Southeast Alaska is known for black bear hunting. Her towering forests, and lush shorelines provide plenty of cover and food for big bears. As with most parts of Alaska, it takes some work and time to get there. One of my favorite things about southeast Alaska is that solitude is easy to come by. May…
By Ben Carter I believe that hunting elk during the rut is the most fun and most exciting hunt when it comes to western big game. I played the application game with the Utah DWR until finally my name was drawn for a Utah elk hunt. I would be hunting elk in southern Utah in…
2014 started off with a bang for me. Well, more of a whack. The whack of a broad head into the side of a Coues Whitetail. This was my first time hunting Coues Deer. I have only hunted whitetail deer a few times (being from Utah) and everything I had heard is that they are…
Getting so close a few weeks ago and coming home empty handed changed our plans for the rifle opener. Initially we were planning on scouting for 2 days, and rifle hunting the rest of the week. But after tasting the challenge that spot and stalk archery hunting provided, we modified our plans and headed over…
I’ve often heard hunters speak of the highs of hunting, as well as the lows. I think sometimes the magnitude of this emotional transition is forgotten after a tag is notched. Part 1: A good friend of mine had a similar tag late last year and came home empty-handed. His biggest regret wasn’t necessarily coming…
By Steve Huhtala At 11,800 feet there wasn’t a whole lot of air to gulpdown. The only sign of trees were a couple thousand feet below us, with the exception of a few tree stumps from millions of years ago. Petrified tree parts littered the near vertical slopes around us and the stumps of…
By Ben Carter My adventure began the day I opened that envelope from the Wyoming Game and Fish. Unit 20 type 1 successful. My excitement was rehearsed because it was essentially a guaranteed draw. My 10 points would have been plenty now that my residency status had changed from resident to nonresident. I had been…
By Ben Carter The 2008 Utah General season Muzzleloader hunt was a brand new experience to me. It was actually pretty new for our whole group. I didn’t even own a muzzleloader at the time. I met up with my brother and our friend Thursday night. They had been hunting since Wednesday when the season…
By Dale Nielson Well, the moment finally came. The moment every hunter dreams of his whole life. The $180 big game permit charge on the credit card and the long waited successful in the e-mail draw results. I have been dreaming of hunting bull elk every since my dad started taking me hunting when I…
All that anticipation for about 3 hours of hunting. I’m not complaining, but sometimes it is funny how things work out. This year’s general muzzleloader hunt in Utah was short, but very cool. Hunting rarely turns out as expected… After planning this hunt with my brother and long time hunting partner, Ben, I expected to…