Fall 2014 Mountain Hunter Magazine by Guide Outfitters of BC

BRITISH COLUMBIA, NORTHWEST TERRITORIES, YUKON TERRITORY FALL 2014

FEATURE STORIES

It’s Never Easy

The King’s Castle

Contents

Fall 2014

Articles, photos, editorial submissions, comments and letters to the editor should be sent to: MOUNTAIN HUNTER: c/o GOABC, #103 – 19140 28th Avenue Surrey, British Columbia Canada V3S 6M3 Tel: (604) 541-6332 Fax: (604) 541-6339 E-mail: programs@goabc.org www.MountainHunter.com

advertisers Ambler’s Bighorn Country Guiding............54 Babine Guide & Outfitters................................5 BC Trophy Mountain Outfitters....................39

www.facebook.com/GOABC1966

Beaverfoot Outfitting.......................................51

@GOABC

Besa River Outfitters.........................................35

MOUNTAIN HUNTER is published three times a year by the Guide Outfitters Association of British Columbia 2 YEAR SUBSCRIPTION

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Big Country Outfitters ....................................24 Bonnet Plume Outfitters.................................13 Boone & Crockett Club....................................55 Bugle Basin Outfitters......................................19 Cariboo Mountain Outfitters.........................35

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Claw Mountain Outfitters...............................38 Dallas Safari Club...............................................13 Double Eagle Guides........................................13

BRIAN GLAICAR President MARK WERNER Past-President AARON FREDLUND First Vice-President MICHAEL SCHNEIDER Second Vice-President REG COLLINGWOOD Director DAVID BERANEK Director MIKE YOUNG Director SEAN OLMSTEAD Director

LOCAL PRESIDENTS: LEIF OLSEN Northern (Peace) AL MADLEY Cariboo/Chilcotin CLINT LARSON Northwest (Skeena) DARREN DELUCA Vancouver Island & South Coast KEN WATSON North Central (Omineca) NEIL FINDLAY Thompson MARC HUBBARD Okanagan STEVEN LEUENBERGER Southern (Kootenay) STAFF: SCOTT ELLIS Executive Director JENNIFER JOHNSON Executive Assistant AMANDA SAWYER Programs Coordinator DAN MACDONALD Policy & Communications Assistant

features

Elk Valley Bighorn..............................................46 Eureka Peak Lodge...........................................11 Findlay Creek Outfitters..................................19

The King’s Castle Scott Ungar

Gana River Outfitters..........................................5

Grand Slam Club/Ovis.....................................47

A Bald Faced Bruin Patrick Vaughn

14 Grouse River Outfitters....................................34

It’s Never Easy Bruce Hutcheon

Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation ....54 20

Gundahoo River Outfitters.............................19 InReach Communications..............................38

Some Things Just Happen for a Reason

Lehigh Valley SCI...............................................54

Craig Summerfield

DAN REYNOLDS President TIM MERVYN Past-President Mountain Hunter is the official publication of the Guide Outfitters Association of British Columbia (GOABC), Association of Mackenzie Mountains Outfitters, & Yukon Outfitters Association. All rights reserved. Articles and advertising in Mountain Hunter do not necessarily reflect the view or directions of the GOABC. The GOABC reserves to the right to refuse any advertisements. Designed in Canada by Sherri King Communications (formerly Red Apple Creative) • sherriking.com Printed in the United States of America by Forum Communication Printing - Fargo, North Dakota

Mackenzie Mountain Outfitters...................46 McCowan’s Sporting Properties..................46 McGregor River Outfitters..............................54

Funky Holy Crap Debra Stuchik

Mervyn’s Yukon Outfitting.............................51 Nahanni Butte Outfitters..............................IBC

A Burning Desire 52 Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation On the Cover

HAROLD GRINDE President KELLY HOUGEN Past-President WERNER ASCHBACHER Secretary

Pathway to Canada Immigration.................39 Pelly Lake Wilderness Outfitters..................24 Ram Creek Outfitters....................................OBC Ram Head Outfitters.........................................55

Wayne Bowd from Alberta with his black bear taken during his hunt with Fraser Canyon Safaris.

Redstone Trophy Hunts..................................35

departments

Scoop Lake Outfitters......................................51

GOABC PRESIDENT’S CORNER NEWS & VIEWS

Rocky Mountain High Outfitters..................56 Safari Club International (SCI)..................... IFC Shadow Mountain Outfitters........................24

2 3, 4

Sikanni River Outfitters....................................35 Silent Mountain Outiftters.............................55 SITKA........................................................................5

PREFERRED CONSERVATION PARTNERS 6

Sonny’s Guiding Service.................................19

CONSERVATION MATTERS™

Sports Afield........................................................25

GUIDES GALLERY LIFE MEMBERS CAMP COOK’S CORNER

26, 27, 32, 33 36, 37 56

South Nahanni Outfitters...............................11 Stone Mountain Safaris...............................OBC Tuchodi River Outfitters..................................11 Wild Sheep Foundation..................................18 Yukon Big Game Outfitters............................39 Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 < 1

PRESIDENT’S CORNER Brian Glaicar The fall hunting season is now underway, with many clients arriving to explore and experience the natural wonders that BC, Yukon and the NWT have to offer. Bobbi and I have just returned from hunting Stone sheep in northern BC. Even though we did not get a ram the experience was great. Whether it was the big bull moose that we had feeding up from our camp, the rams that we stalked to within 50 yards (nothing legal), or the grizzly bear that spent the morning rooting around the mountain near our camp, the memories will be with us forever. During our trip, I was able to find the time to visit a few of our member guide outfitters and their clients. Meeting clients returning from their adventures, both successful and unsuccessful, they all seemed to have an equal appreciation of the beauty and wonders that the province has to offer. Of those clients we met who were about to start their adventure, all carried a thrill and anticipation for the adventure that was about to begin. Although it was their busy time, I also had

the chance to talk with the outfitters. I have been in the business for many years, and still marvel at each outfitter’s motivation for their job. It always comes down to the same things: the love of the wilderness and the wildlife that it holds. I appreciate watching other operations run, and seeing the time, devotion, and investment that is given to making the experience the best it can be for their clients. This only makes one realize that, as guide outfitters, we all share common goals. We are the true stewards of the land. We operate on Crown land and harvest a Crown resource, so we have many government regulations. The GOABC realizes that this can be a burden and are working hard to reduce red tape. Even during the times when outfitters are busy with their season, the office staff at GOABC continues to advocate for the industry. Running office and staff requires a comprehensive funding system to ensure the effectiveness of the association. The financial contributions made by both our members and our clients are put to

good use. These funds are used to address the ongoing issues with government, so that our members can deliver a quality experience, and to ensure that our clients continue to have the ability to participate in that experience. Many organizations around the world have taken to a “Round up for Conservation” type initiative to help fund their mission. The GOABC is proud to announce our first member’s business to add us to that profile. Dakota Creek Guns and Outfitting in Ferndale, Washington has teamed up with the GOABC as one of its “Round up for Conservation” partners. For those of you preparing for your hunt, please support these partners. I hope all members and clients have a safe and successful season. If you are looking for your next hunt, you can be sure to have an experience you will always remember with a GOABC member.

Brian Glaicar President, GOABC TM

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NEWS & VIEWS By the early 1930s, many wildlife populations in United States were dwindling as a result of rapid expansion and a relentless desire for land. Many wildlife species were considered pests and were intentionally removed from the landscape. In 1937 the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act was enacted, sponsored by Nevada Senator Key Pittman and Virginia Congressman Absalom Willis Robertson. Most commonly known as the Pittman-Robertson Act, the legislation was signed by Franklin D. Roosevelt on September 2, 1937 and became effective the following year. The Pittman-Robertson Act enacted several changes that drastically altered the future of fish and wildlife in the USA by earmarking an existing 11% tax on the sale of firearms and ammunition for wildlife conservation. Since its creation, this program has generated over $2 billion in funds to support wildlife habitat and conservation programs for the benefit of the general public. Today the funds are used for habitat enhancement, development of wildlife management areas, and wildlife research and inventories.

Praise for the Pittman-Robertson Act is often focused on the great leadership demonstrated by sportsmen and politicians. The enthusiasm for this aspect of the Act certainly warranted: these early conservation leaders brought to life a realistic, long-term and effective way to generate funds for wildlife. However, what is often overlooked is what the PittmanRobertson Act did for engaging hunters in the future of wildlife conservation. The Pittman-Robertson Act was an important landmark for defining the larger goals of the hunting community, and uniting them towards those ends. I am interested in developing a similar program for Canada. Each year sporting goods stores across the country generate over $5 billion in economic activity. Earmarking even a modest 5% tax on the sale of sporting goods could generate millions for wildlife stewardship and habitat enhancement projects in Canada. These funds could be used to help support game and non-game species through organizations such as the Habitat Conservation Trust Fund, which currently distributes funds generated through hunting and fishing licences to a variety of wildlife conservation projects in our province.

Such a tax would also better engage the general public in the future of wildlife. Every time that someone purchased a pair of hiking boots or a tent, a small fee would go towards preserving nature and wildlife for future generations to enjoy. I have written many times about the “70% in the middle.” Even though they are not hunters, they are not opposed to hunting and they care about wildlife. Our culture’s attitude has changed dramatically from the 1930s: today the general public places a much greater value on wildlife and is interested in their continued survival. Consequently, the scope for generating funds for wildlife conservation is much larger than it once was. Engaging the “70% in the middle” in this manner would also engage citizens in the reality that wildlife populations continue to exist through human efforts. Wildlife does not exist by accident. Through intentional attention, we can help ensure populations are healthy and thriving, both for the enjoyment of hunters and the general public. Straight shooting and safe travels. Scott Ellis Executive Director, GOABC TM

Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014

NEWS & VIEWS The 2014 hunting season is well underway as I write to you today from our base camp in the heart of the beautiful Mackenzie Mountains. So far the season has gone very well, as is normal for those of us who are blessed to operate in the mountains of the NWT. We have had the usual early summer snowstorm and there are a few reports of some thick smoke in southern regions but all in all we are well on the way to another great season of tremendous trophies and happy hunters. We had a fairly light snowfall here in the Mackenzies last winter and our spring was one of the warmest on record. As a result, we are seeing a lot of game and the hunting has been great thus far. The Association of Mackenzie Mountain Outfitters has for many years offered a scholarship program to youth from the NWT, who are pursuing a career in wildlife management or other professional careers related to the outdoors. This year, we were

able to go a step beyond and partner with “Northern Youth Leadership Society” and Gana River Outfitters to sponsor a wilderness camp for teenage girls. We all felt this would be a tremendous way to “give back” to the communities who have supported us for so long. We also felt it would be a great opportunity to make some very personal connections with the people from the communities in the Mackenzie Valley. We were able to come in and open up our camp here at Palmer Lake during the last week of June for eleven teenage girls, two youth leaders and two elders from Norman Wells. We all had a great time and did a lot of hiking, canoeing, fishing and even some mountain climbing. We were able to teach the girls a lot of wilderness survival skills—both traditional and modern. The girls helped us open up camp, get the hydro-electric system up and running and also helped out with camp chores each day. Even though it was

well before the hunting season opened we were able to teach them much about the outfitting industry and trophy hunting in general. It was a great learning experience for all of us, and a great way to build new and lasting relationships with the people from the communities along the Mackenzie Valley. We already have one young lady from Norman Wells who is planning to be on our staff next year—and hoping to become a guide one day. Feedback from Norman Wells about the camp has been very positive and so we have made some preliminary plans for another camp next year. I am really hoping that it will become an annual event. I know of no better way to garner support for our industry than through these young people. Good hunting! Harold Grinde President, Association of Mackenzie Mountain Outfitters (AMMO)

GONE HUNTIN

Dan Reynolds, President Yukon Outfitters Association

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Mountain Hunter â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Fall 2014 < 5

preferred conservation partners SAFARI CLUB INTERNATIONAL There is a whole wide world of hunting experiences out there; from the plains of Africa to the alpine heights of New Zealand, from elk in Montana to the big horn sheep of British Columbia. The key to all of these adventures is the men and women of the professional hunting industry. They bring the advantage of boots on the ground experience on the lands they hunt, and a vast knowledge of the game they pursue. It is the outfitter, the guide, the professional hunter who works tirelessly to give the hunter not only the greatest chance of success, but most importantly, a memorable hunting experience. In fact, from its very beginning, the partnership between SCI and hunting professionals has been a strong and a mutually beneficial bond. SCI hunter members have access to ethical and experienced professionals. Guide outfitters and professional hunting members can be reached through SCI, and its nearly two hundred chapters, with over fifty thousand dedicated international hunters. Each year Safari Club facilitates meetings of the Professional Outfitters and Guides

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of America, the Canadian Federation of Outfitter Associations and the Operators and Professional Hunters Associations of Southern Africa. This allows each of the “top associations of the industry” the opportunity to gather and discuss important regional issues. In addition, SCI also hosts the International Professional Hunting Roundtable, the only event of its kind in the world; where members of the professional hunting industry can exchange views on the topics that impact their businesses worldwide. Each year SCI supports its affiliated professional hunting associations not only with complimentary booths at convention but also with tangible financial grants. In all, SCI supports nearly thirty associations with grants and, when possible, visits. Through its comprehensive guide and outfitter program and its investment in time, effort and money in that program, Safari Club International, “First for Hunters”, is, without question, also First for Professional Hunters, worldwide. ~ Safari Club International, John Boretsky, Guide & Outfitter Liaison

DALLAS SAFARI CLUB Geneticists Banking DNA to Ensure Future of African Animals DALLAS – Dallas Safari Club (DSC) is continuing its financial support of a Texas A&M University effort to build a DNA repository of African game species. The growing bank of DNA samples can be used to track the genetic heritage and health of wildlife. DSC has awarded grants for this effort since 2011. “Biologists say this program is an insurance policy for the future of wildlife,” said Ben Carter, DSC executive director. “And it’s passionate, generous hunters, mainly from the U.S. who are making it go.” “Outdoor Life” magazine featured the program in its March 2014 edition. In the article, Dr. James Derr of Texas A&M related the importance of genetic diversity in the restoration of American bison. Once estimated at 30 million, only a few hundred remained by the late 1800s. Inbreeding among survivors should have led to extinction, but ranchers saved a few bison from different regions and genetic stocks. That diversity, researchers would later discover, is what saved the species.

That’s the lesson that inspired Derr to develop the DNA repository effort for Africa, where today the fate of many species is clouded by habitat loss and poaching. Grants from DSC and other donors allowed Derr to develop more than 250 DNA-collection field kits. Professional hunters and their clients in 11 African countries now use the kits to collect hair and blood samples from game species ranging from rhinos and lions, to duikers and kudus. Back at the university, samples are analyzed, the DNA extracted, and genetic information mapped and loaded onto a database available to researchers worldwide. Carter said, “DSC is proud to be part of this effort. It’s another important way that hunters are contributing to conservation for the future.” ~ Dallas Safari Club, Ben Carter, Executive Director

WILD SHEEP FOUNDATION WSF Thinhorn Sheep Summit a Success... Thanks to GOABC and other thinhorn stakeholders. With the exceptional support of the GOABC, the first-ever multijurisdictional Thin Horn Sheep Summit was conducted. Nearly 70 of the best and brightest convened in Richmond, British Columbia this April to create an action plan for Dall and Stone sheep throughout Alaska, Northern BC, NWT, and the Yukon Territories. WSF brought agency managers, guide outfitters, resident sportsmen and women, First Nations representatives, businesses, and other interested stakeholders together to focus on the current status and management of Dall and Stone sheep. They identified and prioritized ecological and human-footprint challenges faced by thinhorn sheep; long-term harvest data sets, hunter opportunity, and allocation policies in those jurisdictions. “We came away from this two-day summit with just what we were after, defined and prioritized action items, timelines, work assignments, and identified deliverables,” Marc Hansen, WSF Chairman, stated. Priority topics included the need for comprehensive

management plans for thinhorn sheep in Alaska, British Columbia, Northwest Territories, and the Yukon Territory. This included holistic predator management; heightened awareness and need for action on potential risks of disease transmission from domestic sheep and goats to previously-unexposed thinhorn sheep. The need for closer analysis and management of disturbance impacts to thinhorn sheep from ATVs, OHVs, and helicopter activity was also discussed. “Attendees came well-prepared, and very diligently engaged in large-group and breakout session discussions,” stated WSF Conservation Director Kevin Hurley. “It was impressive and gratifying to see the depth of knowledge, level of commitment, and enthusiasm shown by Thinhorn Summit attendees,” added Hurley. “More than two dozen individuals, organizations, and corporations including our preferred conservation partner, the Guide Outfitters Association of BC generously contributed funds to help sponsor this Thinhorn Summit,” noted WSF President & CEO Gray N. Thornton. “To us, that shows the importance of Dall’s and Stone’s sheep to many diverse stakeholders, throughout the great north, and beyond; we thank those donors,” added Thornton. ~ Wild Sheep Foundation, Gray Thornton, President and CEO

GRAND SLAM CLUB / OVIS “Partners in Conservation.” These words are used quite often in our industry, and GSCO is very proud of our track record in this regard. Recently we have partnered with the Idaho Wild Sheep Foundation Chapter, Iowa FNAWS, Safari Club International, and have maintained our great partnership with Nevada Bighorns Unlimited over the last few years, and that is just to mention a few. Of course, we are also proud of our partnership with GOABC and hope to be a “Partner in Conservation” with such a fine organization for years to come. The most recent partnership has been with the Wyoming Game & Fish Department. We were able to promote their inaugural Super Tag Raffle program, and we understand that they sold over $650,000

in raffle tickets in this very first year. According to a department official, more tickets were sold from our email blast than by any other method. We have pledged to continue helping them, and other similar departments and organizations, in any way we can. To show our appreciation, we sent this short email after the winners were chosen: “To all GSCO members and affiliates who participated in the recent Wyoming Super Tag Raffle, we offer a sincere THANK YOU! You helped make this first time conservation raffle a HUGE success. It is dedicated hunter/conservationists like you who truly understand, “Hunting IS the number one conservation tool.” ~ Grand Slam Club/Ovis, Dennis Campbell, Executive Director

BOONE & CROCKETT CLUB Ethics Divides Hunters? This one is a head scratcher of sorts. Talking hunting ethics or fair chase, those things that fall outside the realm of our game laws, can get the fur-up on some folks. I guess because by the nature of such a discussion, someone is inevitably on the other side of the tracks and they don’t like having this pointed out. As these individuals, and sometimes groups, scrabble for justification or validation, what’s becoming the norm is a push back of “all this talk does is divide hunters when hunters should be united.” Au contraire. As a minority that must take into account the expectations of society, hunters should be united on a wide range of topics if these expectations are to be met. Especially when these expectations include an ethical approach to the use of any public resource, and even more so when that resource is living creatures. Hunters policing themselves, or pointing out the low ground is not an apology, nor divisive as some would jump to. It is about maintaining relevance and continuance. History has shown that the concept of fair chase has united more sportsmen than it has ever divided. ‘We’re just dividing hunters.’ That’s a swing and a miss. ~ Boone and Crockett, Keith Balfourd, Director of Marketing Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 < 7

the king’s castle by Scott Ungar

e clambered up the nearvertical rock chute that lead to the very pinnacle of the nameless mountain. Well-worn rocks told me that this was the escape route that generations of rams had used to slip away from danger. Once they were over the top and across the valley, they were out of the Yukon, and in the Northwest Territories. Ben, my guide, was moving slowly and deliberately, taking great care not to dislodge any rocks that might alert the great Dall ram that we had spotted in the morning. A wall of jagged rocks blocked our ascent. Ben dropped his pack and I did the same, knowing that there was no turning back now. Ben was quick and monkey-like, finding handholds and toeholds and hoisting himself over ledges. He waited at the top of a big ledge, offering a hand. I declined, and clawed my way up

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the face of the mountain, more like a sloth than a monkey, with sweat running off my brow. I flopped my rifle, pack, and body over the ledge. Now a jumble of giant refrigerator-sized rocks were all that stood between us and the kitchen-sized plateau that was the top of the mountain. We stayed low and wormed our way to the edge of the dizzying cliff that dropped off the backside of the mountain. It is both breathtaking and gut-wrenching; the chute on the backside is about as rugged as you can find in sheep country. We glassed hard. Every nook and cranny was picked apart, one by one. Four hours earlier, Ben and I had watched the ram work his way over the top of the mountain. He climbed up the same chute we had, and there should be no reason for him not to be bedded up at the top...somewhere. His droppings were there, and were still warm

to the touch. The strong scent of sheep lingered in the air. We had to be close— very close. I looked over at a six-year-old ram that stood about 500 yards away. Through the binoculars, he appeared to be staring in our direction. No, wait he was staring at something directly below us. I inched my way closer to the edge of the 600 foot cliff. While I can sleep away most the afternoon 60 feet off the ground in a Saskatchewan aspen, I’m not exactly crazy about hanging off the edge of a cliff. But the prospect of a ram will make a hunter do strange things. Next thing I knew, I’ve inched my way up to the edge and I’m glassing over a hidden shelf 200 yards underneath us. In contrast to the brilliant sun-dappled south side of the mountain, the north side was dark and shaded and it’s hard to see. I glimpsed movement and instinctively jerked my head back. “Shoot!” I whispered hoarsely to Ben.

“He’s right below us!” Days earlier as the Turbo Otter touched down on the shimmering emerald waters of Goz Lake, Yukon, my heart thumped with excitement. It seemed like it was only yesterday that I had flown out of here with my first hard-earned Dall ram in hand. It was certainly one of those experiences that defies description. The Turbo Otter roared at full power as it turned and taxied toward the dock. Hunters and guides were lined up on the dock with hands covering their ears. Guide outfitter Chris Widrig was there, as stoic as always in his light, down-filled jacket. I sat up front with the pilot and grinned like a ten-year-old kid for most of the trip. I was relieved to see that my guide from last year, Ben Stourac, was also there. I secretly hoped that he would be guiding me again this year. I shook hands with Chris, Ben and Brady Lough, and then all hands were on the gear, first unloading the Otter with our stuff then the two weeks’ worth of food for us, and oats for the horses. Wanting to take advantage of the late afternoon sun, the pilot moved swiftly, reloading the Otter quickly and methodically with gear, and hunters for the return trip to Whitehorse. I stowed my gear in the cabin as we would not be trailing out until early the next morning. As I made my way over to the cookhouse, ptarmigan scattering in front of me, and I ran into Ben. I didn’t want to bother him about hunting because I know how important downtime is after you finish a twelve day shift. Especially considering he had already spent over fifty days in the bush this year. But Ben was ready to talk. “Hey Scott,” he said. “I’m taking you out after that ram my last hunter missed. He’s a beauty, and get this: he’s in the same valley as the ram you shot last year!” While my yearning for adventure begged for new country—new mountains and foreboding canyons—common sense told me that last year’s valley was definitely worth returning to, because we had left two super rams there, as well as the one that Ben’s hunter had missed this year. The next morning we were up early, and by 8:00 a.m. we had packed three horses plus a spare, along with the two saddle horses. The nine hour ride down the river and up a valley went without incident. It was a beautiful day, sunny and warm—maybe the cursed rainy season was finally over. The horses crossed the valley creek without missing a step; it seemed that they were embracing the late August sun themselves. We set up camp about a mile upstream of the old camp, where there were more stunted spruce for firewood and an excellent vantage point to glass right from camp. After supper we stowed all our gear and broke out the binoculars to see if we could find some rams for the next morning. All we spotted were a few ewes and lambs as the sun dropped behind the mountains to the west. I can tell you though, between the scent of the silver willows, the rush of the icy stream a couple of steps from the tents, the clanging of the horse bells up in the basin, and the pungent pine smoke from our campfire, it seemed as if we hadn’t missed a day here, even though exactly a year had passed. Both Ben and I hit the tents early. It had been a full and productive day. I awoke to the jingling of tethers. Ben already had the horses tied CONTINUED ON PAGE 10 Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 < 9

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 9

up when I stumbled out of the tent and dropped down to the creek to splash some water on my face. The sky was pinkish red in the east and it looked like it would be a cloudless day. We wolfed down bacon and eggs, geared up, and were riding before the sun had broke over the mountains that separate the Yukon from the Northwest Territories. We rode for about an hour before stopping to glass a slope where one of Ben’s hunters had taken a record book caribou the week before. Sure enough, the carcass had been claimed by a good-sized grizzly. Ben glassed the north side of the valley, while I unsuccessfully tried to get a photo of the grizzly through the spotting scope. It wasn’t even thirty seconds later when I heard Ben grunt, “Ram!” The ram was easy to pick out. He stood on a green bench very near the top of a mountain that looked like a king’s castle, with lookouts and cliffs and caves all over. The ram’s horns looked perfect. He was definitely past full curl, with his tips flaring far out to each side. Ben looked excited. “That’s a real good ram up there…what do you think?” I grinned. “I think we should get up there and see if we can make a move on him.” I kept glassing the ram, partly out of disbelief. In the year before, we had gone a full eight days without even a glimpse of a legal ram. As all sheep hunters know, seeing the ram is one thing, but getting to him is another. After summiting several times and glassing the gigantic bowl on the backside, we were running out of vantage points, with no ram in sight. We skipped lunch, sidehilling further east, to the chute that went right to the very peak of the mountain. Suddenly, it was quite clear: this is where the ram had climbed over. The ram had me pinned from the moment I stuck my head over the cliff. I’m not sure if a downdraft carried our scent, but I knew we had to act fast. “Ben, the camera!” I whispered quickly. The video camera was in my pack 50 feet down the mountain behind us. Ben snuck a peak over the cliff and said, “Never mind the camera! That ram is going to blow out of here, get ready to shoot!” “How far?” I asked. Ben read the rangefinder: 191 yards. Since the ram was directly below us, I had a heck of a time getting him in my sights. “Hold my legs, Ben!” I whispered as I wiggled out over the edge. Only once my armpits were clear of the cliff edge was I was able to drop my crosshairs down onto the ram’s heart. The ram cocked his head sideways like he was listening to us and I sent the first shot on its way. Maybe it wasn’t needed, but the second shot was on its way before Ben confirmed that the first one had found its mark. Our jubilation quickly turned to horror as the ram started to flip end for end, catapulting down the mountain. It must have gone 500 yards at full speed, and would have gone a lot further if it hadn’t gotten hung up on some sharp rocks. Ben slapped me on the back saying, “Congratulations—nice shot!” All I could muster up was one nervous sentence: “There’s no way those horns survived that fall!” We sat on the top of the mountain for about 20 minutes, half enjoying the incredible view, and half afraid to go down and see how

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messed up the beautiful ram was. Finally, we started making our way down the treacherous north side of the mountain, taking a good 30 minutes to make it to the ram’s side. Digging the ram’s horns out of the loose shale, I was relieved to find that both horns were still intact. One of my shots had drilled the right horn and caused some damage, however. He was a beautiful, wide-flaring ram, with perfect matching 38 inch horns, but Ben and I had both misjudged him; he had a very tiny body. We had originally estimated him to be a 40 incher. The ram was 9 ½ years old and was still showing good growth each year. He was a direct opposite of the ram I had shot the year before, but I was still ecstatic with my trophy. I know in the future I will have many nights filled with dreams of white rams in the king’s castle. Four days later Ben and I stalked and downed a magnificent mountain caribou in full velvet, and captured great video of the hunt. This left us five full days to relax, eat tenderloin, prepare hides, and swap stories. It is often these times that end up being the most memorable. I would like to thank Ben Stourac and Chris Widrig for their outstanding service. Chris has an exceptional commitment to keeping his outfitting area in the Yukon wild, untouched, and properly managed. If you’re looking for a quality Yukon hunt, I highly recommend Widrig Outfitters. EDITOR’S NOTE You can reach Widrig Outfitters at 867.393.3802 or www.widrigoutfitters.com

GOABCâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s

Fair Chase Food Program MEAT DONATION

Hunting in BC?

Consider leaving some meat behind for our Fair Chase Food Program. Since this program began in 1993, GOABC has delivered more than 436,000 pounds of game meat, donated by our members, to families in need and local charities throughout British Columbia. In 2011, we donated 300 two-pound packages of meat on a Monday and they were all dispersed by Wednesday. There are many families in need within our communities; you can help support them by providing a portion of your meat to the Fair Chase Food Program. Call GOABC at 604.541.6332 or email programs@goabc.org

Mountain Hunter â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Fall 2014 < 11

GOABC ANNUAL FUNDRAISER MARCH 27-28 2015 • KELOWNA BC

HIGHLIGHTS Over 20 hunts available Silent Auction Draws Fish & Game Banquet Gala Dinner

Wildlife Stewardship is Our True Priority

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1.877.818.2688 info@goabc.org www.goabc.org

DOUBLE EAGLE GUIDES & OUTFITTERS Babine Lake & Takla Lake BIG GAME HUNTS:

Canadian Moose • Mountain Goat • Wolf • Black Bear • Grizzly Bear Stewart Berg Box 86, Topley, BC Canada VOJ 2Y0 Tel/Fax: 250.696.3122 info@doubleeagleoutfitters.com doubleeagleoutfitters.com

YUKON HUNTS DALL SHEEP MOOSE CARIBOU GRIZZLY

Contact: CHRIS & SHARRON McKINNON PO BOX 89 Calling Lake, AB T0G 0K0 (P) 780-331-2440 www.huntbpo.com chris@huntbpo.com

ALBERTA HUNTS BLACK BEAR WHITETAIL DEER TRAPLINE TOURS

Contact: CHRIS & SHARRON McKINNON PO BOX 89 Calling Lake, AB T0G 0K0 (P) 780-331-2440 www.huntmco.com chris@huntmco.com

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Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 < 13

a bald I

was standing in a makeshift brush blind with 15 to 20 mph winds blowing, it was about 37°F out. I had been there for an hour or so watching the trail. I’d left my right hand glove off, as I wanted to have my trigger finger ready, but it was getting too cold. I slung my rifle over my shoulder, dug my glove out of my pocket, and slipped it on. This took only 15 seconds or so, and when I looked up, I thought to myself “I don’t remember seeing that black stump before.” Then the “stump” twitched an ear, and I saw that it was looking directly at me. I was on the second day of a week-long hunt with my friend Allan Tew of Chilanko Forks Outfitters in the Chilcotin—Cariboo range of West-Central British Columbia. As I stood there, finally realizing that I was looking at a fair sized bear, I hissed out the side of my mouth “Bear! Bear! Bear!” Allan was standing about 6 feet to my right on a small mound of dirt, glassing down the

14 > Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014

road. The bear was about 40 yards from me, and standing broadside. In the time it had taken me to put on a glove it had appeared without a sound. I was amazed at how quiet an animal this size could be. It must have weighed well over 200 pounds. The bear looked at me for a few seconds, then lowered its head and walked down the road away from us. Allan walked over and asked me why I didn’t shoot, and I told Allan that I could see the bear had a narrow head and shoulders, which wasn’t what I was looking for. Allan agreed, and since he had a couple small trees in his line of sight, and I had a better view of the bear Al said I had made a good call. While we were talking about it, I caught sight of movement to my left and looked over. The bear was circling us! His head was to the ground and swinging side to side. His beady black eyes were fixed on my position. That sucker was 70 yards away and stalking us. I brought my rifle up, and was ready to

shoot, when Allan touched my arm and said not to shoot. Instead he tossed a rock and told the bear to go away. Lucky for the bear, he listened. When I arrived the winds were blowing hard and keeping it on the cold side. There had been a storm that had blown in off the coast, so the skies were mostly clear with broken clouds. We went out to do some scouting, when we came across tractor tire tracks on the road. We were curious, because Allan said there wasn’t a reason for a tractor to be up in that area. We followed the tracks until they turned off the main road and went down this little two-wheel rut access road. We only went 80 to 100 yards down when we saw a large bear running into the brush. We stopped, got out and looked around, and could see numerous bear tracks crossing and re-crossing the road. Allan figured out there was a good feeding area there. The decision was made to back out for the rest of the day and let things settle down, before

faced bruin by Patrick Vaughn

returning early the next day to set up and see what showed up. There were some large, medium, and small bear tracks, so the odds were good that we’d see that big guy again. We were hoping that we hadn’t messed up the area but those things happen. The following day we went back and this time I took along my trail cam. I wanted to set it up and see if we could get pictures of what was coming and going. I placed it along a very well-traveled trail, and kept my fingers crossed. We spent several hours watching, and listening, but the day was a bust. Wednesday May 1st dawned quiet and very cold; I think it was 19°F. The winds had died down and the skies were clear and blue. This was perfect weather for hunting. We loaded up and headed back for another try at ‘Mister Big.’ I also wanted to get my camera and see what was on it, if anything.

We followed our usual plan, parked a quarter-mile away, and walked in to the blind. As we walked as quietly as possible, Allan heard a crashing in the brush and thought we had scared the bear off. After some quietly mumbled expletives, we started on again and after only a few steps I grabbed Allan by the arm and stopped. I could see the top of a bears head and ears through the trees. I could see that he was a big bear and was pacing and weaving side to side. He was in dark shadows though, and didn’t present any kind of shot. Fortunately the winds were blowing steady in our faces, so he couldn’t smell us. Allan handed me my shooting stick, and I set up and waited. I was carrying my favorite Remington 30.06 and was ready to fire if, or when, he stepped out. I knew it was more likely that he would turn and run deeper into the trees. So we waited. I noticed Allan, who was to my right, would lean in close and have his head near my shoulder. I thought

he was just looking at my point of aim, but he slowly moved to my left and did the same thing. I didn’t want to ask because I was focused on the bear. After about 15 to 20 minutes I saw the bear start to walk out into the open. His head was raised and I could see his nose twitching as he tried to get our scent. He had a very fat, short neck and was thick across the shoulders. I knew that he was ‘Mister Big.’ Allan whispered, “He’s big, shoot him!” I whispered back “There’s a tree in the way.” The clever bear had stopped with a small evergreen tree between us. I took a deep breath, thinking that he was going to see or smell us and be gone. But then he stepped out and gave me a perfect broadside shot. My shot struck him a couple inches behind the shoulder. I saw him stagger and lope across the road as I chambered a fresh round. As he entered the trees I saw him stop, than fall over. Allan and I celebrated. CONTINUED ON PAGE 17

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As we waited for the bear to expire, I asked Allan what he had been doing leaning near me while we were waiting to see what the bear would do. He replied that when we first spotted the bear he could hear a “thudding” and he was listening to my heartbeat. I was excited, but oh my god! My guide has great hearing. While waiting I asked Allan “What was different about this bear? He looked like he had a two tone coat.” As we approached we saw what it was. The bear had no hair on his face! I’ve seen bears with rubbed off hair on their sides and backs but never on the face like this one. After the pictures it was time

to get down to work. We each grabbed a leg and rolled the bear over. On his chest was a large backwards “C” blaze. I’d never seen that before. When I shot the bear, we celebrated quietly; but when we saw that C we shouted “YEEEEAH!”, loud enough to knock pine needles off the trees. I couldn’t believe my luck in taking such a unique trophy. Al started skinning the bear and I remembered my trail camera that I had set up the previous afternoon. I walked over and got the SD card and put it into my digital camera to see what had been recorded.

There was a man many years ago that taught me to hunt, fish, and to love the outdoors. He was strong, yet gentle. Stern and firm, yet kind. He had eyes the color of the sky that when happy shone with the warmth of a summer sun, but when angry gave off the coldness of an artic glacier. He believed that your word and a handshake was binding. This man was my Dad. I dedicate this story to him. Thanks Dad. EDITOR’S NOTE You can reach Chilanko Forks Outfitters at 250.296.4773 or www.chilankoforksoutfitters.com

I ended up with 5 great pictures of the bear. Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 < 17

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it’s never easy by Bruce Hutcheon

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came to the realization that, at age 61, I needed to commit to my goat hunt now, or just maybe the passage of time would not be so kind to me. I was talking to a friend who told me about Mike Hawkridge of Tatlow Mountain Outfitters. Mike sounded like just the type of guide I wanted to hunt with, so I made the call to him. Mike was soft spoken and listened to how I answered his questions. Can you climb? Can you ride? Can you shoot? Are you mentally ready for a tough hunt? I told Mike that I would be 62 in the fall, overweight, but could ride, shoot and was willing to prepare myself for the rigors of the hunt. He must have believed me because he said he would guide me to a respectable mountain goat, so long as I did my part.

at the rifle range with my favorite rifle, a 30-06 named ‘The Rock.’ At the end of the shooting session I had proven I could put 5 shots inside a 2.5” group at 300 yards.

So that’s what I did. First was a full doctor’s physical to assure myself that my heart could take the increase in physical activity. I passed, so it was game on! I started my weight loss program originally weighing 240 pounds. By August 29, 2008, I was down to 220. As a mid-summer test, I made a hike up Big Cottonwood Canyon in Utah. The three hour, six-mile round trip ascended over 3000 feet and proved to me that I was ready for the hunt. My final exam was

Saturday’s first order of business was ensuring ‘The Rock’ was dead on after the long flight and rough truck ride to camp. Four inches high at 100 yards was the verdict. Mike smiled and knew that part of the equation was in place for success. The next day, I leisurely packed my gear in panniers before mounting up on my horse ‘Lady Jane’ and heading out with my guide Tom, camp cook Alice, and camp dog Lobo, who led the way. A misty rain was falling as

My flights and customs clearing were seamless, and I was feeling some great karma as my rifle case slid on to the luggage rack. My duffel, rifle case and carry-on’s were all present and accounted for. At baggage claim Mike walked up and extended his hand to welcome me to British Columbia and Tatlow Mountain Outfitters. I liked this man already by his straight talk, great smile, and positive manner. We finalized all the town chores, picked up the camp cook Alice, and headed out to Yohetta Wilderness Lodge. Five hours later we rolled into beautiful Tuzcha Lake as the sun was setting over the Chilcotin Range.

we left the corrals. The rain promised that snow would be falling up at our spike camp ‘Graveyard.’ A tale is told of two prospectors who never made it out of the high country one winter, and the following spring their remains were found as the snow receded in the high alpine basin. Indeed, there are two graves there marked with old pots and pans. The ride through the forest and onto the high alpine country was wet but without wind. ‘Lady Jane’ was a surefooted mare and never missed a step during our ride. ‘Graveyard’ camp was full of surprises; on our arrival there was definite evidence of a grizzly visiting the camp. Lobo went on full alert as we unpacked the panniers. Tom grabbed his rifle and instructed me to do the same and follow him. Lobo continued to growl but nothing showed. What a welcome to spike camp! Soon we had a fire going, and with a gentle breeze rustling the tent we settled in for the night. Morning came enshrouded in a fog. We hung around camp until the fog lifted, then off we went to the high country that mountain goats call home. Tom knows these mountains, as he grew up here, and has seen every nook and cranny. We rode up about 2500 feet in elevation and found our first CONTINUED ON PAGE 22 Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 < 21

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basin to glass. We gained another 500 feet of elevation to basin number two, and found evidence of mountain goats in the form of tuffs of hair, but once again, after an hour of glassing, the verdict was that there was no one home. He looked up the side of the mountain and said that we needed to get up there to check out the next basin. Up there is a 500 feet near vertical climb in shale leading our horses. It was awesome to look into these high alpine basins and see perfect mountain goat habitat, but again no one was home. Tuesday came with a new skiff of snow on the mountain slopes above camp. Mike had arrived at camp last evening and was now my guide. We saddled up for the ascent to timberline. He and I rode even higher than yesterday to get in to a different drainage. Above timberline, we tied off our horses on stunted conifer. We hiked about a half mile. Mike took the lead to peer into the basin. Soon he signaled that he had found a mountain goat at the head off the basin but that it was over 800 yards away. We had to drop back to remain out of sight and climb the mountain to gain elevation. It took a while to gain 1500 feet, but we reached a vantage point only to have Mike peer over the edge and discover that it was a lone nanny and, though legal, we should pass. I nodded in agreement, and we continue to the summit and worked the ridge towards other basins. We reached our glassing location and peered into numerous basins without a sighting. Mike told me that we would leave these mountains in the morning, return to the lodge, and then hunt another area tomorrow afternoon. We awoke to a steady rain that slowly turned to a misty morning. Not the best conditions, but we made the best of it and walked the lower lake trail in less than three hours. Mike checked on me from time to time and just smiled as we rode along the lake trail leading to the lodge. No complaints from me as it was all part of the adventure. Once we got to the lodge Mike told me to get my daypack together and be ready to leave in an hour after he took care of unpacking the horses. Gwen, the lodge chef, had a wonderful stew for our quick lunch and then wished us good hunting as we left for a 4x4 ride to timberline. It was about a two hour drive to the point where we left the lodge, and another quick ninety minute climb to get to the alpine basin Mike had in mind for the afternoon hunt. Unfortunately, we were not the only hunters on the mountain; two resident hunters had also decided to hunt this basin. They had a head start, but Mike knew how to get around the side of the mountain to a place that would allow us to glass and determine if any goats were home. The race was on! It didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t take Mike long to find three mountain goats on our side of the basin. Now things got very interesting; the other two hunters were visible just below the peak looking down into the basin, and surely could see at least one of the bedded mountain goats. We were level with the mountain goats at 400 yards away. I crawled forward to view my first legal mountain goat through the spotting scope. He looked awesome bedded in the shale across the basin, with great mass to his horns all the way to the tips. Mike confirmed the

22 > Mountain Hunter â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Fall 2014

one on the left was best of the three, and should go nine inches. He handed me my rangefinder, and I dialed the bedded goat at 434 yards, with no wind, and no elevation variance. I said, “I can make the shot.” I replaced the spotting scope with ‘The Rock.’ The bipod allowed me to hold steady, and I set the crosshair at the top of the shoulder and squeezed the trigger. The goat absorbed the shot and began to traverse the slope to a rock. The Billy reached the rock, and lied down out of sight.

ridge, we dropped our daypacks to listen and look for the animal. Due to the steepness of terrain, I could only see the Billy’s horns.

Mike and I gathered our gear and headed upward to gain altitude before crossing the half-mile wide basin. It took a while to reach where the mountain goat was first bedded. We confirmed that he was hit hard. We followed the blood trail to the second bed, which again confirmed a hard hit. Mike and I rapidly climbed the ridge where we last saw the goat, and upon reaching the top of the

The morning dawned bright and sunny. We traveled the same 4x4 road and parked just below timberline. We climbed quickly to the high basin, and traversed its rocky slopes. We paused to plan our descent to the fallen Billy. It was some 200 yards of rotten shale and loose talus that we had to negotiate. Mike looked me in the eye and asked if I was up for the descent. He did not want me to go

I readied myself to shoot, and the Billy stood and looked at me as ‘The Rock’ boomed, sending the Billy off the ledge to a resting place. Mike and I watched and discussed the recovery. Time of day, cloud cover, and moisture were against a safe recovery that night. We verified that the mountain goat had expired, and decided to return in the morning to recover my trophy.

unless I was comfortable with the situation. It was very steep, and offered no real easy way down (easy being a relative term here). I realized the danger of the situation, but was confident of my ability to make it down and back with no harm to Mike or myself. So it’s off the side of the mountain we go, slowly making our way to the goat using any handholds available. After a few more tense minutes, we finally arrived where the goat had come to rest. The view was magnificent. Mike got to work and I held the trophy so he could work as efficiently as possible, given the steepness of the mountain slope we found ourselves on. The cape and edible meat came off the goat, and we made the ascent back to the ridge. Trophy, guide, and hunter headed to the waiting lodge with a true wilderness experience forever etched in our memory.

EDITOR’S NOTE You can reach Mike Hawkridge of Big Country Outfitters at 1.877.482.8569 or www.bigcountryguides.com, and you can contact Tatlow Mountain Outfitters at 1.877.482.8569.

Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 < 23

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co About Shane

e of is considered on Shane Mahoney ities on rnational author the leading inte bination tion. A rare com va er ns co e lif ild w pher he ntist and philoso ie sc n, ia or st hi of life issues rspective to wild pe ue iq un a gs brin diences and inspired au ed at iv ot m s that ha e 10 Most amed one of th N . ld or w e th around ionists by adian Conservat Influential Can d nominated a Magazine an ad an C or do ut O or Life e Year by Outdo for Person of th erous m s received nu Magazine, he ha ice rv g the Public Se awards includin ve go rnment lence from the Award of Excel and d and Labrador of Newfoundlan of the Year by onservationist International C and raised rnational. Born te In b lu C ri fa Sa writings he brings to his d an dl un fo ew in N t to rural nd commitmen ou of pr a es ur ct tural and le nable use of na ai st su e th d an societies fish. ing wildlife and resources, includ

Thank you to Sports Afield for permission to reprint this article.

28 > Mountain Hunter â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Fall 2014

believe it will be in this century that the great significance of conservation will be realized. With seven billion human beings demanding so much of one good planet, it is now inevitable that a collision between our numbers and our expectations must occur. The desire of peoples everywhere for a full and reasonable life will place unprecedented demands on natural systems, demands that may well lie beyond the earthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s capacity to provide. If this is true then the great notion launched upon the world over a hundred years ago that we term conservation will become the one idea that can truly save humanity. In its embrace will lie our future, a future only possible if the great web of life upon which we and all creatures depend is protected and sustained. It may seem incredible to us living in the twenty first century that far sighted individuals called this matter to our attention so very long ago. How was it that individuals like Theodore Roosevelt, George Bird Grinnell, Gordon Hewitt and Sir Wilfred Laurier were able to see so clearly the problems of excessive natural resource use and to predict such dire consequences for North American society? More importantly, how were these individuals able to instil these notions in the political and economic institutions of their time? How on a continent with vast areas still unoccupied, with an extraordinary abundance of natural capital and very few people by todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s standards did a movement centered on the conservation of nature and the wise use of renewable natural resources take hold? What indeed are the secrets to

onservation matters

™

with Shane Mahoney

Size, Influence, and Power: Are These the Wings of Leadership? effective conservation leadership? It is natural enough that we should develop an impression that only individuals of social or political prominence were responsible for conservation’s success; and that political influence, in particular, is the essential runway for great ideas. After all, isn’t this the lesson that most historical reconstructions deliver? Thus it is not surprising that so many conservation organizations today focus on attaining political influence as a means to advance their programs. Furthermore, it would be ridiculous to suggest that engaging the political process in a democratic environment is without utility or impact. However, it is an open question as to whether political elites and the influence they appear to have had in hindsight are the result of the lobbying of the few or the understood desires and commitments of

the many. I suggest that if democracy has taught us anything, it is that the wishes of the people, when expressed, will override any other political agenda. Despite this salient truth, the conservation movement has to a large extent moved away from an agenda of trying to convince society of the social, cultural and economic value of our positions. To what end, we should certainly ask; for this was the truck and traffic, indeed the very raison d’être of our birth and founding. It was the rallying cry of our leaders and the great hope of our visionaries. It was the dialogue in our meeting halls and our back rooms, in our pubs and our restaurants, in our club houses and offices; in the parlours and storefronts, the newspapers and magazines of our earliest, and I would argue, our greatest time in conservation. Regrettably, this trade for public influence has been set

aside. We no longer strive for the hearts of our nations’ publics. We have replaced this with an emphasis on membership rosters and obtaining political influence, both often emphasizing specific issues that can hardly be viewed as being of the greatest public value or concern. The result has been an indifferent public, by and large, and one totally uninformed about conservation issues and the relevance of hunting in modern times. It seems to me that the very things we lament are the things we have worked hardest to realize. Isn’t it time for this to change? Isn’t it abundantly clear that the elephant in the room for hunting and for conservation generally is the public we have failed to engage? Isn’t it time to delve into the true nature of conservation leadership and CONTINUED ON PAGE 30

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CONTINUED FROM PAGE 29

adopt those principles for moving our agenda forward? Isn’t it time to remember that just as a man must draw back to leap, so too must a society or intellectual movement? If one studies the progress of ideas—indeed the very nature of progress itself—this conclusion is inescapable. I am prepared to argue that we have been treating the issues of hunting’s relevance and conservation’s importance as though they were marketing slogans for the advancement of our organizations, rather than matters of profound significance to the quality of our lives and the essential worth of our nations.

wheel could be made without the hands of the public upon it. They knew that to carry the great ideas forward they needed more than an influential office, a few political allies or a devoted club membership. They understood that in democracies something greater than the individual exists, regardless of how significant the individual is. They understood the mechanics of change.

Yet, paradoxically, they also recognized that nothing moves beyond the conceptual unless an individual (or group), somewhere, somehow, decides to accept the yoke of leadership and action. In this regard they imparted two essential truths; namely, Yet these latter were precisely the messages that while the individual and his allies of those great founders of our conservation may incite, only the masses may ultimately movement; those individuals whom today we succeed; yet, the masses must be catalyzed so often refer to and worship. It is important to action by specific influence just as the for us to remember that individuals like tides must be pulled and pushed to the land Roosevelt and Laurier viewed conservation wash margins. The resting potential of the democratic ideals must be roused from not only as a matter of national concern, slumber, lassitude being the normal state but also as a matter of national relevance. of play, this being true of conservation as Relentless citizens, they sought to improve for any other matter of social engagement. the inherent worth of their countries and The good news in all of this, it seems to recognized that prudent, wise use of natural me, is that the public’s current indifference resources and the conservation of wildlife may be the greatest of all opportunities were signatures of progressive leadership. for ideas to take hold. In some regards the Yet, regardless of their political influence most fertile ground is always that which or personal prestige, these individuals lies unfurrowed. Indeed, I suggest this is understood that no such turn of society’s in part why Roosevelt and company were so successful in their The Guide Outfitters Association of British Columbia time, bringing a new g amon shift l menta funda a idea to the national start to wants BC) (GOA all focus of proud and about caring to ng hunters from caring about hunti emergent North wildlife. Ranchers care about cattle and anglers care American nations. about their

about fish, but hunters seem to only care sport. Hunters must be committed to the responsible use of wildlife resources and passionate about preserving a diversity of wildlife species. The GOABC is a strong supporter of the North American Wildlife Conservation Model, which stipulates that law and science should manage wildlife. This model is the result of hunters and anglers who were dedicated to conservation. As anti-hunting pressure becomes louder, it becomes increasingly important to continue and enhance the legacy of the hunter conservationist.

30 > Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014

What then are the true lessons from our conservation past? How did the legendary heroes of conservation accomplish what they did, against such improbable odds? Was it all a matter of size, inf luence and power? I should think not. Theodore

Roosevelt, John Muir and George Bird Grinnell were probably three of the most successful conservation leaders of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Between them they launched both the wilderness movement and the North American wildlife conservation success story that we benefit so extravagantly from today and which together encircle one of the greatest achievements of modern society. The vision they crystallized and the pathway to progress they engineered are lessons in success. I suggest we study them closely. In doing so we will discover that size, influence and power are not the real wings of leadership, as significant as they might be. Discovering and discoursing with the public and delivering to them the ideals we believe to be of importance and value, this is the hallmark of leadership. This is what Roosevelt, Muir and Grinnell excelled in, and why they and Laurier and Hewitt and all those other conservation rebels devoted their energies towards public engagement. For if our efforts are not directed to the good of society, rather than to our personal or organizational largesse, can we really defend our efforts as an exercise of the national interest? Isn’t our goal to ensure a future for our national treasures of wilderness and wildlife, of cherished cultures and traditions such as hunting and all that incredible experience entails? I believe our conservation organizations are getting off track, though our motivations may be above reproach. Believing that more members or warm handshakes from the political insiders will give us more influence, have we forgotten the true mission of our leadership as well as our best chance of accomplishing it? Seemingly we believe that more of the same will lead to the change we seek. I do not believe this. It is like constantly improving the design of a car when what we really need is an aircraft. Like true leadership the winds of change also require wings—not bigger wheels. No matter how improbable or chaotic, these wings will be fashioned in the hands of the common man. Our movement must get back to a dialogue with him.

VISION

MISSION

GOABC The mission of the Guide Outfitters Association of British Columbia (GOABC) is to be the leader among guide outfitting associations in the areas of governance and organizational performance while ensuring legal and ethical integrity. The GOABC promotes guide outfitting to government and within our communities. We help market the Canadian northwest as the premier hunting destination and endorse the responsible, sustainable and ethical use of the wildlife resource. We encourage our members to honour a Code of Conduct and follow best practices to ensure the highest quality wilderness experiences for hunting clients. The vision of the GOABC is a province with a strong and stable guide outfitting industry, innovative wildlife conservation projects led by hunters, and abundant big game populations for all to enjoy, both today and in the future. Mountain Hunter â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Fall 2014 < 31

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Mountain Hunter â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Fall 2014 < 35

GOABC LIFE 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 †

Don Kirn* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MS Gary Bogner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MI Robert Anderson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC J.W. Mather . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC Barry Naimark † . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Keith Connors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Bernie Fiedeldey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OH Kelly Davis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Carl Phillips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR Alden Glidden . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR Dave Wiens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB Kevin Olmstead . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Victoria Olmstead . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Sean Olmstead . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Nathan Olmstead . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Frank Bower* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB Rolf Larson † . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ND Gary Koopman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Nancy Koopman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Harry McCowan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Sherry Bradford † . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Eric Mikkelson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Brian Tinker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR Gomer Erickson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WI Larry Bell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Allen Shearer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Bill Kiefer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ND Dana Campbell † . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AK David Witmer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PA Dale Gaugler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PA Peter Schnabl . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AUT Joe Krejci . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IL Brad Miller* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR Daryll Hosker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Holton Quinn* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ID Rick Taylor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Rodney Denton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . LA Bjorn Ostervold † . . . . . . . . . . . . . NOR Jay Baker † . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Tom Lally . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Kenneth Tuttle † . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR Ken Tuttle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR Brian Pelczar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MT David Nelson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Jim Marhofer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MI Wilhelm Klee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DEU Bert Kizer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GA Tom Johnson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Tom Shearer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Garth Carter* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . UT Rod Fogle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA

52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102

Joe Leta † . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CO Jerry Tyrrell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA David Thompson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Mike Justice † . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ID Del Carter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Roger Baber . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . VI Dick Jacobs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Rick Jarvis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NY Richard Deane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Rocky Crate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Tom McDonald . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PA Thomas Hillebrande . . . . . . . . . . . NH James Colosimo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FL Fran Colosimo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FL Joe Colosimo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FL Nick Colosimo* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FL Gary Tuohy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MI Susan Tuohy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MI Kirk Fordice* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MS Johnny Rodrigues . . . . . . . . . . . . . NY Clint Bentley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NV David Bull* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ID Don Burch* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ID Stan Lancaster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . YK Tommy Ford . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NV John Wasserburger . . . . . . . . . . . . NV Larry Brough . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PA Mark Southard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MD Stan Cosart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CA Jeff Phipps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Robert Jones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Ralph Gitz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PA Karl Tyler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MT Harvey Fenton* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NV Richard Furman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NV Gary Jorgensen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ND Taz Ridley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . KS Lee McKenzie † . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NV Fred Douglas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . KS Ralph Maida* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC David Gubler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NV Norm Blaney . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Philip Krum, Jr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CA Riley Ferguson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . TN Archie Nesbitt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB Van Dorathy* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MT Kevin Shearer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Andrew Shearer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MT Jeff Owens † . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR Wilf Boardman* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC Greg Sawchuck . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC

Deceased, *Missing in Action (please contact GOABC to update your address)

36 > Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014

103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153

Alan Hamberlin* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AZ Grant Dalen* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NV Lyle Barsby . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Iowa Chapter of FNAWS . . . . . . . . IO Johnny Christian* . . . . . . . . . . . . . GA Stephen Mistretta . . . . . . . . . . . . . FL Ed Minto . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MI Ronald Simek . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WY Tracy Peterson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Dale Scott . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Alan Chopp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NJ John Andre . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WY Shane Black . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Gary Grant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . TX Brian Swift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC John McGregor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Gary Hull* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NV Ken Pickering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Jim Fulton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Jim Stevens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Rocky Mackin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . UT Hugh Pettit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IL Steve McNamara . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CA Ron Andrews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PA Kurt Rosar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DEU SCI - NE Michigan Chapter . . . . . . . MI Jergen Shchulz* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Ernst Schlaeppi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CHE Denise Collett . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Gary Collett . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC Kent Deligans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . TX J.F. Ollenberg, Jr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . AUS Paul Thompson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Charles Cheshire . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA John Rousseau . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WI Dick Rousseau* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WI Randy Hopp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR Mike Parsons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MT Stan Neff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MI Finley (Ike) Brunetti . . . . . . . . . . . MS Thomas Losk* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PA Ed Parish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CA James Cummings . . . . . . . . . . . . . FL Ron Pitcock* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CO Kenneth Davis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Roger Hooper* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . TX Eric Peterson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA His Imperial & Royal Highness Archduke Rudolf of Austria . . . . CHE Gary Rueb . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MT Randy Gee* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Stefan Eckschlager . . . . . . . . . . . AUT

154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196 197 198 199 200 201 202 203 204

Frank Kirsch, Jr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR Dean Mori . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PA Alan Ford . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AUS Markus Ospelt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . LIE Mike Wilmot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MI Lance Norris . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MI Troy Cummins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR Brenda Nelson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC James Brooks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Ken Nagel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Todd Thorndike . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Wayne Dalgleish* . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Glen Kitsch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Matt Mitchell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Lee Howard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . UT Mark Bansner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PA George Mann* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AL Kostynuk Outfitting Co . . . . . . . . AB Alfredo Julian . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Casey Brooks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Jerry Stroh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Linda Lancaster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB Jim Stroh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Maynard Anderson . . . . . . . . . . . WA Dick Storgaard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Ed Sauley, III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NE Shane Watson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Bob Nielsen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC George Snyder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DE Doug Davis* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Jean Davis* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Ron Fitch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Mark Velthouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MI Ron Nykamp* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MI Frank Paino . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NY Ray Jackson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Daniel Gauthier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MI Larry Tyson* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MN Sid Websdale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB Michael Peppel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MI Cathy Lancaster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB Bart Lancaster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Clay Lancaster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Guy Shockey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Jim Shockey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Dale Drown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . YK Ron Fleming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Ellie Wiens* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Rod Wilt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MI Charles Smith . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GA Bob McCormick . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA

MEMBERS 205 206 207 208 209 210 211 212 213 214 215 216 217 218 219 220 221 222 223 224 225 226 227 228 229 230 231 232 233 234 235 236 237 238 239 240 241 242 243 244 245 246 247 248 249 250 251 252 253 254 255 256

Kerry Mann . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Rick Garzoli, Jr.* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CA Delvin Lockard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PA J. Barry Burgess . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AL Jerry Horn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PA Jens Piening . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DEU Marco Gardini* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MI SCI - Denver Chapter . . . . . . . . . . CO Ray Demarchi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Fletcher Day † . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Monte Schumann . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Dieter Weinhold* . . . . . . . . . . . . DEU Chris A. Dianda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NV Ray Yelland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . UT Lyle E. Hach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .WI Lenenrt Fostberg . . . . . . . . . . . . SWE James P. Harris . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IL J. Steven Mohr . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Robert C. Harter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MI Clifford (Bud) Pulsifer . . . . . . . . . . MN William E. Roberts, Jr. . . . . . . . . . . MI David Christensen . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR Dan Heyne . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OH Roy Mulvahill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC James Schueller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MN Dallas Safari Club . . . . . . . . . . . . TX Bill DuBois . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Earl McKellar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Ransom F. Spurlock, II . . . . . . . . . . NV Tim Faiers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Ron Taylor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB Gordon Bennet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MI Dave Hooper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Brian Kadrmas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ND Keith Dinwoodie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Ronald Pomeroy . . . . . . . . . . . . . WY Bill Wilson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MT Charles (Dennis) Anderson . . . . . . . . CA Arnold T. Holmberg . . . . . . . . . . . MN Hans-Peter Buchs . . . . . . . . . . . . CHE Lester Bloin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC Laurence R. Fountain † . . . . . . . . MA SCI - Granite Bay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CA Ronald Kull . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NY Richard Kull . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NY Soren Sorenson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DNK Glenn Venus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Mike Kidall . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA SCI - Tuscon Chapter . . . . . . . . . . .AZ Dan Groninger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PA Joyce Maitland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB Jerry Kolke . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NM

257 258 259 260 261 262 263 264 265 266 267 268 269 270 271 272 273 274 275 276 277 278 279 280 281 282 283 284 285 286 287 288 289 290 291 292 293 294 295 296 297 298 299 300 301 302 303 304 305 306 307

Harve R. Dethlefts . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR Eric M. Muff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB Sean Lingl . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Don Wolfenden . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Lynne Damant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC James Kirkpatrick . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR Blair Soars . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PA Charles Semler, Jr. . . . . . . . . . . . . MD Larry Russak . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Peter Amhof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AUT Gholam Golsorkhi . . . . . . . . . . . . . NY Larry Merillat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MI John Michelloti . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MT Sharon Rhodes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Dennis Dunn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA SCI - LA Chapter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CA Richard Gronblom . . . . . . . . . . . . . FIN Jeff C. Gunter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Gary Hill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CO Rudy Gauss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Ronald D. Carey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB Stuart Maitland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Robert Milligan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC William Jenkins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CA T.J. Kraft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MI Mike Dianda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NV Doug Schippers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MI Richard Machin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Robert Machin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Glen Kuenzl † . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Pat Beane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Steve Whisler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MT Naozo Kasahara . . . . . . . . . . . . . . JPN Terrance Marcum . . . . . . . . . . . . . CO William Clous . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MI Charles (Chuck) LaMar . . . . . . . . . FL Ross Peck . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Jeff Graham . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA David McCauley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Pat Miller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Eric Moland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB Sam Johnson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Ulrich Wyssbrod . . . . . . . . . . . . . CHE Chip McBroom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Dixie Hammett . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Doug Prince . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB Jerry T. Martin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Doug Eck . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Seve Michelloti . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MT Ken Clarke . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Rowan Johnson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA

308 309 310 311 312 313 314 315 316 317 318 319 320 321 322 323 324 325 326 327 328 329 330 331 332 333 334 335 336 337 338 339 340 341 342 343 344 345 346 347 348 349 350 351 352 353 354 355 356 357 358

Seattle Sportsmen’s Conservation Foundation . . . . . WA Mary Ellen Swift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Adam Swift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Shannon Venus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Stephen Venus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC Darren Thiel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Randy Rombs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB Glen Hiebert . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Lawrence Yerger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PA William Whitehead . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Tommy Johnson . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Garth Peterson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CO Leroy Thomsen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Troy Vest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR Andre Strand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NOR Debbie Beattie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Dennis Beattie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Wayne Bowd . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB Raymond Oelrich . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC David Fyfe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Steve Letcher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AZ Tyler Thorndike . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA David Currier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ND Steve Eicholtz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ND Leroy Miller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR Randall Bergeron* . . . . . . . . . . . . TX Tony Pannkuk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Cherie Jackson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Jeff Batchman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CA Kurt Schriener . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . SK Dale Hislop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB Bruce Rhein . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AK Scot Anderson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Mark Demchuk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB Sandy Wheeler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Shad Wheeler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA Vincent J. Cracchiolo . . . . . . . . . . MI Conrad Nunweiler* . . . . . . . . . . . . BC AC Smid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WY David Heitsman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Mark Gittins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Ed Swanson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR David Bahl . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WI Gary Nutini . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Lance Schneider . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB Chris Machan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB Larry Warren . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Scott Ellis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Nancy Wilkin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Dave Turchanski . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC Kathy Kirkpatrick . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR

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your support! 359 360 361 362 363 364 365 366 367 368 369 370 371 372 373 374 375 376 377 378 379 380 381 382 383 384 385 386 387 388 389 390 391 392 393 394 395 396 397

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Shawn & Sandra Raymond YUKON BIG GAME OUTFITTERS LTD. Phone: (250) 264-2512 Email: shawn-ybg@hotmail.com Website: www.yukonbiggame.com Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 < 39 9/4/14 8:33 AM

some things just happen for a reason by Craig Summerfield

40 > Mountain Hunter â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Fall 2014

t was day six of a seven day hunt for a tom mountain lion. My lynx was already in the bag, with my British Columbian cougar still lurking out there. The outfitter and I had been searching for tracks long and hard all week long, with hundreds of miles beneath us. It wasn’t until about noon when we saw a set of adolescent cougar tracks traveling together, which were surely those of a male and female. The outfitter looked at me and asked, “What would you like to do?” The outfitter was Doug McMann of Skinner Creek Hunts out of Tatlayoko Lake, British Columbia. I met Doug on an internet hunting forum after reading several stories posted by him and other hunters. I was really impressed by the size of the cats he was taking, and the more I learned of Doug and his operation, the more interested I became. Since this was going to be my second and last

attempt at taking a trophy-size tom cougar, I wanted to go where the opportunity was high and the outfitter was dedicated. More importantly than this, I needed an outfitter that was going to be patient and understanding of my needs. Since multiple sclerosis had left my eyesight imperfect seven years prior, this was important to me.

to gather my required licenses and permits. The drive to Doug’s place typically takes about three hours, but it took a bit longer, as we stopped to look for tracks along the way. This also allowed us to gauge the snowfall and activity in the outer limits of his area. Several different tracks of wolf, lynx, coyote, and fox were discovered, but no cougar.

Doug has much experience with assisting the handicapped of various degrees in chasing, and in many cases, obtaining their dreams in the field. He is a true supporter of the Wounded Warriors in Action Foundation, and has helped improve and promote the Action Track Chair. Several of his hunts have even been filmed and broadcasted with these heroes and hunting celebrities.

I used this opportunity to explain my disease and to physically show Doug my visual limitations. Explaining these limitations has always been very difficult and embarrassing for me, but it brought the greatest sense of relief after I explained it to him. Eventually, we made it back to Doug’s beautiful log cabin, where I met his wife Julie and his daughter Courtney. Julie prepared a wonderfully delicious meal as we planned our strategy for the upcoming days. Julie was a highly regarded cook amongst all the

My hunt took place during the first week of December and Doug met me at the William’s Lake airport after a short flight from Vancouver. While in town, I was able

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hunters, so my expectations were high; and I was not let down one bit. When dinner ended, Doug escorted me to my own quarters, which was a short drive from the main cabin. The fully furnished log cabin had two bedrooms, one fully operational bathroom, living room, electric heat and a woodstove. The next morning we crossed a fairly decent tom cougar track. Doug studied the track for a while, and even let the dogs out to examine, but it was determined to be an older track and so we decided to move on. Some of Doug’s friends who were on the road claimed they had seen some cougar tracks around their property, not too far from where we were. We had just passed their house when we located a fairly recent female cougar track. It was getting late in the day and the dogs were getting anxious to get out of their box, so we put their GPS collars on and set them free. They were on this cougar amazingly fast, and had it treed within 20 minutes. This was an exhilarating experience for me, since this was my first time ever hunting with dogs or even seeing a cougar in the wild. It really gets your blood pumping, even when it’s not your intended target. She did offer up some extraordinary photographs, though. The next morning came quickly, as I was expecting another repeat of the day before. A thin layer of snow accumulated over night, making the conditions that much better. Much to my dismay, however, the day turned out to be unproductive and exhausting. We found ourselves in a distant location, just before nightfall, meticulously making our way up the mountain while observing every disturbance in the snow. In the headlights of the truck, shadows of a larger track crossed the road, but were passed off as a recent moose track. Doug’s intuition had him reversing back for a closer look. The aforementioned moose track actually turned out to be a large tom cougar track, and my fixation for the next three days of the hunt. It was a good feeling, knowing this time we had a clue to start the day off. The dogs were released and observed on the GPS monitor as they worked the scent. Doug grew concerned when the dogs began to split apart from one another due to poor snow conditions, so we decided to venture in ourselves. It became obvious that the tom was pursuing a moose, and had actually made an attempt at it, as the drops of blood in the moose tracks indicated. The red drops eventually faded into nothing and we found ourselves back at our starting point. Once the dogs were collected, we traveled along the roads in a large grid-like pattern, trying to hone in on the cougar’s location, or direction of travel, and hoping he might be sitting on a kill. We returned in the morning, setting out on foot in the area we thought may contain the most undiscovered evidence. The cougar’s ambush point on the injured moose was located with much sign of struggle, but no downed moose. My hopes of locating this tom were about gone as the tracks headed out of the guide area. As a morale booster on the way out, Doug decided to let the dogs run on a decent lynx track. Not far off

42 > Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014

the main road, the dogs treed the lynx and Doug claimed it was of good size, but was unsure of its sex. Doug studied the lynx for a while before ruling it a large legal female. I opted to pass on her, but not without acquiring some spectacular photographs of this majestic cat. Tatlayoko Lake was the next destination to search in the morning. In our travels, we witnessed a cougar cub crossing the road out in front of us, and took it as good omen. But we had no such luck. The large tom cougar was still on my mind, so Doug obliged by going back in that direction. This resulted in another lynx chase. After a couple hours the lynx outsmarted the dogs in piles of blown down trees and escaped, so they were pulled off the chase. Everybody, including the dogs, was physically exhausted and we did not expect to come across another set of large lynx tracks on the way back down the road. With a little coercion from Doug we were back at it again. The twenty seven pound tom lynx was treed quickly, and not too far off the road. A .22 long rifle instantly dispatched the large tom, allowing for some quick photographs before dark. I maintained a positive attitude on day six, but I was also mentally preparing myself for

the realization of a true fair chase hunt. This would be the second time I’d tried for cougar without taking one, but I was certainly grateful for at least seeing one this time. Doug suggested combing the mountain range again, where we had treed the female cougar on the first day. It wasn’t until about noon when we cut a set of cougar tracks traveling together which were obviously an adolescent. The tracks were decent sized, but not nearly as large as the tom we were pursuing the days before. Doug reminded me of our time frame and the fifty-fifty shot we had with the dogs actually finding the tom. Doug asked, “What would you like to do?” There was a hesitation before I answered, “Let’s do it,” because I knew there was a larger tom out there. The dogs quickly picked up the scents and ran straight up the mountain. The GPS monitor indicated the dogs had treed fairly quickly, but a good ways up the steep mountain. We began our ascent studying the tracks as we climbed, to possibly determine a treed tom. About half way up the mountain, we spotted a different cougar’s tracks heading across the mountain, and the tracks were much larger. Doug determined this track to be less than twelve hours old, and then I asked if

he thought the dogs could get on it. He was fairly certain they could, so we hurried up to the dogs. When we arrived, a handsome 120-pound class tom cougar was in the tree. It was not the one who left the track below however. I knew I wouldn’t be satisfied if we didn’t at least try to run the track below, because deep down I knew this is why I chose British Columbia for my cougar. It was a fairly long chase, with three dogs searching low and one lone dog searching high. Darkness was fast approaching, so we gathered the three lower dogs and drove as far as we could up the mountain to intercept the lone dog. The grade along with the deep snow left us hiking most of the way. As we were closing in on the dog, Doug discovered the large tom track we were looking for, which was only a few hours old. When the lone dog reached us, we took her off the scent, and made plans for returning in the morning. We must have played out every possible scenario that could possibly happen that evening. The worst being that the tom just kept walking straight up and over the mountain, and the best being that it made a kill and stayed put for a while. My excitement and curiosity level was running high that morning, and I wanted to CONTINUED ON PAGE 44

Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 < 43

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make sure we took full advantage of our time left. I knew if we were not on this tom by noon, the hunt would be over. We left Doug’s place well before sunrise to head back to the last location. When we arrived, I wasn’t sure who was more excited: us or the dogs. We quickly suited up and headed upwards to find our starting point. It was a clear sunny morning, with the cool mountain air coming straight down at us. I believe this aided the dogs because they took off screaming well before we even reached the track. In fact, I wasn’t sure if they were even on the cougar. I recall looking at Doug and hearing him say, “It’s on.” Then, just moments later it was “treed”. I stood there in disbelief. I sensed Doug was getting upset with me repeating “No way.” I don’t remember the exact number of times I said this, but I was truly amazed and extremely happy all at the same time. I almost didn’t want this moment to end, and we hadn’t even seen what awaited us. The steep climb didn’t even faze me, as I was just taking in the moment. The dogs’ vocals even seemed like music to my ears.

44 > Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014

As I approached the tree, the tom was high in the canopy of the fir making it very difficult for me to see. Doug knew this and climbed further up the mountain to find a clearer shot for me with his .243. Fortunately, there was a boulder almost straight on with the cougar, which presented a clear shot as long as I could sneak the bullet through the two limbs standing between us. I rested my pack on the rock and took aim. I peered through the scope, admiring the large tom and all I could do was reminisce of what we had gone through that week to bring us to this point. When I heard Doug say, “Whenever you’re ready”, it was almost sad because I didn’t want my dream to end. The tom fell instantly at the crack of the rifle followed by the echoing of dogs. I grabbed the rifle and made my way down to the cougar. My eyes began to tear up with joy along with a little sadness, as I made my way down to the cougar realizing my hardships along the way and the fulfillment of my dream. We soon realized, our best case scenario had just played out after we discovered a recent

fawn mule deer kill not too far away. The GPS indicated our position as only three hundred yards away from where we had left off the night before. The walk back down the mountain seemed almost effortless, even with a 180-pound class tom cougar dragging behind me in the deep snow. While back at Doug’s place, I brought up two points which gave us both a good laugh. The first point being if he remembered me stating on the first day that most of my trophies were hard earned, and that I always had a good story to go along with them. The second point being that this was the first time I had seen his home in the daylight since being there. My adventure was a huge success, with two lynx and three cougars being treed and one of each of the cats being taken. The official measurement of the cougar’s skull was 14.75”, and the lynx’s skull was 8.75”. EDITOR’S NOTE You can reach Skinner Creek Hunts at 250.476.1288 or www.skinnercreekhunts.com

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES FOR MOUNTAIN HUNTER™

Stories

• Recognize your guide, hunting destination, and sought species in the first few paragraphs of your story.

• A great hunting story not only describes the animals and itinerary, but expresses the significance of the hunt to you. How long had you been dreaming of this hunt? How did you first connect with your outfitter? What was the scenery like? What challenges did you encounter? These details will add to richness and familiarity of your story for your readers. • Proofread your story for clarity, but do not worry too much about the proper grammar or sentence structure—we will take care of that for you. • Try to keep the story in past tense and title it creatively. Titles and photos provide the first impression for your readers, and you want to draw them in immediately. Be sure to include several high-quality photos (1 MB or larger at 300dpi) with your submission.

• Stories should be 2500-3000 words in length and written in Microsoft Word. We prefer to receive them by email, but they can also be sent hard-copy or on CD. • Please include your full contact information with your submission (mailing address, phone number, and email).

Photos

• We are always looking for high-quality vertical photos for the magazine cover. • Guides Gallery submissions should be high-quality and 1 MB or larger. Trophies should always be presented in a respectful manner. We prefer photos where the hunter is not sitting or leaning on the animal. We are able to “clean up” some of the blood in trophy photos, but try to hide tongues and wipe away excess blood.

• Keep lighting and shadows in mind and make sure that faces and the animal are clearly visible. • Include the following details for the caption: hunter name and hometown, outfitter, animal species, and date.

Send submissions by email to programs@goabc.org or mail to: Guide Outfitters Association of BC (GOABC) Suite 103–19140 28th Avenue, Surrey, BC V3S 6M3 GOABC reserves the right to reject any materials that are objectionable or promote unethical or illegal hunting practices. Furthermore, GOABC reserves the right to edit stories as necessary and publish materials at its discretion and timeline. Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 < 45

Mackenzie Mountain Outfitters Stan Stevens Recent Trophies

Phone # 250-719-8340 www.mmo-stanstevens.com mmostanstevens@gmail.com Facebook Mackenzie Mountain Outfitters

46 > Mountain Hunter â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Fall 2014

Mountain Hunter â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Fall 2014 > 47

funky H

“

oly Crap!” Those were the first words out of my guide Gary’s mouth when I pointed out a bedded caribou about 600 yards away. “It looks like a moose with that palmation.” I was on my third hunt with Mervyn’s Yukon Outfitting, having previously taken two fine trophies—moose and a ‘traditional’ caribou still in full velvet. I was after something ‘funky’ this time. I was in camp with my husband Greg who had taken a moose earlier in this hunt. This was his fourth hunt and fifth animal taken with the Mervyn’s. I was on an 11 day hunt, and with horses we could cover a lot of territory

48 > Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014

if we needed to. One week before I left the States, we had buried my mother, who died suddenly and unexpectedly. Greg and I were looking forward to the time together and being away from the ‘real world’ which would allow me time to grieve. My mom loved to travel, but she had never been to the Yukon. Now we could take her with us. Day four of the hunt, Greg told me to put on my “lucky” caribou shirt, as we had a good feeling about the day. We had hunted west of camp (where Greg got his moose) and east of camp, so today we saddled up the horses and headed south. We had a fairly steep climb out of camp, but got up

on a plateau and started glassing. It didn’t take us long to see a caribou walking along a lakeshore about a mile away and closing. We dismounted for a better look. Greg and I were excited, but Gary was not. “Don’t wear him out looking at him,” he would say. “We can do better.” We continued south, taking the horses up and over mountains, and nearly being blown away by the mountain winds. We spotted a herd of about 50 caribou in a valley below us. Then more came out from another ridge. Then some more came up from the bottom, and suddenly caribou were everywhere. Pretty soon, we were

holy crap by Debra Stuchik

looking at close to 100 caribou, and they were totally unaware of our presence. There was a small band of Dall rams directly across from us on the next knob. Now the fun started. We dismounted our horses, tied them up, and scooted down the hillside to take a better look. We got out the binoculars and spotting scopes and started looking for ‘Mr. Funky’. Of course, caribou don’t stand still, which makes glassing a challenge, especially at a distance of up to a mile away. We watched bulls chasing the cows and fighting other bulls. Wow, what a sight! I did not have this kind of action

on my previous caribou hunt and I was enjoying it thoroughly. Then I noticed a small group of caribou coming closer and bedding down, almost at the same elevation we were at, about 600 yards away. I saw the bull of my dreams with very unique antlers and a beautiful cape, with a white stripe down his body. He had good fronts, average back-scratchers, and awesome tops. Besides the palmation that made him look more like a relative to the moose, the points were long, with the back points curving back, almost touching the caribou’s butt. He definitely fulfilled my

‘Funky’ requirement. I asked Greg, Gary and the assistant guide Laura to look at the one that caught my eye. “Holy crap!” were the first words out of Gary’s mouth. It was definitely worth a second look, and a third. We discussed the “trophy” status of the bull. No, the main beam was not extremely long or wide, the shovels and bez were average. But look at those tops, the way the number of points swept back over the bull. He definitely had the character I was after, and I decided this was the bull for me. Character, not score, was most important to me. Just then, CONTINUED ON PAGE 50 Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 < 49

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 49

the herd got up and started walking away. I remember commenting that I would never see that bull again. Gary assured me that he knew where the caribou were going, so we snuck back up the hill, got the horses and circled around to get in front of them. On our way to intercept the animals, we stopped to look over the large herd that was still in the valley. There were some real nice bulls in that herd, some probably scoring better for the record books, but none had the character I was looking for. We hiked down the hill to intercept the small herd of caribou, using the stunted spruce trees for cover. There he was with two cows between us. Gary had me lay my gun across the spruce bough for a rest. Again I thought my dream bull was going to get away from me, as the cows wouldn’t clear. Finally they cleared, but now the caribou was quartering towards me, which was definitely not the shot I preferred to take. But the caribou was under 150 yards away, my rest was rock steady, and everything just felt right. I pulled the trigger and the animal dropped in his tracks. Wow! I thought that only happened on television. I had never been so excited. As I got closer to the bull, ‘Funky Holy Crap’ as I named him, he was everything I hoped for when I came to the Yukon. As I approached the impressive animal, tears came to my eyes as I thought of my mom. I knew she was watching me with pride wondering how her youngest child, who never wanted to get her hands dirty, ended up in the middle of nowhere, loving the solitude of nature. It was a trip that I will never forget. The following day was spent packing the animal back to camp. The rest of our time in the Yukon went way too quickly, catching grayling, listening to the wolves howl, and exploring the area. As more snow collected on the mountain peaks, we knew it was time to head back south to Nebraska, and start dreaming of a return trip that is sure to be in our future, God willing.

EDITOR’S NOTE You can reach Mervyn’s Yukon Outfitting & Outfitters at 867.633.6188 or www.yukonsheep.com

50 > Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014

MERVYN’S Yukon Outfitting Horseback Hunts Excellent Dall Sheep Alaska Yukon Moose Mountain Caribou Wild Wood Bison Grizzly and Black Bear Wolf and Wolverine

MYO Tim & Jen Mervyn

www.yukonsheep.com

Email: myo@yukonsheep.com Phone: (867) 633-6188 • Fax (867) 633-5070 Box 33036 B Whitehorse, Yukon Y1A 5Y5

Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 > 51

a burning desire How Guide Outfitter Jordy McAuley is Bringing Fire Back to the Land

or over 30 years, Jordy McAuley has been guiding hunters through the wildernesses of the north, tracking some of the continent’s most spectacular big game animals. His vast experiences leading hunts from Alberta to Alaska have afforded him an intimate knowledge of the wildlife he pursues, and the landscapes they depend on. He’s seen how changes on the land are impacting long-standing patterns of animal behaviour, sometimes to a species’ detriment. In Jordy’s guiding territory near MacKenzie, BC, human interruption of the natural fire cycle has exacerbated habitat loss originally from the flooding of the Williston reservoir. Moose, in particular, have been forced to move beyond their historical range up into caribou territory in search of winter sustenance. The wolves

52 > Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014

have followed, and that’s bad news for the caribou. “The caribou are easy targets…they’re really struggling,” says Jordy. “If we can improve winter range conditions for moose and other ungulates at elevations lower than where the caribou are, it will hopefully lure the predators away and give them a chance.” With plenty of determination, Jordy has set out to do that: improve the availability of food for ungulates by bringing fire back to the land. He’s seen dramatic improvements to winter range in prescribed burning (fire set under carefully-controlled conditions to restore habitat and reduce dangerous build-up of fuel on the forest floor). “Fire is good once you burn, new vegetation comes back,” Jordy says. “The canopy

opens up, and there’s this rejuvenation of forage for all kinds of wildlife. Moose do well, same with elk and goats. The berries come back, providing food for bears—even birds benefit.” Jordy’s interest in prescribed burning stretches back to 2005, with his purchase of Finlay River Outfitters. But it was hearing fellow guide and Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation board member Anna Fontana speak at the GOABC convention that provided Jordy with the with the method to turn his vision into reality. “Anna mentioned that there were funds available for habitat enhancement projects,” recalls Jordy. “So when she got off the stage, I asked her about the possibility of applying for some money to do a prescribed burn. She thought it was a great idea.”

Encouraged, Jordy approached local biologist Scott McNay of Wildlife Infometrics to help him with putting together a proposal. “If you want a grizzly bear skinned I’m your guy, but if you want a whole bunch of paperwork, then no,” grins Jordy. “I went and saw Scott and told him what my plan was. He agreed to write the proposal for HCTF. I guess they thought it was a good idea, because they gave us the nod.” With funding in place, Jordy began the burn planning and consultation process, no easy feat in an area with many competing interests in the land. “We visited with multiple stakeholders, including the forestry company, trappers, and local First Nations people. They (Tsay Keh Dene) were really positive,” adds Jordy. “Their elders used to do some burning, and they understand the habitat benefits of fire.” The implementation process was a learning experience for everyone involved, as there was no established protocol for a guideinitiated burn. Despite many challenges along the way, the team persevered and managed to get their first burn underway this spring. McAuley was on site for the

big event, excited to finally see his idea become reality.

with other guides interested in using fire to enhance range conditions.

“It was such a big build up: in the beginning, it was like running into walls. I’d tell people what I wanted to do, but with all the merchantable timber up here, they’d say it can’t be done. But I just kept pecking away, and found some folks that knew the benefits of fire on the land,” recounts McAuley. “To see that helicopter show up, ready to go…well, it was pretty exciting to see that smoke start coming out of the bush”.

“It was a steep learning curve for everyone, but now that we’ve done it, I think there’s the potential for others to follow in our footsteps, and maybe initiate their own projects,” encourages Jordy. “I think getting fire back on the land, when done properly, has the potential to benefit everyone.”

Over the next few years, the project team will monitor this and other planned burn sites to determine what effect fire has had on forage availability and use by ungulates. “Our hope is that the herbaceous plants and shrubs that recolonize burned areas really make a difference for moose populations in the area,” says biologist and project team member Stephanie Rooke. “Shrubs are particularly important in winter, when the deep snow makes it difficult for moose to access other forage.” If the project proves a success, Jordy is hopeful that he can share his experiences

Jordy also agrees that knowledge of guides leading restoration projects such as this one may help the public realize the value those in the industry place on stewardship and conservation. “What many people don’t know is that the majority of guide outfitters are second, third and fourth generations that have been on the land: they love the land, they love the wildlife, and they want to see it continue in perpetuity.” In addition to HCTF funding, this project also received financial support from the Peace/Williston Fish and Wildlife Compensation Program in 2014. For more information on projects made possible by guiding, hunting, angling and trapping licence surcharges, visit www.hctf.ca Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 < 53

Thanks.

Guides, hunters, anglers & trappers in BC make

a valuable contribution to conservation through licence surcharges. HCTF invests this money into projects benefitting the province’s fish & wildlife. To learn more about how we’re making a difference, visit www.hctf.ca

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BRUCE & TERRY AMBLER 250.459.2367 Clinton, BC Canada 54 > Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014

Grizzly • Black Bear • Moose • Mountain Goat • Wolf Family Owned & Operated

Eric and Kelly

Box 1885, Station A Prince George, B.C. V2L 5E3 E-mail: info@mcgregorriveroutfitters.com Phone (250) 963-0262 Fax (250) 963-0233 www.mcgregorriveroutfitters.com

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HUNT THE MACKENZIE MOUNTAINS OF THE NORTHWEST TERRITORIES Backpack • Helicopter • Hunts Dall Sheep • Fannin Sheep • Mountain Caribou Moose • Goat • Wolf • Wolverine WINNER

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STAN SIMPSON • 780-848-7578 P.O. Box 89, Warburg, AB Canada T0C 2T0

www.ramheadoutfitters.com

Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 < 55

ROCKY MOUNTAIN

HIGH

PHOTO FROM STOCKPHOTO.COM

OUTFITTERS

Camp Cook’s Corner Sheep Meat Casserole Directions Dredge sheep (or any kind of wild meat) in seasoned flour. Thinly cut

SHEEP ELK GOAT GRIZZLY BLACK BEAR MULE DEER WHITETAIL DEER SHIRAS MOOSE COUGAR TURKEY WOLF LYNX BOBCAT

into steaks. Fry until half done in hot skillet. Prepare about 6 cups moist bread dressing or use your own recipe. Layer sheep steaks in bottom of 11” x 13” pan or roaster and spread a layer of dressing thinly over steaks. Make another layer of steak then cover with dressing. Seal pan with tin foil. Bake in 325°F oven for about 1 hour. Can be made ahead of time—cooked off and sent flycamping and reheated—travels well and makes a little steak go a long way!

More recipes available from our cookbook “The Hunter’s Kitchen”. Call or email the GOABC office to purchase your copy.

56 > Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014

Marty and Carrie Lightburn PO Box 69, Jaffray, British Columbia, Canada V0B 1T0 www.rmho.ca | info@rmho.ca

Partners in Conservation Excellence Ram Creek Outfitters and Stone Mountain Safaris are working together to promote wildlife conservation.

Steven & Stefanie Leuenberger Box 27, Wardner, BC V0B 2J0 Tel: 250.429.3238 Toll Free: 1.877.726.2735 hunting@ramcreek.ca www.ramcreek.ca

Leif & Kellie Olsen Box 7870, Toad River, BC V0C 2X0 Tel: 250.232.5469 hunts@stonemountainsafaris.com leif@stonemountainsafaris.com www.stonemountainsafaris.com facebook.com/stonemountainsafaris