Montana Hunting & Fishing News - March 2018 by Western Hunting & Fishing News

HUNTING & FISHING MONTANA

MARCH 2018

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SPRING FLY FISHING IN MONTANA

Photo courtesy Montana Angler

By Brian McGeehan Montana Angler Call 406-522-9854 or www.montanaangler.com

ome of Montana’s best hatches occur early in the season before the rivers become swollen with snowmelt. Savvy anglers have realized that targeting these hatches can provide some fantastic early season dry fly fishing. Many Montana fly fishing guides rate the spring as their favorite time to hit local rivers.

Dry fly activity begins in earnest in the late winter months of February and March when midges begin to hatch in enough abundance to interest trout. Most early season hatches occur in the middle of the day when water temperatures peak. Midge hatches, however, tend to occur in the late morning so it is important to make sure that you get to the water well before noon. Midge hatches can often be very thick with the insects hanging on to each other in clusters. For this reason, patterns that imitate a midge cluster such as a Griffith’s gnat can be very productive. The larger cluster patterns also move fish farther than individual patterns. When the hatches are sparse, individual imitations such as a palomino midge can be very productive. The first large insect to hatch following the diminutive midges is the skwala stonefly in late March and early April. The skwala is a smaller size 12 stonefly that is dark olive in coloration. The insects do not occur in great abundance and their smaller size and dark color make them difficult to spot, but they come off in enough quantity to entice trout to the surface. The allure of catching fish on dries after a long winter of dormancy is too much to resist for most local anglers. The skwala is not the kind of hatch that you will frequently cast to rising fish. It is far more effective to fish the water searching with your favorite skwala pattern. As water temperatures begin to rise in April, insect activity increases. Several different species of the baetis mayfly begin to hatch in increasing abundance. Baetis are commonly referred to as blue winged olives and the gray and olive insects can be typically found in a variety of size 18 patterns. Baetis notoriously hatch in much greater abundance on cloudy days; the worse the weather the better. A rainy or snowy day in April or May can produce outstanding dry fly fishing over these insects. The beauty of the baetis hatch is that the insects are so small that trout need to feed on large numbers of them before they are full. When a front moves through in April and rain is spitting throughout the day, the blue winged olives hatch in droves and fish will aggressively feed on the insects for several hours. The bugs wait until after noon to appear so there is no need to hit the river too early. A few different styles of baetis patterns are required to successfully fish the hatch. Before the emergence a small dark colored nymph such as a pheasant tail can be very successful. I also have had a lot of success with fishing CDC style baetis emerger patterns deep before the hatch. This class of patterns was designed to be fished just below the surface film, but they are also very effective fished behind a split shot through deeper runs. As the hatch progresses and fish begin to focus on the surface there is often fish targeting both duns and emergers or cripples. Instead of trying to determine if a trout is on a dun or emerger, I prefer to fish a two fly combination with either a thorax style dry or a bent hook dry with a zelon shuck that dangles below the surface on top and a CDC emerger fished a few inches below the surface as the second fly. Trout in Montana aren’t very wary early in the season after a long winter of dormancy and they will eagerly take a well presented imitation during the hatch. Another important mayfly hatch that occurs a few weeks after the baetis first appear is the March brown. March browns are much larger (size 12) than blue winged olives and often bring large trout to the surface. The hatch is more sporadic than the often prolific baetis, and like the baetis they hatch in greater abundance on cloudy days. A large pheasant tail is a great imitation of the nymph and traditional Catskill dries in a brownish gray hue are the ticket for a surface imitation. One of the largest Montana trout that I have personally seen was caught by one of my clients in a side channel of the Madison during a March brown hatch. The 25” brown was greedily taking the naturals when we waded around a bend and it didn’t hesitate to grab our imitation. Baetis and March browns continue to emerge until runoff begins sometime in the middle of May. The final significant spring hatch to occur is also the most prolific. The Brachycentrus order of caddis first appears near the end of April and gains strength throughout May until it is disrupted by runoff. The dark bodied caddis is commonly referred to as the “Mother’s Day hatch” and occurs in such abundance on the Yellowstone, Madison and Big Hole that back eddies are often completely carpeted with the insects. The hatch is so explosive that it sometimes produces unpredictable fishing. Often the best action occurs while fishing caddis pupae patterns below the surface in the late morning hours. As the hatch intensifies, fish begin breaking the surface and it is time to switch to dries or a dry trailed with a caddis pupae emerger. When fishing a trailed emerger 12-18” behind the dry, it is common to receive 3 strikes on the emerger for every one on the dry. Some days the fishing is so productive that you can raise hundreds of aggressive trout during the hatch. Hookup rates are low due to the kamikaze nature of some of the takes, but the action is exciting. Some days the hatch is so thick that the fish get gorged and go off the feed making for a frustrating site of millions of insects with few rising trout. Spring fishing in Montana ranks as one of my favorite times of the year to fish. The great hatches and consistent dry fly fishing combined help to shake off the winter blues. The tourist season hasn’t started yet and the rivers are largely left to locals. With the mountains still full of deep snow and the valleys slowly greening up, the scenery is often breathtaking. Throw in some hungry trout gulping down dry flies and it is easy to see why spring fishing gets so many local Montana anglers excited.

4 | Hunting & Fishing News

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The entire contents is © 2018, all rights reserved. May not be reproduced without prior consent. The material and information printed is from various sources from which there can be no warranty or responsibility by Big Sky Outdoor News & Adventure, Inc. Nor does this material necessarily express the views of Big Sky Outdoor News & Adventure, Inc. All photo & editorial submissions become the property of Big Sky Outdoor News & Adventure, Inc. to use or not use at their discretion. Volume 14 Issue 9 Cover Photo: ©Joshua Rainey|Dreamstime.com

6 | Hunting & Fishing News

onX is excited to announce a new layer and partnership with one of the biggest names in Western hunting, Eastmans’. The new Eastmans’ Layer for onX Hunt helps you plan out next year’s hunt by giving you drawing statistics, harvest percentages and trophy quality for elk, deer and antelope in every Western state. We had the privilege to speak with Guy Eastman himself about what the new layer means for the average hunter, the history of Eastmans’ and what the future holds for all hunters. Q- What do you think are the three best features of this App layer? A- I think the first one obviously is the color grading scales. That’s what a lot of people gravitate to because it instantly shows you the quality of an area. A lot of people rely on that as a quick 30,000 ft. view of an entire state, then can refine their search. Then you get into success rates. That’s another one people really want to look at, how successful others have been in that unit. Then it’s the draw rate, after guys see they can shoot something in an area, they want to know if they can draw that tag. Q- Without giving away any family secrets, how do you compile all of this incredible data? A- Most of it is just hard work. It is hours of work. We added it up one time and it was over 2,000 man hours of work to compile the data, so it would be impossible to compile this data yourself. Most states are getting this data out around now, which only gives you around 30 days to figure out where you want to hunt and it’s not enough time. Most of it is public domain too, but we also use state GIS teams and other sources. Then, we Get the layer now have the grading process, https://webmap.onxmaps.com/login-purwhich we use personal chase.html?after_login=%2Fpurchase. experience to grade as well. html%3Fproduct%3Deastmans_year

Strategy Q- How important can this data be for the average (weekend warrior) hunter? A- Absolutely, this is built for the average, everyday hunter. The non-average hunter just hires a guide and lets him do all this work. It’s built for the person who wants to go on public land and do it themself. The research component of the hunting world is becoming more important than ever. It’s built for the everyday guy. He has to do it himself and use all these little puzzles to give him an edge.

Eastmans’ History

But when you’re in the field, maybe you’re antelope hunting and you see a big buck deer. You can open this layer and see how hard of a draw it is for deer and how many points it will take and you can start planning for the next year.

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FIRST FOR HUNTERS

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A- That’s where things can get tricky. It’s kind of a slippery slope, so to speak. We are continually improving our abilities and our environment. We are seeing a lot of technology entering the hunting world that’s not always positive for the sport. The research technology and mapping are a positive though.

A- I think there’s a possibility it can get some of the kids started, I would just hate for them to think the sport is all about technology though. This sport is all about sitting around a campfire telling stories, hard work and getting out there. But if we can use the technology to get the kids thinking this is pretty cool, then thats a good thing. The technology changes, but the kids don’t. Kids are kids, they want to play in the dirt and throw rocks.

A- This data is built for the planning phase. You can match the quality grade of an area and draw odds with the type of hunting you will be able to hunt. Will it be a backpack hunt, or will there be roads?

SRT

Q- What place does technology have in a sport like hunting, which is based in tradition?

Q- What are your thoughts on technology possibly helping inspire a new generation of sportsmen?

Q- How do you see the layer being used for hunting from the planning phase to the actual hunt?

TWEE

Or if you are at the shows, or talking to a taxidermist and hear about an area, you can start looking it up. Research never ends, it’s a continual cycle. This tool puts a lot of that information at your fingertips 24/7.

Q- Who were your biggest inspirations in hunting (personal and industry)? A- Personally, my grandfather, Gordon Eastman, for sure. I spent a lot of time with him and he was regarded as a pioneer and a legend in the business. I used to spend as much time with him as I could as a kid. (continued on page 9)

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3 WAYS TO BECOME A BETTER BOWHUNTER DURING THE OFFSEASON By Stefan Wilson

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Originally published at www.goHUNT.com e are all looking for an edge. We buy the newest gear and learn the latest tactics to try to gain an advantage over the game we pursue. We practice endlessly to become more proficient with our weapon of choice and we search the internet for any bit of information that might help us become better hunters. This is all well and good, but for too many of us, we fail to look at the biggest factor in our growth as hunters: ourselves. If you want to be a better hunter, then the best place to look is at yourself and how you can improve as a hunter, outdoorsman, and athlete. In this article, I will discuss three ways to become a better hunter this offseason (or any offseason, for that matter). If you do these three things, you will be more educated, more disciplined, and more prepared to have your best hunting season yet. 1. RUN A HALF-MARATHON Hunters are by nature goal oriented. While we love being out in the backcountry, we also like to have a goal in mind that drives our ambition and preparation. Since this is the case, it only makes sense to build goal achievement into other aspects of life to train our minds to strive more for our goals. There are two main reasons why you as a hunter will be improved by running a half-marathon: Increased cardiovascular endurance Fitness is essential for the backcountry hunter. Anyone who has hunted in the West knows that it does not take long to get winded as a result of the high elevations and steep terrain where deer and elk like to live. Covering miles in the wilderness cannot be done effectively without being in shape. While a well-rounded approach to fitness is far more than just cardio, running long distances is a great way to establish a higher level of cardiovascular fitness and health. Setting a goal of running a half-marathon will allow you to build up your cardiovascular fitness as you train. Increased mental toughness There is another reason why running a half-marathon is a great way to improve yourself as a hunter. A half-marathon is 13.1 miles – a serious task for any runner. There will be points during training as well as during the race itself when your body will want to give up and you will want to throw in the towel. Mental toughness is what separates great hunters from the rest. Those who are mentally tough are willing to stay in the field longer, hike farther, and push beyond the discomforts of the backcountry; those who are not mentally tough give up when things get too difficult. Running a long distance like a half-marathon will train your mind to push through the discomfort and reject all of the temptations to quit. You will be a better hunter when you run a half-marathon because you will be more mentally tough as a result. Photo credit: Stefan Wilson

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8 | Hunting & Fishing News

HOW TO PREPARE FOR A HALF-MARATHON

You could just go out and run a half-marathon, but you will be asking for a lot of problems without proper preparation. To prepare for a half-marathon, you need to have the proper gear, eat the right foods, and have the right training regimen. Gear Running requires minimal gear, but this does not mean that any pair of shoes, shorts, and shirt will do. You want light, breathable clothing that will wick away sweat and keep you cool. Most modern performance apparel will accomplish this; just be sure to avoid 100% cotton as cotton will hold on to moisture and does not breathe as well as performance blends. Shoes are the most important piece of gear for running. This is not an area to try to save a few dollars. Cheap running shoes can cause injury, will wear out faster and can make the entire experience less than enjoyable. Buy the best shoes you can possibly afford—your knees, shins, and ankles will thank you. Brands that make high-quality shoes specifically for long-distance running include Nike, New Balance, Asics, Saucony, and HokaOneOne (I personally wear HokaOneOne because I prefer the design of the sole for my stride). To choose a shoe, go to a dedicated running shoe store...that specializes in shoes for long-distance running. (continued on page 10)

Q & A with Guy Eastman on the new Eastmans’ Layer from onX Hunt

We as an industry, and big game managers, need to come up with some solutions to regulate it to keep hunting fair and keep hunting in its traditional roots. Hunting was never for the guy who could buy the best equipment. It was for the guy who worked hard and wanted to get out there and there were guides for the guys who couldn’t do that. Now on the flip side, poaching is a real problem too. There is some frustration with limited quotas and drawings because of it.

I would spend all summer with him and he really helped shape me as a sportsman. He taught me to respect the wildlife and the outdoors and how to really be an outdoorsman. I grew up hunting with my father too and I got to hunt with him a lot in my later years and he still keeps me in check. I got to meet so many people in the industry from my grandfather, like Jack O’Connor and Fred Bear. I got to meet Will Primos and he was the one who taught me how to put on a tree stand harness and he laughed the whole way.

There are also a lot of aspects of television and social media that do damage to the industry. My heart breaks when a kid pulls his phone out at a show and shows me his 140 inch buck he worked hard for and then calls it just a buck. That’s not what this sport is about. We have those big bucks and bulls in our magazine and those are the out of the ordinary and they don’t mean that kid’s buck has any less value. Some of the best hunts I’ve been on I didn’t even fill a tag. It’s not about the results, it’s about the process. There are no failures in hunting. None. If you’re out there it’s a success.

(continued from page 7)

Q- Can you give us a brief History of Eastmans’? A- My family started the business when my grandfather started it back in the 50s. He did his first hunting film in 1957, in Alaska. My grandfather worked for Disney for a while in California and that’s where he kind of refined the craft. He was one of the first guys to film hunting. My dad and his brothers grew up with that and then in ‘87 my dad got the idea to start a magazine. It was the first Western hunting magazine and guys in the East could look to the West and realize they could come out here and go hunting. He built that magazine to help people out West to become better hunters and our information was always in there, but it was pretty rustic. Ever since then, it has just gotten more and more refined and bigger, but the states have gotten more complicated too. As the systems and states have gotten more complicated so has our data.

More on Guy Q- How many states did you end up hunting this last year? A- I hunted more international in the Northwest Territory and Tajikistan this year, but I still managed to hunt three states; Wyoming, Colorado and Montana. Q- Of all the species listed, which is your absolute favorite and why? A- Mule deer by far. I grew up a mule deer guy and my grandfather’s top species was mule deer and my dad was a mule deer guy. It’s a hunter’s hunt. You can’t call them, they don’t bugle, they are shy, it’s spot and stalk. Mule deer are more like an old Western movie, there are more sunsets and a lot more romance to it. Even after going to Tajikistan and Northwest Territories, my heart is still on a backcountry mule deer hunt. Q- Outside of Wyoming, what’s your favorite state to hunt? Why?

Q- Which conservation groups does Eastmans’ currently work with? A- Almost all of them. Elk, deer, sheep, Safari Club, mostly on the local level. We are big proponents of the grass roots organizations at the local level. So we work a lot with local chapters, donating and helping them get what they need. My brother, Ike, and I are life members of most of the organizations too. We do what we can. You can learn more about this onX Hunt layer on our support site, here https://onxmapssupport.zendesk.com/ hc/en-us/articles/115002698872-What-is-the-EastmansMRS-Layer-

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A- My gut says Montana. I like Montana and spend a lot of time there. It’s a big state with a lot of options and their draw process likes me for some reason. I like the later seasons there also, because when everything closes down in Wyoming I can come up to Montana. There’s a lot to like about Montana. It’s a great state to hunt often. Q- What are some of the main challenges you find in the hunting industry today? A- I think technology is a big challenge, and it’s accelerating.

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Training If you are getting off the couch, the first step is to just run any distance at all. Start with half-mile to one mile runs for the first week to get your joints used to the new type of impact. Going all out right out of the gate will ensure that you will get injured. Instead, run short distances at a comfortable pace for a couple of weeks to get used to it. Once you are ready to go some longer distances, find a half-marathon plan online that fits your schedule and timeline for the race. Any good plan will include three to four days of running and some rest days for recovery. When you complete the half-marathon, you will not only feel accomplished, but you will also have grown in your mental toughness and ability to work through difficulty.

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3 WAYS TO BECOME A BETTER BOWHUNTER DURING THE OFFSEASON (continued from page 8) They will have you run on a treadmill and will analyze your stride, thus allowing them to know exactly which shoe design is going to be best for your specific stride. This is incredibly important because an improper sole design for your stride will lead to all kinds of joint issues. Once you have the gear, you need to be mindful of your nutrition and your training to maximize your efforts. Nutrition Your body is only going to be as good as the food you put into it. If you eat like garbage, your training will suffer. A good rule of thumb when running long-distance is to eat a high-fat diet (good fats, not bad fats). Sources of good fats include fish, nuts, seeds, avocados and coconut oil. These foods help reduce inflammation in your joints. Fats to avoid include anything fried, excessive red meats, and processed fats such as partially-hydrogenated oils; these fats will cause inflammation to increase. You will want to eat plenty of carbs from whole grains and fruit to help promote recovery after your runs, but avoid unnecessary amounts of processed sugars. Protein is a necessary nutrient for the rebuilding of muscle tissue. You should shoot for a 3:1 carb:protein ratio for this type of training. You will be burning enough calories that you do not need to worry about the excess carbs having a negative effect on your body composition. A nutrition hack that you are sure to love is Jello. Jello will become your best friend during distance running training. One of the main ingredients in Jello is collagen, a structural protein found in connective tissue. Eating one to two servings of Jello per day will help give you a little bit more cushion during the ground-and-pound your joints will take.

10 | Hunting & Fishing News

Shooting 3D is a great way to train as a bowhunter. Not only does shooting 3D give you practice in various shooting environments and scenarios, it also trains your mind to function properly in a real hunting situation. There are 3D tournaments all over the country and it is pretty easy to find local and state shoots by simply contacting your local archery shop or searching online. Shooting in 3D tournaments has multiple benefits. First, it allows you to use your exact hunting setup in a similar scenario as you would while hunting. This will allow you to get acquainted with your exact setup in the field before you ever take it hunting. You must make sure to shoot with exactly what you will be using while hunting though. Use the same sight, stabilizer, quiver (or no quiver), mounts, and release that you will use while hunting. I shoot my hunting setup with all hunting accessories. I also keep one empty spot on my quiver when I shoot, just like I would if I nocked an arrow while hunting. I use a trigger style wrist release when I hunt so I am not going to use a hinge release while shooting 3D, but will instead shoot with my hunting release. Doing this will ensure that everything will be second nature in a hunting scenario because I have been competing with the exact set-up that I will be hunting with. When it comes to which 3D shoots to participate in, you should decide your motivation for shooting. Are you going to participate to just have fun or do you want to compete for a cash prize, title, or other awards? While fun shoots are great for having a good time and getting some practice, you should compete in a few tournaments or leagues in which there will be something on the line. This will help you with the second benefit of competing in 3D tournaments: improving your stress response. Shooting in high-stress scenarios requires incredible focus and muscle memory. You cannot just sight in your bow, go hunting, and expect to execute a good shot on a trophy bull that just came busting through the trees while bugling. Stress causes finite motor skills to break down and without muscle memory, you’re sunk. Competing in 3D tournaments with something on the line recreates (to a certain extent) this stress response. By practicing under stress, you will perform better under stress in the backcountry. The second reason why competing in 3D is a good idea is because of the difference between aiming at a 3D target versus aiming at a circle. Our brains associate familiar images with certain actions. If you only shoot at circle targets all the time, then you will have a very hard time making a precise shot on an animal because your brain will subconsciously be trying to find the bullseye that doesn’t exist on that elk—enter target panic and a sub-par shot. Instead, shooting at 3D targets trains your brain to “pick a spot” on the side of the animal and put the arrow on the correct part of the anatomy. Shooting 3D also allows your brain to get used to subconscious processes necessary for executing a good

shot for a quick kill. If you want to improve as a bowhunter, find a 3D tournament near you and go compete. 3. GO TO SCHOOL We all recognize the value of school and professional training in any trade. Bowhunting is no different. Seeking out the instruction of professionals is a great way to grow in your understanding of your equipment as well as your skill. There are two great options for receiving professional instruction: lessons and certification Take a lesson at a local pro-shop Most local pro-shops have staff who are certified instructors. These instructors can spend an hour with you and give you more information about proper shooting form and tuning than you could have learned in years on your own. For a modest price (usually between $50 to $100 per hour), you can receive professional instruction and improve your archery form without having to travel too far from home. Go to a manufacturer training school

Photo credit: Stefan Wilson

Bow manufacturers offer training schools at their factories and corporate headquarters that cannot be matched by anything you can receive locally. These schools are usually two to three days long and cover both shooting and technical training. Upon completing the workshop, attendees will be certified technicians and some schools even offer instructor certifications. There is one catch, however. Most companies require you to be employed by a local dealer before you can attend. In my time searching for an option for myself, I found one exception to this rule: Precision Shooting Equipment (PSE) in Tucson, AZ. PSE offers a three day school that anyone can attend and also use their own equipment. Attendees can receive two days of shooting instruction on their own equipment from gold medal Olympic coaches and one day of technical instruction, again using their own equipment. This is a unique option as you will learn with your own gear, getting to know your equipment better than you ever could have by simply taking your gear to a local shop. If you are willing to pay the cost of travel and attendance, you will very likely learn more in a weekend than you could have learned in a lifetime on your own.

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If you want to grow as a hunter and you are willing to put in some time, money, and energy, you can take steps to being a better hunter than you could have imagined. But it wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be easy. Are you willing to better yourself? I hope so.

Hunting & Fishing News | 11

WHAT ITEMS DO YOU NEED? • At least 30-50 rounds of ammo • Comfortable shooting area • Cleaning equipment (see list here Photo credit: Brady Miller https://www.gohunt.com/read/ skills/how-to-clean-the-bore-of-your-hunting-rifle)

WHAT’S THE PURPOSE? Photo credit: Brady Miller

HOW TO BREAK-IN

A NEW RIFLE BARREL By Brady Miller Originally published at

www.goHUNT.com

et’s face it, getting a new rifle doesn’t happen very often. So when you finally decide on the rifle and caliber of your choice, a few simple steps should be taken to ensure you and your rifle will have many great years together. Some people might say you don’t need to break in a new rifle barrel and others will say it’s a must do procedure. My opinion, it can’t hurt to break in a new barrel. I’m also reminded of a quote from Col. Townsend Whelen, “Only accurate rifles are interesting.” That furthers my drive to ensure I do what I can to have a repeatable rifle. I’ve read a lot of things on this subject (mostly during the random years when I decide to pick up a new gun) and it seems that most people will agree that a rifle break-in period is a good thing. Each time you do this, understand that this isn’t a hurry up and shoot several rounds and call it good. If I’m breaking in a new rifle barrel, I like to get to my shooting area very early in the morning and prepare for at least 25-30 shots and possibly five hours of your time.

Basically, the process of breaking in a new barrel is essentially just conditioning the barrel to smooth everything out (remove small burrs). Some barrel materials may take more rounds, others might not need much at all. Keep in mind that you don’t want to burn your barrel up in this process. Rifle barrels don’t last forever, so like I mention at the end of this article, if your rifle shoots great using half the steps, then call it good.

STEPS TO BREAK-IN A NEW RIFLE BARREL Step 1:

After getting set up at your shooting location, take one shot and then go through your preferred method for cleaning a rifle barrel. You don’t need a thorough deep clean here, but you can follow a simple process for cleaning your rifle barrel here. At this stage, don’t really worry about where you’re hitting. I like to place a Photo credit: Brady Miller target at close range for this process, just for something to aim at. But, to save some time while this barrel break-in process is going on, I’ll also make some small adjustments to my scope so I’m hitting paper.

Step 2:

Repeat step one for the first 10 shots through your barrel. This process will take you a while because you’re cleaning your rifle between each shot. Also, cleaning your rifle between each shot allows for your barrel to cool down. Depending on the size of your barrel, the cooling time can vary. I like to wait at least 5 to 10 minutes, but sometimes I will wait a full 20 minutes for a true cold bore shot (a true cold bore shot isn’t really needed in this stage).

Step 5:

Now you can shoot three rounds to test for accuracy if you want, or call it day. From here on out, your rifle is now ready to handle anything you throw at it.

Now to throw you a curve...

Let’s say you take out a new rifle and shoot your first few rounds through the barrel and your shots are all sub or MOA accurate. You take several more shot and they are still grouping perfectly. In this situation, you can probably just stop right there. Every barrel has different life expectancies, so after figuring out that your new rifle shoots great, it might be best to spend the rest of your time at a later date testing loads and sighting in your rifle.

IN CONCLUSION Here’s a summary of the steps:

Photo credit: Brady Miller

Step 3:

Next, shoot a three round group and then clean your barrel. Again, don’t really worry where your bullets are hitting. You will do this step for a total of fifteen rounds, so you will repeat the three shot and clean for a total of five sessions.

Step 4:

Finally, you’ll want to shoot five rounds and then clean your barrel. After you’ve cleaned the barrel, you’ll want to take a foul shot.

•Take one shot. Clean the barrel. •Repeat for 10 shots. •Shoot a 3 shot group. Clean the barrel. •Repeat for 15 shots. •Shoot five rounds. Clean the barrel. •Take a foul shot. •Shoot three rounds for accuracy. People might be on the fence if a barrel break-in process is necessary, but I lean toward the side of caution and will gladly spend the time to slowly shoot a new rifle that I want to get plenty years out of.

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DRAGGING And SLOW

TROLLING PLASTICS S By Jason Mitchell

www.jasonmitchelloutdoors.com

o often with walleye fishing, we get conditioned to think a certain way regarding a presentation. We fish live bait rigs below the boat. We troll crankbaits. We pitch jigs. We get locked into how a specific presentation should be fished. What can become detrimental to our own growth as anglers is we quit thinking and quit experimenting with the potential of how some presentations can be used. By straying away from tradition and by experimenting with what might be unorthodox uses for some presentations, we can make ourselves more efficient. So often, catching more fish is all about adapting to the location and what the fish are doing. This increases our efficiency dramatically. The reality is that most days, a walleye will eat a live bait rig, jig, crankbait or anything else that lands in front of their face. The right presentation matched up with the right location however can accomplish this task with more efficiency.

One hot tactic we are seeing emerge across the Midwest is slow troll tactics that incorporate soft plastic swim baits. Swim baits have blown up in some regions and over time, we have become conditioned or engrained to fish them a certain way. Many anglers using swim baits are casting them. Swim baits shine when fished through weeds or up into shallow water. Anglers cast and reel swim baits over emerging vegetation. Swim baits can be worked and twitched with a swim and stop cadence. Swim baits can be fished a lot of different ways. The stout single hook can be fished through weeds effectively and offer a good hook up percentage where more leverage or pressure can be applied to the larger single hook compared to the much smaller hook and gap found on the treble hooks of crankbaits or even traditional jig and live bait combinations. Swim baits however can also shine out over deeper water and in water deeper than eight to ten feet, slow dragging or trolling behind the boat can be deadly for reaching fish down to twenty-five feet of water. Swim baits fish very well dragged behind the boat at a forty-five to eighty-degree angle and allow you to fish slower than traditional spinner harness and crankbait speeds. You can crawl forward at a mile to a mile and a half an hour, faster if necessary but this wide window of speed can enable you to follow irregular weed bed edges and bottom contours that can be difficult at faster speeds. Dragging soft plastics slowly upstream on river systems first planted the seeds for experimenting with slow trolling swim baits behind the boats on reservoirs and natural lakes. There were a few earlier lessons as well but somehow out of my own stubbornness, I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t embrace these tactics for how effective they could be. I remember years ago; I was guiding a couple on Devils Lake and the wind was blowing about thirty miles per hour and boat control was a struggle as we fished a point. We were catching fish in about fifteen feet of water and even with two large drift socks out, we struggled to slow the boat down. One of the anglers I was guiding threw out a quarter ounce jig with a three-inch twister tail grub and simply dragged it behind the boat and started catching several nice fish. We replaced the other rods with more jigs and grubs and caught a lot of fish that day in fast order. The next day, I went back to the bottom bouncer and spinner so some lessons come hard. (continued on page 17)

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Over the past five years, I have lit up big walleyes by trolling swim baits over shallow reefs after dark. We have even caught scattered basin fish by running swim baits behind planer boards. The only requisite seems to be a clean bottom as it can be difficult to avoid any bottom contact unless targeting suspended fish. If there is a lot of algae and anything else on the bottom that fouls up hooks, a crankbait or bottom bouncer and spinner often works better but if the bottom is clean, trolling or dragging swim baits can be surprisingly effective. Whenever you need to either drop your speed down or need to fish closer to the boat to follow contours, swim baits can give you a lot of flexibility.

Dragging soft plastics behind the boat wasn’t something I easily embraced. Some lessons are learned the hard way.

Probably the biggest difference I see with pulling swim baits versus crankbaits or spinner harnesses is that you often must set the hook. Compared to what I would prefer for either crankbaits or harnesses, swim baits seem to work better with a faster and heavier action rod. A rod in the rod holder doesn’t seem to hook up with the same consistency when using swim baits. Even when we used swim baits behind planer boards, we often had to manually set the hook by sweeping the board forward. Swimbaits seem to require a more hands on approach where you hold the rod and set the hook.

In my opinion, why slow trolling with soft plastics can work so well is the hang time and stalling fall soft plastics have when popped off the bottom. As walleye anglers, we are conditioned to rig soft plastics on jigs for fishing below the boat or for pitching away from the boat. By simply changing our mentality, we can expand the uses for soft plastics dramatically if we fish these baits with a trolling mindset.

As more anglers’ experiment with all the different applications where swim baits can work for walleye fishing, I suspect that more refinements will continue to be made and shared. The versatility of swim baits can enable walleye anglers to catch more and bigger fish and in many ways, swim baits compliment other traditional walleye presentations.

The author, Jason Mitchell with a gigantic walleye caught with a Kalin’s Sizmic Shad Swim Bait. Slow trolling and dragging swimbaits can be incredibly effective for walleye.

DRAGGING AND SLOW TROLLING PLASTICS (continued from page 15)

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Steelhead & Montana Trout Travis De Boer www.granderoundesteelhead.com

in time for “March madness” on the Clearwater or JThisust spring fishing on your favorite Montana stream or lake. Egg recipe, the product of years of testing on the fish

they were intended to catch. (Steelhead and Montana trout). They are absolutely deadly on both and have the added benefit of a long storage life (up to a year) when properly cared for. Don’t be scared to try other types of fish eggs as well. You may be very pleasantly surprised. Brook trout, whitefish, and many others have proven very effective on trout and steelhead as well. This is my favorite and most deadly egg recipe. Give it a chance wherever you fish eggs or bait of any sort.

EGG RECIPE:

1 cup water ¼ cup borax ¼ cup pulverized fish food- commercial pellet, Wardley-shrimp pellet, Tetra- Jumbo Krill (freeze dried) or experiment with a different kind (pet shops are a gold mine for bait-chuckers!!!) ¼ cup non iodized salt 1 tablespoon brown sugar 6 drops sand shrimp oil-(optional) -Mix all ingredients thoroughly in clean bowl -Add fresh and 100% blood free steelhead or salmon egg skeins/cut large skeins open with knife -brine over night in fridge -then tie with mesh spawn sacs and fish -or vacuum seal skeins and freeze for later use. The key to freezing is to have no air contact on eggs. This can also be done by placing small amount of juice from brine and eggs in zip lock and squeezing out air before sealing. -Another option is to lay brined skeins out and sprinkle with 50/50 borax/fish food mixture, let dry and layer in jar and freeze. (Fish on hook with an egg loop)

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Trout in lakes- Tie in mesh bags with Styrofoam balls and fish on a slip rig (egg sinker and swivel) off the bottom. Leader length will determine how far sac will suspend. Trout in streams- Drift fish mesh sacs or small piece of skein on egg loop. Steelhead- Fish under floats (trotting or waking) or drift fish sacs or skeins on an egg loop. Nicer method- Tie egg looped hook on line with another hook rigged in tandem about 3 to 4 inches below it. Cut off point of egg loop and just use loop to attach eggs. This “flossing” method, popular with bead fisherman, will result in very few if any potentially deadly deep hook ups on hungry trout. It’s nice to be nice!

Photo credit: Tom Claycomb ammoland.com

THE OLD VINTAGE

LEATHER HANDLED KNIFE By Tom Claycomb

www.ammoland.com

s a kid, there weren’t that many knife manufacturers so it goes without saying that there wasn’t that much to choose from. Then on top of that, even if there had been more offerings, I didn’t have enough money to buy the cool knives I wanted. The first real job I had was at the Bud Fox Texaco in the 10th grade and we worked 7:00-7:00, six days/wk. for 60 cents/hr. So, knocking off an hour at lunch, that meant I only made $39.60/wk. I don’t know if they had minimum wage laws back then or not but if so, I never heard of them. Years later after getting married, one day my wife looks over and said “Tom, you’re the eternal tightwad.” (I’d prefer to refer to myself as thrifty but maybe I had carried it to an extreme level). We were in a store and I was looking at an old school leather handled knife and whining how I had wanted one ever since I was a kid. She said “Tom, you’re not a kid anymore. You’ve got a real job. Buy the dang knife!” So now I’ve got a few. Nowadays, nothing epitomizes the old school leather handled knife era like Case XX knives does it? If I remember correctly back in the day a company named Western Knives made a lot of the leather handled knives but to my knowledge they went out of business and sold a few times ending up in the hands of an Asian company. But have no fear, if you’d like to purchase a leather handled knife to remind you of old times, Case XX carries a line. Here’s a few of the ones that I like: I have the 323-5 Part # 10342 SKU 221016. It’s a nice stout knife with a 5-inch upswept blade. I also like the Part # 10344 SKU 221018 And, the 385 SKU 225255 Nothing would be cooler than gutting your deer with an old school leather knife would there? Might as well be wearing an old school red plaid wool shirt to further top off visuals for the picture... One thing that I’ve noticed while hitting the local gun shows is that most of the old leather handled knives are in rough shape. So, let’s talk about taking care of them for a moment. If you never properly dry out your boots or oil them what do you think they’d look like in 5 years? Much less 30, 40 or even 50 yrs.

Most people figure their boots have a 3-6 yr. life so we can deduct from that we’d better treat our leather handle knives different if we want them to last for a long time. We’ve got to get a different mindset for these knives. You following my drift? If you’re a cowboy think of your saddle. For your saddle you’re going to get it cleaned and oiled up every year, aren’t you? If not, it’s going to crack and deteriorate over time. I used to rodeo a lot and the saddle I won back in 1973 gets oiled up periodically to help preserve it. It still looks nice and is functional. So, I’m going to say do the same with your leather handle knives. Don’t put them away wet. Let them dry before you store them. Blood is rough on stuff so clean the blade and the handle. I assume if the handle is super blood-soaked you could clean it up with saddle soap. Then I’d recommend wiping the handle down at least yearly with Neatsfoot Oil or Lexol. I think that should help preserve the handle in pristine shape. Like I said above, I see a lot of the really old leather handle knives in rough shape on eBay or at the local shows along with their cracked-up sheaths. This could have been prevented. About Tom Claycomb Tom Claycomb has been an avid hunter/fisherman throughout his life as well as an outdoors writer with outdoor columns in the magazine Hunt Alaska, Bass Pro Shops, Bowhunter.net and freelances for numerous magazines and newspapers. “To properly skin your animal you will need a sharp knife. I have an e-article on Amazon Kindle titled Knife Sharpening for $.99 if you’re having trouble”

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Hunting & Fishing News | 19

Say Hello To Success: Where to Chase the Fish This Month Brought to you by

Island Lake in the early morning light near Beartooth Pass in Montana © Robert Crum | Dreamstime.com

Ice-Out Brings Big Spawning Rainbows to a Host of Montana Reservoirs

If fish are your game, then you need to be fishing lakes, rivers and reservoirs in the spring, because that’s when some of the biggest fish of the year are landed. Some of the best trout fishing of the year in Montana is just around the corner, as ice leaves the shorelines of low-country lakes and reservoirs. You don’t have to go far to find trout that are hungry and suddenly accessible, but timing is important for success. It’s time to fish with beaded wet flies, small spinners and bait along the receding edge of ice, or you can find trout stacked up at the mouths of tributaries, where the run-off is rich with oxygen and food. Ignore anyone who says the water is too cold to fish. So long as it’s not frozen, the fish you are after will be there, patiently waiting for you. Don’t always expect to catch a ton of fish. Do expect to have fun and catch some beautiful fish. Here are a few good spots to have fast action for early spring trout: HAUSER DAM: Magnum trout are just starting to keg up in the Missouri River below Hauser Dam. Rainbow trout in this tailwater, just minutes from the Helena Valley are large and very aggressive now as they start to go through

the motions of the spawning period. Throughout the month of March you can have career days on these fish that get as big as 24 inches. You may have to tolerate some bitter cold and windy days through the canyon, but the first 3 miles of the river below Hauser are arguably Montana’s best big-trout location early in the season. You can fish both sides of the river, as there’s a decent foot trail that extends down to Beaver Creek, a favorite spawning tributary of the Missouri. Fly fishing will absolutely work, using small nymphs tied with bright, flashy colors and a small strike indicator. Hardware fishing will also take fish, though it’s far less effective than flies. Try dead-drifting smaller Panther Martin spoons and small red and silver Mepp’s. Jigs will also take giant trout (Kit’s jigs www.kitstackle.com) work great in this fantastic fishery. WILLOW CREEK RESERVOIR: This wind-blasted lake located northwest of Augusta is an outstanding spot for larger rainbows after ice-off. Work the edges along the face of the dam, where trout are heading for their false spawn. Spawn sacks, nightcrawlers/jigs and purple egg-sucking leeches work well here. Some huge northern pike will also make things interesting for you as you fish throughout the day. PAINTED ROCKS RESERVOIR: Expect fast action on rainbow trout on this subalpine lake located southwest of Hamilton, down along the Bitterroot mountain range. Depending on the ice and snow conditions on this high-country lake, you may have ice on longer than expected, but a mix of smaller Panther Martin spinners, cured eggs and a beadhead nymph fished under a float will take plenty of trout on this scenic lake. There are plenty of camping spots in the area to set-up your camp. BIGHORN RIVER: The Bighorn offers perhaps the best early-season fishing in Montana. The Bighorn has lots of “BIG” rainbows and browns. This is primarily nymph fishing with a variety of sow-bug patterns in sizes 18-20 along with midge larva and midge pupa in sizes 18-24. Streamers can come into play at times on the river, but the midges will dominate and attract most of the fish. Stick to fishing the upper river, from Afterbay access to the 13-mile access. You can wade fish here, but floating is the best to hit good access points. COONEY RESERVOIR: Some huge rainbow trout are feeding on anything in sight on this reservoir located southwest of Laurel. Plan to be mobile for bigger trout that wander around the lake. Smaller countdown Rapalas and blue-and-silver combination lures slowly twitched off rocky points will land you plenty of fish. Warm-water species like walleye and smallmouth bass are also prevalent here, so plan accordingly. WESTERN SPRING BASS NOXON RESERVOIR: On Western Montana’s Noxon Reservoir, you can fish the rock ledges and submerged rubble for smallmouth bass before lunch, then work the flooded timber and back-bay weeds for thumper largemouth bass that inhabit the lake, fishing well into the evening.

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This long, narrow reservoir is not only one of Montana’s best big-bass lakes, but it also is very accessible and offers exceptional catch rates on a variety of tackle. As a bonus, it also puts out magnum northern pike, that seems are hidden below weed beds in almost every bay or inlet that you’ll be fishing. Noxon grows large fish, because of its location, called the “banana belt” of Montana. It’s lower elevation and normally easier winters provide a longer growing season for fish forage in the form of mainly trout and perch, which can be credited for this fine bass fishery. The pre-spawn bite here is good, but because of its limited spawning habitat, it’s hard to sight fish for the larger females. A more productive method is to fish structure using plastic worms. Focus on submerged stumps, downed trees and floating docks near the shorelines. In the early season, most of the smallie action will be in the south end of Noxon. Spinnerbaits, jigs and nightcrawlers work well, as does drop-shotting. A good largemouth bass on Noxon will go 3 to 6 pounds, and smallies average 2 pounds and up. As we get into late March and into April the bite will really start to pick up, and if weather patterns hold true, this fishing season could yield many big fish here on Noxon. NORTHERN PIKE FLATHEAD RIVER SLOUGHS: Take advantage of the northern pike moving into the Flathead River sloughs. As the ice pulls back from the shorelines, pike will start looking for warm water and submerged vegetation, and soon will have spawning on their mind. Strikes can be hit and miss, depending on the cold weather fronts moving in and out now. Look for shallow areas - 5 feet or less, where the pike can soak up some sun when it’s out. They’ll hit dead bait (smelt) and jigs. Expect some nice yellow perch fishing as well up from the Sportsman Bridge Access Site off Hwy. 82 on the Flathead River.

RAINBOW TROUT LAKE KOOCANUSA: Head to Lake Koocanusa for some of the best early spring rainbow trout fishing in Northwest Montana. The good fishing will really start to kick in for big rainbows that are running in the 8 to 12 pound range. The Rocky Gorge area is where anglers have found excellent results, using large flies and Apexes running on the surface with a planer board. In the deeper waters most anglers fish plugs and downriggers. The Bristow Bay area fishes well in the spring and up the lake from the Marina. Good electronics will serve you well on this big body of water. BROWN/RAINBOW TROUT/BURBOT CLARK CANYON RESERVOIR: The good fishing will continue on this Red Rock River impoundment that is known for its great brown and rainbow trout fishing. For ice-out trout concentrate on the south and southwest sides of the reservoir, where water depths are usually less than 10 feet. Trout average 16 to 18 inches and up to 6 to 7 pounds here. Lightweight spinning gear will produce trout or try jigs in black, purple or brown with or without bait. Some anglers here will also be targeting the tasty-bottom hovering ling (burbot). RAINBOW TROUT HARPERS LAKE & BROWNS LAKE: Big rainbow trout will be biting in good numbers as spring starts to take hold on Harpers Lake, located in the Blackfoot drainage along Hwy. 200 northwest of Missoula. Ice-out fish will be cruising the shoreline now. Many anglers use traditional baits like nightcrawlers and Powerbait to catch springtime ‘bows. Fly fishermen can connect with small minnow patterns or soft-hackle scud patterns and leech patterns as well. Good fishing.

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Hunting & Fishing News | 21

SPRING

TIRE SALE

ROLL INTO SPRING WORRY-FREE.

15 LES SCHWAB STORES IN MONTANA TO SERVE YOU! BUTTE COLUMBIA FALLS DEER LODGE DILLON 290 Holland St. 1737 Ninth St. W. 217 Main St. 1035 Selway Drive 406-782-3866 406-892-3223 406-846-2205 406-683-8884 HAMILTON HELENA KALISPELL 211 N. First St. 2970 Prospect Ave. 1015 W. Center St. 406-363-3884 406-495-0070 406-755-1940 KALISPELL LIBBY MISSOULA MISSOULA 2335 U.S. Hwy. 2 E. 32032 Hwy. 2 2800 W. Broadway St. 1505 Dearborn Ave. 406-755-1212 406-293-7797 406-721-1770 406-721-0888 POLSON 36030 Memory Lane 406-883-1099

RONAN 63360 U.S. Hwy. 93 406-676-7800

STEVENSVILLE 4026 U.S. Hwy. 93 N. 406-777-4667

WHITEFISH 6355 U.S. Hwy. 93 S. 406-862-4523

Photo credit: Lazy J Bar O

GET VERTICAL: HOW TO MANAGE STEEP MOUNTAIN HUNTS

By Zach Lazzari www.lazyjbaro.com e all know the situation. There’s a steep mountain that you just know will lead to a big bull elk or a monster mule deer buck. Getting up and back down that hill without completely burning out your legs is an issue however. Personally, I am prone to being overly optimistic and underestimating the severity of most inclines. The habit caught up to me while hunting with a friend this season. I made a hard charge straight up while she patiently read the landscape and proceeded with zig zag patterns that put me a few minutes behind with much more energy wasted. Here is her approach and the one I use more frequently on mountain hunts now as well. READING BREAKS IN THE LANDSCAPE Looking up at a steep mountain tends to build anxiety and the desire to conquer it quickly. Take a few steps back before starting and patiently observe the landscape for breaks, tiers and natural fall lines. You can follow these features laterally to locate more gradual inclines. The route is slightly longer but much easier in the end. Visualize the route you will take using these features and follow that pattern to the top, creating your own set of switchbacks as necessary. SHORT GOALS Sometimes, the only route is directly uphill and you must battle to the top. Breaking the hill into segments makes it mentally easier to move forward. Pick a tree or object 50-100 yards off and make it your goal. Take a break when you reach the goal and stretch your legs. Set the next goal after a minute or two of rest and get moving. Short goals make long distances more manageable. WORKING THE DECLINE Heading downhill is equally as difficult as the uphill. Your legs are often more worn from hiking all day, putting you at a greater risk of falling or twisting an ankle. Utilize the same switchback approach on the downhill while avoiding scree slopes and areas with unsure footing when possible. Slide on your butt and hold a steady sapling or other handhold when you hit a tough spot. It’s easy to rush down but slow and steady will prevent you from taking a fall. STRETCH OUT Always spend a few minutes stretching after your hike ends. Staying loose shortens your recovery time and will have you going again with less stiffness the following day. Skipping this step is easy when you’re worn out but it makes the next hill easier. At Lazy J Bar O Outfitters, they hunt steep, rugged and remote country in Montana and Alaska. They offer high-adventure, and high-success hunts for elk, mule deer, and more. Getting remote in some of the best General Units in Montana means that you can draw a tag anytime – no preference points and no waiting on a lottery tag. Call them now at 406-932-5687 or contact them online to book your next hunting adventure.

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2018 Projects

MULEDEER.ORG

The Mule Deer Foundation (MDF) has some great projects on tap for 2018. Montana MDF Chapters will be focused on funding projects that increase forage availability for mule deer, enhance winter habitat, and reduce illegal take of game. By partnering with Montana FWP and the federal land management agencies, the Mule Deer Foundation will make an impact on Montana mule deer herds for years to come. Thus far in 2018, Montana MDF Chapters have spent over $100,000 on habitat enhancement projects. Here are a couple of highlighted projects that will be on-going this year: POACHING

PRESCRIBED BURN

CONIFER REMOVAL

steadfast in their dedication to

burn project (spearheaded by the

conifer removal project on the

The MDF continues to remain

The MDF will fund a prescribed

reduce the illegal take of game

BLM) near Winnett, MT in the

animals in Montana. As a result,

spring of 2018. The 10,700-acre

they will step up their partnership

prescribed burn is part of an

with Montana FWP in 2018 and

on-going effort by the BLM to

fund the purchase of 14 deer

decoys for FWP Game Wardens to utlize across all seven Montana

regions. The decoys will be utilized

by Wardens to decrease road-hunting and trespassing activities. Look for (but donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t shoot!) a life-like deer decoy in your favorite hunting area

introduce fire back into the area

(under controlled circumstances) to reduce the probability of future

catastrophic wild fire and improve

vegetation and browse species for the abundance of mule deer and elk inhabiting the area.

this fall.

MDF Chapters will also fund a Robb-Ledford Wildlife Management Area (WMA) near Dillon, MT. The cutting project aims to stop the spread of conifers into the vast

sagebrush grasslands that stretch across the WMA. By reducing the conifers that have successfully

shaded out large areas of sage-

brush grassland, the project will enhance forage availability and

available browse for the mule deer, elk, pronghorn, and sage-grouse that regularly inhabit the area.

Please visit us on Facebook for more information about MDF projects, events, and supporting the cause. Facebook.com/mdfmontana

Foundation Chapters

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Mar 3 Mar 16-18 Mar 17 Mar 24 April 21 April 28

MONTANA MDF UPCOMING EVENTS Dark Horn Chapter Banquet Great Rockies Sports Show w/ TOYOTA Sapphire Range Chapter Banquet Northern Rockies Chapter Banquet Bridger Bucks Chapter Banquet High, Wide & Heavy Chapter Banquet

We appreciate the contributions of our partner companies:

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TURKEY TRAVEL?

hrough the strong efforts of fish and wildlife agencies, T the National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF) and a robust North American conservation ethos, wild turkeys

can be found in every state but Alaska. It’s no wonder an increasing number of hunters travel to pursue these oversized game birds each spring. The siren song of hunting far from home can be practically irresistible. With many states offering multiple tags, a road trip is a great way to extend one’s season. And while some hunters simplify logistics by booking with a reputable outfitter, others prefer to freelance – a prospect that’s much easier for turkeys than it is for big game or even waterfowl. Wild turkey hunting doesn’t require a bunch of specialized equipment, and a turkey doesn’t take up the same amount of space in the back of a truck as an elk. Additionally, wild turkeys are typically found in places that are accessible and relatively easy to identify. True, public land often necessitates extra hiking to find birds that haven’t been heavily pressured, but there are still plenty of spots for sportsmen with limited time or mobility. Hunting private land is also a distinct possibility, as many landowners will still accommodate friendly door-knockers. Some hunters insist that a “turkey is a turkey”, but when it comes to Meleagris gallopavo, this isn’t exactly the case. There are five distinct sub-species of wild turkey; all prefer different types of habitat and occupy specific regions of the continent. The eastern half of the US and Canada is strictly the domain of the adaptive and well-known Eastern wild-turkey – the one exception being the Osceola, or Florida wild turkey, found only in the Sunshine State.

The western half of the continent is a lot more complicated from a distribution standpoint: The Merriam’s sub-species is found in rugged ponderosa pine stands at higher elevations, while the Rio Grande tends to Zak Floro photo inhabit the vast prairie and scrub regions at lower elevations. The largest of all wild turkey sub-species, the Gould’s, is found only in the mountainous terrain of the northern half of Western Mexico and extreme southern Arizona and New Mexico (where it can be hunted through special tag lotteries). Each sub-species possesses unique characteristics. Interestingly, many fish and wildlife agencies have released various sub-species of turkeys where they never existed historically. Several western states now have Eastern wild turkeys as well as Rios and Merriam’s. What’s more, numerous healthy populations of wild turkey now exist throughout the Western US and Canada in places where they never occurred naturally prior to release. Not unexpectedly, hybridization comes into play where the various sub-species overlap. With huntable populations of turkeys now available in all sorts of different places, the wild turkey Grand Slam has become a popular quest for traveling turkey hunters. It entails taking all four of the common US sub-species. Contrary to what some may believe, it’s not necessary to harvest all four birds during the same season; they just have to be registered with the NWTF. If you throw the Gould’s wild turkey into the mix, it’s called the Royal Slam...

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ANTLER LAMPS, CHANDELIERS, WINE HOLDERS NOW BUYING ANTLERS

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Bull of the Month #14 Montana Non-typical BOONE & CROCKETT

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Accomplishing a Grand Slam may not be as difficult as it seems, given that there are now many places where hunters can expect to see multiple sub-species within a fairly confined geographic area, with Florida’s Osceola being the outlier. The NWTF’s wild turkey distribution map is a handy tool for identifying where the various sub-species can be found. Without question, the central region of the country provides the best place to get started on a Grand Slam and the opportunity to bag multiple birds. With the exception of the Osceola, the various sub-species are plentiful from the Dakotas to Texas. The northwestern states are also home to several sub-species and offer plenty of public ground to hunt. Besides lengthy seasons, over-the-counter tag availability, abundant public land and plentiful birds, another advantage of hunting western states is the ability to hunt Native American Reservations. These massive parcels consist of sovereign land managed by tribal fish and wildlife agencies-separately from respective state governments. This provides hunters the opportunity to harvest additional birds with an exclusive license. It’s necessary to contact reservation personnel well in advance, so plan accordingly. Ask anybody who has turkey hunted the wide-open spaces of the west about their favorite state and you’ll likely hear different answers. Plano Synergy pro-staffer, Jared Bloomgren, of South Dakota is certainly content with his home state. “It’s no secret that the western part of the state is prime turkey country, as the Black Hills are home to thousands of Merriam’s,” says Bloomgren, who adds that the area is mostly public land. “The Merriam range extends east into the prairie, too. The Rosebud Reservation offers very affordable turkey hunts and you may even have the chance to connect with an Eastern wild turkey while out in the prairie units, in addition to a highly sought after pure, white-tipped Merriam.” Guides and outfitters exist throughout good turkey range, and their services are a great option for traveling hunters. This is particularly true when dealing with Florida’s Osceola. With nearly four decades of experience, you’d be hard-pressed to find a turkey hunter and guide possessing more wisdom than Osceola guru, Jim Conley. Avian-X TV’s Matt Morrett refers to Jim as a “true treasure”, and makes it a point to hunt with him annually. Florida turkey seasons open before most other states – as early as the first week of March in the southernmost hunting zone. Due to the tide of Eastern wild turkey genetics progressing south, turkeys are now officially referred to as the Florida sub-species in that state. Conley recommends hunting from Orlando southward for a pure-strain Osceola gobbler. And, while Florida does claim an abundance of public land, Conley highly recommends using an outfitter to access private land. “If it was going to be the last turkey I’d ever see, I still wouldn’t hunt public land”, he chuckled. “You’re likely to spend the same amount of money coming down multiple times to tag an Osceola on your own, so you may as well spend the money with an outfitter the first time to access prime private ground.” Conley went on to explain the unique habitat requirements of the Osceola, and how success rates are extremely high for his hunters because he and his guides do not over-pressure the birds. The extra investment seems worth every penny. When it comes to hunting travel, there may not be an easier or more affordable game animal to pursue far from home. Plentiful birds and a plethora of destination options make life fairly easy for the traveling turkey hunter – as long as some advance planning is employed. If you are reading this, you obviously enjoy turkey hunting, so why are you only hunting one species or one state? Hit the road and get to work on your own Grand Slam.

Directions: Take I-90 to Exit 101 in Missoula. Drive 1/4 mile north to 5705 Grant Creek Road. accessible with RV parking. Open year round. For information, call (406) 523-4545 or 866-266-7750 or visit www.rmef.org.

Hunting & Fishing News | 27

Hunt Shed Antlers With YOUR BIRD DOG Pheasants Forever www.pheasantsforever.org

antler hunting keeps bird dogs sharp and helps with Shed conditioning during the off-season. Plus it’s fun...

WHY SHED HUNTING “Shed antler hunting is a growing sport offering year-round physical conditioning for gun dogs,” says North American Shed Hunting Dog Association (NASHDA) president and pro trainer Tom Dokken of Oak Ridge Kennels in Northfield, Minnesota. “It is also a good way to enhance a dog’s upland bird hunting skills.” Shed hunting gets a dog out of the house and into the field with the chance to use his or her eyes and nose. This helps keep the dog physically and mentally sharp during the off-season. Some hunters worry that hunting sheds might interfere with their dog’s upland bird hunting ability. That’s a myth. Rather, hunting shed antlers can help strengthen a bird dog’s scenting, quartering, ranging, and retrieving abilities. Result? A better-rounded hunting dog. Shed hunting also adds another season to the calendar you didn’t have before, giving you the enjoyment of spending more time outdoors with your dog. Although there’s no predetermined shed hunting season, late winter and early spring are peak times for finding antlers. What’s more, this easily accessible sport doesn’t require a license or permit. And it can be done in suburban areas, not just the countryside, though you’ll want to be sure to first check local regulations and obtain permission before stepping foot on private land. TRAINING TIPS FOR SHED HUNTING Whether you have a retrieving, pointing or spaniel breed, any sporting dog with a natural instinct and retrieving ability can be taught to efficiently hunt for shed antlers. Training a dog for shed hunting involves time and patience. But don’t forget that your dog is more capable than you may give him or her credit for. When trained correctly, he or she will enthusiastically take on these new tasks. To get started, five-time NASHDA World Shed Dog Champion and pro trainer Josh Miller of River Stone Kennels in New Richmond, Wisconsin, recommends starting at square one to create drive. “Use a set of antlers to play a fun game of fetch with your dog,” Miller says. “Once he or she develops a newfound desire for the antlers, you can advance to teaching the scent and a specific phrase, such as ‘find the bone,’ for your dog to associate with the antlers.” During training, reward your dog with verbal praise plus a favorite treat or a few kibbles of Purina Pro Plan SPORT Performance 30/20 Formula for each successful antler retrieve. Be sure to compensate for the added calories by adjusting the total daily amount fed to maintain ideal body condition. For example, if your dog begins to gain weight, it’s best to subtract the amount fed in small incremental changes, such as one-fourth or one-half cup amounts, every few days. CONCLUSION Shed hunting is a fun hobby and a great way to get the entire family involved. By introducing your dog to new, exciting activities, you can help prevent stagnation, ultimately helping him or her transition back to his or her regular training and conditioning for the upland bird hunting season with vigor.

28 | Hunting & Fishing News

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Photo credit: Brady Miller

ESSENTIAL TIPS FOR YOUR FIRST TIME HUNTING OUT OF STATE

ROAD

HD BUMPERS

By Justin Klement

Originally published at

PAINT PROTECTION

www.goHUNT.com

reaming of that out-of-state hunt, but don’t know where to begin? Follow these simple steps to make sure your next adventure goes as planned. If you are like me, you’re probably hoping to expand your hunting horizons and the great thing is that your opportunities are endless. However, the very thought of going on a hunt in a different state than that of which you live can be daunting. From someone who has travelled to a few different states in search of hunting opportunities, take it from me when I say it’s easier than you think. I can remember a few years ago like it was yesterday. I was green as can be, looking for another adventure. Both nervous and excited I knew Idaho was my state of choice for an elk hunt as a nonresident. The first thing I did was just narrow it down. There is a ton of opportunity out there, especially if you want to go over-the-counter (OTC). That’s where the beauty of goHUNT’s INSIDER research comes into play. During my research, I quickly narrowed down the search to the states with OTC opportunities. From there, I started to dive in deeper.

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AVOIDING MISTAKES

When I started my research, I made a couple mistakes. One was I bit off way more than I could chew. I started researching Idaho, Colorado, Wyoming and Montana as if there was a chance I could get all that information straight and concise. This was mistake number one. If I were to give any advice, I would say pick the state that is closest to you or, if you have a long way to travel, pick just one state that you want to visit more than any other. Then, start your research. It’s easy to get overwhelmed with the amount of information available. Web-memberships such as goHUNT’s INSIDER can help tremendously with your search.

DISSECTING REGULATIONS

Next, I would request a paper copy (or print out a paper copy) of the synopsis or big game hunting regulation pamphlet. Read it cover to cover multiple times. This will help familiarize you with Photo credit: Justin Klement the nomenclature and the different definitions according to the state you chose. Many times they are different compared to the state in which you reside so be careful and make sure to understand the finite nuances that can vary from state to state. (continued on page 33)

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ESSENTIAL TIPS FOR YOUR FIRST TIME HUNTING OUT OF STATE (continued from page 31)

HARVEST REPORTS

Photo credit: Data source: Brady Miller

Photo credit: www.goHUNT.com

Once you have familiarized yourself with the regulations, I would look to the harvest reports. Another great part about researching through INSIDER is that they provide all of the harvest reports on a unit-by-unit basis. Resources like these help me decide what specific game management unit or area I want to hunt. Being an archery hunter, I can look up all the different units specifically for the archery season. This way, I can tell what type of hunt I should encounter. Let’s take Idaho for instance. On Filtering 2.0, you can look up the harvest data for many years and tailor it according to your liking. I look at each specific unit, highlight success rates that are above 15% to 20% and eliminate anything lower than that. This is for an OTC hunt, by the way. Once I have narrowed it down to those, then I look at what type of animals were harvested. Most of the time you can filter according to male or female (bull or cow for elk, buck or doe for deer) and some even have a cut off for antler points. For instance, Idaho has a percentage of harvested elk that are 6 point or better on one side. With some simple calculations, you can easily figure out how many mature bulls are killed by archers and also how much competition you will have. Another thing to familiarize yourself with is the state’s websites themselves. The agency websites differ from state to state and some require you to print your license but will mail your tag, while others will mail the whole package to you.

STYLE OF HUNT THAT FITS YOUR NEEDS Next, you need to decide what type of hunt you want to do. By this I mean do you want a backpack style hunt or the traditional camp and day hunt. Either way can be promising, but will also dictate your avenue for meat care. Personally, I prefer to backpack in and get away from crowds; however, this requires substantial planning for meat care as access to coolers in short time can be very difficult. But it’s not impossible. I recommend a couple of ways to go about this. If you backpack hunt during August, September or even early October in some states, I would suggest adding a few construction-grade black garbage bags to your kill kit along with some duct tape. This can enable you to get your meat cooled down quickly.

You can usually hang your meat in game bags for a day or a half day to let the blood drain out a little bit, and also let the meat skein over. Then, place the game bags inside your black garbage sacks and, very carefully, place them in a creek. You can use logs or branches to “bridge” the water source and tie up the open ends of the bags since that is the most susceptible part to water intrusion. However, the majority of the time, just hanging the meat from branches in a cool spot that stays shady all day can yield the results you want. Be mindful of time though as too long can be detrimental to the spoils of your success. Getting the meat home can be another tricky part; however, over the years I have noticed that if your meat stays nice and cool for a few days hanging near a creek or in a creek, you can usually place it in your truck bed, wrap it in a tarp and hit the open road if you somehow forgot your cooler. Even at 75 degrees outside in the bed of your truck with the wind, your meat should stay cool and shouldn’t spoil. I have heard of guys emptying out a small chest freezer and freezing it for a week before with ice blocks, taping the lid shut and leaving it in the bed of the truck at the trailhead for a week and it’s still cold. Another way would be to debone the meat and place it in coolers with dry ice. Just make sure to place some sort of barrier between the meat and the ice or dry ice. Here are some great tips for keeping a cooler... colder https://www.gohunt.com/read/skills/how-to-get-yourcooler-to-hold-ice-longer#gs.peTlZUM. Once you have these parts figured out, you are nearly there. Most of these suggestions you will already have an opinion about, especially if you have hunted a few hours from home in the past. Nevertheless, they are important.

THE BIG ONE… SCOUTING

The most important part I would say is scouting. At this point, you have narrowed down a specific area you want to target. If you have the means boots-to-the-ground is best, but sometimes it just doesn’t work out. Google Earth can come into play in a major way here. goHUNT’s Brady Miller wrote several great synopsis articles on the intricacies of the program and how you can use it to help you scout: Unlocking The Power Of Google Earth Scouting and Advanced Google Earth Tactics To Prepare For Hunts. Google Earth is a fantastic tool. It can help you find benches and saddles that game use to travel, bedding areas and feeding areas and a lot of times you can find elk from the eyes in the sky. I personally have been successful on a hunt that I didn’t have time to physically scout and relied completely on information from Google Earth to aid me in finding honey-holes. It may seem like a daunting task at first, but once you start the process and narrow things down, it can be a very simple thing to do. It can also be one of the most rewarding experiences you have ever accomplished.

Hunting & Fishing News | 33

HOW TO PATTERN CHOKE TUBES FOR TURKEY

The experts at Trulock Chokes give us some inside tips on how to pattern choke tubes in your turkey shotgun. AmmoLand.com www.ammoland.com

HUNTING

Materials and equipment needed to pattern Choke Tubes for Turkey Hunting:

P atterning shotguns for turkey hunting is a little different from what you would normally do for upland bird or waterfowl

hunting. The primary difference is that you will be using a 10 inch diameter circle instead of a 30 in circle. * Most turkey hunters want a very dense core with as many pellets as possible in a nominal 10 inch circle. This is much smaller than the typical 30 inch circle used in patterning for other types of hunting. * The shotgun is aimed instead of pointed for the vast majority of shots taken. * Most shots are taken from a sitting or kneeling position. Patterning your shotgun should be done when: - Using a gun that is new to you. - Using a different brand of shotshell, even if it duplicates a load you have already patterned. - Using a different load, different velocity, different throw weight, different size shot, etc. - Using a different choke tube, even if it has the same exit diameter as a previously patterned choke. - Anytime you change anything at all, gun, shell or choke tube, you need to pattern the shotgun.

- A minimum of 5 sheets of poster board, butcher paper, etc., that measures nominally at a minimum 3 feet square. We prefer 4 feet for the simple reason that if your shotgun is not shooting to the point of aim, smaller sized paper may not show the entire pattern. If your gun is shooting to a different spot than the aiming point you may think you are getting a poor pattern when in fact you could have a very good pattern but part of it is off the paper. Smaller sheets can be taped together to obtain larger dimensions. - Magic marker or something similar to make a distinct aiming point in the center of the target. -5 identical shot shells. Never use different brands or different loads during the tests. Note that you are shooting each choke/load combination you test a minimum of 5 times. - Some sort of padded rest from which to shoot. This is needed to remove gun wobble you would have if you were to shoot offhand. A solid shooting bench would be preferred. - Tape measure or some device to accurately measure the distance from the shotgun muzzle to the target. - Target stand, actually anything at all to which you can attach your target paper. - Some device, such as a protractor to draw a 10 inch diameter circle on the target, (we use a 10 inch diameter piece of Lexan. This allows us to see the pattern as we move it on the target.) It can be as simple as a nail tied to a pencil with a piece of string to position them 5 inches apart. I believe that many turkey hunters are now using replica turkey silhouette targets to pattern their guns instead of the larger target as described above.

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This is fine IF you know the point of impact versus the point of aim and you can compensate for the difference. However, if you have changed anything on your gun as mentioned above you don’t know if this crucial detail has been affected. Changing choke tubes or using similar shells should not alter the point of impact by any “significant” degree but it can happen! Do you really want to miss or even worse, wound a turkey because you did not take the time to make sure? 1. Measure the distance at which you want to pattern from your shooting position and set up your target. The most common distance at which patterns are done for turkey hunting is 40 yards. Some turkey shells and choke combinations will enable you to get patterns that are dense enough to reliably kill a turkey at 50 and even 60 yards but I strongly suggest you start at the 40 yard range. 2. Carefully aim your shotgun at the center of the target, make sure you have the rib in perfect alignment. You should see a flat plane basically showing just the bead. Keep the bead on the aiming point and squeeze the trigger just like you would when firing a rifle. 3. Repeat this 5 times using a different target for each shot. 4. Carefully examine each target to visually locate the center point of the most dense portion of pellet strikes and mark that spot. Draw a 10 inch diameter circle centered on your previously made location mark. 5. Count the number of hits inside of the 10 inch circle on each target. 6. Add the numbers from each target and divide by 5. 7. This number will be your average pellet count in the 10 inch circle for each of the 5 shots. Just a few short years ago the absolute gold standard everyone strived for was to be able to get 100 pellets in the circle. With the Federal # 7 tungsten loads and the Winchester Long Beard XR loads this should be readily surpassed. While most turkey hunters will never be truly satisfied and will always be searching for the choke or shell that will give them a few more pellets the truth is that the shells for turkey hunting have seen big improvements in the last few years thus making it easier to get clean kills at longer distances. In addition to seeing the pellet count in the target you will also learn if your point of impact (the center of the 10 inch circle) and your point of aim are the same.

If you want to know the percentage of the pellets in the 10 inch circle you have a little more work to do. Take 5 additional shells that are the same as the ones you used for patterning. 1. Cut the ends, remove all of the shot and put them all into some kind of container. 2. Count all of the shot and divide by 5. 3. This gives you the average number of pellets in each shell. 4. Divide the average number of hits in the 10 inch circle that you obtained in step 7 above by the average number of shot in each shell. 5. The number you obtain will be the percentage of shot in the 10 inch circle. In closing let me state that shooting one or two patterns is better than not patterning at all but you will get shot counts that are much closer to a true average by shooting a minimum of 5 times as outlined above. More is always better. For more information, please visit www.TrulockChokes.com

RECIPE CORNER: Pheasant Carbonara: Creamy, Hearty, and Delicious.

a 12 Gauge Girl, Lindsey Bartosh www.huntingandcooking.com Ingredients: 1 pound dry linguine 4 ounces thick cut prosciutto 4 pheasant breasts, cleaned and cut into bite size chunks 2 cloves minced garlic 1/2 cup dry white wine 2 egg yolks 1 cup fresh grated parmigiana reggiano or parmesan cheese 1 handful fresh chopped parsley Salt and pepper to taste Instructions: In a large pot, boil linguine noodles until al dente, about nine to ten minutes. You want to have the noodles finish cooking around the same time the sauce is finished for tossing. The heat of the noodles are important for cooking the raw eggs. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, add two tablespoons olive oil and the minced garlic. Cook for two minutes, being careful not to brown the garlic. Add the pheasant chunks and cook for four to five minutes. Add the prosciutto and cook an additional two to three minutes. Poor the wine directly in the pan, and allow to simmer for three minutes. In a large bowl, scramble the egg yolks with the cup of grated cheese. Strain the noodles and place in a large mixing bowl. Reserve a cup of the pasta liquid in case needed for thinning the sauce. Add the pheasant and prosciutto to the pasta, and mix. Pour the egg and cheese mixture over the hot noodles and toss until the noodles are evenly coated, creating a creamy, cheesy sauce for the pasta. Garnish with the parsley...

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Hunting & Fishing News | 35

Bruins

of Northern Canada

By Jim Cunningham, Passion for the Hunt Television www.passionforthehunt.com

anadian spring black bear hunts in both Manitoba and Saskatchewan offer an outdoor overdose for hunters and anglers. Long days are often combined with close proximity to incredible fishing with evenings and mornings capped off with bear hunting. The ultimate cast and blast experience if you love to both hunt and fish. Russ Bettschen and his family have operated Wolverine Lodge, a drive to destination near Lynn Lake, Manitoba for over thirty years. Fly Inn Outposts Jason Mitchell, host of the Passion for the Hunt Television Series are also available out of nearby Lynn Lake Outposts by the same family and accompanying videographer, Joe Andersen, posing with a operation. This is one of the furthest north drive-to camps, virtually the end Pope and Young bruin that Mitchell harvested during the 2014 season. of the road. There is also no doubt that you will drive by plenty of bears, pike and walleye, but the remoteness and quality of both the hunting and fishing bring bear hunters and anglers to the far north each summer. Everything seems bigger and better the further north. Most of the bears harvested each season are all Pope and Young caliber animals. Most of the bears have probably never before seen a human. There is also several color phases fairly abundant. Gigantic black bears with practically no hunting pressure in assorted color phases. While spot and stalk is an option for bear hunters in some western States and Provinces where there is more open range for spotting, the heavily timbered Canadian Shield typically requires baiting sites. Hunters typically wait in tree stands over the site, which is really conducive for archery. Baiting the perfect location with barrels of frosting and other sweets however doesn’t necessarily guarantee that a bear will visit. Bears have a lot of other forage options that can vary from season to season. In the far north, suckers running up extremely small creeks provide spring bears with an unending supply of protein. Boars also start to roam during the rut, which coincides with the spring hunting seasons. Russ Bettschen and his staff stack the odds by running several bait sights over a large area, which is a tremendous amount of work. To cover as much of an area as possible, boats are often used where the bait sites are accessed by water. For many archery hunters that have cut their teeth on Midwest whitetails, hunting these remote north woods bear is a completely different but exhilarating style of hunt. The location is so far north that there is only about three hours of twilight darkness at night. There is about twenty hours of daylight each day. “We typically went out to the stand at about five in the evening and just hunted the evenings till about eleven at night. During the day, we spent a lot of time fishing and napping,” explained Jason Mitchell who hosts the outdoor hunting program Passion for the Hunt. Both Mitchell along with his videographer each harvested an impressive bear last season while filming. Mitchell added, “If you hunt whitetails, it can be really easy to over think bear hunting when you are hunting this far north. Wind blowing your scent towards the bear doesn’t seem to matter for example. Despite the fact that bears have a much better sense of smell than even a bloodhound, the reality is that these bears haven’t smelled enough people to even comprehend the threat. The smell of food and the human scent is one and the same. Just like whitetail hunting during the rut, boars get preoccupied as they begin to cover a large territory in search of cooperative sows. The boars don’t eat as much and often move in and out of bait sites relatively fast but they will still often check out bait sites for signs of sows in the area.” Outfitters like Russ Bettschen are often required to use ladder stands just because many of the trees are small at this latitude. Russ also keeps the ladder stands closer to the ground at about ten or twelve feet up for a better double lung shot on a bear. “Bears are an easy animal to kill with archery equipment, explains Russ but a mistake that has happened to many bear hunters is shooting too far forward where the arrow hits the shoulder blade.” Bettschen strongly recommends fixed blade broad heads that have a lot of kinetic energy for punching through bone if necessary. The shots are close; often less than fifteen yards. Cribs are set up over the bait site to hopefully direct the bear so that it stands broad side while slightly angling away. The best-shot opportunity often occurs when the bear lifts its facing front foot forward exposing the kill zone behind the shoulder blade. Another crucial piece of equipment in these north woods is a Thermacell. Bring plenty of mosquito repellent and don’t worry about the bears smelling you, the key to success is simply staying on stand over good bait sites and without any mosquito repellent combined with a Thermacell, there are very few men who could do it. The number of mosquitoes (especially towards dark on land) is hard to describe. Hunters from across the United States have made this journey. Three hundred pound or larger bears will make your knees shake. Several desirable color phases can be found including cinnamon, blond and brown. The number of bears in this region is incredible but with the dense wooded terrain, you can be around a lot of bears and never realize it. These animals are reclusive and shy moving through these heavy woods like ghosts. Amazing how an animal as large as a bear can slide by below your stand without making a single slight noise. Not one leaf gets moved as their large padded paws step over moss and limbs. Perhaps Jason Mitchell sums up the northern Manitoba bear hunting experience best. “Bears are just an incredibly cool animal to observe and watch and they will absolutely make your heart race because they are so quiet where they seemingly sneak up on you.” Watch the video at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=okAOk8LOe-4 When you combine bear hunting with the high quality fishing experience typically available in this part of the world, the entire day is the equivalent of a hunting and fishing overdose. According to Russ Bettschen, Wolverine Lodge is located on a premier trophy pike lake where anglers routinely see pike over forty inches with fifty-inch fish verified. “There were times where I would make twenty casts in a row, added Mitchell, and catch a walleye between eighteen and twenty four inches on every single cast. If I missed a fish, another fish would bite a few cranks later...” With twenty hours of daylight each day, it is very possible to gain status in northern Manitoba’s “Exclusive 300 Club.” Catch at least 300 fish in a boat in a day and shoot at least a 300 pound boar in the evening and you to can be a member.

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Lake Trout Fishing At Priest Lake Will Continue; Anglers Don’t Show A Strong Preference To Change It By Roger Phillips, Public Information Specialist, IF&G

Fish and Game will likely continue managing Priest Lake as primarily a lake trout fishery while also protecting native cutthroat trout and bull trout in Upper Priest Lake. Over the past several years, F&G fisheries managers have done extensive public outreach to see if a management change was warranted at Priest Lake, but found there was not clear public sentiment that favored it. Fisheries staff have worked with stakeholders to develop a plan for managing Priest Lake, which will be presented to the Fish and Game commission next fall as part of the State Fisheries Management Plan. “Simply put, fishing opportunity in the foreseeable future is likely to be about the same as it has been in recent years,” regional fish manager Andy Dux said. “Lake trout will continue to be abundant, kokanee will persist at low densities, but large in size. Cutthroat trout will also be present in moderate densities, and smallmouth bass will remain abundant.” Fish and Game, with help from the Priest Lake Fishery Advisory Committee, presented anglers and the public with three management choices: status quo, reducing lake trout populations to boost the kokanee fishery and other game fish species, or slightly reducing the lake trout population in an attempt to get a corresponding increase in other species. Fish and Game did several surveys and multiple open houses to gauge public interest in changing management for the lake. The random mail survey of anglers showed 52 percent did not want change vs. 48 percent who wanted change. An email survey of anglers showed 45 percent did not want change and 55 percent did want change. Resident anglers who frequently fish Priest Lake showed the most support for maintaining the existing fishery. Anglers who used to fish Priest Lake, but don’t now, were most likely to support change. In general, resident and nonresident anglers had similar opinions, and so did anglers from all the counties surveyed. “We were clear from the start that unquestionable support for change was necessary in order for a drastic shift in management to be publicly accepted and successful,” Dux said. Changing the management of the Priest Lake would require substantial time and resources from the department and patience from the public. Without a clear mandate for change, fisheries managers decided to recommend to the commission continuing with the current management. “We had tremendous participation from the public during this process, which gives us confidence that we understand public desires for the Priest Lake fishery,” Dux said. “The Priest Lake fishery is a public resource, so periodically it is important to ask the public how they want to see it managed. We learned there isn’t quite enough support to justify major change, but we didn’t have a good read on that until we asked the question.” Priest Lake’s fisheries have steadily changed over time. The lake’s native sport fish are cutthroat trout, bull trout and mountain whitefish. Non-native lake trout and kokanee were introduced decades ago, and for many years, kokanee supported the lake’s most popular fishery. Kokanee were also an important food source for bull trout and lake trout, which attained trophy sizes. That balance between predators and prey fish lasted into the 1970s, then fell apart. Mysis, a small freshwater shrimp, was introduced in the late-1960s to provide more food for kokanee. Unfortunately, young lake trout feed on shrimp until the fish switch their diet to kokanee. Mysis allowed the lake trout population to grow at the expense of kokanee, which also happened to a lesser extent as lake trout preyed on, or out-competed, cutthroat and bull trout. Fish and Game has curbed lake trout population growth in Upper Priest Lake to relieve pressure on those native fish. Fisheries managers have in the past attempted to boost kokanee numbers by stocking more, but those efforts were thwarted by lake trout predation. Millions of kokanee fry, as well as hundreds of thousands of juvenile cutthroat, were stocked without a noticeable increase in the populations of either species. While fishing at Priest Lake is different than decades ago, it’s still an attractive place for anglers who enjoy catching lake trout. “Plenty of fishing opportunities lie ahead for Priest Lake anglers,” Dux said. “Anglers looking for unique fishing opportunities in a scenic location will find them at Priest Lake.”

38 | Hunting & Fishing News

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Hunting of Bighorn Sheep Ewes Could Produce MORE TROPHY RAMS

University of Wyoming www.uwyo.edu

lthough contrary to prevailing notions, hunting of female bighorn sheep may well be one of the most effective ways to increase the number of trophy rams in North American bighorn sheep populations, according to researchers at the University of Wyoming and other institutions. That’s because such harvests would make more forage available to growing rams and, importantly, their mothers -- boosting their nutritional levels, a factor that has been shown to be more important than genetics in producing rams with large horns, the researchers say. Their conclusions are detailed in a paper that appears in a special section on management of mountain sheep in the Journal of Wildlife Management, a peer-reviewed, scientific journal devoted to the ecology of nondomesticated animal species and published by The Wildlife Society.

UW Assistant Professor Kevin Monteith, right, and graduate student Tayler LaSharr release a bighorn sheep ram on Wyoming’s Wind River Indian Reservation last March. The two are among authors of a new paper that concludes that hunting of female bighorn sheep may well be one of the most effective ways to increase the number of trophy rams in North American bighorn sheep populations. (Kevin Monteith Photo)

The paper’s lead author is Kevin Monteith, assistant professor in UW’s Haub School of Environment and Natural Resources, Department of Zoology and Physiology, and the Wyoming Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit. Also contributing was UW master’s degree student Tayler LaSharr, along with researchers from the University of Idaho, the University of Nevada-Reno, the University of Alaska-Fairbanks and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Unlike management of many other big-game species in the American West, there are few hunting opportunities for bighorn sheep ewes -- in part, because of tradition and public resistance to the idea. But, Monteith and his colleagues say

that not only could hunting of females improve nutritional conditions, leading to rams with bigger horns; it also could help stabilize bighorn sheep populations, reduce the frequency and severity of die-offs from diseases, and increase opportunities for hunters. “We acknowledge and fully appreciate that initiating female harvest may conflict with hunting and management traditions…,” the paper reads. “(However), if production of large, trophy males remains an important management objective…, then we contend that management programs should integrate monitoring of nutritional status of populations and, where evidence indicates nutritional limitation through density dependence, seek to regulate abundance and per capita nutrition via harvest of females.” For decades, concerns about declines in the numbers of trophy rams have focused on the evolutionary effects of hunting such large males, as removing those animals from the gene pool could lead to fewer large-horned offspring. But, while horn size is known to be hereditary, a growing body of evidence shows that age and nutrition frequently override genetic contributions to the size of horns, the researchers say. “Given the hyperbole surrounding trophy management and big horns, we suggest the importance of females in the management of mountain sheep has been largely forgotten,” the scientists wrote. Those impacts include the lifelong effects of the physical condition of ewes during and after pregnancy on growth of their male offspring, as well as the overall nutritional condition of sheep herds where their numbers exceed what available habitat can support. “Ultimately, we call for greater recognition of the pervasive role of females in the production of trophy males, and that, accordingly, females be better integrated into harvest and management programs,” the researchers concluded.

Hunting & Fishing News | 39

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Milk River Surprise By Dennis Longknife Jr.

n Sunday, November 20, 2016, I decided to sleep in, and go for a mid-morning drive to scout for a mule deer buck, where I harvested one the previous year, above the Milk River Valley, near the Fort Belknap Indian Reservation. The evening before as I was driving home down the county road that follows the Milk River and Burlington Northern/Santa Fe Railroad, I looked down the hill and saw two huge whitetail bucks with five does, chasing each other around on private land, until they disappeared into one of the brushy bends of the Milk River. The county road I was on traversed coulees that run down into the Milk River Valley. I was not the only one that saw them there, as other hunters that were traveling home that evening probably saw them too. The hills above the Milk River Valley, are known for big mule deer bucks. Locals will tell you to go into the Cowboy Bar in Dodson, and you will know why I like hunting there. The buck is called the “Bud Phillips Buck”, which was harvested on Dodson Creek, a tributary of the Milk River that has lots of coulees and ravines. This Milk River Monster which hung on the wall for many years, was taken home with Bud Phillips when he finally retired from bartending. The mule deer buck I harvested last year had 10 points and has a 25-1/2 inch outside spread, pretty impressive for me, but a far cry from the “Bud Phillips Buck”, which had over 20 points and around a 30 inch spread. The previous week while I was returning home from hunting, there was an impressive sized mule deer buck that was looking down at me from a high bluff overlooking the county road that I was on. I got a good look at his thick dark horns, which had 6 points on one side and 7 on the other, with an estimated 25 inch spread. I knew I couldn’t hunt this buck, since he was on private land, so I continued home. I knew that this buck would not stay here too much longer and probably was looking for hot does, and would retreat to the BLM lands nearby. When I got home I made a game plan on how I intended to hunt on Sunday. By the time I got home the word was out about the two big whitetail bucks, and the big muley buck I saw the previous week. I knew a lot of hunters would be on the lookout for them. That is why I decided to sleep in and go after all the other hunters stirred them up. When whitetail bucks get pressured they run into the nearby hills to get away. I saw the big whitetails do this before in another area I like to hunt. So at 9 a.m. I finally got ready and headed out the door to scout around, after I reached the BLM lands where I figured the bucks might hold up. I found a good place to glass around with my binoculars, and immediately spotted a lone mule deer doe. As I watched her, I noticed that she kept looking into the brush on the side of her. I figured there was a buck in there with her, so I hiked to the edge of the hill the buck was on, and took out my deer call, which is called a “Rut Roar”, that imitates a mature buck’s grunt call. As soon as I blew the call, I saw movement in the brush next to the mule deer doe. All I saw was a huge brown body of a deer running through the brush in a deep draw in the coulee I was above. I didn’t have time to think, but knew it had to be a big whitetail buck, and as it ran across the coulee and away from me, I waited for the buck to crest the hill, and as soon as he stopped on top to look back at me... at 525 yards, I pulled the trigger.....and saw the big whitetail jump and buck in the air. He ran about 75 yards and then went down. As I stood there in amazement, I told myself, “Did this really happen?”, I just barely got there and I already had a big whitetail buck down and got to fill my state tag. It was surreal! Most hunters that morning probably drove on past this coulee thinking nothing was in there, but if you do your homework, you will be rewarded after you put in the hard work and have the patience to wait till the time is right. He was a big bodied 9 pointer, with a spread of 20”.

Montana Trophies (photos from our readers)

Matt Fry and Lee Brinkman’s hunt came together with a very nice North Central Montana pronghorn.

Emily Earl (top) and sister Macartney (bottom) scored on great Eastern Montana bucks.

Hunting & Fishing News | 41

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How to Prepare for Hunting Season: Fitness Edition SNS Outfitter & Guides www.huntwyo.com

Disclaimer: while we aren’t doctors, these are fitness tips (for hunting) that we find beneficial. Please consult your physician or certified physical trainer if you have any questions. Traversing a mostly untouched terrain, with a heavy pack of hunting gear in tow, is certainly taxing. From now until August, though, you can prepare your body to climb through rocky mountain slopes, brace muddy hillsides, and race after agile animals. Through frequent exercise and a nutrient-dense diet, you can prepare your body to endure even the toughest landscapes and the most challenging trophies. While much of the hunting environment is anything but forgiving, you can train your body to swiftly and efficiently keep up with your prey. Small lifestyle changes from now until August will make all of the difference! While at the gym, we recommend focusing on the following exercises and body parts: core / stability work, lower-body lunges and squats (with a barbell overhead), arm and upper-back conditioning, and cardio. A combination of cardio and strength training will help you traverse high elevations, brush-filled hills, and rocky peaks. When it comes to western hunting, your entire body (and being) will be put to the test; however, in order to enjoy the rigors of mountainous landscapes, you’ll want cardio endurance and leg / core strength at the forefront of your offseason workouts. In essence, taking your fitness to the next level will improve your hunting skills, both in strength and agility. FITNESS PREPARATION FOR ROUGH COUNTRY That said, hunting a variety of animals means you’ll want to incorporate a variety of workouts. For example, elk hunting (or any rough-country hunt with drastic elevation changes) requires a different kind of fitness than your usual antelope hunt. You’ll want to incorporate HIIT (high-intensity-interval-training) a few days a week into your exercise routine. You can read about the benefits of HIIT/tabata-style training https://www.mensfitness.com/training/cardio/7-scientifically-proven-benefits-interval-workouts. But for antelopes, given that you’ll be crawling on your hands and knees, incorporating “crab walks” and “bear crawls” into your workouts will improve your body’s overall deftness. You can read about those exercises https://ericcressey.com/bear-crawls-vs-crab-walks Whether you’re hunting any of the aforementioned animals — or even black bears or moose — a strong physical condition is key. Alternating between cardiovascular and muscular workouts will improve your stamina, your lung capacity, and even your mental clarity. For example, you could begin your workout with 30-minutes of steady-state jogging or brisk walking, then end your workout with 30-minutes of core exercises, lunges, bicep curls, etc. Alternatively, another workout could include crossfit-style HIIT followed by a vinyasa yoga class (yes, even the most bold, masculine hunters can benefit from yoga). Remember that adding in stretching, foam rolling, and yoga are all beneficial in aiding in recovery and maintaining muscle longevity. However, if you’re ready to get outdoors, go on a long hike with a 20-lb pack on your back. While exercise is important, so is rest! Be sure to schedule rest days (at least once a week) to help your body heal. A proper diet, plenty of water, and muscle recovery are just as critical as the workouts themselves... To contact SNS Outfitter & Guides call 307.266.4229 or visit www.huntwyo.com

Hunting & Fishing News | 43

The Old Reliables, The Finest Guns in the World, and Guns of Lasting Fame By Jay Dowd

Project Upland

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Photo credit: Jay Dowd Project Upland

he subject of classic American shotguns is one that has been brought up around October campfires for almost as long as wing shooting, as we know it, has existed in our great country. Tales of the glory days of hunting with names such as L.C. Smith, Ansley H. Fox, Ithaca, Uncle Dan Lefever, and the legendary Parker shotguns have evoked black and white images of old timey hunters clad in heavy canvas, with full game bags, and faithful pointers and setters, proudly accompanying them as they venture through musty old orchards and mazes of crumbling stone walls. Hunters such as W.H.Foster, Aldo Leopold, Burton Spiller, George Bird Evans, Corey Ford, and Nash Buckingham forged the path of American wing shooting lore with these fine old guns, and writers such as Gene Hill spoke of them with as much reverence as the men who shot them. Now-a-days with the advent of the internet, a quick Google search will unveil a veritable novel’s worth of opinions and arguments over the merits and shortcomings of each of these classic guns. Much of it I would say to take with a grain of salt. In the depths of these often heated debates you will find grown men reduced to name calling and squabbling over who’s pet brand of gun is the best made, best looking, best balanced, most valuable…you get the picture. It is of my opinion, that after around a hundred years of use (some more some less), that many good representations from each of these grand old companies still finds itself the pride of some gunner’s Photo credit: Jay Dowd Project Upland safe, and still sees just as much use if not more than it did back in its hay day. So long as these guns are still in service, I don’t think much can currently be said as to which one is the best. Maybe one day when all the Parker’s complex mechanisms fail for good and they are finally laid to rest the Fox guys will finally be able to shout “I told you so!”from the rooftops, but I don’t see that happening in my lifetime. I don’t have near the experience of many of the people shooting them but in my 25 years plus of gunning the uplands and missing clay targets at the gun clubs, I have owned or at least shot a good example of most of these classics and aside from personal taste as far as visual appearance goes, I can’t find much to complain about with any of them. With my opinions on the subject aforementioned, and a love for all the American classics deep in my chest, it is my confession that a passion for The Parker Gun was enkindled at an early age. My lust for the Parker didn’t start because Burton Spiller shot his little VH 20 for so many years, and it didn’t start with the pictures of Corey Ford patiently cleaning his 12 gauge GH alongside his beloved setter Cider, before a roaring fire at Stoneybroke, his hunting cabin in Vermont. The flame didn’t ignite while reading William Harnden Foster’s “The Little Gun”, a recount of his Uncle’s 16 gauge hammer gun, although these tales definitely did their part to stoke the fire. Growing up in the 80’s, early 90’s, I often stayed the weekends at my grandparents house. My grandpa was, and still is an avid bird hunter. At a very young age he would let me go afield with him. The guns I remember him shooting were an old Remington 870 Wingmaster 12 gauge who’s full choked 30” barrel my grandpa always cursed in the grouse woods, and a 26” barreled Harrington and Richards single shot 12 gauge, the gun he most often carried into the grouse woods and a gun he shot very well. Growing up a farmer during the great depression my grandpa didn’t place such value on material possessions as I unfortunately do. The thought to spend the money on something more than these adequate firearms didn’t occur to him, and if it did, he kept it to himself. He did however make it well known that a “little Parker 20 gauge” would be the perfect grouse gun. (continued on page 46)

44 | Hunting & Fishing News

The Old Reliables, The Finest Guns in the World, and Guns of Lasting Fame (continued from page 44)

A few years later, I often found myself accompanying my stepfather to various gun clubs delivering shooting and reloading supplies. This was about the time I was getting old enough to start thinking about a shotgun of my very own. At the time you had to be 12 to hunt small game in the great state of Michigan, and I was very excited at the prospect of graduating from my cherished Crosman 760 Pumpmaster air rifle. The bane of many neighborhood sparrows and starlings, not to mention the odd squirrel, to something with some real firepower. During a delivery trip to our local gun club one Sunday morning, I noticed a small crowd was gathering around the back of a pick-up truck belonging to a well known Photo credit: Jay Dowd Project Upland grouse hunter. As I made my way to the front of the pack to see what all the fuss was about, I overheard one fellow tell his buddy that “John’s Parker finally came in”. The crowd hushed as a small canvas covered case was brought out and gingerly placed on the tailgate. John made quite the scene as he carefully removed the fancy new double from its handsome leather trunk, the first shotgun I had ever seen stored in such a manner. The little Parker Reproduction 28 that was revealed that day was clearly the envy of all that gathered to watch, and was the topic of much discussion at the gun club for some time to come. I started seeing many advertisements showing up in the backs of the Field and Stream, Outdoor Life, and Sports Afield magazines that my grandpa subscribed to depicting the Parker Reproductions neatly nestled next to an un-lucky grouse, or carefully placed on top of a tweed shooting jacket. It didn’t take long for these pictures to start conjuring images in my head of crowds gathering around me at the gun club, after I popped the latches on the case containing my new “Repro.”, and proceeded to shoot 25 straight with the little gun. I just knew that if I had one of these doubles that I would be the wingshot that garnered even my grandpa’s respect after filling my gamebag with grouse, woodcock, and the occasional pheasant during the day’s hunt. Unfortunately, my dreams of being the toast of the gun club and that talk of the grouse woods came to an abrupt halt one day when I finally worked up the courage to ask my step dad if my first shotgun could be a Parker. His response, a quick “I don’t think so”, and the look in his eyes was about on par with the one I got when I requested to paint the family van camouflage. I wasted no time in trying my luck with my grandpa, with much the same result. I offered to mow lawns and help load the heavy bags of shot into the truck to be taken and delivered for my step dad’s business at the gun clubs, but realized only after learning the price of one of these Reproductions that the cost of the shotgun was well beyond my family’s means. My step dad soon bought me a little Winchester 20 gauge pump with 26” barrels. It was far from the Parker of my dreams, but it was all mine, and although I was never the toast of the Gun Club, I did take my first grouse on the wing with the petite pump.

Somewhere around the age of 30, I was finally able to save up enough to buy myself a Parker, a little VH 20 gauge. Although I didn’t shoot it as good as I had hoped, a bug had bitten me and I started spending more and more time perusing used gun racks and gun shows. I didn’t have a lot of money to work with but I was able to quickly acquire a modest collection of both vintage and lower end contemporary shotguns of various gauges, all suited to the grouse hunting that I loved. After amassing some lower end guns, I would trade a few in and get something a little more expensive, no Purdey’s or A-1 Parkers but it was starting to be almost as much of a hobby as grouse hunting itself. I had never bought guns from any of the online auctions, mostly due to the fact that my income relegated me to trade other guns in to purchase the more expensive guns I wanted, but also because it almost seemed like a treasure hunt as I scoured the used gun racks for the tell tale forms of the double guns I lusted after. Then one fateful day at the local shop tucked away in one of the cabinets I saw a little gun that caught my eye. It was a little Parker Reproduction 28, just like the one I had dreamt of in my childhood. I asked to see the gun, and when after checking the chambers, and promptly swinging the gun on an invisible flushing grouse, (a quartering away and to the left shot if you insist on knowing), I knew I needed to own the gun and asked to see the price, which hadn’t gone down any (in fact up quite a sum) from when I wanted it as a kid. Nonetheless, I had them take the gun off the shelf and returned later with cash and a good portion of my collection to trade in on it. Nowadays my safe holds a few of the Parkers that I dreamt of as a kid in various gauges and configurations but it is my 2 year old daughter that is the apple of my eye. I am getting a notion to start exploring some of my options concerning an English, or at least a higher end Spanish sidelock. Should I find one I can’t live without, my current financial status dictates that one of my beloved Parker shotguns may have to make way in the form of trade, but one thing is for certain, should my daughter take an interest in the shooting sports one day, which I am doing everything in my power to ensure, there will be at least one little Parker tucked away deep in my safe for her to cherish.

46 | Hunting & Fishing News

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