the clarity of the game trail differs quite a bit in each image. I may have missed this completely had I not looked at this area across multiple imagery platforms and time periods. Given the aerial views, I was able to overlay a projected route (right) and use this as a guide, as the first time I’d take this route would be in darkness, during season. I find this tactic most suitable for thick brush country and edge habitat, where the timber and open country meet. This process can be tedious but is well worth your time and effort. Interestingly, when you look at the game trail overlaid on a topo map (far right), you will see the trail follows almost an exact path through the apex of every elevation line. Animals are naturally very in tune with the most efficient way to cover country –their lives depend on it. info@westernhunter.net

The author overlaid his projected route to one of the aerial images.

While I’m not typically an ambush hunter, you can see how creating game trail routes in areas you know hold game could be a huge advantage to formulating an ambush approach.

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break, extra calories, or to quench your thirst once, it’s likely to be repeated on future trips. It’s always safer to have incorporated extra time into your route planning and not need it than the alternative. The below speeds are anecdotal, conservative, and specific to traveling underweight that I typically average. I’ve found it very handy to have a general idea of these speeds to help project how long travel is likely to take on new untested routes. Hiking Average Speed: 1.5 MPH. More often than not, I find myself hovering at this clip under 45 lb of weight in ascending terrain. Llama Average Speed: 2-2.5 MPH. A llama will only walk as fast as it’s being led. The likelihood that I’ll be carrying very light weight allows me to move quicker, thus allowing the animal to move at a good clip. Horse Average Speed: 2.5-3 MPH. Leading a horse by foot, again, limits the speed to that of your own gait. Riding or packing a string, you can expect to be moving .5 MPH to 1 MPH faster. North vs South Identifying patterns in the landscape can be useful in terms of route planning. As a general rule of thumb, you’ll notice that north-facing slopes almost always have more dense cover and vegetation

than south-facing. Cooler slopes receiving less sunlight and retaining better moisture may play a role in this. Keeping this information in mind is important when deciphering when and how to use particular slopes. Moving in the cover of darkness on relatively unobstructed south-facing ridges may be preferred, while moving through north-facing timber stands during daylight hours can provide for better concealment or an opportunity to still hunt. When considering brush habitat, keep in mind that particular species of vegetation can become completely impassable. You will notice this commonality across many different habitat types. Shown on the right are images of aspen, timber, pinyon, and brush habitats that all reflect the north/south facing differing densities of vegetation. Vehicle Routes Vehicle routes can be just as detrimental to a successful trip as any other detail you should have figured out. Most importantly, you need to determine the accessibility with the vehicle you plan on using. Most current-day mapping platforms include forest service road usage information. However, I’d call ahead to the local ranger district station and confirm that all the roads you plan to use

Photo by Nick Higman

Tracking Your Route Tracking your route is what I consider to be the next step in solidifying a repeatable means of access. I always utilize a tracking function on my mapping platform upon taking an overlaid created route. By saving the vetted route, you gain insight as to the speed at which you move. You now have historical data to create an accurate timeline, specific to you, should you ever decide to return to this location. You can use this data when determining new routes that are untested but similar in terrain features, elevation gain, etc. When saving a newly vetted route, I always note the mode of travel in the notes section (4x4, horse, llama, foot, etc) as a reminder. Route data is as useful as your imagination allows it to be. I use this data in early-season hunts to project how early I should pack out meat if I’ll be covering wide expanses of open country in hot temperatures. I like to think of these routes as temporary answers to what can be constant long-term changes. Adverse weather, fires, and intervention by man are all factors that are likely to change access to an area on a seasonal basis. So, every time you “retake” a route, track it. Refrain from hitting the “pause” button when resting, refilling water, snacking, etc. If you need a

Take the time in the off-season to train and track yourself to develop an idea of what speeds you typically move at underweight or with stock.

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ASPEN

PINYON/JUNIPER

BRUSH

TIMBER

Alaska Raw

By Bob Lacher Alaska truly is a sportsman’s paradise. But (and this is a big but) hunting there is extremely difficult and without the right equipment, experience, or enough money it is at times almost impossible. The country is so vast and virtually roadless compared to the lower 48, that without an airplane, horse string or snowmobile most of the state is out of reach. If you want to better understand this then you need to read “Alaska Raw”. Lacher is a native Alaskan and his book a detailed look into many of his adventures. His writing style is incredibly engaging and easy to read and difficult to put it down! From Unimak Island to the Brooks Range using boats, planes and snowmobiles while hunting caribou, bears and Dall’s sheep, these true stories are captivating.

are open for the time of year you plan to access them. Get as much information regarding road conditions as possible. I take the same course of action when planning vehicle routes as I would with game trails. I Overlay the projected route, then track and save when I physically complete it. As an added consideration – mark and save turnouts along your vehicle routes. This is an important one, as there have been many times I find myself on a single-track road, nose to nose with another vehicle. Having these spots marked is incredibly useful during the night or early morning hours when it can be difficult to determine spots to get turned around. Have multiple projected vehicle routes saved to your mapping software. Nothing is more timeconsuming than hitting a roadblock and sitting in your truck, trying to figure out what to do next. This does not just occur off-road, I have had this happen on non-major highways when traveling through states. Unexpected construction or road closures of some sort have left me waiting for hours or forced me to scramble together a different route – often when I’m in the middle of nowhere with no cell service. The fall season is approaching quickly. Take some extra time to iron out the monotonous details of success, whatever that means to you. Good luck!

The Edge – The Complete Approach to Hunting Mountain Mule Deer By David Long & Mike Duplan

The modern mule deer hunter must be willing to outwork, outthink and outhunt both his competition and the highly educated mountain mule deer buck. In the book “The Edge – The Complete Approach to Hunting Mountain Mule Deer”, authors and mule deer hunting experts David Long and Mike Duplan have collaborated to bring the reader insight into just what it takes to be successful when hunting mature mountain mule deer. “The Edge” will show the steps involved to increase your chance of success and the reader will learn that there is now a year round approach involving, fitness, conditioning and nutrition.

order your copies today at www.westernhunter.net info@westernhunter.net

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Adding animals which you can either ride or pack adds to the hunting horseman’s capabilities to get camps and game into and out of the backcountry.

BACKCOUNTRY PACKING FOR ROOKIES BUILDING A HUNTING HORSEMAN’S PACK OUTFIT – PART 2

The goal of the second part of this two-part series is to include suggestions for adding animals to increase the hunter’s capacity for packing meat and camp gear, partnering with others who have their own stock, and “teachable moments” which will add pleasure and safe practices to your journey.

dding animals to your string requires the same diligence in selection as was necessary in selecting your primary riding animal. Essentially, the pack animals should have the same temperament as your riding animal and be free of quirks that can get you into trouble. If you follow

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the same protocols in selecting a second or third animal for your string, you will have an outfit that should work well for you. Where do you find these animals? The best practice is to buy a horse or mule from a reputable person whom you know and can trust or someone a hunting partner knows who is reputable. One of my hunting partners recently decided to buy two mules to ride or pack in the Montana backcountry. He went to the Salmon, Idaho,“Salmon Select” mule sale and reviewed the animals that were for sale. Mule trainers from all over the US attend this annual sale, and it’s a great place to talk with mule owners and sellers and get an idea of pricing and the like. You can find excellent quality riding mules

GEORGE BETTAS HUNTING EDITOR

at this sale as well as gentle, well-mannered mules that can be packed as well as ridden. My hunting partner was looking for two older, experienced mules, as he is a beginner when it comes to horsemanship skills. While at the Salmon Select sale, he conferred with two different experienced hunter/packer friends of ours about finding his new mules. They referred him to a local outfitter who annually sells older, experienced mules in order to integrate young mules that he has trained into his outfit. He contacted the outfitter, visited him the following day, and had an opportunity to get to know the outfitter, see the outfitter’s mules, and do a short walk-through of what might fit his needs and be available. www.westernhunter.net

The outfitter was preparing to go into the Idaho backcountry for a month of black bear hunting with his clients. He had 20 mules that he packs, some of which his clients ride in the backcountry. When he finished his bear hunts, he said he would have two of his mules to sell to my hunting partner. The price was very fair and the caveat was that if one or the other mule didn’t work out, he would trade my hunting partner for a different animal or give him his money back. You won’t find an offer like this all that often, but it’s worth searching for an experienced mule trainer or outfitter who is trustworthy and has mules to sell. My advice to my hunting partner was to spend as much time familiarizing himself with the mules he plans to buy as possible. Older, well-mannered horses that have experience “off trail” will be easier to find for sale and can make excellent pack/riding animals in your string. You can buy riding and pack animals off the internet, classified ads, or at horse and mule sales held throughout the US. Before you write your check, it is best to check out the animals and the seller thoroughly and be confident that the animal will match your needs and abilities. If your pack animals have not been trained to be ridden, there is nothing wrong with adding a couple of gentle, trustworthy animals used specifically for packing. Pack animals will be easier to find than riding animals, especially mules, and they will cost less. Experienced and well-trained animals for #2 or #3 in your outfit may be older, experienced animals that are still healthy and have a lot of miles left in them.

When buying a new addition to your pack outfit, time spent with the owner and the animal will aid in the transition of the animal to its new owner.

Having your saddles matched to your pack stock will make loading your string at the trailhead organized and efficient.

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Matching Your Tack When you are buying an animal consider what tack you have and whether what you have will fit the animal. Horses will be easier to match to your saddles, but for both horses and mules, you need to pay attention to the shape of the backs or your new acquisitions. Just as with horses, some mules have a differently shaped back. Some mules do fine with horse gear, but some mules will benefit from mule-specific gear in both riding saddles and pack saddles. If you are using pack saddles, you should fit a saddle to each animal that you will be packing. I have the name of the horse or mule that “fits” each pack saddle written on the left pack board on the side of my Decker saddles. Having the pack saddle matched to the animal will be more efficient and save you a lot of time when loading up at the trailhead. There are a lot of YouTube resources covering all aspects of fitting riding and pack saddles to horses/mules. Cody and LeRee Hensen, owners/ operators of Royal Tine Outfitters, offer a wealth of information as well as a guide and packer school near Phillipsburg, MT. (royal_tine@yahoo.com) They are an excellent resource, as would many other outfitters who can provide similar information.

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Best Practices for Acclimating Yourself and Your Animals to the Backcountry Before you make your maiden voyage into the backcountry with your newly organized pack outfit, whether it is one pack animal or three or four, there are some additional elements that you should consider when getting yourself and your animals acclimated. Hobbles and Pickets All of your pack and riding animals should be trained to picket or tolerate hobbles. Picket lines and hobbles can provide a safe, easy way to safely graze your stock in the backcountry. Teach your stock to tolerate hobbles and/or a single-leg picket well before you go into the backcountry. You can picket your stock with a single-leg picket on each animal or let them graze loose with two-leg or three-leg hobbles. I prefer grazing hobbles so I can turn the string loose to graze, with the exception that I always keep one animal picketed or tied unless I am close by and can see the animals. Some animals will learn to run with grazing hobbles but can be deterred by using grazing hobbles with a short lead rope attached to their halter. Ice hobbles are meant to allow animals to graze but not run. When you first think about chain hobbles, it sounds cruel, but since they are made of a smooth chain, they will “bite” a little bit initially, but mules learn quickly and will honor the ice hobbles. Horses may take a little longer but learn in very short order without galling their fetlocks. Buckless grazing hobbles and ice hobbles may be

Once you are experienced with your pack outfit, grazing hobbles are an excellent way to allow your animals to graze near camp.

obtained from Wade or Simone Mauhl at Outfitters Pack Station in Weiser, Idaho. Wade and Simone also have some excellent instructional videos on their website, OutfittersPackStation.com. It is not a wise choice to leave your stock unattended while hobbled, as they may wander off from your camp. Never leave one animal without hobbles with the others, as that animal may lead the others off down the trail. I had a hunting partner for years who had older horses that were very experienced in the mountains and stayed around

A short lead rope attached to grazing hobbles will discourage your stock from traveling while wearing them.

camp grazing with hobbles often. He sometimes left them with their grazing hobbles on all night. His hunting partner decided he would let his animals graze all night with leather grazing hobbles. His stock were not familiar with my friend’s stock, and he had a gelding that was prone to go off on its own. When one of the pack animals slipped its hobbles, the gelding led all of their stock out of the backcountry, 10-plus miles back to the trailhead. The 10-mile walk out and a return ride bareback were not pleasant experiences for my friend or his hunting partner. Electric Fences Portable electric fences are lightweight, making them easy to pack into the backcountry. As with other restraint devices, you should acclimate riding and pack stock to the electric fence before going into the backcountry. A single strand of poly wire (Gallagher), electric fence polytape (Patriot), or another suitable brand will keep your stock contained while grazing. Horses and mules will readily recognize electric fences and honor them, especially if they have had experience with your fence at home. You can add grazing hobbles to the mix, if you like, for additional security.

Lined grazing hobbles are made of strong russet harness leather and are lined with soft leather to ensure comfort for the horse or mule.

Ice hobbles are mainly used as grazing hobbles, allowing animals to move around while grazing.

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A portable electric fence is an excellent way to constrain riding and pack stock in the backcountry.

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Electric fences work especially well but need to be well-grounded with a quality battery or solar energizer. As with hobbles, it is not advisable to leave stock unattended within an electric fence in the backcountry because the deer, elk, and moose have little respect for your electric fence and will go through it, often knocking it down. I have a couple of young hunting friends who went deep into the Montana backcountry this past fall and left their stock unattended and contained by a portable electric fence. When they came back to camp in the afternoon, all of their horses were gone. They tracked them for three days until they caught up with them and brought them back to the trailhead. When they got back to camp, a bull moose was leisurely grazing by the camp. He didn’t realize the trouble he had caused by knocking down their electric fence! Other Critters If you spend enough time in the backcountry of the West, you will encounter other animals that may cause issues for your newly assembled pack outfit. Perhaps the most significant are the grizzly bears that are located all over Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming. Your best practice is to be “bear aware” and watch for grizzly tracks or other kinds of sign. My riding mule will stop if he smells where a grizzly has crossed the trail. The only way he will proceed down the trail is if I am patient and let him “think about it” before proceeding. My foxtrotter horses react much the same and become very “alert” if they smell a grizzly. On these occasions, depending on the terrain, I detour around the area or simply leave the area. Cattle grazing allotments in the West can bring additional challenges, especially in grizzly country. In some areas where these grazing allotments are on national forest in the backcountry, both larkspur and poison hemlock can be found. Cattle die from eating these plants, and a carcass will provide a significant attractant for both black bears and grizzlies. The cattle may die anywhere, but when they are used to using backcountry trails where there is a patch of larkspur or poison hemlock, they

The author’s rancher friend inspecting an angus calf that died along a major USFS trail that went through a patch of larkspur.

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don’t take it for granted that the dogs you may meet on the trail will not be a problem until you are sure that is the case.

The author’s horse, Joe, didn’t care much about a dead black bear but tolerated packing it back to camp.

sometimes die along the trail. You can’t plan for this kind of challenge, but if there are cattle in the area, it would be wise to ask the drover caring for the cattle about any dead cattle in the area so you may avoid conflict with a bear dining on a carcass. Black bears usually are not an issue, but a cow moose with a calf on a narrow hillside trail can be interesting.You may have to wait or turn back until she gets out of the trail. Llamas and goats were discussed in part one of this article. In areas near population centers, dogs without a leash which are allowed to run loose on public land can cause serious issues and even wrecks. In the West, a lot of people have stock dogs that will run along with their strings. Usually, these dogs are used to horses and mules and stay behind or out of the way, but

Your Stock and You Everyone is different in the way they interact (or not) with their horses and mules. Some people are “horse moms” at one end of the spectrum and spend lots of time caring for and feeding their horses (and mules). At the other end of the spectrum are hunters who use stock for hunting and, other than feeding the animals, they shoe the stock a week before they head off to the backcountry, and when they return the animals go back out to pasture. I have a personal relationship with all six of my horses and mules in the same manner that I did when I had hunting dogs. They are part of the “family” and are treated well and taught what I expect them to know year-round. If I had a lot more animals, other than taking good care of them, I wouldn’t have the time to spend with each one that I do now. If you are just starting out with a new string of horses and/or mules, it is my recommendation that you spend enough time with them to get to know them and for them to get to know you. Take care of them and teach them whatever it is that they (and you) may need to know for your next trek into the backcountry. If you enter the backcountry with your newly assembled “string” and have done your homework with your stock and for yourself, you should be able to look forward to sharing many great treks and hunting adventures wherever you go. Happy trails and good hunting!

The author’s mules know him as well as he does them. While grazing with hobbles near camp, Red (L) and Hydro (R) were curious about what was in the dishwashing bucket.

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MOVING MOUNTAINS

CARTS, SLEDS, AND HORSES – PACKING OPTIONS FOR BACKCOUNTRY HUNTING NICK GEHRING

HUNTING & TAXIDERMY EDITOR

saw a meme a few years ago of three guys standing next to each other. On the left was a bulky bodybuilder, in the middle was a well-built guy who was tall and lean, and on the right was a guy who clearly embraced the “dad bod” at a young age. Each guy had a title. From left to right it read, “elk hunters,”“mule deer hunters,” and “whitetail hunters.” I couldn’t help but laugh. Getting a deer from the back 40 onto a four-wheeler and back to the house is a whole different experience than getting an elk five miles back to the truck. If you’re planning to do a DIY backcountry-style hunt, you’re going to need to be in shape. You’ll also need to have a game plan on how to get in and out with heavy loads. Putting the Cart Before the Horse In my opinion, one of the most underused resources for backcountry hunting is a good oldfashioned hand cart. Wheels have revolutionized transportation for the modern world, and they can revolutionize a hunter’s efforts to access the backcountry as well. When considering the use of carts, there are a few things to keep in mind. First of all, is it legal? BLM lands, national forests, and other state lands generally allow for carts to be used on designated

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Hunting in the mountains takes its toll on the body. Alternate methods to transport game and gear can spare knees, ankles, backs, and more. Here, John and Loren taking a leisurely stroll back to the truck with nearly a whole elk split between two carts.

trails and, in some cases, off trails. Wilderness areas, on the other hand, do not allow the use of mechanized equipment (wheels). Another factor is the type or condition of the road or trail that you plan to use. Double-track logging roads will often be great for two-wheeled carts. Single tracks, like a horse trail, will almost certainly be too narrow for a standard two-wheeled cart.You can often learn what the trails are like via e-scouting. Some apps will have a filter that will show if a given trail is open to various means of access, ie: four-wheeler, dirt bike, horse, etc. These maps can be great tools to determine if you’ll be able to get your particular cart in and out of a certain area. There are basically three kinds of carts that my group has used over the years, some commercially made, others custom. They are: two-wheeled sideby-side, two-wheeled inline, and single-wheeled. Two-wheeled side-by-sides offer great lateral stability but generally require wider trails or roads. Two-wheeled inline carts can have weight spread out between the wheels from front to back but can be tippy from side to side. Single-wheeled carts operate similarly to a unicycle and therefore require extreme care when loading to keep weight distributed evenly. www.westernhunter.net

Single-wheeled carts can haul a lot of weight for their size, but they need to be loaded carefully with attention to weight distribution, as they can be very tippy.

Inline double-wheeled carts are amazing transport vehicles in the mountains with suitable trails. While they tend to be bulky in the truck, they can make hauling big game a breeze.

Side-by-side double-wheeled carts can hold a lot of weight, and if the terrain allows, they can go off trail. In this case, a rope was tied to the cart to allow additional pullers to assist.

A couple of years ago, my friend Andy and I each shot mule deer bucks six miles back into the mountains. Between our camping gear, hunting gear, and the two bucks, we probably had around 300 pounds worth of contents to haul back to the truck. Since the trail only went in four miles, we had to carry all our gear and the deer for the first two miles. This took three of us two trips. Once we got to the trail, though, we were able to load both quartered deer and a dry sack of camping gear onto the sides and top of one single-wheeled cart.

Since the trail was relatively smooth and did not have many significant slopes, we were able to make the last four miles in one easy jaunt.

pacted snow is the optimum surface for a sled to glide over, I’ve found that a good, rigid sled with a deer in it will pull a lot better even on flat ground or uphill than a deer without the sled. When you’re trying to pull an animal through the woods, everything on the forest floor tries to grab the animal, creating resistance. Placing a thin sheet of rigid plastic in between the animal and the earth greatly reduces the resistance, making it much easier to pull. If you can’t get the load on your back or on a cart, sleds can be a huge asset.

Tough Sledding Unfortunately, leveraging the benefits of the physics found within wheels isn’t always practical. In these scenarios, there are other options besides your back. Anyone who’s grown up in snow country knows the science behind putting something heavy on something rigid and slippery. While com-

Sleds like this Jet Sled can be used to haul whole animals or quarters over rough terrain. They also go down or across streams with little effort at all.

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Pack animals can make life in the mountains a bit more luxurious than going it alone, especially if you’re fortunate enough to fill some game bags with meat. However, things can go bad very quickly in rugged and remote areas. If you choose to hunt with stock, hypervigilance is a must as it relates to the animals.

Four Legs Versus Two There’s always been a big debate among backcountry hunters regarding the advantages and disadvantages of using stock. I have only been on one hunt where horses have been used, and it went great until it didn’t go well at all. The horses belonged to a friend of mine, and he was well acquainted with caring for them. Tragically, however, after packing in over six miles, one of the horses became seriously injured after falling on a rock. We spent the entire next day hauling gear and the healthy horse back to the trailhead where we spoke with some locals about our situation. Eventually, we were connected with a veterinarian who was able to assess the horse. Sadly, the decision was made to put the horse down. This was an absolutely awful experience, especially for my friend who owned and loved the horses. While I know that this is only one example, the only thing I can recommend regarding the use of horses is to research and train diligently before your trip. In our case, a knot had become loose during the night as the horses fed back and forth. We had underestimated how significantly a simple ropetying mistake could alter the course of a hunt, and it cost a horse its life. Suffice it to say, if you want to try your hand at being a hunting horseman, articles by the likes of George Bettas are an absolute 80

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must-read, and everyone involved in the care of the horses needs to be up to par. Conclusion Simply accessing remote country without any gear can be a real chore. Hauling 50-plus pounds of camping equipment, food, and hunting gear makes it all the more difficult. Getting all of that gear and

hopefully, a giant bull or buck back out might be nearly impossible and perhaps dangerous. Using carts, sleds, or stock can prevent serious injury and can make an otherwise daunting task a stroll in the park. If you’re planning a hunt this fall and you know there’ll be decent trails or terrain, do yourself a favor and bring a method of transportation.

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HEAD INJURIES

IN THE BACKCOUNTRY H

PREVENTION, ASSESSMENT, AND TREATMENT OF YOUR INJURIES

unting in the backcountry is one of my favorite activities, but it also comes with risks that are amplified if you are alone. Hunting solo offers unmatched solitude, focus, and freedom, but it also means you are your own first responder if something goes wrong. Head injuries are one of the most serious injuries you can sustain. Approximately 50% of trauma deaths in the U.S. are due to head injuries. Falling, having something fall on you, or taking an impact in a remote backcountry location can all create a sudden, serious situation where your 82

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ability to assess and take informed action could be the difference between life and death. It’s critical to know the steps for identifying, responding to, treating, and managing a head injury while in the wilderness when professional medical help may be hours or days away. Recognizing Head Trauma in the Field If you sustain a blow to the head, it is paramount to immediately assess yourself for symptoms of head trauma. If you sustain a severe blow to the head, you may lose consciousness completely and

not know how long you were unconscious. In this scenario, you’d need to be evacuated immediately. If you planned ahead and gave your trip plan to someone at home, they will be looking for you at the time you set on your plan. If you are not there, it would indicate that you need help. If you regained consciousness, having a device like a Garmin inReach would allow you to call for immediate medical help. When you are solo it can be difficult to see things on your own head so you can use your phone and take pictures of areas you can’t see to help you get a visual assessment. www.westernhunter.net

Head injuries are a real possibility when we are traversing tough terrain in the backcountry. Understanding what your symptoms mean and how to handle them is an important skill.

Symptoms of a Head Injury • Altered Level of Responsiveness (LOR) • Disorientation • Irritability • Combative Demeanor • Repetitive Questioning/Inability to Recall Events • Headache • Fatigue • Nausea or Vomiting • Blood or Cerebrospinal Fluid Draining from the Ears or Nose • Seizures

LINDSAY PERSICO

HUNTING/HEALTH & FITNESS

The Garmin inReach Mini 2 allows you to stay in touch globally with two-way communication and interactive SOS capabilities.

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Signs of Increasing Pressure in the Cranium • Bruising Behind the Ears • Unequal Pupils • Involuntary Flexing and Extending of Muscles • Strong Peripheral Pulses Due to Increasing Blood Pressure • Rapid or Irregular Breathing Techniques To Self-Stabilize The first course of action after you have taken a blow to the head is to stabilize yourself. If you suspect you have sustained a head injury, stop hunting. This sounds crazy, but the effects of a head injury can make it difficult to think clearly. It may be difficult to clearly plan your next steps, and reverting to what you were doing before the injury can be a possibility. You may feel fine, but as the effects of the injury progress, you may become

unstable or unable to make good decisions which can lead you to further injury. Find a safe place to sit or lie down while you monitor yourself and determine the next steps you need to take. You may vomit, so laying down on your side if you are feeling nauseous can help to prevent aspiration if you were to lose consciousness. There is also the potential for you to experience seizures, so make sure you are in a stable and safe environment should you begin to seize. DO NOT traverse steep, unstable terrain or attempt to cross any water. Use whatever you have available to stabilize your head and neck.Your pack, a sam splint, or even a jacket can be formed to support your head and neck. Try to stay awake and alert, even if you feel like sleeping. If your head injury caused bleeding, apply pressure to the bleed with gauze, a clean cloth, or clothing to stop the bleeding. Increase Your Odds of Survival When you are hunting solo, your gear can be your lifeline. Always carry an emergency beacon, inReach, or some form of satellite communication when you are hunting in remote areas. If you are disoriented, it is important to consider the risk that your firearm may pose to you. If you are disoriented, place your firearm in a safe and secure place off of your person until you are mentally clear to ensure that you don’t accidentally injure yourself further. Mark your location with highly visible markers for rescuers searching for you just in case you lose consciousness later.

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Determining Next Steps With most head injuries, signs and symptoms usually manifest within the first 24 hours. If you are and have remained fully alert and oriented and you have no or only mild symptoms that are decreasing with time, you may be able to stay in the field and continue your hunt. However, it will be important to continue to monitor yourself and self-evacuate if you notice any increase in symptoms or new symptoms. If you’re on blood thinners, you should evacuate even if you do not have any increasing symptoms.You have a much greater risk of internal bleeding and should be evaluated to ensure there is no further care needed. It is extremely critical that you only attempt self-evacuation if you are fully alert and oriented, have no worsening symptoms, and are within a few miles of an exit or help. If you choose to selfevacuate and you have an inReach, start sharing your track with someone so they know where to find you in case your symptoms worsen. Otherwise, you are better off staying put and calling for help. Make yourself visible using bright clothing, by starting a fire, or by using reflective materials, and keep yourself warm and dry. The time it takes for help to come will be determined by how well you planned for your trip in advance. Hopefully, you have brought a way to communicate and have already notified someone that you are in need of help. If not, ideally you have communicated a trip plan with someone back home, and they will begin searching for you at the appointed time. This is also a time when the gear you have brought with you can greatly impact your comfort as you await help. Hopefully, you brought clothing layers, a lightweight shelter, food, water, and medical supplies. Preventing Head Injury in the Field Avoiding head injuries is always the ultimate goal. Staying aware of your surroundings, not rushing, carefully traversing uneven terrain, ice, and rocks, and wearing a harness in a tree stand or a helmet on an ATV are all ways you can minimize the risk of a head injury. Check your gear before you

Head injuries can happen easily if we slip in tough terrain and fall. Rocks can fall on us and we can even experience an impact from a vehicle accident on our way to our hunting spot.

Being aware of your surroundings, not rushing, and being prepared with the gear you need if an injury occurs are all ways to help improve your chances of a safe trip into the backcountry.

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go out, as well. A faulty trekking pole that breaks on a hike can be that one little thing that causes a really dangerous situation. Remain within your skill level in any outdoor activity. Pushing the limits of what you are confident and comfortable with, especially when you are alone, magnifies the risk of injury. Solo hunting in the backcountry carries real risks, and head injuries are among the most dangerous. But with preparation, presence of mind, and the right gear, you increase your chances of staying safe or surviving long enough to get help. Plan ahead, tread carefully, recognize the signs, and never ignore a hit to the head. Your safety is your responsibility and your greatest weapon in the wild. www.westernhunter.net

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HEALTH & FITNESS

GREASE THE GROOVE TRAVEL WORKOUTS FOR THE BACKCOUNTRY ATHLETE

MATT WARD

HUNTING/HEALTH & FITNESS

omentum matters. In the backcountry, your body is your engine, and like any good machine, it runs best when it’s kept in motion. When you’re on the road – whether guiding hunts, chasing tags, or navigating the chaos of airports and late nights – it’s easy for training to slip. But it doesn’t take much to stay sharp. A resistance band, your body weight, and a sliver of space are all you need to grease the groove and keep the habit alive.

You’re Not Training to Win – You’re Training to Return These sessions aren’t about chasing PRs or building mass. They’re about showing up for yourself. Keeping your joints mobile, your muscles firing, and your nervous system engaged. The goal is simple: maintain the baseline so when you return to your full program – or the trailhead – you’re not starting from zero.

“Success doesn’t come from intensity – it comes from consistency.” ~ James Clear

Why It Matters in the Mountains The mountains don’t care if you’ve had a few off weeks. Slippery climbs, heavy packs, and long descents punish inconsistency. These travel workouts keep your hips open, your back strong, and your mental edge sharp. Push-ups and planks may not feel like much in a hotel room, but they are laying the groundwork for clean pack-outs, surefooted descents, and injury resilience when it matters most. You’re not just killing time – you’re building durability.

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HEALTH & FITNESS Mobility That Moves the Needle When you’re navigating through deadfall, side-hilling with a loaded pack, or scrambling over steep ridgelines, tight hips and a stiff upper back are liabilities. A little mobility work goes a long way. That’s why every session starts with hip and thoracic spine prep. Think deep lunges, controlled rotations, and banded stretches – all focused on opening up the front of the hips, unlocking rotational capacity through the T-spine, and restoring the range you lose behind the wheel or stuck in airplane seats. It’s not fancy, but it keeps you moving like a mountain athlete. The Groove Is Neurological Strength legend Pavel Tsatsouline coined the phrase “grease the groove” to describe a training method rooted in neurological adaptation. Rather than maxing out effort, you repeat a movement frequently and submaximally to reinforce the neural pathway. Think of it like carving a trail through the woods – the more often you walk it, the smoother and more automatic it becomes. That’s the idea here. A few sets of squats or push-ups throughout the day don’t just keep you strong – they keep the signal strong between brain and body.

The Daily Tune-Up (10 – 15 Minutes) Use this as a warm-up, recovery flush, or movement snack during long travel days. • World’s Greatest Stretch x 5 reps/side • T-Spine Rotations (quadruped or side-lying) x 5-10/side • Band Pull-Aparts x 20 • Bodyweight Squats x 20 • Push-Ups x 15-20 • Banded Good Mornings x 15 • Glute Bridge or Single-Leg Bridge x 10/leg • Plank with Shoulder Taps x 30 seconds

Band Pull-Aparts

Habits Make Hunters As James Clear explains in Atomic Habits, success doesn’t come from intensity – it comes from consistency. Small actions, repeated daily, compound into major results. That’s why these short workouts matter. By anchoring your day with even a 10-minute session, you reinforce your identity as someone who moves, someone who trains, someone who finishes what they start. It’s not just about fitness – it’s about discipline, identity, and self-respect.

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HEALTH & FITNESS Mountain-Ready Circuit (20 – 30 Minutes) A full-body session to keep your chassis ready for load. Complete 3-4 rounds of each. • Band Rows x 15-20 • Feet-Elevated Push-ups x 10-15 • Bulgarian Split Squats (back foot on bed/chair) x 8-10/leg • Banded RDLs or Good Mornings x 15 • Band Face Pulls x 20 • Hollow Body Hold x 30 seconds Rest 30-45 seconds between exercises. Minimal rest between rounds.

Bulgarian Split Squats

Stair or Hill Sprint Session (20 – 25 Minutes) Build leg power, aerobic capacity, and mental grit – no gym required. Warm-up (5-10 Minutes): • Light jog or fast-paced walk • Hip circles, leg swings, and arm circles • Dynamic stretches (lunges, toe touches, hamstring sweeps) Workout: • Sprint or power hike up a stairwell or hill for 20-30 seconds • Walk back down slowly for your rest (about 1:30-2:00 minutes) • Repeat for 6-10 rounds, depending on time and effort level • Cool down with light walking and hip mobility You don’t need a treadmill or a trailhead to get it done. A hotel stairwell or any hill in town is all it takes. It’s the simplest form of backcountry-specific conditioning you can do while traveling – and one of the most effective.

Lunges

Banded Good Mornings

Hill Sprints

Field-Tested Consistency Out there, reliability is everything. That starts here – in hotel rooms, trailhead camps, and cramped living rooms. It’s not glamorous, but it’s effective. Each rep is a vote for the version of you who moves well, hunts hard, and doesn’t break down when the terrain does. 88

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KNOCK THE RUST OFF The Atlas Trainer is the most eﬀective way to prepare for hiking and hauling in the mountains. Don’t get caught on opening day with sissy legs. Spend time this summer simulating the loads we all hope to pack this fall. 1-800-291-8065 | OUTDOORSMANS.COM/ATLAS

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Best Ruck Frame and Even Better Company! I’ve had an Atlas Trainer for a few years now and ruck almost every day. Whether I have 35 lb or 80 lb, the frame holds up very well!

EDGAR CASTILLO WING HUNTER EDITOR

FAR WEST FLUSH HUNTING QUAIL OF THE WESTERN COAST

PHOTOS BY GLENN ZINKUS

ver since hunters came across quail, they’ve been enamored with the explosive plump, little birds. Arguably, no other gamebird has captured the wingshooter’s heart and spirit than quail. The vision of a pointer locked tight against a vast horizon, or frozen in a place amidst a million diamonds of frost on a cold December day, is an enduring one. The gregarious nature of the bird, found in various-sized coveys, adds to its appeal across a diverse range of habitats and landscapes. However, it is the West that invokes an insatiable appetite for wing hunters to seek out and chase adventure. From the low deserts with their brushy drainages to the rolling hills that morph into the California mountains, the upper states of the high forests, and mountains of the Pacific Northwest, wing hunters must be ready to hoof it into the wild landscape in order to pursue western quail. So, if you have the legs and energy to find them, get ready for an adventurous hunt. 90

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Western quail can be found across a diverse range of habitats and landscapes if you put in the work.

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Mountain Quail

The mountain quail is the largest and most elusive of the quails and is considered a bird of the Far West. The mountain quail has been often overlooked or missed entirely by hunters. Giving more evidence to their anonymity, renowned naturalist John Muir wrote this in 1902, “Most interesting of all the American partridges... That he is not so regarded, is because as a lonely mountaineer, he is only half known.” To this day, mountain quail continues to be a mystery to hunters, as the secretive gamebirds tend to be in groups of about three to 20 birds and are found in some of the most murderous mountain terrain there is. The land is challenging, the cover thick and dense and strewn with rocky boulders, making it seem impossible to reach where the birds call home. Because of the extreme conditions, mountain quail have been described as ghosts, as they tend to disappear into thin air. When the majestic-looking birds are found, they are known to hold so tight that bird hunters MOUNTAIN QUAIL almost step on them, forcing haphazard shots as the birds rocket out from underneath boulders or thick undergrowth. They navigate the air in short, rapid flights with loud, explosive wingbeats that can propel them at upwards of 40 MPH as they fly low just above the cover. Mountain quail are also adept at running uphill, a tactic used to escape when disturbed, causing havoc and confusion to hunters.

Range and Habitat Mountain quail inhabit the steep and rugged mountains of California, up through Oregon and Washington, and into Idaho. They are the only quail on the continent that routinely move from their high-elevation summer range (10,000 feet) to a lower winter range (2,000 feet) below deep snow. In fact, their movements are much like those of the mule deer that they share the wildlands of the western coast with. These birds prefer shrub vegetation in early successional stages. “Brushland” is the key word when hunting for mountain quail. Mixed conifer and hardwood timber, interspersed with brush, and high-country aspen stands surrounded by sagebrush can hold coveys. Stands surrounded by sagebrush and chaparral (brushlands with scrub oak, thorny brush, and shrubs) are also important habitation points to look for. Covey members often tend to use the same trees or shrubs to roost in.

One strategy for hunting mountain quail is to watch roadways for crossing birds and send the dogs into the brush to work up and down the slopes.

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Strategies Chasing mountain quail is tough hunting, quite like what is experienced going after chukars. Hunters will do better keying in on two essential elements – brush and nearby water sources. Hunt across slopes, knowing that the birds like to run uphill. If quail are found, they can be pinched by coming down onto them, and by posting a hunter below to “squeeze” them and force birds to flush. Hunters should avoid unnecessary climbing – it will tire you quickly. Instead, try to zig-zag along hillsides. Watch roadways for crossing birds and send the dogs into the brush to work up and down the slopes. If a covey is flushed, listen for their assembly or contact calls. They are made up of sharp, repeated whistles used to help gather broken-up birds. Mountain quail hunting is demanding, not at all like easy wagon hunts or strolls for bobwhites. Walking, climbing, busting brush – the work is hard. The high country is without match when going after the “unknown mountaineer,” as all a hunter needs is a bird or two to experience the grandeur that the mountains provide.

California or Valley Quail

California or valley quail is to California, Oregon, and Washington what the bobwhite quail is to the Midwest and deep South. This makes them a favorite among western bird hunters, as they are even more abundant than their southwestern cousin, the Gambel’s quail. However, the similarly regal-looking birds, with their flamboyant, black topknots, tend to hold much better for pointing dogs than the rustic-crowned Gambel’s. Not to say California quail don’t run – they do – they would just rather flush than run. Hunters may experience very large coveys, numbering from 20 upwards to 50 or more birds during the hunting season. As winter sets in, eyewitness accounts from wingshooters tell of massive groups of up to 500! CALIFORNIA QUAIL

Range and Habitat California quail are dispersed over a wider array of landscapes, inhabiting a 2,000-mile range, extending from the tip of the Baja Peninsula to the Canadian border. This vast area provides wing hunters more opportunities in various habitats to pursue the birds anywhere along the West Coast. This area includes everything from semidesert to sagebrush, cool, wet coastal forests, and scrubby tropical forests. Bird hunters may experience a fluctuation of topography and natural obstacles in each environment. The primary habitat for California quail consists of open, grassy cover with some taller trees or brush for roosting. Prime spots for wingshooters to focus on include brushy cover along creek valleys, around field edges, and thickets. The birds can be found near canyon rims or in washes or ditches of impenetrable shrubbery. A reliable supply water source, such as a watering hole, is a good feature to key in on. In dry years, guzzlers can prove productive.

California quail will hold tight, so pointing and flushing dogs are great to work in tandem, if available.

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CALIFORNIA QUAIL

When hunting California quail in sparse vegetation, be prepared because they may run before flushing.

Strategies How to hunt California quail depends on the density of the cover. Avoid hunting the quail in sparse vegetation because they may run. If birds are found near or high up on hills, knolls, or mountains, California quail, like Chukars, may run uphill. Because of this, it pays to hunt in pairs, with one hunter uphill and slightly ahead of the other. It’s common to find coveys in patches of thick, brushy cover more than waist high. Hunters should surround thickets, making sure to block off any escape routes. Birds will hold tight, so pointing and flushing dogs are great to work in tandem, if available. Once flushed, hunt for singles in isolated bunches of grass. Birds will hold tight, and this is where a good, experienced dog can burrow in and root out birds. Listen for quail to utter a three-note rallying call, a distinctive “chi-ca-go!” to triangulate the locations of hiding birds.

It’s common to find coveys in thick, brushy cover more than waist high.

Guns and Gear

Both the mountain and California quail live in some diverse rugged terrain. Hunters may walk long distances through rough conditions, so a light shotgun that can take a beating and is easy to carry is a smart choice. Be it a 12, 16, 20, or 28 gauge, pairing the shotgun (semi, pump, or double gun) with the appropriate load is easy. An improved cylinder with 7 1/2 field loads makes for a solid combination. Temperatures and weather conditions will vary, so wear quality clothing (technical fabrics, wool, moisture-wicking) in layers. A sturdy pair of boots that provide ample ankle support, a bird vest that can carry additional gear, first-aid and survival kits, and water bottles should be included in your quest for West Coast quail. Hazards may include mountain lions and poisonous snakes. OnX is a must-have to navigate the land.

Camp Meat

Quail, no matter what species, has long been the favorite of all the upland gamebirds to eat. The meat is white and favorable and can be used in multiple dish preparations. 94

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RICHY HARROD GUEST WRITER

OWYHEE WINTER CHUKARS

REVISITING THE RIDGELINES OF OUR PAST

y brother backed the boat halfway down the long, rough boat ramp on Lake Owyhee, two miles above the dam. The air was cold and smelled of sagebrush and wet, earthy shoreline. Aromas brought back memories of fishing for crappie and bass in our youth. Ron and I weren’t here to fish; however, we were going up lake to hunt chukars. The chukar numbers were apparently down, but we were excited, nonetheless. With gear stacked in every corner of the boat, we loaded Ron’s dog, Sage, into her portable kennel, shoved off the shore, tightened up our coat hoods, and braced for a 12-mile boat ride in winter air. At first, we idled past where the old Cherry Creek Lodge used to stand. Our great uncle was a builder and partowner in the lodge in the early 1960s, and we used to stay there in the 1980s to chukar hunt. Now speeding south, we wished the warm lodge was still there. Our three-day winter camp and chukar hunting adventure had begun. The sun was shining on the steep, craggy canyonlands towering above the shore of the reservoir. Many coves and the draws above looked vaguely familiar. We dug deep in our memories for clues to places that our father had taken us bird hunting in our teenage years. Dad had a 16-foot boat almost too small for the three of us, three of our friends, dogs, shotguns, and shells. We laughed remembering how the boat would not come up on plane and the lack of freeboard. Chukar hunting was fantastic in the early 1980s, and that undersized boat took Boating up lake on the lower portion of Lake Owyhee. us to chukar hunting bliss! 96

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Those memories heightened our anticipation as Ron guided the boat up the winding reservoir and around numerous rock spires protruding from the water. Many boat props have been eaten by rocks that lie hidden just under the surface. Afterall, Owyhee Reservoir floods one of the most rugged and extensive canyons in western North America. Some have referred to Owyhee River Canyon as the “Grand Canyon of Oregon.” A fitting moniker given the more than 126 miles of deep, narrow canyons formed by the Owyhee River. The 53-mile reservoir flooded the lower portion of the canyon after the completion of the Owyhee Dam in 1932. At the time, it was the tallest dam in the world at 400 feet and it also served as a model for the later and much larger Hoover Dam. The beauty and rich history of this engineering marvel makes for a fantastic setting for a chukar hunt. A few miles past Dry Creek, a significant western arm of the reservoir, we landed the boat in a cove on the eastern side of the lake. The water level was down several feet so finding a flat place for the tent was tough. The exposed shoreline was soft mud and gravel which gave way with each step making it a workout to pack our gear up to the flat. By now, the day was getting short with only time to set up camp and make supper. Our camp consisted of an 8 x 8 canvas tent and folding table for outdoor cooking. Expecting cold nights, thick sleeping pads and winter temp sleeping bags kept us relatively warm at night. A small propane heater warmed the tent morning and night. We cooked partially prepared meals on a two-burner stove. Waterproof tubes keep our dry goods dry and mouse proof. Folding chairs could be used inside the tent or outside by the cooking spot. Finally, a 5-gallon jug of drinking water supplied our water bottles or was used for cooking. It was all we needed to live on the shoreline for the next three days.

Ron brought a few pieces of dry firewood to supplement wood scavenged above the highwater mark. Camp was organized and supper was complete, so we moved our chairs near the campfire and relaxed with a beverage as the sun disappeared. We were all alone, no boats and no other people around. A group of chukars above our camp taunted us with their raspy “chuck, chuck, chuck.” Their calls added to our excitement for the following morning and our planned trip further up lake.

First Day Exploration

The first morning was cold (upper teens) and a low fog hung on the surrounding hills. Bundled with all the warm clothes brought, we loaded into the boat and scraped the frost off the window and seats preparing for a frigid boat ride. Our destination was about 4-miles on the east side of the lake near an old cabin. A long, broad ridgeline ascending to a rocky butte looked like perfect chukar habitat on our digital maps. After over 40 years of hunting chukars, Ron and I have a good eye for places chukars frequent. Chukars are originally from Eurasia where they occupied rocky, open hillsides with grass and scattered shrubs. The same habitat features found here in eastern Oregon provide ideal habitat. The steep, open hillsides along Owyhee Lake have harbored chukars since the 1950s. These arid areas have provided birds with seeds and insects for diet. Rocky rims and sagebrush areas afford shelter from predators and suitable nesting areas.

Jim Davis

Establishing Camp

Ron loads the boat for our first cold morning of chukar hunting.

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In the driest parts of the year, chukars stay near the lake shore for easy access to water. Chukars move further away from the lake with the fall rains which tend to pool in depressions on basalt rocks. Late fall and winter are a time when cheatgrass seeds, a winter annual, sprout their succulent green shoots which chukars pack into their craws, both for food and water. Eating green grass gives their droppings (sign) a bright green color.

Ron and Sage with the first bird of the day.

WESTERN HUNTER

We left the boat behind and hiked past the ruins of the old cabin looking for chukar sign. The grassy ridgeline looked heavily grazed by cattle; chukars tend to avoid these areas. Less than stellar habitat conditions were noted in silence and the gap between us widened as if words had been spoken. After years of hunting together, tactics for improving success are mutually understood. We’d cover as much ground as two guys could and head for the rocky butte. The ridgelines and tops of draws give way to a steep bunchgrass slope below the rock rims and spires of the butte. Chukars are often found in these transition areas, so our distance apart shortened, hoping that Sage would point a covey. Fresh sign was everywhere and as if on que, Ron said,“Sage is on point!” Converging on the dog, a small bunch of chukars exploded into the air with birds flying at hard angles over and around us escaping to the impossibly steep part of the rocky butte. Shooting twice each, two birds fell, and we were on the board! Admiring the fat gray, black and brown birds momentarily, we circled the butte hoping to find some singles or pairs separated from the covey. After a half hour’s search, it was apparent they had escaped us, and no other coveys were found. It was time to hike back and try another spot further up lake. Maybe the report of low chukar populations was true. Neither of us had boated much past the old cabin. We were not only curious about the terrain in the upper part of the reservoir, but we also reasoned that fewer hunters may have traveled that far. Ron put the boat on plane, and we cruised towards the unknown. The broad, wide bends in the reservoir yielded to a meandering narrow canyon with steeper and more innately carved hillsides. By now, the sun was bright making the dormant grasses golden yellow and the exposed rock rims and peaks vibrant orange, red, or brown. It felt like we were passing back in time to a place where few had visited. Indeed, the hillsides carved by the Owyhee River are between 2 and 16 million years old. Ancient basalt flows intermixed with periods of sedimentary deposits created a veritable pallet of colors in the rock cliffs. The east side of the reservoir was more rolling terrain, so we picked a likely chukar spot and hiked away from the geologic grandeur. We hiked several miles up several ridges with little to no chukar sign found. Looping back towards the lake, we jumped a covey and with two well placed shots, two more birds went into our vests. Our visions for numerous chukars in this amazing landscape were fading, so with tired legs and hungry bellies we loaded back into the boat for the long trip back to our shoreline camp. www.westernhunter.net

Chukars were far and few between but that didn’t matter. We discovered new hunting areas for better hunting times, enjoyed the solitude of the Owyhee country, and cherished the time together. Our family has a long history of experiencing and appreciating the magnificent beauty of this place. Winter may not be the most comfortable time on the reservoir but the memories we made added to our family’s outdoor legacy here. The challenge of enduring the cold, the determination to find scattered birds, and curiosity to explore remote lands more than made up for the lack of birds in our bag. Winter in the Owyhee is special after all.

A Change in the Weather

Settling into our sleeping bags, there was a lack of stars and somewhat warmer temperatures. We assumed cloud cover rather than low fog, and in the morning our suspicion was confirmed with a blanket of fresh snow. Hiking the steep slopes up lake would be difficult, so we decided to pack the camp after a leisurely start and hunt our way back to the boat launch. The boat ride down lake was particularly frigid from fresh snow and cloud cover. We decided the rolling hills on the south side of Dry Creek would be easiest to hunt. Numerous 1950s era camper trailers dot the shoreline in this area and are used as summer cabins. These campers had to come via 30 plus miles of rough, dirt and rock roads from Vale, Oregon. We admired the camps and marveled at the effort to get them there. From here, we hunted in two different directions and hoped to add more birds to our cooler. Ron circled a grassy knob closer to the main lake while I hiked up a broad, dry creek bottom and rolling ridges behind the Golden Age camp trailers. Ron banged away a few times while I listened with envy. Eventually, making my way back to the boat, a bunch of chukars flew up in shotgun range and I made the best of my opportunity. Two birds weighed my game bag as I descended the gentle slope to the boat. Ron was waiting with his two birds. Our boots and feet were soaked from melting snow, and it was time to go. info@westernhunter.net

WESTERN HUNTER

THE FORGOTTEN FIRST LOVE

ANDREW MARLIN GUEST WRITER

THE TIMELESS TRADITION OF DOVE HUNTING

s summer comes to an end, the excitement of hunting season’s return is ubiquitous. There are trips to plan, equipment to check, and last-minute phone calls to make as you prepare to take to the field in search of big game. With lots of resources on the line, you can begin to feel the pressure to make the most of your upcoming hunts – coming home with more than just pictures of sunsets. It’s a very busy time of year for the western sportsman. Amidst all the hustle and bustle, I feel that many may have forgotten one of America’s most iconic dates – September 1st, opening day of dove season.

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The Start of a Lifelong Addiction

One Friday afternoon when I was 14, I got a call from my youth pastor, an avid wing shooter, asking me if I was free to shoot sporting clays with him the next morning. I excitedly accepted the invite, then ran to the closet to fetch my shotgun – a single-shot New England Firearms 12 gauge. A single-shot 12 gauge is far from the ideal beginner’s gun, but at 14 years old with an unsteady income, the $98 price tag was its main selling point. The next morning, I burned through quite a few shells and watched as more than a few clays hit the dirt, untouched by my shot. Despite my poor shooting, I evidently passed the test and was invited to hunt doves with him and some friends. This was the beginning of my lifelong addiction to all things related to shotguns – one I don’t plan on shaking. I was accustomed to having to skip school or wait until the weekend to hunt, but these dove hunts were different. After a morning shoot, I could still make it to class. On the weekends, we’d end our morning down at Cracker Barrel with the rest of the day ahead of us. Dove hunting was paramount in my growth as a hunter and actually got my dad back into hunting. Today I find that dove hunting is one of the few pastimes that I can do as much as I want because I can go before work and, frankly, before most folks have even started their day. There aren’t many hobbies that are this forgiving on your day-to-day responsibilities.

The More The Merrier

Dove hunting is a social activity, and this is one of my favorite aspects of it. To this day, September 1st is one of the most important dates on my dad’s and my calendar. The plan remains the same every year. We hunt together on the afternoon of September 1st. I typically go out in the morning and purposely don’t shoot a limit so that I can shoot with my dad, while still enjoying the chaos of opening morning. We get to the field early and set our stools in the shade of a telephone pole in the corner of a cotton field. We set up our decoys about 15 yards from us, facing into the wind as landing doves tend to do, and wait. From our spot, we can see the road leading in and watch as trucks begin to arrive, which only builds the excitement for me.

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When I’m elk or deer hunting, seeing multiple trucks drive up would be my worst nightmare, but not when dove hunting. As they arrive at nearby corners of the field, I feel a sense of camaraderie, knowing that we are all out to have a good time. As shots begin to ring out, my excitement builds even more, and I can’t help but look in the direction of the noise every time, hoping to see the surviving birds flying my way. As a big game hunter, it feels sacrilegious to say this, but I feel like the action is better with other groups of hunters in the area because you keep the birds moving for each other, especially before the “main flight” of the evening. I find this to be incredibly useful during late season when the birds just don’t seem to have much of a schedule. Finally, as the groups come into the decoys and shots are fired, the distinct smell of spent shells fills our little slice of the farm and my September has officially begun. By this point, we have a guest or two who have shown up. We share laughs, good conversation, and, of course, shooting. The sun starts to set ever so slightly, and the flight picks up. Before you know it, there are birds everywhere, and with only ten minutes left of light, you just can’t reload fast enough. By now, limits are filled and we use the remaining light to clean up our shells and head to the trucks. Just like that, September 1st has come to an end, but we aren’t quite done. Just before the highway turnoff stands our favorite burrito shop in the state. No hunt out there is complete until we’ve had our fill of carne asada, fresh corn chips, and salsa.

Getting Started

Let’s say that you haven’t taken to the dove field yet, I have great news. There’s little to no barrier to entry, even if you don’t own a shotgun. I’m willing to bet that you have a buddy with an extra one, and you can easily walk out of your local sporting goods store with a more than adequate dove gun for under 350 bucks. I’ve hunted doves with everything from cheap youth model singleshot .410s to fine Italian autoloaders and can tell you that no matter what I was shooting, I was having a great time. Once you’ve got a gun, you’re pretty much set. However, I would also recommend a seat and a means of keeping your shells close and your birds off the ground. 102

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Let me save you some time. The mistakes that I’ve made along the way cause me to live by this principle: you can’t kill doves that aren’t there, and doves need food, water, and security. Finding doves doesn’t require anything more than paying attention while you are out and about. If you see them on a power line, you are in the right corner of the county. When you see them flying across the road as you drive in the mornings and evenings, you’re at the right cross streets, and if they’re flying back and forth across the road midday, well, you’re probably passing a feedlot. Once you’ve narrowed down where to park your truck, start looking for food, water, and security.

Food

In the agricultural areas, your food sources are pretty obvious – anywhere with livestock feed or grain fields will hold doves. If I am looking for a natural food source, I am trying to find any seed-bearing plant, including cactus. I find that the mourning doves really like the tiny seeds produced by native grass because they spend more time on the ground than their white-wing counterparts, who prefer to be off the ground when possible. If I’m looking at a sunflower stock, I can anticipate that a white wing will be eating off of the flower itself, and there will be a mourning dove eating the fallen seeds beneath it. White wings are even known to eat nectar from saguaro flowers. It is important to note, when looking at areas with grass seeds, that doves are picky with their feet and prefer clean ground, no different from the footing you would look for if you were barefoot. For that reason, my ideal ground would be a place where the grass is in tufts with open dirt in between, especially if it’s a place where larger animals have walked through and knocked the seed off of the grass onto the smooth dirt. The last thing I look for in terms of “food” is a place where there is sand and tiny gravel because the doves swallow the stones to aid in digestion by grinding up the seed they eat in their gizzard.

Water

At least here in Arizona, the classic over-water dove spots are cattle tanks. These provide excellent shooting opportunities, but they do get quite crowded on opening weekend.Yes, I just got done praising the presence of other hunters, www.westernhunter.net

but now imagine shoulder-to-shoulder crowded. This can lead to safety concerns, which is why I prefer farm fields on opening weekend. As I mentioned, I hunt a cotton field, and while the cotton plant does have seeds, from what I can tell, the birds are there for the irrigation, not the plant. I once made the mistake of hunting a field in September that was not irrigated, and we had to move fields because there were too few birds. Another great way to hunt water but spread out a little is to hunt along major aqueducts. Keep in mind that many of these canals are not public and there are consequences for trespassing. You’ll want to stay on the right side of the fence and shoot away from the water, taking care not to drop birds inside of the boundary or the water itself.

Security

The final thing that I believe all doves need is a place to feel secure when not in flight. Doves like to roost in tall, thick trees overnight and during the hot part of the day which is why you may hear the phrase “hunting the roost.” In my neck of the woods in Arizona, these roosts are usually tall mesquite trees surrounding pounds and drainages. During their morning and evening flights, doves will be seen landing on tall, dead trees that are free of leaves and power lines temporarily, almost as if they are taking a quick break. I have had great success by doing nothing other than sitting near the tallest dead tree I could find. That’s a great strategy when there are lots of hunters out and after opening weekend when the birds are starting to respond to pressure. During times of movement, they seem to prefer

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tall perches with lots of visibility and often fly along power lines like roads in the sky. It should go without saying, but don’t shoot at or through the power lines, the power companies really frown upon that.

Give it a Try

Just as it has kickstarted many hunters’ paths in the outdoors, dove hunting remains a fantastic way to kick off your season. As accessible as it is to hunters of all ages and experience levels, there really isn’t a reason not to dust off that old scattergun, call up your buddies, get out there this season, and discover a new first love.

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HEATH SEINER WING HUNTER EDITOR

The author’s brittany spaniel eagerly awaits the next retrieve during a summer water work session.

K9 SUMMER SCHOOL

OFF-SEASON AND PRE-SEASON TRAINING FOR GOOD ‘OL BIRD DOGS

he foundation for a good hunting season is laid well before the opening days are circled on your calendar. Truth be told, it’s a continuous journey of conditioning, training, and a lot of sweat equity. For those who dream of bird dogs ripping up rolling hills of prairie grass and locking down that first covey of the season, that preparation includes ensuring those four-legged hunting partners are in peak physical shape, mentally sharp as a tack, and ready to roll. I’ve lived long enough to get a rambunctious pup, embark on the training roller coaster, bank some damn good memories in the field, and lay him to rest among a few other good ol’ dogs under an old oak tree on the family farm. While these bird dogs continue to impart wisdom on this ol’ wingshooter, I’ve picked up a few things along the way to set up my team for success and make the days afield even more enjoyable. The following are a few fundamental elements we lean on to get us primed for each upland season.

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Greta, the author’s Deutsch Drahthaar puppy, tears through cover on a Spring free run at the family farm.

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Nutrition is the Foundation

Nutrition is the critical ingredient in the recipe to cook up a strong and healthy hunting partner. Like any high-performance athlete, bird dogs need the best fuel to build lean muscle, stretch their endurance, and increase their overall health for peak bird-finding prowess in the field. More importantly, I contend that improved health reduces the risk of injury and improves recovery time when those dings and scrapes unfortunately happen. I’ve tried many dog foods over the years and somewhat recently settled on the Pro Plan Sport blend from Purina. It seems to be providing the most consistent results across my pack by maintaining healthy weights with reasonable inputs. It’s readily available on the road, has a history of quality, and the dogs consume it. Additionally, while once a skeptic, I’ve become a firm believer in supplements to help my bird dogs stay healthy and ready to roll. After seeing immediate improvement in recovery time with K9 Athlete’s New Dog during the season, I’m now leveraging their Probiotics year-round and K9’s Hydrate & Recover during those warmer training and early season months. Countless marketing dollars are infused into the dog world annually, and influencers across social media jockey to peddle the latest and greatest trend to the masses. The best advice I can offer is to do your own homework, be willing to explore different options, make educated decisions based on those results, and find what works for your dog.

A good probiotic supplement, like K9 Athlete’s K9 PRO, helps keep gut health in check and is recommended by the author because dogs will be dogs.

A high-quality food combined with top-shelf supplements help keep K9 athletes fueled and ready to rock and roll.

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One strategy to increase conditioning time during the hot summer months is to leverage wooded areas with lots of shade, as they stay cooler a bit longer in the early morning.

Endurance Wins the Race

Our season gets rolling across the western prairies in September, chasing grouse and partridge. If the upland gods smile, we may get after some chukar and mountain grouse as well. From there, we’ve been known to hit the big woods for woodcock and ruffed grouse and wrap October up with a pheasant opener in the Midwest. Our duck zone opens in November while bobwhites keep calling, and late-season pheasants often keep us hunting well after the new year. After we wrap up a long hunting season, I give my dogs a bit of wellearned rest to recover from any dings, let their pads heal up a bit, and simply be dogs around the house, spending time with the family. Endurance is built during the off-season, and it doesn’t take long before we’re prepping for the annual September bird camp and a season full of different landscapes, a sampling of species, and unpredictable weather conditions

Endurance is built during the off-season and variation in landscape and cover will keep their pads calloused and conditioned.

that follow. I lean heavily on my bird dogs and, in turn, feel the responsibility to keep them in shape and ready to go to work. My approach to conditioning is a multi-faceted strategy that’s targeted to allow dogs to clock miles, use their noses, subtly work on handling, and have a bit of fun. I’m fortunate to have a decent chunk of farmland available through friends and family which comes in pretty handy for letting bird dogs stretch their legs. Public lands and generous neighbors would be my first considerations otherwise. My first objective each spring is to simply give them consistent free run opportunities to build stamina and maintain a sharp edge. Free runs emulate hunting, serve up tons of smells to keep their noses working, and provide agility training while traversing terrain. The variation in landscape and cover will keep their pads calloused and conditioned – an aspect that can’t be valued enough in any off-season regimen.

Water is an essential element to the author’s summer training regimen, providing conditioning, cooler body temps, and natural retrieving drill opportunities.

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As summer grinds on, the climbing mercury ushers in different challenges but serves up the opportunity to ensure bird dogs are primed for those early-season adventures. I target training grounds that have ample bodies of water and plan our routes accordingly. Water work mixes things up while keeping retrieving skills polished and further conditions my pack, even during sweltering heat. Proceed with a watchful eye, make sessions short, and always be mindful that heat can quickly be dangerous. I contend that a dog conditioned to the AC and out of shape is an extremely dangerous cocktail when hitting the fields early season.

Chris Jackson pauses with his GSP, Abe, to celebrate a solid training run on live birds.

Takes Birds to Make a Bird Dog

The last leg on the stool to make certain my dogs are primed up heading into each season is putting reps in. This leg of the journey can be an absolute grind for man and beast. Training drills, handling exercises, heel work, retrieving bumpers in the backyard, force fetch, and all the other usual drills can get monotonous. It’s a necessary evil in many ways, but some creativity will help get you through it, further solidify your bond as a team, and pay huge dividends down the stretch. It’s not easy and no one really loves this part of the larger journey, but it’s the pressure that puts on the polish and will bring more smiles than frustrations for many seasons to come. Invest now, and enjoy cashing those checks in the field later. The old adage, “It takes birds to make a bird dog” is a proverb spoken by upland prophets since men first went afield with bird dogs by their side. It certainly is just as true today as it’s ever been. I’ve found pigeons to be my training birds of choice for the day-in and day-out routine of training. If you look around in nearly any environment, from abandoned towns to New York City overflowing with people, you’ll find pigeons calling these areas home. They’re easy keepers, can take a beating, and once homed to a coop, can be used over and over for countless sessions. With a bit of creativity and planning, pigeons can work for the vast majority of upland hunters and can be an absolute game changer in a training program.

Providing abundant water is critical during any training activities. Here the author’s Deutsch Drahthaar takes a break from training to rehydrate.

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In addition to pigeons, our crew keeps a few bobwhite quail around to spice things up at random and keep the dogs honest. While nothing can simulate wild birds on the rise, shotguns popping off at covey flushes, and dogs returning with mouths full of feathers, it’s good to get a glimpse of why you’re working so hard along the way. Making room for a Johnny house full of quail or a pen viable for game birds isn’t realistic for many uplanders, but it’s worth exploring opportunities in your area to mix things up and get your dogs square downwind of a massive scent cone. I’ve visited some game bird pay-plantshoot farms in the past, not because I consider that “hunting” but because it’s a solid way to knock dust off and get a few reps in pre-season without having to raise, house, and deal with birds on your property.

No Regrets

Never underestimate the value of quality nutrition, the benefits of spending time growing as a team, and the motivation live birds will have on a good ol’ bird dog. When you enter the field next season, watch a bird dog on the horizon slamming into a rock-solid point, and bringing that first feathery prize to your hand... you won’t regret the countless reps, fighting off the bugs all summer, nor the sweat lost during those summer training sessions. Invest now, reap the benefits for a season.

The work will pay dividends. Views like these hammered out all summer will come soon enough.

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WESTERN HUNTER MAGAZINE

THE WILD KITCHEN p Venison Philly Cheesesteak Sandwiches By Lindsay Persico, Hunting/Health & Fitness Editor

s summer gets into full swing, I am always looking for easy dinners that I can wrap up and take on the go. These sandwiches are a delicious way to use venison, and when you pull them out of the oven, you can simply wrap them up in tin foil and take them wherever you are headed for the evening. Ingredients • 1 Cup Mayonnaise • 2 Cloves Garlic, minced • 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil • 1 Pound Venison Round Steak, cut into strips • 2 Cups Bell or Mini Peppers, cut into strips • 2 Onions, sliced • Salt and Pepper to taste • 4 Hoagie Rolls, split lengthwise and toasted with butter/garlic • 8 oz. Shredded Mozzarella Cheese • 1 Teaspoon Dried Oregano

n These sandwiches have been

Simple ingredients make a quick and delicious meal that can be easily transported for days when dinner is on-the-go.

enjoyed both warm and cold by my family for years.

Instructions Begin by spreading butter and minced garlic on your split rolls and placing them under the broiler just until lightly toasted. Next, sauté the peppers and onions in olive oil, over medium heat until soft and translucent. Stir often. Add the steak and salt and pepper, then sauté for 2-3 minutes or just until cooked through. Do not overcook. Spread mayo over each side of your rolls and fill with onion, pepper, and steak mixture then top with cheese. Place in a warm oven just until the cheese is melted. For those who like a little heat, drizzle with sriracha before serving. p 108

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Beyond These Pages This magazine is just the tip of the iceberg. Access centuries of experience anytime, anywhere. Read exclusive online articles, watch in-depth gear reviews, and stream episodes of The Western Hunter. Visit westernhunter.net

LATEST FROM THE BLOG: Alaska DIY Moose Hunting Ready to take on the wild? Learn the hard-hitting tactics for surviving and thriving on a DIY moose hunt in the brutal Alaskan wilderness. North American Super Slam: Rocky Mountain Elk Chasing the North American Super Slam isn't for the faint of heart—get the raw, unﬁltered tactics to hunt the mighty Rocky Mountain elk and prove you're built for the challenge.

MAKERS EDITION PEDRAM PARVIN

Will Stelter

FIELD EDITOR

WHM: Please give us a bit of info about yourself –

where you grew up, where you live now, and how you got started with your work. WILL: I grew up as the youngest of three siblings around the Seattle area, we grew up in suburban neighborhoods and didn’t get to experience much of the wild outdoors in our daily lives. Sad city parks and brief day trips into tame state and national parks were about all I knew until I joined Boy Scouts at 11 years old. I developed a love for the outdoors through my experience in Boy Scouts. I had my first backpacking trip, learned some basic survival skills, got to visit some wild places, and eventually got to the rank of Eagle Scout a few months before I moved to Bozeman Montana in 2017. I began my journey into knife-making at 13 years old. Having bought a big bowie knife blank on Amazon, I fashioned a handle for it in my school’s woodshop. It took about a year from the completion of that knife to create a whole knife from scratch in my parents’ garage. I spent a couple of years fooling about and halfheartedly pursuing knife making, but eventually, I made a knife that not only was able to cut things well but was hardened adequately and was able to hang onto a decent edge (all the other knives up to that point had been too thick or soft to really use). The feeling of having created a usable tool by myself was satisfying and truly addicting, and I have been earnestly pursuing it over the 11 years since then. WHM: How has hunting influenced your work? WILL: It’s hard to say that hunting influenced my

work meaningfully before I moved to Montana, as I didn’t have any exposure to it before then. Growing up in Seattle, I don’t believe I knew anyone who hunted big game. I knew a few folks who participated in guided hunts for birds, but nobody like the gnarly backcountry hunters I’m surrounded by in Montana now. I didn’t hunt the first few years I lived in Montana – I didn’t know how to. I didn’t have anyone to mentor me or guide me in the basics of

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finding and harvesting an animal on public land. I harvested my first buck in 2022, a public land whitetail on opening day of rifle season. The feeling of being able to make a delicious dinner centered around a piece of wild meat was intoxicating. My hunting knives have been changed since the day I processed my first buck. Before then, a hunting knife was a theoretical object to me, something that someone probably wouldn’t use. If they did, as long as it had a sharp edge, it would probably be fine, right? Well, it turns out that is wrong, and a good hunting knife is hard to build properly. While you can use almost anything to get the guts out of a critter and the hide off the outside, making something that makes processing a nice experience is a different story.

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WHM: What makes your work unique? WILL: I believe what makes my work unique is my

I have done my best to try out many different knives from different makers when taking apart animals. I’ve had the opportunity to help take apart about a dozen elk and deer in the last three years between my own harvests and those of friends. What I’ve found is that edge shape, thickness, grind style, edge length, blade steel, handle shape, and material choice all affect performance. But I believe that the shape of the knife’s tip and the thickness of the edge are the two factors that change the way the knife feels to cut with the most, and good steel means it will stay that way for a long time.

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There’s certainly personal preference in how a user wants to employ the knife. I prefer to hold the knife in a pinch grip with my forefinger behind the tip for most animal processing, so I generally prefer smaller knives for taking animals apart. The experiences I have had with processing game informed the way I designed the flagship knife offering from Stelter MFG, the Tenderfoot. I made sure it was comfortable in a choked-up grip, and the blades were ground to have a very thin edge for great cutting performance.

pursuit of excellent design, clean fit and finish, and proper function. I believe that good design flows well – the eye doesn’t catch anywhere and everything looks correct and proportional – which is something that I think a lot of makers overlook. Design and flash come in second to function, but I think that it’s all too common for someone to assume because something needs to function well, it doesn’t need to look good, and I firmly disagree with that, no matter the purpose of the knife. My goal has always been to be a renaissance man in the world of knives – to have a firm grasp on how to build anything and everything – folding knives, fighting knives, chef’s knives, and, of course, hunting knives. I have been very fortunate in the last decade to have been able to study with many amazing bladesmiths who are masters of all sorts of disciplines in the world of knife making. I’ve pursued all sorts of different types of knives, and I have been able to implement my own distinct style into each of them. Adapting the lines and shapes I think look and perform well is one of my favorite aspects of the craft.

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WHM: What is your favorite hunting memory? WILL: My favorite hunting memory has to be taking my first bull elk. It was a

WHM: What is your favorite piece you’ve done? WILL: I think my favorite piece I’ve done is a marshmallow roasting fork. I love

perfect day of hunting, a 3:30 AM wakeup, a gnarly hike in the dark getting into place before the sun had risen, and catching glimpses of two bulls coming up the hillside below us. Finally, having an opportunity for a 150-yard frontal shot and dropping a nice 5x6 as light snow started to fall. The snow cleared and the sun came out as we processed the meat, and then, with the help of a friend, we packed out the bull in one shot. My pack full of meat, along with the antlered skull and my rifle, was just shy of 150 pounds. It was a grueling hike, but the feeling of making it down to the truck with almost 180 pounds of elk was incredible. It’s beyond rewarding to do something challenging and make it home in one piece with a load of meat for the freezer.

building complicated things that derive their value from design and complicated, time-consuming techniques rather than from an expensive mix of materials. The marshmallow fork was an incredibly challenging forging. The grinding and finish work that went into it was also a huge step outside what I was comfortable with. It isn’t easy to make something that looks and feels good with simple lines and only two different materials – fossil mammoth ivory and Damascus steel. It is not only beautiful and completely unique, but it’s whimsical and functional as well – a great example of everything I enjoy about making things wrapped up into one project. p To learn more about Will and Stelter Manufacturing Company, scan the QR code on the right or visit his website at Steltermfg.com. Our 2025 May/June Featured Artist Series: Makers Edition giveaway winner is Glenn Fahringer. Active subscribers have a chance to win 1 of 6 of our Featured Artist Series: Makers Edition pieces throughout the year. One lucky winner will receive a handmade Custom Skinner from Will Stelter.

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DIALING IT BACK CHRIS DENHAM PUBLISHER

The Times They Are A-Changin’ D

YEP, I AM GOING TO TALK ABOUT BONUS POINTS AGAIN

uring this application season, I got smacked upside the head with the buttstock that is the reality of the current situation. I am 62 years old and, God willing, I have a few more years to hunt the way I want to hunt. While I may not be able to climb mountains as well as I did a decade ago, I can still get it done. But I would be a fool to believe that will be the case ten years from now. As I applied for each non-resident hunt, I did so with the realization that if I drew, I would have to consider each a once-in-a-lifetime tag. I will admit, this fact was demoralizing and a little depressing. Each spring, a group of us hike the Grand Canyon from rim to rim to rim. I take 4-8-hour training hikes at least twice a week in preparation for this “day hike.” I usually stick earbuds in and listen to music, books, and podcasts to pass the time, but this year I needed to think about my new reality. While I was burning calories, I also burned a lot of brain cells and came to a few conclusions. I Am Not the Victim, I Was the Benefactor I don’t remember which state was the first to introduce the bonus point concept, but Arizona was at the forefront. I was in my early twenties when it started; I was working retail, my wife was in medical school, and our daughter Courtney was less than

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a year old. To say we were broke is an understatement! Back then, we had to write a check for the full price of the tag that would be cashed, and there was no “bonus point only” option. I had to explain to my wife that I needed $135 for a desert bighorn application along with another $150 for elk, antelope, and deer. Her biggest fear was that I would actually get drawn and not get a refund! It took 23 years, but I did finally draw a sheep tag, and it felt like a bargain. When I could afford to apply for out-of-state hunts, I did, and over the years I have drawn my fair share of quality tags. I only have enough points to draw three, maybe four more of these tags before Father Time catches up to me. Young Hunters Are the Victims Our office is made up of mostly men in their late 20s to mid-30s. They all love to hunt and have been applying for non-resident hunts for a few years now. I look forward to the day when they draw a quality hunt, but the odds I will still be able to hunt with them, or even be alive, are long! That is not negative thinking, it is just reality. With constant point creep, there is no way to predict when, or if, they will ever draw. If you have not read Mike Duplan’s article starting on page 54, I would recommend you do that now. He describes, in substantiated detail, the current state of the preference points system and the situation in which we find ourselves. I don’t believe

I am being fatalistic when I say “It ain’t never going to change.” Hunters have millions of dollars invested in collecting these points, and there would be a massive revolt if a state were to abolish the system. Don’t Have a Victim Mentality Mike Duplan is more than jusy a Field Editor at Western Hunter; he is a long-time friend and confidant. Together, we’ve watched the evolution (or in some cases, de-evolution) of western hunting. During a recent conversation on this topic, he summed it up by saying that he is now “hunting experiences.” By that, he refers to finding hunts that offer a new challenge in a new venue anywhere he can, including Africa. As for me, I am excited to mix any (and I do mean any) big game tag I can draw with upland bird hunting or even fishing. I want to experience the West in ways I never have. What I’m suggesting is that if we western hunters want to maximize our time and enjoyment in the field, we need to pivot back to our roots. Regardless of your age or point status, we are in the same boat together. Don’t let it spoil your adventurous spirit. Do you remember your first deer hunt? I am absolutely sure you do. I am reasonably confident that it was the greatest adventure of your life at that time. That adventure is still out there! Find it and share it.

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