Fall 2014 Mountain Hunter Magazine

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BRITISH COLUMBIA, NORTHWEST TERRITORIES, YUKON TERRITORY FALL 2014 TM TM FEATURE STORIES It’s Never Easy The King’s Castle

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Stories include: The King’s Castle, A Bald Faced Bruin, It’s Never Easy, Some Things Just Happen for a Reason, Funky Holy Crap, and A Burning Desire.

Transcript of Fall 2014 Mountain Hunter Magazine

Page 1: Fall 2014 Mountain Hunter Magazine

BRITISH COLUMBIA, NORTHWEST TERRITORIES, YUKON TERRITORY

FALL 2014

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FEATURE STORIES It’s Never Easy

The King’s Castle

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features

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Fall 2014

GOABC PRESIDENT’S CORNER 2

NEWS & VIEWS 3, 4

PREFERRED CONSERVATION PARTNERS 6

CONSERVATION MATTERS™ 28

GUIDES GALLERY 26, 27, 32, 33

LIFE MEMBERS 36, 37

CAMP COOK’S CORNER 56

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The King’s Castle 8 Scott Ungar

A Bald Faced Bruin 14 Patrick Vaughn

It’s Never Easy 20 Bruce Hutcheon

Some Things Just Happen for a Reason 40 Craig Summerfield

Funky Holy Crap 48 Debra Stuchik

A Burning Desire 52 Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation

On the Cover Wayne Bowd from Alberta with his black bear taken during his hunt with Fraser Canyon Safaris.

Ambler’s Bighorn Country Guiding ...........54

Babine Guide & Outfitters ...............................5

BC Trophy Mountain Outfitters ...................39

Beaverfoot Outfitting ......................................51

Besa River Outfitters ........................................35

Big Country Outfitters ....................................24

Bonnet Plume Outfitters ................................13

Boone & Crockett Club ...................................55

Bugle Basin Outfitters .....................................19

Cariboo Mountain Outfitters ........................35

Claw Mountain Outfitters ..............................38

Dallas Safari Club ..............................................13

Double Eagle Guides .......................................13

Elk Valley Bighorn .............................................46

Eureka Peak Lodge...........................................11

Findlay Creek Outfitters .................................19

Gana River Outfitters .........................................5

Grand Slam Club/Ovis ....................................47

Grouse River Outfitters ...................................34

Gundahoo River Outfitters ............................19

Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation ...54

InReach Communications .............................38

Lehigh Valley SCI ..............................................54

Mackenzie Mountain Outfitters ..................46

McCowan’s Sporting Properties .................46

McGregor River Outfitters .............................54

Mervyn’s Yukon Outfitting ............................51

Nahanni Butte Outfitters .............................IBC

Pathway to Canada Immigration ................39

Pelly Lake Wilderness Outfitters .................24

Ram Creek Outfitters ...................................OBC

Ram Head Outfitters ........................................55

Redstone Trophy Hunts .................................35

Rocky Mountain High Outfitters .................56

Safari Club International (SCI) .................... IFC

Scoop Lake Outfitters .....................................51

Shadow Mountain Outfitters .......................24

Sikanni River Outfitters ...................................35

Silent Mountain Outiftters ............................55

SITKA .......................................................................5

Sonny’s Guiding Service ................................19

South Nahanni Outfitters ..............................11

Sports Afield .......................................................25

Stone Mountain Safaris ..............................OBC

Tuchodi River Outfitters .................................11

Wild Sheep Foundation .................................18

Yukon Big Game Outfitters ...........................39

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BRIAN GLAICAR President MARK WERNER Past-President AARON FREDLUND First Vice-President MICHAEL SCHNEIDER Second Vice-President REG COLLINGWOOD Director DAVID BERANEK Director MIKE YOUNG Director SEAN OLMSTEAD Director

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Contents

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The fall hunting season is now underway, with many clients arriving to explore and experience the natural wonders that BC, Yukon and the NWT have to offer. Bobbi and I have just returned from hunting Stone sheep in northern BC. Even though we did not get a ram the experience was great. Whether it was the big bull moose that we had feeding up from our camp, the rams that we stalked to within 50 yards (nothing legal), or the grizzly bear that spent the morning rooting around the mountain near our camp, the memories will be with us forever.

During our trip, I was able to find the time to visit a few of our member guide outfitters and their clients. Meeting clients returning from their adventures, both successful and unsuccessful, they all seemed to have an equal appreciation of the beauty and wonders that the province has to offer. Of those clients we met who were about to start their adventure, all carried a thrill and anticipation for the adventure that was about to begin.

Although it was their busy time, I also had

the chance to talk with the outfitters. I have been in the business for many years, and still marvel at each outfitter’s motivation for their job. It always comes down to the same things: the love of the wilderness and the wildlife that it holds. I appreciate watching other operations run, and seeing the time, devotion, and investment that is given to making the experience the best it can be for their clients. This only makes one realize that, as guide outfitters, we all share common goals. We are the true stewards of the land.

We operate on Crown land and harvest a Crown resource, so we have many government regulations. The GOABC realizes that this can be a burden and are working hard to reduce red tape. Even during the times when outfitters are busy with their season, the office staff at GOABC continues to advocate for the industry.

Running office and staff requires a comprehensive funding system to ensure the effectiveness of the association. The financial contributions made by both our members and our clients are put to

good use. These funds are used to address the ongoing issues with government, so that our members can deliver a quality experience, and to ensure that our clients continue to have the ability to participate in that experience. Many organizations around the world have taken to a “Round up for Conservation” type initiative to help fund their mission. The GOABC is proud to announce our first member’s business to add us to that profile. Dakota Creek Guns and Outfitting in Ferndale, Washington has teamed up with the GOABC as one of its “Round up for Conservation” partners. For those of you preparing for your hunt, please support these partners.

I hope all members and clients have a safe and successful season. If you are looking for your next hunt, you can be sure to have an experience you will always remember with a GOABC member.

Brian GlaicarPresident, GOABC

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Brian Glaicar

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PRESIDENT’S CORNER

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By the early 1930s, many wildlife populations in United States were dwindling as a result of rapid expansion and a relentless desire for land. Many wildlife species were considered pests and were intentionally removed from the landscape. In 1937 the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act was enacted, sponsored by Nevada Senator Key Pittman and Virginia Congressman Absalom Willis Robertson. Most commonly known as the Pittman-Robertson Act, the legislation was signed by Franklin D. Roosevelt on September 2, 1937 and became effective the following year.The Pittman-Robertson Act enacted several changes that drastically altered the future of fish and wildlife in the USA by earmarking an existing 11% tax on the sale of firearms and ammunition for wildlife conservation. Since its creation, this program has generated over $2 billion in funds to support wildlife habitat and conservation programs for the benefit of the general public. Today the funds are used for habitat enhancement, development of wildlife management areas, and wildlife research and inventories.

Praise for the Pittman-Robertson Act is often focused on the great leadership demonstrated by sportsmen and politicians. The enthusiasm for this aspect of the Act certainly warranted: these early conservation leaders brought to life a realistic, long-term and effective way to generate funds for wildlife. However, what is often overlooked is what the Pittman-Robertson Act did for engaging hunters in the future of wildlife conservation. The Pittman-Robertson Act was an important landmark for defining the larger goals of the hunting community, and uniting them towards those ends.

I am interested in developing a similar program for Canada. Each year sporting goods stores across the country generate over $5 billion in economic activity. Earmarking even a modest 5% tax on the sale of sporting goods could generate millions for wildlife stewardship and habitat enhancement projects in Canada. These funds could be used to help support game and non-game species through organizations such as the Habitat Conservation Trust Fund, which currently distributes funds generated through hunting and fishing licences to a variety of wildlife conservation projects in our province.

Such a tax would also better engage the general public in the future of wildlife. Every time that someone purchased a pair of hiking boots or a tent, a small fee would go towards preserving nature and wildlife for future generations to enjoy. I have written many times about the “70% in the middle.” Even though they are not hunters, they are not opposed to hunting and they care about wildlife. Our culture’s attitude has changed dramatically from the 1930s: today the general public places a much greater value on wildlife and is interested in their continued survival. Consequently, the scope for generating funds for wildlife conservation is much larger than it once was. Engaging the “70% in the middle” in this manner would also engage citizens in the reality that wildlife populations continue to exist through human efforts. Wildlife does not exist by accident. Through intentional attention, we can help ensure populations are healthy and thriving, both for the enjoyment of hunters and the general public. Straight shooting and safe travels.

Scott Ellis Executive Director, GOABC

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NEWS &VIEWS

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The 2014 hunting season is well underway as I write to you today from our base camp in the heart of the beautiful Mackenzie Mountains. So far the season has gone very well, as is normal for those of us who are blessed to operate in the mountains of the NWT. We have had the usual early summer snowstorm and there are a few reports of some thick smoke in southern regions but all in all we are well on the way to another great season of tremendous trophies and happy hunters. We had a fairly light snowfall here in the Mackenzies last winter and our spring was one of the warmest on record. As a result, we are seeing a lot of game and the hunting has been great thus far. The Association of Mackenzie Mountain Outfitters has for many years offered a scholarship program to youth from the NWT, who are pursuing a career in wildlife management or other professional careers related to the outdoors. This year, we were

able to go a step beyond and partner with “Northern Youth Leadership Society” and Gana River Outfitters to sponsor a wilderness camp for teenage girls. We all felt this would be a tremendous way to “give back” to the communities who have supported us for so long. We also felt it would be a great opportunity to make some very personal connections with the people from the communities in the Mackenzie Valley. We were able to come in and open up our camp here at Palmer Lake during the last week of June for eleven teenage girls, two youth leaders and two elders from Norman Wells. We all had a great time and did a lot of hiking, canoeing, fishing and even some mountain climbing. We were able to teach the girls a lot of wilderness survival skills—both traditional and modern. The girls helped us open up camp, get the hydro-electric system up and running and also helped out with camp chores each day. Even though it was

well before the hunting season opened we were able to teach them much about the outfitting industry and trophy hunting in general. It was a great learning experience for all of us, and a great way to build new and lasting relationships with the people from the communities along the Mackenzie Valley. We already have one young lady from Norman Wells who is planning to be on our staff next year—and hoping to become a guide one day. Feedback from Norman Wells about the camp has been very positive and so we have made some preliminary plans for another camp next year. I am really hoping that it will become an annual event. I know of no better way to garner support for our industry than through these young people.

Good hunting!Harold GrindePresident, Association of Mackenzie Mountain Outfitters (AMMO)

Dan Reynolds, President Yukon Outfitters Association

NEWS & VIEWS

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GONE HUNTING!

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preferred conservation partners

SAFARI CLUB INTERNATIONALThere is a whole wide world of hunting experiences out there; from the plains of Africa to the alpine heights of New Zealand, from elk in Montana to the big horn sheep of British Columbia. The key to all of these adventures is the men and women of the professional hunting industry. They bring the advantage of boots on the ground experience on the lands they hunt, and a vast knowledge of the game they pursue. It is the outfitter, the guide, the professional hunter who works tirelessly to give the hunter not only the greatest chance of success, but most importantly, a memorable hunting experience.

In fact, from its very beginning, the partnership between SCI and hunting professionals has been a strong and a mutually beneficial bond. SCI hunter members have access to ethical and experienced professionals. Guide outfitters and professional hunting members can be reached through SCI, and its nearly two hundred chapters, with over fifty thousand dedicated international hunters.

Each year Safari Club facilitates meetings of the Professional Outfitters and Guides

of America, the Canadian Federation of Outfitter Associations and the Operators and Professional Hunters Associations of Southern Africa. This allows each of the “top associations of the industry” the opportunity to gather and discuss important regional issues. In addition, SCI also hosts the International Professional Hunting Roundtable, the only event of its kind in the world; where members of the professional hunting industry can exchange views on the topics that impact their businesses worldwide.Each year SCI supports its affiliated professional hunting associations not only with complimentary booths at convention but also with tangible financial grants. In all, SCI supports nearly thirty associations with grants and, when possible, visits. Through its comprehensive guide and outfitter program and its investment in time, effort and money in that program, Safari Club International, “First for Hunters”, is, without question, also First for Professional Hunters, worldwide.~ Safari Club International, John Boretsky, Guide & Outfitter Liaison

DALLAS SAFARI CLUBGeneticists Banking DNA to Ensure Future of African AnimalsDALLAS – Dallas Safari Club (DSC) is continuing its financial support of a Texas A&M University effort to build a DNA repository of African game species. The growing bank of DNA samples can be used to track the genetic heritage and health of wildlife. DSC has awarded grants for this effort since 2011.“Biologists say this program is an insurance policy for the future of wildlife,” said Ben Carter, DSC executive director. “And it’s passionate, generous hunters, mainly from the U.S. who are making it go.”“Outdoor Life” magazine featured the program in its March 2014 edition. In the article, Dr. James Derr of Texas A&M related the importance of genetic diversity in the restoration of American bison. Once estimated at 30 million, only a few hundred remained by the late 1800s. Inbreeding among survivors should have led to extinction, but ranchers saved a few bison from different regions and genetic stocks. That diversity, researchers would later discover, is what saved the species.

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That’s the lesson that inspired Derr to develop the DNA repository effort for Africa, where today the fate of many species is clouded by habitat loss and poaching. Grants from DSC and other donors allowed Derr to develop more than 250 DNA-collection field kits. Professional hunters and their clients in 11 African countries now use the kits to collect hair and blood samples from game species ranging from rhinos and lions, to duikers and kudus. Back at the university, samples are analyzed, the DNA extracted, and genetic information mapped and loaded onto a database available to researchers worldwide.Carter said, “DSC is proud to be part of this effort. It’s another important way that hunters are contributing to conservation for the future.”~ Dallas Safari Club, Ben Carter, Executive Director

WILD SHEEP FOUNDATIONWSF Thinhorn Sheep Summit a Success...Thanks to GOABC and other thinhorn stakeholders.With the exceptional support of the GOABC, the first-ever multi-jurisdictional Thin Horn Sheep Summit was conducted. Nearly 70 of the best and brightest convened in Richmond, British Columbia this April to create an action plan for Dall and Stone sheep throughout Alaska, Northern BC, NWT, and the Yukon Territories.WSF brought agency managers, guide outfitters, resident sportsmen and women, First Nations representatives, businesses, and other interested stakeholders together to focus on the current status and management of Dall and Stone sheep. They identified and prioritized ecological and human-footprint challenges faced by thinhorn sheep; long-term harvest data sets, hunter opportunity, and allocation policies in those jurisdictions. “We came away from this two-day summit with just what we were after, defined and prioritized action items, timelines, work assignments, and identified deliverables,” Marc Hansen, WSF Chairman, stated. Priority topics included the need for comprehensive

management plans for thinhorn sheep in Alaska, British Columbia, Northwest Territories, and the Yukon Territory. This included holistic predator management; heightened awareness and need for action on potential risks of disease transmission from domestic sheep and goats to previously-unexposed thinhorn sheep. The need for closer analysis and management of disturbance impacts to thinhorn sheep from ATVs, OHVs, and helicopter activity was also discussed. “Attendees came well-prepared, and very diligently engaged in large-group and breakout session discussions,” stated WSF Conservation Director Kevin Hurley. “It was impressive and gratifying to see the depth of knowledge, level of commitment, and enthusiasm shown by Thinhorn Summit attendees,” added Hurley. “More than two dozen individuals, organizations, and corporations including our preferred conservation partner, the Guide Outfitters Association of BC generously contributed funds to help sponsor this Thinhorn Summit,” noted WSF President & CEO Gray N. Thornton. “To us, that shows the importance of Dall’s and Stone’s sheep to many diverse stakeholders, throughout the great north, and beyond; we thank those donors,” added Thornton. ~ Wild Sheep Foundation, Gray Thornton, President and CEO

GRAND SLAM CLUB / OVIS“Partners in Conservation.” These words are used quite often in our industry, and GSCO is very proud of our track record in this regard. Recently we have partnered with the Idaho Wild Sheep Foundation Chapter, Iowa FNAWS, Safari Club International, and have maintained our great partnership with Nevada Bighorns Unlimited over the last few years, and that is just to mention a few. Of course, we are also proud of our partnership with GOABC and hope to be a “Partner in Conservation” with such a fine organization for years to come. The most recent partnership has been with the Wyoming Game & Fish Department. We were able to promote their inaugural Super Tag Raffle program, and we understand that they sold over $650,000

in raffle tickets in this very first year. According to a department official, more tickets were sold from our email blast than by any other method. We have pledged to continue helping them, and other similar departments and organizations, in any way we can. To show our appreciation, we sent this short email after the winners were chosen: “To all GSCO members and affiliates who participated in the recent Wyoming Super Tag Raffle, we offer a sincere THANK YOU! You helped make this first time conservation raffle a HUGE success. It is dedicated hunter/conservationists like you who truly understand, “Hunting IS the number one conservation tool.”~ Grand Slam Club/Ovis, Dennis Campbell, Executive Director

BOONE & CROCKETT CLUBEthics Divides Hunters?This one is a head scratcher of sorts. Talking hunting ethics or fair chase, those things that fall outside the realm of our game laws, can get the fur-up on some folks. I guess because by the nature of such a discussion, someone is inevitably on the other side of the tracks and they don’t like having this pointed out. As these individuals, and sometimes groups, scrabble for justification or validation, what’s becoming the norm is a push back of “all this talk does is divide hunters when hunters should be united.” Au contraire.As a minority that must take into account the expectations of society, hunters should be united on a wide range of topics if these expectations are to be met. Especially when these expectations include an ethical approach to the use of any public resource, and even more so when that resource is living creatures.Hunters policing themselves, or pointing out the low ground is not an apology, nor divisive as some would jump to. It is about maintaining relevance and continuance. History has shown that the concept of fair chase has united more sportsmen than it has ever divided. ‘We’re just dividing hunters.’ That’s a swing and a miss.~ Boone and Crockett, Keith Balfourd, Director of Marketing

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the king’s castle

by Scott Ungar

We clambered up the near-vertical rock chute that lead to the very pinnacle of the nameless mountain.

Well-worn rocks told me that this was the escape route that generations of rams had used to slip away from danger. Once they were over the top and across the valley, they were out of the Yukon, and in the Northwest Territories. Ben, my guide, was moving slowly and deliberately, taking great care not to dislodge any rocks that might alert the great Dall ram that we had spotted in the morning. A wall of jagged rocks blocked our ascent. Ben dropped his pack and I did the same, knowing that there was no turning back now. Ben was quick and monkey-like, finding handholds and toeholds and hoisting himself over ledges. He waited at the top of a big ledge, offering a hand. I declined, and clawed my way up

the face of the mountain, more like a sloth than a monkey, with sweat running off my brow. I flopped my rifle, pack, and body over the ledge.

Now a jumble of giant refrigerator-sized rocks were all that stood between us and the kitchen-sized plateau that was the top of the mountain. We stayed low and wormed our way to the edge of the dizzying cliff that dropped off the backside of the mountain. It is both breathtaking and gut-wrenching; the chute on the backside is about as rugged as you can find in sheep country.

We glassed hard. Every nook and cranny was picked apart, one by one. Four hours earlier, Ben and I had watched the ram work his way over the top of the mountain. He climbed up the same chute we had, and there should be no reason for him not to be bedded up at the top...somewhere. His droppings were there, and were still warm

to the touch. The strong scent of sheep lingered in the air. We had to be close—very close. I looked over at a six-year-old ram that stood about 500 yards away. Through the binoculars, he appeared to be staring in our direction. No, wait he was staring at something directly below us. I inched my way closer to the edge of the 600 foot cliff. While I can sleep away most the afternoon 60 feet off the ground in a Saskatchewan aspen, I’m not exactly crazy about hanging off the edge of a cliff. But the prospect of a ram will make a hunter do strange things. Next thing I knew, I’ve inched my way up to the edge and I’m glassing over a hidden shelf 200 yards underneath us. In contrast to the brilliant sun-dappled south side of the mountain, the north side was dark and shaded and it’s hard to see. I glimpsed movement and instinctively jerked my head back. “Shoot!” I whispered hoarsely to Ben.

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“He’s right below us!”Days earlier as the Turbo Otter touched down on the shimmering emerald waters of Goz Lake, Yukon, my heart thumped with excitement. It seemed like it was only yesterday that I had flown out of here with my first hard-earned Dall ram in hand. It was certainly one of those experiences that defies description. The Turbo Otter roared at full power as it turned and taxied toward the dock. Hunters and guides were lined up on the dock with hands covering their ears. Guide outfitter Chris Widrig was there, as stoic as always in his light, down-filled jacket. I sat up front with the pilot and grinned like a ten-year-old kid for most of the trip. I was relieved to see that my guide from last year, Ben Stourac, was also there. I secretly hoped that he would be guiding me again this year. I shook hands with Chris, Ben and Brady Lough, and then all hands were on the gear, first unloading the Otter with our stuff then the two weeks’ worth of food for us, and oats for the horses. Wanting to take advantage of the late afternoon sun, the pilot moved swiftly, reloading the Otter quickly and methodically with gear, and hunters for the return trip to Whitehorse.I stowed my gear in the cabin as we would not be trailing out until early the next morning. As I made my way over to the cookhouse, ptarmigan scattering in front of me, and I ran into Ben. I didn’t want to bother him about hunting because I know how important downtime is after you finish a twelve day shift. Especially considering he had already spent over fifty days in the bush this year. But Ben was ready to talk. “Hey Scott,” he said. “I’m taking you out after that ram my last hunter missed. He’s a beauty, and get this: he’s in the same valley as the ram you shot last year!” While my yearning for adventure begged for new country—new mountains and foreboding canyons—common sense told me that last year’s valley was definitely worth returning to, because we had left two super rams there, as well as the one that Ben’s hunter had missed this year.The next morning we were up early, and by 8:00 a.m. we had packed three horses plus a spare, along with the two saddle horses. The nine hour ride down the river and up a valley went without incident. It was a beautiful day, sunny and warm—maybe the cursed rainy season was finally over. The horses crossed the valley creek without missing a step; it seemed that they were embracing the late August sun themselves. We set up camp about a mile upstream of the old camp, where there were more stunted spruce for firewood and an excellent vantage point to glass right from camp. After supper we stowed all our gear and broke out the binoculars to see if we could find some rams for the next morning. All we spotted were a few ewes and lambs as the sun dropped behind the mountains to the west. I can tell you though, between the scent of the silver willows, the rush of the icy stream a couple of steps from the tents, the clanging of the horse bells up in the basin, and the pungent pine smoke from our campfire, it seemed as if we hadn’t missed a day here, even though exactly a year had passed. Both Ben and I hit the tents early. It had been a full and productive day.I awoke to the jingling of tethers. Ben already had the horses tied

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up when I stumbled out of the tent and dropped down to the creek to splash some water on my face. The sky was pinkish red in the east and it looked like it would be a cloudless day. We wolfed down bacon and eggs, geared up, and were riding before the sun had broke over the mountains that separate the Yukon from the Northwest Territories.We rode for about an hour before stopping to glass a slope where one of Ben’s hunters had taken a record book caribou the week before. Sure enough, the carcass had been claimed by a good-sized grizzly. Ben glassed the north side of the valley, while I unsuccessfully tried to get a photo of the grizzly through the spotting scope. It wasn’t even thirty seconds later when I heard Ben grunt, “Ram!”The ram was easy to pick out. He stood on a green bench very near the top of a mountain that looked like a king’s castle, with lookouts and cliffs and caves all over. The ram’s horns looked perfect. He was definitely past full curl, with his tips flaring far out to each side. Ben looked excited. “That’s a real good ram up there…what do you think?” I grinned. “I think we should get up there and see if we can make a move on him.” I kept glassing the ram, partly out of disbelief. In the year before, we had gone a full eight days without even a glimpse of a legal ram. As all sheep hunters know, seeing the ram is one thing, but getting to him is another. After summiting several times and glassing the gigantic bowl on the backside, we were running out of vantage points, with no ram in sight. We skipped lunch, side-hilling further east, to the chute that went right to the very peak of the mountain. Suddenly, it was quite clear: this is where the ram had climbed over. The ram had me pinned from the moment I stuck my head over the cliff. I’m not sure if a downdraft carried our scent, but I knew we had to act fast. “Ben, the camera!” I whispered quickly. The video camera was in my pack 50 feet down the mountain behind us. Ben snuck a peak over the cliff and said, “Never mind the camera! That ram is going to blow out of here, get ready to shoot!” “How far?” I asked. Ben read the rangefinder: 191 yards. Since the ram was directly below us, I had a heck of a time getting him in my sights. “Hold my legs, Ben!” I whispered as I wiggled out over the edge. Only once my armpits were clear of the cliff edge was I was able to drop my crosshairs down onto the ram’s heart. The ram cocked his head sideways like he was listening to us and I sent the first shot on its way. Maybe it wasn’t needed, but the second shot was on its way before Ben confirmed that the first one had found its mark. Our jubilation quickly turned to horror as the ram started to flip end for end, catapulting down the mountain. It must have gone 500 yards at full speed, and would have gone a lot further if it hadn’t gotten hung up on some sharp rocks. Ben slapped me on the back saying, “Congratulations—nice shot!” All I could muster up was one nervous sentence: “There’s no way those horns survived that fall!”We sat on the top of the mountain for about 20 minutes, half enjoying the incredible view, and half afraid to go down and see how

messed up the beautiful ram was. Finally, we started making our way down the treacherous north side of the mountain, taking a good 30 minutes to make it to the ram’s side. Digging the ram’s horns out of the loose shale, I was relieved to find that both horns were still intact. One of my shots had drilled the right horn and caused some damage, however.

He was a beautiful, wide-flaring ram, with perfect matching 38 inch horns, but Ben and I had both misjudged him; he had a very tiny body. We had originally estimated him to be a 40 incher. The ram was 9 ½ years old and was still showing good growth each year. He was a direct opposite of the ram I had shot the year before, but I was still ecstatic with my trophy. I know in the future I will have many nights filled with dreams of white rams in the king’s castle.

Four days later Ben and I stalked and downed a magnificent mountain caribou in full velvet, and captured great video of the hunt. This left us five full days to relax, eat tenderloin, prepare hides, and swap stories. It is often these times that end up being the most memorable. I would like to thank Ben Stourac and Chris Widrig for their outstanding service. Chris has an exceptional commitment to keeping his outfitting area in the Yukon wild, untouched, and properly managed. If you’re looking for a quality Yukon hunt, I highly recommend Widrig Outfitters.

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EDITOR’S NOTE You can reach Widrig Outfitters at 867.393.3802 or www.widrigoutfitters.com

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Fair Chase Food ProgramGOABC’s

MEAT DONATION

Hunting in BC?Consider leaving some meat behind for our Fair Chase Food Program. Since this program began in 1993, GOABC has delivered more than 436,000 pounds of game meat, donated by our members, to families in need and local charities throughout British Columbia. In 2011, we donated 300 two-pound packages of meat on a Monday and they were all dispersed by Wednesday. There are many families in need within our communities; you can help support them by providing a portion of your meat to the Fair Chase Food Program.

Call GOABC at 604.541.6332 or email [email protected]

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Page 14: Fall 2014 Mountain Hunter Magazine

12 > Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014

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Page 15: Fall 2014 Mountain Hunter Magazine

Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 < 1313 > Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014

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Page 16: Fall 2014 Mountain Hunter Magazine

14 > Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014

I was standing in a makeshift brush blind with 15 to 20 mph winds blowing, it was about 37°F out. I had been there for an hour or so watching

the trail. I’d left my right hand glove off, as I wanted to have my trigger finger ready, but it was getting too cold. I slung my rifle over my shoulder, dug my glove out of my pocket, and slipped it on. This took only 15 seconds or so, and when I looked up, I thought to myself “I don’t remember seeing that black stump before.” Then the “stump” twitched an ear, and I saw that it was looking directly at me.I was on the second day of a week-long hunt with my friend Allan Tew of Chilanko Forks Outfitters in the Chilcotin—Cariboo range of West-Central British Columbia. As I stood there, finally realizing that I was looking at a fair sized bear, I hissed out the side of my mouth “Bear! Bear! Bear!” Allan was standing about 6 feet to my right on a small mound of dirt, glassing down the

road. The bear was about 40 yards from me, and standing broadside. In the time it had taken me to put on a glove it had appeared without a sound. I was amazed at how quiet an animal this size could be. It must have weighed well over 200 pounds. The bear looked at me for a few seconds, then lowered its head and walked down the road away from us.Allan walked over and asked me why I didn’t shoot, and I told Allan that I could see the bear had a narrow head and shoulders, which wasn’t what I was looking for. Allan agreed, and since he had a couple small trees in his line of sight, and I had a better view of the bear Al said I had made a good call. While we were talking about it, I caught sight of movement to my left and looked over. The bear was circling us! His head was to the ground and swinging side to side. His beady black eyes were fixed on my position. That sucker was 70 yards away and stalking us. I brought my rifle up, and was ready to

shoot, when Allan touched my arm and said not to shoot. Instead he tossed a rock and told the bear to go away. Lucky for the bear, he listened.When I arrived the winds were blowing hard and keeping it on the cold side. There had been a storm that had blown in off the coast, so the skies were mostly clear with broken clouds. We went out to do some scouting, when we came across tractor tire tracks on the road. We were curious, because Allan said there wasn’t a reason for a tractor to be up in that area. We followed the tracks until they turned off the main road and went down this little two-wheel rut access road. We only went 80 to 100 yards down when we saw a large bear running into the brush. We stopped, got out and looked around, and could see numerous bear tracks crossing and re-crossing the road. Allan figured out there was a good feeding area there. The decision was made to back out for the rest of the day and let things settle down, before

a bald faced bruin

Page 17: Fall 2014 Mountain Hunter Magazine

Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 < 15

returning early the next day to set up and see what showed up. There were some large, medium, and small bear tracks, so the odds were good that we’d see that big guy again.

We were hoping that we hadn’t messed up the area but those things happen. The following day we went back and this time I took along my trail cam. I wanted to set it up and see if we could get pictures of what was coming and going.

I placed it along a very well-traveled trail, and kept my fingers crossed. We spent several hours watching, and listening, but the day was a bust. Wednesday May 1st dawned quiet and very cold; I think it was 19°F. The winds had died down and the skies were clear and blue. This was perfect weather for hunting. We loaded up and headed back for another try at ‘Mister Big.’ I also wanted to get my camera and see what was on it, if anything.

We followed our usual plan, parked a quarter-mile away, and walked in to the blind. As we walked as quietly as possible, Allan heard a crashing in the brush and thought we had scared the bear off. After some quietly mumbled expletives, we started on again and after only a few steps I grabbed Allan by the arm and stopped. I could see the top of a bears head and ears through the trees. I could see that he was a big bear and was pacing and weaving side to side. He was in dark shadows though, and didn’t present any kind of shot. Fortunately the winds were blowing steady in our faces, so he couldn’t smell us. Allan handed me my shooting stick, and I set up and waited. I was carrying my favorite Remington 30.06 and was ready to fire if, or when, he stepped out. I knew it was more likely that he would turn and run deeper into the trees. So we waited. I noticed Allan, who was to my right, would lean in close and have his head near my shoulder. I thought

he was just looking at my point of aim, but he slowly moved to my left and did the same thing. I didn’t want to ask because I was focused on the bear. After about 15 to 20 minutes I saw the bear start to walk out into the open. His head was raised and I could see his nose twitching as he tried to get our scent. He had a very fat, short neck and was thick across the shoulders. I knew that he was ‘Mister Big.’ Allan whispered, “He’s big, shoot him!” I whispered back “There’s a tree in the way.” The clever bear had stopped with a small evergreen tree between us. I took a deep breath, thinking that he was going to see or smell us and be gone. But then he stepped out and gave me a perfect broadside shot. My shot struck him a couple inches behind the shoulder. I saw him stagger and lope across the road as I chambered a fresh round. As he entered the trees I saw him stop, than fall over. Allan and I celebrated.

a bald faced bruinby Patrick Vaughn

CONTINUED ON PAGE 17

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As we waited for the bear to expire, I asked Allan what he had been doing leaning near me while we were waiting to see what the bear would do. He replied that when we first spotted the bear he could hear a “thudding” and he was listening to my heartbeat. I was excited, but oh my god! My guide has great hearing.

While waiting I asked Allan “What was different about this bear? He looked like he had a two tone coat.” As we approached we saw what it was. The bear had no hair on his face! I’ve seen bears with rubbed off hair on their sides and backs but never on the face like this one. After the pictures it was time

to get down to work. We each grabbed a leg and rolled the bear over. On his chest was a large backwards “C” blaze. I’d never seen that before. When I shot the bear, we celebrated quietly; but when we saw that C we shouted “YEEEEAH!”, loud enough to knock pine needles off the trees. I couldn’t believe my luck in taking such a unique trophy.

Al started skinning the bear and I remembered my trail camera that I had set up the previous afternoon. I walked over and got the SD card and put it into my digital camera to see what had been recorded.

I ended up with 5 great pictures of the bear.

There was a man many years ago that taught me to hunt, fish, and to love the outdoors. He was strong, yet gentle. Stern and firm, yet kind. He had eyes the color of the sky that when happy shone with the warmth of a summer sun, but when angry gave off the coldness of an artic glacier. He believed that your word and a handshake was binding. This man was my Dad. I dedicate this story to him. Thanks Dad.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 15

EDITOR’S NOTE You can reach Chilanko Forks Outfitters at 250.296.4773 or www.chilankoforksoutfitters.com

Page 20: Fall 2014 Mountain Hunter Magazine
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Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 < 19

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Page 22: Fall 2014 Mountain Hunter Magazine

20 > Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014

by Bruce Hutcheon

it’s never easy

Page 23: Fall 2014 Mountain Hunter Magazine

Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 < 21

I came to the realization that, at age 61, I needed to commit to my goat hunt now, or just maybe the passage of time would not be so kind to me. I was

talking to a friend who told me about Mike Hawkridge of Tatlow Mountain Outfitters. Mike sounded like just the type of guide I wanted to hunt with, so I made the call to him. Mike was soft spoken and listened to how I answered his questions. Can you climb? Can you ride? Can you shoot? Are you mentally ready for a tough hunt? I told Mike that I would be 62 in the fall, overweight, but could ride, shoot and was willing to prepare myself for the rigors of the hunt. He must have believed me because he said he would guide me to a respectable mountain goat, so long as I did my part.

So that’s what I did. First was a full doctor’s physical to assure myself that my heart could take the increase in physical activity. I passed, so it was game on! I started my weight loss program originally weighing 240 pounds. By August 29, 2008, I was down to 220. As a mid-summer test, I made a hike up Big Cottonwood Canyon in Utah. The three hour, six-mile round trip ascended over 3000 feet and proved to me that I was ready for the hunt. My final exam was

at the rifle range with my favorite rifle, a 30-06 named ‘The Rock.’ At the end of the shooting session I had proven I could put 5 shots inside a 2.5” group at 300 yards.

My flights and customs clearing were seamless, and I was feeling some great karma as my rifle case slid on to the luggage rack. My duffel, rifle case and carry-on’s were all present and accounted for. At baggage claim Mike walked up and extended his hand to welcome me to British Columbia and Tatlow Mountain Outfitters. I liked this man already by his straight talk, great smile, and positive manner. We finalized all the town chores, picked up the camp cook Alice, and headed out to Yohetta Wilderness Lodge. Five hours later we rolled into beautiful Tuzcha Lake as the sun was setting over the Chilcotin Range.

Saturday’s first order of business was ensuring ‘The Rock’ was dead on after the long flight and rough truck ride to camp. Four inches high at 100 yards was the verdict. Mike smiled and knew that part of the equation was in place for success. The next day, I leisurely packed my gear in panniers before mounting up on my horse ‘Lady Jane’ and heading out with my guide Tom, camp cook Alice, and camp dog Lobo, who led the way. A misty rain was falling as

we left the corrals. The rain promised that snow would be falling up at our spike camp ‘Graveyard.’ A tale is told of two prospectors who never made it out of the high country one winter, and the following spring their remains were found as the snow receded in the high alpine basin. Indeed, there are two graves there marked with old pots and pans. The ride through the forest and onto the high alpine country was wet but without wind. ‘Lady Jane’ was a surefooted mare and never missed a step during our ride. ‘Graveyard’ camp was full of surprises; on our arrival there was definite evidence of a grizzly visiting the camp. Lobo went on full alert as we unpacked the panniers. Tom grabbed his rifle and instructed me to do the same and follow him. Lobo continued to growl but nothing showed. What a welcome to spike camp! Soon we had a fire going, and with a gentle breeze rustling the tent we settled in for the night.Morning came enshrouded in a fog. We hung around camp until the fog lifted, then off we went to the high country that mountain goats call home. Tom knows these mountains, as he grew up here, and has seen every nook and cranny. We rode up about 2500 feet in elevation and found our first

CONTINUED ON PAGE 22

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22 > Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014

basin to glass. We gained another 500 feet of elevation to basin number two, and found evidence of mountain goats in the form of tuffs of hair, but once again, after an hour of glassing, the verdict was that there was no one home. He looked up the side of the mountain and said that we needed to get up there to check out the next basin. Up there is a 500 feet near vertical climb in shale leading our horses. It was awesome to look into these high alpine basins and see perfect mountain goat habitat, but again no one was home. Tuesday came with a new skiff of snow on the mountain slopes above camp. Mike had arrived at camp last evening and was now my guide. We saddled up for the ascent to timberline. He and I rode even higher than yesterday to get in to a different drainage. Above timberline, we tied off our horses on stunted conifer. We hiked about a half mile. Mike took the lead to peer into the basin. Soon he signaled that he had found a mountain goat at the head off the basin but that it was over 800 yards away. We had to drop back to remain out of sight and climb the mountain to gain elevation. It took a while to gain 1500 feet, but we reached a vantage point only to have Mike peer over the edge and discover that it was a lone nanny and, though legal, we should pass. I nodded in agreement, and we continue to the summit and worked the ridge towards other basins. We reached our glassing location and peered into numerous basins without a sighting. Mike told me that we would leave these mountains in the morning, return to the lodge, and then hunt another area tomorrow afternoon.We awoke to a steady rain that slowly turned to a misty morning. Not the best conditions, but we made the best of it and walked the lower lake trail in less than three hours. Mike checked on me from time to time and just smiled as we rode along the lake trail leading to the lodge. No complaints from me as it was all part of the adventure. Once we got to the lodge Mike told me to get my daypack together and be ready to leave in an hour after he took care of unpacking the horses. Gwen, the lodge chef, had a wonderful stew for our quick lunch and then wished us good hunting as we left for a 4x4 ride to timberline. It was about a two hour drive to the point where we left the lodge, and another quick ninety minute climb to get to the alpine basin Mike had in mind for the afternoon hunt. Unfortunately, we were not the only hunters on the mountain; two resident hunters had also decided to hunt this basin. They had a head start, but Mike knew how to get around the side of the mountain to a place that would allow us to glass and determine if any goats were home. The race was on! It didn’t take Mike long to find three mountain goats on our side of the basin. Now things got very interesting; the other two hunters were visible just below the peak looking down into the basin, and surely could see at least one of the bedded mountain goats. We were level with the mountain goats at 400 yards away. I crawled forward to view my first legal mountain goat through the spotting scope. He looked awesome bedded in the shale across the basin, with great mass to his horns all the way to the tips. Mike confirmed the

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 21

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Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 < 23

EDITOR’S NOTE You can reach Mike Hawkridge of Big Country Outfitters at 1.877.482.8569 or www.bigcountryguides.com, and you can contact Tatlow Mountain Outfitters at 1.877.482.8569.

one on the left was best of the three, and should go nine inches. He handed me my rangefinder, and I dialed the bedded goat at 434 yards, with no wind, and no elevation variance. I said, “I can make the shot.” I replaced the spotting scope with ‘The Rock.’ The bipod allowed me to hold steady, and I set the crosshair at the top of the shoulder and squeezed the trigger. The goat absorbed the shot and began to traverse the slope to a rock. The Billy reached the rock, and lied down out of sight. Mike and I gathered our gear and headed upward to gain altitude before crossing the half-mile wide basin. It took a while to reach where the mountain goat was first bedded. We confirmed that he was hit hard. We followed the blood trail to the second bed, which again confirmed a hard hit. Mike and I rapidly climbed the ridge where we last saw the goat, and upon reaching the top of the

ridge, we dropped our daypacks to listen and look for the animal. Due to the steepness of terrain, I could only see the Billy’s horns. I readied myself to shoot, and the Billy stood and looked at me as ‘The Rock’ boomed, sending the Billy off the ledge to a resting place. Mike and I watched and discussed the recovery. Time of day, cloud cover, and moisture were against a safe recovery that night. We verified that the mountain goat had expired, and decided to return in the morning to recover my trophy.The morning dawned bright and sunny. We traveled the same 4x4 road and parked just below timberline. We climbed quickly to the high basin, and traversed its rocky slopes. We paused to plan our descent to the fallen Billy. It was some 200 yards of rotten shale and loose talus that we had to negotiate. Mike looked me in the eye and asked if I was up for the descent. He did not want me to go

unless I was comfortable with the situation. It was very steep, and offered no real easy way down (easy being a relative term here). I realized the danger of the situation, but was confident of my ability to make it down and back with no harm to Mike or myself. So it’s off the side of the mountain we go, slowly making our way to the goat using any handholds available. After a few more tense minutes, we finally arrived where the goat had come to rest. The view was magnificent. Mike got to work and I held the trophy so he could work as efficiently as possible, given the steepness of the mountain slope we found ourselves on. The cape and edible meat came off the goat, and we made the ascent back to the ridge. Trophy, guide, and hunter headed to the waiting lodge with a true wilderness experience forever etched in our memory.

Page 26: Fall 2014 Mountain Hunter Magazine

24 > Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014

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Page 27: Fall 2014 Mountain Hunter Magazine

Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 < 25

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Page 28: Fall 2014 Mountain Hunter Magazine

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26 > Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014

Page 29: Fall 2014 Mountain Hunter Magazine

Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 < 27

Page 30: Fall 2014 Mountain Hunter Magazine

conservation matters

believe it will be in this century that the great significance of conservation will be realized. With seven billion human beings demanding so much of one good planet, it is now inevitable that a collision between our numbers and our expectations must occur. The desire of peoples everywhere for a full and reasonable life will place unprecedented demands on natural systems, demands that may well lie beyond the earth’s capacity to provide. If this is true then the great notion launched upon the world over a hundred years ago that we term conservation will become the one idea that can truly save humanity. In its embrace will lie our future, a future only possible if the great web of life upon which we and all creatures depend is protected and sustained.It may seem incredible to us living in the twenty first century that far sighted individuals called this matter to our attention so very long ago. How was it that individuals like Theodore Roosevelt, George Bird Grinnell, Gordon Hewitt and Sir Wilfred Laurier were able to see so clearly the problems of excessive natural resource use and to predict such dire consequences for North American society? More importantly, how were these individuals able to instil these notions in the political and economic institutions of their time? How on a continent with vast areas still unoccupied, with an extraordinary abundance of natural capital and very few people by today’s standards did a movement centered on the conservation of nature and the wise use of renewable natural resources take hold? What indeed are the secrets to

effective conservation leadership?It is natural enough that we should develop an impression that only individuals of social or political prominence were responsible for conservation’s success; and that political influence, in particular, is the essential runway for great ideas. After all, isn’t this the lesson that most historical reconstructions deliver? Thus it is not surprising that so many conservation organizations today focus on attaining political influence as a means to advance their programs. Furthermore, it would be ridiculous to suggest that engaging the political process in a democratic environment is without utility or impact. However, it is an open question as to whether political elites and the influence they appear to have had in hindsight are the result of the lobbying of the few or the understood desires and commitments of

the many. I suggest that if democracy has taught us anything, it is that the wishes of the people, when expressed, will override any other political agenda. Despite this salient truth, the conservation movement has to a large extent moved away from an agenda of trying to convince society of the social, cultural and economic value of our positions. To what end, we should certainly ask; for this was the truck and traffic, indeed the very raison d’être of our birth and founding. It was the rallying cry of our leaders and the great hope of our visionaries. It was the dialogue in our meeting halls and our back rooms, in our pubs and our restaurants, in our club houses and offices; in the parlours and storefronts, the newspapers and magazines of our earliest, and I would argue, our greatest time in conservation. Regrettably, this trade for public influence has been set

aside. We no longer strive for the hearts of our nations’ publics. We have replaced this with an emphasis on membership rosters and obtaining political influence, both often emphasizing specific issues that can hardly be viewed as being of the greatest public value or concern. The result has been an indifferent public, by and large, and one totally uninformed about conservation issues and the relevance of hunting in modern times. It seems to me that the very things we lament are the things we have worked hardest to realize. Isn’t it time for this to change? Isn’t it abundantly clear that the elephant in the room for hunting and for conservation generally is the public we have failed to engage? Isn’t it time to delve into the true nature of conservation leadership and

with Shane Mahoney

Size, Influence, and Power: Are These the Wings of Leadership?

About Shane Shane Mahoney is considered one of

the leading international authorities on

wildlife conservation. A rare combination

of historian, scientist and philosopher he

brings a unique perspective to wildlife issues

that has motivated and inspired audiences

around the world. Named one of the 10 Most

Influential Canadian Conservationists by

Outdoor Canada Magazine and nominated

for Person of the Year by Outdoor Life

Magazine, he has received numerous

awards including the Public Service

Award of Excellence from the government

of Newfoundland and Labrador and

International Conservationist of the Year by

Safari Club International. Born and raised

in Newfoundland he brings to his writings

and lectures a profound commitment to rural

societies and the sustainable use of natural

resources, including wildlife and fish.

I

Thank you to Sports Afield for permission to reprint this article.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 30

28 > Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014

Page 31: Fall 2014 Mountain Hunter Magazine

conservation matters

believe it will be in this century that the great significance of conservation will be realized. With seven billion human beings demanding so much of one good planet, it is now inevitable that a collision between our numbers and our expectations must occur. The desire of peoples everywhere for a full and reasonable life will place unprecedented demands on natural systems, demands that may well lie beyond the earth’s capacity to provide. If this is true then the great notion launched upon the world over a hundred years ago that we term conservation will become the one idea that can truly save humanity. In its embrace will lie our future, a future only possible if the great web of life upon which we and all creatures depend is protected and sustained.It may seem incredible to us living in the twenty first century that far sighted individuals called this matter to our attention so very long ago. How was it that individuals like Theodore Roosevelt, George Bird Grinnell, Gordon Hewitt and Sir Wilfred Laurier were able to see so clearly the problems of excessive natural resource use and to predict such dire consequences for North American society? More importantly, how were these individuals able to instil these notions in the political and economic institutions of their time? How on a continent with vast areas still unoccupied, with an extraordinary abundance of natural capital and very few people by today’s standards did a movement centered on the conservation of nature and the wise use of renewable natural resources take hold? What indeed are the secrets to

effective conservation leadership?It is natural enough that we should develop an impression that only individuals of social or political prominence were responsible for conservation’s success; and that political influence, in particular, is the essential runway for great ideas. After all, isn’t this the lesson that most historical reconstructions deliver? Thus it is not surprising that so many conservation organizations today focus on attaining political influence as a means to advance their programs. Furthermore, it would be ridiculous to suggest that engaging the political process in a democratic environment is without utility or impact. However, it is an open question as to whether political elites and the influence they appear to have had in hindsight are the result of the lobbying of the few or the understood desires and commitments of

the many. I suggest that if democracy has taught us anything, it is that the wishes of the people, when expressed, will override any other political agenda. Despite this salient truth, the conservation movement has to a large extent moved away from an agenda of trying to convince society of the social, cultural and economic value of our positions. To what end, we should certainly ask; for this was the truck and traffic, indeed the very raison d’être of our birth and founding. It was the rallying cry of our leaders and the great hope of our visionaries. It was the dialogue in our meeting halls and our back rooms, in our pubs and our restaurants, in our club houses and offices; in the parlours and storefronts, the newspapers and magazines of our earliest, and I would argue, our greatest time in conservation. Regrettably, this trade for public influence has been set

aside. We no longer strive for the hearts of our nations’ publics. We have replaced this with an emphasis on membership rosters and obtaining political influence, both often emphasizing specific issues that can hardly be viewed as being of the greatest public value or concern. The result has been an indifferent public, by and large, and one totally uninformed about conservation issues and the relevance of hunting in modern times. It seems to me that the very things we lament are the things we have worked hardest to realize. Isn’t it time for this to change? Isn’t it abundantly clear that the elephant in the room for hunting and for conservation generally is the public we have failed to engage? Isn’t it time to delve into the true nature of conservation leadership and

with Shane Mahoney

Size, Influence, and Power: Are These the Wings of Leadership?

About Shane Shane Mahoney is considered one of

the leading international authorities on

wildlife conservation. A rare combination

of historian, scientist and philosopher he

brings a unique perspective to wildlife issues

that has motivated and inspired audiences

around the world. Named one of the 10 Most

Influential Canadian Conservationists by

Outdoor Canada Magazine and nominated

for Person of the Year by Outdoor Life

Magazine, he has received numerous

awards including the Public Service

Award of Excellence from the government

of Newfoundland and Labrador and

International Conservationist of the Year by

Safari Club International. Born and raised

in Newfoundland he brings to his writings

and lectures a profound commitment to rural

societies and the sustainable use of natural

resources, including wildlife and fish.

I

Thank you to Sports Afield for permission to reprint this article.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 30

Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 < 29

Page 32: Fall 2014 Mountain Hunter Magazine

30 > Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014

adopt those principles for moving our agenda forward? Isn’t it time to remember that just as a man must draw back to leap, so too must a society or intellectual movement? If one studies the progress of ideas—indeed the very nature of progress itself—this conclusion is inescapable. I am prepared to argue that we have been treating the issues of hunting’s relevance and conservation’s importance as though they were marketing slogans for the advancement of our organizations, rather than matters of profound significance to the quality of our lives and the essential worth of our nations. Yet these latter were precisely the messages of those great founders of our conservation movement; those individuals whom today we so often refer to and worship. It is important for us to remember that individuals like Roosevelt and Laurier viewed conservation not only as a matter of national concern, but also as a matter of national relevance. Relentless citizens, they sought to improve the inherent worth of their countries and recognized that prudent, wise use of natural resources and the conservation of wildlife were signatures of progressive leadership. Yet, regardless of their political influence or personal prestige, these individuals understood that no such turn of society’s

wheel could be made without the hands of the public upon it. They knew that to carry the great ideas forward they needed more than an influential office, a few political allies or a devoted club membership. They understood that in democracies something greater than the individual exists, regardless of how significant the individual is. They understood the mechanics of change. Yet, paradoxically, they also recognized that nothing moves beyond the conceptual unless an individual (or group), somewhere, somehow, decides to accept the yoke of leadership and action. In this regard they imparted two essential truths; namely, that while the individual and his allies may incite, only the masses may ultimately succeed; yet, the masses must be catalyzed to action by specific influence just as the tides must be pulled and pushed to the land wash margins. The resting potential of the democratic ideals must be roused from slumber, lassitude being the normal state of play, this being true of conservation as for any other matter of social engagement. The good news in all of this, it seems to me, is that the public’s current indifference may be the greatest of all opportunities for ideas to take hold. In some regards the most fertile ground is always that which lies unfurrowed. Indeed, I suggest this is

in part why Roosevelt and company were so successful in their time, bringing a new idea to the national focus of proud and emergent North American nations. What then are the true lessons from our conservation past? How did the legendary heroes of conservation accomplish what they did, against such improbable odds? Was it all a matter of size, inf luence and power? I should

think not. Theodore

Roosevelt, John Muir and George Bird Grinnell were probably three of the most successful conservation leaders of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Between them they launched both the wilderness movement and the North American wildlife conservation success story that we benefit so extravagantly from today and which together encircle one of the greatest achievements of modern society. The vision they crystallized and the pathway to progress they engineered are lessons in success. I suggest we study them closely.

In doing so we will discover that size, influence and power are not the real wings of leadership, as significant as they might be. Discovering and discoursing with the public and delivering to them the ideals we believe to be of importance and value, this is the hallmark of leadership. This is what Roosevelt, Muir and Grinnell excelled in, and why they and Laurier and Hewitt and all those other conservation rebels devoted their energies towards public engagement. For if our efforts are not directed to the good of society, rather than to our personal or organizational largesse, can we really defend our efforts as an exercise of the national interest? Isn’t our goal to ensure a future for our national treasures of wilderness and wildlife, of cherished cultures and traditions such as hunting and all that incredible experience entails? I believe our conservation organizations are getting off track, though our motivations may be above reproach. Believing that more members or warm handshakes from the political insiders will give us more influence, have we forgotten the true mission of our leadership as well as our best chance of accomplishing it?

Seemingly we believe that more of the same will lead to the change we seek. I do not believe this. It is like constantly improving the design of a car when what we really need is an aircraft. Like true leadership the winds of change also require wings—not bigger wheels. No matter how improbable or chaotic, these wings will be fashioned in the hands of the common man. Our movement must get back to a dialogue with him.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 29

The Guide Outfitters Association of British Columbia

(GOABC) wants to start a fundamental shift among

hunters from caring about hunting to caring about all

wildlife. Ranchers care about cattle and anglers care

about fish, but hunters seem to only care about their

sport. Hunters must be committed to the responsible use

of wildlife resources and passionate about preserving

a diversity of wildlife species. The GOABC is a strong

supporter of the North American Wildlife Conservation

Model, which stipulates that law and science should

manage wildlife. This model is the result of hunters

and anglers who were dedicated to conservation. As

anti-hunting pressure becomes louder, it becomes

increasingly important to continue and enhance the

legacy of the hunter conservationist.

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The mission of the Guide Outfitters Association of British Columbia (GOABC) is to be the leader among guide outfitting associations in the areas of governance and organizational performance while ensuring legal and ethical integrity. The GOABC promotes guide outfitting to government and within our communities.

We help market the Canadian northwest as the premier hunting destination and endorse the responsible, sustainable and ethical use of the wildlife resource.

We encourage our members to honour a Code of Conduct and follow best practices to ensure the highest quality wilderness experiences for hunting clients. The vision of the GOABC is a province with a strong and stable guide outfitting industry, innovative wildlife conservation projects led by hunters, and abundant big game populations for all to enjoy, both today and in the future.

GOABCM

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Page 36: Fall 2014 Mountain Hunter Magazine

34 > Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014

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Page 37: Fall 2014 Mountain Hunter Magazine

Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 < 35

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1 Don Kirn* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MS2 Gary Bogner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MI3 Robert Anderson . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC4 J .W . Mather . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC5 Barry Naimark † . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC6 Keith Connors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC7 Bernie Fiedeldey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OH8 Kelly Davis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA9 Carl Phillips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR10 Alden Glidden . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR11 Dave Wiens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB12 Kevin Olmstead . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC13 Victoria Olmstead . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC14 Sean Olmstead . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC15 Nathan Olmstead . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC16 Frank Bower* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB17 Rolf Larson † . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ND18 Gary Koopman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC19 Nancy Koopman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC20 Harry McCowan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC21 Sherry Bradford † . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC22 Eric Mikkelson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC23 Brian Tinker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR24 Gomer Erickson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .WI25 Larry Bell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA26 Allen Shearer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA27 Bill Kiefer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ND28 Dana Campbell † . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .AK29 David Witmer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .PA30 Dale Gaugler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .PA31 Peter Schnabl . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AUT32 Joe Krejci . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IL33 Brad Miller* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR34 Daryll Hosker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC35 Holton Quinn* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ID36 Rick Taylor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC37 Rodney Denton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .LA38 Bjorn Ostervold † . . . . . . . . . . . . NOR39 Jay Baker † . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA40 Tom Lally . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA41 Kenneth Tuttle † . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR42 Ken Tuttle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR43 Brian Pelczar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MT44 David Nelson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA45 Jim Marhofer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MI46 Wilhelm Klee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DEU47 Bert Kizer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GA48 Tom Johnson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA49 Tom Shearer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA50 Garth Carter* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .UT51 Rod Fogle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA

52 Joe Leta † . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CO53 Jerry Tyrrell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA54 David Thompson . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC55 Mike Justice † . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ID56 Del Carter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA57 Roger Baber . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . VI58 Dick Jacobs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA59 Rick Jarvis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NY60 Richard Deane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA61 Rocky Crate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA62 Tom McDonald . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .PA63 Thomas Hillebrande . . . . . . . . . . NH64 James Colosimo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FL65 Fran Colosimo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FL66 Joe Colosimo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FL67 Nick Colosimo* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FL68 Gary Tuohy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MI69 Susan Tuohy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MI70 Kirk Fordice* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MS71 Johnny Rodrigues . . . . . . . . . . . . NY72 Clint Bentley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NV73 David Bull* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ID74 Don Burch* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ID75 Stan Lancaster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .YK76 Tommy Ford . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NV77 John Wasserburger . . . . . . . . . . . NV78 Larry Brough . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .PA79 Mark Southard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MD80 Stan Cosart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CA81 Jeff Phipps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA82 Robert Jones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA83 Ralph Gitz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .PA84 Karl Tyler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MT85 Harvey Fenton* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NV86 Richard Furman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NV87 Gary Jorgensen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ND88 Taz Ridley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . KS89 Lee McKenzie † . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NV90 Fred Douglas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . KS91 Ralph Maida* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC92 David Gubler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NV93 Norm Blaney . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC94 Philip Krum, Jr . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CA95 Riley Ferguson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .TN96 Archie Nesbitt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB97 Van Dorathy* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MT98 Kevin Shearer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA99 Andrew Shearer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MT100 Jeff Owens † . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR101 Wilf Boardman* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC102 Greg Sawchuck . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

103 Alan Hamberlin* . . . . . . . . . . . . . .AZ104 Grant Dalen* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NV105 Lyle Barsby . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC106 Iowa Chapter of FNAWS . . . . . . . . IO107 Johnny Christian* . . . . . . . . . . . . GA108 Stephen Mistretta . . . . . . . . . . . . . FL109 Ed Minto . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MI110 Ronald Simek . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WY111 Tracy Peterson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA112 Dale Scott . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA113 Alan Chopp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NJ114 John Andre . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WY115 Shane Black . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC116 Gary Grant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .TX117 Brian Swift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC118 John McGregor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA119 Gary Hull* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NV120 Ken Pickering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC121 Jim Fulton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC122 Jim Stevens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA123 Rocky Mackin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .UT124 Hugh Pettit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IL125 Steve McNamara . . . . . . . . . . . . . CA126 Ron Andrews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .PA127 Kurt Rosar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DEU128 SCI - NE Michigan Chapter . . . . . . .MI129 Jergen Shchulz* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC130 Ernst Schlaeppi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CHE131 Denise Collett . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC132 Gary Collett . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC133 Kent Deligans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .TX134 J .F . Ollenberg, Jr . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AUS135 Paul Thompson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA136 Charles Cheshire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA137 John Rousseau . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .WI138 Dick Rousseau* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .WI139 Randy Hopp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR140 Mike Parsons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MT141 Stan Neff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MI142 Finley (Ike) Brunetti . . . . . . . . . . . MS143 Thomas Losk* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .PA144 Ed Parish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CA145 James Cummings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FL146 Ron Pitcock* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CO147 Kenneth Davis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA148 Roger Hooper* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .TX149 Eric Peterson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA150 His Imperial & Royal Highness Archduke Rudolf of Austria . . . CHE151 Gary Rueb . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MT152 Randy Gee* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC153 Stefan Eckschlager . . . . . . . . . . . AUT

154 Frank Kirsch, Jr . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR155 Dean Mori . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .PA156 Alan Ford . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AUS157 Markus Ospelt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . LIE158 Mike Wilmot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MI159 Lance Norris . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MI160 Troy Cummins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR161 Brenda Nelson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC162 James Brooks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA163 Ken Nagel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA164 Todd Thorndike . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA165 Wayne Dalgleish* . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC166 Glen Kitsch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA167 Matt Mitchell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA168 Lee Howard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .UT169 Mark Bansner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .PA170 George Mann* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .AL171 Kostynuk Outfitting Co . . . . . . . . AB172 Alfredo Julian . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA173 Casey Brooks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA174 Jerry Stroh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA175 Linda Lancaster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB176 Jim Stroh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA177 Maynard Anderson . . . . . . . . . . . WA178 Dick Storgaard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA179 Ed Sauley, III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .NE180 Shane Watson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC181 Bob Nielsen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC182 George Snyder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .DE183 Doug Davis* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC184 Jean Davis* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC185 Ron Fitch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC186 Mark Velthouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MI187 Ron Nykamp* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MI188 Frank Paino . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NY189 Ray Jackson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC190 Daniel Gauthier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MI191 Larry Tyson* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MN192 Sid Websdale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB193 Michael Peppel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MI194 Cathy Lancaster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB195 Bart Lancaster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC196 Clay Lancaster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC197 Guy Shockey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC198 Jim Shockey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC199 Dale Drown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .YK200 Ron Fleming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC201 Ellie Wiens* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC202 Rod Wilt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MI203 Charles Smith . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GA204 Bob McCormick . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA

36 > Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014

† Deceased, *Missing in Action (please contact GOABC to update your address)

GOABC LIFE MEMBERS

Page 39: Fall 2014 Mountain Hunter Magazine

Thanks for your support!

205 Kerry Mann . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC206 Rick Garzoli, Jr .* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CA207 Delvin Lockard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .PA208 J . Barry Burgess . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .AL209 Jerry Horn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .PA210 Jens Piening . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DEU211 Marco Gardini* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MI212 SCI - Denver Chapter . . . . . . . . . . CO213 Ray Demarchi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC214 Fletcher Day † . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC215 Monte Schumann . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC216 Dieter Weinhold* . . . . . . . . . . . . DEU217 Chris A . Dianda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NV218 Ray Yelland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .UT219 Lyle E . Hach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .WI220 Lenenrt Fostberg . . . . . . . . . . . . SWE221 James P . Harris . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IL222 J . Steven Mohr . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC223 Robert C . Harter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MI224 Clifford (Bud) Pulsifer . . . . . . . . . . .MN225 William E . Roberts, Jr . . . . . . . . . . .MI226 David Christensen . . . . . . . . . . . . OR227 Dan Heyne . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OH228 Roy Mulvahill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC229 James Schueller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MN230 Dallas Safari Club . . . . . . . . . . . . .TX231 Bill DuBois . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC232 Earl McKellar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC233 Ransom F . Spurlock, II . . . . . . . . . NV234 Tim Faiers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC235 Ron Taylor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB236 Gordon Bennet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MI237 Dave Hooper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC238 Brian Kadrmas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ND239 Keith Dinwoodie . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC240 Ronald Pomeroy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WY241 Bill Wilson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MT242 Charles (Dennis) Anderson . . . . . . . CA243 Arnold T . Holmberg . . . . . . . . . . . MN244 Hans-Peter Buchs . . . . . . . . . . . . CHE245 Lester Bloin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC246 Laurence R . Fountain † . . . . . . . . MA 247 SCI - Granite Bay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CA248 Ronald Kull . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NY249 Richard Kull . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NY250 Soren Sorenson . . . . . . . . . . . . . DNK251 Glenn Venus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC252 Mike Kidall . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA253 SCI - Tuscon Chapter . . . . . . . . . . .AZ254 Dan Groninger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .PA255 Joyce Maitland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB 256 Jerry Kolke . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NM

257 Harve R . Dethlefts . . . . . . . . . . . . OR258 Eric M . Muff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB259 Sean Lingl . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC260 Don Wolfenden . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC261 Lynne Damant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC262 James Kirkpatrick . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR263 Blair Soars . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .PA264 Charles Semler, Jr . . . . . . . . . . . . . MD265 Larry Russak . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA266 Peter Amhof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AUT267 Gholam Golsorkhi . . . . . . . . . . . . NY268 Larry Merillat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MI269 John Michelloti . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MT270 Sharon Rhodes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA271 Dennis Dunn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA272 SCI - LA Chapter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CA273 Richard Gronblom . . . . . . . . . . . . FIN274 Jeff C . Gunter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA 275 Gary Hill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CO276 Rudy Gauss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC277 Ronald D . Carey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB 278 Stuart Maitland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC279 Robert Milligan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC280 William Jenkins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CA281 T .J . Kraft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MI282 Mike Dianda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NV283 Doug Schippers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MI284 Richard Machin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC285 Robert Machin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC286 Glen Kuenzl † . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC287 Pat Beane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA288 Steve Whisler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MT289 Naozo Kasahara . . . . . . . . . . . . . .JPN290 Terrance Marcum . . . . . . . . . . . . . CO291 William Clous . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MI292 Charles (Chuck) LaMar . . . . . . . . . FL293 Ross Peck . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC294 Jeff Graham . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA295 David McCauley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA296 Pat Miller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA297 Eric Moland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB298 Sam Johnson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA299 Ulrich Wyssbrod . . . . . . . . . . . . . CHE300 Chip McBroom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA301 Dixie Hammett . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC302 Doug Prince . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB303 Jerry T . Martin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA304 Doug Eck . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA305 Seve Michelloti . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MT306 Ken Clarke . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC307 Rowan Johnson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA

308 Seattle Sportsmen’s Conservation Foundation . . . . . . WA309 Mary Ellen Swift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC310 Adam Swift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC311 Shannon Venus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC312 Stephen Venus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC313 Darren Thiel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC314 Randy Rombs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB315 Glen Hiebert . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC316 Lawrence Yerger . . . . . . . . . . . . . .PA317 William Whitehead . . . . . . . . . . . .BC 318 Tommy Johnson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA319 Garth Peterson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CO320 Leroy Thomsen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA321 Troy Vest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR322 Andre Strand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NOR323 Debbie Beattie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC324 Dennis Beattie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC325 Wayne Bowd . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB326 Raymond Oelrich . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC327 David Fyfe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC328 Steve Letcher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .AZ329 Tyler Thorndike . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA330 David Currier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ND331 Steve Eicholtz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ND332 Leroy Miller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR333 Randall Bergeron* . . . . . . . . . . . . .TX334 Tony Pannkuk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA335 Cherie Jackson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC336 Jeff Batchman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CA337 Kurt Schriener . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . SK338 Dale Hislop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB339 Bruce Rhein . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .AK340 Scot Anderson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA341 Mark Demchuk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB342 Sandy Wheeler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA343 Shad Wheeler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA344 Vincent J . Cracchiolo . . . . . . . . . . .MI345 Conrad Nunweiler* . . . . . . . . . . . .BC346 AC Smid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WY347 David Heitsman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC348 Mark Gittins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC349 Ed Swanson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR350 David Bahl . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .WI351 Gary Nutini . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC352 Lance Schneider . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB353 Chris Machan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB354 Larry Warren . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC355 Scott Ellis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC356 Nancy Wilkin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC357 Dave Turchanski . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC358 Kathy Kirkpatrick . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR

359 Horst Mindermann . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

360 Rod Brandenburg . . . . . . . . . . . . . CO

361 Arthur Thompson . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

362 Brian Connors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

363 Verne Crookshanks . . . . . . . . . . . WA

364 Lory Puntenney . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OR

365 Michael Schneider . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

366 Mike Southin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

367 Bert Robidoux . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

368 Lou Vannucci . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NV

369 Bruce Ambler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

370 Bert Badey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

371 John Jackson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .LA

372 Gray Thornton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WY

373 Mike Danielson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

374 Glenn Fallis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

375 Charles Eider . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA

376 Marc Hubbard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

377 Leif Olsen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

378 Steven Leuenberger . . . . . . . . . . .BC

379 Bradley Bowden . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

380 Darryl Sword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

381 Luis Salinas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

382 Reid Werner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

383 Vimal Iver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AB

384 Eric Rhodes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WA

385 Sonny Perkinson . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

386 Derrick Stevens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

387 Alex Brucker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

388 Kayla Solmonson . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

389 Mike Gilson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

390 Eugene Egler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

391 Cody Sword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

392 Samantha Ellis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

393 Bob McGee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ID

394 Brian Glaicar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC

395 Lee Friend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GA

396 Craig Bodington . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CA

397 Dustin Elliott . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .YT

Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 < 37

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some things just happen for a reason

by Craig Summerfield

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Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 > 41

It was day six of a seven day hunt for a tom mountain lion. My lynx was already in the bag, with my British Columbian cougar still lurking out

there. The outfitter and I had been searching for tracks long and hard all week long, with hundreds of miles beneath us. It wasn’t until about noon when we saw a set of adolescent cougar tracks traveling together, which were surely those of a male and female. The outfitter looked at me and asked, “What would you like to do?”

The outfitter was Doug McMann of Skinner Creek Hunts out of Tatlayoko Lake, British Columbia. I met Doug on an internet hunting forum after reading several stories posted by him and other hunters. I was really impressed by the size of the cats he was taking, and the more I learned of Doug and his operation, the more interested I became. Since this was going to be my second and last

attempt at taking a trophy-size tom cougar, I wanted to go where the opportunity was high and the outfitter was dedicated. More importantly than this, I needed an outfitter that was going to be patient and understanding of my needs. Since multiple sclerosis had left my eyesight imperfect seven years prior, this was important to me.

Doug has much experience with assisting the handicapped of various degrees in chasing, and in many cases, obtaining their dreams in the field. He is a true supporter of the Wounded Warriors in Action Foundation, and has helped improve and promote the Action Track Chair. Several of his hunts have even been filmed and broadcasted with these heroes and hunting celebrities.

My hunt took place during the first week of December and Doug met me at the William’s Lake airport after a short flight from Vancouver. While in town, I was able

to gather my required licenses and permits. The drive to Doug’s place typically takes about three hours, but it took a bit longer, as we stopped to look for tracks along the way. This also allowed us to gauge the snowfall and activity in the outer limits of his area. Several different tracks of wolf, lynx, coyote, and fox were discovered, but no cougar.

I used this opportunity to explain my disease and to physically show Doug my visual limitations. Explaining these limitations has always been very difficult and embarrassing for me, but it brought the greatest sense of relief after I explained it to him. Eventually, we made it back to Doug’s beautiful log cabin, where I met his wife Julie and his daughter Courtney. Julie prepared a wonderfully delicious meal as we planned our strategy for the upcoming days. Julie was a highly regarded cook amongst all the

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hunters, so my expectations were high; and I was not let down one bit. When dinner ended, Doug escorted me to my own quarters, which was a short drive from the main cabin. The fully furnished log cabin had two bedrooms, one fully operational bathroom, living room, electric heat and a woodstove.The next morning we crossed a fairly decent tom cougar track. Doug studied the track for a while, and even let the dogs out to examine, but it was determined to be an older track and so we decided to move on. Some of Doug’s friends who were on the road claimed they had seen some cougar tracks around their property, not too far from where we were. We had just passed their house when we located a fairly recent female cougar track. It was getting late in the day and the dogs were getting anxious to get out of their box, so we put their GPS collars on and set them free. They were on this cougar amazingly fast, and had it treed within 20 minutes. This was an exhilarating experience for me, since this was my first time ever hunting with dogs or even seeing a cougar in the wild. It really gets your blood pumping, even when it’s not your intended target. She did offer up some extraordinary photographs, though.The next morning came quickly, as I was expecting another repeat of the day before. A thin layer of snow accumulated over night, making the conditions that much better. Much to my dismay, however, the day turned out to be unproductive and exhausting. We found ourselves in a distant location, just before nightfall, meticulously making our way up the mountain while observing every disturbance in the snow. In the headlights of the truck, shadows of a larger track crossed the road, but were passed off as a recent moose track. Doug’s intuition had him reversing back for a closer look. The aforementioned moose track actually turned out to be a large tom cougar track, and my fixation for the next three days of the hunt.It was a good feeling, knowing this time we had a clue to start the day off. The dogs were released and observed on the GPS monitor as they worked the scent. Doug grew concerned when the dogs began to split apart from one another due to poor snow conditions, so we decided to venture in ourselves. It became obvious that the tom was pursuing a moose, and had actually made an attempt at it, as the drops of blood in the moose tracks indicated. The red drops eventually faded into nothing and we found ourselves back at our starting point. Once the dogs were collected, we traveled along the roads in a large grid-like pattern, trying to hone in on the cougar’s location, or direction of travel, and hoping he might be sitting on a kill. We returned in the morning, setting out on foot in the area we thought may contain the most undiscovered evidence. The cougar’s ambush point on the injured moose was located with much sign of struggle, but no downed moose. My hopes of locating this tom were about gone as the tracks headed out of the guide area. As a morale booster on the way out, Doug decided to let the dogs run on a decent lynx track. Not far off

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 41

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the main road, the dogs treed the lynx and Doug claimed it was of good size, but was unsure of its sex. Doug studied the lynx for a while before ruling it a large legal female. I opted to pass on her, but not without acquiring some spectacular photographs of this majestic cat.Tatlayoko Lake was the next destination to search in the morning. In our travels, we witnessed a cougar cub crossing the road out in front of us, and took it as good omen. But we had no such luck. The large tom cougar was still on my mind, so Doug obliged by going back in that direction. This resulted in another lynx chase. After a couple hours the lynx outsmarted the dogs in piles of blown down trees and escaped, so they were pulled off the chase. Everybody, including the dogs, was physically exhausted and we did not expect to come across another set of large lynx tracks on the way back down the road. With a little coercion from Doug we were back at it again. The twenty seven pound tom lynx was treed quickly, and not too far off the road. A .22 long rifle instantly dispatched the large tom, allowing for some quick photographs before dark.I maintained a positive attitude on day six, but I was also mentally preparing myself for

the realization of a true fair chase hunt. This would be the second time I’d tried for cougar without taking one, but I was certainly grateful for at least seeing one this time. Doug suggested combing the mountain range again, where we had treed the female cougar on the first day. It wasn’t until about noon when we cut a set of cougar tracks traveling together which were obviously an adolescent. The tracks were decent sized, but not nearly as large as the tom we were pursuing the days before. Doug reminded me of our time frame and the fifty-fifty shot we had with the dogs actually finding the tom. Doug asked, “What would you like to do?” There was a hesitation before I answered, “Let’s do it,” because I knew there was a larger tom out there.The dogs quickly picked up the scents and ran straight up the mountain. The GPS monitor indicated the dogs had treed fairly quickly, but a good ways up the steep mountain. We began our ascent studying the tracks as we climbed, to possibly determine a treed tom. About half way up the mountain, we spotted a different cougar’s tracks heading across the mountain, and the tracks were much larger. Doug determined this track to be less than twelve hours old, and then I asked if

he thought the dogs could get on it. He was fairly certain they could, so we hurried up to the dogs. When we arrived, a handsome 120-pound class tom cougar was in the tree. It was not the one who left the track below however. I knew I wouldn’t be satisfied if we didn’t at least try to run the track below, because deep down I knew this is why I chose British Columbia for my cougar. It was a fairly long chase, with three dogs searching low and one lone dog searching high. Darkness was fast approaching, so we gathered the three lower dogs and drove as far as we could up the mountain to intercept the lone dog. The grade along with the deep snow left us hiking most of the way. As we were closing in on the dog, Doug discovered the large tom track we were looking for, which was only a few hours old. When the lone dog reached us, we took her off the scent, and made plans for returning in the morning. We must have played out every possible scenario that could possibly happen that evening. The worst being that the tom just kept walking straight up and over the mountain, and the best being that it made a kill and stayed put for a while.My excitement and curiosity level was running high that morning, and I wanted to

CONTINUED ON PAGE 44

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make sure we took full advantage of our time left. I knew if we were not on this tom by noon, the hunt would be over. We left Doug’s place well before sunrise to head back to the last location. When we arrived, I wasn’t sure who was more excited: us or the dogs. We quickly suited up and headed upwards to find our starting point. It was a clear sunny morning, with the cool mountain air coming straight down at us. I believe this aided the dogs because they took off screaming well before we even reached the track. In fact, I wasn’t sure if they were even on the cougar. I recall looking at Doug and hearing him say, “It’s on.” Then, just moments later it was “treed”. I stood there in disbelief. I sensed Doug was getting upset with me repeating “No way.” I don’t remember the exact number of times I said this, but I was truly amazed and extremely happy all at the same time. I almost didn’t want this moment to end, and we hadn’t even seen what awaited us. The steep climb didn’t even faze me, as I was just taking in the moment. The dogs’ vocals even seemed like music to my ears.

As I approached the tree, the tom was high in the canopy of the fir making it very difficult for me to see. Doug knew this and climbed further up the mountain to find a clearer shot for me with his .243. Fortunately, there was a boulder almost straight on with the cougar, which presented a clear shot as long as I could sneak the bullet through the two limbs standing between us. I rested my pack on the rock and took aim. I peered through the scope, admiring the large tom and all I could do was reminisce of what we had gone through that week to bring us to this point. When I heard Doug say, “Whenever you’re ready”, it was almost sad because I didn’t want my dream to end. The tom fell instantly at the crack of the rifle followed by the echoing of dogs. I grabbed the rifle and made my way down to the cougar. My eyes began to tear up with joy along with a little sadness, as I made my way down to the cougar realizing my hardships along the way and the fulfillment of my dream.

We soon realized, our best case scenario had just played out after we discovered a recent

fawn mule deer kill not too far away. The GPS indicated our position as only three hundred yards away from where we had left off the night before. The walk back down the mountain seemed almost effortless, even with a 180-pound class tom cougar dragging behind me in the deep snow. While back at Doug’s place, I brought up two points which gave us both a good laugh. The first point being if he remembered me stating on the first day that most of my trophies were hard earned, and that I always had a good story to go along with them. The second point being that this was the first time I had seen his home in the daylight since being there. My adventure was a huge success, with two lynx and three cougars being treed and one of each of the cats being taken. The official measurement of the cougar’s skull was 14.75”, and the lynx’s skull was 8.75”.

EDITOR’S NOTE You can reach Skinner Creek Hunts at 250.476.1288 or www.skinnercreekhunts.com

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 43

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Mountain Hunter – Fall 2014 < 45

Stories • Recognize your guide, hunting destination, and sought species in the first

few paragraphs of your story. • A great hunting story not only describes the animals and itinerary, but

expresses the significance of the hunt to you. How long had you been dreaming of this hunt? How did you first connect with your outfitter? What was the scenery like? What challenges did you encounter? These details will add to richness and familiarity of your story for your readers.

• Proofread your story for clarity, but do not worry too much about the proper grammar or sentence structure—we will take care of that for you.

• Try to keep the story in past tense and title it creatively. Titles and photos provide the first impression for your readers, and you want to draw them in immediately. Be sure to include several high-quality photos (1 MB or larger at 300dpi) with your submission.

• Stories should be 2500-3000 words in length and written in Microsoft Word. We prefer to receive them by email, but they can also be sent hard-copy or on CD.

• Please include your full contact information with your submission (mailing address, phone number, and email).

Photos • We are always looking for high-quality vertical photos for the

magazine cover. • Guides Gallery submissions should be high-quality and 1 MB or larger.

Trophies should always be presented in a respectful manner. We prefer photos where the hunter is not sitting or leaning on the animal. We are able to “clean up” some of the blood in trophy photos, but try to hide tongues and wipe away excess blood.

• Keep lighting and shadows in mind and make sure that faces and the animal are clearly visible.

• Include the following details for the caption: hunter name and hometown, outfitter, animal species, and date.

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES FOR MOUNTAIN HUNTER™

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Send submissions by email to [email protected] or mail to: Guide Outfitters Association of BC (GOABC)

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GOABC reserves the right to reject any materials that are objectionable or promote unethical or illegal hunting practices.

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Phone # [email protected]

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funky holy crapHoly Crap!” Those were the

first words out of my guide Gary’s mouth when I pointed out a bedded caribou about

600 yards away. “It looks like a moose with that palmation.” I was on my third hunt with Mervyn’s Yukon Outfitting, having previously taken two fine trophies—moose and a ‘traditional’ caribou still in full velvet. I was after something ‘funky’ this time. I was in camp with my husband Greg who had taken a moose earlier in this hunt. This was his fourth hunt and fifth animal taken with the Mervyn’s. I was on an 11 day hunt, and with horses we could cover a lot of territory

if we needed to. One week before I left the States, we had buried my mother, who died suddenly and unexpectedly. Greg and I were looking forward to the time together and being away from the ‘real world’ which would allow me time to grieve. My mom loved to travel, but she had never been to the Yukon. Now we could take her with us.

Day four of the hunt, Greg told me to put on my “lucky” caribou shirt, as we had a good feeling about the day. We had hunted west of camp (where Greg got his moose) and east of camp, so today we saddled up the horses and headed south. We had a fairly steep climb out of camp, but got up

on a plateau and started glassing. It didn’t take us long to see a caribou walking along a lakeshore about a mile away and closing. We dismounted for a better look. Greg and I were excited, but Gary was not. “Don’t wear him out looking at him,” he would say. “We can do better.”

We continued south, taking the horses up and over mountains, and nearly being blown away by the mountain winds. We spotted a herd of about 50 caribou in a valley below us. Then more came out from another ridge. Then some more came up from the bottom, and suddenly caribou were everywhere. Pretty soon, we were

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funky holy crapby Debra Stuchik

looking at close to 100 caribou, and they were totally unaware of our presence. There was a small band of Dall rams directly across from us on the next knob. Now the fun started. We dismounted our horses, tied them up, and scooted down the hillside to take a better look. We got out the binoculars and spotting scopes and started looking for ‘Mr. Funky’. Of course, caribou don’t stand still, which makes glassing a challenge, especially at a distance of up to a mile away. We watched bulls chasing the cows and fighting other bulls. Wow, what a sight! I did not have this kind of action

on my previous caribou hunt and I was enjoying it thoroughly.

Then I noticed a small group of caribou coming closer and bedding down, almost at the same elevation we were at, about 600 yards away. I saw the bull of my dreams with very unique antlers and a beautiful cape, with a white stripe down his body. He had good fronts, average back-scratchers, and awesome tops. Besides the palmation that made him look more like a relative to the moose, the points were long, with the back points curving back, almost touching the caribou’s butt. He definitely fulfilled my

‘Funky’ requirement.

I asked Greg, Gary and the assistant guide Laura to look at the one that caught my eye. “Holy crap!” were the first words out of Gary’s mouth. It was definitely worth a second look, and a third. We discussed the “trophy” status of the bull. No, the main beam was not extremely long or wide, the shovels and bez were average. But look at those tops, the way the number of points swept back over the bull. He definitely had the character I was after, and I decided this was the bull for me. Character, not score, was most important to me. Just then,

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the herd got up and started walking away. I remember commenting that I would never see that bull again.

Gary assured me that he knew where the caribou were going, so we snuck back up the hill, got the horses and circled around to get in front of them. On our way to intercept the animals, we stopped to look over the large herd that was still in the valley. There were some real nice bulls in that herd, some probably scoring better for the record books, but none had the character I was looking for. We hiked down the hill to intercept the small herd of caribou, using the stunted spruce trees for cover. There he was with two cows between us. Gary had me lay my gun across the spruce bough for a rest. Again I thought my dream bull was going to get away from me, as the cows wouldn’t clear. Finally they cleared, but now the caribou was quartering towards me, which was definitely not the shot I preferred to take. But the caribou was under 150 yards away, my rest was rock steady, and everything just felt right. I pulled the trigger and the animal dropped in his tracks. Wow! I thought that only happened on television. I had never been so excited. As I got closer to the bull, ‘Funky Holy Crap’ as I named him, he was everything I hoped for when I came to the Yukon. As I approached the impressive animal, tears came to my eyes as I thought of my mom. I knew she was watching me with pride wondering how her youngest child, who never wanted to get her hands dirty, ended up in the middle of nowhere, loving the solitude of nature. It was a trip that I will never forget.

The following day was spent packing the animal back to camp. The rest of our time in the Yukon went way too quickly, catching grayling, listening to the wolves howl, and exploring the area. As more snow collected on the mountain peaks, we knew it was time to head back south to Nebraska, and start dreaming of a return trip that is sure to be in our future, God willing.

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EDITOR’S NOTE You can reach Mervyn’s Yukon Outfitting & Outfitters at 867.633.6188 or www.yukonsheep.com

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MERVYN’SY u k o n O u t f i t t i n g

www.yukonsheep.comEmail: [email protected]

Phone: (867) 633-6188 • Fax (867) 633-5070Box 33036 B Whitehorse, Yukon Y1A 5Y5

MYO

Tim & Jen Mervyn

Horseback HuntsExcellent Dall SheepAlaska Yukon MooseMountain Caribou Wild Wood Bison Grizzly and Black BearWolf and Wolverine

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a burning desire

How Guide Outfitter Jordy McAuley is Bringing Fire Back to the Land

For over 30 years, Jordy McAuley has been guiding hunters through the wildernesses of the north, tracking some of the continent’s

most spectacular big game animals. His vast experiences leading hunts from Alberta to Alaska have afforded him an intimate knowledge of the wildlife he pursues, and the landscapes they depend on. He’s seen how changes on the land are impacting long-standing patterns of animal behaviour, sometimes to a species’ detriment. In Jordy’s guiding territory near MacKenzie, BC, human interruption of the natural fire cycle has exacerbated habitat loss originally from the flooding of the Williston reservoir. Moose, in particular, have been forced to move beyond their historical range up into caribou territory in search of winter sustenance. The wolves

have followed, and that’s bad news for the caribou.

“The caribou are easy targets…they’re really struggling,” says Jordy. “If we can improve winter range conditions for moose and other ungulates at elevations lower than where the caribou are, it will hopefully lure the predators away and give them a chance.”

With plenty of determination, Jordy has set out to do that: improve the availability of food for ungulates by bringing fire back to the land. He’s seen dramatic improvements to winter range in prescribed burning (fire set under carefully-controlled conditions to restore habitat and reduce dangerous build-up of fuel on the forest floor).

“Fire is good once you burn, new vegetation comes back,” Jordy says. “The canopy

opens up, and there’s this rejuvenation of forage for all kinds of wildlife. Moose do well, same with elk and goats. The berries come back, providing food for bears—even birds benefit.”

Jordy’s interest in prescribed burning stretches back to 2005, with his purchase of Finlay River Outfitters. But it was hearing fellow guide and Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation board member Anna Fontana speak at the GOABC convention that provided Jordy with the with the method to turn his vision into reality.

“Anna mentioned that there were funds available for habitat enhancement projects,” recalls Jordy. “So when she got off the stage, I asked her about the possibility of applying for some money to do a prescribed burn. She thought it was a great idea.”

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Encouraged, Jordy approached local biologist Scott McNay of Wildlife Infometrics to help him with putting together a proposal. “If you want a grizzly bear skinned I’m your guy, but if you want a whole bunch of paperwork, then no,” grins Jordy. “I went and saw Scott and told him what my plan was. He agreed to write the proposal for HCTF. I guess they thought it was a good idea, because they gave us the nod.” With funding in place, Jordy began the burn planning and consultation process, no easy feat in an area with many competing interests in the land. “We visited with multiple stakeholders, including the forestry company, trappers, and local First Nations people. They (Tsay Keh Dene) were really positive,” adds Jordy. “Their elders used to do some burning, and they understand the habitat benefits of fire.” The implementation process was a learning experience for everyone involved, as there was no established protocol for a guide-initiated burn. Despite many challenges along the way, the team persevered and managed to get their first burn underway this spring. McAuley was on site for the

big event, excited to finally see his idea become reality.

“It was such a big build up: in the beginning, it was like running into walls. I’d tell people what I wanted to do, but with all the merchantable timber up here, they’d say it can’t be done. But I just kept pecking away, and found some folks that knew the benefits of fire on the land,” recounts McAuley. “To see that helicopter show up, ready to go…well, it was pretty exciting to see that smoke start coming out of the bush”.

Over the next few years, the project team will monitor this and other planned burn sites to determine what effect fire has had on forage availability and use by ungulates.

“Our hope is that the herbaceous plants and shrubs that recolonize burned areas really make a difference for moose populations in the area,” says biologist and project team member Stephanie Rooke. “Shrubs are particularly important in winter, when the deep snow makes it difficult for moose to access other forage.”

If the project proves a success, Jordy is hopeful that he can share his experiences

with other guides interested in using fire to enhance range conditions.

“It was a steep learning curve for everyone, but now that we’ve done it, I think there’s the potential for others to follow in our footsteps, and maybe initiate their own projects,” encourages Jordy. “I think getting fire back on the land, when done properly, has the potential to benefit everyone.”

Jordy also agrees that knowledge of guides leading restoration projects such as this one may help the public realize the value those in the industry place on stewardship and conservation. “What many people don’t know is that the majority of guide outfitters are second, third and fourth generations that have been on the land: they love the land, they love the wildlife, and they want to see it continue in perpetuity.”

In addition to HCTF funding, this project also received financial support from the Peace/Williston Fish and Wildlife Compensation Program in 2014. For more information on projects made possible by guiding, hunting, angling and trapping licence surcharges, visit www.hctf.ca

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�anks.

a valuable contribution to conservation through licence surcharges. HCTF invests this money into projects benefitting the province’s fish & wildlife. To learn more about how we’re making a difference, visit www.hctf.ca

Guides, hunters, anglers & trappers in BC make

w w w . m c g r e g o r r i v e r o u t f i t t e r s . c o m

Family Owned & OperatedEric and Kelly

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E-mail: [email protected] (250) 963-0262 Fax (250) 963-0233

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BRUCE & TERRY AMBLER

250.459.2367Clinton, BC

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STAN SIMPSON • 780-848-7578P.O. Box 89, Warburg, AB Canada T0C 2T0

www.ramheadoutfitters.com

HUNT THE MACKENZIE MOUNTAINS OF THE NORTHWEST TERRITORIES

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Marty and Carrie LightburnPO Box 69, Jaffray, British Columbia, Canada V0B 1T0

www.rmho.ca | [email protected]

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Directions

Dredge sheep (or any kind of wild meat) in seasoned flour. Thinly cut

into steaks. Fry until half done in hot skillet. Prepare about 6 cups moist

bread dressing or use your own recipe. Layer sheep steaks in bottom of

11” x 13” pan or roaster and spread a layer of dressing thinly over steaks. Make

another layer of steak then cover with dressing. Seal pan with tin foil. Bake in

325°F oven for about 1 hour. Can be made ahead of time—cooked off and sent fly-

camping and reheated—travels well and makes a little steak go a long way!

More recipes available from our cookbook “The Hunter’s Kitchen”.

Call or email the GOABC office to purchase your copy.

Sheep Meat Casserole

Camp Cook’s Corner

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Partners in Conservation Excellence

Leif & Kellie Olsen Box 7870, Toad River, BC V0C 2X0Tel: [email protected]@stonemountainsafaris.comwww.stonemountainsafaris.comfacebook.com/stonemountainsafaris

Ram Creek Outfi tters and Stone Mountain Safaris are working together to promote wildlife conservation.

Leif & Kellie Olsen Steven & Stefanie LeuenbergerBox 27, Wardner, BC V0B 2J0Tel: 250.429.3238Toll Free: 1.877.726.2735 [email protected]

wildlife conservation.

Stone Mtn + Ram Creek Joint Ad.indd 1 2014-09-12 10:13 AM