Trail Cameras

I can hardly wait each spring for the snow to melt in the high country. For me, this officially kicks off the start of a new hunting season. I usually start my pre-hunt scouting by setting up trail cameras at all of my favorite honey holes. Checking these cameras throughout the summer is very addicting. [...]

GPS Basics

My first and most memorable GPS failure happened many years ago while I was doing a little pre-hunt scouting. My brother and I had located a small pond on a secluded pine bench and wanted to check the elk activity. The 4-wheeler trail stopped about a mile short of the pond, and with the sun [...]

Huntin’ Horns

March 17th, 2012 was one of my favorite horn hunting (antler hunting) days ever. Klay Nelson, a friend from work, and I left town shortly after 6 a.m. and were soon suiting up in winter gear for our ATV ride up the mountain. Pack frames and snowshoes were strapped on the racks, along with a [...]

Tactics for Shed Hunting

Shed hunting is addicting. The fresh air and wide open spaces of the mountains draws me like a bug to a fluorescent light. Add randomly dropped elk antlers to the mix and it’s a recipe for neglected home projects. It is an activity that can pay off in many ways, including increased fitness and general [...]

Elk Calls 101

What to look for in a call and why

Now that I’ve been calling for a couple of decades, I hope to share with you some truths and tips about elk calls that I have come across through trial and lots of error! For the sake of this discussion, I am going to classify elk calls [...]

Long Range Hunting

Long range rifle shooting (and hunting) is gaining popularity fast. The tools and information needed to be accurate at longer distances are becoming readily available to the general public. Long range hunting requires accurate equipment, lots of practice, tuning your skills, educating yourself on your equipment, and maintaining good hunting practices and ethics. Long range [...]

Broadhead Confidence

As most hardcore archers would agree, there is something magical about the flight of an arrow. Whether from a traditional bow or a compound, it’s awesome how the arrow often appears to be on a string until impacting the point of aim. I have always been mesmerized by the flight of an arrow and amazed [...]

Pre-Season Bow Set Up

It’s time to get your bow ready for September! Whether you have a new bow, or are just checking the bow that has set stagnant during the off season, it is time to get it ready! The earlier you start, the better off you will be. Bow set up and initial tuning is more than [...]

High Quality Field Photos

How many times have you found yourself miles from the truck wishing you had a camera to capture a stunning sunset, gigantic elk rub, pristine mountain meadow, or the bull of a lifetime? I have kicked myself more than once because of forgetting a camera when an awesome “photo op” presented itself. Today it’s [...]

Map Scouting

When researching places to hunt elk, no scouting method is more effective than strapping on the old boot leather and roaming the woods.  This method allows you to discover honey holes such as old wallows, elk rubs, and perhaps even bones from a previous years kill.  When you do run across one of these areas, [...]

The Life of a Bull Elk

In early summer, around the first of June, cow elk give birth. Each cow typically has a single calf, which can stand on wobbly legs by the time it is 20 minutes old. A young bull will stay with the herd in which he was born until his second autumn. By then, he will have [...]

Planning For Next Season

2010 and 2011 were rough years. My chronic back trouble flared up with a vengeance in the fall of 2010 and left me with permanent nerve damage and only 30% use of my left leg. From April to August, 2011, the pain and depression were crippling. I was either at work on pain medication, or [...]

Extreme Elk Magazine Update

Content for Issue #1 has been submitted to the designer and is being laid out as you read this! We have some awesome stories from Alberta, Montana, Utah, Colorado, and Wyoming, plus features on gear, elk hunting tactics, optics, and MUCH more! We are so excited for Issue #1 and can’t wait to share it with you.
Now [...]

Learning From Failing

Every year, thousands and thousands of elk hunters will take to the mountains with big dreams and lofty aspirations of putting their tag on the bull of a lifetime.  Some will succeed with this endeavor, but sadly, the majority will fail. The harsh reality of elk hunting is that the majority of hunters do fail [...]

“Growler” is Dead

About a decade ago when giant bulls still wandered many back-country hideaways here in North Idaho, I matched wits with a monster of unforgetable proportions.  These were the days when it was not uncommon to find huge rubs on trees of eight inches or more in diameter and pie plate sized hoof prints in the [...]

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