Big Game Illustrated - Ninth Issue

NEW RECORD pm42591026

MULE DEER

P

BIG GAME

ILLUSTRATED

Publisher: Big Game Illustrated Media

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ILLUSTRATED BIG GAME Volume 3 Issue 1 Summer Edition 2015

16

In This Issue...

6 Saskatchewan’s New Archery Record

by Colten Stock 12 Double Dropper Velvet Dream Buck

by Chad Wilkinson 16 Saskatchewan Bush Kings by Dustin Ross 22 Bitter Sweet Success by Grant Beniuk 32

28 The Hunt for ‘Ocho’ 32 Once in a Lifetime

by Greg Brownlee

by Jesse Voth

36 A September to Remember

by Josh Kultgen

42 The Triple Triple by Tyler Bjerland 36

46 What’s Meant to Be Will Be by Cody Forsberg

as told by Matt Jarema

50 Growing Up Hunting by Kimberlee Staley 54 Thirty Five Wide by Sean Morgan 58 Where Luck and Hard Work Meet by Steve Ecklund 62 Oh Shoot! by Jamie Collier 58

66

Mountain Monarchs by Todd Blewitt

74 Garbage Buck by Vern Shoemaker Big Game Illustrated Contact Phone: (306) 930-7448/(306) 960-3828 Email: info@biggameillustrated.com

By Mail: 28-2995 2nd Ave W. S6V5V5 Prince Albert, Sk, CANADA

www.biggameillustrated.com Like us on facebook!

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Vern Shoemaker (left) and Tyler Bjerland with two giant eastern Saskatchewan whitetails they harvested. Tyler’s was the largest non-typical whitetail taken in 2014 in the province!

See pages 42 and 73 for all the details.

FEATURES...

21 Evolution of BGI

by Chad Wilkinson

40

The future of hunting is always a focus at BGI, and we are excited to do a small part to promote th NASP.

As BGI continues to grow, we are excited to announce the launch of an online ‘free’ magazine to compliment the printed magazine as a thank you to our loyal readers.

72

Defining a ‘Buck of a Lifetime’

by Kaare Gunderson

The buck of a lifetime means different things to different people but drives everyone to become a better hunter.

80

The Future of Hunting Dedicated to all the young hunters.

National Archery in the School Program

78

Everything Outdoors

by Kevin Wilson

With summer upon us, it means hunting season is getting close! Kevin has some great tips on being prepared for the upcoming season.

Saskatchewan’s New Archery RECORD BY: COLTEN STOCK

T

he story begins back in the winter months of 2012.

My dad Kevin Stock and I were having an uneventful afternoon of coyote hunting when we noticed a group of mule deer bucks in the distance. The one buck in the group was considerably bigger than the others and we snapped a few pictures before heading home. The next weekend I went out in search of the buck again, spending a couple hours on foot, when I was finally able to spot him bedded down near the top of a hill. I was able to get within 40 yards of him and snap some great photos before he winded me. That was the last encounter I had with the deer until the following summer. I was out scouting early one August morning when I glassed a huge framed buck feeding out in a wheat field. The deer had put on a ton of growth since the previous season. His right side was a huge typical antler and his left had a short g3 and a couple of stickers. As the 2013 archery season approached, I decided that this would be the deer I would go after.

I was not able to find the deer again until about a week into archery season. He was in a group with six other bucks the morning I found him. As soon as it was light enough to see, the bucks were on their way out of the crop they were feeding in to where they intended to bed for the day. I watched as the bucks went into a large low spot full of trees. I was unable to see into the low spot but was certain nothing had left it. The wind was in my favor and I started on my way to the group of bucks. As I got closer I could make out the velvet covered antlers of one of the bucks bedded about one hundred yards from the edge of the low spot. Foolishly, I had the idea in my head that all six of the bucks I had seen would be bedded

Colton Stock with Saskatchewan’s top mule deer of 2014 and new record archery mule deer of all time in that province! He had history with the buck who put on serious inches every year. The numbers on the big deer are truly spectacular no matter how you look at it. Main beams stretch out over 27”, with an inside spread of 29 2/8”. Both G-2’s are over 19”. The result when you add it up is a gross score of 217 2/8” and a net typical score of 206” even!

right close to this one. I made my way closer to the bedded deer and crept to the edge of the bowl. As soon as I got to the edge I peeked over only to see the deer I was after looking directly at me within ten yards! Instantly, he and all the other bucks were up and on the run. All of the deer that I had put up stopped after a couple seconds and looked back at me. I quickly ranged them at 80 yards and having never practiced that far I decided I had better not try the shot. They stood there and tried to figure out what I was for about twenty seconds before taking off towards the hills. I spent the rest of the season looking for that with no luck. It was my fourth year in a row I was unable to notch an archery mule deer tag.

It wasn’t until the early part of January 2014 I was able to catch up with him again. My little brother Hunter Stock and I were out taking pictures when we came across him with a couple of bucks he was with in archery season. I was very happy to see he made the season and hoped I would have the opportunity to hunt him again. I was able to get many pictures of him throughout January and February of 2014 until he disappeared again during the shedding season. In the spring of 2014, I was able to find almost all of the deer’s sheds he was with in archery season, except for his. As the summer progressed, I figured I better start looking for him again. It was August 4th, 2014 when I decided to put up a trail camera in the area that I had seen him the previous two years. I was on my way to put my trail camera up when I walked over a hill and sure enough there he was feeding not 30 yards from where I had intended to set up my camera! I knew it was him almost instantly after seeing his unmistakable frame. Luckily I had my camera with me and was able to get some good pictures of him in velvet, I could tell he had grown on his typical frame and his stickers had gotten smaller but I really wasn’t sure how big he was. I left the area and waited a couple days to set up my camera to avoid spooking him.

A month had passed and I had not seen or heard of my deer being seen in that time. Upon checking my trail camera I was able to capture him in one blurry picture on August 24, this gave me hope he was still in the area just nocturnal. As the archery season quickly approached I spent countless hours looking for him with no luck until Saturday, September 13th when I was able to pick him up bedded through my spotting scope about ¾ of a mile away. He was still in full velvet at this time and as impressive as I had remembered. I was excited that I may have a second chance at a deer I had so much history with but not very optimistic about sealing the deal, as I had not had the best bow hunting career behind me. Opening morning came quickly and I was about a mile from where I thought he would bed. As soon as it was light enough to see, I had the spotting scope on the window hoping to catch my buck in the crop. It only took a few minutes and I picked him up on the skyline with a mess of velvet hanging from his antlers. He was running when I spotted him directly to where I had seen him bedding the past few days. Just when I thought I might have a chance at this beast, he stopped at his bedding area looked directly at my truck a mile away for a few seconds and ran in the complete opposite direction of me. I spent the rest of the

day on foot with a spotting scope on a tripod in search of him with no luck.

2012

2013

2014

day on foot with a spotting scope on a tripod in search of him with no luck.

The next morning I was unsure of where to look for him as I disturbed his habits the day before, but because that field was the only one I had seen him in that year I decided to go back and hope he wasn’t spooked to badly. I was out again half an hour before daylight and parked my truck a mile away in the opposite direction from the slough he had previously been bedding. I grabbed my bow, spotting scope and rangefinder and headed for the slough. I slowly crept to the edge of the ridge that over looked the slough about 150 yards away. Just as the last time, I put a stalk on him and when I peeked over the edge I saw him standing in the middle of the slough by a small bush looking right in my direction. I was surprised to see him in the same slough again after what happened the previous morning. Quickly, I backed up for about an hour to get around him so he wouldn’t see me and to get the wind more in my favor. I dropped the spotting scope about 100 yards from the slough along with my shoes and began to crawl in. Having blown stalks so many times in the past I really made an effort to take my time and eventually made it 20 yards away from the bush I saw him standing in front of earlier. Slowly I crept closer and closer and now only two yards from the bush, there was no sign of him. Thinking he had probably seen me on that ridge earlier and left, I was about to stand up. I was on my knees at this time and when I looked to my left and saw horn tips in the long slough grass pointing right at me no more than ten yards away. He knew something was up but could not see or smell me, I decided to back up a couple yards get to a better vantage point and hide myself a little better. I could still only see antler tips and thought he was looking at me, but wasn’t positive. I was only there for a couple minutes when he stood up broadside at thirty yards looking away from me!

As soon as he stood up I realized just how big he really was and the shakes took over, I was just about at full draw but was shaking so badly the arrow came un-nocked from my bow. Devastated, I quickly let my string in and grabbed the back of the arrow to re-nock it, at this time the deer had turned towards me and headed a few yards in my direction behind a bush. I was ready to draw again, when he must have caught my wind and ran straight away from me. Watching him run away, I knew he was the biggest typical mule deer I had ever seen in my life and I just blew a great chance. He ran over a small hill, out of sight and I couldn’t help but feel that would be last time I would see him. Mad at myself for what had happened, I grabbed my spotting scope and started my way back to the truck. Once I reached the top of the ridge I had seen him from earlier that morning I looked around and saw a

couple deer to my south on the edge of a patch of trees. I put my scope down, only to see the deer I was after up feeding in the middle of the patch of trees surrounded by two smaller bucks half a mile away. I waited for him to bed and started stalk number two. As I got closer, I could no longer see him, but I got to where I ranged the trees at 80 yards when one of the smaller bucks I had seen got up and looked at me. I kept still as he watched me for several minutes before he took off to the west. Almost instantly the other smaller buck and a doe also bolted from the tree patch, I waited for a minute but did not see the big guy come out. Quite surprised not to see him leave with the others, I figured being mature as he was he was smart enough to think he could evade whatever was out there by continuing to hide.

Very cautiously, I made it to the edge of the tree patch and was now able to see his antlers. I quickly ranged him at 40 yards, but needed to get a bit closer so if he exited the tree patch the same way as the others I would have a clear shot.

Creeping as slowly as I could on my knees, trying not to break the twigs that were lying everywhere, I ranged his antlers at 20 yards. The whole time I was sneaking I watched his antlers constantly moving around, as he knew something was up when the other deer took off. I only waited a couple of min-

utes, which felt like an eternity, until he was nervous enough to stand. As soon as he started to stand I drew my bow back, this time successfully keeping the arrow in its place. He took a couple steps towards the opening the others exited; I let the arrow fly in his direction. He instantly was out of the tree patch where I could no longer see him and I could not help but think I had missed. I quickly ran up to where he was standing when I shot and looked for my arrow. Finding it quickly I examined it to find blood covering the entire arrow! Never having this problem before, I instantly called my dad, barely able to speak with excitement. My dad calmed me down and told me to keep an eye on the deer best I could without getting to close until I was certain he was dead.

I ran to the top of the nearest hill where I saw my deer climbing a large hill only a couple hundred yards to my west.

Looking at him through my range finder, I could tell he was hit when he lay down on the hill side. I immediately ran back to where I had left the spotting scope so I could keep a better eye on him. I texted my friend BJ Hunt telling him I had put

an arrow into the deer I was after. He was hunting the mule deer he was after at this time, but quickly replied saying he was on his way to give me hand. I waited about an hour until BJ arrived, the entire time hoping I wouldn’t see the buck get up and leave the country. Once BJ and his wife Sasha got dressed up we slowly made our way to the hill he was behind. Peeking over the sage at the top I was able to see him standing broadside so I quickly let another arrow fly with my fifty yard pin just high of his vitals. After what looked and felt like a good shot the deer took off about 50 yards and laid down where he expired quickly just after collapsing. When I saw him lie down, I knew that my journey to finally notching an archery mule deer tag was over and I couldn’t have been happier! I would like to thank all of the land owners for making hunting these animals possible, Ken Duncalfe at All Seasons wildlife studio for an amazing job on the mount and BJ and Sasha Hunt for the field pictures, helping field dress and get my deer back to the truck!

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DROPPER DOUBLE

VELVET DREAM BUCK

T

he 2013 season was just around the corner and I had yet to find a mature deer that I wanted to target. The 2012 winter was severe, and deer numbers were down, especially in terms of mature bucks. A heavy blanket of snow in early November meant that most of the mature bucks, weary from the rigors of the rut, could not recover and many perished.

Despite the poor odds, my wife Lindsay and I were still committed to putting in a serious effort, after all half of the fun is in getting out and enjoying the outdoors. Evening after evening, all summer long, found us out and about, glassing alfalfa fields, checking trail cameras and talking to landowners about the upcoming season. After an unproductive summer in terms of big deer, the season opener was just around the corner and we did not have a shooter buck on the radar.

August 20th meant the start of the elk season, and we spent the next few weeks chasing around bugling bulls which helped to take our minds off the lack of whitetails in our area. However, once the elk season closed in early September, reality set in and we realized we did not have a single mature deer we wanted to chase. Undeterred, we just kept on scouting, running 25

R

T K

BGI’s own Chad Wilkinson with the double droptine, velvet covered whitetail he harvested in northern Saskatchewan in September 2014. The buck had flawless velvet highlighted by two matching droptines that were each over 8” long. The gross non-typical score on the buck was 174” and the net score was 163 2/8”. The mass measurements were also very high with a total of over 44” of mass. Chad had history with the buck who had carried the 150 class 5x4 rack for many years before finally growing matching droptines as an 8+ year old deer.

UWAY trail cams all over the countryside, enjoying the early season and having some close encounters with does and young bucks, including some great looking two and three year old deer.

My brother Dayne came up from southern Saskatchewan to hunt with us for few days in early September. Even though we did not have any big deer to chase, it is an annual tradition that rarely results in a kill but always results in a great time spent together in the field. After a few days hunting with Dayne, including a close encounter with a 150 class tall browtine buck that Dayne passed at close range, we settled in for an evening of watching the footage we had collected of elk season and the early, uneventful archery whitetail season. As we watched the footage and chatted about the enjoyment of the fall, the phone rang. It was a landowner I know well, a fellow hunter who enjoys taking his kids out and filling the freezer but with very little interest in the headgear the deer carry. I thought perhaps he was looking for some tips on a good place to setup with his kids for a good hunt, and I had a few spots ready for him, but he immediately said, “I saw a really good buck in the field today while I was spraying, it was a huge bodied deer with long double drop tines!” I immediately wished him good luck on hunting the buck, when he laughed and said he wasn’t going to hunt him, but would be happy to give me directions to the buck. He described exactly where the buck was, and where he came from. It was an area I knew well. After a quick, ‘thank you’, I hung up and was excited to go hang one of our UWAY trail cameras. Even though the landowner was not in any way a trophy hunter, he had a few 170 class bucks on his garage wall and knew what a big deer was. I thought back to a couple times when I helped him clean up some granaries, and did a few other favors, including sweeping his fields to, ‘clean up all those darn antlers’ before he got into the field and was grateful now that I did.

The next morning found Dayne and I hanging a UWAY camera on a small windrow of trees. The area only had one

The first picture captured of the double dropper, showing the long drop on his right side.

bedding site, a swamp in the middle of the field which the windrow went into. The treeline was the border between two fields, maybe six feet wide, but I thought the buck would use it as cover, and the heavy trail of deer tracks adjacent to the treeline confirmed this. A freshly cultivated field, flush with green volunteer oats coming up, was dragging the deer out of the swamp and down the treeline. Dayne and I had a couple more good days of hunting before he had to head home. We checked the camera the last afternoon before he headed home.

Sure enough, there were a couple night pictures and one single daytime picture showing a massive mainframe 4x5 with two big heavy droptines! The buck was still in full velvet and had walked by once in daylight so my plan was made. As I studied the picture, I realized it was a buck I knew well. He had been a nice, massive, but fairly short tine 155 class 4x5 for a few years and I had forgotten about him this year, thinking he was always going to look the same. Somehow, he sprouted a couple long drop tines while the rest of his rack looked exactly the same.

The next afternoon found me at home with my wife Lindsay and our one year old daughter who was feeling under the weather. Lindsay was also seven months pregnant with our second child. As we chatted I told Lindsay, “I’m not going to hunt tonight, I’ll stay Chad also anchored a double home and help take care of things here”. droptine whitetail again in She immediately cut me off and said. “Get 2014. going, between work and everything else, this is a good chance to get out there so go, now!” I didn’t argue and headed out.

I was a bit late getting there because of my hesitation to go so I hurriedly got geared up and began my hike out to the treeline.

The wind was very light, but in my face as I walked through the tall and very noisy oat stubble. I glanced over to the swamp where the deer bedded and tried my best to stay out of sight. I was about 500 yards from it, and slowed my pace to make sure any bedded deer could not hear me. As I swatted mosquitoes, the setting sun beat down on me. It was hot and I was sweating, making

me even more excited to sit down and get the thermacell Chad is also an avid bear hunter and took this giant fired up to fight off the bugs.

Finally, I found my spot. I just sat down on the edge, hiding in 2012. among the trees. My plan was to sit back and watch to see if I could figure out exactly where the deer were coming out so I could make a plan to get a shot at him at a future date. I texted Lindsay, “I’m in position”, but got no response. I cringed and felt a bit guilty, thinking of the amount of work she was going through taking care of a sick toddler while I enjoyed the splendor of an early season bow hunt. I hauled my video camera out and quietly got the tripod setup and flipped open the viewfinder to adjust the focus and settings. As soon as I opened the view finder, some movement on the screen caught my eye. I was shocked when I realized it was the big droptine buck, out in the field at 50 yards, strolling along in the open and going to pass by me shortly at 35 yards! I hit record, focused and got ready. The buck continued to slowly ways be trying to replicate and share with all those who I have walk along, feeding and cautiously looking around. I ranged him at 38 yards and he just had to take two more steps and he the pleasure of hunting beside.

Editor’s Note: I was lucky enough to take another double would be in my shooting lane! One step, and then he turned and started slowly walking directly towards me! I was not go- droptine whitetail in 2014. Lindsay would follow up my haring to take a head on shot so I just watched as he got closer, vest with a double dropper of her own in November of 2013, and closer, and CLOSER! I thought for sure he would bust me and a triple droptine, 180 class monster in 2014. She now has as he was right on top of me and I was just sitting on the edge four double or triple droptine whitetails in eight years of huntof the trees. When he got to what I estimated was eight yards ing! Stay tuned for that story in a future issue of BGI Mag and he turned and headed back to swamp, still cautiously walk- checkout www.bgionlinemag for the video, coming soon! ing, but also feeding. I took the opportunity when he put his head down and drew my bow. He was so close that he heard me and his head shot up at break neck speed, he was immediately on full alert, staring at the clump of trees where I was. I knew I only had a fraction of a moment and quickly settled the pin on his vitals and let the arrow fly. WHACK! I was amazed at how hard the arrow hit him at such close range! The hit had almost knocked him over but he quickly recovered, then ran out into the field and all the way back to the swamp. I managed to get him back on camera and thought he was going down as he entered the swamp.

After an excited reaction to the camera, which is now all a blur, I watched the footage and was overjoyed to see a solid hit through the vitals! I texted Lindsay, “I got him, he’s down, come get me!” I looked at the times on the text messages and it was six minutes between texts, from when I said I was in position until he was down. I stepped out the distance and he was six steps from me when I let the arrow fly. It was an unbelievable experience, and one that I am extremely grateful for. The landowner who put me on the deer, my wife who pushed me out the door, and my dad who introduced me to hunting and archery all filled my mind as I gave thanks for the experience of a lifetime. As I walked up to the buck, I was overjoyed with the mass and character of the velvet covered antlers. It was truly a once in a lifetime experience, but one that I will al-

Dustin Ross of Pierceland, Saskatchewan with the Northern bull he harvested on September 13, 2013. The giant bull scored 188 2/8” with very long palms of 38 5/8” and 37 3/8”. Although the bull was not extremely wide at 50” even, his long points and wide paddles more than made up for. Truly an animal that lives up to the name ‘Bush King’.

SASKATCHEWAN

BUSH BY: DUSTIN ROSS

E

KINGS

veryone has a favorite place to be and a favorite time of the year. Mine is anywhere in the outdoors during the fall season. Hunting is life to me, it’s in my soul, and I can’t get it off my mind.

Hunting is in everyone but may be in different forms. I believe that for a successful hunt, you must own the hunt. Some hunters will prepare for a hunt a week or two before opening day, whereas I prepare all year long. It’s not a question of whether I’ll be going or not, it’s more a question of when.

Family is most important of all, and with a busy career in the oilfield, it’s a balancing act to accommodate all three of these facets of my life. It is truly a form of freedom to be able to hunt and provide friends and family with healthy, lean protein and to know where it comes from.

September 23, 2013 was a long day at work, waiting for the work day to end so I could head off to moose camp. My best buddy Adam Schreiber (Bubbaganoosh) was already at moose camp setting up camp and splitting wood to keep our Deluxe wall tent warm. By the time I showed up, camp looked great! It was the perfect evening. The trees were still, the temperature was around -2C, and we still had a little over an hour of legal shooting time. We headed out into the forest to call for a swamp donkey and kick off the hunt.

We decided to head just west of camp to an area we hadn’t called from before. After a short walk, we noticed a huge fresh rub on a 4” popular tree. It was a promising spot to call from. Within 30 minutes we had an answer back and he was very close, with a truck load of aggression! You could hear the poplars and willows snap as he approached! His grunt gave us goose bumps and we could not believe what we were hearing. We both agreed right away that we found the ‘monster of monster bulls’. This whole situation only lasted for a couple minutes and then the monster vanished along with our daylight. Back at camp we discussed the short hunt and decided we would head back in the morning and try again for “Super Bull”!

The next day we were up early, and after breakfast we headed out by moonlight to look for “Super Bull”. That morning the trees were still, early birds were chirping, and the sun was just about to show, it was perfect! Adam was calling, and you could hear the echo off into the far distance, bouncing off the thin layer of fresh frost. We continued until about 10:30 and then headed back to camp. We wondered if “Super Bull” had found a cow and moved on, or thought perhaps he was just a very smart moose due to fact that he’s the “monster of monster bulls”!

Overall the weather was fair to us the next few days and the thick bush that rut was on! We encountered one or two bulls every day. On crossed our path. two different occasions we had a bull come in hot and heavy In the end it was like a runaway freight train, only to hold up just outside of bow not Karl’s cow call, range like they knew where their safe zone was, standing proud and that sexy cow and looking right at us. We had both put on our scent blocker stole our bull! We but every hunt is a learning experience. We had a young bull felt like the moose that did the total opposite and came in like a pump jack shad- match makers. ow; the slight snap from a stick was the only thing that gave The next day we him away at 15 yards. Neither of us had a safe comfortable split up - Karl and shot, so he went on his merry way. Several others would ap- I went together, proach unseen due to the thick bush. Some people think that and Adam and hunting is a vacation, but to me hunting is a physical, emotion- Braxton headed al and psychological challenge which involves long strenuous out in another didays, but in return can be very rewarding. rection. That eveAs the days rolled by, we entertained each other at camp and ning when we all had some fun. One evening in the tent we were going over returned to camp some past hunts when I noticed a frog skipping across the Adam informed us ground near the middle of the tent. While Adam was check- that he had Super ing out a map, I snagged the frog and it found its way into Bull grunting back his drink without him even noticing. It was tough to keep a again! Initially he straight face until he slowly finished his drink. I watched that had a good 35” frog fall into his mouth as he tipped the cup back. He swished bull in visual sight but still out of bow range, when all of a sudit around for a while thinking it was an ice cube then realized den Super Bull started barking from the opposite direction, it wasn’t and spit it out. “Ahhhhhhggg! What the? A frigging stopping the 35” bull in his tracks but darkness quickly ended frog?” he spit out as I burst out laughing. Little did I know, that the hunt. The next morning, after a couple of hours, the hunt night he got a hold of my phone and changed some auto cor- wasn’t looking too promising. Just then a deep grunt erupted rect settings. Every time I would text my wife at the end of the and was headed our way, and fast. He got hung up hard in the day with the word “love” it would correct with “I wet the bed”. willows grunting and raking like it was going out of style, but This went on for a few nights before she finally asked, “What’s he would not come out into the open. Karl and Adam went in wrong with you?!” closer to challenge the beast and they were able to get within The morning of September 27 was warm and we had no 45 yards of him but because of the dense willows, Adam was luck. Another buddy Karl Schreiber (Winslow) and Adam’s unable to flick the switch. They saw him and confirmed he was oldest son, Braxton, were coming to camp that evening for a Dustin also took a tremendous bull in few days. After they arrived, we 2012. The big bull went just under 160” headed 3 miles south of camp and had a good bull coming in, but then a cow call bellered from the opposite direction (north of us).

Adam pointed out right away that it sounded like Karl’s cow call. If it was actually Karl, I knew there would be an “interesting” discussion between the brothers that evening back at camp. We had to react fast due to the fact that the cow was stealing our bull. We could hear the bull grunting in the opposite direction now towards the cow. We went in to challenge the responding bull, hoping to reroute him back our way. It seemed like we were going to seal the deal until we approached a narrow deep creek surrounded by

a solid 170” bull! While in the slough area he was in, they saw rubs and breaks all over and a few wallow holes. It was definitely his living room!

On September 29, after the morning hunt Karl, Adam and Braxton were homeward bound. It was time to go back to work. I sent my father, Blaise Ross, a fast text to see if he’d like to come to camp for a couple days. It was a very fast decision, and that afternoon we were out on the search for a good bull!

We had a quiet evening hunt but the next day was the last day of the archery season so the pressure was on.

It was a very cool, bone chilling morning. So much so, that after four hours of calling, we were frozen. Once we made it back to camp and crushed some KD and coffee, the chill was gone and we were ready to go again. After lunch we set off on a long journey, heading over to the far north end of our area which was 1.5 hour trip. On our way, we had Ranger issues that set us back a few hours. I was so discouraged. “This is it!

The day is shot and this is the last day!” I yelled while kicking dirt. Pops kept my spirits up and after some repairs it was all good. We had just a few hours left, so we rushed back to camp then headed west. We set up post not far from the wallows my buddies had seen the previous day. It seemed like a great spot just on the edge of a dried up slough which was surrounded by trees that created a funnel. We tucked up behind a small waist high willow bush facing south. The wallows were south west of us about 200 yards away. I called for about 40 minutes and then we had some action! A deep, constant grunt echoed from the south west, approximately a mile away, and he was coming in hot! His barks were increasing, and my heart started to pound.

I grabbed my Z-7 and nocked the same arrow that I had used on last year’s bull. Then I spotted small poplars flag-whipping 90 yards away. It was him and he was a bit upset! Once he was out of the trees, his body mass and horns were massive! I could feel and hear my heart racing out of control; I was worried it would scare him off. He slowly came in straight at us, hoofing and thrashing whatever was in his path.

He stopped at 40 yards with his head up high, staring us down. While on my knees, I slowly rose up into position and drew back my bow.

At that distance, if he turned broadside, I was going to let him have it.

It seemed like he stood there for a month even though it was probably

only a minute, and then he continued straight for us. At 20 yards he slowly turned broadside, giving me the perfect opening. I released my arrow and it was a killer hit right through the lungs! The massive beast let out one last bark, and with a

small stumble, headed towards the trees to the east. I slowed him down with a couple grunts and not long after he reached the trees, it sounded like he crashed. What an adrenalin rush, words can’t explain the feeling! We gave him some time as I gathered myself, and then we went in to retrieve him. The blood trail was easy to find but as we reached the trees, we still entered with caution. We followed the mowed-over bloody trees until it led us to an open area. From there it was difficult to tell where he went and by that time, the sun had almost set.

Just then Pops yelled, “There he is!” I was surprised to see he was pointing to the north-west, so the moose was en-route back to where I had arrowed him, roughly 130 yards away. As we drew near to the bull, I could see that he was beyond massive. I grabbed one of his palms and had to use full force just to turn his head. His horns were more than I could ask for in a mature Saskatchewan bull! His long, deadly daggers, just above his eye guards were very impressive. I stood there in

awe, I was frozen in place and finally Pops had to nudge me to bring me back to reality. Now the work began and luckily I had some good buddies who came out to help. Thank you to Brandon Schreiber (Shitweasel) and Amanda Tibbo (Tibbs) for helping with the recover and taking some top notch field pictures, printed memories that will last a lifetime. I was thrilled with my bull, but in the back of my mind I knew that Super Bull was still out there, still eluding us!

I would like to thank everyone that is mentioned in this short story as well as my understanding wife Niki Ross, who supports my love of hunting and the outdoors. I’m looking forward to future hunts and handing down this passion to my three sons one day. To me, this was a hunt of a lifetime and to spend it with my Father Blaise Ross means a lot to me. To harvest amazing bulls with him, two years in a row, just tops it off. Love ya Dad! To have a successful hunt, you must own the hunt!

Like any successful hunter, family is a key part of Dustin’s success.

Dustin is thankful for their support and to Dayna Harrison for taking the time to score his bulls..

www.saskbowhunters.ca

EVOLUTION OF BGI

I

would like to take this opportunity to announce that BGI is expanding. We have had such an incredible response that we have decided to take things to the next level and we are launching an online magazine to complement our established printed magazine. We have been inundated with tremendous stories, animals, and articles from readers, writers and those in the hunting industry, all wanting to get involved with BGI. As a result, we have responded with the production of an online magazine. This online magazine will share the same high quality, down to earth real hunting content that the print magazine has, but will contain a wider variety of content. For example, in addition to featuring some of the top animals taken in North America every year, we will also feature an international hunt or two in the online magazine. We will also have a few more ‘how to’ and ‘product review’ type articles that we generally do not run in the printed magazine. The best part is the online magazine will be completely free to subscribe! Simply visit www.BGIOnlinemag.com and register and you will have full access.

Our goal with this new publication is to build on what we have already established. We want to keep the printed Big Game Illustrated magazine focused on real, largely reader submitted material focused on family hunts, beginning hunters, women hunters, as well as hardcore hunters who have some amazing success and we all want to learn from. It is, and always will have at its foundation the goal to promote ethical, fair chase, hunting that encourages others to take up the activity, and shows all the positive aspects of hunting. Hunters are not a uniform group of people and everybody likes something different, so we hope the online magazine will be a place where all of these different interests can meet to share stories and perhaps broaden some horizons. In a day and age when hunting and hunters are targets of well-funded fundraising companies who use ‘animal welfare’ as an excuse to attack us, it is very important that all hunters stick together and understand the different hunts that people experience and enjoy. With that being said, everything that ever appears in any BGI publication will always be fair chase, wild animals and the online magazine will feature some fair chase, dream hunts from across the globe in addition to in our own regions!

As an added bonus, we have some amazing companies supporting us, and we are passing as much of this support as pos-

sible along to our readers. We will give away numerous prize packs in every issue of BGI Online Magazine. The subscription to the online magazine will be FREE! And every subscriber is entered to win Vortex, UWAY and Big Game Illustrated prize packs worth hundreds of dollars in every issue! Simply go to www.BGIOnlinemag.com and visit the contest pages.

Some highlights of our first issue of BGI Online include one of the top non-typical whitetails ever taken in Saskatchewan, one of the top non-typical whitetails ever taken with archery gear by an Alberta woman, an absolutely incredible 240” Minnesota giant with a net 5x5 typical frame scoring over 200”, a Spanish Ibex hunt, as well as articles on choosing optics, hunting cartoons, and much, much more. The best part is that it is all free!

We are a dedicated group at Big Game Illustrated, striving to bring the best stories and animals to the public’s attention so that we can all share in the success of others. It is only fair that we share our own stories as well, so we are going to utilize the online magazine as a place to launch BGITV, which will feature videos, clips, and episodes of our own adventures.

We already have a backlog of incredible footage including Saskatchewan’s top mule deer and top velvet non-typical whitetails from 2013, spring bear hunts including a couple spring bears that tipped the scales at over 500lbs, and Alberta mountain lion hunt, and hours of amazing footage of wildlife and big bulls and bucks. It is exciting times for us as we share our passion for the outdoors, and we hope you will join us and continue to share yours as well.

We are always looking for stories and content, it truly is the readers and contributors who make BGI what it is so we need to say a big thank you! We are happy to provide a package of Big Game Illustrated gear to anyone who is interested in sharing their story with us, so keep those stories coming in! Email or call anytime, we are always happy to chat with hunters about their adventures. After all, that is the reason we started BGI in the first place! - Chad Wilkinson, BGI

BITTERSWEET SUCCESS BY: GRANT BENIUK

Grant Beniuk with the big-framed bruiser he took in 2014 in northern Alberta. The early November hunt proved very successful. The big deer has a tonne of character with a number of sticker points adding a total of 10 1/8” to the final score. An inside spread of 19 4/8”, three tines over 10” long and three circumferences over 5” all add up to a gross score of 175 2/8” .

H

unting, fishing and the outdoors have always been a big part of my life. Depending on the season, there is nothing else that I would rather be doing than looking for hidden treasures in the spring time by burning some boot leather in pursuit of shed antlers, wetting a line in summer for some big beautiful golden eyes, and of course bow and rifle hunting whenever there is a season that is open and animals for me to hunt.

As the 2014 season for rifle opened, I had yet to capture a buck on trail camera that I was interested in hunting. Lots of good young up and comers but the “one” had yet to make him self known. As a result of the lack of scouting success, I hadn’t done any bow hunting other than a solo hunt for mule deer down south. My mule deer hunt was full of many miles walked and bucks stalked, with a lot of good shooter bucks encountered. However, as anyone who has tried it can attest to, spot and stalk bow hunting big mule deer is tough and I just wasn’t able to seal the deal for one reason or another. I came home without a bloody arrow, but with many good memories and experiences, which in the end to me is the true trophy of any hunt so I was not discouraged, just enjoying the season.

Despite not capturing any big mature bucks on my trail cameras, I still could not wait for November to roll around and the rut to begin. It was November sixth, and I found myself sitting watching one of my favorite alfalfa fields. I had crept into the field edge at first light and I sat there watching the numerous does and small bucks. My mind began to wander and I found myself thinking back to the previous year’s sightings,

and trail cam pictures from this location. One buck from the year before stuck out in my mind more than all the rest. He was a big wide framed bruiser that I had past up a couple of times hoping that maybe, just maybe he might survive other hunters, predators, cars and all the many other possible ways for a whitetail buck to prematurely meet his maker. I knew he would be a great buck. Even though there was no sign of him this year, I did not regret my decision to pass him the year previous, and I knew there was a chance he was still around and I could run into him. He was a good buck, but I could tell he was no more than four years old and had a lot of potential.

At this stage of my hunting career, I just couldn’t hang a tag

Grant is a successful whitetail hunter and has taken a number of very impressive animals over the years. He is also an avid shed hunter and has numerous giant shed antlers in his collection. His collection of animals on the wall, and shed antlers, continue to grow every year.

on, knowing what he could become. I figured he would score around 160�, but more than the score; he was just one of those bucks that catches your eye and just looks impressive.

As I sat there enjoying the view, I caught movement on the far end of the field, about 450 yards away. A doe had come bursting out of the bush and hot on her heals was a big deer, and it looked like a really good buck! He was a big, wide and heavy framed bruiser buck. I recognized him instantly; it was the buck I had passed the year before. I could not believe my eyes; there he was in the wide open field! The doe ran out into the field near a rock pile and bedded down next to it. The buck closed the distance to her and stood watching over his prize, looking like a statue and not moving a muscle.

I seized my opportunity with the buck facing away from me I started crawling closer. At 350 yards away yet I could not get any closer due to the dozen other deer that had already busted me and were threatening to spook the whole field. I jammed my bi-pods

down, got up on my knees and centered the buck in my crosshairs. I allowed for the distance in my drop reticule scope and let the .280 Sako bark. I heard the unmistakable sound of the bullet hitting its target and he took a couple steps and fell!

As I walked up to the now dead buck he was every bit as good as I thought. I don’t know if it’s just me but I always experience a bit of sadness when I kill an animal, before the happiness and excitement of a successful hunt sinks in and excited. I really do hope I am not the only one, and I don’t think I am.

As hunters and conservationists, I believe this to be fairly common place as the killing of an animal is a serious thing that should be done with respect in mind. Needless to say, I am already looking forward to next year’s experiences and new memories.

The

Hunt

for

‘Ocho’

a 5 year saga chasing a giant Oklahoma buck BY: GREG BROWNLEE

Greg Brownlee and the Oklahoma giant he nicknamed “Ocho”. It took Greg more than five years of hunting the buck to finally get a shot at him. Greg estimated the deer at 9-10 years old. This is truly exceptional, especially considering the area gets a lot of hunting pressure. The four point typical frame is truly world class, scoring over 168”! The main beams are very long at 26 4/8” and 27 5/8”. G2’s are also world class as both are well over 13”. The buck has a mess of stickers around his base which boost the total non-typical score up to 182 5/8”.

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n mid-October of 2008 I set one of my trail cameras up on a fresh scrape deep in a thick draw next to a small water source in an attempt to get a picture of a big 10 I’d seen the previous November. Ten days later I checked the cam, and while there was no sign of the big 10 I had a heavy racked, 4 or 5 year old 8 point that got my attention. The buck had heavy bases, tall tines and lots of trash, and a friend named him “Ocho” after seeing the giant 8 point frame. He was to be my target deer that year, and I sat that draw every time I had a northwest wind that season. I saw over 30 different bucks using that draw that year while on stand, but never caught a glimpse of Ocho on the hoof. Assuming he’d been killed due to his absence on trailcam, I moved on to other deer for the 2009 season.

Fast forward to summer of 2010 when my cousin called and said while clearing cedars off of an 80 acre piece of ground he’d recently purchased he found a big set of sheds. I asked for a photo, but photos weren’t enough; I had to see them. Two hours later I was holding the largest set of 8 point sheds I’d ever seen! Even though they had an estimated 6 inches chewed off of the typical frame, the sheds still grossed over 170”. With heavy, trashy bases and tall tines, this was undoubtedly the rack grown in 2009 by the buck I hunted in 2008. I shamelessly asked for the sheds, and though he’s not a deer hunter he said he’d like to keep them. He did say that if I ever killed that deer he’d bring me those sheds when he came to help me drag him out. With the newly-cedar free 80 acres my cousin owned being only 1.5 miles north of where I’d been hunting the deer, I had a renewed hope I’d start seeing him again. I decided I would set my trail camera on the edge of a wheat field that backed up to the draw I’d had photos of him in the past. After

about a month, I started getting photos of him, and boy had he grown! He’d lost a bit of trash from the previous season, but gained a lot of length on his tines and beams. I estimated him to be in the 180-185” range, which was enough to keep me up at night thinking about hunting him. He came in every few nights at no particular time or interval for the first couple of weeks, but around the first week of November I started getting nightly photos of him as he travelled from his bedding area to the feeding area. There was a glaring problem though; all the photos of him were at night. I moved another camera down the draw on another scrape and began getting photos of him earlier at nights, but still after legal shooting time. I hunted the draw again anytime with a northwest wind, and though I hadn’t seen him, I was still getting regular pictures of him on both cams. On November 13, I had to work a trade show so I couldn’t be in the stand. After checking my cameras the following weekend he had been by both cameras in the daylight between noon and 4 pm! Deflated, I realized I’d likely missed my only chance at him, and after he disappeared after our rifle season I again assumed he had been shot by the neighboring hunters.

In 2011 I put cameras out in early September on the property I got the photos of Ocho, as well as our other property 90 miles away in the eastern half of the state, then headed to Alaska to do a non-guided moose hunt. After leaving the cameras out for 3 weeks I hit a not-so-bad speed bump in the hunt for Ocho when I found a giant non-typical on our east place.

Having no photos of Ocho on the property where he lived, I decided to focus solely on this big non-typical I was getting daylight photos of, and was rewarded when I shot him on October 28 with my muzzle loader. That deer scored 187 5/8” so I was more than elated and certainly made the correct decision to hunt that deer. Even though we can shoot two bucks in Oklahoma per season, having focused on the other buck all season I was so behind the ball on trying to locate Ocho that the entire month of November went by with me never having a shot at him or a single trail cam photo.

The fall of 2012 was looking like it may be a tough season to hunt. A drought in Oklahoma and Texas had made it difficult for farmers to get their crops planted or harvested, so it was late October before the wheat was even planted in our area. This made hunting difficult as the deer are never concentrated in one area until the wheat crop is planted. Muzzle loader season falls in late October each season and I hunted the short 9 day season without a single sighting. I was losing hope that the Ocho was still alive. It had been 5 years since I first got a photo of this deer, and he appeared to be 4 or 5 years old back then. Statistics were starting to weigh heavily in the favor of him having already been killed, whether it at the jaws of the local coyote population or to another fortunate hunters bullet. Still, I held out hope that he was around and after the 100+ sits on stand for him over the past several years I figured it wouldn’t hurt to keep trying. Our November rifle season opened to unseasonably warm temperatures and lackluster rutting activity. I hunted opening weekend on the wheat field because the south winds were keeping me from being able

to hunt that draw, and though I saw dozens of deer including a young 150 class 8 point, Ocho never showed.

I’d promised a friend who was in town from Colorado that I’d let him shoot his first deer, a doe, on the Tuesday of opening week. Having hunted in this area for 5 years without firing a shot, the does were comfortable coming out as early as 2 pm and feeding on the wheat field. Seeing as many as 40 does per sit and having yet to see Ocho, I decided I’d take him back to this area. At the time he was a professional wedding photographer, so he decided he would bring his camera so we could film the hunt and get good photos. Before we got to the field I told him that due to me hunting a large buck back here, we wouldn’t shoot any does until 30 minutes before legal shooting light was up. I was letting him borrow my .300 Win. mag, and told him that I’d let him shoot a deer as long as we didn’t see Ocho, a reasonable deal for him since I had yet to actually see this deer in person! We saw a few does and smaller bucks, and then at 4:15 I looked at the native grass hill 350 yards away and saw a large deer coming over the horizon. Without even pulling my binos up I could see it was Ocho! I asked for the gun

and laid my rifle down on my pack in a prone position while my friend started up the camera. Ocho was working from east to west through the grass that split two deep draws about 350 yards from us, and trees were blocking me from getting a clear shot. He walked into a clearing and I mouth bleated, but because of how far he was by the time he heard me and stopped he was behind a tree. After hunting this deer for five years I needed a little luck, and lady luck was smiling down on me that day. There was one more spot he could stop where I could shoot, otherwise he’d get into the deep draw and I’d likely never see him again. He walked 20 yards and stopped in that spot, looking our direction to see where the mouth bleat came from.

As soon as he stopped in the clearing I squeezed, hearing the tell-tale “thump!” of a bullet hitting the vitals. He bucked and ran, and I knew I’d hit him hard. We waited 30 minutes before walking over to where I’d shot but couldn’t find blood trail in the tall grass. We reviewed the camera footage and walked in the direction he ran, finding him piled up in the grass only 50 yards from where I’d shot him! Remembering my deal from 2010, I called my cousin and jokingly said “I shot a good buck, you might want to bring those big sheds when you come look at him”.

The frame on Ocho is the first thing that stands out to most people that see the rack. His 8 point frame stretched the tape to over 168”, with his cheater points topping him out at 182 5/8”.

At 9 or 10 years old, he’s truly a once in a lifetime deer. He survived for a decade in an area where the average property has three hunters per quarter section, and where passing any deer over 3 years old is unheard of. In the end it all came down to a little luck in getting this buck, but after getting my butt kicked hunting him for 5 years I felt like it was time for some luck to go my way!

BY: JESSE VOTH

I

find my big non-typical. The first few days of the season the wind was not in our favor and when I asked my dad if we were going hunting for him he told me not a chance, we don’t want to educate him because he is still coming out to feed on the alfalfa regrowth before dark. Finally, the wind was right one evening so we packed up and headed out where we had been seeing my non-typical feeding in the evening. We set up on the edge of the bush one hundred yards from a trail that we hoped he would come out on and waited for him to show. It was about a half hour before legal shooting time was up and he stepped out of the bush, jumped the fence and started feeding just like he was supposed to! The only problem was that it was 350 yards behind us and out of range. My dad just said, “that’s mulies for ya, you can watch them walk down a certain trail every day until you are waiting for them, then they will change it up.” So we watched him till dark then snuck home, being careful to remain out of sight and not to let him get our scent. After seeing him that evening we knew he was over 200” and definitely a shooter. Dad asked me if he was big enough for my first mulie and I replied with “Oh yeah, I want to shoot him badly!”

Jesse Voth of Outlook, Saskatchewan with the amazing A few days later the wind was right again so me and my dad went back out and set up the same way, only a mule deer he harvested when he was thirteen years old! little closer to where we saw him come out last time. As The massive buck has an inside spread of 18 3/8” and we sat there, all the mule deer were coming out to feed long tines, with the longest on each side being 13 5/8” and were on yet another different trail, again out of range!

15” even. The rack is loaded with non-typical points conWe were starting to get that bad feeling that the same tributing 33 3/8” to the big gross score of 220 3/8”. thing would happen again and my dad told me that if he happens to come out where the rest are we would have was thirteen when I was first drawn for an either sex mule deer tag in the zone where my family ranches. Being drawn at home gave me an advantage because during the summer we can keep a close eye on the deer while we are checking the cows and haying. One day while I was raking hay my dad came to show me some pictures on his phone of a couple nice bucks that he’d seen while he was cutting. He gave me a pair of binoculars and said if I snuck up the side of the hill I would be able to get a good look at them. He told me to look at the one non-typical because he is going to be a shooter this fall. As I crested the hill, the sight before me was spectacular and I knew he was the one I wanted to hunt. Over the next couple months we saw him a couple more times. Knowing this was his home, we didn’t go looking for him because we didn’t want to bother him. We just kept tabs on him while we were haying and hauling hay, and tried not to do anything out of the ordinary to alarm him or let him know we were watching him.

Finally muzzleloader season was here and it was time to go

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a chance to get closer by belly crawling along the side of a small ridge, but only if we had a lot of time. Just as we were making a backup plan we saw him step out of the bush a few hundred yards behind us, all on his own and in a spot that would be very hard for us to close the distance again, so we crossed our fingers that he might come to us.

After watching him for about 20 minutes, something seemed to bother him and he went back to the bush line and disappeared, another sighting of the monster mulie without the chance of a shot! It was hard being so close again without the chance of a shot, but on the upside we knew he was still in the area and still had some time left. The sun was going down and I knew tonight wouldn’t be the night, although I was hoping he would show up again. As I was watching some small bucks feed out in the hay field, Dad said, “Get ready he’s going to give you another chance!” He was coming out again and this time he was only about 150 yards away. Now the excitement was through the roof. I was breathing so hard I could barely get the crosshairs on him. Dad kept telling me

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to take my time, “He doesn’t know we are here, just wait for the broadside shot and slowly squeeze the trigger.” I focused, took a deep breath, and as the muzzle loader went off the air filled with smoke and I lost sight of him for a moment. Dad said, “You hit him” as the deer humped up and slowly walked towards the bush. We both thought he would be going down soon, but he kept going. We reloaded the muzzleloader to make sure that we were ready just in case we had to take another shot.

“Your shot looked a little far back, you keep a close eye on him?” Dad said. The buck disappeared back into the bush line and I didn’t have time for another shot. Dad told me that shot looked like it should have hit a lung, but it likely wasn’t through both.

He might be laying just inside the bush. We snuck our way over to where he went in; trying to be very quiet in case he was still standing up.

We didn’t want to bump him and have him run off. We thought that we might spot him and get another shot. Where he went in the bush there was a good blood trail, but by this time there it was starting to get a bit dark, so we had to move slowly and carefully. We followed the trail for a short distance hoping to find my monster mulie laying somewhere, but we did not have any luck. Dad stopped and said, “We should have found him by now if he was hit good, we don’t want to push him.” It was a very difficult decision, but we had to back out and leave him alone for the night.

The next morning I had to go to school so my dad and grandpa went out looking for my mule deer. After following the blood trail through the bush and river hills, it finally got to where the blood trail started to disappear so they were starting to wonder how hard he was really hit. My dad continued to follow a good game trail where he thought he might have went, while my grandpa circled further down the ridge looking for

signs when he saw a few ravens sitting on the edge of a river island. He thought it looked odd. He then met up with my dad and they both made their way closer to where he had seen the ravens and sure enough my mule deer had made it to the river and had died half way to an island where we had seen a lot of big mulie bucks go hide in the past. My dad sent me a picture when they had found him and man I was pumped, it would only be a little over an hour till I got home from school and I could go tag my first mule deer. It was too bad we weren’t able to find him the night before, but I was extremely thankful that my dad and grandpa spent most of the day looking for him and didn’t give up to make sure he didn’t go to waste. As I got home and finally got my hands on the big deer, I realized that I had my once in a life time mulie that scored 216 3/8” non-typical.

I am going to have a hard time beating that next time I get drawn for a mule deer tag, but I will sure try!

BY: JOSH KULTGEN

Josh Kultgen of Foremost, Alberta with the tremendous non-typical whitetail he anchored in 2013. Josh’s area is not known for big whitetails, so he was shocked when he discovered the deer living in his area. The giant whitetail has a gross score of 199 4/8” and a big net score of 189 1/8”. One week after Josh took the big whitetail, he went on a hunting trip to northern British Columbia and took home a big grizzly and a beautiful stone ram!

E

arly September is a busy time in my household. Harvest is in full swing, and there is always a long list of things to get done before the snow arrives in a couple months. A heavy rain on September 4th shut down harvest so the next morning I awoke and began to tackle my wife’s to do list. After a morning of working through that, I was ready for a break so I called my buddy Andrew and asked him if he wanted to go for a walk and see if we could find the mule deer that another buddy of ours had missed a few days earlier. He quickly confirmed and his brother Steven also decided to join us. “That is a great sign” I thought to myself, as we always seemed to have the best luck when Steven was with us. The three of us met up and headed out to the same area where our buddy had missed the big mule deer. On the drive there, we discussed the mule deer and how it would be great just to see him again, let alone get a shot. Eventually, the discussion turned to whitetails and I mentioned to them that I had encountered a big whitetail in the area as well. The big deer never gave me a good look, but I was sure he was a big mature deer with a bunch of junk, just not sure on how big. Our area is not known for big whitetails, so even a 160” whitetail is a really good deer, and definitely a shooter.

We left the truck and began slowly walking through the coulee. It was a beautiful time of year to be out and with the above normal rainfall, the landscape was stunning. The grassy hills were green and the coulees were all flush with growth, and we knew the dense vegetation in the coulees likely held some good deer. We snuck from hill to hill, slowly and carefully glassing each coulee. We worked our way through the area, and spotted a couple spikers but nothing else. We snuck around the spikers, careful not to spook them, and came over the hill to the last draw. Andrew was already on the hill, glassing the thick tangle of shrubs when Steven and I came up behind. Andrew turned to face us and we both immediately stopped, seeing the excitement in his face as he whispered, “Get down, I see something!” We got down, then Andrew and I slowly crawled up the hill to get a better look.

We could just barely make out an antler, but it looked like a long back point. We ranged the buck at 37 yards, but could not even tell for sure if it was a mule deer or a whitetail. We hunkered down and the waiting game began.

It was about 15 minute before he moved his head enough for us to tell that he was a whitetail. A couple more turns of his head and we knew for sure that he was a good one, although it was very hard to see through the brush and we did not know how good. We waited, and waited and made the decision that we would wait as long as we had to. The wind was from the west and we were hidden well in the tall grass on the east side of him so we thought we would have a good chance. I texted my dad, telling him that we were sitting on a good whitetail, and he replied with, “Don’t rush him; just wait for him to stand on his own.” I chuckled because Dad knows that I have very little patience and he has heard our stories of rushing things with mule deer in the past.

By now an hour had past and the whitetail finally lifted his head right up and turned it the other direction. I was stunned with what I saw as Andrew whispered to me, “Josh, I think he has a double row of points on the one side!” Andrew and I looked at each other in complete disbelief as we noticed he also hasdmatching sticker points on each side. “Is this really possible in an area where a 130 class whitetail is a good buck?” I think to myself.

Still not sure if what we were seeing was real, we continued to lay in the grass for another hour and a half.

Then, finally it happened. While Andrew was looking through his binoculars he whispered to me “I think he’s getting up.” I had been lying there the whole time with my arrow nocked and release hooked up. There was no way I was going to miss a chance on this buck, and I was ready, even if the chance was only for a fleeting moment. He stood up and looked right at us and my

heart sank, thinking, “That was it, he’s gone and I can’t draw.”

However, after a few seconds he finally turned he head and started to feed. I drew back and sent an arrow at him, striking him right behind the front shoulder! As he walked over the

hill in front of us, we watched the incredible silhouette on the skyline. It was a sight we will never forget as he tipped over just over the hill. The silhouette was the first time we could really see what I had just shot and we celebrated like never before. As we walked up to the buck, we were all in silence for a long time

as we stared at the incredible animal that lay before us.

A week later I headed off to northern BC and managed to fulfill two more dream hunts as I tagged a Stone Ram and a Grizzly! It was truly a week of hunting that will be impossible to match for the rest of my hunting career.

Josh took his whitetail, stone ram and grizzly all within a couple weeks of each other. Truly a dream month for any hunter!

Hamilton Greenwood Photo

National Archery in the Schools Program National Championships!

If you’ve ever caught yourself wondering about the future of competitive archery or archery hunting in general, there is no need to worry. The National Archery in the Schools Program (NASP) held their National Championship Tournament during the Edmonton Boat and Sportsman Show March 12, through 15, in Edmonton, Alberta, at the Edmonton Expo Center, Northlands. The National tournament saw 1,186 participants including two guest archers from Africa participate in the popular archery tournament which showcased some incredible archery talent but above all, it showed what a beneficial program the NASP program is in our school systems.

The National Archery in the Schools Program is an archery program that was added to Alberta schools in 2008. The program works in a joint venture between the state or provincial departments of Education and Wildlife. Several archery equipment manufacturers and organizations are also partners in the program. The program promotes student education, physical education, and encourages participation in the life-long sport of archery. In Alberta, the Alberta Hunter Education Instructors' Association (AHEIA) is the coordinator of the program and they have seen an overwhelming acceptance and many successes since the program began in 2008.

The program is designed to teach international style target archery in physical education classes. Students start the NASP program in the 4th grade and continue until graduation gaining knowledge, confidence, and strength as they grow with the program. The confidence the students gain participating in the NASP program, also spills over into their regular school curriculum and even into their everyday life which is a winning formula for everyone.

The core content covers archery history, safety, technique, equipment, mental concentration, core strengthening, physical fitness, and self-improvement. And the students are not the only ones that get to learn the fine art of archery. Before presenting the archery course, teachers participating in the program take part in an eight hour NASP training program.

Currently in Alberta there’s over 320 schools taking part in the NASP program with over 500 teachers and volunteers trained to teach the popular program.

The NASP program has received the highest of reviews from students, teachers, parents and guardians. The NASP program has brought the sport of archery to millions of students throughout North America and has been a welcome fit in many western province schools. However, along with the thrill

of competition, students, teachers, and volunteers encourage fun and fair play and this was highlighted at the Nationals during the Celebrity Pro-Am Archery Tournament.

A wide variety of outdoor communicators, outdoor TV producers, professional anglers, and even the original Man Tracker and John Baldwin, the Alberta Regional Manager of the Sports Shows participated in the fun event. Twenty celebrities and 20 randomly picked students from participating schools took part in the event.

The student on the winning team won a new G-5 Quest Radical youths bow sponsored by Two Guys Hunting and the crew for the hit TV hunting show The Bone Yard.

For the celebrity on the winning team, bragging rights were on the line. The first round saw each team shoot five arrows each from the 10 meter line. The scores from each team were totaled and the teams moved back to the 15 meter line for the second round. Five more arrows were shot at the target from each team member and the scores were totaled. Next came the 50 point Balloon Bonus round. In this round, each team member would shoot one arrow from the 15 meter line trying to hit the balloon that was placed on top of the target. Competition was tight and a bonus 50 points would push many teams into a winning position.

During the first two rounds it was clear that the celebrities were the amateurs and a lot more pressure was put on the students to carry their celebrity teammates. As the announcer called the start of the bonus round the crowd fell silent and the contestants took their place on the archery line. Arrows were in their quivers and strings were drawn. However, after 40 arrows were sent down range only two bonus balloons were popped. One by student Garrett Bazuik representing Sturgis School in Saskatchewan, and teammate Brad Holintay host of The Replacements TV show. Their team won the event with a total of 189 points. The only celebrity that hit the 50 point Bonus Balloon to help launch their team into a second place finish with 186 points was none other than Wes David (me).

My student partner Colby Astill, representing St. Anthonys School in Alberta, and I kept pace with the other teams but fell three points short.

However, after the celebrations and the arrows settled it was a great experience to shoot side by side with some incredible young archers.

In Alberta, the NASP program is the sole responsibility of the Alberta Hunter Education Instructors Association, and they are the go to organization for everything NASP within Alberta. This year’s National tournament at the Edmonton Boat and Sportsman Show was the first time a National NASP tournament was held in the province of Alberta, and NASP and AHEIA would like to give a heartfelt thank you to Cabela’s and the Canadian National Sportsman Shows (CNSS) for their incredible support. Not only was these two great organizations support felt through product and awards sponsorship, Cabela’s representatives and staff also volunteered as Range Officers and a wide variety of other tasks to help the event run smooth. AHEIA would also like to thank all the volunteers that gave their time and supported at all of this year’s NASP events.

With the involvement and support of Cabela’s and the CNSS, this year’s event was a huge success and at the time of this writing, both AHEIA and Cabela’s were getting ready for the provincials NASP championships April 23, through 26th, held in Drayton Valley, Alberta, at the Omniplex. This promises to be a great event and spectators will witness some incredibly talented young archers.

For more information on the National Archery in the Schools Program, or any outdoor education programs please contact AHEIA. com

E L P I R T E L P I R T

The

BY: TYLER BJERLAND

Tyler Bjerland of Hudson Bay, Saskatchewan with the top non-typical whitetail taken in Saskatchewan in 2014. The buck earned the nickname ‘Triple Triple’ due to the fact that he had triple droptines, and also had triple split browtines on both sides. The buck has over 24” of droptines, and a total of almost 46” of abnormal points. The final tally on Tyler’s giant buck is a gross score of 207 7/8” and a net score of 201 7/8”.

I

have been hunting all my life. As long as I can remember, I have been hunting. I started hunting chickens and rabbits at a young age, and then moved onto deer, moose and elk. I never turn down the chance to get out in the bush and consider myself an avid outdoorsman and enjoy being outside hunting, fishing, or trapping. Growing up, my dad didn’t hunt so I relied on friends and family to include me in their outdoor adventures. While in high school, friends and I used to head out and push bush for whitetails or an afternoon of fishing out on the local lakes every chance we got.

Like most hunters, for year I have had visions of that truly spectacular trophy whitetail. I have thought about it millions of times, but never thought it would happen to me. Once I was old enough to hunt alone, I was out every moment when I could. In those days, there were no trail cameras so we put on miles, and miles, and miles! I came up to Hudson Bay on the weekends to hunt with my lifelong friend Ole Shoemaker. We hunted together a lot and had some decent success. My biggest buck to date, a beautiful 6x5 158 3/8” bush buck was taken with him. I was so excited to have taken the biggest deer I had ever seen and it was done with my best friend. I didn’t think it could get any better.

As the years have passed by, work began to take priority over my true obsession and love of hunting. I found myself having a hard time getting out as often as I would have liked to. Finally, I managed to land a good job with a set schedule and paid days off, and I immediately booked all of my holidays around hunting season! Then I met my beautiful wife Sanchal who luckily shares the same passions in life as I do. She is an avid outdoors woman. Her hunting career has kind of been on hold since the birth of our twins.

Back in 2010, while home for my days off, I was hunting with another lifelong friend Vernon Shoemaker. I managed to take a very nice 6x5 whitetail that scored 150 5/8”. Since then, we have had very harsh winters here in Hudson Bay and our deer numbers are way down. Probably close to 85% winter kill and we are just starting to see the numbers coming back now. I ran trail cameras and hunted hard every year but in the end I did not fill a tag in 2011, 2012 or 2013!

2014 rolled around, and I found myself in secondary schooling for all of September and October. As a result, I did not get to scout much during the summer and fall, and my wife was pregnant with our 3rd child so we decided to take it a bit easier for the fall and just get out when we could.

Elk season came and went without any success which had me a bit nervous about filling the freezer. Luckily, we also have a regular moose season and usually have some good luck. I headed home and got ready for moose season. As I lie in bed, thinking of big,

old moose grunting in the morning, I got a text from Vernon Shoemaker who sent me a text.

His text said, “Hello Tyler, do you want a chance to shoot a 180-200 inch whitetail?” I read this and laughed out loud thinking, ‘Ya ok’ because that is something that everyone gets asked. As I laughed at the ridiculous question, my wife said, “Who was that and what’s so funny?” I said it’s the “Big V.” She replied, “What does he know?” So I told her what it said and she said, “Oh, come on Tyler, he is probably having a night out and teasing you.” I said, “Oh I don’t think so.” Then we texted back and forth and he mentioned that his brother Ole had come across a monster whitetail and they had a plan to try and get him. Vern went on to text, “Ole said he has a drop tine and for Ole to get wound up over a deer it has to be a ‘Cranker’!”

We made a plan to meet the next morning at 7am. I was so excited until I thought about it and realized I did not have a deer tag since I hadn’t been hunting whitetails yet! In a panic I called around but all the stores were closed. I thought to myself, “My chance at a deer of a life time is gone.” I texted Vern and told him the bad news, but said if the Co-op is open when I went to town in the morning I would buy a tag. If not, I would still be there as a dedicated “pusher”. That night I tossed and turned with thoughts of a once in a lifetime deer dancing in my mind. I got up at 6:30am and drove to town thinking the chances of the Co-op being open were slim. As luck would have it, I rounded the corner to town to see lights on and the sign flashing “Open”! I grabbed a coffee and I have never been so excited to get a tag!

I headed to Vern’s, transferred my gear into his truck, and headed into his house. As I walked in, I realized it is dark, and I thought, “Oh, no, Sanchal was right; Vern was still sleeping and it was all a joke!” My worries were put to rest when he came around the corner, full of energy, pumped up and said, “Let’s go kill this monster!” I said, “You are sure spry and confident!”

He says, “You gotta be persistent buddy.” We headed out to our

buddy Tyson’s where we picked him up and were on our way!

Finally, we get setup in the area the buck had holed up the night before. Vern said, “Well, there’s the bush right there.”

I looked up to see a huge tangle of thick brush, a block that could only be described as a deer fortress 600 yards wide and 200 yards that bottle necks down to 400 yards wide by 200 yards deep with a power line cut separating them. We saw a doe come skipping out, then wheel around and go back in. We scout out the area and determine that there are no big, fresh tracks leaving the bush, so decided there was a good chance the buck was still in there! As we looked at the situation, I said, “No way this will work if we only have four people,” and we all agreed we needed more bodies. Tyson called home to try to convince his dad we needed help and he finally commited to coming.

We settled in and waited. Finally at 9:30, Tyson’s dad arrives and we are ready. Even with more people, I looked at the thick bluff of trees and thought, “This is a waste of time; I hope we are back by 12 noon so I can go moose hunting this afternoon.” So it’s decided I will walk the west side along the fence line with the others on my left and since Vern’s brother saw the deer and got this whole thing going, he would post on the south east corner of the bluff. We made it all the way through without seeing anything. I got to the cut line and headed east as I saw Tyson and his dad already out of the bush. Just as I was looking at them, I saw movement out of the corner of my right eye. I saw a buck, my heart started racing then I saw a drop tine and I’m in total shock! I know that I have to wait because the buck is in line with Tyson and Grant. Just as the buck got into a clear shooting lane, he turned and was running right at me, closing fast! I had him in my scope, but a head on shot is not what I wanted so I wait. Finally, the deer must have saw me because he turned 45 degrees and I let it rip with my Tikka T3 300 Win mag, sending a Hornady 180 grain bullet on its way. Just as the shot was fired, the deer jumped an uprooted spruce tree and is gone. I ran over to where he I last saw him and just on the other side of the tree I saw a drop of blood so I walked into the field. Just as I got there, I saw blood splatter in the snow. Tyson and Grant walked over and

asked if I hit him I said, “There’s blood here and a drop where he went into the bush!” So Tyson and I got on the track and Grant retraced the buck’s tracks to see if he went west. I followed the blood, then lost it, then Tyson picked it up, then he lost it, and I picked it up again. It was only a short tracking job until I spotted him at 50 yards and put another .300 Win Mag round into him to end the hunt. The high 5’s, the hugging and the hollering of, ‘Big buck down’ started! I walked up to him, put my rifle against a tree and got to put my hands on the rack of a lifetime. All of the dreams and visions of a once in a lifetime deer were blown out of the water by what lied before me! He has triple drops, triple brows and split G2’s. As we celebrated, it was all surreal to me. I could not believe I had taken such a giant buck. The success was a team effort with so many people helping out in one way or another. Ole spotting him and sharing the hunt with us, Vern inviting me, and all the people who came out on the hunt so we had enough people.

None of this would have been possible if one of those pieces wouldn’t have lined up perfectly. I would like to formally thank Ole Shoemaker for being such a great hunting partner over the years, and the same to Vernon. I would also like to thank my beautiful wife for allowing me to hunt as much as I do and for putting up with my spur of the moment hunting plans. As well as Tyson, Grant, and Kaitlyn for coming along and making this a reality. It was a group effort, needless to say I never went moose hunting that day, but everyone understood why I couldn’t make it!

WILL BE By: Cody Forsberg as told by Matt Jarema

Matt Jarema of Smokey Lake, Alberta, with the gigantic whitetail he anchored in 2013. The numbers on Matt’s whitetail are truly spectacular. An inside spread of 22 1/8”, along with 23 scorable points and 48 2/8” of abnormal points all add up to an impressive gross score of 212 1/8”! Matt’s buck easily went into the record books with a net non-typical score of 205 2/8”.

M

aking a living on the farm does not always come easy and requires great responsibility.

The unforgiving trend of cold dry winters and scorching hot summers can be relentless. That unsettling feeling of not knowing when the next time the crops will get rain can be enough to drive a person wild. The idea of having to calve out a few hundred head of cattle in the spring can seem overwhelming, but amongst all this chaos; Matt Jarema is able to find peace while searching for giant Alberta whitetails.

After hearing about the colossal buck Matt was able to harvest during the rut in 2013 I contacted him and heard the story first hand.

It wasn’t very long into our conversation that it became clear to me that he was no stranger to big deer. The 2012 hunting season blessed him with an opportunity at a 170 class four by four and he capitalized. I was all ears as he ran me through past encounters with some amaza shooter. As they pulled the memory cards the excitement ing animals while out in the field. He described that he had was at its peak, all you could hear was the click of the mouse once seen a wide-framed monster with close to 14 inch g2’s as they scrolled through the photos. What they saw next was and then another occasion where a buck ran out in front of something words could not describe and it was official, Matt’s him at 40 yards and it had so many points he could barely see hard work paid off and he had evidence of a giant non typical through the rack. Each time he was not carrying a firearm, in the area. therefore could not pursue the animal but those sightings were Aside from feeding cattle, the next month was devoted to etched into his mind and helped motivate him towards finding this magnificent whitetail that had walked into his life. In his dream deer. hopes of getting some more shots of the elusive giant, he setup It’s hard to find time for scouting and hunting when 500 another trail camera in close proximity to the first one. It came head of cattle are calling your name and 4000 acres need to as a surprise when he continued to get captures of the buck be seeded, but the plus side to it all is that Matt can run on his at the first camera; but the new camera was dry and not once own schedule. As hunting season approaches he, keeps an eye did the buck expose himself to it. This led Matt to believe that out for bachelor groups while checking cattle and pays close the cagey old buck had a strict routine and stuck close to his attention to active trails when scoping out prime trail camera regular travel pattern around the perimeter of the water body. locations. Once Matt finds popular trails commuting back and From that point forward the bruiser consumed Matt’s fourth from the bedding grounds, he then sets up his cameras, in the past he has found that Matt’s buck is one of those rare specithe smaller less traveled paths that intersect men’s that, even after seeing trail camera the beaten trails are the ones the bucks tend to pictures, it is difficult to see everything use more often. This makes sense to me, espethe deer has. What a giant! cially during the breeding season when bucks are trying to intercept hot does on their way to and from the feeding areas.

The fall of 2013 couldn’t come fast enough for Matt and his hunting partners with high expectations of finding a trophy animal. Covering area and different types of habitat is important when it comes to locating bucks and Matt did just that, he chose a promising location around a lake bottom with dense woodland. With a strong doe population, great cover and plentiful water sources nearby this setup was nearly perfect. Time passed by and anticipation grew inside Matt and his girlfriend Erica with high hopes of coming across

thoughts and his spare time. Day in day out he woke up before sunrise, slipped his camouflage suit on, grabbed a mug of coffee and headed out the door in order to reach his blind for prime time. During the slow hours of mid-day he would get back to his herd and feed them up so he could head back to the monster’s stomping grounds for the evening. Days passed by and not a single sighting of the buck was starting to play on his mind. The rut was on heavy and he was seeing lots of deer in the area but not the ONE. It’s easy for a hunter to get discouraged at this point but Matt stuck to the task at hand.

On November 23, Matt was running a little later than usual missing the morning rush but he thought he would head out for a look anyway. He hit the back roads with his girlfriend Erica and his brother Nathan, once the trio got closer to their

honey hole they spotted a few deer out in the middle of a field.

After looking a little closer with optics, they confirmed there were two does and a good-looking buck bedded in a low spot.

Once the buck turned its head the WOW factor was breath taking, “It’s him!” Matt yelled as he could see a fencerow of chocolate brown tines protruding from the buck’s heavy beams. He frantically gripped his rifle, snagged a handful of bullets, scurried out of the truck and hightailed it across the field in order to cut the deer off on their way back to cover. It all happened quickly, but he had a good idea as to where the deer were headed so he got ahead of them and waited.

As the giant buck and his two girlfriends closed the distance, Matt got comfortable with his positioning and laid the cross hairs in the kill zone. With a distinct crack, he sent a

300 short mag ballistic just over 500 yards right into the boiler room. The buck ran no further than 60 yards and fell to the ground. Matt knew instantly that the buck of his lifetime was now laying there waiting for him; after a bittersweet walk he approached the monarch and admired the animal’s beauty.

It just goes to show that putting countless hours and hard

Hamilton Greenwood Photo

work in to anything you do, pays off and produces good results. He couldn’t be more fortunate to have shared that special moment with his brother and girlfriend. I’m sure there will be countless giant buck stories coming from them in the future!

Kimberlee Staley of Blackie, Alberta held out and refused to tag out until she spotted a truly mature, trophy class buck. Her patience paid off when she took the 190 class giant. Long tines are the most striking feature of the antlers. G2’s of 13 6/8” and 14 5/8”, G3’s of 9 7/8 and 11 3/8” and long G4’s of 9 7/8” and 7 4/8” highlight the big score. Her buck has a typical frame of 172 2/8” and 18 4/8” of abnormal points for a gross non-typical score of 190 6/8”.

Growing up Hunting BY: KIMBERLEE STALEY

G

rowing up in an family full of avid hunters on the Island in beautiful British Columbia, I was used to being in the bush or gone fishing a month at a time my entire life. So my love for the outdoors and hunting is more than a hobby, it a passion! I am excited to pass along this passion to my 3 year old daughter Rylin and 6 year old son Landyn. I have been very lucky to have been a part of some amazing moose and deer hunts all over B.C., Alberta and Saskatchewan. Since moving to Southern Alberta 10 years ago, I am still blown away by the size of deer and how different hunting is here than it is back home.

I was drawn in an area that I was very familiar with, but I had never hunted so I was a little apprehensive at the thought of a new spot, but thought it might be good to give my usual hunting area a rest. I was so excited to check out the new area and discover what might be hiding there. My hunting partner, who just happens to be my husband, and I started scoping out the zone a little over a month before hunting season began. Learning the land and where all the hidden valleys and spots that looked promising are, we spent most of our weekends and free evenings documenting and keeping track of what we observed. We were trying our hardest to be patient, waiting for hunting season to arrive.

Finally it was the opening day of the season and I felt like a kid on Christmas morning, I couldn’t wait to get out there! With two hunters in our family, it can sometimes be a little tricky figuring out where we go first, especially this year since my husband was drawn for elk in the Kananaskis Mountains and my draw was in a different area. With the way it worked out with work, we both wanted to start hunting on the same day. So, FINALLY after a few games of rock paper scissors and a few choice words, I lost and we headed to the mountains to chase elk. A couple weeks later and excited to be back to my area, we began walking and watching the areas we had located when scouting. We saw many does, and waited for the rut to begin.

Seeing a few small 3x3s and one small 2x3, I was feeling like I might have made a

mistake in going with a different area. Then finally the snow came, and then more snow, and even more snow! The snow also brought with it some much colder air. We hoped that the freezing temperatures would get the deer moving. I knew we needed to get back out and see what new bucks might have finally exposed themselves. Even though I didn’t have any big deer sighting, I had put in a lot of time already and was determined to get out there and get the buck of my dreams!

The next morning we loaded the truck again and headed out. It was a beautiful, cold, crisp, and clear morning, all the trees were white with snow and frost and there was not a cloud in the sky. I couldn’t wait to get out there. I was almost shaking with excitement. We soon started to do our rounds, finding high ground and glassing some promising spots. Unfortunately, nothing seemed to be much different than our first scouting trip. Looking through the spotting scope we saw one of the same smaller bucks from previous trips. My husband told me not to be so picky and suggested we make a play on the buck. I thought about it, but decided he just was not what I was looking for. I was still determined we could find a better one so we moved on to the next spot. We spent most of the day glassing and waiting, but still we did not see anything that was appealing to my eye. We then spotted a buck we had never saw before. It was a small 2x3 but the one side resembled a paddle and he was kind of a cool and very unique buck.

My husband was again trying to encourage me to shoot this smaller buck, but I think because the year previous I was very fortunate to get a great muley buck and having that in the back of my mind, I just couldn’t shoot one of these younger bucks.

After a few more discussions, we finally agreed that if we could find just a nice, even 4x4, then I would try for him. He shook

his head, now a little irritated as we moved on. By this time my daughter was also getting a little restless and the weather was starting to warm up.

Things were not looking good, so we decided we needed to look deeper into the back country and sit and glass further from the road and easy access. We parked the truck, gathered all our gear, found a promising looking location and started scoping the area where we had spotted numerous does earlier in the year. Not seeing much we headed toward a coulee off in the distance. It was now early afternoon so we knew the deer would be bedded down and sunning themselves. We slowly closed the distance until I noticed a small fork horn buck and some does going down the ridge and into the coulee. We crept up to the edge, hoping the coulee held a big buck as well. We snuck over the edge but only noticed the same few deer. We started heading down the hill of the coulee and around a bend, towards a flat spot at the bottom. About half way down, all of a sudden my husband stopped and said, “Massive buck!” I was laughing a little, thinking he was just bugging me again, I shook my head and said, “Yeah right” as I looked at the bunch of does and the tiny buck. He backed up a little as I came a bit farther down the ridge towards him, I looked over and there he was! A big thick 5x5 buck! I froze as the buck was standing about 100 yards away and watching our every move.

My heart begun to pound out of my chest. I got that feeling, the one of pure excitement as I looked at an absolute beast of a muley! As slowly as I

could, with the buck still locked on me, I started to raise my rifle. Trying not to make any sudden moves, I got settled into the rifle, my eye to the scope and the buck standing slightly broad side, I thought, “He’s mine!” I flipped the safety off and took the shot! All I heard was the gun go CLICK, as I had forgot to load a round into the chamber! The big muley and all the other deer heard the click and started to take off everywhere.

I pulled back the bolt and reloaded as fast as I could. I found the big deer again, took aim and fired! I only had a very small time frame to get my shot off before the buck was gone out of my life.

It was a crazy few moments as I was not sure if I hit him or not, and my daughter was yelling at me to, “Shoot the deer mommy!” We went after him. We quickly made it around the corner where we had last seen him. I was praying I had made the shot count. As we made it up to a more open area, I could not believe my eyes. There he was! Lying on the ground, I had made a perfect shot! He had only taken a few adrenalin jumps just around the bend and was lying there. I yelled with excitement and both my husband and daughter started yelling too.

Kimberlee’s daughter Rylin was with her when she took the big deer. A hunter in the making and memories that will last forever.

Both of them were giving me the biggest hugs! I couldn’t believe it. It felt pretty good to get such a tremendous buck and I took the opportunity to tell my husband how much bigger he was than all those small ones he had been bugging me to shoot! It felt amazing to accomplish what I had set out to do after so many passed opportunities and doubts throughout the season. It was one of the most incredible experiences I have ever had and one that I will never forget! This is one of those times where being in the right place at the right time can pay off in big ways!

After loading my buck, the first people I had to call were my grandparents, Frank & Joan. I just had to share with them the incredible news! Not only are they both in their 70s but they still both go moose hunting ever year in northern B.C.. They have always been my inspiration and a huge reason why I love the outdoors and hunting so much! I would like to say thank you Grandma for showing me that being a girl does not mean you cannot be a hunter and always do what makes you happy in life! I felt it would only be right to dedicate this giant buck to the both of them.

THIRTY FIVE

WIDE

WYOMING HIGH COUNTRY MULE DEER BY: SEAN MORGAN

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hile unsuccessful in the 2013 draw, Dad and I were both fortunate enough to draw non-resident deer tags in the state of Wyoming in 2014.

This was in addition to the tags we had in Utah. Acquiring more than one deer tag in a single year can either be rewarding or disastrous. With Utah’s archery season opening two weeks before Wyoming’s, the decision where to spend precious scouting time could possibly make or break our hunt.

After harvesting a great buck we had named ‘Big Backs’ in Utah, the sense of relief was short lived as we were on our way up to Wyoming before we knew it.

Having another tag and the potential to take a second big buck in the high country was a surreal feeling. The long drive gave me and Dad plenty of time to reflect and go over strategies for the upcoming adventure. The pure feeling of not knowing what bucks were in our hunting area was relatively new to us, as it seemed we knew every buck on the mountain in our home state.

We reached the trailhead and dispersed all the gear we would need for the five days of hunting that was to follow. Our optimistic minds were slightly dampened as the weight of our packs seemed heavier than expected. Trekking poles proved to be a great advantage as the hike up to camp was more than difficult. Opening morning of the archery hunt had us overlooking some promising basins; however we weren’t impressed with the number of deer we were seeing. Relying on our experience and skills from past hunts proved invaluable as we decided to move camp even further and explore some new areas.

We hunted 11 of the 14 days in Wyoming’s archery season with very few opportunities to take a buck we would be proud of. The final days of the hunt were unusually cold which moved the big bucks much lower in elevation, ultimately making them more difficult to find. Even after adapting to these conditions and changing our tactics, we ended the Wyoming archery season feeling a bit overwhelmed. Hunting so

Sean Morgan with the 35” wide mule deer buck he took in Utah in 2014 on a general season tag on public land. The old buck was aged at eight years old, a true trophy in anyone’s books. Both main beams are over 26” and the gross score is 184”. Sean also took a sky-high typical mule deer in Wyoming in 2014. Make sure to visit www.BGIOnlinemag.com to see the story of his Wyo-

ming hunt.

far away and not knowing every inch of the area made us realize how comfortable we were hunting around home, and how lucky we were to know the areas so well. It felt like Wyoming was the big leagues and our back country skills were being truly tested every day.

With Wyoming’s rifle season opening the day after archery closed, the time for redemption was here. Dad and I planned a trip for the following weekend but the weather forecast didn’t look favorable. In a spur of the moment decision, I planned a quick solo hunt just in case bad weather ruined our weekend plans. The timing of this decision couldn’t have been worse.

The day prior I hiked countless miles checking trail cameras in Utah and was only going to get a couple hours of sleep before I started my drive to Wyoming. I stopped along the way, set up a target, and took a few practice shots with the rifle I borrowed from a friend. To my surprise I shot better than expected and couldn’t wait to get back up on the mountain.

The weight of a heavy pack never seems to get lighter, but fueled with excitement I made good time on the grueling hike up. Reaching the top and feeling exhausted, I now had the choice to either rest and setup camp or hunt the remainder of the day. I was eager to see what bucks were still in the area so I assembled my hunting gear and hiked to my glassing spot.

High atop the cliffs I was able to look down into multiple ba-

sins and found one of the bucks I was after. This same wide buck, named Thirty-Five had given me the slip on the archery hunt and I was happy to see no other hunters had beat me to him.

Not having my usual hunting partner with me, I was indecisive as to if I should take this buck on my first day with a rifle or not.

After calling my Dad, I chose to move in closer to get a better look since the buck was still quite a distance away. A short time later I was within 200-yards of Thirty Five, the true size of this buck came into realization and any thoughts of passing him up were no longer there! Twelve days of hunting in Wyoming had me ready to punch my tag on this more than worthy buck. It seemed as if every variable was aligning and with the sun going down, it was now or never.

Thirty-Five was slowly feeding towards some deep timber so I setup my spotting scope and digiscope adapter with camera to film the shot. Settling the crosshairs just behind his shoulder, I gently pulled the trigger. After the gun fired, he ap-

peared to be hit as he hobbled away. Just before going out of sight I fired again for reassurance. Looking through my scope I was able to see him fall down seconds later as both shots proved to be fatal. Uncontrollable emotions flooded over me as I’d just concluded one of the toughest hunts I ever been on and harvested my widest buck to date.

Walking down to Thirty-Five was bittersweet as this celebration would be alone. Darkness came quick and I still had the challenge of caping, quartering, and hanging my buck by myself. With the threat of bears in the area I was a bit paranoid but finished without any issues. I made it back to camp late that night and was able to get some much needed sleep. The next morning I packed out as much as I could and met Dad down at the trailhead. I was very grateful he made the drive up to help me and we packed out the rest of my buck later that day. Thirty-Five was later aged at 8-years old and truly was a monarch of the mountain to have survived so long in the high country of Wyoming.

I’d like to give a huge Thank You to my father, Ken Morgan

for helping with the pack out and a special Thank you to Wyatt Bubak for lending me his rifle. I wouldn’t have been able to do it without your support!

Scouting and live footage of Big Back’s and Thirty-Five can be found on Sean’s YouTube Channel – Bugleboy Outdoors.

Also, be sure to attend the 2015 Hunt Expo in SLC, UT where both of his magnificent bucks will be displayed side by side in the Monarch Mountain Taxidermy booth.

BY: STEVE ECKLUND

Steve Ecklund and the Alberta giant he was lucky enough to tag in 2012. The big bull is a prototypical monster Alberta bull. A typical 6x6 with long sweeping beams and long tines to go along with solid mass throughout. The dark antlers are highlighted by ivory tips. The final score on Steve’s big 6x6 is 381 7/8! Truly a once in a lifetime bull for any elk hunter.

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aiting for the draw results in my house is just like a six year old waiting for Santa Clause to come down the chimney. We stay up late waiting for the clock to turn into the next day. Midnight comes and on the Alberta draw results website we go with our fingers crossed.

Anyone that knows this system will be able to relate to the emotional rollercoaster that can, and usually takes place.....unsuccessful....unsuccessful.....then out of know where it comes, "Successfully Drawn"!

Excited takes over, beyond comprehension, but now the real work begins. Good areas, permission, weather trends, late season feeding patterns, all the way through to snow shoes and hopefully access to snow machines if needed. All this and the late season draw has an opening day of DEC 25th, oh boy....that's an opening day that will take a serious amount of brownie points to make happen!

With all this on my plate I got to work. Having local area friends smack in the middle of that particular zone I was drawn in was a life saver. I was able to obtain multiple land owner permissions and not just any permission; this was land that looked very promising to say the least.

Well fast forward into late December, cold temperatures were closing in on us and the thought of trying to make this a bow hunt was quickly dissipating. It was time to pull out the rifle and head for the local gun range to make sure everything was performing to standard.

With everything preforming well, it was time for the first trip down into the Southern regions. The weather was warm with very little snow to be found. We knew that the elk hunting wouldn't get good until the weather got bad. We gave it the old college try but with conditions that were more suitable for a short sleeve vacation we were having trouble finding the elk.

This time allowed us to really cover some ground and put together a much needed game plan. We started thinking of the “what if ” scenarios. We had the time to think through a bunch of different strategies in case the opportunity presented itself. What we really needed was the snow to pile up and the winds to start from the east.

The plan was in place. After Friday evening after work, I would head out for the second attempt. I had been watching the local weather forecast and it looked like Sunday would provide the conditions that we had been hoping for. However, on Wednesday night, while eating dinner, the phone rang and it’s my good friend Derek explaining that the weatherman lied! “We are getting a storm now that will push the elk from the mountains down into the flats… you need to get here now!” he explained to me. With that news in hand, I did some serious negotiating with my boss, and by the next afternoon I was on the road. The typical four hour run took me about six due to the conditions but I wasn’t about to complain.

After a good night’s rest we hit it hard in the morning. The first place we checked was one that I had dreamed about for the last three months. It was nestled in the foothills, covered in large aspen saddles and creeks. It just looked like it could hold the bull of a lifetime. Despite the great conditions, and deep snow, we saw nothing. No tracks and no sign of any kind. We would stop and rest at every decent vantage point, thinking that the longer we glassed the better chance we would have to spot some movement. After zero elk all day, we were beat in this location and decided to pull out and try a different area.

After what felt like forever to walk back to the truck, we needed to refuel with a quick bite to eat. A couple frozen bologna sandwiches later and we were off to the "SPOT", a hidden little gem that we hoped would change our luck!

We no sooner had the truck parked and the spotting scopes out when we noticed movement high in the mountain. Sure enough, it was elk, and not just one elk but 14 bulls in total!

Unfortunately, they were still over 1800 yards away, way out of range, but close enough to get the engine revved up! With the Swarovski optics doing all the work, we were content at this point in the day to just sit and watch.

As we watched I was pleasantly surprised to see that the elk seemed to be getting lower and lower on the mountain. We would see them for a while and then they would disappear for 20 minutes or so. Each time they reappeared they were a few hundred yards closer. Moving slowly from saddle to saddle, down the mountain they came. Finally Derek turned to me and with an excited look on his face, he whispered, “These elk are coming!” With a wide open area between us and the flats at the

bottom of the mountain, we scrambled into what little cover there was and positioned ourselves on the edge of some willows. It was remarkable to see the elk making their way down this mountain. I think the stars in some far off galaxy must have aligned. Maybe it was some kind of good hunting karma or perhaps it was just the right amount of dumb luck, but the elk were indeed heading our way.

My heart began to pound as the first elk hopped the boundary fence and walked out into the opening. I quickly started taking ranges. The first bull was at 570 yards as they start filing out, one after another. Now I’m supposed to be the big mighty hunter, this is no big deal; I do this all the time right? Well I have to come clean; I was about ready to pass out at this point!

As I franticly try to figure out a way to get closer without being detected, bull after bull continue coming with the count on the edge of the opening now at 13. There are a couple of bulls that we think are in the 340 class and one tank of a 7x7 that we figure will go 355/360!

The range finder keeps telling me 560 yards. This is not exacting what I had in mind for a slam dunk. As a huge bull walked out, I was excited and scared to death all at the same time, desperately trying to convince myself that I could make this shot. Let’s face it, I am not a member of the navy seals sniper team and this is no episode of “Best of the West” so this 560 yards might as well be 2560 yards at this point! It’s a long ways out there and although I’m confident on the range this is not how I imagined this going down. At this point Derek started giving me the “play by play” report. As the elk shift positions he’s keeping it all sorted out for me. As I listen to him, I can start to feel the pressure lift. I’m focused on big 7 and I’m not taking my eyes off of him, so his play by play is really helping. “Okay Steve, take the time and do this right, the wind checker is at 7mph wind but zero value…. …. you can do this.” “Okay,” I think, “I am feeling better, I'm starting to calm down and think things through.”

Derek then says, “Here comes another bull, get ready, he's coming out!” Still focused on the 7x7, I was still not interested in taking my eyes off of him. I force myself to take a quick glance over towards the new bull standing at the edge of the willows; his head is up so I couldn’t see him very well. He turned his head and I caught a glimpse of what I thought were giant thirds. I looked back towards the big guy who was standing at about 540 yards. “He’s not coming any closer, enough is enough!” I’m thinking to myself. Another glimpse of the new bull and my mind is made up, it’s time to try and make this bull

a permanent part of my home décor!

As I scan the herd, I catch another angle on the new bull and again, he looks really good but I just can’t get a good look at him. Then he made a huge mistake, he pawed at the ground and dropped his head. I instantly knew he was the one. Sure enough he dropped his head to eat, with the white snow as the back drop his antlers stood out like he was 10 feet in front of me.

After calming myself down once, that all went right out the window again! I looked at Derek and said, “That’s him, plug your ears!” The entire time I wasn't saying much, it was all in my head, so to hear me say plug your ears might have been somewhat shocking. He said to me, “How far is he?” I hit him with the range finder again. “564 yards,” I replied. I remember him looking at me like I was from outer space and saying, “Do you think you can hit him from here?” I remember saying one thing and thinking another, as I replied, “We’re going to find out.” I settled in, felt comfortable, safety off and boom!

What happened next was truly incredible. I watched the fat behind the elk’s front shoulder ripple with the impact, then he hunched up and a few seconds passed before I heard the WOP of impact. The bull lunged forward but only went maybe 10 yards, then stopped. I immediately began to second guess my-

self, “Did that just happen?” Then it was like a slow motion Jim Shockey moment and that bull literally tipped over like a sheet of plywood, straight sideways.

We couldn't believe our eyes; the celebration was on followed by a couple of the most MANLY hugs and high fives a guy could give that close to the mountains these days! Once we had finished the dance of joy we headed out for cell service to call for reinforcements. By the time the whole “Shaw” crew showed up (Wendell, Justin, Brad and Jessica) we had ourselves an army to get the job done. Thanks to Brad, Derek’s brother and very skilled driver I might add, we had the elk out whole and loaded on a sweet little trailer system.

At this point darkness was setting in and pictures would have to wait until the next morning. Derek and Brad both told me that they had a little place on their family’s farm that would be awesome for pictures. Awesome was right and we ended up on top of the world. Thanks guys, well worth the extra hassles for sure! The photos tell the rest of the story.

I’d like to thank my friends and family that support all my outdoor pursuits. I would also like to thank all the land owners down in the South for allowing us access to hunt and of course a super HUGE thank you to the entire Shaw family.

Without you guys and your support, I could not have had this dream come true.

BY: JAMIE COLLIER

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he 2014 hunting season began when I setup a few new mineral sites, refreshed my old sites and began placing trail cameras. It didn’t take long and I had several bucks showing up consistently but it wasn't until the day of July 11th, 2014, that I saw the buck of my dreams. Sitting at the kitchen table, viewing all the trail camera pictures of the buck, I could not believe what I was seeing. The first thing I said was, "Oh shoot!" My wife Keri asked me what was wrong because she was in our living room and heard me. I told her that she needed to come see what had showed up on the camera. Keri was shocked as I was to have this monster on camera, so I decided to call him the, "Oh shoot" buck, since that was my only thoughts at the time.

As weeks passed by I continued to capture pictures of the, "Oh shoot" buck in velvet, coming into the site during multiple hours of the day and night. While I continued to get pictures at the original site, I also started to scout the whole property to get familiar with the ground and tilt the odds in my favor.

As time passed I started getting pictures of him shedding his velvet. Some bucks shrink when they lose their velvet, but he was still amazing. Truthfully, I did not think that I would ever have a chance at the buck. As time passed, the number of pictures dwindles, and there were three weeks in October when I did not get a single picture of him. Rumours started coming in of big deer on neighboring properties, and I had myself convinced that the, “Oh shoot” buck had either been hit by a car or someone else had a tag on him. To say I was discouraged would be an understatement.

After checking my cameras one evening, I was scrolling through the pictures when “Oh shoot" was back and again that was the first words out of my mouth to my wife. I realized that I had a decent chance at taking this buck and from that evening on, I was determined to concentrate on this buck and this buck only. I have never really committed all of my time to one deer but this year I was determined to do so. I continued to check my camera on a regular basis, and to my surprise, every two to three days he was still showing up! I was beginning to see a pattern and decided right then that if I thought I had a good chance at him, I would move in. He showed up on the trail camera three evenings in a row, so the next day found me excitedly heading to my ground blind right after work. I was extremely confident, thinking every sound was him coming in, but after sitting in my ground blind until dark, I came home aggravated because "Oh shoot" was a no show. I was so sure it was going to happen that I felt like giving up. I told my wife that I would probably never see him again and I would probably never have the chance to ever shoot a buck like that, he was a once in a lifetime buck and I knew it.

On the morning of November 17th, we awoke at 3 am to a horrible phone call from my step son Caleb. He informed us that he was staying with his dad and was home alone, and the house was on fire! After rushing to get Caleb and ensuring he was OK, we spent several hours on the scene. When we returned home I told Keri that we needed some time in the blind to clear our minds from the crazy events of that night.

We loaded up the truck with our gear, video camera and the

Jamie Collier of Chillcothe, Ohio with the midwest monster he took in 2014. The big right antler sports six long tines resulting in a score of 84 7/8”. The buck has tremendous mass with both bases over 6”. Despite some abnormal points keeping the buck out of the record books, there is not doubt it is a giant and a shooter for even the most seasoned whitetail hunter. The gross non-typical score is 184 5/8”.

Excalibur crossbow and headed to the ground blind, trudging along through cold, snowy conditions. After arriving at the property, we walked through 6 inches of snow to the ground blind to discover the snow had collapsed the blind and it was now lying flat to the ground! I was just ready to turn around and go back home because the day was just not getting any better. I looked at my wife, and decided to fix the blind and enjoy our time in the outdoors; it didn’t matter at that point if we even saw a deer. Keri looked at me and agreed. She said, “We are here, we might as well just stay and see what happens”, and so we did just that.

As time went by, the wind picked up and the temperature was dropping quickly! We were seeing lots of doves, blue jays and red birds but not a single deer! At 4:30pm, I noticed Ker was shivering, I whispered to her "Are you cold?" She replied simply, “Yes.” I asked, “Can we sit about 30 more minutes.” She looked at me and nodded her head yes but I know in the back of her mind she was really wanting to go, so I knew our time was very limited.

I looked at my watch as it clicked over to 5:05pm and I leaned over to Keri to tell her we could go, but instead Keri whispered to me, “Here comes a doe,” and then I heard her say, "Oh shoot!" I wasn't sure what she meant and she whispered "MONSTER BUCK". As she tried to pull the video camera up he saw movement and turned to where Keri could not see him. A few minutes passed and a button buck came in with a big doe. “Oh shoot” followed them in but turned away again before entering by shooting lane! By this time we both figured he would not come back into our view. Out of nowhere, a big bodied spiker came strolling in and the doe, button buck and the spike immediately started acting skittish and nervous.

We looked at each other and then Keri whispered, “Here he comes, get ready!” I waited a few seconds until a mass of rack

came into view and I knew that it was him for sure. “Oh shoot", I thought to myself.

I had to pull myself together and refrain from looking at his rack again or I would knew that I would never be able to pull off the shot. He made his way in slowly to the mock scrape I made 15 yards away. He started to work the licking branch and paw the scrape. I got ready but I had to wait until he moved his right leg forward to open up his vitals. It seemed like an eternity, and then finally he took a small forward step and gave me a perfect shot at 15 yards. I placed the cross hairs of my Excalibur crossbow three inches off his shoulder and

my left and spotted giant antlers down in the snowy mud! My father-in-law and Keri were right behind me and were smiling very proudly! I do not remember but they said that I let out a big holler with tears of joy in my eye. I was so excited and could not believe it was him. I finally had the opportunity to

put my hands on the buck I had set out to harvest, a true buck of a lifetime. After a difficult retrieve, I couldn't believe I did it and "Oh shoot" was finally mine. The experience was made even more special because I was able to share it with my wife by my side every step of the way.

Todd Blewett from Cranbrook, British Columbia with the Dall sheep he tagged in Northern B.C. Incredibly, he and his Father both drew tags for the same zone, in the same year!

They made the most of the opportunity, taking home two beautiful rams.

MOUNTAIN MONARCHS

A Family Quest for Northern BC Dall Sheep BY: TODD BLEWETT

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e always said that we’d make the trip if just one of us drew a tag. Being from British Columbia, we are fortunate to be able to hunt a plethora of big game species, even more fortunate to have opportunities to hunt four varieties of wild sheep. After a few years of me and my Dad both putting in for northern BC Dall sheep draws we finally drew tags. We both drew tags for the same zone in the same year which was unbelievable! It was a great feeling opening the draws and it was even better knowing that we’d have a chance to potentially take two rams. August 1st was opening day but we were too excited and planned to get all setup a few days early.

July 26th was my wonderful wife’s birthday and also the day after much planning and preparation that we set out for Whitehorse, YT. My wife, mom, dad, close family friend and our dog arrived after two full days of driving and had a full day to get our trailer set up for my mom, buy last minute gear and do the final preparations. The next day we would catch our air charter, but since no one in our crew had ever hunted this area before we weren’t sure which lake to land on.

We pulled out the maps and spent the evening deciding on a central location where we would land for the hunt.

July 29th found us in Atlin, back in BC, with our stuff quickly loaded into the Beaver, headsets on, and headed for our zone. It was a beautiful, hot, sunny day as we landed on a smaller lake that would gain us a bit more elevation than where we had previously chosen. We unloaded our gear from the plane, the pilot took off and reality set in. We were finally Dall sheep hunting after months of planning, training and preparation! We pulled out the glass and immediately saw a group of sheep and some goats up across the lake from us.

After an hour or so of watching fish rise in the lake and wishing we had brought rods, we donned our packs. We set out for the high country through some of the worst brush that I have ever had the pleasure of hiking through with a sixty pound pack! About 6 hours later we made it up into a good basin with lots of fresh water and a couple level places to set up tents. Needless to say we were all exhausted from the trip and the hike and we hit the sack. Despite being in the land of the midnight sun, we had no trouble falling asleep without darkness.

July 30th, 530am. After stuffing down some food we split into two groups and headed different directions eager to find some sheep. Having spotted the sheep across the valley

the night before, we thought that there might be some more sheep on the other side of the mountain from our camp. After hiking all day through the steep, rocky terrain, my wife and I decided we should have a good break before heading back towards camp. Having just crested a ridge over what looked to be an "empty basin" we were a little less on edge. We pulled off the boots, settled into the alpine grass beside a couple big rocks, and after making some food and spreading all of our gear out, we got to glassing. That high alpine country was incredibly beautiful that time of year. We were having a great afternoon and even spotted a couple moose out in a far off swamp. After a couple hours of glassing we were just about to throw our packs back on when I looked out into the middle of the basin. There stood three rams! One smaller half curl and two full curl rams stood right in front of us in the basin!

“Holy crap, we been sitting right above these rams and they were good ones at that!” I thought. We got nestled back into our spot by the boulders and after about an hour of scoping and a stealth trip to get a closer look we confirmed that there were two legal rams in the bunch. They were still a long ways out, so we decided it was best to sneak away and leave without being noticed. Back in camp that night we tried to play it off like we hadn't seen anything, but we couldn't keep the smiles of our faces! After showing my dad and friend pictures of the rams they were pumped and smiling along with us. Both crews had put the miles on that day and we hit the sack again with thoughts of sheep in our heads.

July 31st (the day before the season opener) –The four of us headed up and out of camp early in the morning and made the 5km trek to the “empty basin” where we spotted the sheep the night before. We decided it was best to stay back a bit and watch from a more discrete location. We split up and after watching the boys crest the ridge we noticed a lone sheep out on the far ridge about 500yards below them but out of their sight. I quickly put the scope on him and saw that it was the biggest of the three rams we had seen. After much anxiety and frantic waving of the arms we finally managed to signal to the boys that there was a ram directly below them and that they needed to pull back. Thankfully they interpreted our arms signals correctly and called off their mission. As they headed

back we watched the ram feed out of sight back down into the basin. When the boys returned we all decided that it would be best to head back to camp, leave the sheep undisturbed and get a good rest for the day to come.

August 1st - The opener. We downed some oatmeal, donned the packs and made the trek back to the basin. By now we had established a good route with rest points and spots where we could fill our water from the patches of melting snow. Immediately on arriving at the ridge above the basin my dad spotted a couple ewes and lambs bedded on the far ridge. We settled in behind our big rock directly across from where we had been seeing the rams. After about an hour we were starting to wonder if the rams would ever show up. Sure enough, up higher on the ridge where the boys had been the day before the three rams appeared! After some quick inspections we determined the legality of the two bigger rams and decided that we should make a play on them. As the words were coming out of my mouth another larger ram that we had yet to see appeared on the ridge only for a moment, stirring up the sheep and sending them in every direction! That plan went out the window and we settled back in and resumed watching the rams. Then, as if we hadn’t had enough luck, the largest of the three rams started to feed across the basin coming directly towards us. Things started to heat up as the ram approached 325yards. I urged my dad that we should move forward to a smaller rock outcrop to try and get into a better position to take the shot before the ram fed out of site down into the basin. We moved quickly to the rocks and got him set up. With ewes, lambs and rams everywhere around the big ram and him constantly moving it was hard to get a good shot. I could hear heavy breathing next to me, I looked over and my dad was shaking pretty good.

“Dad! Pull yourself together and get focused on the shot, the ram is going to feed to within 300 yards of us and we aren’t getting any closer!” I said. After getting my Dad a little better setup, I ranged him at 298yards, the ram turned broadside and he took the shot. The first shot wasn’t good, too far back to put him down, and the ram took off down into the basin. We hightailed it to the last sighting of the ram and quickly located him on the hill about 200 yards across from us. One fast shot and the ram was down!

With some high-fives and hugging and shouting we all regrouped and headed over to the ram. What a stunning experience walking up on such a beautiful animal! After a few more hugs and many pictures the caping and processing began. In all the excitement of the shot and sheep moving everywhere on the ridge, my wife and friend had gotten a better look at the mystery ram. “Wide” and “twisty” were a couple words I heard when they were describing him to me. Knowing that there were two more legal rams still on the mountain, everyone was urging me to get my stuff and head up the ridge to pursue the other rams. I was reluctant to leave the old guys to do the heavy packing, but after much hesitation they persuaded me to go for it.

My wife and I grabbed our stuff and quickly make our way back up the hill and onto the ridge. We were tired already and it took some serious motivation to make our way another kilometer up to the top and back down to where my wife had watched the rams go out of sight. Once we crested the top of the mountain we learned that we were wrong and there was not just one ridge but three larger ones with a bunch of smaller rock piles all intertwined. In the unfamiliar terrain, we decided to drop our packs and made a best guess as to where the sheep might be bedded and started down the mountain for a better look. After about an hour and a half of stalking all over the mountain looking over bluffs, down cliffs and finding no sign, we were near calling it quits. We slid over a small rock-knife ridge and I just happened to look back downhill and noticed the back of a set of horns! We were right on top of the rams and had crossed just above them, miraculously not spooking them!

We had a quick look before my wife tucked into a hiding spot,

wished me luck, and I set out on my own.

The rams were just over 100 yards away from us and there was a nice depression and a small rock pile about 25 yards uphill from the rams. I thought to myself, “If I could make it to there undetected, I should have a better shot since all I could see was the back of one rams head”. After a painstakingly slow and noisy stalk through the shale, I peered over the rocks to see only two rams, the small half curl and the smaller of the legal rams. With a quick inspection through my binoculars, I decided I should take the legal ram, knowing very well that I may not get another chance at a ram on the trip. I slowly slid the safety off, rose up just above the rocks. At this point the rams had made me, and they stood up and turned to look at me. I steadied and took the shot. The ram did not even move!

What! How could I miss at 25yards? I chambered another shell and rose up a bit more; at this point the rams turned to run over a cliff and I shot again. It was a steep angle, quartering away running shot. This time I was sure I hit him, but still could not tell.

I watched the rams run down the cliff and out onto the shale and then across a flat and stop. At this point I was freaking out! I could see no sign of a hit and decided that I needed to get a finishing shot into the ram. I ran down the shale and got set up on a rock 300yards from the rams. Typically this would be an easy shot with a little compensation for angle, but the wind was blowing so hard that I was hesitating. At that point I finally heard my wife yelling and watched her running down the rocky shale towards me "YOU GOT HIM! YOU NAILED HIM! Don’t shoot!" She’d been chasing me after watching the first two successful shots. She caught up just as the ram put

his head down. He was done for good and we made our way down to him. I was all smiles and my wife was giddy as we got up to my ram. How amazing, just 5 hours after the first shot on my dad’s ram, I had a ram down!

After all the planning and preparation I was in shock that we had accomplished what we had set out to do!

It was surreal. I could not believe it! Across the basin, the boys had just finished up caching their meat and threw a spotter on us. They wondered what we were doing down there and why we were sitting by a “white rock”? They had not heard the shots due to the wind and that’s when it occurred to them that the mysterious white mass was the other ram. “RAM DOWN!” they shouted and high-fived.

My wife and I hiked back up the mountain, found our bags and set out down again. The boys got to the ram just before us and were sitting there in disbelief!

After many photos, hugs and high-fives again we began with the work. When we finally made it back to the top of the basin and cached the meat and it was 11:30pm.

With a huge day under our belts and not much left in the tank, we decided that instead of heading back to camp we would stay the night on the mountain. We built a shelter with our tarps between two boulders and layered on whatever extra clothing we had packed.

We even managed to have a fire without a tree in sight.

The day before we had stumbled upon some firewood

that geologists had left on the mountain a couple years prior.

Looking as though they would probably not return we decided to burn it! It was a great way to cap off a tremendous day and the alpine fire made the cool night a little better. I had three amazing hunting partners with whom I endured the challenges and experienced the beauty of backpack hunting. I am so pleased that I got to go hunting, let alone sheep

Lindsay Wilkinson Photo

hunting, one more year with my dad and that he got a dandy ram of his own to boot! To all you sheep hunters and aspiring sheep hunters out there, keep it up! Even if you have yet to bag a ram keep up the pursuit. It is a great experience to put your hands on a set of sheep horns and trips like this make memories that you can never forget!

Defining a

‘Buck of a Lifetime’ BY: KAARE GUNDERSON

I

often hear the term “buck of a lifetime.” In the hunting world it is frequently tossed around when someone kills a really large antlered deer. If I truly believed such a term to be accurate then surely I have already gotten mine. I took him eight seasons ago and am realistic enough to know that I am not even likely to ever again share common ground with one that big, let alone be fortunate enough to kill him. I am as likely to be the next winner of the powerball lottery or to wake up six feet tall, than I am to repeat that special day. But the best teacher of all, life itself, has taught me that I don't really covet a deer of a lifetime, I'd rather have many deer of a lifetime.

Knowing I am indeed mortal, and that my time on earth will one day come to a close has left me thankful for each buck, each once in a lifetime opportunity I was able to seize, for each special moment in time.

I'm hopeful there is still much time for me, more Octobers, many more glorious sunrise and breathtaking sunsets. But because I know they are indeed numbered, I am able to reflect on the many days that I will not get back, but will never forget.

There was my load of a lifetime buck. I was 16. It was the first buck I had ever shot; I was alone and didn't even know what to do with it when it was dead. I did know that I had to load it into the truck though and that I did, guts in. With the aid of a big piece of plywood I somehow managed to get him into a two tone blue Chevy Wrangler. It was 23 years ago and never since have I performed such an impressive feat of lifting. Of course I was young then, full of piss and vinegar but I am thankful I am now wiser, for when I look in the mirror I am more likely to see a resemblance to one Montgomery Burns that the illusion of an ultimate warrior like figure I once saw back in 1992. 15 years of hoisting nothing but a whiteboard marker will do that to a guy.

My surprise buck of a lifetime had a drop tine about 9 inches long. When I shot him he was standing in some poplars, I only knew that it was a buck. I was a University student short on time and horny for a buck in the truck. My uncle Wayne was with me that day. That buck would not be the last drop tined buck I would kill; I have since drug four more home to hang on my basement wall.

The passenger buck of a lifetime came in University too. If you push the back seat of a Pontiac Sunfire ahead, you can get a buck in the trunk, so long as he goes into the back seat too. His head can even rest on the console, right beside the stick shift.

Trust me, I know it.

When I killed my mystery behaviour buck of a lifetime I was walking a big draw south of Biggar, Saskatchewan. It was those

same University days. If I killed quite a few bucks then, maybe it was because I was busy trying to kill bucks, amongst other things not like studying and I snuck in an extra year of schooling to finish my degree. My uncles Wayne and Gerald were waiting at the end of the draw. Was I pushing deer to them or were they just letting me hunt? Now, nearly 20 years later, I suspect the latter. When I saw the buck, he was lying flat on his side, much like my 13 year old dog does when he sleeps. I did not even know for sure that he was alive. I pulled my best ninja sneak attack and when I soundlessly reached his side the snowflakes fell on his fur. Only when some steam ascended from his nose did I know he was alive. I basically shot him from the hip, Clint Eastwood style. To this day I do not know if he was sleeping or if he was doing his very best to let me walk past him. I do know though, that the next day, some of the people who attended the buck party that night in Gerald's garage would be doing their best to mimic his pose. Those November garage parties never did disappoint.

Old “double Brow” was without a doubt the most rewarding buck of my lifetime. I hunted him hard for three years after finding his sheds. I was perched in a gigantic spruce tree above a beautiful river in a stand I had hung that morning. I simply knew that if I were to kill him, that is where I would and that would be the night it would happen. All the clues led me there, to that belief because I had done my homework correctly. He would be the first buck I could not just attribute to luck, nor would he be the last. A full decade later, I can still see him standing there, all 201” of him, grey, almost ghostlike, before a belching muzzleloader filled my sightline with smoke. He was

the first buck of a new lifetime too, my first son Reid, was 10 months old.

That biggest buck of a lifetime was really something beyond words. I could not even believe what I was looking at when I pulled his massive 235” antlers from the grass and brush. Even though I had spent two months watching his every move in the evenings I really was not prepared for what I was looking at. His brow tines were absolutely sick, like caribou shovels on steroids. I shot him from the same tree I had killed double brow from two years earlier.

In 2010, I had the standoff of a lifetime with a gorgeous black antlered, 196” buck. My partner in crime that night, a fat old porcupine that managed to distract the group of deer he was with long enough that I was able to get my muzzleloader into position for a shot. I pledged allegiance to porcupines after that but four debarked and girdle scotch pines on my lawn this past November and a shotgun finally brought that romance to an end.

When you have the sickness that I do you notice little things, like variances in their capes. Before 2013 I had never shot, or even had a chance to shoot a buck with a double throat patch.

But that year I did and in wonderful October again, I would have what will likely always remain the most handsome buck of my lifetime. By the way, I think everyone needs an outdoor sickness of some kind. It's the type of sickness that makes you well.

The ugliest buck? Well his nose was pretty much ripped from his face. Maybe it was from a combatant's antler, maybe something else, but it surely did not make him the most popular buck with the does at the local watering hole. But I found his antlers mighty pretty and I was elated to launch an arrow through him on September morning as he strolled past the spot I was kneeling in the grass. Despite the blood pumping from his wound, he had no difficulty at all gaining distance from that two legged beast running after him shouting “go down, go down.” He must have been listening.

The closest buck of my lifetime was shot at a distance of less than ten yards. I was hunkered down beside a huge fallen jack pine on the edge of some oat stubble. It was almost -30 and I was absolutely Popsicle frozen. I cannot believe he did not hear my teeth chattering, possibly his were as well? He was a cool buck with about 170” of antler on his 6x5 frame and like my most surprising buck, he was sporting a droptine. He was the most recent drop tine buck I have shot.

There was the drag of a lifetime, that pull down a cutline near left me for dead. It would have been a double feast for the ravens. Again, I am wiser now; I would quarter him, or get an ATV to that spot. The easiest post kill gut job of my lifetime saw me quickly cutting and affixing a tag to his antlers before racing off to work while my brother gutted and loaded him.

That buck also has the most unique main beams of any buck of my lifetime, at the ends they really blade out and round at the ends, almost like bone spoons, not wooden spoons. I could go on and on for the list is longer, much longer. Each whitetail buck that I have managed to harvest is my something buck of a lifetime if I simply allow it to be.

In a great country song called Talladega, Eric Church states, “Most days in life don't stand out, but life's about those days that do.” Well he is right and because the days we hunt are simply days in our lifetime. It stands to reason then that now all days we go hunting will not stand out in our memory forever.

Last season's days, well they still do, they are close at hand, but they will not always be and some of them will fade but the special one will not. The same can be said about this coming season. All of them will be memorable in some way or another but others will be even more so and if you are lucky enough that one of those days is the day you kill your 2015 whitetail, then let it be your “something buck of a lifetime”. It deserves to be.

BY: VERN SHOEMAKER

Vern Shoemaker of Hudson Bay, Saskatchewan with the very unique, ancient buck he anchored in 2011. The big old deer has two long droptines, and G-2’s pushing 15”! Despite a narrow spread and short browtines, the buck still grosses in the high 170s.

M

y father deserves a lot of the credit for the successful hunt that resulted in a dream buck hanging on my wall. He was the key to getting me hooked on hunting as soon as I was old enough to walk. My first memories are out hunting and fishing with friends and family. In addition, he was also the one that found me the buck of my dreams! It was a buck we name the Garbage Buck, a huge framed, gnarly 4x4 with double drops.

It all started one late summer afternoon when dad was out checking crops and scouting for wildlife. The daylight was running low when dad noticed three big whitetail bucks together in the field. He knew all were truly great bucks, but one deer stuck out from the others. His description as, “A monster 4x4 that was a once in lifetime deer”, got me very excited for the upcoming season. After chatting about the sighting on a phone call that same night, I could hardly sleep and the very next morning I was out scouting the area, walking trails, looking for sign. I quickly found piles of scrapes and rubs and great deer trails.

Finally after many hours of walking I picked the perfect spot to setup an ambush. I decided to setup where four trails met up along the main forest with heavy spruce coverage and a perfect natural shooting lane down a fence line. I hung a camera and excitedly checked it over the next weeks and months.

I was disappointed every time, as there was no sign of him. Archery season came and went, and he still didn't show up.

Rifle season came around, but I got busy helping my brother Ole Shoemaker at Blueberry Hill Outfitters and I didn't have time to hunt. However, I still managed to find time to sneak away every chance I got to check the trail camera. Finally, I got pictures of the monster!

He was indeed a monster 4x4, but dad didn't mention he had double droptines! There was no doubt he was a complete stud of a whitetail! The season was passing me by and I still did not have time to sit but things were slowing down. Finally, after a busy week outfitting I had a chance to hunt. After dropping my hunter off in the early hours of the morning, I made my way to the stand for the day. As I sat, I dreamt of the once in a lifetime buck, the buck I named the Garbage Buck. Days went by, as I spent long day after long day in the blind, but the buck I was dreaming of did not make a mistake. I admit that I was having a very hard time not shooting another buck but my mind was stuck on that big 4x4. I was passing deer easy in the 150 class day after day, and starting to wonder if I was making a mistake passing deer of that calibre.

The late season hunt meant that the days were short and the freezing cold made it almost impossible to sit all day long, but I was sitting every second that I could. It was down to the last few days of the season as I climbed in the blind again, just before noon as I snuck quietly into position. The area was loaded with deer, and I had good action, just not the buck I was after! Shortly after I got settled in, a nice 150 class 4x4 passed my shooting lane and I was tempted. Truth be told, I actually brought up my 30/06 and lined up the buck, with my finger on the trigger. He was a truly impressive 4x4, after watching the buck for close to 20 minutes; I decided I was going to lay the big 4 down! With time running out and no day light pictures of the Garbage Buck, I clicked the safety off my old Remington. The big 4’s ears went straight up and he cranked his head staring off into the woods behind him. I wasn't sure if he had heard the click of the safety or what

was actually happening, but I decided to wait a moment. After realizing something else was coming, I slowly raised my head away from the scope and took a peek around. I peered into the forest and saw nothing. I could not see any movement, no sound, nothing at all. I put my eye back into the scope, getting ready to let the lead fly and all of sudden he took off like he had been shot, but I hadn’t squeezed the trigger! I muttered under my breath about missing my chance, until I glanced up quickly and then I saw it, the buck of life time! He was trotting

proudly right across my shooting lane , with very little time I found the Garbage Buck’s massive antlers in the scope, moved down to the shoulder and BANG the gun went off . Instantly, I was shaking and freaking out and I mean really freaking! I just shot my dream buck. It was his first mistake and I was there to capitalize.

After waiting right around 30 minutes, I snuck out to where he had stood, only to find a couple drops of blood and a few hairs. Immediately, my mind started running and second guessing myself on my shot placement because it happened so fast.

I decided that I needed help so made a quick call to my long-time friend and hunting partner Matt Moshenko. While waiting for Matt to show up, I phoned a few buddies and told them the story and they all had figured I may have shot low. Now I was starting to get worked up, so I decided to call the man that got me here in the first place, my Dad. After telling dad the story a few times he calmly and confidently told me that I made a good shot, a heart shot and that he didn't think the deer went far. As I was talking to Dad, Matt showed up and we quickly got on the trail. Picking up what very little sign there was, we followed it and it got better and better! Then, about ten steps further Matt said very softly, “There he is.” I quickly jacked a shell in the old 30odd, nearly crying from excitement as I got closer and closer until I realized he was down for the count! It was one of the best and most memorable days of hunting. This was the first time I have ever screamed and yelled after harvesting an animal. It just came out after realizing I just killed the buck I was after all year, the buck I spent so much time on, the buck I worked so hard for and spent so many hours trying to outsmart. It is a feeling that only another true outdoorsman (or woman) can really appreciate!

Mid summer bachelors.

Shawn Danychuk photo.

Everything Outdoors

...with Kevin Wilson

Hunting Season Cometh

L

ong hot sunny days, and bugs – not exactly my cup of tea, but on the upside, fall will soon be upon us and, with it comes hunting season. Even still, as much as hunting is ingrained into my psyche, with the heat and mosquitoes, right now I just can’t seem to get my head around the fact that there is work to be done, and lots of it. A small part of me would rather launch my boat and wet a line, than hit the archery range, check trail cameras, organize gear, or practice shooting. Ok, I admit, that might be a bit melodramatic but it speaks to what summer is all about – our opportunity to organize and tweak equipment, practice shooting, and research our hunting spots!

Organizing If you’re anything like me, last December gear was chucked into storage. With a little luck guns got a quick cleaning, but priorities quickly shifted to catching up with so many things that had been left unattended for far too long. Indeed, guns and bows probably got the proper care and attention they required throughout the long winter months. Despite the glimmer of attention our hunting gear received during the spring bear season, if I’m real honest, I’d venture a guess that summer is when most of us do our best work. What do I mean by this? Simply that with the longer days, a bit of vacation time, and hospitable weather, we can capitalize on several hunting-related tasks that have been previously neglected. In my world, every summer I meticulously go through each and every container, drawer, shelf, and closet to discard, repair, and generally organize my hunting stuff.

Old or unused outfits get thrown out or recycled by sending them to our local Hunting for Tomorrow Foundation for potential use in mentor hunts.

I gather the miscellaneous piles of ammo boxes, archery accessories, calls, backpacks, and other items that have been wedged into corners and dumped in piles. Organizing tree stands, ladders, steps, and ratchet straps is a big priority. As a rule, the smaller stuff gets stored in labeled Rubbermaid containers and the larger items are hung on racks in my shop.

The goal: to get a fresh start in anticipation of the season ahead. My first excursion normally involves a foray into the high alpine in search of bighorn sheep in late August. After that, the following three months are a blur, with one hunt after the other. So, summer is really my last chance to get my proverbial ducks in a row. Go in organized and I know from experience that my chances for success go up exponentially.

Tweaking Beyond simple organization, my summer routine involves repairing and tweaking equipment. Portable stands often need some TLC. I do a safety check to make sure all bolts and cables are in good repair. If necessary, I fix them. Bears and squirrels tend to do a number on my portable stands, so reinstalling foam and reupholstering is often in order.

As far as archery equipment is concerned, if you shoot a lot then you probably keep your bow tuned and in good repair.

Unfortunately many don’t. A vast majority of recreational bow hunters leave their bow alone for much of the year only picking it up a few weeks before the season. As a result, many are out of tune. I can say with confidence that most bows out there are shooting inaccurately because either their timing or centre shot is off. One of the most important steps you can take is taking your bow in to a qualified technician to give it a tune up. Where the service is available, having it super-tuned is money well spent. Likewise, ordering more arrows, broadheads, and other gear, not to mention camo clothing may be in order during the summer months. Nothing is worse than trying to pack a day or two before the first hunting trip of the year only to find that you’ve run out of decent broadheads or that you can’t find your favourite hunting jacket. Doing a quick inventory and taking the time to tune, tweak, and generally inspect your gear during the summer months can save you some serious headaches when it’s game time.

I’m an optics junky, so mounting new scopes on rifles or muzzleloaders is a common occurrence for me during the summer months. But just mounting them alone isn’t enough.

I’m amazed at the number of hunters I speak with who think their rifle/scope combo is all set to go because the gunsmith told them it was bore sighted. Rest assured bore sighting can provide an approximation but it is just the first step in setting up your firearm. Properly sighting for MOA accuracy in at the range is a must. Part and parcel with this, be sure to learn how your optics work. If you haven’t already done so, take the time now to understand the ins and outs of your scope; for example how ballistic turrets work, how the parallax adjustment works, and so on. Take the time to clean lenses and bring your glass back to like-new condition prior to the season.

If you reload your own ammunition then you likely keep a journal of your shooting days. The time for experimentation is during the off-season. The loads you work up and intend to hunt with should be tried and proven long before the season arrives.

Then there are the sundry items. Check knives, chainsaws, axes, and saws. Now is the time to make certain that all blades are sharp and that each is in good repair. With so much of today’s equipment requiring battery power, it is at this time that I make a special trip to pick up a bulk order of AA, AAA, C, and D cell batteries. GPS units, trail cameras, flashlights, SPOT Messengers, and other equipment all require dedicated power sources. Keep the old ones in hopes of getting every last bit of juice from them and you might be asking for trouble. Likewise, game calls should be inspected. Diaphragm and can calls commonly wear out and need to be replaced. Give all of your calls the once over to ensure they are in good repair.

Practicing Hunting involves shooting, and shooting is a precision sport.

To become proficient at any skill, we must practice. In my opinion it is important to practice year round, but for most of us, time and money restrict our ability to do so. Free time is at a premium and ammunition, not to mention range fees, can be costly. If you have no other opportunities to shoot throughout the year, summer is the one practice window that you can’t afford to miss.

Archery is a bit different. Fixed indoor ranges offer a reasonable baseline opportunity for practicing form. In my opinion, if you can shoot between 20 and 60 arrows a day for at least a month prior to hunting season, chances are you’ll be in good shape to bow hunt with confidence. Shooting 3D targets at variable distances from a variety of positions, i.e. standing, sitting, on the ground, from a treestand, and so on, provides the best practice for bow hunters. I have a small course in my yard where I can shoot from five yards on out to 80 yards. Most local archery clubs have some type of 3D course available for members. Remember, for realistic field practice, summer is the perfect time. Within at least two weeks of the archery season opener, I make it a practice to switch out my field tips to broadheads. Some sight adjustments may be required as most fixed blade broadheads shoot differently than field tips.

Contrary to what many think, shooting firearms also requires practice. Shooting at variable distances from 50 yards to 600

yards will help you become better at judging distance as well as shot execution. Biomechanics are critical with archery just as breathing and form are important for the marksman. Practice with your firearm, from variable positions (i.e. prone, from a bench, and standing) during the summer months at variable distances, and you’re sure to go into hunting season confident and ready to make your shots count. One of the best things my wife Heather and I have every done to improve our own shooting involved taking the Sportsman’s All-Weather All-Terrain Marksmanship (SAAM) course through the FTW Ranch in Texas. Summer is the perfect time for this. For more information visit www.FTWoutfitters.com.

Researching With gear in good shape and practice under your belt, all that’s left is some critical pre-season research. Most of us have favourite places we like to hunt. Whether it is private or public land, just having a place to hunt isn’t enough. Summer is a good time to do some virtual and literal legwork. To do it right, consider electronic and verbal probing, and then follow up with on-the-ground reconnaissance. Google Earth should be every hunter’s best friend. With a ton of applications, it is arguably the best tool available to hunters today. Simply insert your land location, zoom in, and take your time analyzing the topography and amenities on the land you plan to hunt. Consider food sources, travel corridors, pinch points, bedding areas, and any other features you think will help you in sorting out where and when game will move.

Next steps will invariably involve talking with landowners, locals, or others who have hunted in the area. Don’t be afraid to ask lots of questions. Some folks will be tight-lipped, but keep asking and you’re sure to gather valuable intelligence.

Last, but certainly most important, lace up your boots and spend some time in the woods. Hike as much of the land you plan to hunt as possible. If you do this in the summer, you don’t have to worry about disrupting bedding areas, but be sure to do so at least a week or more before the season opener. Becoming familiar with the land, the trails, physical barriers, and amenities before hunting season opens is imperative. Go into the season prepared and you’ll be well on your way to closing a tag this fall.

The

Future of Hunting

Braden Belair

Jenelle Talbot Brogan Bowes

Hadley Bell

Sky Nagy

Kailey Ottenbreit

Ryker Kelly

Danika Lasich

Wyatt O’Neill

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Hamilton Greenwood Photo