Hunting and Fishing News Blog Articles

Modern trolling motors are loaded with features, including the ability to motor along a route you plug into a computer.

Trolling motors have come a long way since the days of that old tiller-drive unit hanging off the transom of Grandpa’s leaky john boat. In addition to increased power and efficiency, many are now GPS-enabled, integrating state-of-the-art navigation technology into one of angling’s most essential tools. If you’ve been thinking about upgrading your trolling motor, now is the time to consider what GPS adds to the equation.

Lock on Fishing Spots

Perhaps the most useful feature of a GPS-enabled trolling motor is its ability to hold you on a productive spot automatically. No more tapping foot pedals or constantly fiddling with the remote. Lock onto your spot, focus on the fishing, and let those eyes in the sky do the rest.

Record Paths

Whether pre-fishing for a tournament or just returning to a productive location, a GPS trolling motor can record a path across the water and then retrace it on a return trip. This allows you to duplicate the exact course taken on your most successful days on the water.

Insulated lunch-sized coolers are an inexpensive and ideal for keeping foodstuffs organized and cool (or warm). (Carhartt/)

Not every trip afield requires toting a full-size cooler into the woods. Sometimes you just need a few hours of refrigerated storage to keep a sandwich, beverage, or munchies from spoiling. A small “six-pack” cooler is the perfect solution, great for stashing in a canoe or in the bow of a kayak for a half day paddle or evening session after work. Here are a few styles to choose from.

Dual Compartment

Whether you are trying to keep beverages cold on a job site or meals hot in the ice-fishing shack, insulation is insulation. A lunch box with separate compartments can do both at the same time, keeping your drinks cool and your meals at serving temperature all in the same place.

Freezable

Ice is the best cooling source, but it melts and gets sloppy. Freezer blocks are convenient, but they don’t stay cold as long as ice. So, how about freezing the entire cooler? Just fold it up and pop it in the freezer overnight, and the walls of the cooler itself will keep your food or drinks cool for hours.

Electronic clay throwers are easy to operate and a lot of fun if you’re shooting with friends. (Champion Traps and Targets/)

It’s not always convenient or economical to belong to a private sporting clays club. But electric target throwers allow you to set up a one-man range anywhere there is room to safely practice. They’re a great way to hone your shooting skills in the off season or get in a little tune-up work between waterfowl or upland hunts. Look for these features when considering an investment in your own home range.

Recycle Speed

The rate at which a thrower can launch successive birds is important if you are trying to shoot doubles. Look for a recycle speed in the range of 1.75 to 2.5 seconds for all-purpose shooting.

Portability

A clay thrower is a relatively heavy piece of equipment, ranging anywhere from about 45 to 125 pounds. Even on the low end, that’s a handful. Throwers with integrated wheels make it easier to move the machine from place to place on the range or in storage.

The author shooting from a tree saddle. (Scott Einsmann/)

Early in my bowhunting career, I set up a ladder stand on top of a ridge that had oaks and plenty of deer sign. On opening morning, I watched a deer parade go down a trail that was 20 yards out of range. I sat in that stand several more times and never had a deer come within bow range. If I had a mobile stand, I could have easily adjusted my hunting strategy to move closer to the active trail.

Mobile hunting for whitetails is all about making aggressive moves and constantly hunting fresh spots. Mobile hunters carry everything they need for a hunt so they can set up on the fresh sign and easily adapt to the conditions. That’s why they need lightweight and easy to use hunting platforms.

That old faithful ladder stand just won’t cut it when you need to slide another 100 yards closer to a bedding area. A mobile setup is also great for public land where you can’t or don’t want to leave your stand. It’s also less expensive than buying multiple permanent stands.

There are three main choices for the mobile hunter: a climber, a hang-on stand, and a tree saddle. I’ve hunted from all three of these platforms in my search for the perfect mobile hunting set up. To help with this comparison, I also reached out to Aaron Warbritton, from The Hunting Public YouTube channel. He’s been at the tip of the spear of the mobile hunting trend and offers a wealth of experience. Together we’ll see how each platform stacks up against each other in five categories: weight, setup, huntability, comfort, and price.

Weight

The author after a successful whitetail hunt. (Tyler Freel/)

One of the most special moments of a hunt to me is the short time after pulling the trigger and before parting out an animal. Sometimes it’s on an evening hunt for bears, a morning of flushing grouse, or maybe it comes after a week of chasing rams around in mountain crags.

In every case, that moment after I take an animal is special to me, and I often take photos. Sometimes I’ll take photos of just the animal, but more often it’s me smiling in the picture with the animal. Not only am I happy to have been successful in the hunt, but I’m also getting to admire the critter up close—looking at a ram or grizzly bear in his entirety, knowing that in half an hour he’s going to be boned out in a Kifaru backpack.

The caping and quartering is a necessary next step of the process, but I want to remember the animal whole, too. So I take pictures, immortalizing the moment. I’d be willing to venture a wild guess that the vast majority of hunters who take photos with the animals they kill do so primarily to keep the memories of that very special moment crisp and alive for years to come, much in the same way taxidermy mounts do. I’m sure there are a few who only do it to impress others, but if that’s your reason for hunting, you’re not getting the full experience.

Why bring this up you might ask? Well, for one, it’s deer season in the lower 48 right now and hundreds of thousands of grip-and-grin photos are being taken, texted back and forth, and posted on the Internet. Believe it or not, there is what some might consider a movement to stop taking “grip-n-grins,” or trophy photos altogether, voiced by a few digital influencers in positions with a lot of exposure. Now, each person should follow their own ethical convictions. Love taking grip-n-grin photos? Great. Don’t want to take them? That’s great, too.

But it’s worth tracking recent trends in hunting photo etiquette to get an understanding of how people are thinking about what it means to kill an animal, and how they are portraying that to the world. So let’s take a look at how we got here. First, there was the promotion of the fake somber trophy photo—a face filled with regret and reflection for the camera. Next, it was the “grip-n-grin 2.0,” where the hunter takes a picture holding the carcass of the animal, cleaned of meat. In the latest iteration, even taking the photo goes too far. The voiced reason for not taking these photos is to avoid offending anti-hunters, and those folks who might be undecided about hunting.

If you join a discussion on the topic of dependable camp guns, you will get as many differing opinions as there are guns available. Everyone has their favorite, and for various reasons, some of which are obvious, others are not.

What to Look For in a Camp Gun

Camp guns are usually used guns that have already had some miles put on them, but are still in good working order. They’re ideally tough, lightweight guns that can be packed in and left in camp without having to worry about them. Camp guns should also be accurate enough to take care of varmints, do some plinking, put some meat in the pot, or be pressed into service for a day of hunting. Here are a few attributes to stay on the lookout for:

Dependability

Camp guns see heavy use and abuse and dependability is at the top of the heap. Your rifle must work when you need it to work and this is especially true for camp guns.

Ammunition boxes also protect your ammo from outside elements. (MTM/)

While storing firearms in a locked safe is universally accepted as a best practice in gun ownership, some gun owners pay less attention to ammunition storage. However, having dedicated ammo storage is far better than allowing shells or cartridges to rattle around inside the gun safe or, worse, in random boxes after the original packaging has disappeared. The easiest way to get organized is with a hard-sided ammo case. Sure, you can pick up an empty ammo can at the local army surplus store, but those containers are heavier and less configurable than any of the commercial solutions available with specialized features.

Stackable

An ammo box that is stackable allows you to start small with an expanding storage system in mind. Look for a box with a water-resistant seal and multiple padlock points.

Compartmentalized

To get even more organized, a stackable system that is also compartmentalized allows you to break down ammunition for different disciplines across multiple calibers. Tie-down spots for mounting to a truck bed or ATV rack ensures safety during transport and helps prevent theft.

Fitness trackers are the size of a wristwatch but can provide endless data to help you remain physically fit. (FitBit/)

Let’s be real: Strapping a piece of electronic jewelry to your wrist won’t make you any more fit or attractive. Simply counting steps isn’t going to increase anyone’s cardio or melt away the love handles. But for those willing to pick up the pace, increase the steps, and do the work that fitness trackers are meant to monitor, these high-tech devices can instill the digital discipline necessary to improve anyone’s health. For sportsmen, that means charting those weekend hikes, morning runs, weeknights at the gym, or whatever it is you do to stay in shape for the great outdoors. No matter whether you are preparing for a Rocky Mountain elk hunt or just want to increase your endurance for long days behind a rangy English setter, here are three ways you can benefit from a fitness tracker.

Activity Awareness

The first step toward improved fitness is understanding just how active you currently are. A fitness monitor is the best way to come to grips with how much—or how little—effort your daily routine entails. From there it's a matter of setting fitness goals, then monitoring and sticking to them.

Cardiovascular Health

A fitness tracker gives you a real time view of how your ticker is reacting at any time of day, whether at rest or under stress. Monitoring heart activity is the easiest way to establish a fitness baseline and then chart gains in cardiovascular endurance as your activity level increases.

E-bikes give provide more access to the backcountry, but they also put more pressure on trails and wildlife. (M2S Bikes/)

The national forests around California’s Lake Tahoe are the latest flashpoint in the debate over how land and wildlife managers treat electric bikes, also called “e-bikes,” on public land.

Historically, e-bikes were considered motorized vehicles and had traditionally not been allowed on non-motorized trails on public lands such as national forests and national parks.

But that boundary has gotten blurry in the last few months. As we reported earlier, the Trump Administration has moved to allow some lower-powered electric motorbikes to be treated like pedal-powered bicycles on Department of Interior lands, particularly national parks and Bureau of Land Management ground.

That move was triggered by a special order of the Secretary of the Interior and did not pertain to the 180 million acres of national forest, because national forests are managed under the Department of Agriculture.

Now, it seems like electric motor-bikes are getting an edge in at least one national forest, as well, the Tahoe National Forest in California’s Sierra Nevada Mountains.

A well-made saltwater rod can help you cast far and land strong fish. (Penn/)

There is hardly a month of the year that isn’t favorable for catching one or more species of game fish from the shoreline of your nearest coast. Whether it’s bull reds on the Outer Banks in the fall or pompano along the Gulf Coast in spring, the best time for surf fishing is truly any time you can get to the beach. To arrive properly equipped, you’ll need tackle intended for long casts and hardy saltwater quarry. Here are a few essential traits of a classic spinning outfit for surf fishing.

Rod Length

A rod designed for surf fishing is typically longer than a rod intended for boat or bank fishing. That extra length increases casting distance and helps keep line above breaking surf when the rod is resting in a sand spike or PVC rod holder. For smaller species such as redfish, trout, whiting, pompano and flounder, look for a rod in the 8- to 10-foot range. For longer casting to species such as bull redfish, jacks, big stripers, and small sharks, a 10- to 13-foot rod is a better choice. Just remember that sometimes the target zone may simply be the first trough in the surf break, which is seldom more than a lob cast away. Match your rod length to the intended species and expected distance from shore. Ten feet is a good all-purpose length.

Casting Action

Rod "action" is a designation of where the rod bends in relation to its overall length during casting and fighting. Fast-action rods bend primarily at the tip, and slow-action rods bend more throughout their entire length. Medium action falls in between. In short, a fast-action rod has greater fighting power, whereas the increased flexion of a medium- or slow-action rod produces more leverage for hurling longer casts.

Whether you choose a shooting stick with one, two, or three legs, it’s better than shooting with no stick at all. (BOG/)

The easiest way to improve your accuracy with a rifle is to use some sort of fixed rest rather than shooting off-hand. That can be a shooting bag or lead sled at the range or a simple handhold against a tree trunk in the woods. But for optimal field performance, it’s hard to beat a pair of portable shooting sticks. They’re light enough to carry or pack everywhere you go, can be set up in seconds, and offer that extra level of stability to increase the likelihood of anchoring each shot. Consider these factors when searching for a mobile shooting platform.

Bipods

A pair of shooting sticks with two legs is the best combination of light weight and stability. Monopods are less stable, and tripods are heavier. For everyday use on common big game species at moderate distances, a telescoping bipod is the all-purpose choice.

Tripods

When you need more stability and aren't as concerned about weight or portability, consider a tripod shooting platform. They usually have a few more bells and whistles, such as an articulated head and leveling bubble, making them more suitable on the range, from a blind, or when potting varmints from a fixed position at long distances.

A reliable grill mat makes cleanup after grilling a cinch. (Grillaholics/)

Tired of scraping last week’s barbeque off the grill every time you want to cook something new? Maybe it’s time for a grilling mat. Aside from minimizing clean-up, the uniform surface of a grilling mat enables you to cook everything from streaks to pancakes. They are great for handling delicate foods, such as filets of flaky fish, as well as smaller items like sliced veggies and shrimp that could slip through the grate. Use a grill mat on your backyard barbecue or keep one handy as an extra layer of protection at public campgrounds. A grill mat can also be used on a standard oven rack or trimmed to fit on a baking tray to keep it clean. Here are a few more reasons to own a grilling mat.

Even Heating

The continuous surface of a grilling mat promotes even heating. That means better flavor and moisture. Grill mats come in a variety of thicknesses, and the major difference is that thinner grill mats will leave grill marks on food, while a thicker grilling mat may not.

Less Oil

The non-stick surface of a grilling mat requires less oil in food preparation. That means healthier and more nutritious meals for you and your family.

The hunt was well-planned, stalk executed to perfection and your shot was right on the money. That feeling of elation that comes with a successful deer hunt is the icing on the cake! But for many new deer hunters, knowing what to do next can be confusing. To add to the dilemma, trying to figure out what tools are necessary to take a carcass lying at the edge of a field all the way to a sizzling steak on a plate with a baked potato and asparagus can also be nearly overwhelming. But it doesn’t have to be. Here are 10 tools that can help hunters process their deer into tasty, healthy venison for their families.

Game Cart

Buy Now

If you’ve never dragged a deer across the ground for a long distance, you don’t know how heavy even a small buck can feel after a while. Their natural handles aren’t always comfortable to grasp, the ground is strewn with large rocks and other obstacles, and that hill you walked down going to your stand feels like it got a lot steeper now that you’re dragging your deer up it. It’s tough with a partner to help, but when you’re alone it can be nearly impossible. That’s where a good deer cart comes in. With a comfortable handle, tall wheels and straps for attaching your deer to it securely, a quality, lightweight deer cart can help you get your deer back to your vehicle—even by yourself—without all the extra labor necessary when dragging a deer the old-fashioned way.

Gambrel/Rope

Having a collection of kitchen cutlery and tableware for camping means you’ll never have to borrow from your home kitchen the next time you plan to overnight outside. (GSI Outdoors/)

Being the camp cook is often a thankless task. But the better one’s skills at the stove or fire pit, the happier the campers. Other than having a proper heat source and cookware, the best way to organize any camp kitchen is with a multi-piece utensil set. A commercial unit that comes in its own carrying case takes the hassle out of cobbling together a random array of spatulas, knives, and tongs in a chuck box or ammo can. When considering an off-the-shelf solution to outdoor kitchen organization, look for these three key features.

Carrying Case

The best thing about a store-bought camp kit is having a place for everything and everything in its place. Once you've decided which combination of utensils is right for your camping style, look for a rip-stop nylon or Cordura bag with internal mesh pockets to make each item easily accessible. A top strap or loop is handy for hanging everything next to the cook area.

Cutting Tools

A chef's knife is essential, and a pair of kitchen shears is a bonus. The most complete kits will have both. If the kit is also packaged with a paring knife, you will be prepared for any culinary challenge.

Mounting a well-made storage box on the back of your ATV will allow you to carry all sorts of items—like an emergency kit—that you might otherwise be without. (Black Boar/)

All-terrain vehicles (ATVs) are highly useful in and of themselves. But they become even more versatile with any number of aftermarket accessories. One of the first add-ons to consider is an ATV storage box. From camping gear to spare fuel, clothes, or food, it’s easy to protect your valuables and supplies from the rigors of the trail with a solid-walled cargo box. Here are a few features to look for.

Integrated Backrest

A combination storage box and back rest is a great way to add not only some extra cargo space, but also room for an additional passenger. Use the compartment as a trunk for gear and equipment while both riders blaze the trail in style.

Mounting Hardware

Some ATV boxes are sold with mounting hardware, and others are not. One approach is not necessarily better than another, although a box with its own hardware is likely going to require less improvisation to fit your vehicle.

The cold…the snow…the coyotes. (Ron Spomer/)

If ever a topic begged for alliteration, it’s coyote cartridges and calibers clearly and concisely contrasted and compared. But we won’t stoop to that here. We’ll just outline three of the most popular and effective cartridges employed by serious coyote hunters these past four decades.

But, before we jump into the ballistics of the .223 Remington, .22-250 Remington, and .243 Winchester, we should remember why anyone bothers hunting what is generally considered an inedible critter (even though some meat eaters are now imbibing.) The reasons are several, among which two are most often cited:

1. Valuable pelts—They might fetch anywhere from $10 to $200 depending on the market and quality. This should be celebrated by environmentalists because coyote fur is not only beautiful and warming, but all-natural, biodegradable, organic, free-range, abundant and sustainable. Coyotes are Nature’s own renewable clothing resource. Wearing fur instead of turning up the thermostat reduces your carbon footprint, too. Fight climate change! Wear fur.

2. Balancing the scales—Overly abundant coyotes have been proven to severely deplete populations of prey species including woodchucks, pronghorns, mule deer, and similar-sized game. They are not significant predators on birds, but they have attacked small children.

There are a few more reasons to hunt coyotes. East of the Mississippi, they are truly an invasive species. Even across much of the West, where they are native, they were historically kept in check by large numbers of wolves. By changing habitats, we humans have enabled excessive increases in coyote numbers. It’s our responsibility to correct some of that.

Hunters can get wounded in many different ways during hunting season, but cuts are one of the most common injuries in the field. And whether you accidentally slide a broad head down your forearm or you slice your hand with a skinning knife, the response is the same—you’ll need first aid in the field.

8. Learn the Jargon

Slices and slashes can come in all shapes and sizes, but you don’t have time for a linguistics lesson when someone’s blood is dripping on the ground and your squeamish hunting buddy is turning a mossy shade of green from nausea. Now is a good time to learn what these two terms mean:

Lacerations

These wounds come in all shapes and sizes, from clean and simple straight cuts to jagged wounds in odd shapes. We get the word from the Middle French term, lacération, which means a “breach or rend made by tearing,” and that word is based on the Latin word lacerationem, which means to “tear, rend, or mutilate.”

If your survival kit doesn’t come with the correct type or quantity of supplies, supplement it with whatever you think it needs. (Emergency Zone/)

You don’t have to be scratching out a manifesto on the walls of some underground bunker to understand the value of maintaining at least some rudimentary supplies for disaster scenarios. From floods and fire to civil unrest and rolling power blackouts, we live in a time where emergency preparedness should be a legitimate concern for everyone. But what should a survival kit contain? Whether you are piecing together your own kit or buying one off the shelf, any “bug-out bag” should account for the three pillars of survival: food, shelter, and water. Beyond that, items such as a first-aid kit, lighting, sanitation, fire-making supplies, and a signaling device will increase your chances of surviving in relative comfort and safety. Here's how to break down the basics.

Food

There really is no sense is provisioning a portable survival kit with any kind of food other than freeze-dried MREs, or meals ready to eat. MRE’s are lightweight, require only heat and water to prepare, and contain all the nutrients and good taste necessary to restore health and vigor in an otherwise uncomfortable situation.

Water

A complete bug-out bag should have two sources of water. The first is packaged H20 in small portions that can be rationed out as the situation dictates. The second is some sort of ultralight water filter that can produce additional potable water after the packaged water runs out.

A single burner stove makes it easy to boil water or warm meals fast without sacrificing much fuel. (Coleman/)

There are so many types of camp stoves available today that it’s impossible to pick one all-purpose burner. A backpacking stove isn’t much good for park-and-pitch family camping, and you won’t get far lugging that two-burner suitcase contraption into the backcountry. But for everyday use short of wilderness trekking, it’s hard to beat a single-burner butane stove. They’re lightweight, start with the press of a button, and are just as handy in the kitchen or at a backyard barbecue as in camp. Look for these features in a personal butane burner.

Automatic Ignition

The best trait of single burner stoves is the hassle-free ignition. No pumping or connecting the fuel bottle. Just set up, click the switch, and you have a proper outdoor kitchen almost anywhere.

Dual Fuels

While butane is usually the primary fuel for a single-burner stove, many come equipped with a fuel-line adapter to attach a standard propane bottle. That’s handy in very cold conditions, as propane has a much lower boiling point than butane. A folding windscreen will also conserve heat and protect meals in gusty conditions.

A reliable ratchet puller can be the saving grace in an otherwise bad situation. (Tekton/)

A ratchet puller, commonly referred to as a “come along,” is the outdoorsman’s second, third, or fourth hand. The force-multiplying effect of this easy-to-use tool allows one person to get far more done than would be humanly possible without it. They are great for pulling stumps, felling trees, tensioning fences, or even pulling your own vehicle out of a ditch when no one else is around. Carry a length of chain to anchor around a stationary object, hook the other end to virtually any object that needs a little persuading, and get things moving!

Weight Capacity

Commercially available ratchet pullers generally range from about a one- to five-ton pulling capacity. Anything rated for two tons or more will handle most situations, right up to hauling a full-size pick-up truck back onto the road.

Pull Length

A standard come along usually has only about a 7- to 10-foot pull length. That means your anchor point needs to be relatively close to your towing object, or another length of strap or cable will be necessary. A basic come along with a 30-foot length of braided steel cable stored in the truck is a powerful and versatile combination.