Beat the cold-weather blues with these off-season adventures. Here in North America, the winter doldrums are here. I’m writing this on the eve of the New Year, with major interstates blocked by blizzards on both coasts. There are still some late deer and elk seasons ongoing, and January can be a great month for waterfowl […]
Five Great Winter Hunts Read More »
California’s Proposition 117, a ban on mountain lion hunting, passed in 1990 and inspired similar anti-hunting ballot initiatives in other states. Photo by GaryKramer.net Wildlife management decisions must be based on the best available science–not on the whims of public opinion. I was browsing the craft booths at a summer festival in my Colorado town
Ballot-Box Biology Read More »
Gain confidence and extend your ethical field-shooting range at an Outdoor Solutions Long-Range School. The sun was beating down out of a clear sky, but a cool breeze against my left cheek kept the heat down. It had been a wet spring, and tall bunches of bright green, tasseled grass dotted the steep mountainside. My
Building a Better Shooter Read More »
A camp in Texas is helping women learn the skills they need to become successful hunters. Yes, she hunts! Although hunting remains a male-dominated activity, women are the fastest-growing segment of the hunting community, and they are a much larger minority than when my generation grew up. In a time when declining numbers are the
How to prepare for the upcoming hunting season. Here in North America, most hunting seasons are geared around autumn. We American hunters are accustomed to short autumn seasons that we look forward to and plan around. Many European hunters, on the other hand, enjoy a six-month roebuck season spanning spring, summer, and fall. Some African
True wilderness is getting harder to find on the Dark Continent. Mentor, friend, and great hunter the late Jack Atcheson Sr. once said to me: “True wilderness is characterized by the absence of wildlife.” Atcheson was from Montana. As historical record, the Lewis and Clark expedition almost starved in what is now great elk country.
Is the capybara South America’s most interesting animal? Among other regrettable traits, I have a terrible addiction to taxidermy. I’m trying to curb it, but I have some pretty cool stuff in my house. Visitors don’t exactly ignore the big cats, the African antelopes, or the sheep and goats, but there’s one animal that, consistently,
Hunting the Giant Rat Read More »
The Hartmann mountain zebra is plentiful in Namibia and parts of South Africa, and is a challenging game animal with excellent meat. The first Hartmann mountain zebra I ever saw stood alone on a rocky ridge leading up into the heights of Central Namibia’s Erongo Mountains. I can still see the dry wind whipping its
