Category Archives: Backpack Hunting

Why Aren’t I Smarter?

By Chad Nicosia | Published December 10, 2009
Featuring: NICE 6500

What can I say about backpack hunting that would fully describe it to the uninitiated? Nothing, it is one of those gloriously miserable experiences that requires boots on the ground and gear on the back. There is something very rewarding and fulfilling, in retrospect of course, about carrying everything you need to not only survive but to insistently make you body do task it is not accustomed to. Since at the time I am asking myself why do I torture my middle aged body so? The answer to that is I am sort of a masochist I guess. In continual need to push and test myself, do I know why, heck no. My wife and family think I am crazy and I really can’t argue. Sure upon initially meeting me you would think I am just like most guys in my mid 30’s, family, career and just trying to find my way in general. Now I am very fortunate to have an amazing wife and kids, good job and generally a fantastic life. But there is always this little voice, no not literally a voice I am not that crazy, time to go and stretch your legs a little.

When … READ MORE >

Posted in Backpack Hunting, Mountains & Trails, Trip Reports | Tagged | 1 Comment

Reflections on this Year’s Deer Hunting

rifle look thru
By Steven Drake | Published November 25, 2009
Featuring: Contour Pocketed WaistbeltFlip Top BoxNICE CrewcabNICE Daypack LidNICE Frame

 

As luck would have it, I tagged out on a beautiful bull elk on the fourth week of this year’s archery season.  With eight more weeks of hunting, I had the opportunity to broaden my horizons and focus hard on finding myself and two others some wall hanging bucks.

October 25th, opening morning of the Montana rifle season, friend and co-worker, Kyle Christenson and I trudged through knee deep snow and headed into high country.  At first shooting light we were surrounded by mule deer.  We saw eight bucks that morning but never took a shot.  Two weeks later, we went back to the same vicinity and Kyle took a gorgeous whitetail.  It was his first big game animal, one he’ll have a hard time topping.

The next week, friend and roommate, Sean Schroff and I went in search of mule deer. Frigid temps and inclement weather pushed some of the larger bucks down into the lower elevations offering us some great opportunities.  Sean was able to reach out and touch his first mule deer.

With seven days left in the season it was my turn to give it a go.  I went to an area that … READ MORE >

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Alaskan Moose

By James Binkley | Published October 5, 2009
Featuring: NICE FrameNICE Load Sling

With only five days left on both our moose and sheep tags, the elusive Dall sheep was too tempting to pass up.  With an abundance of pilots throughout Alaska, my brother Wade and I called a friend who had told us about a small lake, deep in the White Mountains, that he could fly us into.  Our plans were quickly diminished when we learned that his plane was grounded for routine maintenance.  Without enough time left in the season to make the long trek into sheep country we opted for a quick moose hunt up the shallow, braided Salcha River.

Our shallow draft jet boat makes access a breeze to any stream or river over six inches in depth. We reconfigured our plan to include our uncle’s cabin and a case of beer… not too bad for our second choice. With a short jaunt up the highway we launched the boat and cruised 60 miles upstream to a small cabin.

Hunting began before sunrise with the set-up of a stand in a spruce tree. With Wade perched 50 feet off the deck, I exercised the practice of cow calling and tree shaking. My attempts to mimic a bull’s horns scraping … READ MORE >

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Speed Goatin’

By Steven Drake | Published September 10, 2009
Featuring: Contour Pocketed WaistbeltFlip Top BoxNICE CrewcabNICE Daypack LidNICE FrameSaddle Peak

After three weeks of countless spot and stalks on Montana speed goats my patience and motivation was wearing thin.  It was my last evening of hunting before college started and the pressure was on.  In a last ditch effort I snuck down a coulee on a barren piece of public land.  I failed to spot any goats before I headed in.  Regardless, my hopes were high.

Two large snake skins and a musky smelling puddle of urine had me on full alert as I crawled my way down the coulee.  A half mile into the section I poked my head out to take a look at the surroundings.  I spotted a mature buck bedded on a hillside about two-hundred yards away.  It was time to try my luck at flagging.  I ducked back into the coulee, pulled out a white tee shirt from my pack, and held the shirt in the air as to get the buck’s attention and hopefully spark his interest.  Sure enough, he zeroed in on the white shirt and began running right towards me.  Right then, adrenaline started pumping through my veins, my heart rate spiked, and my breathing became rapid and somewhat uncontrollable.  The buck … READ MORE >

Posted in Backpack Hunting, Mountains & Trails, Mystery Ranch Employees, Trip Reports | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

2009 Season LIVE HUNT with Mark Seacat

By Katie Stevenson | Published August 22, 2009
Featuring: NICE Longbow

Mystery Ranch and Mark Seacat have teamed up with Outdoor Life to tell the story of our very own hunting “dream season”.

It all started at the Western Hunting and Conservation Expo in Salt Lake City this past winter. Mark and his brother-in-law Andrew Crow were arguing… arguing over just how many units Andrew would/could afford to enter into the Elk Tag raffle that was being held. Andrew didn’t think he could afford any, but Mark explained the fact that this would most likely be his only chance to ever draw a coveted license in the elk hunting mecca of Utah. In the end, they compromised and Andrew entered his name in the hat for only a few choices… as much as his budget could allow. A couple weeks later it was Mark who first heard the news… Andrew Crow would be hunting the famed Monroe Mountain Unit (home to the Spider Bull) in Utah in the fall of 2009… how about that for a $5 investment! As luck would have it, a couple months later Mark’s bank account was hit with a $795 credit to the Utah Department of Wildlife Resources… now they both had LE Elk tags in … READ MORE >

Posted in Backpack Hunting, Mystery Ranch Employees, Trip Reports | Tagged | 5 Comments

Five Mountain Ranges… One Bull.

By Mark Seacat | Published August 22, 2009
Featuring: NICE Crewcab

This essay appears with permission from the RMEF in its entirety and as originally published in the July/August 2009 issue of Bugle Magazine. Please become a member of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation. Help protect the wild places where free ranging wild elk call home. Learn more at http://www.rmef.org/.

Download the PDF.… READ MORE >

Posted in Backpack Hunting, Mystery Ranch Employees | Tagged | 2 Comments

Everything Happens for a Reason

By Tyler Johnerson | Published April 13, 2009
Featuring: NICE Crewcab

After having a rocky archery season which ended without harvest but with a high note, I regrouped and looked forward to the rifle season.  I had film jobs going throughout the first few weeks of November, so my elk hunting was going to have to wait until the end of the month.  With the last week of November upon me, I began my search.  Bursting with ambition and physically refueled, I began routinely strapping on my Crew Cab day after day loaded with all the hunting necessities including my video camera and tripod.  Miles were being logged and no bulls were to be found.  I couldn’t believe it. I had hunted as hard as I could throughout the fall for elk and just couldn’t seem to put anything together.  The days and miles sucked into my Crew Cab were running together.  Being tired was only part of it,  physiologically I was waning because of the old saying I stand by, “what you put in is what you get out!”  Well, I knew that I had put in a ton but was definitely not getting anything out.  I couldn’t find a nice bull no matter how far I hiked or long I glassed.  I decided to … READ MORE >

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Praire Bull

By Trevor Carruthers | Published April 13, 2009

After waiting 9 years of building priority in Alberta, I was lucky enough to draw a tag in a new prairie unit that is known to hold some great bulls. I hiked daily for the week before the season, scouting and locating several herds of elk. On the day before the season, a long hike revealed 24 different bulls and 1 big herd bull tending to 15 cows. We made a plan to make a move on him in the morning on opening day.

Early in the morning, we rose and strapped our packs on, ready for a long day of hiking the prairie hills. We spotted the herd from the night before and made a play on them. In the end I decided to pass on the bull and continue looking, as the day was young and I had plenty of time in the season.

Moving on through a low coulee the wind picked up very strong. It was probably the strongest wind I have ever hunted in southern Alberta and it was starting to take its toll on us. It was around 11:00 when we walked down another depression and I looked back to see that 2 bulls … READ MORE >

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Multiple Quarters….

By Mark Seacat | Published March 13, 2009
Featuring: NICE Crewcab

The bugle had been lingering in the background since jolting me awake at 1:24 a.m. I was growing impatient watching Andrew finish his breakfast.  It was time to go.

We had glassed this bull and his 30 cows last night as they fed into a timber and sage covered meadow across the canyon.  Exactly the situation we had been searching for, we sat down our packs and made camp.

While eating dinner, we watched as the herd began feeding their way toward the upper portion of the meadow.  Above them, a brief ridgeline separated the herd’s meadow from a dark tract of timber that ran on for miles.  In the mid-morning tomorrow, the elk would likely disappear into this area to bed.  We knew catching up to them in the heavy timber would be difficult.  Our best chance was to be above the herd at first light.

Andrew was still working on his breakfast as we began wading across the river.  We were late, but the ridge leading us to the elk was direct and we made good time in the breaking dawn.  Twenty minutes before shooting light, we dove off the ridge to our left, directly into a steady … READ MORE >

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Second Chance

By Marci Johnerson | Published November 11, 2008

Being fairly green when it comes to big game hunting, I figured my work was cut out for me when I decided to hunt the intelligent whitetail.  During archery season, I managed to harvest a beautiful doe but did not have enough experience to seal the deal on a buck.

On November 3rd, luck was in my favor.  My husband Tyler and I started off to find a vantage point where we could set up and patiently wait to see if a nice buck would show up.  Not long into our hike, we spotted a nice buck about 600 yards away.  We decided almost immediately to go after him.  We hurried to close the distance between us and the deer.  Just as I laid the gun over the Crew Cab backpack and clicked my safety off, the big fella fed behind some trees.  I could see he was bedding down through a small opening in the timber.  While the deer was chewing his cud and falling asleep, Tyler and I plotted my next move.

Ninety minutes later, I decided to take the difficult shot through the trees because I did not think he would move until well after dark.  I … READ MORE >

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