Bowhunting High Plains Elk

by Rob Cook My brother in law pulled the tag and I video taped for him. We were in Wheatland WY and it was warm every day. After arriving Friday evening we had dinner and got to bed early. Morning number one on Ranch #2 of 3000 acres. A high prairie type of setting just over 8000 ft of elevation. We parked near fishing pond and hoofed it in. As the sun started to come up we were on a small herd of spread out cows, two spikes and a decent rag bull. After a quick decision we were going after this rag bull a decent 6x6. The herd was around 1/2 mile away and feeding slightly towards us. We made a break for a creek and started working our way to the NE. We were almost immediately busted by a spike on a hill behind us. We lay in the grass for him to feed on and then make our move to a raised rock pile with some pines on it. Brian and Chad Berens one of our guides made it to a good spot as the our other guide Jon Keil and I make it to a small raise with some ...

Field Hunting Mallards

by Jason Mitchell For many duck hunters, duck hunting is all about cattails and mud, ducks splashing on the water with a wet retriever shaking in the blind. Field hunting opportunities are not present everywhere but in the heartland of the Midwest; mallards routinely get conditioned to feed on waste grain, wheat, barley and other crops. Field hunting offers an exciting in your face perspective. In order to experience incredible field hunting where flocks of bowed up mallards are dropping down over the decoys, you have to be set up where the birds want to be. In farm country, there is no shortage of options and the number of fields can be endless. Like most any hunting, time spent scouting is paramount. Decoying mallards is so much easier, when you are set up where the birds want to be. Typically, mallards will leave their roosts to field feed during the early mornings and late evenings but late in the season, it is not uncommon for mallards to feed once per day during the mid day. There are times where mallards will drop down on a day hole or small pothole en ...

A Hit List Bear

by B-man715 Baiting season has been on for a couple weeks now, but only one of mine has been getting hit. This is in the no-quota area of Minnesota, where you can shoot two bears every year. I'm used to drawing one tag every eight years in Wisconsin!! He and one other bear have been coming in quite regulary, often times as early as 2pm. Go figure that two days before the season opens, my only hot bait goes stone cold......... This bait is nearly a half mile walk from the truck, which makes popcorn the logical choice (ever carry 5 gallons of cookie dough a half mile??? that dump is heavy!!) I figured another baiter had come in with a more appetizing offering. The heat had also kicked it up over the last few days too. Temps have been in the mid eighties. This was my logic for the bait going cold. I don't know much, but I do know this, killing a bear is impossible sitting in an air conditioned house Opening day had me in the stand by 1 pm. Walking into see the bait still un-hit doesn't exactly give a guy high hopes........... Seven hours later, ...

The Upside of Hunting Down Birds

by Ron Anlauf Grouse hunting is more than flushing birds and burning powder. It’s also getting out on cool crisp morning with the dog and going for a nice long walk while taking it all in. The changing colors, the wildlife, watching the dog work, it’s all good. That said you still have to put a few in the air to make it fun and it’s looking like that might be more of a challenge this season. Last year’s flush rates where off considerably over the previous season which was pretty darn good. Although grouse had supposedly hit the downside slide of their ten year cycle there were plenty of birds in 2010 and was a really nice surprise. On the other hand we never did hit the big bonanza that comes with the top end of the cycle and was probably due ...

Early Canada Goose Season Strategies – by Jason Mitchell

The early Canada goose seasons that are now available to hunters across the Country creates some tremendous opportunities for waterfowl hunters. A number of states, which now have nuisance seasons or early resident goose hunting opportunities, stretch from the Midwest to the East Coast. Most of these additional and liberal hunting seasons revolve around the abundance of Giant Canada Geese that typically weigh between ten to twelve pounds. These resident populations of birds that have populated much of the northern tier of the Nation west of the Rocky Mountains are the largest subspecies of Canada Geese. Through massive reintroduction efforts, these birds have been remarkable in their ability to expand and adapt. A bird that was once threatened is now flourishing on golf courses and corporate ponds far from the prairies of the Midwest Interior that these birds originated. Most of the early Canada Goose seasons fall as early as August with some occurring in September and these seasons are designed to increase the harvest of these resident birds without compromising the management of some other subspecies of Canada Geese that traditionally migrate through the United States during the traditional fall season. Because these ...

Hunting – i’m @ The Leading Edge!

“i have fun @ the Leading Edge

Spring Shed Hunting
There’s not a lot better to beat cabin fever than spring shed hunting! Lately with the winters we’ve been having, the spring shed season seems like late winter. Either way, here’s our guide to finding shed antlers and getting a jump on next season’s scouting. Gear Like many deer hunting rela [...]
Annual Winnipeg Walleye Trip
Annual Winnipeg Walleye Trip Well it’s been seven years now and it’s still as much fun as it was the first time. Lake Winnipeg, a wondrous walleye factory in it’s own right, ranks right up there as heavyweight champ in my book. The walleye are heavy. That’s for sure. This year involved [...]
A Whole New Game – by Joe Balog
I’m lucky enough to live near a fishery that contains thousands of perch inhabiting relatively shallow water all winter long. Along with perch, there’s a relatively decent fishery for bluegills, pumpkinseeds, and crappies, and the occasional bass bite. Yet the majority of fishermen in my area, a [...]
Making candles from tallow
So as I was rendering the tallow, a link I’d seen in a survival post a couple of week previously popped back into my mind. The link had suggested placing wicks in a large Crisco container and using it as an emergency candle. “Ewwwww,” I had thought, “it’s the only thing Crisco is good for. [...]
Rendering tallow from beef fat
As you know, I’m venturing into meat animals. I had a brief and unfulfilling foray into chickens (Too stinky. Too hungry. Too poopy) and now I am raising meat rabbits. I’m also considering the prospect of a larger meat animal for next year, maybe a pig (the husband is not keen, as he doesn’t l [...]

In Depth Hunting

Spring Shed Hunting
There’s not a lot better to beat cabin fever than spring shed hunting! Lately with the winters we’ve been having, the spring shed season seems like late winter. Either way, here’s our guide to finding shed antlers and getting a jump on next season’s scouting. Gear Like many deer hunting rela [...]
Annual Winnipeg Walleye Trip
Annual Winnipeg Walleye Trip Well it’s been seven years now and it’s still as much fun as it was the first time. Lake Winnipeg, a wondrous walleye factory in it’s own right, ranks right up there as heavyweight champ in my book. The walleye are heavy. That’s for sure. This year involved [...]
A Whole New Game – by Joe Balog
I’m lucky enough to live near a fishery that contains thousands of perch inhabiting relatively shallow water all winter long. Along with perch, there’s a relatively decent fishery for bluegills, pumpkinseeds, and crappies, and the occasional bass bite. Yet the majority of fishermen in my area, a [...]
Making candles from tallow
So as I was rendering the tallow, a link I’d seen in a survival post a couple of week previously popped back into my mind. The link had suggested placing wicks in a large Crisco container and using it as an emergency candle. “Ewwwww,” I had thought, “it’s the only thing Crisco is good for. [...]
Rendering tallow from beef fat
As you know, I’m venturing into meat animals. I had a brief and unfulfilling foray into chickens (Too stinky. Too hungry. Too poopy) and now I am raising meat rabbits. I’m also considering the prospect of a larger meat animal for next year, maybe a pig (the husband is not keen, as he doesn’t l [...]

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