AVID Hunting & Outdoors – Fall 2016 by IBuildMagazines.com

HUNTING | FISHING | GEAR | OUTDOORS | PREPAREDNESS

INSIDE: True Conservation A Quest for Gold Weatherby Terramark

FALL 2016 HUNTAVID.com

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AVId Hunting & outdoors Fall 2016

Contents Table of

FALL 2016

HUNTING

08 True Conservation 14 Focus Hard 20 Never Give Up 24 Colorado OTC Giant 28 The Runner 30 Speed Hunt 34 Hey Bears 38 Family Tradition 42 No Man’s Land 46 The Elk Puzzle

GUIDES & OUTFITTERS

50 54

Sheep Dreams Expectations

FISHING

58 A Quest For Gold 62 Sage and Redington –

istinct Options for the D Discriminating Fisherman…

64 The Perfect Goal

GEAR

66 Weatherby Mark V Terramark 70 LOWA Z-8S GTX® 72 FoxPro Fire Eye 73 The New Vortex Razor HD DEPARTMENTS

74 80 4

Spot the Hunters Field Photos

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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 2016. AVID Hunting & Outdoors

PUBLISHER – Desert Hunter LLC EXECUTIVE EDITORS Brandon Walker Casey Stilson Justin Walker CHIEF EDITOR Neil Large – nlarge@huntavid.com ASSOCIATE EDITORS Amyanne Rigby Nicole Brown Photographers Brentten Stowe Brad Cunningham Laura Sheets VP MARKETING AND SALES Justin Walker – jwalker@huntavid.com Staff & Contributing Writers Josh Steinke Josh Rowley Kaid Panek Dave Heath MARKETING MANAGERs, SOCIAL MEDIA, PRO-STAFF Chris Staffeldt Collin Dalley Travis Falter Jeremy Anderson Josh Wilson Steven Falkner Garren Shakespeare Kayla Islas Meyer Predator Staff Vince Donohue Fly Fishing Content Garrett Gubler Branson Gubler Mike Zimmerman Jeremy Anderson For information on advertising or other inquiries: CONTACT: (435) 574-9673 www.huntavid.com or info@huntavid.com Facebook/Instagram/YouTube Submit articles and pictures to bwalker@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 2016, AVID Hunting & Outdoors magazine.

Letter from the

Editors

AVID Hunting and Outdoors magazine was started by people who are passionate about hunting and our great outdoors. You can pick up any hunting magazine and read all about the biggest and the best animals taken in different parts of the world. But what about the rest of us, the DIY hunters, and the hunters that don’t have an endless bank account? Those are the hunters and outdoorsmen we would like to appeal too. Hunting used to be about spending time with family and friends and enjoying the outdoors. These days it has turned into a competition and is all about the trophy animals. Not that we don’t all want a trophy animal, but we want to bring the “meat and potatoes” back into hunting. Get people back to simply enjoying the outdoors, and sharing that vision with our family and friends. We want to show our newer generations the excitement of seeing big game in the wild and being outdoors instead of just seeing it on TV. So while you might not see the biggest and the best animals taken in this magazine, you will see individuals and families hunting and enjoying the great outdoors. We will strive to bring you updated information, rules, regulations and hunting success stories. If there is a story you would like to see in AVID Hunting and Outdoors magazine, please submit it to us. Thank you for taking the time to read and look through AVID Hunting and Outdoors magazine. AVId Hunting & outdoors Fall 2016

www.huntavid.com | Utah Edition

AVId Hunting & outdoors September-November 2015

TRUE

Conser 8

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HUNTING

vation By Zachary Kenner

itting around the camp fire, most hunting stories are either filled with uncontrollable excitement from the awesome buck a hunter had harvested, or sentiments of frustration from the one that got away. The campfires during my 2015 deer season were neither... Compassion, a little sadness, and acts of true conservation were on the agenda as we relived our unique perspective of opening day. Continued on Page 10

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Hard Summer In July I had made a couple scouting trips to the mountains of Idaho in search of fresh velvet. I found a lot of smaller bucks, but I did manage to see a couple nice mature bucks too! With a month and a half left before hunting season, all I could do was wait, although my excitement and anticipation helped further fuel my fire… High temperature records were being set across the entire Pacific Northwest. The summer had brought a major drought, and the land was more dry than I had ever seen it. With fire warning levels set at extreme, a couple storm systems moved in and brought with them the lightning necessary to create huge wildfires. In fact, fires were ignited everywhere! Washington was the first to get hit, followed by Idaho and Oregon. These fires weren’t just remotely contained in the mountains; they were threatening towns, killing livestock and leveling people’s homes! Firefighters would seem to get a handle on one fire and a day or so later another would ignite. After doing a little research I found that more than 630K acres burned in Oregon, 750K acres burned in Idaho and over 1 million acres had burned in Washington by the time the fires had completed their wrath of fury. First Light Knowing one of the fires had hit the area I had scouted, I was anxious to see what it had actually destroyed. Upon arriving the day before opening day, my dad and I saw the fire had burned most of 10

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the area that we hunt, although it didn’t touch a little finger canyon where I spotted the biggest buck during my scouting trip. As the sun came up on opening day I happened to spot that big buck right away! After maneuvering through some other deer, dad and I were able to get in great position! Everything was coming together. Then

HUNTING

out of nowhere, the wind swirled just enough that a little fawn we had snuck by winded us and exploded, running right into the bucks! The deer scattered in all different directions and we were left walking back to the truck with our tail between our legs.

that even though I am a hunter, it truly saddens me to see these animals in such discomfort. I believe that as both a hunter and a true conservationist it was my responsibility to relieve the animals from their suffering.

The Burn Well that was really the only area I knew of that didn’t get hit by the fire. So after regrouping at the truck, dad and I decided to go check out the burn to see if any deer had looped back into it. As we walked through the ash and dust it felt like we were on the moon. All the grass and brush were burned away, leaving only charcoal covered pine trees standing amidst the destruction. At first glance, as I scanned across the landscape with my binoculars, it appeared there was nothing left. No deer were to be seen anywhere. As I glassed I kept thinking “Why would they be here? Its not like there is any food for them to eat anyway.” I discussed with my father about what he thought we should do. We decided to just keep moving while checking hidden pockets for deer. Eventually we did find deer. We spotted two bucks, one on a ridge-top and one in the bottom of a canyon. Unfortunately, it appeared that they had barely escaped the fire with their lives. The buck in the bottom of the canyon could hardly walk on his hind legs and looked extremely skinny, as if he hadn’t eaten or had a drink in weeks. The other buck was bedded down and would repeatedly raise his right front leg only to wince in pain; it appeared his shoulder was broken. It didn’t take long for dad and I to decide that we needed to put our tags on these bucks. I hope people understand

Buck #1 The wind was blowing another storm system our way which created ideal stalking conditions and was so loud the buck would not hear us sneaking up on him. Dad decided he would take the buck on the ridge line and the stalk was on. We circled around and got downwind from the buck and began to creep closer. 120 yards, 90 yards, 60 yards… At 60 yards there was a low spot in the dirt and ash that allowed my dad to remain hidden while he crawled even closer. With the wind blowing about 30mph, he was going to have to get as close as possible before making the shot. The ditch, the wind, and the buck lowering his head to the ground wincing in pain are vividly recalled memories of the stalk. The buck never saw him as he snuck to within 20 yards and came to full draw. His shot was perfect! My dad made a great double lung shot, the buck ran about 35 yards and expired. Buck #2 After dressing out dad’s buck, we dropped into the canyon to search for the second buck. To no surprise he didn’t go very far from where we last saw him. He was now bedded up in a ditch in the very bottom of the canyon where he most likely would of died. I knocked Continued on Page 12

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my arrow and began to creep slowly towards the ditch, as I got close enough to see his vitals I drew my bow. Seeing the movement of my bow, the buck had a surge of adrenaline and jumped up and took off up the hill! I made a quick shot as he moved and hit him in the armpit. The shot missed vitals and I knew it! I quickly reloaded another arrow and made the next shot count… Whack! Hit him in the chest this time and it put him down quickly. Reflection When we walked up on both of these bucks we felt extremely bad for them and what they had been through. The fire had left them in horrible shape! The hair on their bodies was singed from head to toe and their ears were rock hard, like a pigs ear you would buy for your dog at the pet store. Dads buck had taken a huge blow to the face and definitely had a broken front leg. He probably acquired both injuries by jumping off of a cliff while trying to escape the fire. My deer had extremely swollen back legs and feet and was so thin you could count every rib. There was definitely a sense of sadness that

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dad and I felt for the bucks, but also a feeling of relief knowing the bucks were no longer in pain. I am proud to be a hunter and a conservationist... As many of you know, the act of hunting is only part of being a hunter. I truly love the land we live in and the wildlife that we share it with. I’ve been a part of some great conservation programs over the years such as Ducks Unlimited, the Mule Deer Foundation, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, and the Wild Sheep Foundation. I’ve spent dollars at auctions, sponsored sheep to be put on the mountain as well as volunteered with hands on projects. All of these contributing to the betterment of wildlife and the habitat in which they live. The act of compassion my father and I showed that day I will forever remember as the most gut-wrenching act of conservation I had ever been a part of! All I can hope is that as hunters, we all would of done the same thing. I get very upset when an anti hunter says that we don’t care about the environment and the existence of wildlife. I know I can personally say that conserving habitat and wildlife is all I care about!

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HUNTING

AVId Hunting & outdoors Fall 2016

By Bryan Schiller

ue to the limited tag drawing process, I was searching for a way to draw more tags. Two years ago I took up bowhunting to increase my odds of obtaining a coveted Utah elk tag…It worked!! I drew a tag in the south central part of the state in an area I had never been to although my buddy had a great hunt there a few years ago. Knowing I had a lot of work to do, I began the task of learning a new unit in search of bull elk. I spent several hours on Google Earth learning the lay of the land and looking for likely spots before my first scouting trip with a couple friends. We covered a ton of ground and set up some trail cameras in areas my buddy had previously hunted, then headed back to my northern Utah home. When not scouting, I was constantly on the computer, pouring over topo maps, and generally obsessing about

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my hunt. During the summer, I made three more scouting trips (five hours each way) and had very little to show for my efforts. A few cow elk, a small five point, and of course a good ole black angus on one of my trail cameras. Although I was a bit frustrated with the hunt quickly approaching, I was able to get down there a few days before the opener to look for bulls. I set up camp with the intention of staying as long as necessary in order to be successful. After further scouting however, I found where the elk activity was pretty decent about 1.5 hours to the south east. I moved camp in order to avoid losing sleep due to the drive and began the hunt with a renewed perspective. After a few days I was seeing good bulls. The weather was not in my favor, but at least I was in the right place. I had found a good bull that deserved a closer look, so I set out amidst the impending storm. It was less than 30 degrees with wind chill and there was lightning and rain for three hours then came hell and snow with whipping winds. Wednesday and Thursday were horrendous as well and I was stuck on the mountainside for several hours in the freezing temps. I was well prepared and knew I would encounter weather, I just wasn’t planning on pure hell, it was difficult to find shelter. After the weather delay, I continued on in search of the bull we had located. As I got closer, I decided to back out because the wind was not blowing in a favorable direction and retreated down the mountain. As I started to back off, I dropped low on the hillside and heard something directly below me (100 yards) get up and move. I heard him hit a log, break a few sticks and then some loose rock slid. It wasn’t something busting out of the area, but it had to be an elk and I knew the bull I had been stalking was above me. Fortunately Josh was watching the hillside in his spotter and caught a glimpse of something moving through the timber. He only had a five second window as the bull stepped through a small clearing, and Josh confirmed it was indeed a different bull and counted at least 8 points on the one side. He jumped on the radio to let me know all the commotion below me was potentially the bull we had been dreaming about. The rain had started up again and the wind never stopped blowing. Dark was quickly approaching so I had no choice but to back off and make a new plan. I knew if I didn’t push him out of the area, there was a good chance I’d be able to find him Saturday morning. I reluctantly started hiking out, and by the time I got off the mountain, I couldn’t put my mind at ease and continually was thinking about the bull and the circumstances of the day. I got off the mountain and back to camp and promptly turned the lights out around midnight. After a short restless night of strategizing my morning plans over and over, the alarm went off and I was eager to start my two hour hike in the dark. It was time to make something happen! It was a very crisp morning covered in clouds without rain and temperatures were around 35 degrees. I put in my diaphragm and let out a very subtle bugle just to see if I could get anything to answer. Almost immediately I had a bull to my right, it sounded like a smaller satellite bull. I was pretty excited, maybe the 3 days of rough weather and cool temperatures was working and the elk would finally help me out. The bugle came from the direction I was headed

and I knew I needed to get closer. Another 15 minutes went by and not single peep. I decided to cow call a few times which generated zero interest. I kept moving and 15 minutes later I was around 9500ft. The point I was shooting for on my GPS was 9800 ft so I didn’t have far to go. I didn’t want to give away my location but I was all alone and and had no choice. I had to be aggressive, I decided to bugle again… I proceeded with a less aggressive bugle and almost instantly got what I assumed to be the same small bull to answer me, now much closer. I went to respond back and was almost immediately cut off by a much more aggressive bull and bugle. At that point my blood was pumping and that was all I needed to hear. I hoped it was the big bull to prove he was still in the area. My game plan from this point was to shut up and move until I found him. It took me 20 minutes to get near the 9800ft mark I was shooting for and during that time it there was complete silence. It seemed like hours with no communication and I wasn’t sure what I was going to do. I was very apprehensive and approaching with baby steps not knowing where the bulls were. As I moved closer... finally, I got it! A very aggressive bugle and it wasn’t far. I kept the same slow pace and when I got to the flat point I was shooting for, I immediately stopped behind a tree and started glassing the area for him. Everything came together, I caught some movement and sure enough it was the antlers of an elk bedded in the timber about 150 yards from me. I pulled up my binoculars and dropped them when I saw the 8 points on the one side. It was him! Now what? How was I going to get closer in this thick fallen timber? I could only see his rack and I’d never be able to get a shot unless I could sneak right into his bed. Again, I checked the wind and kept moving. I made up 50 yards which took me another 20 minutes and eventually got within 100 yards. At this point, the timber was so thick I had lost my visual. All of a sudden I catch a glimpse of an elk Continued on Page 18

AVId Hunting & outdoors Fall 2016

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walking through the trees, its him! He’s up and moving. He had no idea I was there and I could move with him to close the gap. I took cover behind every tree making sure he didn’t catch my movement. Within 15 minutes, I was much closer and spotted him as he stopped to rake a tree. He was being very loud and it was the perfect setup for me to get in position. At 50 yards I had no shooting lane. Trees and branches were everywhere. I knew I had to wait for him to turn his head and keep moving closer. It took a solid 20 minutes for me to move 20 yards but he didn’t move an inch. He stood in the same place attacking the same tree. I remember thinking this KUIU gear is incredible. No matter what kind of skill set I might have, at 30 yards if an animals sees anything abnormal, there won’t be another opportunity to exercise those skills. At 30 yards, I needed two steps to the left to get what I perceived as the best shooting lane with no branches and the best vital shot I was going to get. I waited for the bull to make his first mistake as he turned his head and I got my first step. It took another two minutes before he looked away again and I was able to take my second step while drawing my bow at the same time. It was only seconds after at full draw I saw my sight bubble level out, I had a clear heart shot. I released my arrow and and saw it hit him PERFECTLY! The moment was surreal and I could see the effect of the arrow almost immediately. The rest is history!

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HUNTING

GIVE

By Austin Gardner

ometimes it can be more rewarding to help someone harvest an animal than to harvest one yourself. This is the truly unselfish act of helping others realize their dreams with payment in only memories and good times. Rowdy Racks Outdoors team members Kerry, Brandon, and Austin have come to realize this increasingly more over the last few years. With a little bit of luck and the right amount of preference points, Kerry was able to draw a multi-season Utah bear tag. We knew this hunt would require a large amount of teamwork and effort in order to be successful. Drawing the multi-season tag would give us the option to hunt over bait, with dogs, or spot and stalk. As a team, we had hunted bears in places with a much larger population. Montana for example has a dense population of bears in certain areas, but the use of bait is not an option. Because he had never hunted bears over bait, Kerry wanted to close the deal on a mature boar in this fashion very badly. Although we planned on setting up our bait station a couple weeks before the opener, a heavy winter in the high Uintahâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s kept us from doing so until opening day. We hiked in at first light, our packs fully loaded with dog food, fruit, smelly jelly, and trail cameras, to say we were excited would be an extreme understatement! We had the site set up within an hour and headed back to camp. Evening was approaching on day one and we contemplated going back to glass the station Continued on Page 22

AVId Hunting & outdoors Fall 2016

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from a distance to observe any bear activity. We doubted any bears would have been attracted to our site so quickly and thought the bait may need a few days to attract the bears. But as we knew all too well, we needed to take advantage of every possible opportunity if we wanted to have a successful hunt. We hiked back in around 5:00 pm and proceeded to set up about 500 yards away from our station to glass. By 8:30 that evening a chocolate boar came up from the bottom of the valley and started heading right towards the station. We couldn’t believe it, our level of excitement was through the roof! We watched him for a few minutes as he sauntered toward the bait and proceeded to literally tear it apart! Light was fading quickly so we repositioned to 400 yards and Kerry let one fly. The bear bolted as if he was hit but after replaying footage and re-calculating MOA, the conclusion was… MISS! It was too dark to head in so the next morning we made 100% sure he was not hit. No blood trail… NO bear! We reset the bait station and took off for home. With responsibilities at home during the week, we were only able to hunt the weekends. Each time we returned to the bait site over the next couple weeks we found that it had been demolished when we were not there. This was a good sign…and it was a bad sign. It was a relief to know the big boar was returning to the site and was not spooked after the missed shot, although we hoped to catch a glimpse of him when we were actually in the field! We had collected hundreds of trail cam pictures and recognized 22

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that five different bears had been using the site! One picture in particular of a large boar changed the game for us and regenerated our motivation. We were at an all-time low mentally and highly discouraged from not having any success, or even seeing a bear the last two weekends for that matter, but this one photo drove our spirits through the roof. We all took extra days off work so we could head up Wednesday night because the hunt ended on Sunday. We spent all day Thursday and Friday watching the bait. Like the previous weekends, no bears were using the site during our presence. The days were becoming extremely long, glassing drained us, and it was getting tough to stay motivated both physically and mentally. Saturday morning we spent six hours watching the bait site with no luck once again, then headed back to camp for lunch. When we returned that afternoon, we noticed that the bait had been hit while we were back at camp. It was almost like the bear was taunting us. Kerry was beyond upset and thoughts of heading back to camp to pack it up and head home were in the air. Knowing that the boar now had a full belly and probably wouldn’t be back for a few days, we didn’t think we would have a very eventful evening. Hunting has highs and it it has lows, this was definitely an extreme low for us. Kerry had always preached about never giving up, but now we had to re-motivate him to stay and finish the hunt. We were rewarded for our persistence not even two hours later. The boar who had been giving us the slip for the past month came out of the timber and headed straight for the bait. Not staying at

the site long he wandered down the valley, in and out of the timber, but never presented an ethical shot. For the next 10 minutes we watched as he was presumably searching for a sow. Right before leaving the final clearing he briefly stopped long enough for Kerry to settle the crosshairs of his Remington 300 UltraMag and make a clean one shot kill.

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HUNTING

I knew that I may only get one chance at this bull. After taking three of the longest breaths I’ve ever taken, I pulled back and mewed. The bull stopped and looked at me as I released, he flinched and kept walking. I had missed low and experienced the longest night of my life wondering what could have been! By Lance Poole

very year the stories told in our hunting camp get longer and more dramatic, just as most hunting stories told around the campfire typically do. Having heard and told a number of these stories over the years, I have never imagined killing a bull we would talk about for years to come that needed no exaggeration! I have always been a rifle hunter. At age 12, my grandfather, Bill Sloan, gave me my first hunting rifle; and from that moment I was hooked for life. As years went by, hunting turned into my passion; but growing as a hunter, I wanted more. I wanted more challenge, and I wanted more control of the OTC unit I hunt. I have always hunted the 3rd general season in Colorado leaving my success reliant on the weather and elk migration. I consider myself lucky to live between two of the largest migrating elk herds in the country. In order to increase my likelihood of success and have less reliance on the weather by hunting nonmigrating elk, I decided In February of 2015 to become a bowhunter. After weeks of scouting, and months of becoming proficient with my bow, opening day had finally arrived! At day break, I knew the bulls I had scouted would come out of the fields heading towards their bedding areas. Public land hunting can have its own set of challenges and sometimes it seems as if everyone is chasing the same bulls! I hunted the same herd trying to outsmart the elk and out maneuver other hunters for the first week; yet, in the end, the elk always out hoofed me. So I changed my plan and went in search of bulls in which I wouldn’t have “typical” public land hunting concerns. The first morning in a new area I spotted a couple big bulls feeding in a hay field about two miles away. I managed to get within 250 yards when I noticed they had split up and appeared to be heading for their separate bedding grounds. I had no cover, so I crawled on my hands and knees for nearly 100 yards, slowly but surely in the relatively open country. I Continued on Page 26

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looked up to get my bearings and saw one of the biggest bulls I have ever seen standing only 100 yards from me! The bull was just below a hill, heading my way, when he decided to change his course and was now nearing the edge of my shooting ability. I knew that I may only get one chance at this bull. After taking three of the longest breaths I’ve ever taken, I pulled back and mewed. The bull stopped and looked at me as I released, he flinched and kept walking. I had missed low and experienced the longest night of my life wondering what could have been! After some failed stalks over the next couple days I began to accept defeat. Ending the season with an agonizing memory of missing the bull of a lifetime didn’t sound that appealing, so I dug

deep and continued the hunt armed with determination. September 18th began just like the other mornings, with one exception… the bulls were nowhere to be found. Cows were feeding in the field, just as they had been; I thought the bulls had vanished! A bit concerned, I continued glassing and finally spotted the herd bull coming out of the brush following more cows. As I watched him through the glass, I knew he was not the bull I had missed, although I knew I wanted him very badly! I got into better position and called, no response. I decided not to push him, instead, I kept my distance and watched until the herd bedded down. It was hot, almost 90 degrees, I knew (hoped) they would remain bedded in the shade until I returned with a plan later in the afternoon. I had decided to set up between the water source and where they had been feeding. Just as the sun was setting, I could hear movement behind me. It was the familiar sound of antlers rubbing tree branches! After tense moments of waiting for the situation to unfold, the bull stepped in to an opening where I got my first real

good look at him. I knew he was big, but I had no idea just how impressive he truly was. The bull just stood and watched his cows feeding for a while before following them. Trying to control my breathing while being as still as possible, I thought I may miss my chance as the wind switched direction, now blowing right at the group of elk. The cows fed out of sight and although I couldn’t see him, I knew he wasn’t far behind. As he stepped out, I ranged him at 67 yards, drew my bow, exhaled, and released. I could not have asked for a better shot, he dropped only 10 yards away! I was suddenly hit by emotion just as hard as the arrow had hit that bull. My bull has 65 inch main beams, and over 50 inches of mass. He also has an offset pedicle that gives him a unique shape. He has it all, length, character, mass, a kicker of the royal and the true “wow factor”. The bull of my lifetime officially scored 372 6/8” and will live in infamy around our campfire for years to come. 26

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HUNTING

By Garren Shakespear

ecause we are raising “future hunters”, it is rare that my wife is able to join me on hunts. To have her with me on this hunt in particular was an awesome and very welcome opportunity. The area we hunt is choked with tall, thick sagebrush, and it holds a lot of deer. In order to hunt it effectively we typically “drive” deer to each other in hopes of getting a shot. This tactic has worked well over the years, so my wife, brother-in-law, and myself began to conduct this hunt in the same fashion. Because my brother-in-law had prior obligations, he had to leave in the early afternoon, my wife and I would complete the task at hand in each others company. Some friends of ours were in the same vicinity hunting with their sons. After determining their exact location, we found a great looking patch of brush to “push” in hopes a buck would present a shot to one of the boys. I started my course while my wife covered the east side of the area on the ATV. As I struggled through the thick brush, I heard the tell tale sound of a mule deer bounding off that had been alerted to my presence. He was a big four point, and he was heading in the opposite direction of both myself and the other hunters for which he was intended. I took a shot, in retrospect I probably shouldn’t have, but I did; and then I took another as he bolted over a small hill 200 yards from my location, disappearing from my sight. It was at that moment I decided to run, and I did, kind of. I got snagged in the brush, tripped, fumbled, and almost died in that sagebrush by the time I made it to a point that I thought I would be able to see him. I was a little late as he crested another small hill about 300 yards out. I decided to check for blood just in case one of my earlier shots had connected but did not find any. After that, I called my wife and had her pick me up to go down the road a bit to glass in the direction he had gone. We bailed off the ATV near the last area I had seen the buck. Doubtful I would ever lay eyes on this buck again, I raised my binoculars to search the area thoroughly. Just as I was telling my wife we would never see him again, I spotted dark tines above the sagebrush about 400 yards out. He was bedded on a small sage covered knob. We formulated a plan to have my wife keep an eye on the buck behind the spotting scope, while I crawled into position for an unobstructed shot. Having reached a position in which I could see the the buck, I prepared to make the 275 yard shot. The buck stood up and I shot. He whirled and spun to run away, I shot again, I then had visions of my earlier encounter with him running away from me unscathed. I chambered another round, let him have it, and he nose dived into the sage. I looked back to my wife for reassurance and she was in the midst of celebration. Walking up on my buck, I was pleasantly surprised with his character, big body, and beautiful cape. He wont break any records but for me, its not about the inches anyway. As we were dressing the buck, we noticed I had hit him all three of my last shots which did wonders for my confidence! I will never forget the hunt my wife and I shared that day. The range of emotions associated with it had completely worn me out! I absolutely loved that my wife was able to share the ups and downs of the hunt, and hope our children feel her excitement and decide to accompany us in the field when they are old enough to do so.

AVId Hunting & outdoors Fall 2016

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HUNTING

SPEED HUNT

By Kayla Islas Meyer

t only took 15 bonus points to finally draw an Arizona archery antelope tag. I actually felt pretty lucky considering it took my dad 19 points to draw his first antelope tag! But none the less, when I heard that I had finally drawn a tag, I was ecstatic! I drew my first choice and received tag number three out of only 20! With 5.4% draw odds and a 70% hunt success rate I was over the moon that I would finally be hunting antelope! This hunt started like any other except for the simple fact that, well… I had never hunted antelope before! Scouting, preseason prep work, and shooting my bow were all priorities that needed attention.Thankfully my hunt would take place in a unit that I was very familiar with and grew up hunting in, although I felt extra “homework” was needed to tip the odds of success in my favor. Because of almost unforeseen circumstances, I quickly learned that scouting for this hunt was more crucial than any hunt I had been on. Private property had never really been an issue for me while hunting in the past. In fact, while hunting this unit before, I never had to worry about “boundaries” because we typically hunt deer, bear, and elk in the mountain ranges which are public property and comprised of state trust land. This time we would be hunting the prairie, the flat lands. A lot of ranches and private homes with expansive property covered this area. It seemed like every time I spotted an antelope there was a private property sign right by it, I was starting to lose my mind! As luck would have it, I had recently become a member of “Team Hunt” for onXmaps. This cell phone app was a life saver! Not only did I use it to look for private property lines, but I also utilized the capabilities while in the field to mark the exact locations of bucks that I had located. With the help of this app, I was able mark public land areas I could hunt as well as eight different antelope bucks on public land. I was so impressed! Opening morning had finally arrived, and to be honest, I was sleep deprived due to my excitement. Today, I could potentially kill my first antelope buck! A thousand thoughts were running through my head as I loaded my gear in the truck to leave. Did I have everything? My bow? Whew, yes! Would I find a shooter buck? Could I make a stalk? Would I miss? Oh no! I can’t miss! How embarrassing! Ok, so now I’m shaking, excited and nervous thanks do my self induced mental anguish! We made a game plan the night before by using all the information we had gathered from scouting. We would start where we spotted the closest antelope that we thought was a definite shooter then continue on to the next closest location and then the next until we have exasperated our options. A lot of people had asked me if I was hunting for the trophy or for the meat. To be honest, a “shooter” buck to me is any buck with horns longer than its ears. Since this was my first antelope hunt, I would like to be successful and focus on a big buck after gaining the valuable experience on this hunt. Upon arriving to our first location, he was there. I mean right there, like it was scripted. To my surprise he was 80 yards away from the dirt road! My heart was racing, I felt like I could hear it. We drove by up the road a bit to get out and make a game plan and to see what he what direction he might be heading. I looked at the time; it was 5:22 am. We glassed him and he didn’t even care that we were 200 yards away at this point. He had a doe with him that he kept rounding up and little by little he was moving closer to the dirt road. All his focus was on this doe. Time to make a move, we headed towards him. Adam, my husband, put the range finder on him as we got closer. “45 yards” he said to me. The buck had no idea we were there, his attention was so intently focused on his doe. I slipped another five yards closer to him in the tall grass. With an arrow knocked I was ready to shoot. I stood up put my 40 yard pin on him as he was starting to walk and drilled him! He ran 60 yards and dropped. I had pinned him in the shoulder as he was quartered away and the arrow came out his neck. I looked at the time; I had shot my first archery antelope opening morning at 5:42 am. All the scouting and preparation had paid off, it never goes that well for me. I am still in awe that I had tagged out that early; and although a quick end came to this hunt, the memory of my success will forever be etched in my memory. A hunt of a life time and I was so happy that my husband and our best friend Nick Fisher from AAE were there to share it with me. AVId Hunting & outdoors Fall 2016

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AVId Hunting & outdoors Summer 2016

BEARS HEY

By Paul Servey

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HUNTING

have spent my whole life hunting the western states and I can count on one hand how many times I have seen bears in the wild. I have hunted large game in some of the most populated bear units in my state and still have not been lucky enough to see a bear. Bears have always been an intriguing animal to me. I had never hunted them until two years ago. On my first trip out, I saw a beautiful color phased black bear feeding on a hillside, his coat was the color of molasses glistening in the sun. As I watched him across the canyon I was so mesmerized by his beauty. It was like a light came on as I realized how much I had been missing by not hunting these animals before now. I was able to successfully harvest a true monarch that first year. Needless to say, I was hooked and already looking forward to my next opportunity to hunt these amazing animals. The spring of 2016 would take us to the beautiful state of Montana on a spot and stalk DIY rifle black bear hunt. There were

four of us in our group. My brother James, my good friend Mike and his son Nick. We drove to our designated spot deep in the Montana mountains, and upon our arrival threw on our packs, grabbed our rifles, and started hiking. The air was cool and crisp and the smells were very fresh thanks to the recent snow. Amidst this beautiful, serene setting, it simply felt like heaven. My brother and I were only 15 minutes into our hike when we came across a fresh pile of bear scat, and it was everywhere! You could smell the bear and we even found a chewed up wad of grass covered in fresh saliva. We knew the bear was close. We crept down the logging road in full alert mode. In an instant, we both stopped and said “There’s a bear” I whispered, “It’s a stud.” About 60 yards in front of us a mature black bear was feeding on the side of the logging road. My brother stepped forward, flipped his butler creek caps just as that old bruin snapped his head up and had us pegged. I rested my sights on the shoulder crease of Continued on Page 36

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his glistening black coat and waited for my little brother to shoot. During this twenty-second period, my brother said: “Can you see him?” I say “Yes, hammer him.” Still no shot. I was looking at his big ole pumpkin head when James said: “I don’t have a clean shot, shoot him.” I began to squeeze the trigger and he bolted. We looked at each other and the pristine forest was corrupted with many words.

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James thought I was going to shoot, and I thought he was going to shoot. James had a small pine bough covering the bear’s vitals. Oh, the highs and lows of hunting! We drove back to the motel that night and laughed about what had happened, and vowed it would never happen again. The next day we decided to try an area where James and Mike had seen bears the previous years. We split up and started walking old logging roads. About two miles in James and I began to find a lot of bear sign. We glassed for a few hours, and found nothing, then headed back to the truck. We decided to check the area where we ran into the giant from the night before. While hiking back to the truck a voice kept telling me I needed to stay in the area I was in. When we got back to the truck I had decided I would listen to that voice and hike back up the road. James agreed and I set off solo up the road one more time. I found a good spot to sit and began glassing. I began watching whitetails run across the clear cuts as if they were playing tag. The sun began to set and I was hoping I had made the right decision. I did! With only about 45 minutes of light left, I saw a black bear emerge from a thick group of pines at 75 yards. It stopped and looked right through me, then walked up onto the clear cut. I didn’t yet have a shot, when suddenly the bear began to run straight away from me. My heart dropped briefly until he stopped at 180 yards, turned broadside, offering me a perfect shot. I had to make a quick decision. Do I want this bear? Well… I squeezed the trigger and the rifle surprised me as I watched the bear drop in its tracks. I chambered another round in my 300 Win mag and settled the crosshairs on the motionless bear. In an instant, the bear jumped up quicker than I had ever seen any animal in my life and bolted out of the clear cut and down into the pines. My excitement abruptly went to heartache. With light fading fast I threw my pack on, grabbed my rifle and sprinted to where the bear had been shot. The tall green grass was covered in bright red lung blood and I knew the 185 Berger VLD had done its job. I looked over the edge of the clear cut and began following the swath of blood. I made it about ten yards when I looked through an opening in the pines and could see my bear. I knelt down right there and offered my thanks to God. As I walked up to this animal I was overcome with emotions while wishing my brother James was with me. The light was fading fast so I had to make a decision. Should I clean the bear out and let it sit overnight, or throw the whole bear on my back and start packing it out to the trailhead. I decided I was going to put my EXO 3500 to work. I hurried and took some field photos, cleaned the bear out and strapped it to my pack whole. It took every muscle in my body to get on my feet. This bear felt every bit of 150 lbs. of completely dead weight. I began to tighten the straps on the pack

as I felt the bear’s blood begin to run down the back of my legs. Knowing my brother had seen grizzly bears in this area, I realized I had just become a walking grizzly bear treat. My senses heightened while on full alert! I held my rifle at the ready and began my journey back to the trailhead. The forest was dark and the two miles to the truck felt like 200. Every noise I heard in the bushes made my heart skip a beat. During my hike, I was talking to myself and yelling “Hey bears!” In hopes of scaring any hungry grizzlies away. At one point I could have sworn I heard a low growl, but it just may have been my mind playing tricks on me. I finally ran into my brother and friends when I reached the trailhead. My whole body was filled with joy and relief. Everyone was happy to see me return with the beautiful black bear strapped to my back. I have a true love of hunting bears because of their elusive and predatory lifestyle. I highly recommend if you have the opportunity to hunt bears to do it! It will be one of the most memorable experiences of your life! Paul Servey is known as Mountain Goat Pauly. He’s a blue collar worker who loves to hunt public land over the counter tags in the Rocky Mountains. He started hunting with his family as a child and has continued to pass on his knowledge to his daughter who also enjoys the sport. Paul believes in the spirit of the wild and gives every animal the respect they deserve taught to him by his native father. Paul enjoys the sport of long range rifle, archery and muzzle loader hunting of big game animals. He is affiliated with: Mtn Ops, Exo Mountain Gear, Kryptek, Inergy Solar, Phone Skope and Buku Calls.

AVId Hunting & outdoors Fall 2016

Family

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HUNTING

Tradition By Jordan Haack

he 2015 Idaho hunting season would set a precedent for upcoming years by solidifying a family tradition. With both elk and deer tags in our pockets, my dad and I were more than anxious to get these hunts started! In the past, I had been happy shooting two points, but vowed to change that this year and hold out for one of the solid bucks that call unit 69 home. With high hopes and accurate rifles, dad and I set out for our hunt and arrived the day before the opener to set up camp and look around a bit. Opening weekend came and went without even seeing a buck. The next week we headed back up, this time for 10 days, and were met with different circumstances for sure! I made it to my ridge just in time for a quick evening hunt and saw a really good bull with some cows, unfortunately the elk hunt opened the next day! I continued in search of a good muley. As I crested the ridge the elk were on, I noticed a Continued on Page 40

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This was our best year yet

and I wouldn’t change one

single second of our family tradition hunt.

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cow moose with twin calves across a small saddle. I was having so much fun! In such a short time I had seen a good number of animals, well, everything except a good mule deer! I had a feeling they had to be around somewhere with all the activity I was seeing in the area. I sat to contemplate my next move… About 70 yards in front of me I caught movement. Then I saw it again…Deer tail! I slowly brought up my binoculars to peer through the sagebrush, and buck fever immediately set in as I counted four points on one side. Game on!! I slowly rested the crosshairs on the buck’s chest after the majority of shaking had subsided and fired. He just stood there looking at me, so I jacked another round and shot again. Another miss! How could I miss the best buck of my life? Why? I was such a nervous wreck and had to dig deep to pull it together for possibly my last opportunity at him after he eventually bounded off to 220 yards. After what seemed like an eternity, and a few moments in time that surely aged me, I was able to drop him on the third shot! I was so relieved! I could not believe what had just taken place. I’ve worked so hard to find my first four point, this whole thing just happened so fast. I was extremely excited…I couldn’t hardly stand it! I did it! My dad accompanied me to the ridge where my buck lay to help with the pack out, but I told him I had shot another two point. He wondered why I would shoot another small buck the day before the elk opener…Upon arriving at my buck, I guess you could say he was VERY surprised that a

33” wide 187” four point lay there waiting to be carried back to camp! A couple days later, after changing my focus to elk hunting, I sat high on a ridge watching a small pond for elk activity. I remember thinking that the wind wasn’t right so I diverted my attention to a bald knob in the distance. Immediately upon focusing my binoculars on the knob, I could see four cow elk standing there! I worked closer to see if a bull was with them and as I neared their location, my favorite sound in the world echoed through the canyon. A long deep bugle! Inching forward, I found the cows again, and then there he was 301 yards away. I shot and he banked to the left as the cows disappeared over the ridge. Working my way up to where I had last seen him and at 70 yards he stood up, I shot again and watched in horror as the bull ran over the ridge seemingly unscathed. The next morning, my cousins, dad, and I ventured to the last spot I had seen the bull. We were greeted by a generous blood trail which we followed easily until pure elation set in as we found the bull less than 100 yards from where he was standing the last time I shot! After taking care of my bull, it was time to focus all of our remaining energy on making sure my dad was successful. After leaving camp, we made it to our destination and began to see elk very far away. Too far in fact to responsibly pack out and avoid meat spoilage so we began to glass the closer ridges instead. Within minutes a herd of about 25 cows appeared on a nearby ridge about 600 yards away. There wasn’t presently

a bull with the group of cows, and since it was getting late we decided to back out and return in the morning. We got there early. As the sun began to illuminate the night sky we were frantically searching for the herd from the evening before. We soon found a good muley that dad would like to shoot so we began to formulate a plan. Within five minutes of finding the buck, and ultimately deciding to turn this elk hunt into a deer hunt…The bulls started bugling!! You can imagine how fast we switched gears once again into elk mode! It took about 45 minutes for us to make up a game plan because the elk were in a difficult spot but we eventually decided to creep down the canyon about 200 yards above the creek nestled in the depths. As we were making our way toward the elk, a cow popped out 140 yards in front of us, we froze in our steps. We thought she had seen us, but to our surprise, she began to feed as the rest of the herd started to materialize. Waiting for a bull to show, we patiently waited for an opportunity to present itself, soon it did. Through my binoculars, I could see dark antlers with ivory tips making their

way through the thick canyon underbrush. I alerted my dad to the bulls’ presence and couldn’t believe we were in position for a kill for the third time in five days of hunting! The bull followed the same path as the cows before him, and my dad dropped him where he stood. I cant think of a better outcome to any hunt. For us to have killed three quality animals within just five days boggles my mind to this day! We have hunted the same area for several years, in 2015 it all finally came together. This was our best year yet and I wouldn’t change one single second of our family tradition hunt.

AVId Hunting & outdoors Fall 2016

Man’s By Fred Bohm

Land

ive days in the deep and you’ll start to talk to anything that is willing to listen. I don’t know if he is a consenting audience, but the lizard makes no move to leave the sunbaked rock, so I take it as approval. I knew a solo trip is what the soul ordered, just me in my own head. So what better place for isolation than deep in the backcountry of “no-mans” land, the primitive wilderness of Arizona. I figured there would be a few beer swilling ATV hunters roaming the only road that runs into the Blue Range Primitive Area. I knew they wouldn’t prove to be competition once a mile off the beaten path. The predictability almost knocked me off my high horse as I look back at the throttle twisters with Bass Pro bow racks lashed on. This was going to be easy. Words like these tend to punch you in the face repeatedly. I came out of this one like I just took 5 rounds with Pacquiao. Easy and Coues deer don’t belong in the same sentence. This was the prey for the next five days of my life and I can honestly say, I can’t remember having more fun getting my ass handed to me. Everything I did, these little coked up fellas were two steps

ahead of me; they were hypersensitive almost to a point of being spastic. There was nothing within a hundred yard radius of which they weren’t aware. If a butterfly took a dump and didn’t wash it’s hands afterwards, they knew about it! So my tutelage began; As I stalked them deeper into the backcountry, everything else in life faded away. Work, stress, the drama that we inflict to make ourselves feel important… all just gone. So simple, so stupid; to chase animals like I did when I was 8 years old, and acquire that same mentality. Life is as complex or as simple as you make it, the decision is yours. Alright, you’re probably not here to listen to my philosophies on life, I’ll get off the soap box, and back into the dirt. The learning process was accelerated due to the fact that this place was crawling with deer, although holy hell did they make you work for it. The first bucks I reached were about 5.5 miles back, and right at the top of the ridge. It felt like I was back in Colorado hunting high country mule deer. Stalk after stalk, these little fellas proved entirely in control of the situation. I stood little chance. Get in close enough, and they just sensed you. No real explanation, they just knew you were there. Continued on Page 44

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HUNTING

AVId Hunting & outdoors Fall 2016

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However, through the amount of practice they so graciously gave me, I learned to get closer and closer. Things were starting to come together. My mentality on big game hunting has always been, “If I get a stalk in, the trip was a success.” I got more stalks in on this trip than all the stalks of my short hunting career combined. So yeah, I could officially check this one off as a success. Lizard and I’s conversation leaves the superficial and gets more profound. We were deep into the realm of double-slit theory, when he pointed out that yes, two beings can be in two different places at the same time. I was about to counter his point when, “Holy shit, your right…” squeezed out of my throat. The buck that I had chased in the morning and was supposed to be hundreds of yards away had materialized back in the valley. “No freaking way.” The stalk was on. I slid my ghost feet on and hauled ass to a choke point in the valley that he had to go through. No slipping by me this time. I sprinted down the mountain and came sliding into my contact point. I checked the wind, as I knew I couldn’t possibly go unnoticed with my aroma. Five days in 98 degree heat… I could knock a buzzard off a shit-wagon by now. Wind, check. Visuals, check. Nothing could get past me at this point without me noticing. A roll reversal. I was the hypersensitive

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hunter and I knew their game. I see him move across the far side of the choke point with two of his drinking buddies. Just a little more… and… a one-eighty. Back up the valley. I could feel lizard’s eyes watching me, not judging, but wanting to see if the student had learned. I got into the stream bed and worked up to a cutoff point in a patch of trees. They were wary at this time of day, so I knew they would be using the trees as cover. I used the stream to keep me lower than the rest of the valley as I sprinted up to the aforementioned cutoff point. Feet as silent as a mouse fart, I work into the trees edge. I hear a snap. I come up out of a crouch about 3/4 of the way up. I see velvet, then I see eyes. He has no idea what I am, as I’m sure he has never seen a human within 8 yards of him. The equation goes like this, if a human is within a hundred yards of me, I know it. So I didn’t know you were there, therefore you are not a human. I draw my bow low, side-step, aim (if you can call it that from 8 yards) and prove to him that I damn well am human. I look up the hillside and lizard is pleased. He learns that humans can in fact learn. I learn that lizards have an uncanny knowledge of quantum physics.

“Because They Gave It All…We Are Giving It Back!”

“ is the very price and condition of man’s survival.” -Carlos P. Ramulo

Sgt. Corey Garmon, US Army

First bull elk as a double amputee

Check out the smile on this soldier’s face! Sgt. Corey Garmon, from Wishes For Warriors, was invited to Utah for a bull elk adventure with Jana Waller from SkullBound TV and The R & K Hunting Co.! Corey successfully harvested his first bull elk hunt here in Henefer, Utah thanks to The R & K Hunting Co. as a double amputee proving that you CAN live out your dreams and passions after experiencing a life altering injury. This wish wouldn’t have been made possible without Jana Waller and the incredible guides at The R & K Hunting Co. Together, we are changing lives…One vet at a time!

www.WishesForWarriorsCorp.org

Wishes For Warriors is a tax exempt 501(c)(3) Organization EIN#46-4558308

The By David McElwain

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Pu zl z e

Elk

HUNTING

unting has always been a big part of who I am. I’ve always accepted it without question. In late July of 2015, I bought an overthe-counter bull elk tag for Colorado’s second season. Before long, it was October and the time had finally come to set out on my adventure. Time seemed to fly by in preparation for this hunt, my level of excitement was through the roof. A new puzzle that I intently needed to solve was now in front of me. Alone in the mountains, hunting for something I had always dreamed about, a true test of spirit and will. As a hunter, I believe certain hunts can define who we are, this hunt helped show me who I am as a hunter, and it helped mold me into who I am. The sunrise of opening morning shone down in a deep drainage of my chosen area, it was beautiful! I think I spent more time taking pictures and just living in the moment than I did actually looking for elk. I had forever dreamed of hunting elk in this land, I couldn’t believe I was actually living my dream. The first day I hunted, I saw more people than I did animals. With no one else’s opinion on where or how to hunt this animal, bouncing around public land was the only way to learn, so I rolled with the punches. Rain and generally “wet” weather encompassed much of my hunt. I grinded for days without seeing an animal. I began to question my methodology and ultimately my sanity and wondered if I was going to go home empty handed. Continued on Page 48

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Before I knew it, I was four days in…the halfway point! Finally, on that afternoon I found my first piece of the puzzle. As I was moving up the ridge, I smelled the unmistakable musk of a bull. I was wondering if I was a little crazy for thinking I could find a bull with my nose, but I dropped my pack, figured out exactly where the wind was coming from, and crawled over the next bench. I caught my first glimpse of the blonde patch of hair seventy yards ahead of me, and another, then another. Three young bulls were bedded just ahead of me. I settled the rifle and looked for the largest one. The biggest was a four point and he was legal, but something stopped me. I didn’t want this hunt to be over so quickly, now that I had found the elk. I lowered my rifle and snuck away. I didn’t want my hunt to end by shooting a bull that I didn’t feel needed to be harvested. I wanted a bull that

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would somehow show the work I put into this hunt. The fifth morning would paint a picture worth a thousand words. I pulled back into the gravel parking space and started across the meadow. Before I could get to the base of the mountain, a bull screamed just ahead of me on the edge of the timber. He continued to push his cows up higher and higher onto the mountain. I was going to make sure I knew exactly where he was going, so I could be ready for the afternoon hunt. I inched closer to the herd of twenty cows and the old herd bull. I eventually lost sight of them in the timber, but after every bugle, I would move closer. After an hour of following them, the bull grew quiet so I began following their tracks. As I crept ahead, I saw his white, ivory tips less than twenty yards below me. The bull was thrashing a tree, then a satellite

bull appeared on the scene. The herd bull bugled so close and so intense, that I could feel the vibrations in my chest and then through every fiber of my being. I saw the steam from his breath in the early morning sunlight as it ghosted through the pines. I was in their bedroom, and they had no idea. With wallows and rubs all around me, and the biggest bull I had ever seen just ahead of me, it was such a primal feeling. On the morning of day five, it wasn’t meant to happen though. The elk moved down the mountain and bedded before I could get a shot off at the bull. Then, finally, I solved the puzzle… On day six, I pulled up to the trailhead to see four other vehicles; where I had before that day, seen no one. My nerves were shot, thinking someone was going to find the bull that I had been after. During the previous days, the elk were bedding about 1 to 1.5

miles above the meadows, well away from the drainages that people were hunting. As I walked the trail, all the boot tracks in the snow went straight into the drainage, and away from where the bull was the day before. I left the trail and made the near vertical climb. For a “flatlander” like myself, I could see why no one was hunting these areas. I was always taught that nothing good comes easy. It’s best to work hard for something and enjoy the end result, because one truly “reaps what they sow.” The wind was blowing nearly straight down the mountain towards me. Sure enough, about 1.2 miles up, I smelled the rutted up old bull ahead of me. I dropped my pack immediately, said a prayer, and began to crawl up to the next bench. I peeked over the edge, and through the dark timber I could see a cow feeding. I moved ahead and got into position. I knew there had to be a bull in this herd. I waited for what seemed like hours, as cow after cow moved up the mountain. Finally, I spotted him at fifty yards as he was looking my direction. When he looked away, I found him in my scope and settled

the crosshairs. All of the days, weeks, and months led up to this one chance, this one opportunity I had prayed for, for so long. As the shot rang out, the bull fell, and time stood still. In the mountains, it seems the million thoughts running through your head are all clear, as all of your senses come alive. As I was sitting alone on the side of that mountain, I can remember absolute silence of wind pushing through the pines and the ravens calling around me. The connection I feel to these remote places can only be described as a spiritual sense

between myself, and the Lord’s untouched wilderness. There was no celebration, no hollering, and no words, only appreciation as I was able to put my hands on this bull I had chased so diligently. Packing him down the mountain, through the labyrinth of fallen beetle killed trees, was the worst yet best soul cleansing pain that I wish I could go through again today. My seventy-three year old grandmother, who was at a cabin in town, wanted to see the bull I had shot. Knowing pictures wouldn’t do it justice, she made the four mile hike from the truck, just to see the bull that I had told the stories about. As a hunter, I truly enjoy the experience of hunting alone. I feel closest to nature and closest to the Lord when I’m in those mountains with no one around. Being able to harvest that bull all alone on public land with no guide, and having my grandmother come up to see it and hear the story behind it, meant the world to me. It’s a memory I will cherish forever, and the chase is something I’ll always love talking about. It’s a hunt, in my mind, that will last forever.

QUALITY TAXIDERMY SINCE 1999

AVId Hunting & outdoors Fall 2016

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SHEEP GUIDES & OUTFITTERS

DREAMS

By Byron Oldham

y brother is an absolute sheep nut. Sure, he has shot a lot of big bull elk, some really nice mule deer bucks, and even a few bears. His life’s goal however is to obtain the sheep slam. My brother is an extremely private man although he finally agreed to let me share this story of his adventure because, well, it needed to be told. We believe that hunting with family is the most rewarding aspect of the sport. We apply in multiple states each year for a variety of species to maximize our time together in the field although I only apply for sheep hunts because my brother asks me to. Having already killed his dall and stone sheep, he was amazed to learn that he had finally drawn a tag to hunt the rocky mountain variety leaving now only the desert bighorn to be checked off his list. Continued on Page 52

AVId Hunting & outdoors Fall 2016

Continued from Page 51

It’s common knowledge around here that my brother has way too many horses. Knowing how to utilize horses as an asset to the hunt would hopefully tip the odds in our favor considering the guide plans on hunting in an extremely remote part of the unit. Of course he agreed to hunt in this fashion, sheep and horses, my brother’s dream! We loaded the horses before daybreak, saddled up, and continued to ride throughout the day, finally reaching the main camp right at dark. We didn’t take any breaks, in fact we ate lunch as we rode in order to reach the main camp before nightfall. Sound brutal? To some, maybe…We wouldn’t have it any other way! We (ok, the guide) made a plan…I would stay at the main camp for a few days and tend to the horses, while my brother and the guide ventured further into the wilderness in 52

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search of big rams. After they left on their adventure, I realized I was alone in wolf and grizzly country with some horses and a big friendly dog named Huck. Five days later my brother and his guide returned without having seen a sheep, while they were gone I forged a relationship with my new best friend. Fast forward to the thirteenth day in the mountains “hunting” sheep. Thirteen sheepless days mind you! We were starting to doubt the existence of both sheep and our sanity at this point until we saw it…A sheep track! Seeing grizzly tracks had become commonplace, we even had the opportunity to watch a few. I wonder if the prevalence of big bears in this mountain range has anything to do with the lack of sheep? Day 14, we finally see real live sheep. While hiking back to the main camp, there they were in all their glory. Only ewes and lambs, but sheep nonetheless, could luck be turning our way? We watch them intently, partly because we were literally in awe of finally seeing sheep and also to make completely sure there were no legal rams

in the group. There weren’t so we began to intently glass the surrounding area because this was now our “honey hole” and the best spot we have found in 14 days of hunting. Rams!! Five of them! No matter how hard we tried, none of them were legal to harvest on this hunt so we kept pressing toward the main camp. As we continue, reveling in the fact that we had finally seen some sheep, I was literally floored when I looked up from the trail to see two LEGAL rams watching us hike from 30 yards away. They spooked a bit but stopped at 50 yards. The guide threw his pack down, my brother threw his rifle on the pack, the tension was mounting quickly. While my brother was deciding which ram to shoot, I was silently out of my mind while thinking they would bolt any second. Well, apparently sheep aren’t really that “spooky” because they stood there for almost five

minutes waiting for my brother to make his decision, before slowly making their way up the hill. He decided to shoot the one with longer horns and lamb tips instead of the heavily broomed ram with slightly more mass. He’s a beautiful sheep! My brother was humbled by the sheep adventure and very grateful that he got his rocky. Only his desert sheep remains in his quest for his ultimate goal. Until then he will continue to dream of the day his desert ram hunt becomes a reality.

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1500 Hilton Dr. in ST. GEORGE, UT | 855.461.8780 | CampingWorld.com/RV *Camping World RV Sales price(s) and payments not inclusive of tax, title and license. Advertised inventory available at time of printing. New unit photography for illustration purposes only. May not be combined with any other offer and not applicable to prior sales. See dealer for details.© 2016 FreedomRoads, LLC. CAMPING WORLD and the CAMPING WORLD Mountain Logo are registered trademarks of CWI, Inc. and used with permission. Unauthorized use of any of CWI, Inc.’s trademarks is expressly prohibited. All rights reserved. Offers expire 09/30/16. SGU74629-0516 AVId Hunting & outdoors Fall 2016

By Richard Peepless

...I highly recommend that everyone should try and

hunt this beautiful piece of the earth at some point in their hunting career.

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GUIDES & OUTFITTERS

he hunt for my first Dall sheep and Mountain Caribou had a rocky start to say the least. After three long days of traveling to the NWT we finally arrived in Norman Wells. After loading the float plane we were ready to continue our journey…But it wouldn’t start! After changing a solenoid and a battery, we were finally able to get in the air on the third attempt, which was a little unsettling, and made it to base camp four hours later than our planned arrival. Short on time, we sighted in our rifles and ate some caribou steaks before saddling up for the eight hour horseback ride into sheep country. The next day we woke up early in great anticipation for our ride through the Mackenzie Mountains which was some of the most beautiful country I’ve ever seen. Well 11 hours later on what was suppose to be an eight hour ride, we pulled in to where we were going to make our base camp. Exhausted from our travels, we set up camp and went straight to bed. We woke up early and rode for another 2 1/2 hours into a back drainage that hadn’t been hunted in over eight years! We would make a spike camp if we found something we liked back there. As soon as we arrived, we saw caribou and sheep everywhere. We were all smiles and proceeded to set up a simple spike camp which consisted of a couple of small tents and a tarp for a cook shack. While the guides were setting up the camp I took the spotter out and started to assess the quality of sheep in the area.

That afternoon I only spotted ewes and lambs but it definitely gave us confidence that the rams would be there somewhere. The next morning we decided to hike up one of the highest points we could find to have a commanding view of the area and optimize our glassing opportunity. After a long day of glassing, we found a band of six rams two miles away and a separate group of 14 unidentified sheep. We made the plan to go back to camp and pursue them in the morning. Arriving at camp that night we cooked some dinner and waited on my buddy OJ and his guide to make it back. It got late so we went to bed and assumed they were crashed out on the mountain hunting a ram. They made it back and woke us up about 1:30 to tell us they found a band of six Rams and were hunting them, it turns out that they were the same six rams that I had found earlier!

This trip by far exceeded my

expectations in every way possible from the scenery, the horseback riding, the

abundant amount of game and then to top it all off being able to harvest two great animals.

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AVId Hunting & outdoors Fall 2016

Continued from Page 55

elk pronghorn Mule Deer Coues Deer

Gila National Forest

Specialists

(575) 654-5774 www.desertmeadowoutfitters.com 56

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On the sixth day we woke up a little late before making the long hike to where the 14 sheep were the day before. None of them were rams! Our hearts sank knowing we would have to start over and locate new sheep to hunt. We picked are heads back up and continued. As we were about to enter the next drainage we crested a hill and saw a pretty good caribou bull bedded and looking in the opposite direction from us about 300 yards away. As we looked him over we decided he was a bull we wanted to take. With the wind being in our favor we crept up to 150 yards, and waited for him to stand up. After about an hour he finally did, with one well placed shot he dropped right back into his bed. I had just shot my first caribou bull and couldn’t have been happier with him! While we were cleaning and caping out my caribou we heard a single shot from the drainage the six rams were hanging out in. Well we all arrived back into camp at around noon and were all exhausted from each of our pack-outs. OJ had shot the biggest ram of the bunch, heavy horns and 11.5 years old. My caribou wasn’t too bad either! Definitely a day none of us will ever forget. The next couple of days we checked every drainage except one looking for rams only to find grizzly bears, caribou, ewes and lambs. On the second to last day we were decided to check the last drainage and prepared for the two hour ride and subsequent steep hike into a glassing spot. Upon our arrival, we immediately spotted 7 or 8 sheep in the furthest corner of the drainage, upon closer inspection, they were rams! An immediate relief was just lifted off my chest as I was really starting to feel the pressure of only having one more day left to hunt. The rams were bedded in a perfect spot for us to get into position and wait for them to feed down the drainage. We watched them for five long hours until they started to feed around 8:30 pm, which is still light in the NWT. This gave us an opportunity to close the gap to within reasonable shooting distance of the group. They fed down the hillside perfectly, surprisingly the wind was in our face too! As we began to crest the last hill, a younger legal ram was 45 yards away and staring right at us. He must have fed back up the hill when all the other ones fed down. We sat there for probably five minutes until he assumed we were just rocks, thanks to our Sitka

Gear camo, and fed back down to the other rams. We creeped up a little higher up and were now able to see all eight rams. Our target ram was at 125 yards and straight downhill. I settled my crosshairs on his shoulder and and eased the trigger expecting the ram to collapse where he was standing. Well that didn’t go as I had envisioned in my head hundreds of times shooting at the range. My guides both said I had shot high! With the excitement of almost getting busted by the young ram compounded by thinking my hunt was almost over, It just didn’t register that I needed to aim a lower than normal because of the steep angle. All eight Rams ran out to 450 yards to stand there and looking back towards where the shot had just come from. I’m in a panic, thinking I had just blown my chance at a ram that I had worked so hard for and dreamed about my whole life! I took a couple deep breaths as the rams stood motionless, I regained my composure, dialed the scope in to 450 yards, and slowly squeezed the trigger. I’ll never forget my guide telling me “great shot Ram down!” I was elated with happiness and of course relief, I couldn’t believe I had just killed a dall sheep! I proved to myself that hard work, persistence and making the choice to succeed will always pay off. This trip by far exceeded my expectations in every way possible from the scenery, the horseback riding, the abundant amount of game and then to top it all off being able to harvest two great animals. It was a trip that has been etched into my memory to never be forgotten. I don’t know how I will ever get back to the Mackenzie Mountains but I highly recommend that everyone should try and hunt this beautiful piece of the earth at some point in their hunting career. I feel so blessed for being able to go on this hunt and want to thank God for giving me this opportunity to experience his beautiful creation. This trip exceeded my expectations in every possible way, forever etched into my mind and never to be forgotten. Simply beautiful country literally covered in game and to top it off, I was able to take two great animals. I am beyond blessed for being able to go on this hunt and thank God for giving me the opportunity to experience his beautiful creation.

AVId Hunting & outdoors Fall 2016

Quest

For

Gold 58

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FISHING

By Mike Zimmerman

fter a year of planning it was time to venture deep into Wyomingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Wind River Range for a week long backpacking trip with hopes of landing a few golden trout. These beauties are often considered the most elusive, challenging, and rewarding fish to catch in the trout world, and we were more than ready for the challenge!

We hiked forty miles, yes 40 miles, both on and off the trail with fifty-pound packs. We knew the end game was worth it, so we kept pushing deeper into the wilderness. Hiking through some of the most scenic country I had ever seen, several high mountain peaks and pristine lakes lay between the trailhead and our destination. After a long first day of hiking we found a campsite fitting for Continued on Page 61

AVId Hunting & outdoors Fall 2016

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Continued from Page 59

an overnight stay, set up the tents and then…boom! Lightning and thunder announced a three-hour hailstorm that pinned us down in our moderate camp for the evening. Crammed into my ultra-light solo tent, I felt like a human burrito; not accustomed to being so confined, this was something I had to get used to daily. On our way in, we hiked through many river crossings and passed around high mountain lakes loaded with cutthroat and brook trout, but we had golden’s on our mind. Finally, after a brutal hike and torrential storm, it was time to wet a line in search for the fish of a lifetime. I’d be lying if I said it was easy to catch these fish. Extremely weary by nature while living in remote mountainous regions, there is a reason so many anglers have come up empty handed in their attempts to fool them. Fishing for golden trout is very similar to spot and stalk hunting, they must be approached with caution. After hours of casting unsuccessfully, I finally hooked into a golden. A beautiful thirteen inch fish. I had done it, my first Golden Trout! Cause for celebration, fish stories around the fire accompanied by good whiskey carried our excitement deep into the night. A couple days and a few small fish later, we had reached our last evening to fish before the arduous multiple day hike back to the trailhead. Thinking the trip was already a success, I then spotted the largest golden trout tail I had seen yet swaying back and forth behind a rock. Immediately I crouched down, slowly peeled some line off the reel, and prepared for the most important cast of my life. I dropped the fly a few feet in front of that rock, let it sink and then I felt the

bite. Setting the hook brought this fish rocketing out of the water, diving back down and running full steam away from me. With the reel singing, this beast golden took me in and out of boulders, playing havoc on my line before finally giving up and letting us land the fish. The most beautiful and colorful 21-inch Golden was in my net… the trophy fish of my life! We set her free after snapping a few photos, I cant wait to visit her again next year… I’d like to give a special thanks to Ben Savage, who definitely out-fished me as always and to Conor Burgon for filming and documenting this trip. A short video can be found by searching for IrisMotion Golden Trout.

AVId Hunting & outdoors Fall 2016

Sage and Redington â&#x20AC;&#x201C;

Distinct Options for the Discriminating Fishermanâ&#x20AC;Ś

hat makes top of the line equipment a worthwhile investment for the average angler? What about a mid-range option? Assuredly, most people have either considered taking the plunge, or already have and now reap the benefits reflected from a larger price tag. The AVID team has had

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the privilege of working with some of the finest equipment on the market from the most reputable companies. Recently, we had the opportunity to test out products from both Sage and Redington, the following summation and the results of our testing are very accurate and are to be used as a guide for those looking to take their love of fishing to the next level with top quality gear.

FISHING

Sage “Little One” Rod and “Click” Reel MSRP $1300.00 The name “Little One” is a reflection of the general stature of this particular rod. Sage, an American company, is very receptive to the suggestions of their customers who had requested a smaller version of the very popular Sage “One”. They answered with an ultra light blank loaded with Fuji ceramic guides, walnut insert, and anodized aluminum reel seat with an up locking feature for ease of use. Working in harmony, these features leave anglers with a very sensitive yet strong rod that not only allows light pick-ups to be felt with ease, but also provides a strong backbone to land trophy fish. Paired with Sage’s redesigned lightweight aluminum reel the “Click”, this set-up left us in awe each time we took it to the creek. Fully machined out of 6061-T6 aerospace grade aluminum, the Click also offers a large arbor capacity that will give anglers ample line and backing for when that hefty fish bolts downstream. Because of its size, the large arbor also increases ease of use while retrieving line, which can be done at a much quicker rate than the competitors reels. This “click and pawl” style reel delivers peace of mind to users for these two very reasons. More line capacity, and an easier (better) retrieve. Not that it adds to anything other than “curb appeal”, the redesigned Click has a very sleek, modern look and accentuated the “Little One” very nicely. At $1300, this configuration surely isn’t for everyone although there is no question that this set-up resulted in more hook sets on marginal takes than others we have used in the past. That is reason enough for us to continue using top of the line equipment such as Sage’s latest products.

Redington “Hydrogen” Rod and “Zero” Reel MSRP $400.00 For most of our fishing community, dropping over a grand on a fly fishing set-up just isn’t an option. Redington knows that and have figured out a way to produce a very functional ensemble of equipment at a fraction of the cost of the top brands. Their new Hydrogen rod is claimed (by Redington) to be the lightest in it’s class. With a skeletonized reel seat to cut down on weight, it not only looks great, but is one of the most functional rods we have recently used. The medium-fast action is designed with euro nymphing and spey casting in mind but can’t be overlooked by those of you in favor of a more “classic” approach. Redington sent us one of their “Zero” reels to test out in conjunction with our new Hydrogen rod. Having used Redington products almost exclusively for a number of years, this particular set-up seemed to be a step above other Redington products we have previously tested. Once again claimed to be the lightest in its class, the Zero reel when mounted was balanced perfectly. Like the Sage Click, the Zero has a large arbor resulting in increased line capacity and quicker retrieval, although it is a more affordable option. There is no question that the Redington set-up seemed to function in a higher class, without the jaw dropping price tag. Sensitive, light, and backed by a lifetime warranty, these products will satisfy the needs of most anglers and perform sufficiently in a fashion consistent with quality and the Redington name. Whether you’re looking for a top of the line flyfishing set-up, or just want to bump your game up a notch, we have seriously narrowed down your choices. Either of these combinations will work well for most anglers but for those that want to experience extreme sensitivity, perfect balance, and an out-of-this-world smooth action, the Sage gets the nod. AVId Hunting & outdoors Fall 2016

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OUTDOORS FISHING

The Perfect Goal By Jeremy Anderson

hen I started guiding on the Provo River for Wasatch Guide Service, one day I was teamed up with guide, author, and professional angler Larry Tullis. While our clients were hunting for their next big brown, I would ask Larry about his experiences while fishing around the world. Between his stories of 30-inch trophy rainbows, and still water giant browns, he gave me a piece of advice that totally resonated with me. He told me about a goal he set many years ago to fish one new river system every year. I have since set the same goal, and it has ultimately taken me to some very amazing places. Of these rivers I have discovered, the most scenic was Arizona’s Lee’s Ferry. The green river water and red rock backdrops on the Colorado River at Lee’s Ferry left me in awe, totally speechless in fact. The Ferry is located right at the pinnacle of the Grand Canyon, and for an avid fly fisherman, it is a “must have” on the bucket list. As you boat up the river searching for a riffle, think about the fact that you are about to fish one of the seven natural wonders of the world! We caught more fish than we could count on size 16-22 midges while using a variety of colors. They were not monsters by any means, but these rainbows were sure pretty. We also tried several egg patterns with great success. On some of the little “spring creek” off shoots we landed a few on dry flies, but in reality, it is the towering red walls, amazing scenery, and beautiful weather that will continually draw me back to Lee’s Ferry. AVId Hunting & outdoors Fall 2016

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GEAR

R E VI E W

Weatherby Mark V Terramark

ith the new 6.5 caliber rifles continuing to gain popularity, does that mean the “old reliables” are slowly becoming obsolete because of their inferior ballistics? Science has come a long way, and innovation has helped manufacturers create hunting rounds that are faster and drop less at distance. Simply put, these new rounds make it easier to kill animals at obscene distances, and modern hunters are flocking to them! If you grew up in a home like mine, there was always an old 30-06 or 7mm Rem laying around that dad or grandpa hunted with. Maybe you currently use something similar. There comes a time when we, as hunters, need to ask ourselves if it’s time to upgrade caliber and which rifle to choose. As leaders in the innovation field, Weatherby has recently dethroned the 26 Nosler as the fastest commercial 6.5mm cartridge with the new 6.5-300wby. The 6.5-300wby with the 127g Barnes LRX is absolutely screaming at 3531fps! A lot of people will instantly dismiss this as a “barrel burner”, get over it! A rifle is a tool, just like a truck right? When you get a new truck you know that a time will come to either sell it or put some additional money into it for maintenance, a rifle is no different! With a caliber as advanced as the 6.5-300wby, the tradeoff is well worth it, besides…most people will Continued on Page 68

AVId Hunting & outdoors Fall 2016

Continued from Page 67

never shoot enough to burn out a barrel anyways; and if they do, just like a truck’s transmission, it can be replaced. For hunters demanding the best performance from a currently mass produced round, the 6.5-300wby gets the nod as the fastest, flattest shooting, most accurate round in its class. For some of us old timers that either feed off of nostalgia, or are too stubborn to try something new, there is still hope! Current technology trends have stimulated a competition between companies to produce better bullets and more efficient powders that will certainly ramp up the performance of standard calibers. This is great news if you reload and are always trying to push the envelope to get faster, more accurate loads. Having always been a 7mm Rem guy, I work up a lot of hand loads in my constant search for the “perfect” combination, but occasionally I will buy a new box of match grade ammo to test. As I’ve used some of the new bullets and powders, achieving more consistently accurate loads has come a lot easier! Recently I had the opportunity to test the Weatherby Mark V Terramark, chambered in 7mm wby mag. Upon first impression, the fit and finish of this gun was absolutely beautiful. An immaculate, deeply fluted barrel is precisely fitted to the action for not only weight reduction, but to enhance the barrel’s cooling capabilities. The adjustable trigger is very easy to use, crisp and absolutely will not not creep. I simply loved everything about the Mark V Terramark, and I’m typically very critical of firearms. If your in the market for a new rig, visit Weatherby’s website and take a look at the Mark V features… try not to be impressed! Sure, the rifle has a ton of wonderful features, but does it shoot? With limited rounds through the test rifle, accuracy will surely improve as time goes on, however I had no problem shooting 1” moa with every factory ammo Weatherby currently produces in this caliber! I should note that I am getting 130fps faster than my normal 7mm rem mag as well. Stay tuned for a future update once we get this gun broken in. So is it time to upgrade to a new and improved caliber or is it just time to upgrade the gun? The decision is up to you although either way, Weatherby has got you covered with a submoa rifle in any caliber. In our experience you get what you pay for, and the same holds true in the world of firearms. For an accurate, well built rifle that will flat out perform, look no further than Weatherby. 68

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GEAR

REVI EW

Lowa Z-8S GTX®

he Z-8S GTX is one of the most comfortable boots straight out of the box that I have ever worn. This great feeling boot has blown me away at every turn, in fact I really am in awe of the durability and over all comfort of this boot. Lowa has stated that the Z-8S brings the “comfort of a sneaker” to a military style tactical boot. I would have to agree with this statement as I could almost wear these boots around as house slippers. The comfort level is off the charts! So the comfort is there, but how is the durability? I go through a new pair of boots almost every other year. I have been using the Z-8S since May of this year and can say they have held together very well through some serious outdoor activities. The midsole is made up of the Lowa’s infamous PU Monowrap®, this helps the boot hold together very durably without adding the weight of a heavy midsole found in other boots in its class. The Z-8S holds its own very well against some of its heavy counterparts. I was skeptical because of the name and the overall look and feel of the boot, however, looks can be deceiving, as I have quickly

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By AVID Crew Member

learned. If you are looking for a light, cross comfort boot that holds together very well then look no further! UPPER: Extra-rugged 2.0MM hydrophobic split leather and Cordura® provides durability in harsh conditions, while the perforated leather improves breathability.

CLOSED LIGHT METAL HOOKS: Allow for speed lacing, meeting jump boot requirements. LINING: Waterproof, breathable, GORE-TEX® lining

MIDSOLE: Our patented PU Monowrap® construction keeps this boot lightweight, while providing maximum support. This unique frame construction also features a special medial sole wrap for protection against abrasion while rappelling. FOOTBED: Climate Control footbed. STABILIZER: Stiff nylon.

OUTSOLE: LOWA Cross Duty sole unit.

GEAR

REVI EW

USAGE

COLOR

Predator hunting. Maintaining night vision.

Red

Bow fishing and foggy conditions.

Amber

Hog and predator hunting.

Recovery and target identification.

FoxPro Fire Eye By AVID Crew Member

Specs 8.66” x 2.67” x 6.30”

Dimensions Weight Power Requirements Warranty Operators Manual

11.1V lithium pack - included

3 years, limited (battery pack: 6 months)

Max Beam Distance (m)

Peak Beam Intensity (cd)

Color

428

45960

Red

421

44400

Green

606

218

1.5 lbs. with batteries

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92080

11960

White Amber

Green

White

t the pinnacle of their game, FoxPro is renowned as the industry leader of electronic call companies. Their products are always built with quality and your success in mind, therefore its no surprise that they have once again come up with something to help you kill more coyotes. The Fire Eye is FoxPro’s version of a night scanning light and is designed with features to help increase your productivity while hunting coyotes under the cover of darkness. The Fire Eye is equipped with an ergonomically designed pistol grip which gives users quick access to the controls. The brightness control switch and the color changing options can be easily reached with your thumb very quickly because FoxPro understands that time is of the essence while hunting a night stand for coyotes. The four color options (red, green, amber, and white) give hunters the ability to quickly change beam color to adapt to their current situation. Imagine being able to spot eyes with a colored lens, and with the flip of your thumb change over to the white light for recovery! Now you can have the best of both worlds in one quality light! I also found it very convenient to spot a predator at distance with the white light and quickly switch over to to red without missing an opportunity. From spotting predators out to a couple hundred yards in a field, to looking for one a couple feet away in the trees, the Fire Eye has you covered with an easily controllable focal ring. This unit is constructed from fiberglass reinforced plastic for supreme durability, while still maintaining a weight of only 1.5 lbs. Best of all, the Fire Eye light can be tethered to your vehicle with a 12v jack charger or untethered while still maintaining its constancy thanks to a powerful 3 Cell 11.1v lithium battery. Because of FoxPro’s advanced “smart” technology, the Fire Eye can be used in conjunction with a TX1000 remote control and will eventually communicate with other FoxPro products. Innovation at its finest, all in the name of predator hunting from your favorite name in the game. FoxPro.

GEAR

The New Vortex Razor HD By AVID Crew Member

ortex has released its new Razor HD line for 2016. The new look and feel of this scope has made users fall in love with the Vortex brand all over again. And with good reason! The new helical focus ring makes it very easy to focus and stay on your target in one fluid motion. The new streamlined design of this scope makes it very easy to pack as well. Although redesigned with a new look and feel, the premium HD multi-coated glass has remained the same. The crystal clarity leaves nothing to the imagination, only a clear field of view with ultra high fidelity that wont lose color rendition at distance. Thankfully, the new HD spotting scopes have not increased in price and still offer the Vortex Legendary VIP Warranty. Magnification

Style

Eye Relief

Close Focus

Field of View

Length

Weight

27-60x85

Angled

17-16.7 mm

16.4’

117-68’ / 2.2-1.3°

15.5”

65.6 oz

22-48x65

Angled

17-16.7 mm

26.2’

138-84’ / 2.7-1.6°

14.8”

56.8 oz

27-60x85 22-48x65 11-33x50 11-33x50

Straight Straight Angled

Straight

17-16.7 mm 17-16.7 mm 19-16 mm 19-16 mm

16.4’ 26.2’ 6.6’ 6.6’

117-68’ / 2.2-1.3° 138-84’ / 2.7-1.6° 191-96’ / 3.6-1.8° 191-96’ / 3.6-1.8°

16.2” 15.6” 10.3” 11.0”

65.6 oz 56.8 oz 25.0 oz 25.0 oz

AVId Hunting & outdoors Fall 2016

Spot The

Hunters Find the three hunters.

(Locations shown on page 77)

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AVId Hunting & outdoors Fall 2016

BE A HIDER. AND A SEEKER. The perfect shot starts with the perfect pattern. XKG Lone Peak Jacket - L4 of Performance Layering System

KINGSCAMO.COM 76

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AVId Hunting & outdoors April-June 2016

This nation will remain the land of the free only so long as it is the home of the brave

THANK YOU Veterans www.huntavid.com

AVId Hunting & outdoors September-November 2015

Field

Photos B C

A A Ivy Anderson B Jacob White C Jeremy Anderson D Brandon Allen E Kody Smith F Andy Riggle

F E

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H G Tyler Lake H Zach Layton I Rusty Allen J Kyle Stowell

G J

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Lance 650 Truck Camper Shown with Custom Wrap, Rack & LED Light

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AVId Hunting & outdoors Fall 2016