Hunting and Fishing News & Blog Articles

Hunt elk deep in grizzly bear country with Ike Eastman. It’s a public land DIY hunt in a limited quota elk hunting area. An early fall snow storm adds an extra challenge to the bow hunting season.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: The outdoors has always had my full attention. I was born and raised in eastern Colorado and started hunting and fishing with my dad and uncles before I was even out of diapers. Over the years my passion for hunting blossomed into a dream which is being able to guide hunters full time every fall. I am so blessed to get to spend as much time in the field each year as I do and have had the unique privilege of sharing my passion for the outdoors with some great guys in my career.

We hurried and got the sticks set and Jesse steadied his gun just in time to see the buck turn and start to leave the trees, now walking towards us. He reached over to bite off the top off a weed which diverted his attention from us just long enough. He got to the edge of the trees 160 yards away and slightly quartering-to when he finally saw us. It was too late however as Jesse had settled his crosshairs on the buck’s shoulder and was probably already starting to squeeze when the buck locked his eyes on us. The thud was unmistakable as we watched the buck stumble back into the trees and out of sight. Jesse quickly cycled another round and we stayed set up for a couple minutes (it was honestly probably more like 10 seconds) waiting to see if he would run out of little tree island. We tried to gather our composure as much as we could before heading in after him but that was almost impossible to do. We soon found out the buck had stumbled about 10 yards and ended up in nearly the same spot he had bedded. We were both ecstatic as Jesse got to put his hands on his 210” eastern Colorado muley! 

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This review features the new and improved 3D mapping feature offered by the onX Hunt app. 3D maps now include layer views, including hybrid and topography. You can add, view and customize markers and tracks all in 3D mode. Whether you are hunting, camping or hiking, onX Hunt has the mapping tools you need to find success on your next outdoor adventure.

Eastmans’ Dan Pickar breaks down how to use onX Hunt to understand and read terrain when you’re hunting or scouting for an upcoming hunt. Toggling between aerial, topography and hybrid views can give you a wealth of information to help you make good decisions on the stalk or before the hunt.

The post onX Hunt Tips appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

The post Eastmans’ Bite Me- How To Cook Wild Game appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

This review features two hunting knives made in the USA by Buck Knives. Eastmans’ Todd Helms breaks down the features of the brand new 656 Pursuit Pro Large Knife and the updated, classic 119 Special Pro Knife. Features like a sure grip handle and full tang design make the 956 Pursuit Pro Large Knife comfortable for the long haul. Both are all-around hunting knives made with top-quality S53VN steel and backed by the Famous Forever Warranty you expect from Buck Knives.

The post Made in USA Hunting Knife – Buck Knvies Review appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

Watch over forty hunting kills in less than twenty minutes! Elk, mule deer, moose, axis deer, mountain goat and more crammed into one video.

The post 40 Rifle Hunts in 20 Minutes! Eastmans’ Hunting Journal appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

I can’t think of a situation that would be worse than living out Montezuma’s Revenge on the side of a mountain six miles into the high country. Water is the key to sustaining life in the backcountry, and poorly treated water can knock you out of the backcountry quicker than any other situation. To make matters worse, improperly cared for water in September on an early deer hunt can leave its remnants in your gut for long enough to get good old Montezuma flowing on your October elk hunt. By the way, if you don’t know what Montezuma has planned for you, feel free to Google it; you will likely enjoy the read.

So where does that take us in this unconventional Gear Lab? It brings us to several terms that you NEED to know when it comes to how seriously you want to take your health and your water needs. Ounce counters beware, I am likely to add a few ounces to your pack, but in the end, I would be willing to say that your intestines will thank me for it. 

The key word to look for in all situations is purify or purifier. When this word is present in the description, you are making the right choice, as many of the uber-lightweight treatment options DO NOT purify water. Many of the options simply treat some of the things you need to be concerned about, but not all. Bottom line is this: If you have been packing some form of the water droplets, iodine tabs or a combination of the two, you may have been missing a few creepy crawlies, viruses or the like that are swimming around in the water we use in the backcountry. Iodine is the worst culprit and has actually been banned in Europe since 2009 as a form of water treatment due to the allergies that some people have to it and the simple fact that it does not kill Giardia or Cryptosporidium.

So, which forms of water treatment kill all the nasties? Well, all Potable Aqua CIO2 Tablets, Katadyn Micropur Tablets and Aquamira CIO2 kill everything! These all use a powerful form of oxygen that kills the little pests, but there are really two kickers, the first being the most important. It can take up to four hours for Cryptosporidium to disappear from treated water. Better hope you don’t get thirsty in that time frame or you’ve rationed enough water until the Crypto is dead. The other issue is that it can’t get rid of floaties, dirt or anything else that might be in the water. Those grains of elk turd floating down from the wallow up stream may be treated, but do you really want to add them to your freeze-dried meal? 

Which brings us to the next problem—what is the best way to get rid of floaties, dirt, etc., while cleaning out as many unwanted infestations as possible? I have leaned on the MSR MiniWorks EX for about 18 months now, and it has not disappointed with proper use. There is a caveat though; this is a filter and not a purifier, meaning that if you want to get rid of viruses, you will need to use the included Aquatabs or other virus treatment method. If you feel like dropping some serious coin, you can move up to the MSR Guardian Purifier, which does it all, but that will set you back $350; it only weighs 1.3 oz more than the MiniWorks. Taking the step up from a filter to a true purifier is a big step but worth it. 

When it comes to pack weight, I’d be willing to bet that every seasoned backpack hunter out there has gone through some major changes over the years. I guess you could call these “evolutions or phases,” and I’d also be willing to bet that each person hit each evolution at about the same time in their backpack hunting career! Some of the changes will be made because of budget, some from experience (bad and good), others from pain and the most important would be those times that you almost die because of what you did or did not put inside your pack. All of these are important, but again, I’d bet almost everyone mirrors each other to a certain degree, and keeping things simple has probably won the day in the end. 

I’ll go ahead and give a title for some of these phases along with examples:

The poverty phase – This is pretty self-explanatory, and the final result is a very heavy pack that is great for building character and toughness, but horrible for comfort. 

The divorce phase – As you can imagine, this phase is 100% the result of fixing the first phase, but you about get divorced from spending money on lighter weight gear. 

The Q phase – The reason I’m calling this the Q phase is because you’re financially stable, and you’re buying every gimmicky piece of gear on the market … like Q from 007 designed it to save weight. 

Mike Eastman breaks down how to cook his favorite deer burger for summer BBQs. Follow along step by step as he prepares wild game burgers and a BONUS wild hog tenderloin to cook on his Traeger. This recipe is even grand-kid approved!

The post Mouth-watering Deer Burgers – How to cook Mike Eastman’s favorite BBQ appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

INSTRUCTOR: AUSTIN LESTER

IG: savagelester

Learn how to use mental toughness and grit to your advantage when you are hunting, camping or find yourself in a survival situation. Our friends at Fieldcraft Survival break down the importance of small victories and survival psychology.

The post Mental Toughness with Fieldcraft Survival appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

I gotta admit…when I first heard about a law passing in Wyoming that would allow you to pick up roadkill and take it home for supper, I couldn’t help but think we must be living in Hazard County, the home of the Dukes of Hazzard. Hahaha!

While there is merit to being able to take home recently killed wildlife on the roadways, the pitfalls of doing so are many and, quite frankly, laughable.

Obviously, you can’t just have a law that says anyone can pick up any dead animal on the side of any road so they can take them home and eat them. There needs to be some ground rules (pun intended) so that wildlife bandits aren’t taking advantage of the situation.

After reading this report from Oil City News out of Casper, WY, it becomes apparent that taking an animal home for table fare after hitting it on the highway is fairly complicated. I’m sure this was done by design in order to greatly reduce the occurrence of wild game being illegally taken home after being struck on our state’s highways and byways. 

So, I have to ask, “what’s on the spit” tonight? Meat from the grocery store, or roadkill? I guess here in Wyoming it could be roadkill. “Roadkill…it’s what’s for dinner!”

The Montana Wildlife Commission has adopted several new rules and regulations pertaining to the management of the most controversial apex predator in the state, the grey wolf. After a long debate and much opposition to the new regulations by pro-wolf advocacy groups, it was passed in a vote of 3-2 by the Commission. 

As a result, Montana will structure its trapping season much like Idaho’s. Each hunter and trapper can now purchase up to 10 wolf licenses per year and many new methods of harvest can be used such as snaring on public and private lands, except in specific grizzly bear recovery areas. Snaring and hunting at night including and the use of bait will also be legal now on private lands only. 

The new plans did draw criticism from the board because of the perceived lack of hunting ethics, which is a big reason why it received two votes against the measure. 

Montana’s wolf season will start the Monday after Thanksgiving and end March 15. The special quotas around Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks that were geared to take fewer wolves in high tourism areas were also done away with.

Marc Cooke with the Wolves of the Rockies group is threatening lawsuits and commented that these new mandates will decimate wolves in Montana and that “You people disgust me…” when he walked away from the public comment podium. He also pleaded with federal officials to re-list wolves under the ESA. 

Photo by: Mike Eastman – Filmed in the 60’s on the Jackson Hole Feed Ground

The elk feedground situation in Wyoming is a very dynamic one and there are many sides to the story.  Due to the longevity of the supplemental feeding programs in Wyoming and the good reasons for doing so that began many years ago, the scenario is slow to see any change, good or bad.

One thing I can’t stand, though, is when a reporter puts spin on a topic. The writer of this story on the elk feedground puzzle is either incredibly ignorant or simply a spin doctor (click here to read the article).

I can cite several misleading statements in this drivel and I’m curious if you can see through the fodder, too. Leave your comments below.

Our culture is obsessed with misinformation in order to forward a narrative, no matter what the subject matter is. Do yourself a favor and read between the lines on this and other “disasters” in the “news”.

The post Elk Feedground Puzzle – Sifting through the Fake News… appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

Taking A Dive Into The Historical Data of Four Western States to Answer the Question

I am not too fond of the idea of hunting out West becoming a rich person’s game. Therefore, I initially set out to answer this question, thinking I could disprove the negative Nancy’s on the topic. However, in my deep dive, I realized it is a much more complex and convoluted question than I had ever imagined.

This review features Sig Sauer’s KILO5K Rangefinder. This brand new rangefinder takes Sig’s BDX technology to the next level. Using Bluetooth technology, you can now range an object or animal and set a marker inside BaseMap. This powerful new feature can help you be more efficient and make better decisions when hunting. Brandon Mason dives into all the features of the KILO5K including extended range capabilities and a fog mode that cuts through wildfire smoke!

The post Range an animal + drop a pin! REVIEW: Sig Sauer’s KILO K Series appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

Hunt elk deep in grizzly bear country with Ike Eastman. It’s a public land DIY hunt in a limited quota elk hunting area. An early fall snow storm adds an extra challenge to the bow hunting season.

The post Hunting Big Bulls in Grizzly Country – Public land elk with Ike Eastman appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

This Eastmans’ review features Eberlestock’s Vapor Packs. Brandon Mason breaks down all the details of these re-designed hunting packs. These lightweight packs are built to fit any hunting style and usage. They have just the right number of built-in pockets for organization. A variety of compression straps allow you to secure your gear. Combined with the F1 Mainframe, a Vapor series pack can handle any heavy pack out. It’s available in three sizes at www.eberlestock.com.

The post Lighter than ever! REVIEW: Eberlestock Vapor Series Packs appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

Today is Monday, August 2nd. Archery antelope here in Wyoming opens in 13 days and archery deer and elk in 30 days. In other words, it’s GO TIME! 

If you’re anything like me you try to keep yourself and your equipment in good working order the entire year; shooting, working out, cleaning, prepping and storing gear. However, life happens and sometimes it gets in the way of the needed preparation and finds us scrambling to get it all dialed at the last minute. If that’s where you find yourself this year don’t despair, I’ve got some tips that’ll help you be ready when the bell rings this fall. 

Oh $&%#! 

This was my first thought when I spotted the tendril of smoke snaking its way skyward two ridges over. It was two weeks before the opener of archery elk season and I was scouting the unit I had waited so long to draw. The fire could change everything! 

It happens every year out West, fire season. Some years, like this year, the conditions are perfect for wildfires to burn out of control until the snow falls and to say they complicate our hunting plans is putting it mildly. Quite often fires close down access to or completely destroy the habitat we plan to hunt. They make glassing difficult to nigh on impossible and alter the movements of game animals. They are unpredictable at best and flat out life threatening at worst. 

Bow hunt public land elk in the rut with Dan Pickar. DIY public land bow hunting at its best! Dan is surrounded by bugling bulls. Two trophy elk travel in to investigate his calls, and Dan’s left deciding which one to pursue. Watch the action unfold on this episode of Beyond the Grid by Eastmans’.

The post Calling in Two Bulls at Once! – Bow hunting Elk with Grizzlies appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

There has been quite a bit of chat lately regarding the concept of “Trophy Hunting” both within the hunting community as well as outside of it. Time and time again, as I have begun to follow some of these conversations along the way, many have taken a very biased and uneducated turn. 

The core of much of this disagreement seems to be rooted in the fact that many in the mainstream news media have continually, for decades now, confused, conflated and interchanged the term trophy hunting and poaching to describe wildlife atrocities far and wide throughout the world. Because of this many inside the hunting community, mostly new hunters of which we have a lot of lately, also have made a definitive effort to distance themselves from the label of Trophy Hunter. Divided we will fall, this is certain. More on that a bit later. 

Trophy Hunting is not poaching and poaching is certainly not Trophy Hunting. It is illegal to kill an animal and simply cut the head off and leave the meat laying in nearly every single state in the union as well as Canada and Mexico. This act would be considered poaching and the perpetrator deserves to have their ass hauled into a courtroom and have their hunting privileges taken away for the better part of a decade or worse.

I have had the good fortune to be afforded the opportunity to hunt all over this planet and never have I once seen a big game animal killed and beheaded and left to lay, Africa included. Every single ounce of meat provided by any hunt I have been a part of globally for big game, predators aside, as that is another subject altogether, has resulted in every bit of edible meat being consumed by humans who were more than happy to have it. 

Africa is the epicenter of global poaching and Trophy Hunting interestingly enough. However, these are not the same people and activities, not by a long shot. The Trophy Hunters in Africa, usually foreigners, and mostly Americans are paying money to experience a hunting adventure like none other on earth.  They are also playing a very vital role in sound wildlife management which in the end conserves the species that call a very dangerous and unstable place home. The rhinos and elephants you see on the news left to rot in the hot savannah sun with their tusks and horns missing are killed by poachers. Usually African poachers, locals that take it upon themselves to poach an animal to benefit financially from the illegal take by selling off the parts of the animal on the black market. In many countries in Africa the governments have become so corrupt that they themselves partake in illegally poaching their own resources for money, ie Zimbabwe. The only factor keeping many of these populations alive today on a continent such as Africa, even with the corruption in the governments, is the value of these animals to hunters. And Africa is not alone in this.