Yellowstone Hunting Safety * Physical Fitness *

For those who are preparing for the rifle hunt, know your physical limitations and hunt accordingly. Every year a couple of seasoned citizens suffer heart attacks in the field when the over-exert themselves. Unless you have been exercising throughout the year, hunt the flatter areas of the caldera. It is not about returning home with a nice buck. It is about returning home!

Yellowstone Hunting Safety * Sure Shots *

With rifle season approaching, remember to be certain of your target. A couple of weeks ago, a member of the Fort Hall Reservation shot his hunting buddy when he mistook him for a game animal. Fortunately the injured hunter survived, barely. Once that bullet exits your barrel, it can’t be recalled. No freezer or trophy is worth jeopardizing the life of another.

Be careful!

Yellowstone Country Safety * Report Suspicious Activity to Fish and Game *

Please report any suspicious hunting activity to Idaho Fish and Game @ 208-525-7290 or our resident officer, Chris Johnson. Thanks

Yellowstone Country Safety * Trail Cam *

A note to the bow hunters who passed my trail camera up a draw along Stamp Meadows Road: you pushed a nice group of elk past the camera. They were 20 minutes ahead of you! 

Too Good To Be True

I moved to Pocatello, Idaho in 1977. It was my first summer in Idaho and I decided to try my hand at fishing. I hadn’t done any scouting but I knew of the American Falls dam and decided to fish below it. Armed with my trusty rod and a half dozen spinners, I headed for the Snake River.

I crossed the dam and headed down the North side of the Snake. Noticing a couple of inviting ponds, I decided to give them a try. Parking on the road and hopping a small fence, I walked into the ponds. With my first cast I had a strike and reeled in a 2 foot trout. I put it on a stringer and cast again. Wham, I scored a second strike and another nice trout. I was more than suspicious. I am neither that lucky nor that good of a fisherman. I released both fish unharmed and hiked out along the river.

It didn’t take long to come upon a sign notifying the public that I was in a State of Idaho fish hatchery.

I didn’t study the area before I began scouting and I made a horrible mistake.  Fortunately I did no damage before recognizing my blunder and I learned an important lesson.

Fast forward to a recent incident at Mack’s Inn. An out-of-state hunter spotted a magnificent bull moose in the headwaters of the Henry’s Fork. He possesses a moose tag and this one is just standing there, so close to the road. He is surprised that moose hunting in Idaho is so easy. It is his lucky day. He takes the shot and drops the moose. Unfortunately, there is no hunting of moose between North and South Big Springs Loop according to the regulations.

Residents and visitors alike have enjoyed seeing that bull wading in the river. I had admiringly posted video of that bull (Big Moose, No Tag) on my YouTube channel over one year ago. While I would love to fill a moose tag with such a bull, I was glad that the bull stayed within the safe zone where he could be enjoyed by so many.

The area was not safe from someone who didn’t bother to study the regulations however. A concerned resident called Fish and Game and the hunter was apprehended. The hunter has a court date, but that doesn’t help much. 

Yellowstone Country Safety * Stray Bullets *

Last week, someone was banging away with a firearm just upriver of Mack’s Inn Landing. Use caution where you discharge a firearm. Residents live within many areas of the forest. Once a bullet is fired, it cannot be recalled.

Yellowstone Country Safety * Bow Hunting Courtesy *

When bow hunting, if you see a rig parked roadside, give the area plenty of space. There is nothing more frustrating than spending all day setting up a hunt only to have someone walk through the area that you are working.

Things Are About to Change

The final holiday weekend of the summer has arrived. Vacations are concluding, kids are going back to school and many are storing their camping equipment until next year.

The activities of those who live in the mountains are changing as well. Businesses will begin winding down next week. Summer cabins will be shuttered for the winter. Residents will prepare for the snow to come; urgently completing repairs to their cabins that were postponed during the busy summer season. Firewood will be cut and stored and hunting season will begin this week with the bow hunt.

It is time to break out the camouflage, check gear and search for that once-a-year successful encounter with an elk. Anticipating the hunt with the hopes and dreams of a child’s Christmas, the mind sorts through the scenarios and reactions that may be experienced in the forest.

The cow calls and bugles are rehearsed. The bow string is waxed and the arrows are fitted with broadheads. The camo is laundered in scent-free soap and hung on a line to air dry. The bathroom is stocked with scent-free shower soap and deodorant.

The day pack is stocked with the essential items that have not congregated together for the past year. A compass, water bottles, GPS, knives, rope, bear spray, pistol, ammo, light, matches, Allen wrenches, Leatherman, folding saw, binoculars and a camera are all packed in anticipation the adventure to come.

Optimism is high for a successful hunt but fall in Yellowstone country brings its own anticipation. September is the most beautiful month in mountain country. The leaves change to their brilliant colors; the aspen are shrouded in bright yellow and the scrub maple in orange and red. As the temperature cools, the animals prepare for the coming winter with their own sense of urgency. The stillness of the forest will be interrupted by the constant thud of pine cones on the forest floor as the squirrels release them from pine boughs, soon to be stockpiled.  The bull elk will bugle, their primeval cry for a mate echoing through the pines.

It is an exciting time to be in the forest as a participant and an observer. Things are about to change. 

Connie and the Bear

Last Tuesday afternoon, Island Park resident, Connie Funkhauser set out for a run to Sawtell Mountain. She outfitted her two German shepherds, Max and Shelby, with bells on their collars. Strapping on her fanny pack with bear spray and a cell phone, she put her whistle lanyard around her neck and loaded her handgun. Connie was off and running.

As she neared the base of Sawtell and the forest thickened, she noticed that Max suddenly showed an alert. Connie scanned the forest where her dog was focusing his attention and saw what initially looked to be a bedded elk at the timber’s edge. Stopping to better assess the situation, she saw the shimmer of a golden fur coat, the movement of legs and realized that she was fifteen yards from a bear. Suddenly, the bear turned his head towards her and her worst fear was confirmed, it was a large grizzly.

The bear took an aggressive step towards her, a mock charge to test her response. Max reciprocated with the same move towards the bear. Connie raised her pistol and shot a round above the animal. The combined responses stopped the bear’s attack and gave Connie time to draw her spray. She began blowing her whistle as her growling dogs held their ground between her and the bear.  The grizzly apparently decided that this well-armed, loud woman and her two devoted dogs were more trouble than they were worth. Yelling in a loud and firm voice at the bear, Connie slowly backed away. The encounter culminated in an acknowledgement of one another as the grizzly retreated.

Connie explained that each day before she runs, she mentally rehearses what she will do in the event of a bear encounter. She was emphatic that one should never run with earbuds because unobstructed hearing is necessary to perceive any danger.  She attributes her survival to her preparation and a hand from the man-upstairs.

A successful bear encounter is one that allows both the bear and the individual to continue on without injury. Connie’s experience is a textbook example of how to behave in bear country.

Possible Rules for the Island Park National Monument

1.          No Hunting (especially wolves).

2.          No cutting of firewood (burning wood creates global warming).

3.          No building on private land without a federal permit.

4.          No ATVs

5.          Guided group snowmobile trips only.

6.          Maximum of 8 boats allowed on any river at one time. (You are upsetting the fish!).

7.          Camping permitted in designated campsites only.

8.          In the event of a sequester, Island Park will be temporarily closed (sorry).

9.          Park pass purchase is required to vacation in Island Park.

 More rules and regulations to follow …… Have Fun!

Yellowstone Country Safety *Stay together on Trails *

While hiking local trails, do not allow children to run ahead of the group. They may surprise a bear or other animal, with tragic results. 

Add a Tomahawk to your gear

I have been studying the equipment used by backcountry campers and one piece that has been discussed is the tomahawk. I have never carried a hatchet in the field because of the weight and the short handles that reduce the effective power of a strike. The tomahawk has a large blade but a light head and a longer handle. It makes sense that the frontier men regularly carried them. The tomahawk would be useful as a hammer in pounding stakes while setting up a spike camp. It could be used for clearing limbs for a tree stand, chopping firewood, splitting bone when field dressing game and as an additional weapon for any nasties that may jump out of the brush. The Cold Steel Trail Hawk is only 27 oz and relatively inexpensive.
I have also noticed that outdoorsmen have a habit of removing the entire finish from both the head and the handle. They then give the tomahawk a handrubbed finish making them reminiscent of an 18th century mountain man tool. I believe that I am going to try one in the field this year. It just might be a welcome addition to my equipment!

Hunting

When I was bow hunting this past year, I came face to face with a 300 lb bear. Although I had a tag, it was walking directly at me @ 20 feet. I didn't have a shot so I moved and it ran off. I decided right then that a sharp stick and a can of mace wasn't enough. I became acquainted with the Smith and Wesson 329 4". The pistol weighs on 25 oz without ammo and that isn' bad for a 44 mag. This is definitely on the list for this years equipment acquisition.