Idaho Hunting Articles
Setting Goals for Hunters
It's hard to believe that another year has come and gone. 2011 is long gone ...we're well into 2012. And with a new year comes hopes of better days ahead. It is a time when the slate is wiped clean, and we have the opportunity to make the new year better than the last. Many of us began 2012 with resolutions. For some, those included plans to eat healthier, exercise more, and hopefully to weigh less. For others, it may have included a promotion, a career change, or maybe the beginning of a new business venture. Very rarely, though, do you hear any of us diehard hunters talking about our hunting resolutions for the new year.
Winter Scouting
For the deer hunter, winter is a long period of nothing but waiting. The fall hunt is over and there is little activity related to hunting deer, plus it seems like the new season is such a long way off. Around here, winters are tough, so even the fun stuff like getting out and shooting the bow or going to the rifle range is out of reach. There is one thing winter is great for, and it is a way to stay connected to your favorite hobby. Winter is the best time to get out and scout to see what the deer have been doing at your hunting spots.
Finding Coyotes
I live far enough north that when mid-winter rolls around the amount of daylight available to hunt coyotes can be less than eight hours. That means I need to be spending my daylight hours hunting, not scouting for someplace to hunt. But any coyote hunter worth his skinning knife will tell you that to be successful, you have to hunt where the coyotes are. The more coyotes, the greater your success will be. The key then is to have a scouting method that finds concentrated amounts of coyotes - fast.
4 Tips for Hunting Late Season Moose
We don't often hear about hunting moose in the late season. An undeniable romance focuses on calling and attracting bulls during the peak of the rut; but what about when all that hormone-driven activity subsides? Where do the moose go and what do they do? More to the point, how do we hunt them in the late season? Allow me to share the events of a late season moose hunt and offer four tips that helped me close a tag last fall. Whether we're talking about Shiras, Canada, or Alaska/Yukon moose, for much of the year bulls are reclusive by nature.
Hunting the Mule Deer Rut
After a four-year wait, my wife Heather and I finally drew coveted deer tags. Not just any tags mind you; these permits would allow us to hunt on a military base from November 26 through 28 of 2009. So what's the big deal you ask? This annual event is a management hunt designed to cull deer, but more importantly it would allow us to hunt the early stages of the mule deer rut. Each hunter is given three tags, all of which may be used for either mule deer or whitetailed deer, and only one has be used on an antlerless deer. Now, where else can a person harvest two mule deer bucks?
For the Traveling Sportsman
Every year thousands of hunters across the continent book outfitted hunts. Some are booked in their home state or province; others require considerable travel by air. For those with the means, exotic trips abroad are a unique privilege. But regardless of where a hunter goes, the research, booking and travel aspects are imminent. Simple or complex, logistics are a part of the game. I've seen it more than once with first time traveling sportsmen.
Campfire Chef
Like many kids, I spent most of my warm weather weekends as a youth at a campground with my family. It wasn't exactly "roughing it" but it always seemed like an adventure, except for the food. Apparently there is some secret camper's code that says the only forms of sustenance allowed at a campground are hot dogs, potato chips and fire-blackened marshmallows, because that is what we had just about every time that we went. When I was a kid, I never gave it a second thought.
Field Judging Deer
Some might call it buck fever. In my opinion it was just plain misjudgment. Sure, my heart races the same as the next guy when I get a big buck in my crosshairs, but I've usually got it well under control. No, this particular instance was a result of poor judgment and a split decision. Too many variables and too little time, that's what this one was all about. Had I been afforded another 30 seconds to evaluate the buck's antlers, I'm certain my decision to hit the switch would have been stifled.
Planning a Late Season Cow Elk Hunt
Long after most hunters have left the woods and are sitting home watching football bowl games or worrying about paying post-Christmas bills, some lucky hunters are still chasing elk. Several Western states offer late season hunts for antlerless elk that extend into mid-February. Most people's mental image of elk hunting includes sweeping vistas, fall colors and high-pitched bugles. But for hunters who want to extend their season, a different type of elk hunting adventure awaits.
Nonresident's Guide to Western Hunting
A not-so concise look at the opportunities available to those who have decided to come out West for an elk, deer or antelope hunt and don't know where to start. This won't address bighorn sheep, mountain goats, or moose as those are typically once-in-a-lifetime hunts. This is also designed for DIY hunters, not for those looking for private land or outfitted hunts, as there are various other aspects regarding transferable tags that could also be addressed.
5 Must-Have Tools for Today's Coyote Hunter
Predator hunting is all the rage these days. When most big game seasons cool down, coyote season heats up. Even though these wild dogs are open for the taking year round in many jurisdictions, hardcore predator hunters acknowledge January and February as prime time. Even still, only the most skilled, savvy, and well-equipped hunters learn to score consistently on these small and cagey fur-bearing targets. With today's advancements, predator fanatics learn to equip themselves with five must-have tools: decoys, calls, camouflage, firearms, and good optics.
Capture Your Memories: Tips for Photographing Your Hunts
Every now and then I find a quiet place, plunk myself down, and leaf through my photo albums. Each holds a library of cherished memories. These sacred books are treasured diaries of my most personal hunting experiences and accomplishments. With today's digital technology, it's easier now than ever before, to capture and file those memories in perpetuity.
Surviving Mother Nature: Remember the FSFS Rule
Have you ever been in a survival situation? Most of us have not. Would you know how to survive in the wilderness in a crisis? Believe it or not, most of us would not. With the advent of Global Positioning Systems (GPS) we've been lulled into a false sense of security, thinking that we can escape any predicament by following our handy little electronic devices to safety. While basic wilderness survival skills were commonly learned by generations before us, recent generations are much less savvy in this regard. As hunters, our activities often take us into remote areas. It behooves us to learn the essential skills required to survive if we ever find ourselves stranded in the wild.
Building a Big Game Hunter
Teaching Children to Love the Outdoors Across the nation, there is a concern about declines in the number of hunters. In addition to a significant drop in license and tax revenues, there are worries that the decline could eventually change the relationship between humans and wildlife.
Why I Hunt
We all have our reasons to hunt. Perhaps the first reason, historically anyway, is for food. But there are other reasons, or more reasons to hunt, as well, especially since most of us can deal with the 'food' part at the local grocery store. So here are my reasons to hunt. Some may overlap with yours, some may not, and you may have other reasons. And my reasons might change. Feel free to comment, you may have a different order of reasons.
Camp Food: Eating Right in the Backcountry
There are two schools of thought regarding the menu for a hunting, fishing or camping trip in a remote location - roughing it or eating well. On my recent Alaskan caribou hunt, we ate well - including tundra filet mignon cooked on an innovative grill which folds up to the size of a ruler!
Staying Alive While Hunting the Wide Open West
I grew up hunting in the Midwest where a half-hour hike from the road was considered remote and wilderness was any 500-acre section with a single farm house. Getting lost was never a concern, even in an era before cell phones and GPS units. When I was 29 I moved my family to the West. Big game hunting suddenly became a much more serious pursuit, not because I became a more avid hunter, but because I realized that a mistake in the Rocky Mountains or the Western deserts could prove fatal.
Hunter Etiquette & Responsibility
Respectable hunters live by both a written and an unwritten code. Most of us acknowledge our responsibility to follow the formal and informal rules of etiquette. Webster's dictionary defines etiquette as, "rules governing socially acceptable behavior." Unfortunately there are those among us who choose to ignore etiquette, conducting their hunting activities with only self-serving interests in mind. At a time when our heritage activities are under constant scrutiny it behooves us to heed the importance of etiquette and ethics. As I contemplate this issue I can't help but conclude that it's really all about respect - respecting the law, landowners, the land, as well as non-hunters and hunters alike.
Hiding in Plain Sight
Then I saw him out of the corner of my eye. He had approached from behind and was standing 30 yards to my right and glared in my direction. His eyes seemed to search through every inch of the grass that I lay in, trying to locate the rabbit that lured him in. I remained still, waited for his shoulder to appear in my scope and squeezed the trigger. As I made my way to the coyote, I couldn't help but to admire the ghillie suit that had kept me hidden so well among the grass and wonder why I hadn't tried this before.
Reverse Slope Gobblers
I once read that the Duke of Wellington was notorious for utilizing reverse slopes when deploying his troops. The famous general, who defeated Napoleon at Waterloo, would hide his forces on the far side of a hill or rise so that he could maneuver unseen, and ultimately conduct battle or ambush on his terms. If I didn't know better, I'd say the Duke was a turkey hunter.