Hunting and Fishing News Blog Articles

SECTION 1. In Colorado Revised Statutes, add 33-4-122 as follows: 33-4-122. Big game licensees – reserved requirements for Colorado hunters. WHEN CONDUCTING A LIMITED LICENSE DRAW FOR A BIG GAME LICENSE, THE DIVISION SHALL NOT ISSUE TO NONRESIDENT APPLICANTS MORE THAN ONE-THIRD OF THE TOTAL NUMBER OF BIG GAME LICENSES AWARDED IN THE LIMITED LICENSE DRAW.FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS SECTION, AN ACTIVE DUTY MEMBER OF THE UNITED STATES ARMED FORCES WHO IS STATIONED AT A MILITARY FACILITY LOCATED IN COLORADO IS DEEMED A RESIDENT.THIS SECTION DOES NOT APPLY TO BIG GAME LICENSES LEFT OVER AFTER THE INITIAL LIMITED LICENSE DRAW AWARDS BIG GAME LICENSES TO APPLICANTS.

The wording is a little ambiguous. Which draw? All draws together? It sounds like all species combined, but then, sometimes wording is intentionally ambiguous, especially if you have friends in the courts.

Here’s the thing. In 2020 nonresidents only drew 25% of the limited elk licenses (26% counting nonresident youth) and only 17% (18%) of deer licenses. They drew only 3% of pronghorn, 10% of moose, 9% of sheep and 9% of mountain goat. So why is this necessary?

This seems to be like passing a bill that no one can drive over 100 mph in your town when the highest posted speed limit is 55. What is really going on here?

Well, for one thing, the current allocation is 65/35 on most hunts, 80/20 on very high demand hunts, so this does cut into the limits, but as I say, the actual allocations are far lower.

This review features Mystery Ranch backpacks product engineer Alex Rich and brand ambassador Sam Soholt. Eastmans’ Brandon Mason sits down with the guys to talk hunting and the how Mystery Ranch’s hunting backpacks developed over the last twenty years. The guys talk custom fit and how the Guide Lite Frame is built to work with your body. Learn what inspired the design Pop-Up design and of the NICE Guide Lite frame system.

The post Mystery Ranch Backpack Review: Over 20 years of mission built packs appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

Go mountain goat hunting in Alaska with Eastmans’ subscriber Gary English. This is Gary’s third attempt at a billy and he’s determined to make it count. He hikes one thousand miles in preparation for his last chance at a mountain goat.

The post Mountain Goat Hunting- He hiked over 1000 miles! appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

Region 1 comprises the northwest part of the state from the Canadian border south to Missoula and the Flathead Indian Reservation. Elk and deer numbers have been on the decline in most 100 districts largely due to the number of predators. DIY hunting is the most difficult here compared to any other part of the state. Sparse elk populations can be found in all three forks of the Flathead River drainage and headwaters. The Cabinet mountains, Swan Valley and the Bob Marshall Wilderness all hold elk. Perhaps your best bet to harvest an elk in Region 1 is with an outfitter in “the Bob”. These are not trophy hunts as most hunters are looking to just kill a bull but it seems like someone takes a 350 bull every year. Lots of wolves and grizzlies reside in the Bob but the wolves have been hunted hard the past several years so your main foe is the grizzly bear. 

The DIY hunting will be a struggle for the first timer on public land in this region. Plan on hiking and more hiking. Find areas above treeline during archery season, glass what you can and chase bugles if possible. This is thick country so glassing isn’t always effective. Be prepared to beat the brush and struggle. 

The Flathead River drainages have a lot of alder, mountain maple and other brush that makes navigation difficult. Stick to old logging roads, logging units and ridgelines if you plan on traveling or south and west facing slopes where brush may be a little more sparse. Logging units are often the best feed in really thick country so always check them, especially during rifle season. The Bob Marshall Wilderness portion of the Flathead River system is the best elk habitat. 

The Cabinet Mountain area and the far northwest portion of Region 1 is similar to the Flathead River system with plenty of public access and not many animals. Lots of alder, devils club, ferns, and brush that make traveling extremely difficult. Stick to trails and logging roads. Check the burns and alpine during archery season or early in rifle on a year that doesn’t have snow. 

The Clark Fork River system offers a little better elk country and there are better numbers in the regions than further north. Logging units are common, as are burned areas, which provide the best elk habitat. There are a high density of predators here as well but the habitat is a little better overall than most of Region 1. 

The Council to Advance Hunting and Shooting Sports tracked data from more than 40 state fish and wildlife agencies and reviewed monthly license sales for residents in 2019 and 2020. You guessed it, sales soared in 2020 as people turned to the outdoors to escape the pandemic. The agency reviewed monthly sales data which proved that there was a 5% increase in hunting license sales in 2020. Resident sales increased 5.4% and nonresident sales increased 1.6% during the same time period. 

They saw initial license sales fallout in March when the Covid lockdown began, which is expected because a lot of states banned out of state sales. Sales picked up throughout the summer when restrictions were lessened and eased up in the fall. 

We saw this in the western states too. For example, there were 103,000 people with elk preference points in Wyoming in 2019 and that number rose to roughly 124,000 in 2020. That’s a whopping 21,000 additional applicants in the system which pencils out to a 17% increase!! Holy smokes! 

Reports I’ve heard from other places in 2021 show that applications are up 20% from this time that last year. These are incredible numbers and acquiring tags through the draw is going to be more and more difficult for all of us. The western states are going to have to begin to brainstorm on how to handle this giant influx of applicants in the coming years as state systems become more stressed. 

I expect 2021 to be no different across the board but it is early in the year so we will see how sales progress throughout the year as it seems that covid restrictions seem to be easing in most states. Or heck, who knows, maybe as covid restrictions ease and businesses open back up, bars will see the largest surge in participation in 2021!

Bow hunt for a record book caribou with Guy Eastman in this classic web episode of Eastmans’ Hunting TV. Guy travels with his brother Ike Eastman for a caribou bow hunting adventure in the Northwest Territories. This is one of Ike’s first bow hunts! Two caribou bow hunts in one episode. Guy’s caribou was a Pope & Young standout and currently sits number 3 all-time.

The post Bow Hunting Caribou – Guy Eastman’s Pope & Young Bull appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

PC: Jim Clark USFWS

Love it or hate it, the Mexican Gray Wolf continues to grow and be a priority for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the states of Arizona and New Mexico. In a study spanning 2020 and 2021 thus far, an interagency team has accounted for a minimum of 163 wolves roaming the landscapes of Arizona and New Mexico, with 72 in Arizona and 114 in New Mexico. These are minimum numbers but even as such, they show the population has doubled in size over the last five years. 

Other interesting notes from 2020 include… 

This is all well and good and while wildlife managers pat each other on the back, wolves are wolves and continue to spur debate across their range about the social desirability of having, maintaining and growing apex predators. Doubling Mexican wolf populations, while exciting to some people is at the same time deeply disturbing to others. 

While I don’t think there is an easy answer to the wolf conundrum I do think they are here to stay. The only question that remains is what that looks like for the future of ungulate game animals in the Southwest.

House Bill 468 is simple and to the point. It would allow hunting bears with hounds in Montana through July 31st. Plain and simple. There are a lot of ways this could be taken by residents of Montana and I’m sure there will be feedback from all over the spectrum. I think this could be good for the state in the regard of management. For example, Idaho allows using hounds for bear harvest in a lot of areas but I see it as a direct management tool. In some areas ground cover and vegetation make it virtually impossible to harvest enough bears each year to help out the ungulate populations. Yes, baiting is allowed in Idaho but it can be very difficult to harvest a mature bear over bait. 

For me, I don’t have an interest in harvesting a bear over bait but it is a great management tool and a good way to introduce kids to hunting and educating them about bears. While I don’t see that baiting will ever be legalized in Montana, hound hunting would be a good management tool and another exciting way to introduce kids into hunting. 

There is a page on Facebook I keep tabs on called Yellowstone Bears. This page harbors many “bear lovers” that voice their sometimes violent opinions. There was a thread started (now removed) bashing this bill and how it is totally unacceptable. The consensus there was that hound hunting is just a way for hunters to be lazy and rely on the dogs to do the work making it easy for them to harvest a bear and take all the glory while pumping up their ego.

 As most hunters know, this couldn’t be farther from the truth. These folks do not and will not accept and understand wildlife management and the importance of harvesting predators if you’re going to have an ungulate harvest as well. The moral of the story is that it will be hard to win over the general public without understanding a bill like this, so hopefully some education can come out of it as well.

There will be a lot of opposition and it will be hard to manage in grizzly bear country but could be used as a vaualble management tool in some areas. I am a huge proponent of spot and stalk bear hunting, it is what I personally enjoy in more open country units of the state. But I can also see the benefits of hound hunting and how it could be a great tool along the Montana/Idaho border and many other portions of the state where spot and stalk bear hunting is very difficult or nearly impossible.

This bow review features Bear Archery’s Redemption EKO. This bow is new for 2021 and Eastmans’ Dan Pickar tests it out at his home range. The EKO technology makes this bow 25% quieter on the draw and its built in modularity makes it easy to adjust the bow to different shooters. Dan shoots a few arrows through the chronograph to test its speed performance.

The post Bear Redemption EKO Detailed Bow Review appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

Migration has long been a theme that mule deer hunters across Wyoming have wanted to understand. In 2020 Eastmans’ launched a video shed light on the trek that Western Wyoming’s mule deer take. Now new research focused on Central Wyoming mule deer has started to make its way to the forefront.  

This data shows that the mule deer in Central Wyoming don’t migrate based on interactions with hunters. Rather forage and weather were the two key factors that triggered mule deer migrations. 

One piece of data that will come as no surprise to the hunters reading this blog is that mule deer bucks look for two things when it comes to preserving their lives during hunting season. The first noted in the study is that they look for seclusion/cover, and the second is they look for areas as from vehicle access as possible. In terms of how this affects hunters, keep the boots tight – you will be walking to find the bucks!\

Another piece of the equation that hunters need to be aware of is that bucks take completely different migratory patterns than does. Does travel in areas that are going to cause as little stress as possible to their fawns. Bucks, on the other hand, will use harsh terrain to their advantage to stay secluded. What does this mean for the hunter? If you are seeing a lot of does it probably means that you are hunting in the wrong areas. 

Mike Eastman shares the story of how the Eastman legacy of filming and fair-chase hunting began with his father Gordon. The late Gordon Eastman was a pioneer in the industry, and even worked with Walt Disney for part of his career.

The post Eastmans’ Family History appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

Guest Author: Travis Hobbs

Technology. When you stop and think about it, it will blow your mind how much all of our lives have changed recently, thanks to technology. How we communicate, how we travel, work, recreate, even something as simple as me putting this to “paper” so to speak. For better and worse, it effects every one of us. There really is no escaping the ever evolving technological advances.

Hunting is no different. Unless you have been living under a rock, technology has changed hunting dramatically. Long gone are the days of open sight 30.30’s, military surplus gear, even something as simple as a paper map isn’t as common as it was in the not so distant past.

The other day, I was talking with a young man that is new to archery. We got talking about estimating and calculating ranges, shooting uphill and downhill. I told him when I was learning to shoot, no one I knew, even had a rangefinder. We both laughed and I’m still not so sure he believed me. The crazy part, I am only 35 years old, and the period I’m referring to is the 90’s. Talk about making me feel old, and it really got me thinking, rangefinders are ancient technology compared to what we have now.

Technology is a fairly common debate among hunters, from the local coffee shop, to social media platforms. There are strong opinions on all sides. I think respectful debate is a good thing, and is something we should continue to discuss if we still believe in fair chase at our core. Often times, however, it brings up more questions than answers.

Below you’ll find the breakdown of HB 122 by The Wyoming Wildlife Federation. I’m not going to attempt to reiterate what WWF has done a marvelous job doing but I am going to opine on HB 122.

Personally, I think a bill like this is long overdue! Who wouldn’t pay $21 for a Conservation Stamp if it means more public access to hunting, fishing and trapping here in old Wyo? Not to mention that a portion of the $21 will also go to improving the health of our game animals by improving/implementing highway crossings. This is truly a chance for Wyoming sportsmen to continue to put their money where their mouths are by ponying up for wildlife and the future of hunting in the Cowboy State. 

Go elk hunting with the Eastmans’ TagHub 2020 elk hunt winner. Eastmans’ TagHub member Jared Boyd joins Ike Eastman for his very first elk hunt in Colorado. Jared’s Missouri whitetail skills are put to work when he jumps at the chance to take a nice trophy bull at ONLY 60 yards!

The post Elk Hunting – KILL at 60 Yards! Eastmans’ TagHub Hunt Giveaway appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

Eastmans’ TagHub is more than first-rate hunting research and data, so much more! Ike Eastman breaks down the benefits of being a TagHub Elite member – you can even win a hunt with the Eastmans’!

The post TagHub Elite Member Benefits – Ike breaks it down! appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

House Bill 505 was introduced to allow Montana landowners to have 10 elk-only combination landowner sponsored tags for their deeded or leased lands. This means they are for sale directly from FWP for the same price as the normal nonresident general elk combination tags that you would win in the draw. These landowner tags would be in addition to the already elk-only combination tags that are offered by FWP. The verbiage of this bill does not indicate that these landowner sponsored tags will be available for the landowner to resell for a greater profit, but technically the landowner could sell those hunts for much higher of a price because they have guaranteed tags. Any landowner that has at least 640 deeded acres would be eligible for this consideration. 

This bill was introduced by Wylie Galt, Representative from Martinsdale, Montana who is related to the expansive Galt Ranch which is famous for its great elk hunting. This bill is meant to directly help Outfitters book clients instead of leaving their elk hunting fate up to the regular draw which has been about once every one or two years to acquire a permit. Is Montana ready to jump into the landowner tag game? 

Section 2 of this bill is somewhat of a shocker to me. It is an antlerless only elk hunting option where an applicant can apply for a cow elk only that is valid from August 15 – February 15 on private land for units where FWP determines there are too many elk per their surveys. Here’s the kicker. If you choose this option, you will not be eligible to apply for an elk permit for that year for anywhere else in the state. However, during that license year, since you are not participating in the elk permit drawing you can buy a bonus point, and since you participated in the antlerless-only option you will be awarded an additional five bonus points for your elk permit draw in the future. Jiminy Christmas! A six bonus point reward for NOT participating in the elk permit drawing for the year that you choose to hunt a cow only. Now that is a big deal. Just when you think you’ve heard it all for 2021…

The post Get 6 Elk Bonus Points in One Year with This New Legislation! – HB 505 appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

Senate Bill 143 was drafted in an effort to reserve a large percentage of nonresident hunting licenses to outfitters. This received a large amount of blowback from the public and has since been scratched from SB 143. SB is still alive though with the last remaining part still up for consideration. 

The verbage states that 40% of the deer and elk combination licenses will be offered up in an early offering with an application period from December 1 – 31. The application fee is $300 and if you apply as a party it is still $300 per person. The bill instructs that the application fee will be used by the department to secure and maintain wildlife habitat. You still have the license fee on top of the application fee. 

Here’s the catch. For your application to be valid, you must have a resident sponsor you. You must include an affirmation by the applicant that the applicant intends to hunt with a resident sponsor on land owned by that sponsor. In addition the resident sponsor must produce a certificate that states that they will direct the applicants hunting and advise the applicant of the game and trespass laws of the state. They also must then submit complete records of who hunted with the resident sponsor, where they hunted, and what game was taken. They also must affirm that the sponsor is indeed a landowner and the applicant under the certificate will only hunt on land owned by them. The resident sponsor may not accept monetary compensation or enabling the nonresident applicant to obtain a license. 

The department shall issue a license to one applicant sponsored by each resident landowner who owns 640 or more contiguous acres. If there are enough licenses to go around the landowner can sponsor up to 15 individuals. If there aren’t enough licenses to go around, the department shall conduct a drawing.

If you are successful in this drawing, you are only able to hunt deer on deeded land of your sponsoring landowner. If you apply for an elk permit with this drawing and are unsuccessful in the permit application, you will have the choice to keep the elk or deer combination if you are successful in that draw.

Guy Eastman gives a fantastic update to Eastmans’ Taghub right before the application deadline on March 1st @5:00 p.m. MST. Make sure you take a look at his expert analysis for 2021!

The post TagHub Application Deadline Reminder 2021 WY Sheep, Moose and Goat appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

Learn how to survive when a day hunting trip turns into an unexpected overnight stay. Fieldcraft Survival’s Kevin Estela covers the steps you should take if you have to spend an unexpected night out in the backcountry. None of us hope or expect to have to spend the night in the wilderness without the proper planning and preparation, especially in the winter, but sometimes unexpected events occur and you find yourself in an unfamiliar location or circumstances that prevent you from getting out of the woods. Kevin talks about the three components of an emergency shelter and how you can make the most out of an unexpected situation.

Learn more about Fieldcraft Survival Here: http://bit.ly/FcSurvival

The post How To Survive In The Woods – Day Trip Turns Overnight appeared first on Eastmans' Official Blog | Mule Deer, Antelope, Elk Hunting and Bowhunting Magazine | Eastmans' Hunting Journals.

Just when you think you’ve seen and heard it all, this happens. A lady at the Solitude Subdivision in Jackson, Wyoming was reported by neighbors for feeding grizzly bears. When Game and Fish confronted this individual, whose identity has been protected, she told the wardens that they are a “bunch of wimps” and that the bears are her babies. At the base of her deck sat five grizzly bears calming munching away on grain. The bears were four sub-adult cubs and the National Park Service’s sweetheart, sow #399. 

You heard that correctly, she refers to the bears as her “babies” and even more interestingly, she’s been feeding grizzly bear #399 for several years now including many sets of #399’s offspring. Officers gathered evidence that could potentially lead to a violation of the Endangered Species Act. The woman said for them not to worry because she has an “aura” that allows her to communicate with animals and not be attacked. Although if she did get attacked, she said she would be “ok” with dying. 

Here’s the catch. She insists the grain is for moose, not bears. She’s simply feeding the moose and the grain is laced with medicine for what she described as conjunctivitis. Feeding moose, elk, and deer is legal in the state of Wyoming although the general public is discouraged from doing so. Over a month later the District Attorney’s office said they would have a “difficult time convicting” her of feeding grizzly bears because she stated that she placed the food for the moose, not the bears. She told the officers that the grizzly bears “came to her” when they needed help and that she administers drugs to the wildlife even though she knows it’s not legal. 

The investigation was initialized when grizzly bear #962 (offspring of #399) spent two weeks in the subdivision according to a GPS tracking collar. #962 and #964 were grizzly #399’s offspring from years past and frequented the same subdivision regularly. In 2016, grizzly bear #802 (who was later destroyed) was getting into trouble and had been tracked to the same neighborhood. There are eight grizzly bears getting into feed at the Solitude home site according to the current investigation. One Solitude Subdivision board member claimed that “In my 25 years in Solitude, we’ve never had bear problems like we are having this fall and winter.” Another resident told a story of being chased in the neighborhood by a grizzly. The resident was able to run away from the bear and it eventually lost interest. 

The wildlife feeder agreed to let two officers in her home, in which they noticed many dogs, cats, and rodents kept in cages. There were many cans of feed stored and the officers also reported the woman kept a collection of bear poop which was stored on cookie sheets! The officers had a two hour conversation with the lady explaining that she controlled the fate of these bears since she continuously feeds them. As of now all the Game and Fish can do is focus on education since there is nothing they can enforce.