From the monthly archives:

April 2009

The Worth of a Good Knife

April 29, 2009

What’s your knife worth to you? For me, it depends on how sharp it is and lately I’ve been keeping my knives razor sharp. For years I struggled with keeping knives sharp mainly because I used them more like a screwdriver than a knife. Today, I’ve replaced my old knives with quality products and updated [...]

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Stealing My Hunting Season?

April 28, 2009

Americans are diverse and oftentimes defensive about those diversities.
Across America diversities have been clashing in the form of bows versus crossbows. Should crossbows be legal hunting implements throughout the nation? Should I open that can of worms? Should I stick my foot in my mouth now? Should I get an unlisted phone number?
Here’s my take [...]

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Thanks For The Encouragement … I Think!

April 28, 2009

Video 7: Alaskan Guide
Hey all – Just a quick one before I head to the guys at Thompson/Center.
I received a nice note today from the new North American Hunter “Guns, Ammo & Optics” columnist Ron Spomer. I can’t think of a single person I know who has done more real mountain hunting than Ron. He [...]

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You Did What For A Turkey?

April 27, 2009

As the turkey season rambles into the final stretch you might have to alter your techniques to tag a tom. That’s particularly true if you hunt public lands or share private lands with other hunters.
A friend of mine once told me about a cagey gobbler he hunted that routinely avoided his calls at the roost. [...]

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What's Up With Rush?

April 20, 2009

Have you heard about all the hoopla with Rush Limbaugh? For some reason, the conservative talk show host decided to partner up with Humane Society of the United States (HSUS). It seems kind of strange when you consider their left-leaning and radical views on sport hunting. I did a quick search of their web site [...]

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Kids and Hunting

April 17, 2009

Do you remember my blog about the decreasing number of hunters from last week? I’m testing out Wyoming’s solution this weekend. The state offers a mentor program that allows adult guardians to take mentees hunting who have not taken their hunter safety course. My daughter has been involved in 4-H shooting and understands the basics [...]

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North American Hunter

April 16, 2009

Bear season is upon us and some of you may already be in the process of planning, scouting and even baiting. If your state or province has outlawed baiting and hounds, maybe you should try predator calls.
I teamed up with Mark Shutey at Stockton Outfitters in southwest Montana last spring for bears. A major spring [...]

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Thanks to Navy Seals

April 14, 2009

It was good news on Easter Sunday to hear about the successful rescue of Richard Phillips. I was also beaming with pride from news about the Navy SEAL snipers who ended the pirate standoff. When negotiations fail, sometimes you get rid of the bad guys.
One of my high school friends is on a SEAL team. [...]

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Number of Hunters on the Decline

April 13, 2009

The number of hunters continues to decrease, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s National Survey on Fishing, Hunting and Wildlife -Associated Recreation. The survey estimates a 10 percent decrease from 1996 through 2006. As America becomes less rural and moves toward an urban lifestyle, outdoor sports, like hunting, suffer.
I’ve been researching Western hunts [...]

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The Fun Begins

April 13, 2009

Video 6: Bill’s Messy Office
Things are getting fun now. The first of the gear for Mission Dall’s Sheep is starting to arrive. It will be exciting to break open the boxes and lay my hands on the first of the “new stuff” that I’ll be counting on for comfort, possibly success, and maybe even survival [...]

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What Decoy Should I Use?

April 8, 2009

Some of you are beginning to hear the gobbling despite the snow and rain.
For those of you in the South, we “northerners” have been dodging snowballs and thunderstorms due to consecutive waves of bad weather. Judging from the forecast it looks like our turkey window is about to open.
Reader Brian Tyndall writes: “What is the [...]

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Answering the Number One Question

April 7, 2009

Whenever I tell a fellow hunter about “Mission Dall’s Sheep” the first question most often asked is, “Who are you hunting with?”
Well the outfitter we’ll be with is Hunt Alaska which has been operated by the Umphenour family since 1991, though patriarch Virgil Umphenour has been hunting and fishing all over the state since moving [...]

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North American Hunting Club Members Are Everywhere

April 6, 2009

I just returned from the Wisconsin Deer and Turkey Expo. The weather gods gave me a break and the eight inches of snow predicted for Madison held off until my airplane was “wheels up” and headed to Wyoming via Denver. Yippee! Forgive me Madisonites, but home is where my clean underwear are along with everything [...]

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So Close, Yet So Far

April 4, 2009

Seven weeks of Mission Dall’s Sheep are in the books now. Let’s review how things have gone.
On the plus side:
1) NAHC Members have provided a ton of great response and recommendations for training, for motivation, for packs and for boots. All are much appreciated and are a great source of inspiration to keep going.
2) I [...]

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Timeliness is Everything

April 3, 2009

Timeliness is everything and my timing couldn’t be better. I’m jumping on a flight (weather willing) to Madison, Wisc., for the Deer and Turkey Expo. I’m going there to present seminars and guess on what topic? “Beat the Cold and Bag a Bruiser,” which is ironic because once again a storm is bearing down on [...]

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