hunting

Hunting Calendar | How to Juggle ALL the Hunts this Fall

Hunting Calendar | How to Juggle ALL the Hunts this Fall

So many hunts…so little time. As Fall approaches, I get more excited for hunting season every day. Fall bear kicks off in late August, then there’s the glory of September archery elk hunting, and of course the rifle deer seasons come soon after that, not to mention what has become one of my favorite little windows of opportunity…the Hail-Mary December archery deer hunt. If I didn’t have work and family responsibilities, I could easily be in the field for close to four straight months in the Fall. But of course, I don’t live that life…and odds are, neither do you.

Are You Actually Ready to Hunt? | Making Sure You're On Target

Are You Actually Ready to Hunt? | Making Sure You're On Target

But, I find the online research and shopping is the easy part…it’s fun for a gear-junky like me to spend hours on a laptop researching the minute details of every piece of hunting gear. The hard part is having the discipline to spend the time making sure you and your gear are as prepared as possible for the hunt. I’m talking range time, target practice, testing your gear before you’re out in the field trying to beat an incoming hailstorm…this is the stuff that’s harder to do. The temptation is to leave your rifle in the safe or bow in the closet, pull it out a couple weeks before season to check the zero, and then hit the hills. Honestly, I think that’s a recipe for disaster, and that’s because I’m smack-dab in the middle of that disaster right now…

Fighting Cabin Fever | Maintaining Your Sanity

Fighting Cabin Fever | Maintaining Your Sanity

While all of that sounds good in theory (and I had hoped I would experience something similar during this time), sometimes it’s just not possible. Maybe like me, your work-world has been totally upended and you’re trying to figure out a completely new paradigm (making it nearly impossible to take time off). Maybe like me, you’re feeling the extra parenting load with kids home from school, and the thought of bailing on your wife for a few days to go hunting just seems cruel. Or maybe like me, your Jeep broke down three weeks ago because of the bear curse you’re under, and it’s still not back from the shop yet…leaving you pretty much stuck at home even if work and family would allow you to get away. (I realize that last one was really specific, so perhaps that’s just me). The real question is this: How can we fight off cabin fever and maintain some connection to the outdoors, even if the situation we’re currently in makes a long trip into the wilderness impossible?

Chairs for the Outdoors | Caring for your Keister while Glassing

Chairs for the Outdoors | Caring for your Keister while Glassing

The point is this: I’ve tried every conceivable sitting configuration, and still have yet to find the perfect solution. I’ve searched for the perfect log, the flattest rock, I’ve brought portable chairs along for the ride, and of course I’ve spent plenty of time sitting in the dirt. Eventually, my back, butt, or some other random body part will start aching, and I’ll have to change the situation. I’ve even been known to re-set my extra-tall tripod just so I can glass standing up for a while. So, what is the best option?

Making the Most of the Off-Season | How to Hunt All Year Long

Making the Most of the Off-Season | How to Hunt All Year Long

If you’re a standard big game hunter, the early spring is probably a down time for you…at least it is for me. Fall gets so much if our time, energy, and day dreaming. Then February rolls around, and compared to the anticipation and general awesomeness of the past five months, there’s just not much going on. So we have a choice: slip into a depressive coma until Fall rolls around again, or find ways to make the most of this down time and set ourselves up for an even better Fall this upcoming year. Personally, I’ve done both in the past, and this year I’m committed to going guns blazing like never before during the Spring and Summer months.

Making a Bad Shot | How to Deal with Losing an Animal

Making a Bad Shot | How to Deal with Losing an Animal

I double-checked my range, and drew my bow as one of the pigs started moving into the clearing next to the bush. Time stood still, my brain could think of nothing besides this pig, and I settled the pin on his vitals and let the arrow fly. There was a sound of impact and chaos all around the bush as the several pigs in the mix darted around trying to figure out what happened. Somehow, I had the presence of mind to knock another arrow as I saw the pig I had just shot at (couldn’t tell if he was hit or not) re-emerge on the other side of the bush in the open standing broadside. I didn’t have time to reach for the range-finder, so I drew back, intentionally thought through all the steps of my shot sequence, and let a second arrow fly.

Christmas Gifts for Hunters | 5 Great Gift Ideas for the Outdoorsman in Your Life

Christmas Gifts for Hunters | 5 Great Gift Ideas for the Outdoorsman in Your Life

What do you buy this hunter that he’ll actually use, that he’ll be excited to open, and that he’ll think, “how did you know this is exactly what I wanted?!?!” Unfortunately, Christmas shopping for the outdoorsman in your life can be like taking an off-hand shot at a running buck at 400 yards…you just hope you come close. Unless your hunter keeps a detailed list with hyperlinks to the specific model-number he wants (I’ve been told that takes the magic out of gift giving for the giver), or you’ve been taking copious notes all year long as your hunter rambles on and on about the next gear purchase he’s been considering (I’ve also been told that is just annoying), then how can you possibly surprise him by knowing exactly what he wants? Here are five ideas for awesome hunting gifts that any hunter would be happy to get, and would actually use…

WHY are You Out There? | Hunting for the Wrong Reasons

WHY are You Out There? | Hunting for the Wrong Reasons

I realized that my head wasn’t in the game. I was legitimately getting worried at how dehydrated I would become if I stuck it out another night and morning with 4 miles still to hike back to the trailhead (where more water was waiting for me). I also realized I was no longer having ANY fun. Don’t get me wrong, I’m fully aware that there are plenty of un-fun moments in any given hunt, and things should get difficult and uncomfortable along the way…it’s part of what makes the sense of accomplishment so high. But, it was no longer about adventure or the potential for success…I was ONLY out there because I hadn’t killed anything yet this fall and felt like I had something to prove. I was now officially out there for the wrong reasons!

When to Quit & When to Keep Going | Hunt Smart, Stay Alive

When to Quit & When to Keep Going | Hunt Smart, Stay Alive

I was just a half-mile down the trail, and I was already running into piles of fairly fresh bear scat. However, also by the half-mile mark, I was really starting to feel the effects of the hike on my body. By 0.8 miles I was starting to get shaky legs, general muscle weakness, and my head was starting to spin a bit. And right at the 1 mile mark, the trail opened up and gave me just enough flat ground to drop my pack and take a seat. So, I plopped my butt down to try and figure out what was going on. I hated the idea that I might have to pull myself off the mountain before my hunt even began, but I knew something just wasn’t right.

Winning the Mental Game | 3 Mindsets that Make ALL the Difference

Winning the Mental Game | 3 Mindsets that Make ALL the Difference

As the days drag on and success evades you, it can become so easy to get discouraged. “This will never work!” “What am I doing out here?” “I am just a terrible hunter and my family is going to starve!” Anyone else have these thoughts running through their head out there? That alarm goes off early in the morning, and you lie there arguing with yourself about how it’s a waste of time to even bother…why not just stay in your sleeping bag and save yourself the embarrassment of taking your bow for a hike today? But, I try to keep the following three thoughts at the front of my mind on any hunt, and it drastically changes my ability to be successful.