AVID Hunting & Outdoors – Spring 2017 by IBuildMagazines.com

HUNTING | FISHING | GEAR | OUTDOORS | PREPAREDNESS

INSIDE: Drifting for giants Hanwag boots

SPRING 2017 HUNTAVID.com

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AVID HUNTING & OUTDOORS Spring 2017

Contents Table of

SPRING 2017

HUNTING

08 Hooked 12 Patience is a Virtue 18 Persistence, Hard Work...

and Big Bucks

22 28 32 36 40 44

Drifting For Giants Coyote Snipers

Fortunate Circumstances Lessons Learned in Sheep Country A Gift From The Desert

Stepping Up Your Elk Game

GUIDES & OUTFITTERS

48 Alaskan Dall Adventure 54 Hightower 58 Pathfinder FISHING

62 Brookies On Ice

36 58

GEAR

64 What Constitutes a “High-End” Cooler? 68 Hanwag Boots 72 Nightfall 2 by Slumberjack 73 Veo AM-234TU DEPARTMENTS

Spot the Hunters

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The publisher is not responsible for the accuracy of the articles in AVID Hunting & Outdoors Magazine. The information contained within has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. Neither the publisher nor any other party assumes liability for loss or damage as a result of reliance of this material. Appropriate professional advice should be sought before making decisions. Outside of our staff authors, articles written by providers or professionals are invited authors and represent the opinions of that particular individual, business, group or organization. If an article is a paid “advertisement,” or “advertorial,” it will be identified as such. ©Copyright 2017. AVID Hunting & Outdoors

PUBLISHER – Desert Hunter LLC CHIEF EDITOR Neil Large – nlarge@huntavid.com EXECUTIVE EDITORS Brandon Walker Casey Stilson Justin Walker PHOTOGRAPHERS Brentten Stowe Brad Cunningham Laura Sheets Cody & Sheryl Saxton VP MARKETING AND SALES Justin Walker – jwalker@huntavid.com CONTENT MANAGERS Josh Wilson Dave Heath FIELD STAFF Chris Staffeldt Josh Steinke Josh Rowley Steven Falkner Kayla Islas Meyer Kevin McNair Lance Poole PREDATOR STAFF Vince Donohue For information on advertising or other inquiries: CONTACT: (435) 574-9763 www.huntavid.com or info@huntavid.com Facebook/Instagram Submit articles and pictures to info@huntavid.com The publisher is not responsible for the accuracy of the articles in AVID Hunting & Outdoors magazine. The information contained within has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. Neither the publisher nor any other party assumes liability for loss or damage as a result of reliance of this material. Appropriate professional advice should be sought before making decisions. Outside of our staff authors, articles written by providers or professionals are invited authors and represent the opinions of that particular individual, business, group or organization. If an article is a paid “advertisement,” or “advertorial” we will identify it as such. ©Copyright 2017, AVID Hunting & Outdoors magazine.

Letter from the

Editors

Hunting, Fishing, and enjoying the Outdoors should be time spent allowing oneself to simply take it all in. To revel in the camaraderie of family and friends, to appreciate the world around you, and to harvest clean organic meat. Competition and greed have turned our mutual obsession into a race for notoriety and status among our peers. Here at AVID, we would like to bring the “meat and potatoes” back into outdoor activities. We want to revive the passion and share the entire outdoor experience with you!! AVID is dedicated to providing the very best local and regional stories from across the west while providing unbiased gear reviews and outdoor news to keep our readers informed and entertained. Our passion for wildlife conservation and the preservation of our outdoor heritage is tightly knit into our lifestyle and shared within the pages of our magazine. We’re just like you! We work hard for a living, spend time with our family, and dream of glassing for bucks and calling in bulls if we’re not out in the field actually doing it! We live and breathe the outdoors while sharing our passion with our families. We’re AVID about all aspects of our lives, we just decided to make a magazine about one very important slice of the pie. AVID HUNTING & OUTDOORS Spring 2017

www.huntavid.com | Utah Edition

Hoo 8

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ked HUNTING

By Storie Ratcliff

ome trips are more special than others and sometimes there is more gratification in helping out someone else than actually holding a tag for yourself. This trip was very special to me, I would be accompanying my older brother Rick Ratcliff, and nephew Zach Irvine to mentor Rick’s youngest son Mason on his first deer hunt. You know, it doesn’t really seem that long ago that Rick was showing me the ropes… We quickly formatted a plan to hunt the last two days of the season, the tension was mounting and we all genuinely wanted Mason to kill a good buck. We HAD to make this happen! We parked the truck about three miles back on a dirt road and all erupted from our seats and plastered

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our eyes behind binoculars. The sun was coming up quickly, could today be the day it all comes together? I began to glass the drainages that we drove by on the way in. Deer!…As soon as the binoculars hit my face! First only a couple does were visible, then some small bucks, then…Well this one needed a closer look. He had a good frame, so I busted out my spotter to confirm that he was indeed a good buck! We all took turns looking at him through the spotter and agreed that he was worth going after. While Mason was looking through the spotter, his mind couldn’t put it all together. He said he could only see branches above the deer’s head, I laughed and calmly explained that those were his antlers! As a group we began to close the distance, we would not leave without taking this deer with us! There was about 800 yards between us and the group of deer. We wanted them to continue feeding up and over the ridge into a small bowl, and they were currently going in that direction. Every chance we had to glass ahead and confirm their whereabouts, we took it, and then proceeded as necessary. As the last doe cleared the top, they were all out of sight and we picked up the pace and hurried for a shot at the buck. We made it to within 200 yards of the last place we had seen them, one of the smaller bucks had us pegged! He’s still a good buck and Zach decided to go for it! He got setup and made a solid hit. We quickly found him and put another “insurance” round in the buck to ensure the job had been completed. The rest of the deer took off and we began to frantically look for the

buck I glassed up at first light. Rick and Mason caught up to them just as they were crossing into the sage flats. Mason took a rushed shot and hit the buck a little high and far back. We left Zach’s buck to help Mason and his dad re-locate the buck Mason had hit. It took a while, but I eventually found a few specs of blood, and thankfully found the buck bedded down. After getting Mason to where he needed to be, he set-up, took the shot, and it was all over! What an amazing day! Two bucks down, including a young hunter’s first! The love and thankfulness that day in the sage will not be forgotten. Hugs and “I love you’s” went all around, we all experienced pure joy! Mason to this day still states that that was the best day of his life! Isn’t this what it’s all about? Sharing your knowledge with the next generation of hunters? That’s exactly what happened, we did it… Mason is hooked!

AVID HUNTING & OUTDOORS Spring 2017

Patience is a

Virtue 12

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HUNTING

By Mike Heath

’ve wanted to kill a trophy bull elk for over thirty years. I’ve hunted elk my whole life and for whatever reason, I just haven’t connected on what I would call a “real” trophy bull! Going into the 2016 season, I felt I had a decent chance of making my dreams into reality. I had two bull tags in my possession, in two different western states, Utah and Arizona, and planned to make the most of my opportunities. My son killed a big bull in the AZ unit I would be hunting, needless to say I was pretty pumped to get down there! The hunt in Utah was up first and took place during the general spike hunt. A mature bull can still be found on this hunt as long as it meets the requirements of a “spike” although big mature weird bulls that fit the requirements are getting harder to find every year. We did see some mature, legal bulls, as well as tons of people! I had a great time with my five sons and their families chasing bulls for over a week. On the second to last day, I shot a mature bull; but he was not a true trophy. Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad I shot him but my hopes of finding the trophy that has escaped me for three decades was fading. A couple of days before Thanksgiving we hauled camp down to Arizona to set up for my elk hunt. Two of my sons also had tags, and two of them came for support and they brought their hunting buddies with them. Needless to say, there was a lot of excitement in our camp! On opening day I passed up an opportunity at a nice looking 340ish type bull in hopes my son would get a crack at him. It just didn’t pan out so we moved on and pushed some good looking country to get bulls on their feet. Close, but once again it just didn’t work out. The second day was very similar to the first except my oldest son David shot and missed a good bull. I could tell he was a little upset and I wanted to help him out the next day but with three tags still to fill it would be best to spread out; so thats what we did. Continued on Page 14

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Bull down on day three! I received a text from David that he had shot a bull and was so relieved that he had redemption for the miss he experienced the day before. It is a great feeling to enjoy success in the field, but it’s an even more amazing experience to share it with your sons! I didn’t find anything I wanted to shoot that day but the snow was coming down and we knew with it came great late season elk hunting conditions! I passed up several bulls on day four but also witnessed one of the best shots I have ever seen! My oldest son called us on the radio and said he had found three shooters up on a ridge but we needed to hurry to get there. Upon arrival at his glassing spot, my son Eric (he’s my favorite) and I took off after the bulls to see if we could make something happen. At 800 yards the bulls were going over the top and I told Eric to get behind his rifle, he had never taken a branch antlered bull. As the storm was blowing snow all over us and the elk, Eric hammered the biggest bull in the group and we watched in elation as the bull careened down the mountain! It was such a great moment to share with my son! On the fifth day, we were all spread out glassing a huge expanse of country. Eric radioed over to us that he had found some really good bulls that needed a closer look! My friend Matt Wilson and I drove over there like absolute mad men to get a look at the bulls Eric was so excited about. When we made it to their glassing location I took one look, and without hesitation, we were off! During the stalk, I couldn’t help but soak in how beautiful the day was! Ten inches of fresh snow on the ground, the sun was out, and ice glistening off of the trees. Was this a dream? When we reached a spot about 700 yards from the bulls, they began to feed up the mountain and would soon be out of sight. Dave and Matt were behind their 15’s and I was set-up to shoot as soon as they gave me the word. I was looking at an amazing 6x7 that would have gone over 350” and badly wanted to pull the trigger but they kept telling me to wait! Apparently there was a different bull that we needed to get a look at! Brandon and Eric saw him from our original glassing spot and said he was big, with cheaters! So I waited…

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It wasn’t easy to pass up a shot at a bull I would have been proud of. In fact I almost pulled the trigger several times as I waited there in the snow. They say patience is a virtue, whatever that means kept reverberating through my mind as I waited for the other bull to step out. Matt said “Wait just one more second, then we’ll know for sure. The bull finally fed out, Dave took one look and said “Shoot that one!” The vapor trail looked good as it traversed over 700 yards, but ended up missing high! I forgot to compensate for the steep angle so I racked another round, adjusted my aim, and absolutely smoked that beautiful bull! The emotion of that moment was so real, so intense, and a time of my life that will never be forgotten. I held Dave and cried right there in the snow. After thirty years of trying, I had finally killed a big bull! As we hiked up to my bull, everyone, including myself, was very excited to get a closer look! I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to not only kill a great bull, but to have spent time with my sons and friends in elk country. The whole experience still seems so surreal! I have to thank my sons David, Shelton, Eric, Kevin, and Steve, also good friends Matt and Brandon, for taking the time to make this hunt as memorable as it could possibly be! I couldn’t have done it without the help of everyone on our team!

HUNTING

AVID HUNTING & OUTDOORS Spring 2017

Persistence, Hard Work... Big Bucks By Jeremy Bastian

ike clockwork I received my annual “unsuccessful” email from the Utah DWR for limited entry deer and once in a lifetime tags. Although a little upset, I have become reliant on this somewhat depressing news. It got worse when I found out that none of my family members or friends had drawn any “big” tags either! I always look forward to helping someone fulfill their dreams on a hunt of a lifetime. The silver lining is that I had joined Utah’s Dedicated Hunter Program and could legally hunt all three general deer seasons. I decided that the lack of tags in 2016 would leave me plenty of time to focus on finding and harvesting my biggest buck to date. I grew up learning the importance of conservation and respect for the land and animals from my father. I also learned from him that it takes a lot of hard work to achieve personal goals and kill big bucks! I knew what was in store for me but anxiously awaited a chance to prove to myself that I could indeed live out this dream. As soon as the deer had shed last years set and started to sprout fresh bone, I began my journey… I scouted hard and I watched the bucks grow. Week after week I was out there learning areas that have taken me years to figure out. The summer absolutely flew by and before I could take a breath, the opener was only a month away! Throughout my time on the mountain I found some really nice bucks. One of them, the “Cheater” buck, was at the top of my hit list. After hours of mental anguish and deliberation, I decided to place a ground blind in an area that I had been seeing him frequently, although he always seemed to be one step ahead of me. I was seeing him with less frequency which had me second guessing everything! Even though I had doubts, I still sat in my blind, day after excruciatingly long day. During my time in the blind, I had ample opportunities at good bucks within 30 yards, but I held persistent. The best buck I saw, I had glassed up in the distance while Continued on Page 20

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sitting in the blind but knew I had little chance of catching up with him. I had so many questions about why he wasn’t coming in and about drove myself nuts trying to figure it out! What was keeping him from coming back? Having become somewhat discouraged with the ground blind game, I reverted back to my roots of spot and stalk which had previously proven to be very successful. Early the next morning I hiked to the edge of a canyon not far from my ground blind to glass for the Cheater buck. For several hours I picked apart every inch of that place and just couldn’t turn

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him up. Just as I had decided to pack it up and change locations… There he is, down in the thick canyon below me with his big three point buddy! I was pumped although I knew my excitement level would have to decrease a bit to make a good stalk. I looped around and came down the opposite side of the canyon. As I reached the area I believed the bucks to be, I carefully glassed ahead of me. There he was at 110 yards, all I needed to do was inch closer to about 80 yards or so and theoretically he should be mine. Just as I shifted my weight to begin closing the gap, the bucks took off without offering a reason for their departure. I still continued forward to see if I could at least get a glimpse

HUNTING

of them to have an idea of how I wanted to proceed. As I got to where they were standing, I found them just uphill from me watching my every move. Without time to range the buck, I drew and released only to watch in horror as my arrow flew harmlessly low!! I was absolutely sick. I had worked so hard for this moment and just blew it! Although I tried very intently to find him again during the rest of the archery and muzzleloader hunts, I was unsuccessful. Determined to hunt where I had my encounter with the Cheater buck, I decided to continue hunting the area throughout the duration of the rifle hunt. I was hopeful the bucks had not left the area completely, and to be honest was carried by hope into the field on opening morning. My friend Gordon Baxter and I hiked into the area I had become very familiar with and immediately upon our arrival began the search. There he was, the Cheater buck right across the canyon, almost as scripted. Gordon would hang back while I made my way closer to a spot that would likely get me within 300 yards. I got there and set up for the shot just as the buck was starting to move. I held hope in my mind once again, knowing that with a rifle, this opportunity would go as planned. As I dug in behind the scope, I was blinded by the sun peeking over the horizon. Scrambling to find the buck in my scope, he waltzed down the canyon and out of sight, once again unscathed. This buck was going to drive me insane if he hadn’t already… On the last day of my hunt, with my pressure at its peak, I was once again joined by Gordon as well as good friend Casey Stilson, Co-owner of AVID Hunting and Outdoors magazine. We hiked in to my “honey hole” and began to glass for bucks. We all took turns looking at the different bucks we glassed up, it was a great morning! Finally I spotted what looked to be a really good buck on a hillside a couple canyons over. Casey and Gordon stayed behind the glass as I hauled butt over there to try and get a shot. It was far, and it was steep!! As I neared their last known location, Casey mentioned that the larger of the two bucks had some cheaters, could it be? Almost to the top of the last hill, I stopped to catch my breath before cresting so I would be able to hold it together for a shot. This stalk had me winded! As I peeked over they were both feeding at 115 yards. I picked out the bigger of the two bucks and hit him perfectly! With the adrenaline surging, still a little out of breath from the strenuous stalk, all I could radio back was “big buck down!!!” As I made my way to the buck, I was in awe! He was bigger than the Cheater buck, I absolutely couldn’t believe it! Although there is no way to know for certain, I believe this to be the big buck I had glassed up while sitting in the blind during the archery

hunt! Casey and Gordon finally made their way over to me as we commenced celebration! Thanks to good friends, persistence and hard work this hunt turned out better than I could have imagined. To my knowledge, the Cheater buck made it through the hunts and I’m already looking forward to finding him in 2017!

AVID HUNTING & OUTDOORS Spring 2017

Drifting By Kalen Kolberg and Austin Manelick

PART 1

1:00 AM, soaking wet, and waist deep in a beaver pond with a 1,300lb Alaskan-Yukon bull moose down may sound like a worst case scenario for most, but for us it was just the beginning to an adventure of a lifetime. This hunt started out as a wild pipe dream (like most of our trips do), but it was something I was committed to pursuing, and I immediately knew the only person crazy/tough enough to pull it off with me was my good friend Austin. Soon the planning evolved from excited conversations of “what if ” to detailed day by day plans with every possible scenario mapped out. Remote hunts in Alaska require serious logistics! Cutting corners or overlooking something when planning your hunt can make or break your experience. We weren’t taking any chances, and obsessed over every detail knowing Alaska would not hesitate to reveal every flaw in our plan.

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Before we knew it, summer was coming to an end and fall was fast approaching. I was just finishing up a season of commercial fishing, and Austin had just wrapped up his wedding, and a successful sheep hunt a couple weeks prior to our departure. After driving several hours we found ourselves loading our gear on the float of a plane that was to be our ride into the land of giants. After the hum of the plane faded into the distance we were smothered by a blanket of silence, and simply accepted the fact that we were completely on our own. In Alaska you cannot hunt the same day you fly so there was no hurry to hit the river so we spent the first few hours inflating our rafts, and evenly distributing the gear load. First thing in the morning we broke camp and hit the river in search of any fresh moose activity. Our plan was to utilize any glassing opportunities we came across to try and locate a group of rutting moose to target on opening day. Well, the opener came and went with little sign of moose activity, seeing only two small immature bulls. The decision was made to keep covering country until we found a more promising area. It was now the seventh of September, we had been hunting hard for two and a half days; glassing and

For Giants calling around every river bend with no luck. Eventually we found ourselves on a stretch of river with some fresh sign and a few cows scattered throughout the area. As hunters we are opportunistic and try to capitalize on every occasion so we pulled our rafts to the bank and started calling while raking the brush periodically. After a few minutes of calling we heard a low toned â&#x20AC;&#x153;WAAAAâ&#x20AC;? music to any moose hunters ears. Just like that it was game time! We continued to call back and forth with the bull until he appeared well out of range on the other side of a beaver pond in search of (us) the intruding bull. He certainly qualified as a giant, and like any old bull he decided he wanted to get a whiff before committing to our calls. He then began circling the edge of the pond giving us no other choice but to sprint through the brush in hopes of cutting him off on the other side before he caught our wind. As luck would have it, we busted out of the brush as the bull was stepping onto the bank of the pond only 60 yards away! With no time to spare, or even catch my breath, I raised the rifle and fired off a shot stopping the bull in his tracks. Still on his feet I quickly followed up with another to put him down for good. We made the decision to return to the river and pack a raft back to Continued on Page 25

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the bull so we could float the meat across the pond shaving half a mile off our pack out. After getting the bull back to the river and the meat hung, we inhaled a Mountain House with some fresh tenderloin and got some much needed sleep. The next morning we floated to an extraction point to get my meat flown out, then after a brief chat with the pilot we were again on our own with one more tag to fill. – Kalen Kolberg

PART 2

After Kalen killed his bull, it was my turn to be behind the rifle. Traveling this deep into the back country it only makes sense to

target the big boys, flights in and out of the back country can get expensive with multiple plane shuttles for meat, gear, and people, so we shared the “go big or go home” mentality on this hunt. After passing on several small bulls within archery range, we had a pretty good idea of where the moose where at. The big bulls had finally started dropping down from the hills to the river basin to fight for breeding rights over receptive cows. Even with all the rut activity it took us 12 more days to find another giant worth pursuing. We called across the river and waited for movement along the opposite bank, then caught sight of a gigantic palm! The wind was all wrong so the boss eventually whirled and vanished as he Continued on Page 26

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ran up river. We took off running the same way and set up in a clearing as we hoped the moose would cross the river within range. After finding a shallow point in the river, the Boone and Crockett bull made his final mistake and began to cross. I was able to range him quickly with my Swarovski EL range finding binoculars which saved precious time. At 420 yards I knew the rifle would perform flawlessly if I were to put a round in his vitals. I touched off the first shot as he neared the riverbank and hit him hard! He spun to retreat back where he came from and died in the middle of the river! Luckily for us he expired in a place that was shallow enough for us to retrieve him but deep enough for him to float. The weather

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was so nice that day I elected to wear my hip waiters instead of chest waders, this left me no choice but to peel them off and swim out to claim my prize. I found out that day water doesn’t feel cold when your adrenaline is sky high! We worked through the next day and night breaking down my bull and hanging the meat next to the raft after managing to somehow drag him onto our sandbank! It rarely happens this way in moose country, in fact this is one of the only moose kills I’ve been involved with that didn’t require a pack out. The last few days of the trip found us paddling towards our extraction point as we neared the end of the longest hunt of my life! This EPIC hunt ended in great success, and I was ecstatic to have taken my largest bull to date. We wholeheartedly thank our family, friends, and followers for the support in living our dream and taking care of business while we were away. You can find the film of this hunt on the Mission Alaska YouTube channel as well as our other exciting Alaskan hunt videos. – Austin Manelick

AVID HUNTING & OUTDOORS Fall 2016

O Y T O E C

SNIPERS By Garrett Johnson

ith sugar laced donuts and caffeine loaded coffee in our hands, my calling partner Colten Gillum and I pulled away from the gas pump listening to the crunch of fresh snow compacted by BFG’s. Having spent several hours the night before on Google Earth mapping out a plan of attack, our eager minds continually drifted to the possibilities of our newfound spot. The terrain we chose to hunt, simply made us feel the most “comfortable”. It would allow us to establish a stealthy approach and hidden set-up while still giving us the opportunity to see our targets bouncing in from a comfortable range. We advanced carefully down a road that presented pristine open country located between 28

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timber patches as we looked for a good spot to hide the truck. We made sure the wind was blowing in the right direction, parked in an undetectable location, and readied our gear to make a move. Sneaking through a timber patch we eventually found a likely spot to place our Revolution E-call about 40 yards upwind from the two monstrous ponderosa’s that would now be our concealment. Our King’s Camo quickly ensured were totally consumed by the country around us as we disappeared from the sight of the forest as chameleons in their natural environment. I broke the morning silence with a long, lonely howl that relieved branches of heavy, wet snow. Watching the snow fall, I paused and admired the white dream land but was quickly snapped back to reality by a faint answer that at first was quickly dismissed as an echo!

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With multiple packs answering our call, the sinister sounds of their howls through the timber gave me chills…Game on!! I looked down at the remote device and pondered which sound would be the demise of these lurking troublemakers. Knowing all too well there is no “secret” sound, I would let a scenario unfold for my “audience” and let their curiosity lead them into fate. The soft sound of a cottontail’s cries careened through the meadow confirming a thief had invaded their territory, and was an immediate threat to their domain. With each set-up, tons of possible scenarios go through my mind, hundreds

of them... Did I choose the right one for this particular situation? It seemed right so I proceeded to let the situation unfold. My partner and I slowly scanned the terrain with hawklike precision as we anticipated the arrival of our quarry. After five intense minutes with knots in my gut, two streaking blurs emerged from the depths of the forest, charging in to take what they believed to be theirs. To a guy that usually hunts the sagebrush, they looked like timber wolves busting through the forest in hot pursuit. Because we had chosen a proper place to set-up, we were able to re-position without giving away our location. We lost sight of

the approaching dogs in a large draw for what seemed like an eternity, although it was probably more like five seconds, time had slowed considerably in our deep focus. They were out of sight just long enough for me to shoulder my rifle and get situated on the Swagger Bi-pod. The two coyotes were now stacked about seventy yards out. As I slowly squeezed the trigger I wished for a magic bullet that would pass through both of them. At the shot I watched as the front coyote fell while there was still very much life left in the other as he bolted. I knew from his body Continued on Page 31

AVID HUNTING & OUTDOORS Spring 2017

With multiple packs answering our call, the sinister sounds of their howls through the timber gave me chillsâ&#x20AC;ŚGame on!!

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language that he would not present a stopped shot so I gave him a round on the run as he spun into Colten’s crosshairs. BOOM… cartwheels! I snapped out of kill mode for a second to look over at the coyote sniper sitting 20 yards to my right; a quiet pump of the fist was all we needed to signal success. We now had confirmation that all of our preparation and decisions in the field that day were performed flawlessly. When it happens like that, all the times I have been “skunked” in the past become a forgotten memory. Savvy readers will have taken the story of this successful coyote hunt as somewhat of a tutorial. You see, there is no such thing as the perfect sound, a foolproof set-up, or any other type of “black magic” that will make you a consistently successful coyote slayer! In order to be successful, hunters need to intimately understand the tricky ways of this very clever critter, time is your teacher! The secret is to utilize endless preparation,

learn from countless experiences in the field, and to start your last stand of the day with as much excitement and ambition as you did on your first.

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Fortunate

Circum 32

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HUNTING

By Lacey Drake

hen we got to Great Grandma Drake’s house, she had breakfast ready and the family was sitting around the table telling old deer hunting stories and sharing a few early morning laughs. Because of my involvement in the state volleyball championship, I would only be able to hunt for two days, I was just happy to be going deer hunting and spending time with my family. Great Grandma’s house is only a ten minute drive from our “secret spot” so we finished up breakfast and hit the short dirt road. After parking the truck, my dad and I took off on a short hike to the edge of an open valley and got comfortable as the morning sun began to creep over the horizon. By 8:00 we had only seen a couple does and a shadow of doubt began to ease its way into my thoughts. All of a sudden, someone we knew crept up from behind us and startled my dad and I. Because my dad never seems to shy away from a conversation, he got up and the talking ensued. My thoughts grew louder, “Really, come on dad! We’re here to hunt, not visit!”

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In retrospect, my dad was only about 30 seconds deep into his conversation when it happened. I saw antlers bobbing and weaving through the sagebrush, a quick range confirmed that the buck was well within my capable range at only 160 yards! I couldn’t help but yell “Dad, there’s a big buck!” The buck was already in my scope, nervously I looked for guidance, and thats what I got! My dad simply said “Shoot it.” I took time to ease the trigger, while holding my rifle as still as I possibly could amidst the excitement. When the rifle finally went off, the buck fell very quickly! I was so excited and honestly had a hard time containing my emotions. My excitement was brought to a screeching halt when the buck acted as if he was going to get up. I readied myself for another shot and he finally laid motionless in the southern Utah sage. My dad was apparently not ready to end his conversation with his “new best friend” and urged me to go take a look at my buck. I honestly had no idea how big this buck was, in fact I’m still having a hard time wrapping my mind around it. When I walked up to him, I knew he was a nice one, not until my dad came down to where I was did he start explaining excitedly that my buck may be 32” wide! My dad and I sat there for a while admiring my buck when my grandpa called to tell us he was on his way with my uncle to help get my buck out of there. After making some phone calls, and taking photos, my dad raced to the truck and got as close as he could to where we were. He had a tape measure with him because my grandpa wanted to know how

big this buck really was! When my dad started measuring, I swear, the tape just kept going until it reached 38 INCHES wide! As we were heading off the mountain, we realized that word of a 38” wide buck being killed by a 17-year-old girl travels pretty fast! My dad started receiving numerous calls and texts from people that wanted to see pictures of my buck! When we finally arrived back at my Grandma’s house, it was so fun and exciting to see all the people drop by to take a look at my monster buck! Thats when we found out that there were quite a few people that had been hunting him. One of my dad’s friends had been watching him all summer, named him “Big Hoss” and actually scored him very close by video. In total he is a 5x7 that scores 201”! I still consider myself very fortunate to be the one that shot the 38” buck “Big Hoss.”

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HUNTING

By John Stallone

’ve never been faced with the implication of a true once in a lifetime experience. “Once in a Lifetime”, we use this phrase to describe many things; yet we throw it around with the commonality of much lesser experiences even though those situations are NOT truly once in a lifetime. It’s difficult to explain how it feels, it’s not what I expected; it was almost haunting… knowing you can never do this again, you want it to be unforgettable and well… EPIC! You start envisioning yourself conquering the mountain like a triumphant hero while picturing yourself kneeling over an old warrior ram revering his life and praising god for the opportunity. All these delusions of grandeur turn into stress and pressure because you certainly don’t want to squander the opportunity to truly have a once in a lifetime experience. 16 years ago I began applying for bighorn sheep in my home state of Arizona although I never truly believed it would become my reality to hunt them. Knowing the odds of drawing such a coveted tag are bordering impossible, I still threw my name in the hat year after year. When I learned I actually drew a tag it felt so surreal, I was in denial for weeks! After finally accepting reality, I knew I had my work cut out for me and began to research and scout. It’s funny how many people called and asked me if they could help, if they could go scouting, or just be a part of it somehow. I was overwhelmed with the outpour of support but one by one, they all dropped off. I get it, it’s hard to take off work and get time away from life in general, the good intentions were there but it screwed with me big time! While scouting I spent a lot of time by myself in desolation, and it began to wear on me. I started to feel Continued on Page 38

AVID HUNTING & OUTDOORS Spring 2017

It’s difficult to explain how it feels, it’s not what I expected; it was almost haunting… knowing you can never do this again, you want it to be unforgettable and well... EPIC!

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a bit desperate, the implications and the magnitude of this hunt being a once and a lifetime tag really sat heavy on my shoulders. The closer I got to the hunt, the heavier the load became, and the more bleak the outcome began to feel. Fish and Game conducted a fly over, and determined the sheep population in my unit was down 30% since their last survey. Moreover, I found out that I was limited to about 15% of the unit if I wanted to film my hunt because the military base that occupies a majority of the unit did not allow filming! Consequently most the big sheep lived within the confines of the base boundaries. Not previously knowing this, a good portion of the scouting I had done was essentially wasted and I had to start all over. I began to fall deeper into an abyss of doubt. Opening day came and thankfully a few close friends stepped up to help me, for their help I’m forever grateful. We had three goals: 1) To shoot a mature ram 8 years or better 2) film my hunt so I could preserve the memory 3) Do it with the bow. We set out that first morning to a mountain range on which I had watched some mature sheep while scouting and we turned up a good looking ram. We stalked into about 50 yards, I drew back on him, and shot him with my mind.. It was opening day I wasn’t ready to end it on the first sheep we saw. I was after a specific ram I had named “Yellow”, as far as I knew he was the only class four ram in this range. Day two arrived with a new perspective. It was the first day since drawing the tag that I felt that we would get this done. At first light I spotted old Yellow with three other rams bedded high up on a ridge 50 yards below the top. I checked the wind, studied my approach and began my stalk confident in my plan. Three hours later I found myself within 30 yards of the rams as they fed and waited for him to present a shot. Finally there it was! He had turned broad side and the other rams were clear. I slowly drew my bow, and began to rise above my boulder cover, when he caught my movement and spooked. He ran 40 yards and stopped, I quickly ranged him, drew again, and he 38

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jumped up a few more yards stopped and turned. I settled the pin and let the arrow fly and watched it sail harmlessly under him. AHHH! I had misjudged his yardage. What to me seemed like just a few yards ended up being nine. Not too shook up about it, I quickly made it back to the vantage point to try and pick him back up. We spent the whole day looking and didn’t turn him back up until last light and put him to bed with a plan to get him the next morning. On the third day we hiked to our spot and perched on a hill below the rocky ridges we bedded them ram on last night, and like a well scripted play he was right were I left him. Upon further inspection there were sheep bedded everywhere, including a couple more rams, that’s lots of eyes to fool for a stalking bowhunter! One of the two

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rams that joined the group appeared to be larger than Yellow himself, by all accounts, everyone agreed he was a better looking ram. I wasn’t convinced, but with two good sheep in play I didn’t waste any time before piling off the rugged mountain on my stalk. It took several hours to even get within shooting range after traversing the steep, rocky hellhole this band of sheep called home. After waiting in position for quite some time, Yellow started to feed off although the other sheep, including the new ram, did not move with him. Several more long hours of sitting and waiting without food or water, desperation coupled with pure exhaustion began to dominate my thoughts. With Yellow long gone, I was going to call it quits, but my spotters and good friends Jake Domres & Chad Roberts talked me into making a play for the new sheep we were now calling “Long Curl”. My cameraman Levi and I backed out to meet up with Chad and grab some water and to look at a picture he took through the spotter of another ram on the mountain. Levi and I were within 30 yards of these sheep for the last few hours and didn’t even know it. Armed with the new intel I knew exactly where we needed to go and how we were gonna get there. With Levi and now Chad in tow, we made our way back to the drainage right below the sheep to make our move. We got to the bend in the drainage where they were feeding and I crawled just below a rock pile to get a visual. I peeked over the rocks and I could see him feeding 40 yards away, I signaled to Levi and Chad who then joined me. I handed Chad my range finder and told him to range when we stood up from behind the rocks. I drew back and stood up to clear the rocks when I heard Chad whisper “44 yards”… I settled my pin and let it fly. The moment the arrow left I knew it would hit its mark and in a split second with the resounding slap of a ripe watermelon, I received confirmation. The ram ran 10 yards and stopped, I quickly reloaded, drew, and sent a second arrow his way. Upon impact he tipped over and rolled down the hill.. Elation.. pure and utter ELATION! Just like that in a few moments all the months of worry and pressure were all lifted. I, no… WE had accomplished what we had set out to do: kill a mature ram on film with a bow and I couldn’t have been happier. I think what resonates with me the most is that hunting sheep or hunting in general is a journey of self discovery and each stalk provides an education about who you are. The closer you get to understanding YOU, the closer you get to achieving your goals. With each failed attempt comes a deeper success…

About the Author John is an outdoor writer, national TV personality and hosts a popular podcast: Interviews with the Hunting Masters you can find him on IG @ johnstallone, FB John Stallone, or at www.Johnstallone.me.

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DESERT G By Matt Rossi

rowing up in a small southern Arizona town, I was fortunate to have the outdoors play a big part in my upbringing. Raised around horses as well, I often found myself exploring the foothills with my family on horseback while watching the variety of game animals that call that part of the state home. Although I wasn’t exposed to big game hunting while young, I remember the limited experiences hunting doves and quail with my dad and his buddies as some of my fondest childhood memories. It wasn’t until after I graduated college that I got sucked into the addiction of big game while hunting coues deer with a good friend of mine. My first hunt was unsuccessful in only not harvesting a deer, I had a great time and realized very quickly that I had a lot to learn! Over the next year I practiced with my .270 religiously. I didn’t own high-end binoculars, have a spotting scope, range finder, havalon knife, or really any experience to speak of. But I did have desire. I had never seen anybody gut a deer and basically self-taught myself by watching YouTube videos online just in case I was fortunate enough to get one. On opening morning I simply took off walking through the hills in which I used to ride horses with my family and began looking for movement. I had high hopes of shooting at least a nice 3x3, or something that would look decent on the wall. Even though high winds and inexperience kept me from seeing any bucks the first day, I couldn’t wait for day two. On the second day I got out of camp a little late and hiked across the desert flats to a different area that occasionally held bucks. When I had almost reached the spot I was venturing to, I heard a close shot ring out. At this point I was really kicking myself for not double checking my alarm, but decided to proceed to my vantage point anyways. I hadn’t been sitting down for more than five minutes when I suddenly heard rocks moving above me. Continued on Page 42

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To my surprise I turned, and sure enough far above me, way up in sheep country, was a bachelor herd of three great bucks! The bucks were definitely out of range, but as they made their way out of view behind a massive boulder I knew exactly where they were going. Once they were out of sight I quickly scrambled my way over to the next canyon and watched the area I thought they would be crossing. Within 30 seconds I saw a buck emerge from the canyon depths. I sat down to prepare for a shot, but just as I did a tiny twig snapped! I was busted! I had him broadside in my sights but there was an ocotillo in my way maybe 50 yards out. My adrenaline was through the roof and my front arm was shaking now almost uncontrollably. He was frozen and intently watching my every movement, as soon as he saw me reposition my front arm he bolted! This wasn’t the typical mule deer bounding I was used to either but a full on sprint! I let the .270 rip and missed him high. I quickly racked another round

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and somehow managed to get him back in my scope and fire again. All of my practice at the range must have paid off because I dropped him dead in his tracks! I really don’t know who was more surprised, me or the other two bucks as they watched their friend roll down the hillside before bounding away. I was in complete shock as I walked up to him. I remember pulling out my tag and telling myself, “You did it! You just killed a huge 4x4!” It took me another few seconds to notice that he actually had quite a bit of extra growth on his right side. Could this be? A 4X6?! In velvet?! My brain couldn’t comprehend what had just happened. This was the biggest buck

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I had ever seen alive, and on my second deer hunt ever I had managed to wrap my tag around him. After my adrenaline levels finally started to come down I knew the real work was about to begin and only briefly reflected on my success and this gift from the desert. It was supposed to reach 87 degrees that day and I was by myself high on a mountain ridge out of cell phone service. I began the process of quartering and started hiking the meat out a few pieces at a time down the mountain. I would walk until my legs almost gave out and then go back for another load. It took me about three hours to get him close enough to the nearest trailhead and camp was still another mile away. I hid everything the best I could and quickly made my way back to camp only to find my two buddies enjoying some cold beverages in the shade of a mesquite tree and teasing me about where my deer was. After I convinced them that I had in fact just killed a buck we all jumped in my truck to go retrieve my trophy! The look on their faces when they saw what I had just accomplished was priceless. I hadn’t prepared to shoot a buck of this magnitude, and hadn’t saved enough to have him shoulder mounted. (Not that I knew how to cape out a buck anyways.) He now hangs in my living room wall on a nice European mount for everyone to admire. He was unofficially scored by my taxidermist at 205”. I’ve considered bringing him somewhere for an official measuring, but to be honest

it doesn’t make that much of a difference to me. He’s mine, and looking up at him always gives me a huge sense of pride, and reminds me just how lucky of a man I really am. Over the years my admiration and love for hunting these desert ghosts has only grown stronger. I have now upgraded all of my hunting gear, truly love spending hours behind my Vortex Kaibab 15’s, and have been fortunate enough to have taken a few more nice desert muley’s. None though have ever trumped, my first buck.

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HUNTING

Stepping Up Your Elk Game

By Ryan Carter

Despite what most people will tell you, elk aren’t that smart; they are just big stinkies with instincts that outrank our own.

lk hunting is an experience that almost defines western hunting. Big, loud, and stinky, it’s amazing that elk are so elusive and difficult to pursue! The biggest issue with any species out west are the vast areas in which these animals call home; the terrain is often steep, rugged, and unforgiving. Pulling an elk permit is definitely the hardest part of the process, but once that is accomplished… the work begins! Now you have to face the mountain and dig deep to find out where these bulls call home in order to outsmart them on their own turf. The greatest tools of the game are TRAILCAMS! Trail cameras are the perfect tools for locating big bulls, but they can also be time consuming and frustrating if they are not used correctly. Over the years I have found a few ways to help me dial in my trailcam game. I seem to do ok, so listen up so this can be a fun experience. Continued on Page 46

AVID HUNTING & OUTDOORS Spring 2017

camera up for a month only to return and find 3000 pictures of a branch swaying back and forth in the wind. I keep a machete in my pack at all times when mounting cameras. They work faster than a pack saw for clearing branches, can cut tall grass away that may cause movement, and can be used to help dig holes in the ground for bait (where legal). 3. Don’t try to camouflage your cameras with twigs or leaves, I’ve learned the hard way! Half the time the branches fall over in front of the lens and the other half they attract bugs and small animals due to sap excretion. 4. Mount cameras about 36-40” off the ground and keep them 10-12 feet from the focus spot where the elk will be. That spot could be salt, water, a wallow, feed, or simply a trail. If the camera is too close you risk only seeing half of the bull or even worse, only a piece of the antlers! Continued from Page 45

Cameras Purchasing some cameras is logically your first step, here’s a few things I’ve learned over the years in regards to camera selection. Like most of you, I hunt public land; and unfortunately not all people are on the same team… you may loose a few cameras! Knowing this, I purchase cameras that retail for less than $100 and only models that fit inside a security box. These boxes help keep honest people honest, prevent bears from walking off with your cameras, and stop elk from chewing on or moving them. Trust me, they all happen! It should go without saying that some cameras perform better than others. Typically the more expensive trail cams, and infrared flash models will reach out a bit further at night when elk seem to be the most active. Theres nothing more frustrating than getting a photo of a possible monster just out of reach at night and not being able to tell what he is! I personally really like Stealthcams. Although I have no affiliation with the company, I believe their cameras give me more of an edge at night with a little better long range capability than other brands. Another plus is that they offer moderately priced security boxes for ALL of their cameras! We all have “preferences”, so I suggest trying a few different models that fit your personal style and applications. Setup Camera setup is very crucial and will make or break the performance of a particular camera! I am always aware of the following four items when setting up a trail camera to ensure my attention to detail is on point. 1. Mount your camera facing north, the sun will ruin your photos if the camera is facing east or west and will likely shine on your lens during times when elk are moving the most. Also remember the sun relates to earth from the southern hemisphere, so I avoid that direction as well if at all possible. 2. Clear all brush and limbs. It’s frustrating to leave a 46

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Locations Despite what most people will tell you, elk aren’t that smart; they are just big stinkies with instincts that outrank our own. With that in mind, there are three important aspects of their lives we must pay attention to… they need to eat, sleep, and procreate. When searching for trailcam locations, I look to accommodate those 3 things. Feeding Areas: Bull elk have to eat like horses through the summer when they are packing on bone. I usually look for acorn patches located next to benches of dark timber because in July and August, elk run to acorns like a fat kid running to cake. Quite a few bulls also relate to aspens, although typically aspen country is more often a good area for cows and calves to hang out; the bulls will seek out secluded meadows in the high basins and cliffs. Although these tiny meadows sometimes take years to locate, they can be a great spot for a trailcam! Where legal, I put out salt, or a salt/ molasses mix during the velvet growth period. After stripping their velvet, the bulls are not as interested in salt so I switch to a food bait or sweet lick to keep them coming in.

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Bedding areas: Great bedding spots are often found on benches of dark timber with close access to feed. Since benches are used for bedding and feeding, look for flat spots on steep, north-facing mountainsides. There are benches that I have put cameras on for years and they continually produce some of my best photos! Because benches can be found by using topo maps and Google Earth, there is no better time than the present to start finding some likely spots. Get looking! Wallows: They can be tricky. Elk wallow for two reasons… to keep cool and to get stinky! During the summer months, elk cruise through wallow areas but rarely climb inside: their velvet antlers work like a radiator to keep them cool, so rolling isn’t as active during this time. Once the velvet peels off, the rolling begins. All elk guys look for wallows, so some get covered in cameras just as heavy as the guzzlers on the Strip! It’s not a bad thing, but remember to be respectful of other people’s cameras so the favor is returned. To avoid the camera cluster, I like to look for pinch points or trails that access the wallows. Although bulls don’t touch the wallows during summer months (see above), they still cruise through the area, and more often that not get their picture taken walking into the wallow but not actually using it. Calving areas: I can’t tell you how many times I hear frustrated elk hunters complain about how their cameras are getting hit by cows and calves and not BULLS. This is NOT a bad thing! Cows and calves just aren’t as migratory as bulls which summer in one place and then can rut 25 miles away. So if you are getting pictures

of cows, DON’T pull your camera!! The bulls will get there, just keep in mind that they don’t start working into those areas until mid September. If your hunt is during an archery season that ends early you may want to move, but if your tag is just beginning around mid September stay there…The bulls will come to you. Trail cameras can be a fun part of the whole elk hunting experience. I love the pre season scouting almost more than the hunt itself, so I look forward to setting cameras every year. Remember this though, I RARELY kill the bulls that I get on camera. Just because he is on film doesn’t mean he is a resident or even a “killable” bull. Trail cameras provide an example of the age class available and give you a bar to set your standards to. Killing the bulls you have on camera can be icing on the cake though! Remember to aim small and don’t be afraid to work for it!!

About the Author Ryan is the owner of D.C. Outfitters based out of Spanish Fork, Utah, and has been guiding public land elk hunts for 12 years. He is also an avid archer that helps out with “Total Archery Challenge”, a 3D archery course that tours the U.S.

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GUIDES & OUTFITTERS

By Justin Moore

unting is a challenge at the best of times. But, factor in one of America’s most remote mountain ranges combined with this continent’s most elusive big game species – the dall sheep – and you have a recipe for the most difficult 10 days of your life. And, the most rewarding. I’ve always thought that beginning a hunting trip in an airport was strange. They are not an environment that exudes serenity or peace. Unfortunately, to get to the road less traveled, sometimes we have to painfully compress ourselves into the confines of our own cramped urban sprawl. This trip was different, not only was I going to Alaska to hunt on one of the most remote mountain ranges the Unites States has to offer, but I was going to be hunting one of the most elusive big game species on this continent, the Dall Sheep. Knowing that I wouldn’t be seeing more than five people for the next ten days in the middle of endless amounts of untouched wilderness made the confines of modern day flying seem like a very small hurdle. The morning after landing, and meeting up with the rest of our party, we went straight to the train station to start our eight-hour trek north to Denali National Park. Obviously we wouldn’t be hunting inside a national park, but the small town of Healy, located just outside the park boundary, is where our guide calls home. Being that this was a “work” trip, the rest of our crew were writers, videographers, and hunting guides. Myself – I’m the Director of Marketing for Weatherby . For the last 70 years we have developed and produced some of the fastest hunting cartridges and most accurate rifles on the planet, as well as some fine sporting and home defense shotguns. Personally I grew up in a rural area of eastern Oregon where hunting and shooting wasn’t just for sport, but it also got us through some rough winters and provided my family with the lean protein that most people relate expensive weightlifting shakes with. I grew up outdoors and my professional life has also followed that same path. The rifle that I chose to carry on this hunt was the legendary Weatherby Mark V. When you spend this much time and money on the hunt of a lifetime, you want to make sure that all your gear is up for the challenge. I elected to go with the Ultra Lightweight Mark V because I knew I was going to be packing the rifle many miles at a time and it needed to hold up to the adverse weather conditions. The Weatherby Mark V exceeded all the requirements for this hunt, and chambered in the 300 Weatherby, that’s a winning combination no matter what game. The rest of our crew: 1. D ustin Lutt, a world-class videographer and photographer for RockHouse Motion . 2. A aron, managing editor for a major hunting and shooting publication (article to be released soon). 3. C oke Wallace, legendary Alaskan hunting guide and owner of Midnight Sun Safaris . 4. J ustin Cox, hunting guide with Midnight Sun Safaris for the last five years. For those of you who are fans of Jon Krakauer, you may recognize the name Healy. Christoper McCandless was found dead just outside of the small town and his memoirs inspired Krakauer’s book “Into The Wild” as well as the major motion picture that was directed by Sean Penn. Coke Wallace, the owner of Midnight Sun Safaris, took everyone involved in the motion picture to the bus where McCandless’s body was found, only 25 miles from Wallace’s house, as well as helping with some of the production of the film. He still takes people on tours out to the remote and barren location. We stayed the first night in Healy at the house of our guide and one of the first things that we noticed was just how long it stayed light. Roughly 21 hours. Knowing that hunting in the lower 48 has a lot to do with cycles and reading the animals’ daily activities and trying to get to them based upon their normal daily routines, how do you gauge what an animal is going to be doing when they have 21 hours of daylight in the summer and three hours in the winter? Not to mention we were losing about eight minutes of daylight every single day. It was about to be a crash course in Alaskan hunting techniques. Continued on Page 50

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The bush plane flight in to camp was short, about 20 minutes, and as long as you aren’t too afraid of flying, it was really smooth. Landing on a bumpy dirt runway that had small bushes and patches of grass all over it however would make even the most seasoned traveler pucker a little bit. The next morning we ate a filling breakfast, packed our horses and started making our way down the valley, all the while glassing for little white specs sprinkled along sheer cliff faces. Within the first couple hours of the hunt we spotted our first group of sheep, and we could tell that they were rams. The problem was that they were just about as geographically far from us as possible. No matter, we had been training for months preparing for exactly an opportunity like this, and we set off to get a better look. Day one is definitely an exciting time in any hunting season. We look at what we later realize to be monumental or near-impossible feats, and shrug them off. I like to relate it to walking anywhere on the Vegas strip. How many times have you walked out of a casino or hotel on the strip, pointed to your desired destination, and told all your friends that they’re pussies for wanting to get a cab? Then about half way there you realize that you’re not in a part of town you want to be in (Damn you Stratosphere!). Alaska is a big place and we were just about to teach ourselves a valuable lesson in being prepared for the game that we were chasing. This is where we unpacked from the horses and began our journey on foot. Once we were above the tree line, it was the most beautiful and breathtaking scenery that I have ever seen. At any given time we could pull out our binoculars and witness grizzly bears feeding on blueberries, mountain caribou running aimlessly up and down ridgelines, and dall sheep scaling near vertical rock faces. It really is an unbelievable place. Before we knew it, we had been hiking all day, avoiding ridgelines so we wouldn’t skyline ourselves to the sheep we were stalking. Every now and then we would take a break to peak over a ridge to make sure they hadn’t wandered off. Everything was going as planned. We finally reached the top at roughly 11pm, and we still had a couple hours of daylight. The only thing left to do was locate the sheep, make sure they hadn’t gone far, and plan a stalk. If we didn’t have time, we could just wait out the three hours of darkness on the mountain and go after them right at daylight. This plan was not to be. Once we crawled across the tundra up to the top to glass and find out just where the rams may have wandered off to, usually feeding around the cliffs picking at fresh shoots of vegetation. Much to our dismay, they had vanished in the short amount of time that we were in the shadow of a couple small peaks. In the off chance that another group of rams had wandered into the same area, we took a break and glassed hoping to catch of glimpse of white specs. After seeing nothing, we decided to head back down the mountain at midnight. We hit the tree line right at dark, which is really more like twilight, and found the nearest game trail to help with hiking the rest of the way back to the horses. The ability to lift our legs was beginning to get difficult and with the increasing amounts of willows and underbrush that we were stepping over, making our way off the mountain was becoming a safety concern. Coke Wallace, the owner of Midnight Sun Safaris and master Alaskan guide, made the call to get some sleep in a small grove of trees until the light was better. We had been hiking 16 hours at this point.

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26 hours after leaving camp for day one, we were back. Day one was complete, nine more to go. The next day we decided to work our way up the valley. Within two hours we had spotted another group of rams, this time much closer and we could tell that at least one was a legal ram. We had a great opportunity to sneak up some deep drainages and get within a few hundred yards and get a better idea of the size and age of all the rams. Within an hour we were in a great spot to watch the rams feed up the rims a little closer to us. We made the decision that Aaron would take the first shot at a legal ram so he got in a prone position and patiently watched the rams work their way within range. It didn’t take long for the sheep to get to 375 yards and our guide determined that one of the rams was indeed legal. Aaron was using a Weatherby Mark V Ultra Lightweight chambered in .270 Weatherby Magnum, which means that at that range his bullet would still be carrying more energy than most standard cartridges at the muzzle. Easily enough energy for a humane single shot kill.

GUIDES & OUTFITTERS

Aaron took his time, got his range again, took a deep breath, and squeezed the trigger. It was easy to tell the ram was hit and he fell off the cliff almost instantaneously. Success! Now the real work begins. With all the meat packed up and the cape and head with Aaron, we made our way back down to the horses. As we were getting ready to ride away, Coke leaned over in his saddle, looked at me with a very stern look on his face, and said, “It never happens like that, getting a sheep is never this easy. “ Not that I didn’t believe him, but the rest of the season served as proof to his statement. For now we were on our way back to camp for hot food and some Twang. Since the location is so remote most of the drinks are powdered to save weight on the trip out. Tang makes the perfect option, and hey, the astronauts drank it so why not. Twang is a concoction that we were introduced to by Justin Cox and it is whatever amount of Tang and whatever amount of booze you care to mix together. It tastes pretty good at the end of a really long day. The next couple of days were spent making our way up and down the valley and sometimes getting grounded due to rain and fog. We diligently tried to work around the storms but when the sheep won’t move because of the fog, it’s really hard for hunters to spot and stalk them. Sometimes you just have to play the hand you’re dealt. On the night of day five we decided it was time to go deeper and set up a spike camp the following day. We had seen rams every day up to this point but putting the stalk on them was not always possible. If we could camp where they were, we would have lots more time to stalk, even in between the frequent rainstorms that we had been experiencing. The day that we got to camp will forever be known at Midnight Sun Safaris as “Sheep Aerobics.” To be honest, if I was to type out all of the events that happened within the

first six hours, I don’t think that even I would believe it. I will give a brief rundown of what happened below, it was so chaotic that no photos or video exists of the events that unfolded. Dustin and I took our horses to a spot and began scanning the rims in the nearby valley looking for potential hunt spots that evening. When Coke and Justin came over to ask how the glassing was going, we got a surprise attack from a ram that came walking over the small peak just behind us. We then decided, since it was a small peak, we would make our way to the top to see where he went. We got about half way up when Dustin spotted four rams coming down the bowl behind us, right toward us. We watched them get within 600 yards then they disappeared so we made our way around the mountain to try to locate them. At that point Coke spotted 9 more rams coming straight toward us on the mountain across from us! By this time, we have no idea what is going on and where all these rams were going. We watched this last group disappear under the hill so we slowly made our way where they had last been seen. Justin belly crawled over to the edge and almost exploded with excitement! All the rams were 40 yards from us! The hillside below us had recently given way and exposed a new mineral lick, where they were all congregated, probably 15-20 rams in all. There were some tense moments where we watched the rams scurry up the hill after smelling us. There were a couple of legal rams but they were very tightly grouped and no shot presented itself. The only thing we could do was watch as they made their way out of range and hope that one of the older rams separated itself from the younger sheep. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. Continued on Page 52

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I’m not sure how many miles and vertical feet we covered that afternoon trying to get close to one of the many groups of rams we saw, but we were all exhausted and ready for some Mountain House. The morning of day nine and the urgency of the situation starts to set in. With the frequent storms that we were experiencing, two days could be cut short real easily. It was at that point that Coke pointed out, “I’ve been in situations like this before and we spotted sheep right from the middle of camp. There’s always hope.” Within 10 minutes Justin had found one of the groups of sheep, from the center of camp. Immediately we grabbed our gear and set off to make a stalk on them. The rams began wandering back into one of the large bowls, and Coke and I set off after them. With little to no cover, making a stalk seemed almost impossible. That’s when the fog sat in again, only this time we used it to our advantage. When the fog blew in we ran across the shale as quickly as we could knowing that it would only give us a few minutes worth of cover at a time. This happened three or four times until we were finally close enough to notice they were starting to bed down again. We had just enough cover to make our way to a rim rock directly above them. As Coke and I eased our way forward we noticed that the rams were only 40 yards away, staring directly at us! We quickly ducked behind the rocks, Coke instructed me which ram was legal, then I slowly crept forward. As soon as I peaked over the top the rams spooked and ran about 30 yards before turning around to see what we were. I raised my rifle, rolled the safety off, and fired. The 180 grain bullet struck him in the shoulder blade, anchoring him with a fatal blow. By this time, it was getting late in the afternoon, even by Alaskan standards. We pulled out a backstrap and left the rest up on the mountain for the night. It was cold enough that the meat would be okay and far enough up in the shale bowl that no predators would stumble upon it. We made our way back to camp for a special dinner. Dall sheep backstrap roasted over a campfire on a willow branch. No

seasonings, no butter, not even a pan or grill. It was the best steak I’ve ever had in my life. The hike to pick up the ram the next morning was exciting, and unbelievably exhausting at the same time. The rush of the hunt had subsided and, while still excited about packing out my trophy, the nine days of hunting were starting to take their toll. Walking was like having lead weights tied to my ankles, especially trying to climb the loose shale rock. Luckily we could get the horses within a few miles of the ram so packing him out didn’t take long at all. Soon, we were on our way back to base camp, and the ability to completely dry out. All in all we hiked just over 27,000 vertical feet in those 10 days. To put that in perspective, Mt. Everest is just over 29,000 vertical feet. It’s not a hunt that you want to take lightly or go into unprepared. The trip home was a blur. Most of us were in and out of consciousness or working on photos and videos all the way to Anchorage. While it was nice to have a regular shower and return to normal sleep patterns, leaving the Alaskan wilderness was hard. It felt natural to wake up and know that all ties to the outside world were cut off. No cell phones. No cars. No waiters or cashiers. For some this would be a nightmare, but for us this was perfection. Every person should take a vacation from civilization and experience what life was like just a couple of short generations ago. Once you step away from everything and kill your own wild game, nothing will look the same and you will earn a whole new respect for not just the natural world but also our place in it. We as a society are preached to about conservation and how to better utilize our natural resources, what better way to experience how the natural world works than to immerse yourself into it?

Some of the Gear We Used: 1. Rifle – Weatherby Mark V Ultra Lightweight chambered in 300 Weatherby Magnum 2. Scope – Trijicon AccuPoint 3-9X40 3. Ammunition – Weatherby Select Ammunition 4. Boots – Zamberlan Ibex Pro Mountain Boots 5. Outerwear and camo – Kryptek 6. Layers – Under Armour Hunt Gear 7. Glasses – Smith Elite , various models, all ballistics protection models 8. Socks – Drymax Hiking Socks 9. Sleeping Bag – Kuiu 0 degree sleeping bag 10. Pack – Mystery Ranch Metcalf 11. Binoculars – Zeiss Victory 10X45 RF 12. Camera – Photo – Canon 5D Mark III and Canon 1DX both with a menagerie of lenses 13. Video – Black Magic 4K Cinema Camera Photos: J ustin Moore (Dangersoup.com) and Rockhouse Motion (Rockhousemotion.com). 52

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Hightower 54

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GUIDES & OUTFITTERS

By Jason Jensen

heard a rumor that the Game and Fish department was hitting credit cards for the 2016 fall draw and like most of the guys I know, I spent a majority of my time burning up cell minutes checking my account! I was absolutely floored when I heard that beautiful computer generated voice say that there was a $45.00 withdrawal for the Arizona Game and Fish Department. You see, I had drawn the hunt of my dreams. I would be hunting in a magical place where killing the buck of my life could most certainly become a reality. The Arizona Strip! As soon as I found out exactly which archery Strip hunt I drew, my next phone call was to Brec Bundy of MDA outfitters. After waiting so long for this tag, I needed the best in my corner to help my dreams come true. Not knowing what to fully expect on a guided Strip hunt, hundreds of questions raced through my mind. Brec confirmed my suspicion that although this hunt was “doable”, it would not be easy and would test my very spirit as a hunter. Always up for a challenge, I couldn’t wait to be turned loose on the mythical Strip beasts! Throughout my excruciating wait for opening day, the Bundy crew would keep me updated with bucks they had been finding. They had a giant hitting a water catchment religiously during the day so they thought we had a pretty good chance of harvesting him. “Shameless” would most likely score over 220”. I’ll be honest, I couldn’t stop looking at the photos they were sending me and it didn’t make the wait for the opener any easier! We planned to devote the first week of my hunt in pursuit of this giant Strip buck. Well, the devil fools with the best laid plans… It had been dry leading up to the hunt so Shameless had no other choices for his water consumption needs. Since the Strip was hit with very wet weather about a week before the hunt started, he had not been seen. Regardless I still planned on hunting the tank because of how often he frequented the area, besides, the dry desert ground surely had soaked up all of the excess rain by now. We felt our chances were pretty good! Come to find out, we weren’t the only ones with a tag that knew about this huge buck. We agreed with the other hunter that we would share time sitting the tank. I would sit there for the first two days. I sat in the blind for two days, essentially baking in the 92 degree heat. If you haven’t sat in a blind before, the breeze doesn’t really cool you off so you’re left sitting there, just dripping, as you wait. He didn’t show although with every sound I heard while sitting in that sauna my senses went into overdrive in hopes he would grace me with his presence. It turns out that he had been hitting another water source nearby as confirmed by Brec’s trail camera pics. We packed up camp and headed to an even more remote part of our unit. The Bundy’s had been seeing some great bucks there that I could hunt in a fashion more consistent with my personal strengths, spot and stalk. We were able to glass up quite a few shooter bucks in the new area. One in particular, a big framed 4x4 with some cheaters really caught my attention, and the stalk was on! I watched as he and another really good buck fed into the junipers, this was my chance to make up some ground so I picked up the pace until I reached where they entered the tangled mess of vegetation. Because it had once again rained, following their tracks was relatively easy. I slowly followed their tracks for about three quarters of a mile, constantly aware of my surroundings. As I crept around the edge of a piñon tree, they had me pegged. Although he was broadside, and well within range, I just didn’t have a clear shot. I waited motionless as time moved excruciatingly slowly, would he give me a shot? At the time only his head and neck were completely visible and amidst the jungle like setting I didn’t want to risk wounding this buck due to arrow deflection. They eventually bolted and I accepted that I had done the right thing. That’s archery hunting for ya! On the eighth day of the hunt we found a buck known as Hightower. He had been

Not knowing what to fully expect on a guided Strip hunt, hundreds of questions raced through my mind... Although this hunt was “doable”, it would not be easy and would test my very spirit as a hunter. Always up for a challenge, I couldn’t wait to be turned loose on the mythical Strip beasts!

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residing in the neighboring unit but thankfully was now in mine! We hunted this buck for the next three days. I made several stalks on him and just couldn’t close the gap to within my comfortable range. I was losing hope, tired, and beginning to get frustrated with the situation. I wanted this buck badly and for my sanity, needed to make it happen! Thanks to Brec’s reassurance and an unwillingness to let this buck win, I refocused, and somehow knew I would get a crack at him. On the evening of the eleventh day, I would have my chance. As I glassed the junipers I saw the buck that had been hanging out with Hightower, he was heading to the open feeding grounds. I didn’t know if my buck was still with him but decided to roll the dice and try to cut him off before reaching the feeding grounds. As I reached the edge of the Junipers, I noticed only one set of tracks, and it looked like he had made it past me. I quickly surveyed my surroundings and noticed Hightower was very close, just standing there looking at me! I took a half step back to draw my bow so he wouldn’t be alarmed by the movement, then slowly eased forward at full draw. I settled my 40 yard pin, and let it fly; I instantly knew it was a good shot and watched the “dead” deer take off in a full sprint. My excitement level was out of control! I marked the spot and backed out to get a hold of Brec before tracking. We waited about 45 minutes and followed the relatively short blood trail. After finding Hightower laying there, we instantly knew that he was bigger than any of us had imagined! The pride I feel after having accomplished my goal of killing this buck will be hard to beat. I am humbled and appreciative to have had the opportunity to harvest such a true Strip giant.

AVID HUNTING & OUTDOORS Spring 2017

Pathf Pathfinder – “One who discovers a way into or through unexplored regions.” By Jake Adams

hen an individual is faced with overcoming physical challenges or a disability that disrupts their “normal” way of life (including hunting), he or she must discover previously unexplored regions of self-esteem, self-worth, courage, persistence, and determination within their mind. Through trial and error, success and failure, the Pathfinder, with a never-quit attitude, works hard to discover his or her own path and face their new “normal” way of life. Each year since 2010, the southern Utah chapter of Safari Club International has sought out such young men and women to honor them as pathfinders. Our Pathfinder award is officially called the Brian Scott Pathfinder award. Brian Scott was from Hurricane, UT and was a state champion wrestler and the star running back for Hurricane High School. We selected him as our 2013 pathfinder, unfortunately, the cancer that he was battling took his life before we could take him on his hunt to Wyoming. We wanted to do something special for him and his family to honor him. With the permission from his mom and dad, we named our Pathfinder award after him. These young hunters, typically between 12 and 20 years of age, have overcome significant odds to just be where they are today. Most of them have been afflicted with a life threatening disease or terminal illness that they are currently battling. Our chapter decided that we wanted to create an amazing hunting experience for these young Pathfinders so that they could, for five days or so, forget about their personal battle and enjoy the great outdoors while hunting with their families. The onset of the Pathfinder program was pretty humbling. We didn’t have the funding, enough kids, or even resources to guarantee the program was a success. It took time, and a lot of effort, but as we diligently worked on the program, it really started coming together! Continued on Page 60 58

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Each year, our chapter holds an annual banquet the first week of March. Some of the money that we raise from the banquet goes to fund the hunts for our Pathfinders. The support that we have received from our chapter members, sponsors, community, outfitters, and the state of Wyoming, has been amazing. Through their generous donations of time and money, we have been able to start building once-in-a-lifetime hunts for these young folks. Now we just needed to find some recipients. We called nearly every school from Nephi to St. George and talked to the school counselors, most of them thought it was a hoax! They couldn’t believe we wanted to take a sick kid hunting and pay for the whole thing. Each year, we have been lucky to find an amazing kid to receive the Pathfinder award. Since the program inception, we have hunted with kids that battled cerebral palsy, grand mal seizures, liver cancer, Hodgkin’s lymphoma, hydrocephalus, and kidney failure. I have never seen youngsters that were more excited to be on a hunt with their families than these amazing kids. For a few days, they forgot about their personal health battle and put all of their determination and excitement into their hunt. We literally witnessed miracles on these trips. 60

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When selecting a young hunter, we only contact the mother of the hunter. We want everything to be a surprise for the hunter and the family, especially the fathers! Therefore, we would coordinate with the moms to make up some excuse as to why the family needed to travel to St. George in March to attend the banquet. As the banquet starts and the presentation begins, watching the dad’s reactions may be the most entertaining. Most of the time, they were more excited about the award and hunts than the kids! We are now in our seventh year and have given nine kids the Pathfinder award; each of them truly amazing in their own way. I have often said that I have the best role in our chapter! After spending time hunting with each kid and their families, you really get to know and love them. Words cannot describe the emotions that go through your heart as you watch them experience these hunts! The state of Wyoming has a wonderful program that our chapter has been able to utilize for these hunts. They offer commissioner hunting tags to kids who have a life threatening or terminal illness that are sponsored by a non-profit organization. The people that we have worked with at the Wyoming Game and Fish have been nothing short of amazing, we can’t thank them enough for working with us!

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This year, we have received a donation from an outfitter in Alaska who is providing a caribou hunt for our 2017 pathfinder hunter and his dad. Other generous donations from local merchants, like Buck’s Ace Hardware in Hurricane, and others include: binoculars, optics, custom-made guns and ammunition, and a beautiful stand made by Mike Hall to mount our Pathfinder’s game. That is not all, we have received cash, food from Pizza Factory and Lin’s, fuel, and time.

In 2015, Jake Adams, from Draper, UT was selected as the Brian Scott Pathfinder after being diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma on December 26, 2014. He began his Chemotherapy the first week in January and finished his forth round the end of March, 2015. Jake kept a very positive attitude throughout his illness and never doubted that everything would work out. When asked if he ever worried about his illness he says, “Doubt your doubts, before you doubt your faith.” Through a generous donation from the owners of T-N-T Guides and Outfitters, Roy Thomas and Justin Shaffer of Chugiak, Alaska, we were able to put together an 8-day caribou hunt for Jake and his dad in Prudhoe Bay. Jeff Hamilton, Travis Black and myself accompanied Jake and his dad, Bruce, on the hunt. After purchasing all the necessary tags and licenses, we jumped on a plane to Prudhoe Bay where we were met by the infamous Roy Thomas. Roy has been a guide in Alaska for many years and loves taking young men out on hunts and letting them experience the tundra of Alaska. He was very excited to have Jake in camp and his enthusiasm showed. It was a 32 mile drive from Prudhoe Bay to the boat launch on the Ivishak River. Camp was approximately 35 miles upstream located where the Ivishak and Echooka rivers join. From our camp we could literally step outside and fly fish for grayling and arctic char it was amazing and “home” for the next eight days. I was lucky enough to go with Jake and his dad that first morning. We headed up to a knoll that over looked several

miles of tundra in all directions. After glassing for some time we found a bull located about two miles off the river and to our east. We jumped into the air boat and motored down river to get as close as we could to the bull.We pulled the boat over and hit the tundra on foot, after hiking for about an hour we reached the area where we had last seen him. As we came over a small rise, we could see the antlers of the bull starting to come towards us, Jake then dumped his pack and our guide got him situated to make the shot as the bull came towards him. At a mere 100 yards, Jake had a clear shot and took it, the caribou dumped in his tracks. It was truly amazing to see this all come to fruition. 6 months earlier Jake was just finishing up his chemotherapy and radiation for cancer. Now he was sitting in the middle of the Alaskan tundra staring at a nice barren ground caribou that he had just had the opportunity to harvest. It was pretty emotional. Jake is currently serving a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the California, San Fernando Spanish mission. In summation, thanks to the effort of all involved we have created a very special program that has benefitted a handful of kids very greatly. From our hearts to theirs, we bestow the love of the hunt and an opportunity to live worry free, if for only a while.

AVID HUNTING & OUTDOORS Spring 2017

Brookies on Ice By Derek Ames

other Nature can throw below freezing temperatures, deep snow, and high winds our way, and although her attempts are well played, they will not keep us from ice fishing our favorite high mountain lakes! For the true trout junkie and ice fishing aficionado, all holiday planning must fit around fishing trips in order for us to embark on next white winter adventure without having to worry about any conflicts! Growing up, our trips were surely more simplistic in nature. We had less gear and often nearly froze before becoming accustomed to high quality cold weather clothing. Since the early days, we have now upgraded to gas augers, adapted ingenious methods to haul our gear, and even put a set of “tracks” on our Honda Rubicon! With each year, our gear and approach to ice fishing becomes more sophisticated! With the recent addition of two Can Am machines, fully outfitted for winter conditions, we can now reach spots that have always been inaccessible. On a typical day, our group meets up at 5:00 am, and we’re usually loaded up and hitting the trail by 7:30 am. Traversing the arctic conditions on an ATV is a venture in self torture if you’re not prepared with the best winter gear. We have been in the game long enough to always have extra sets on hand for newcomers that show up unprepared for what is to come. Upon arrival to the lake, we all spring off our rides and race to drill the best spots; a little friendly competition is a fun way to add to the whole experience! Within minutes, the gas augers have blasted holes in the 18”-24” thick ice, and we’re dropping a line. Over the last few years, our DWR has significantly increased bag limits because of the burgeoning trout population, therefore its usually not long before the first beautiful brook trout welcomes us by bursting up through a hole in the ice. 50-60 fish days are not uncommon with the average fish in the one to one and a half pound range. We typically don’t release any of them in order to “thin the herd” so to speak and create an environment more apt to grow larger brookies! Consequently, these fish are delicious, especially when smoked! Our family and friends are true avid hunters and outdoor enthusiasts, although the call of brookies under the ice can be heard loudest by us all! With so many great memories made over the years while ice fishing, we will continue to do so, for as long as we can, even if Mother Nature tries throwing us out!

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FISHING

AVID HUNTING & OUTDOORS Spring 2017

REVI EW

What Constitutes a

“High-End” Cooler?

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GEAR

ith the popularity of high end coolers increasing daily, We wanted to know which one was the “best” at performing its primary function and to understand exactly “why” these coolers out perform those of a more conventional design. After obtaining four of the best coolers on the market today, we began our research and found a few very important aspects all of them shared in common. They’re all made of roto molded plastic, all shared walls at least two inches thick, and the entire lot had a rubber or silicone gasket to seal in the cold. In reality, high end coolers are created in a similar fashion, the process in which each company utilizes these benefits is where the difference can be seen. Roto molding (rotational molding) is the process of filling a mold with a shot of material (in this case plastic) and heating the material which is then rotated within the mold to ensure the walls of the cooler are uniform and free of imperfections. This process creates the toughness that is shared of all coolers in the test and a big reason the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee places their seal of approval on these tough, bear resistant products. Purchasing a cooler produced by roto molding, will ensure your cooler lasts a very, very long time negating the need to purchase another cooler for years! Also, because there are no imperfections in the plastic, the insulation adheres in a more positive fashion and may be the main reason these coolers are so effective! Some of these

coolers (Grizzly, Canyon) even carry a lifetime warranty compared to the five year warranty of Yeti coolers, and three years protection from Engel. In short, sturdiness, durability, and longevity are all positive attributes of the rotational molding process. The UV resistant walls of each high end cooler are filled with dense insulation to ensure maximum cold retention. Compared to the insulation of a “regular” cooler, the high end options simply offer a more thorough coverage of a much more dense insulation. In addition to the thick walls and more dense insulation, all coolers featured within our test came complete with a tight fitting rubber or silicone seal. This gasket confirms a comprehensive seal is made between the body of the cooler and the lid to negate the chance of heat transfer occurring at that location. Our Test We’re not scientists, we’re hunters! We do like to know what the “best” products are however for future purchases, so our simple test was conducted at our “laboratory” in southern Utah at the office of AVID Co-Owner Brandon Walker. We placed a block of ice in each cooler and periodically checked on the progress at pre determined intervals. During our test, the high temperature hovered around 75 degrees and dipped to near 40 at night. Because of a general size difference of the coolers within the test, our findings were pretty much on par with our hypothesis… Continued on Page 67

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Testing the coolers: A: Cooler setup. B: Ice after 24 hours. C: Ice after 48 hours. D: Ice after 72 hours. E: Ice after 96 hours.

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GEAR

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24 Hours – None of the blocks of ice had changed. 48 Hours – The block of ice in the larger Canyon cooler had reduced in size, although the other three blocks remained unchanged. We expect this is the result of the ice in the larger cooler having to cool a larger area to reach an ambient temperature within the cooler walls. Remember, we’re not scientists! 72 Hours – As expected, the block of ice in the Canyon cooler had reduced in size by fifty percent. The blocks in the Yeti and Grizzly coolers were at approximately sixty percent of their original size, while the smallest cooler tested, the Engel, was holding strong and had only melted away about twenty percent. 96 Hours – All blocks had melted at this point and we concluded our test.

Conclusion Our “official” conclusion is that any of these four coolers would be a purchase that you, as a consumer, would be happy with. The performance was nearly identical although the smallest cooler in the test (Engel) held ice the longest while the largest one (Canyon) was the first to melt. If cooler companies made identical size products, we expect our findings to have been more consistent with uniformity in melting rate. The four coolers in our test are the best money can buy, made by established companies within the industry. There seems to be a lot of new companies popping up recently that employ similar tactics in the production of coolers. Be careful in your selection! By sticking with established companies that stand behind their products, you just can’t go wrong! Be sure to stop by the showroom at your local outdoor retailer to take a first hand look at Canyon, Engel, Grizzly, and Yeti coolers. While looking at them, know that they are constructed in a similar fashion and will all perform well. Go with your gut on this one…

AVID HUNTING & OUTDOORS Spring 2017

REVI EW

Hanwag Boots

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GEAR

Tyst GTX

A new arrival to the Hanwag boot line, the Tyst GTX has all the features consumers could ask for in a Trekking boot. The tough Vibram sole will accept punishment for a long time yet can be easily replaced when it eventually wears out. The durable upper will outlast several soles and give the user years of enjoyment! A breathable, waterproof membrane made by industry leader Gore-tex, will ensure your feet remain dry and allow air to circulate thus creating a very pleasant atmosphere designed for the utmost comfort. A flexible insole is tough enough to accommodate heavy loads but will concurrently negotiate rough terrain with ease. Normally we despise the boot break in process. Miles of stiff, unforgiving foot torture until the boot finally breaks. We put trekking boots through an extensive 10-15 mile hike in rough, unforgiving country to ensure they break in similarly to how we will use them on a hunt. To say we were surprised with the immediate comfort experienced in these boots would be an understatement! In less than three miles, the Tyst GTX was fully broken in! Honestly we believe consumers could pick up a pair of these boots the day before a hunt and not have to worry about a thing! So, what type of hunts can the Tyst GTX handle? We prefer this boot for “warmer” conditions such as early to mid-season deer, elk, and bear hunts. They’re not insulated, so if your feet are sensitive to the cold, you may want to take a look at the Omega GTX,. Read on to learn more… Tyst GTX Features: • High-cut uppers for protection against thorny undergrowth and marshy terrain • All-round rubber rand • Comfortable trekking shape • Additional shock absorber in the heel • Particularly soft cuff • All-round rubber rand for protection and stability • Graded memory insole for optimal power transfer • Cemented construction, easy to resole • Made in Europe Continued on Page 70

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could still use a few more miles before reaching the absolute apex of comfort, they will most likely be accompanying us on a late season adventure somewhere in the Rockies this year!

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Omega GTX

This ultra tough mountaineering boot took a while to break in! After fighting our way through the break in, the comfort level was admittedly off the charts! The Omega GTX is designed for the toughest conditions a human can imagine and its sturdy construction is a testament of that! Just by looking at these boots it can be determined that these boots are meant for nearly vertical terrain, and will perform well thanks to the gripping feature on the toe. Made to handle single digit weather while keeping your feet warm and dry, these robust boots will be right at home in the mountains during late season elk and deer hunts. Although our test boots 70

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Omega GTX Features: • Fully crampon compatible • Cemented construction, easy to resole • Durably waterproof and breathable GORE-TEX® lining • Thermal insulation down to -15°C (DIN EN 344-1) • High, protective rubber rand • Vibram® sole with greater toe spring to allow the foot to roll effectively • Customizable volume adaptation: a section of the tongue can be removed to allow more space; supplied with an additional set of footbeds to reduce the volume as required • Graded memory insole for superior shape retention – always returns to its original form • Click Clamps (clamping lace rings) for two-zone lacing: enables different lacing tensions, e.g. tighter at the fore-/mid foot and looser around the ankle during mountain ascents • Flex zone at heel • Easy Roller: smooth ball bearing lacing system • Shock Absorb: additional shock absorber in the heel • Reduced Seams: fewer seams reduce the risk of rubbing and pressure points • Made in Germany

GEAR

Tatra GTX

As an early season trekking boot, the Tatra GTX is designed with utmost comfort and durability in mind for long trips into the backcountry. Waterproof and extremely breathable thanks to Goretex innovation, this boot will allow worry free hiking through a variety of environments. The actual break in period is very similar to that of the Tyst GTX and allowed us to hike comfortably within only a couple miles of hiking somewhat difficult mountain terrain. In fact one of the participants in our review mentioned his Tatra GTX boots seemed as if they were already broken in, right out of the box!

This worry free early season boot will astound users immediately after placing them on their feet. Designed for early season hunting and hiking applications, these boots are perfect for traversing the mountains in comfort in relatively mild conditions. Pick up a pair and go hunting, it really is that easy! Tatra GTX Features • Soft leather padded cuff • Rubber heel and toe caps • Cemented construction, easy to resole • Vibram® sole with deep profile, designed specifically by HANWAG – allows the foot to roll exceptionally smoothly • Clamping lace hooks on top section of uppers for precise and rapid lacing • Color Erde: Terracare ZERO® leather (Project Next Step) • Easy Roller: smooth ball bearing lacing system • Flex zone at heel • Graded memory insole for superior shape retention – always returns to its original form • Shock Absorb: additional shock absorber in the heel • Good stability, suitable for treks with a heavy pack • Durably waterproof and breathable GORE-TEX® lining • Higher uppers provide additional protection • Made in Europe

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Nightfall 2 by Slumberjack

dhering to their “roots” of producing top quality products that shine in functionality and ease of use, Slumberjack gave outdoor enthusiasts just what they were looking for with the Nightfall 2 three season mountain tent! This two man tent is of sound construction, sets up easily, and can handle all but the absolute worst winter storms. The Nightfall 2 utilizes an innovative pitch pole architecture system that allows full set-up without exposing the inside of the tent to wet weather. We set up our Nightfall 2 very quickly and easily, without need to look at the instructions (like we would anyway)! Possibly our favorite feature was the “mud room” that will protect your gear from the elements just outside the door of your tent. This will allow your sleeping quarters to remain more dry, cleaner, and allow excess room to spread out without being cramped by extra gear. Nicely done Slumberjack! If you hunt in the backcountry, or just enjoy the quaint quarters of a tent that wont take up much room when stowed in your garage in the off season, take a serious look at the Nightfall 2! With an MSRP of only $139.99, this tent outperforms the price tag by a mile! How could you pass it up?

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SPECS Capacity: 2 Seasons: 3 Number of Poles: 3 Number of Doors: 1 Number of Vestibules: 1 Packed Weight: 5 lbs 10 oz Minimum Weight: 5 lbs 2 oz Fast-Pitch Weight: 3 lbs 9 oz Floor Area: 31.4 ft2 Vestibule Area: 9.3 ft2 Peak Height: 39.5 in Packed Size: 6.5 x 21 in Body Fabric: 40D Polyester No-See-Um Mesh Floor Fabric: 68D polyester / 1500 mm Fly Fabric: 66D polyester / 1200 mm Pole Type: 7001 Series Aluminum

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Veo AM-234TU

he Veo Monopod by Vanguard is a very well thought out platform that will surely benefit any hunter or outdoor photographer. This particular product is fully adjustable and provides the option to be used as a firearm shooting aid via their cradle (U-yoke) attachment, or to securely fasten a DSLR or video camera. Both options ensure “steady shots” regardless of what you’re shooting with! With the legs extended, the Veo can be used as a sturdy walking stick for those longer excursions as well.

SPECS WARRANTY Applicable by national law EXTENDED WARRANTY 2 Years MATERIAL Aluminum WEIGHT (LB) 1.8000 LOAD CAPACITY (LBS) 13.1 EXTENDED HEIGHT (IN) 64.1 FOLDED HEIGHT (IN) 22.25 MINIMUM HEIGHT (IN) 24 3/8 LEG SECTIONS 4 LEG LOCK Flip Lock HEAD SPECS U-Yoke

The feet can be deployed outward to create a much more stable situation by allowing the Veo to stand freely if that fits your applications. The ball joint at the ankle will enable users to adjust their shooting angle which makes up or downhill shots easy to negotiate. Because of the Veo’s versatility in use, we consider this to be a great “grab and go” type shooting stick. If we had to pick one slight negative aspect of this useful product, it would be the weight. At 1.8 pounds it is considerably heavier than carbon fiber options available, although with the added weight, comes more stability… Vanguard’s innovation has allowed them to produce the industry’s first tri-stand system monopod with a moving ball joint. There are several variations of the Veo system available on the Vanguard company website. Stop by, take a look, and choose the best to fit your personal needs. MSRP $79.99 AVID HUNTING & OUTDOORS Spring 2017

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L1 - L2 - L3 - L4 - L5 Layering System XKG Series was born from an idea to use the most realistic camo patterns and combine them with lightweight, technical fabrics to build comfortable, high-performing hunting gear at an affordable price

PATTERN • PERFORMANCE • PRICE COMPARE THE DIFFERENCE KINGSCAMO.COM/XKG 877-705-2266 L4 - XKG Lone Peak Jacket

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I enjoy trying to capture the variances of the cervidae family; from their personalities to the differences in their antlers, to the unique attributes between deer, elk, and moose. They are my favorite subjects! â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Laura Sheets

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