IDAHO

2010 Hunting Idaho Press-Tribune/Messenger Index • WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 25, 2010

Idaho elk by the numbers

IDFG — In the past few years,
some Idaho big game hunters
have complained that they no
longer see elk in places they have
hunted for years. Idaho Fish and
Game spends more than $2 mil-
lion annually tracking the state’s
big game populations, and recent
aerial surveys do show some elk
population declines.
But elk numbers have not
declined everywhere — 10 of
Idaho’s 29 elk zones are above
management objectives for female
elk, 13 zones are within objectives
and six are below objectives.
Elk populations are affected
by a number of factors, including
predators.
Since the return of wolves to
Idaho 15 years ago, Idaho’s overall
elk population has dropped by
20 percent from 125,000 to about
100,000.
To find out why, Idaho Fish and
Game biologists have been look-
ing closely at the effects of preda-
tion in general on elk herds, and
wolf predation in particular. They
are learning how delisted wolves
will fit into state management of
big game and other wildlife spe-
cies.
An ongoing study in 11 elk
management zones shows that
predators today are the primary
cause of death among female elk
in five zones. The zones represent
the range of habitat, hunting op-
portunity and predator densities
found in Idaho. In at least three of
those zones, wolves are the pri-
mary cause of death of female elk
and calves over six months old.
Elk population trends depend
on the survival rates of female elk
and calves.
To maintain the population,
typically about 88 percent of the
breeding female elk must survive,
and enough calves must survive to
replace the adult animals that die
each year.
Elk survival depends primarily
on four factors: habitat conditions,
weather, predation and hunter
harvest.
The influence of habitat on
elk tends to be subtle. Pregnancy
rates and calf survival may be
10 to 20 percent lower in poor
habitat –small changes that can
have important consequences
over decades.
In the winter of 1996-97, un-
usually heavy snows arrived early
in much of central and northern
Idaho. Elk mortality during that
winter was extensive, as high as
40 percent in some herds.
In 1995 and 1996, the U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service released 35
wolves into central Idaho – rein-
troducing a top predator to the
landscape. Today, wolves in Idaho
number more than 800.
In 2005 Fish and Game
launched its elk survival study,
the largest ever conducted in the
state, covering 11 elk management
zones.
Biologists captured, radio-col-
lared and monitored more than
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
500 adult female elk since the
study began. They found the num-
ber of adult female elk surviving objectives and the other five are In both zones, wolf predation
from one year to the next — sur-
vival rate — ranged from a low
within objectives.
Though most of the research
was the leading cause of death
of six-month-old calves. Earlier
Elk survival
of 75 percent in the Lolo Zone to
89 percent in the Tex Creek and
focused on adult female elk, it also
evaluated calf survival and mor-
research shows that in some areas
predation by black bears was the
depends primarily
Weiser zones. tality in the Lolo and Sawtooth primary cause of death of calves on four factors:
Predators were the primary
cause of death in five zones, and
zones.
Between 2005 and 2009, biolo-
less than six months old.
As the elk numbers in the Lolo habitat conditions,
of those, wolves were the primary
cause of death in three zones
gists captured and radio-collared
272 six-month-old elk calves. In
and Sawtooth zones have de-
clined, Fish and Game has raised
weather, predation
— the Lolo, Smoky Mountains and
Sawtooth zones. In the other two
both zones, calf elk survival from
December through June was con-
limits on predators, reduced hunt-
ing opportunities and stopped
and hunter harvest.
zones — the Elk City, and Salmon siderably less than normal, which female elk harvest in the Lolo Idaho Department of Fish
zones — mountain lions either is about 82 percent. Zone since 1998.
equaled or exceeded wolves as In the Lolo Zone, deteriorating Meanwhile, in some other and Game
the primary cause of elk deaths. habitat and other factors contrib- areas elk are so numerous they are
Since 1995, elk populations have uted to a long population decline, causing trouble for landowners. Commission has set a wolf popu-
declined in these five zones. dropping from about 16,000 in The information from this lation goal at about 500 — the
Elk numbers are below man- 1988 to fewer than 8,000 elk by study may not apply in other parts population in Idaho in 2005, the
agement objectives in the Smoky 1998. Since 1998, the numbers of the state, but it may help Fish year when wolf depredations on
Mountains, Lolo and Sawtooth have dropped to about 2,000 – a and Game biologists evaluate elk herds and domestic livestock
zones, and within objectives in decline of more than 70 percent. declines in other areas. began to rise sharply.
the Elk City and Salmon zones. Survival of the radio-collared Wildlife managers have no con- Fish and Game has shown that
Harvest was the primary six-month-old calves was 52 per- trol over the weather and only professional wildlife managers
known cause of death in six zones cent; wolf predation took nearly little control over habitat. In can manipulate wildlife popula-
— the Pioneer, Weiser, Tex Creek, one-third of the calf population. 2009, however, Idaho Fish and tions to limit their effects on each
Island Park, McCall and Boise Riv- In the Sawtooth Zone, elk Game conducted the state’s first other and on people, as they have
er zones. Elk populations declined numbers also have declined. Sur- regulated wolf hunt. Hunters done with elk that cause dam-
in the Pioneer and Island vival of six- month-old calves was harvested 188 wolves in an or- age to crops or take over habitat
Park zones since 1995, while about 30 percent during the study. derly hunt and followed the strict occupied by mule deer. They
increasing in the Tex Creek and Overall, predation by wolves was reporting requirements. will do the same with wolves in
Weiser zones. Elk populations in the leading cause of death, but Recognizing that effects of places, such as the Lolo — not
the McCall and Boise River zones malnutrition was also an impor- predators on elk would increase to wipe them out, but to reduce
have been relatively stable since tant factor during the difficult as the numbers of predators their effects where elk herds are
1995. The Weiser Zone is above winter of 2007-08. increase, the Idaho Fish and Game in trouble.

Glassing
Buy good glass. I realize that everyone is on a budget but
on this purchase, don’t leave any pennies in your pocket.
Figure out what you can afford and go compare everything
in that price range for the best deal. I’ve had super luck
with Leupold products. They have lifetime warran-
ties. If you have cheap glass, after a day of glassing
your eyes will be wobbly and out of focus. It will
be hard to go to sleep, as you’ll be hallucinat-
ing.

for big game

By Tom Claycomb
For the Idaho Press-Tribune
To be an effective hunter out west
you need to learn how to glass. In
1988 I was bow hunting with a friend,
Dennis Buhlke, and we topped a hill.
He said, “Let’s glass a minute, a lot of
times I’ll see one.” In less than five
minutes we spotted a deer. And then
another one. I don’t want to exagger-
ate but nearly every hill we crested, if
we glassed long enough we’d see deer. I
became a believer after that.
A couple of years ago I took a kid hunt-
ing. We hit a wet heavy snow. It was tough
duty. We finally made it back to the truck and
I told him we’d go spotting/stalking. He said,
“How do you do that?” I told him we’d find a
spot and glass it.
The first spot we pulled off I looked about one
minute and said there’s a deer, another one until there
were three. He said, “Wow, you’re pretty good.” I said,
“Yeah.” I didn’t tell him I was surprised, too. We snuck up
and got a buck.
Don’t just look in the open. Glass the brush. You usu-
ally aren’t lucky enough to spot a whole elk. Look for legs
mixed in with the tree trunks, an ear twitching or some-
thing that is off color.
If you’re glassing hills do so in zones. Here’s what I mean
by that. Move from side to side all the way across the moun-
tain and then drop down 30 feet and do it again. When
you’re done, do it again. Animals move in and out of cover.
If you’re hunting in a blind, after a few days you learn
all the weird objects and what is new and doesn’t belong.
Also as the sun changes, objects look different throughout
the day. Dad always said for every seven things you thought
I’ve always said don’t buy over 8x binocs
as anything higher wobbles too bad, but
I did get a pair of Leupold 10x for this
spring bear season. Also for real spot-
ting I have a 15x30 Gold Ring Leupold
spotting scope.
If you see an animal, then you
need to plan your stalk. How’s the
wind? Is the cover OK for you to
sneak up? Do you have enough day-
light left? Will you have to sleep on
the mountainside?
What if you see three bears an
hour before dark and only have time
to put the sneak on one? You need
to be able to tell which one is the big-
gest. You’ll need a spotting scope to
get serious.
Sometimes you see game but when
you try to sneak up on them you can’t
seem to locate them. A few things may
help you out here. First, check the
general direction that they’re feed-
ing. Next, notice some landmark.
That way when you get up close
you’ll be able to zero in on them.
Use scent cover.
In 2006 while bear hunting
in Colorado, I heard a bull bugle
and started glassing the mountain
across the valley with my spotting
scope. I saw a couple of cows. Sud-
Photo by Tom Claycomb
denly a bull shot out of the aspens.
were a deer, one would be. It looked like a bass scattering
Years ago Ed Sweet, Gary a school of minnows. The cows
Kirkpatrick and I took a kid on went every which way. I told my
a spotting/stalking bear hunt. In wife Katy to look. She said “Wow,
two afternoons we spotted 10 bears. Out of 10 I only saw what’s he doing?” I told her bulls are rough on cows. It was
one first. That’s because they had top quality glass. I had awesome and I was glad she was there to see it.
a low-grade set of Burris binoculars. I quickly learned the Start to glass and I guarantee you’ll start seeing a lot
importance of good glass. more game.
 WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 25, 2010 • Idaho Press-Tribune/Messenger Index Hunting 2010
hunting 2 C M
Y K

Get shooting
By Glen Bruderer
gbruderer@idahopress.com
Hunting with stick and string
brings about a side of hunting
that appeals to just about every
outdoor lover. Archery hunting is
an experience that, for those who
have experienced the excitement,
gets in your blood. But the sport,
with all of its intrigue, needs con-
stant attention.
There is something primitive
about hunting big game with a
bow and arrow. Most of your shots
are limited to around 40 yards de-
pending on your shooting ability.
Over my years as an archery
hunter, I have run the gamut of
experiences. Close calls, success-
es, failures and beautiful country
have all played large roles in why
I chose to hunt with stick and
string. Archers don’t choose the
sport as an easy way of getting a
trophy each fall.
Your role varies from scene to
scene.
You are walking down a
dusty old road that winds its way
through a grove of aspen that are
softly singing a song to anyone
who will listen. Something abrupt-
ly breaks the tranquility. You hear
a rustling in the brush just over
the crest of the road. You nock an
arrow and your heart begins to
race. You edge your way closer to
the sound. There it is, a beautiful
muley buck. You slowly draw your
bow. You guess the distance to be
about 35 yards, take aim and let
the arrow loose.
C r a c k!
Off bounds the animal you have
dreamt about several times over
the last 10 months. You walk down
to where the animal was standing
and see something shining about
the place the deer stood moments
before. It’s a mangled broadhead
attached to about three-inches of
shattered graphite. Your arrow lays
in many pieces in the rocks.
This scenario replays itself
many times each fall. Either you
misjudged the yardage, hit a limb,
jerked the trigger or pulled your
head trying to see where your ar-
row might hit.
Archery is a sport that needs
your constant attention. There are
many things that can go wrong
while shooting a bow. You owe
it to the animal to be in your best
shooting form and your equipment
must be tuned and ready to go.
This is no easy task.
Issues
Make sure your bow is in good
working order. Check for cracks in
the limbs. Sights should be secure
and pins straight and intact. Be
sure all the moving parts have
been lubed and the strings are in
good shape. It is not fun to have
your bow sighted in and ready to
go, only to find your string needs
replacing. The process then starts
all over again.
Make sure your bow is in tune.
Every archer has their own way
to do this. For me, I take mine in
before the season. They make sure
everything is good to go. Trust
me, they will see things that you
might miss. The point is to remove
any variables you can. This is well
worth the money spent.
Tuning doesn’t end there
— this is just the beginning.
You will constantly be tweaking
throughout the process. I like
IPT file photo
Practice often, and make sure your bow is in good working order before you head out on any hunting adventure.
use it! Guess a distance to an ob-
ject, then range it to see how close
you were.
I don’t think it is possible to
shoot too much. Find a safe place
to shoot and set time aside. The
valley has great places to shoot
here close. There are two outdoor
shooting ranges for the public to
go and shoot at all distances. One
is in Caldwell near Rotary Ponds.
This range has target butts out to
60 yards.
Another range is in Nampa and
funded by the Nampa Bow Chiefs.
The clubhouse is located at 222 W.
Railroad, behind Fred Meyer. They
also have an indoor range that is
available to members to shoot at
just about any time. Emmett also
has a archery club called the Black
Canyon Bowmen. They host a
couple of shoots a year and hold
leagues.
Go to www.idahoarchery.
com/nbc or www.black-
canyonbowmen.com
Mike Vogt/IP
and give them a call
to find out how to
Danny Aden talks to a shooter at his shop Archery Central in Nampa. His shop offers great support and an
indoor range that is open for shooters to practice here in Nampa. Archery websites join. These are
great organiza-
site.archerycentralllc.com tions that offer a
http://www.idahoarchery.com/nbc/
great support sys-
to mark where your bow and its be ready to go. Not so much. broadheads www.blackcanyonbowmen.com tem for archers.
www.gemcountyarchery.com
accessories are set. This gives you With the faster bows out there, are flying su- There is also
a reference point to return to if some heads need more stabiliza- per. Opening a shop located
things change or something hap- tion. I have tried many different morning finds just off the freeway
pens. things. I like Blazer vanes. I have you waiting at at the Franklin exit
The most important factor is shot them for a while and love a common elk in Nampa. Archery
to practice — often and with pur- them. They stabilize surprisingly crossing where you Central is run in conjunc-
pose. I shot a lot in the spring, but well for a small vane. Plus, they know a bull frequents. You tion with TriState Marine. They
lightened up when summer came have less cross-wind drift. Regard- hear something coming and ready are open 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday
around. When I started shooting yourself. Out steps a great bull through Friday, and 9 a.m. to 6
less of what you shoot, get a feel p.m. Saturday. They have a great
serious again, I was a mess. Force for what they do. I like to shoot a at just 24 yards. You slowly draw
yourself to work through your your bow and settle-in your sights indoor shooting range. Danny
lot and shoot in the area I will be Aden, the owner of the pro shop,
weaknesses. Mine is my trigger. I hunting. I have noticed that the just behind the shoulder.
can pull up at any given time and THWAP! You missed! offers great advice and might have
wind up in the area I hunt will
hit a 10-inch circle up to about 40- affect the shot quite a bit. If I know The sound of the shot was not the answer as to why things are
yards, but this is not sufficient. normal. When you look down at not where they should be. He even
this in advance, I can allow for it as made me a set of BSU-inspired blue
Yes, this might kill an animal, your arm the jacket you put on
if all factors are perfect. For those best I can. this morning is all bunched up and orange Death Harp strings for
who hunt, you know that things Many people adjust their sights on your arm. When you did all of my bow. Go BSU!
are seldom perfect while hunting. to accommodate for their broad- your practicing it was 90 degrees. Every Wednesday Archery Cen-
I work on holding the pin on heads, but I think that is a mistake. You had a light T-shirt and did not tral has a 3D fun league that starts
the target and fight it through There is a reason they are hitting allow for a heavier jacket. at 7 p.m. It is a great way to stay in
the entire shot. Your trigger pull a bit off, provided your broad- This is a common mistake. practice and have professional sup-
should almost startle you when it heads and arrows are straight and Shoot with the clothes you plan to port to answer your questions.
goes off. I work on pulling with uniform. A broadhead accentuates hunt in. This sound like a trivial We have had many outdoor
my back rather than my finger. any deviation in form and tuning. thing, but trust me, this has hap- shops come and go in the area.
Once you start to tighten your Your field points might be hitting pened to me too many times. Hopefully we will all support the
groups, check your bow and acces- perfect, but a broadhead often ones we have and keep them in
sories again. Check your reference reveals issues. business.
marks and make sure things have Some broadheads just do not Mix it up A bit more practice and I should
not changed. work in some setups. Find what As a final step in your prepa- be ready to go.
works and stay with that. ration, shoot at odd distances. I All archers have their own style
have a small target that can be and opinions. That’s what makes
Broadheads moved and set at different angles, hunting with sticks and strings so
The addition of a broadhead is Clothing distances and up or down hill. Do appealing. Try it and you will be
where things can get dicey. Many Another dilemma that archers not skip this. Judging distance is hooked. Remember to PRACTICE.
people will assume that if you are get themselves into is with cloth- not easy and takes time to perfect. Be diligent. You owe it to your
shooting the same weight broad- ing. Lets say you have spent hours Shadows and heavy brush will trip game to be in the best form you
head as your field tip you should on shooting in late summer. Your you up. If you have a rangefinder, can be.

t Ask Fish and Game: Dove permit
Q. I plan to go dove hunting. Do I need
a permit other than a hunting license?
A. Yes. The mourning dove season opens September
1 and in addition to a 2010 hunting license, hunters
must have a federal “Migratory Game Bird Harvest
Information Program Validation,” migratory bird permit
for short – not a duck stamp. It costs $1.75 for
resident hunters and $4.75 for nonresidents. For more
details see the 2010-2011 & 2011-2013 Upland
Game, Furbearer and Turkey rules brochure.

DON’S
MAIN STREET BEVERAGE
Dove, crane and grouse LIQUOR STORE

seasons start soon MEATS Emmett’s Best Beverage

& Tobacco Values
All meat vacuum packed
IDFG — Forest grouse season starts Aug. 30 this year, a change for longer freshness!
from the traditional Sept. 1 date made to accommodate hunters
traveling into the high country to set up camps for early big game Custom Processing and We sell
seasons. Forest grouse are a popular traditional camp food. For- Slaughtering
est grouse hunters need only a valid Idaho hunting license. Elk and
Mourning dove and sandhill crane seasons begin Sept. 1. BEEF LAMB
Sandhill crane hunting was formerly by controlled hunt but, Deer tags,
because of low participation, has gone to an over-the-counter PORK ammunition,
tag hunt with a limit on tags sold in each of five hunt areas. All WILD GAME
sandhill hunting areas are located in southeastern counties in the Game Bags
Upper Snake and Southeast Regions. For hunt boundaries and USDA and More.
other information specific to cranes, hunters should consult the Inspected
current season flyer available at vendors or Fish and Game offices Locker Beef
or on the Fish and Game website: fishandgame.idaho.gov/cms/ Satisfaction
hunt/rules/ug/10crane.pdf.
guaranteed!!
Get your hunting gear and
Legal shooting hours for cranes and doves are listed in the supplies at Main Street
current upland game bird rules brochure. Beverage
Dove season is unchanged from previous years, running from
Sept. 1-30 with a daily limit of 10 and possession limit of 20. Dove
365-2591 212 W. Main • EMMEtt, iD
hunters should note page 17 of the upland game rules book that
explains the rule on Eurasian-collared doves. The rules brochure 5922 South Slope Road •
Emmett
365-3864
shows photos and descriptions of the two different doves.
 hunting 2010 idaho Press-Tribune/Messenger Index • WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 25, 2010
C M
Y K
Hunting 3

Fresh out of the box

By Scott McGann went to work the next day and looked
For the Messenger Index
The date was April 14 when the
boxes arrived at my office. While my
wife Kami and I were super-excited
about what was in the box, I was also
a little bummed out about the tim-
ing of the arrival. You see, Kami and
I were blessed enough to be added
onto the Parker Compound Bows Na-
tional Field Staff and Carbon Express
Arrows Shooting Staff and the boxes
that just arrived were our new bows
and arrows. I was hoping to be able
to hunt opening day of turkey season
with the new equipment. However,
it was 2:30 p.m. and opening day for
Turkey was the next morning, and
my alarm clock was set to go off at
3 a.m.
Opening morning came around
and Kami and I decided to take our
shotguns. Just shortly after noon
Kami and I had our spring birds on
over the regulations again to make
sure I was correct that the waiting pe-
riod to hunt a second bird had been
taken away. It had. That meant I could
go out for a second bird the next day.
That night I spent some time tuning
and getting my new bow sighted in.
That Saturday found me hitting
the snooze button again at 3 a.m., but
the excitement of a bowhunt was too
much and off I went. I set up my de-
coys and got ready in a spot we had
seen turkeys in before. As the sun
began to break up the darkness, I
waited patiently listening for the gob-
bling of a Tom turkey. Unfortunately
all that I was hearing were songbirds
and silence. I began calling and after
an hour of daylight I had to make a
decision: get out of the blind to look
for birds and possibly go somewhere
else or sit and wait. Well, the silence
was killing me so I decided to get out Submitted photo

our shoulders and headed out to the
ATV for the long ride back to the
truck. The ride looked much differ-
ent on the way out than it did on the
way in at 4:15 that morning. With
both of our turkeys now cleaned and
in the freezer, I asked Kami if she was
interested in buying a second tag and
go out again. Bless her heart, but at
seven months pregnant another trip
on the ATV did not appeal to her.
“Can I?” I asked. One thing about
being blessed with a beautiful wife
who also loves to hunt is I rarely here
the words,“No I don’t want you to go
hunting.”
With the permission to get a sec-
ond tag, I opened up the newly-ar-
rived boxes and began putting my
new bow together that evening. I
of the blind and saw nothing in all di-
rections. I packed up and headed for
the ATV to go to another spot. Upon
reaching the new spot I began to use
my binoculars to glass the draws and
hillsides. After about 20 minutes of
glassing I spotted a big Tom strutting
for his girlfriends. He was with five
hens, so I knew it would be tough to
call him away from his girls.
I looked over the area and planned
out my approach to the area where
he was. Well, when I got to the area I
set up some decoys and began calling
and calling and calling. Thirty min-
utes later I noticed movement up the
hill a good 500 yards away. There he
was, strutting around and I knew my
hunt for this bird was over. Then I no-
ticed movement about 80 yards to my
Scott McGann shot this nice turkey with his bow in the 2010 season here in Idaho.
right. Two hens were feeding along.
All of a sudden, the Tom on the
hillside jumped up and flew down
the mountain like a big glider. He
landed right next to the hens and im-
mediately began a puffed up strut. I
called and he ignored me. I did this
off and on for 30 minutes before I
came to the decision that this bird
was not coming to me; I needed to go
to him.
I crept along the side of the moun-
tain, peeking up over a small rise ev-
ery couple of steps. About the fifth
time I peeked through the brush I
noticed the circle of feathers of the
Tom’s fan was spread out just above
me at about 22 yards away. I got my
arrow ready on my bow and rose up
slowly to peek again when I realized
the best-case scenario was happen-
ing. It was the back of his feathers I
was seeing. He was looking straight
away from me so his own feathers
blocked his vision of me rising up. I
drew back my bow and set the sights
for what some people call a “Texas
Heart Shot.” The arrow struck true.
I had just harvested my best archery
turkey with a bow and arrows that
were only two days FRESH OUT OF
THE BOX. The bird was a little over
22 pounds and had an 8-inch beard.
The first day out with my new bow
and arrows blessed me with a real
trophy. I cannot wait for the next trip
out with this set-up. I’m confident it
will produce another great memory
in the field.
n Scott McGann lives in Emmett and is
regular contributor to the Messenger Index.
He is a member of the Mossy Oak Pro Staff,
Parker Compound Bows National Field Staff,
Carbon Express Arrows Shooting Staff, Cop-
per John Shooting Staff, Blacks Creek Guide
Gear Field Staff, Browning Pro Staff, Trophy
Bag Kooler Pro Staff, Gem County Archery
Pro Staff and runs Scooter’s Hunting Camp.

Pre-season scouting
By Tom Claycomb area a few years to learn the lay You can’t put all your eggs in
scout and prepare for weeks in
advance.
In Idaho there’s so much to
do that many don’t adequately
scout, but still I’m convinced
by the time you find the game, everything.
it’s time to go back to work.

For the Idaho Press-Tribune
Successful people scout for
game, but most hunters don’t
do it. If you just moved here
from the flatlands, you had to
scout around at first to find
where to build a blind, but af-
ter that the deer habits stayed
pretty much the same. In Texas
for example, winter or summer
they live and die in the same
spot, maybe even living and
dying within a one square mile
of the land and how animals
move. I discovered a draw that
cut through a bald mountain in
Wyoming. It turned out to be a
good crossing for antelope. You
could set there and drill your-
self an antelope every morning
at 7:00 year after year.
Game has certain trails/
drainages they use as escape
routes and to travel. Usually
it makes sense after studying
them. It just takes a few years
to learn these spots. Many
one basket. What if another
hunter is there? What if wolves
have moved in and devastated
your area, as is happening with
alarming regularity now in Ida-
ho? What if there was a fire?
Don’t just keep pounding
the same deadbeat area. The
first elk I ever got, I moved
camp three times before I got
into them. If you set up camp
and there’s no sign — MOVE.
Deer/elk can’t fly. If you don’t
see tracks, they’re not there!
the guys that get big bulls year
after year scout more than the
rest of us. The problem is, they
thereby somewhat limit their
other activities. That’s the
problem, I want to do it all.
Moral to the story — every
minute spent scouting is worth
it. Scout all you can. Have more
than one spot lined up. The lon-
ger you hunt an area, the better
you learn it. If you don’t scout,
Scouting hints
Learn to look for evidence.
Tracks, feces, trails, wallows,
scrapes and vegetation that
has been eaten all point to evi-
Guys that get an elk year
after year set aside nine or 10
dence of game, you just have to
days to hunt. Elk hunting is be smart enough to read it.
tough. Just because you find a draw
Use your other outdoor ac- with the proper food source
tivities as a chance to scout for doesn’t mean that they are
game. there. Let’s take for instance
Realize that no matter how bears. Many draws will have
much you scout, things can berries in them. On a good
change. People there, hound year they can’t hit them all.
hunters hit your bait or wolves You must find one in which the
moved in and scattered/killed bears are feeding — currently.

area.
Nebraska/Kansas/South
Dakota — whether it’s 100
degrees or -30, they live in the
times when spooked, deer will
always escape a certain way.
This is good to know.
I’ve got a spot in Idaho
BIG
Word of caution — an area can
be dead today and game get
spooked into it tomorrow.
Now the real question. Who

same place (they do bunch up
around shelter belts in times of
deep snows). It doesn’t matter
where they go, it’s still –30 de-
where I’ve hunted elk for three
years and feel like I really just
learned how the game moves
there last year. I’m the world’s
LABOR DAY
has a month of weekends to go
scouting, even though we all
know that it is the proper thing
to do? That’s the bad deal about

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grees and 3-foot of snow. There worst about bouncing around living in Idaho. There’s just too
is no escaping, it’s miserable from spot to spot. When you much to do. I have something
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Out west though, as a all the ins and outs of a certain Years ago Ed Sweet and I

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whole, they summer up high area. were out scouting for bears.
and as bad weather moves in You should always have The discussion turned to deer
LABOR DAY

they move down to lower el- more than one spot lined up hunting and what a big deal it
evations following their food to hunt. I once hunted with a is in Pennsylvania and Texas.
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source, moving literally 5, 10 guy that had scouted out an Used to Pennsylvania shut
or even 20 or more miles when area. We walked one drainage down schools opening day.

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bad weather moves in. that morning and it turned up That’s their hunt. It’s the big-
It usually takes hunting an that was all he had lined out. gest event of the year. They

in stock with copy

Make sighting in your rifle easy
By Tom Claycomb
For the Idaho Press-Tribune
It’s crazy to go to all the expense and effort
of getting to the point of getting a shot, and
then missing a trophy animal. Or worse yet,
of this ad - from now
Take a shot. Let’s say it is two inches low
and three inches to the left. Prop your rifle up through Labor Day!
firmly and refocus it on the bullseye again. Turn Examples shown may or may not
the scope knobs so it sights in on the original
bullet hole. Now, it should be on target. be part of current stock.
Start off using cheaper ammo. When you

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wounding one because you didn’t take time to have it where you want it, go ahead and tune it
properly sight in your rifle. Here are a few tips up with your high dollar ammo that you will be
to help you sight in your rifle. using while hunting.

Take a slip-on pad to put over your rifle butt.
This will minimize the kick so you flinch less.
While on the subject, buy a good butt pad.
Start off sighting in your rifle at 25 yards to
make sure that it is on paper. Then go to 100
yards.
ALL AMMO
If you plan on taking long shots, shoot your
rifle at 50, 100, 200, 300 and 400 yards so you
know where it hits.
Wear double ear protection. Not only
can shooting hurt your ears, it can make you NOW THROUGH LABOR DAY!
flinch.

Most early elk hunts are ‘green-field’ BROWNING BROWNING

IDFG — Some early elk hunts opened Aug.
1, most of them antlerless “green-field” hunts.
The early “green-field” hunts in seven elk
management zones — Palouse, Weiser, Lemhi,
Beaverhead, Pioneer, Snake River and Ow-
yhee-South Hills zones — are meant to help
landowners reduce crop damage.
Early archery hunts also started Aug. 1 in
the Snake River elk zone, and controlled green-
field hunts also open in the Dworshak and
Hells Canyon zones.
The green-field hunts are open only out-
side the National Forest Boundary and within
one mile of cultivated fields. They help reduce
depredation problems and control populations
causing crop damage by harvesting or discour-
aging animals in specific areas or portions of
units.
Early hunts, however, bring concerns about
waste. Hunters have an ethical and legal obliga-
tion to salvage the edible portions of their kill.
But meat spoilage is an important concern dur-
ing typical hot August weather.
The key to preserving meat is starting the
cooling process quickly. Game animals should Gold Superlite Hunter Cynergy Feather 12 Gauge
be skinned immediately and quartered in most 12 Gauge
cases and transported quickly to cold storage
facilities. Early season hunters may consider
using large ice chests to keep game meat cool
and clean. Removing meat from the bones also BROWNING BROWNING
helps speed cooling. 
When cutting up the elk carcass, hunters BPS Hunter 12 Gauge A-Bolt Stalker
must be sure to preserve the evidence of sex.
If the head or antlers are removed, evidence of
sex in the form of testicles, penis, scrotum, ud-
der or vulva must remain naturally attached to
the carcass or parts thereof until it reaches the
final place of storage or personal consumption,
or a commercial meat processing facility. Ant- BROWNING BROWNING
lers or horns removed from the head must be BDA Double Action BLR Lightweight ‘81
left naturally attached to the skull plate where .380 ACP
size, point or brow-tine restrictions apply, and
they must accompany the carcass or parts
thereof. 10 am - 6 pm Mon-Fri
Hunters must have a valid 2010 Idaho hunt-
ing license and tag in their possession, and
they are encouraged to review the 2010 Big
10 am - 5 pm Sat
Game Rules for additional details. 277708
 WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 25, 2010 • Idaho Press-Tribune/Messenger Index hunting 2010
hunting 4 C M
Y K

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C M
Y K
First big game hunt sets the bar high
By Glen Bruderer
Idaho Press-Tribune
June 2009 marked the
beginning of an adventure
that will be with me and my
family forever. My daugh-
ter Cheyanne turned 12
in April and this was to be
her first year to follow in
my shadows and enjoy the
great sport of pursuing big
game. Why June you might
ask? June is the time every
year when Idaho controlled
hunt application are sent
in. We decided to try our
chances at drawing the
trophy deer tag in Unit 40. I
have put in several times in
the past, but to no avail. We
put in together as a buddy
hunt, which if drawn, we
would both draw the much
coveted tags.
When I checked online
and saw that we drew, I
knew that this was going to
be a special year. The hunt
runs from Nov. 1 through
Nov. 24 and would be my
first rut hunt for deer. My
daughter had no idea what
she was in for, but I was
sure it would be no differ-
ent than her first hunting
adventure chasing turkeys
near Grangeville. She will
be the first to point out that
her bird was bigger than
mine. Well, we will see.
November was here be-
fore we knew it. I had taken
her out many times shoot-
ing her rifle in October. I
chose a .308 for her first
gun because it is a versatile
and accurate caliber. She
shot it well, but was ner-
vous as we drove through
the sage brush in route to
the grounds we were going
to hunt. Her worst fear was
that she would wound the
deer and not get a clean kill.
I assured her that she had
put in the practice and all
she could do was her best.
On our way in, we saw
a herd of elk. They were
cool to see so far out in
the desert. We under-an-
ticipated the time it would
take to get there, and as we
got to the area we wanted
862CFA7@C9F?E:?8
Cheyanne Bruderer, 12, shot this beautiful buck while on a late-season hunt in Unit 40.
to hunt, it was well after
daylight. I had told myself
that I WOULD NOT SHOOT
until Cheyanne had shot
her’s. As we rounded a
corner there they were.
Cheyanne and my buddy
Dennis ran straight at them
and I tried to flank them,
and maybe cut them off and
give her a better chance
at them. There were two
bucks in the group; a crab-
claw four point and a 5+
point monster. This buck
was pushing 35-inches. As
she put her cross-hairs on it
she was just too shaky. She
had a couple of chances,
but wasn’t comfortable with
her shot. It was hard letting
the buck go, but I was super
proud of her for not taking
a bad shot. Harder yet was
not shooting it myself and
letting her hunt be done
before I pulled the trigger.
What a toad!
We hunted a few other
areas, but only saw small
bucks. Cheyanne found two
forky sheds and thought
that was cool. We went
back to the truck and ate
lunch.
After eating, off we
went in search of another
group of deer. We were
talking about various plans
hunting 2010 Idaho Press-Tribune/Messenger Index • WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 25, 2010
hunting 5
responded, “Yes, she is still put another in him. BOOM!
bedded down.” She chambered another and
A few minutes later BOOM! The does were all
Cheyanne exclaimed, still standing there. I said
“There he is!” I turned up we just needed to wait a
the magnification on her second and watch. She said
scope and clicked her safety she was confident in her
off. I saw her finger begin shot. Just then I heard the
to squeeze the trigger, and deer snort and wind us. Off
off he went chasing does they went. I saw nothing
again. I put her safety back of the buck going out the
on and turned down her other side. I went down
scope. By now we had been the hill and got my gun and
we went up after him. As
sitting there for a good 30
we approached the small
minutes. I was a wreck!
stand of trees we both were
I was in full body shivers
by now and Cheyanne teaming with anticipation.
laughed. “Oh, there he is,” I looked through the brush
she said with excitement. and told Cheyanne to hold
I asked if she was on him up. He was watching us.
and again turned up the I pulled up and finished
magnification and popped him off, but he was already
IPT file photo off her safety. Again I saw done. When we approached
her finger start to squeeze the downed deer there
and I told to remember to was definitely no ground
be soft with the trigger. shrinkage. It was a beautiful
of attack when I spotted a us. Then he was gone. I
doe on the hill to the left. BOOM! I told her to cham- animal — a wide 28-inch
asked Cheyanne if the doe ber another one. She said he buck (of course, wider than
We started making our way
to the right in hopes of was still there and she was still there. I told her to any I have shot).
getting a better look at the
hillside. As we made our
way, I saw another deer.
Just then, they took off to
our right. There were two
bucks. A small forky and
a main-frame three point.
As I asked Cheyanne if she
wanted to take him, he turn
straight away and we both
saw how wide he was. This
was definitely a shooter.
We made our way up to an
old stump between us and
the deer. I saw the smaller
buck pushing some does
off to our right. I told her
that we should just sit here
and watch them. We could
TREASURE VALLEY CHAPTER
now see a doe at about
150 yards. She fed her way
toward a small group of
trees directly in front of us.
Protect Your Right To Hunt
I could see another doe and
she bedded down just to
Join SCI – 2010 Membership
the left of the trees. I told
Cheyanne that there was Special - $55 Includes Chance to Win
no reason to pursue them,
the buck would stay close .17 HMR Rifle
if the doe was still in sight.
I looked through her scope
and could see the wide
Go To: http://scitreasurevalley.org 279379
buck just inside the trees.
She pulled up and the buck
pushed does out towards
 WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 25, 2010 • Idaho Press-Tribune/Messenger Index Hunting 2010
hunting 6 C M
Y K

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