Innholdsfortegnelse for April/May 2021 i Bowhunter

WHENEVER one of my grandsons gets a bruise or minor injury, they know what Gpa (digital for Grandpa) is going to say: “Rub some dirt on it and quit your sniveling.” Usually, they just give me a funny look, knowing that I’m only half serious. The point is, in many ways, we humans are becoming weak. Our feelings get hurt too easily, we don’t handle pain well, and adversity brings many to their knees. I suppose our soft lifestyle, at least compared to yesteryear, is to blame. No electronic screen ever taught anyone, young or old, anything about toughness or how to persevere. Enter bowhunting. Want to learn something about determination, persistence, and handling adversity? Well then, become a serious bowhunter. I’m not referring to the casual bowhunter who shoots…

Checking Broadhead Sharpness There are several ways to test the sharpness of a broadhead’s blades. The first is by using the head to carefully shave a little hair from your arm. An edge that shaves is lethal. My left arm is slick as a billiard ball after hunting season, because I check broad-head sharpness on a regular basis. You can also drag a broadhead edge across your thumbnail with a little downward pressure. A truly sharp edge will instantly dig in, rather than sliding across the nail. A third test is stretching a rubber band between your thumb and forefinger. A keen edge will cleanly slice the band with almost no resistance. When that same edge impacts animal veins and arteries, it will slice those vessels the same way. The…

A WELL-PRACTICED archer is typically a more effective bowhunter. Simply put, the more an archer shoots, the more automatic and more refined his or her muscle memory becomes. This is crucial when the moment of truth arrives, because despite excited nerves that can quickly ruin a great shooting opportunity, the brain’s subconscious function eventually takes control of the shot, delivering what it has done time and time again: A smooth, fluidlike execution that ends with a deadly arrow through the animal’s vitals. Without constant, repetitive, and well-thought-out shooting, this type of performance is just not possible. Of course, part of this shooting must be done with actual broadhead-tipped arrows to ensure top accuracy and consistent shot placement on animals. The problem is, perpetual shooting with broadheads can be costly, as…

I AM A FLATLANDER. That is, I’m no longer able to chase deer, sheep, goats, moose, caribou, and bears in the mountains of my home state of Alaska with my trusty bow and arrows. Moreover, I would say that I am vertically challenged. However, over the past few years, I’ve made some adaptations to what I am physically able to do. The main change is that I now do things outdoors that are done on a level playing field. I know quite a few people who used to spend more time outside actually enjoying the outdoors in person, than they currently do sitting on the couch watching others on outdoor TV. I think they are rapidly closing in on becoming a “flatliner. ” This flatland hunting business all started on…

“I LOOK FORWARD TO CONTINUING EASTON’S LEGACY OF INNOVATION AND SUPERIOR SERVICE.”— EASTON TECHNICAL PRODUCTS PRESIDENT AARON LUCKY LIKE A SHINY NEW flagship bow not matched properly to a topflight arrow, Bowhunter Magazine probably wouldn’t have got very far at its founding back in 1971 if not paired from the outset with the support of a topflight arrow manufacturer — Easton Archery. As the Bowhunter brand approaches its 50th birthday this coming fall, it’s absolutely amazing now to look back, considering that Easton was nearly that old when they purchased the inside cover of our first issue, and now the company is headed toward its century mark. That is a heritage worth celebrating — and a business partner to be oh so thankful for! Ironically, it was during a long…

THE NUMBER OF people who have made a positive impact on my life are too numerous to mention. The great Fred Bear is one of them. The first time I read “Fred Bear’s Field Notes,” I was blown away. As a boy, it was the only book I couldn’t put down, and one that I read over and over. His stories just made sense to me, and I could relate to Fred’s excitement over seeing amazing things afield. Fred had an amazing way of telling stories about the hunt, but also about the places he went and the people he met. His passion for archery and bowhunting sparked a fire in me. I first met Fred Bear at the Gainesville Mall in Florida, when he was signing copies of “Field…

MONTANA HAS BEEN a hotbed of controversy on elk predation by wolves. True, there was low elk recruitment in 2009 in the Bitterroot River watershed south of Missoula, where wolves existed in good numbers. Starting in 2011, researchers in the area identified the predators that killed elk calves, and determined that mountain lions had a much greater impact on calf survival than black bears or wolves. Their data also showed that calf survival was a key factor relative to overall population numbers in that area. In 2012, the state increased lion harvest by 30 percent, and that lowered cat numbers by that amount by 2016. Adjacent areas that had not liberalized cat hunting showed no increase in cat numbers. The key finding was that when lion harvest was liberalized, calf…

• Alberta Professional Outfitters Society / apos.ab.ca • Guide Outfitters Assoc. Of British Columbia / goabc.org • Manitoba Lodges and Outfitters Association / mloa.com • New Brunswick Outfitters Association / nboa.nb.ca • Newfoundland and Labrador Outfitters Association / nloa.ca • Northern Ontario Outfitters Association / noto.ca • NWT (Association of Mackenzie Mountains Outfitters) / huntnwt.com • Quebec Outfitters Association / bonjourquebec.com • Saskatchewan Commission Of Professional Outfitters / scpo.ca • Yukon Outfitters Association / yukonoutfittersassociation.com…

BACK IN COLLEGE, we learned lions primarily attack prey species that are weak, old, or diseased. Although this is true, make no mistake: Lions will, and often do, attack well nourished bucks, does, fawns, or any large mammal if given the opportunity. Although lions can reach 200 pounds in weight, it is rare. The average tom weighs 140 pounds, can jump 20-plus feet from a standstill, and can spring over 60 feet from a tree without hurting himself. Their athleticism should never be underestimated. Lions are the type of predator that kills simply to kill. It’s in their DNA. Surplus killings of 20 sheep have been documented. Oftentimes, sheep kills are not found, because a lion will consume it entirely and not cache the meat. As a result, lion predation…

1 MYSTERY RANCH® RANGEFINDER HOLSTER™ • Durable stretch-woven sides • Adjustable elastic closure • Multiple attachment options Protect your rangefinder with the Holster ($25) from Mystery Ranch. It’s padded on the top and bottom, and the stretch-woven sides aid in easier in/out of wider models. Its adjustable closure w/no-fumbles pull tab is designed to accommodate rangefinders up to 5"T x 1.5"D x 2.5"W. Mystery Ranch knows how important your rangefinder is to you, which is why the Holster has an attachment feature that allows you to affix it to your bino harness, belt, Molle system, etc. Contact: Mystery Ranch, mysteryranch.com. 2 REALTREE® TIMBER™ • Combines abstract with natural • Totally 3-D look for effectiveness • Hides hunters virtually everywhere The original thought behind Realtree Timber was ducks and geese. Then,…

THE 6X6 ELK drifted toward the waterhole like a ghost, but his rack tipped us off long before he arrived. The bull’s antlers floated above a ridge as he took a few steps, stopped to peer and sniff, and then eased ahead once more. He repeated this process a dozen times over the next 10 minutes. Finally, the wary animal relaxed, strolled into view, and dropped his head to drink. My hunting companion was an excellent shot, but short on elk experience. I had agreed to help him bag a bull in the same spot where I had nailed a whopper the week before. It was hot, dry, and too early in September for much rutting activity. Waterhole hunting was the way to go. The bull faced us as he…

Bowhunting turkeys can often feel more like an elk hunt after lugging in all of the gear. To alleviate some of that weighty burden and still arrow birds, consider the new XD Turkey Decoy collection from Montana Decoy (montanadecoy. com). The XD stands for Extra Detail, which you’ll see if you check out the MISS PURRFECT XD and the JAKE PURRFECT XD. Used separately or paired up, these decoys weigh next to nothing and fit inside of a daypack, making them the perfect choice for common-ground hunters. Another way to trim weight without sacrificing a chance at filling your tags, is by picking up a blind like the new Primos Double Bull 2 Panel Stakeout Blind (primos.com). Covered in Mossy Oak’s Bottomland camo, this super-lightweight blind is ideal for tucking…

HAS COVID-19 impacted your hunting? If you had plans of bowhunting in Canada or overseas last year, then the virus most definitely messed things up for you. Worse yet, I had two good friends pick up the virus while on two different, out-of-state deer hunts. Although no one knew it at the time, once everyone returned home, all the hunters had more than just a few deer to show for their efforts. At the time of this writing, COVID-19 is still affecting the country, but the number of folks testing positive is starting to level off. Could this still significantly impact the upcoming 2021 deer season? Let’s hope not, but remember in 2020 when some states cancelled their spring turkey season for any out-of-state hunters who hadn’t already purchased their…

“COMPARISON IS THE THIEF OF JOY”.— THEODORE ROOSEVELT The extreme patience and endurance required by this approach to bowhunting are extremely difficult to manage. Only in the last 10 years have I been able to maintain this degree of discipline. I attribute this to my advancing maturity. Almost invariably, the greatest adversity and deprivation comes when I’m pursuing something BIG. I seem willing to suffer more when the prize is greater. I often wonder why a sane man would inflict such misery upon himself. I’m not a masochist, but I am very driven to succeed. To be brutally honest, my motivations are partially fear-driven. It is the fear of opportunity wasted, or missed altogether. And even more revealing, I have a fear that someone else might be more successful than…