In the Idaho backcountry, Tom Schneider found a moose carcass last spring with antlers still velvet, belly torn open, scattered across a logging cut. It was wolves. He recognized their work, jaws like traps, and no meat wasted. He had seen this before too many times. But the radio out of Boise said wolves weren’t the problem. According to them, it was due to ticks and mild winters.
Read MoreJared’s hunting style is “pure chaos and instinct”. “Sometimes you’re the turtle, slow and steady. Other times, you’re the rabbit, intense and fast,” he told me. He hunts on the ground, trusting his gut above all else. “Your instincts process everything behind the scenes,” he says. That’s how he gets big bucks without a ton of pre-scouting, just raw, in-the-moment decisions.
Read MoreSpring bear season is almost here, so I sat down with Kolby Morehead from Bear Hunter Magazine for our latest episode of The Fair Chase podcast. We explored why bear hunting stands out as a unique, rewarding pursuit with no single “right” way to do it. It was the perfect episode for getting you stoked for the spring.
Kolby covered a variety of methods: spot-and-stalk in the Western mountains, cruising Alaska’s shores by boat, baiting, or running hounds. Each approach is legit and awesome, letting hunters choose what fits their style.
Read MoreRiley’s got a term for it: social carrying capacity. It’s not about how many animals a place can hold, but how much we’re willing to put up with before we lose it. A bear rummaging through your trash might get a shrug if it’s just once. But if that same bear tears into your dog’s kennel, you’re done—zero’s the number you want. I’ve seen it play out with black bears up north; folks marvel at a sighting until one claws through their screen door.
Read MoreYoung has snowmobiled into the Cache Mountains and worked with houndsmen. She says they’re rough guys with gravel voices and old boots, but they are damned sharp. She claims they’re the best naturalists she’s met; one pegged a female’s age and last meal from a track, spot-on when they darted it. They are able to read the land, deer numbers, or bear signs like they’re books. She can’t study cougars without them; they tree ‘em clean, no traps to stress her out.
Read MoreMost people think hunting is a game of strength. It’s not. At least, not the kind of strength that matters when you’re five days into a backcountry hunt, running on minimal sleep, sore legs, and the last ounce of grit you’ve got. Out here, brute force isn’t enough—you need endurance.
Hunting is a test of staying power. It’s easy to go hard on Day 1, fueled by adrenaline and a fresh pack. But what about Day 5, when your body aches, your feet are wrecked, and you’ve eaten nothing but freeze-dried meals that taste like the inside of your boot? That’s where real hunters separate from the rest—when fatigue sets in, but the job isn’t done.
Read MoreFather Stephen Gadberry went to Idaho in October, 2023 chasing elk. He didn’t get one. He found a whitetail carcass instead, half-eaten, scratched up, tucked under leaves on an elk trail. He dragged it out, left it in the open. Next morning, it was back under the tree, more meat gone. He pulled it again. Same thing next day, and the day after. Three mornings, three nights, something was out there, moving it back. A mountain lion, close, watching him. He never saw it, but he knew. Going in before sunrise, out after dark, he stopped packing his pistol in his bag. Held it instead. That’s the woods telling you, you’re not the top dog anymore.
Read MoreIf you ever want to see a hunter squirm, ask him where he shot his last buck. He’ll get shifty. Maybe scratch his beard, take a sip of beer. Then he’ll feed you a story about some “public land near the river,” or “a buddy’s farm out west.” Sounds believable, right?
It’s not.
Nobody gives up their best spot. Not your hunting buddy, not your uncle, not the guy who shakes your hand at church every Sunday. Spots are sacred. Because the second a location slips, the second it lands in the wrong hands, it’s over. A well-worn trail turns into a parade route. A quiet piece of the woods becomes a parking lot.
Read MoreNow that you're on the ground, what should you be looking for? This is what we'll be discussing in episode five of this series. We discuss how to find fresh sign, food sources, and funnels to narrow down your hunting zone. We also touch on key tips for different phases of the season, from the early season to the rut and late season, with strategies to keep you flexible and adaptable.
Read MoreIn the fourth episode of our series, we cover packing.
What do you need to bring to ensure your hunt goes smoothly? From base layers and essential gear to packing for hot and cold weather, we dive into the must-haves and the things we wish we hadn’t forgotten in the past.
Read MoreIn this third episode of our series, we dive into the critical process of scouting. Once you’ve picked your area and a few potential hunting spots, what should you do next? Listen in as we discuss how to scout, whether it be in-person prior to your trip or virtually with tools like OnX.
Read MoreIn this second episode of our whitetail hunting series, we dive deeper into the process of narrowing down your hunting area after you've picked a state. Using examples from hunts in states like Kentucky and Wisconsin, we explore key strategies such as analyzing public land, considering hunting pressure, and utilizing tools like onX maps and forums to make the best decisions. Flexibility and preparation are key, and we share our tips on how to adapt if conditions or locations change.
Read MoreToday, James sits down with Jared to discuss the ins and outs of planning successful out-of-state white-tail deer hunts. Jared shares valuable insights on choosing the right location, considering various factors, and timing your hunt for optimal success.
Read MoreJames: After someone's first elk hunting season, what should they reflect on?
Joe: "Regardless of the season that you took, if it's over-the-counter, limited entry, a turn back tag on a second list, now you actually have boots on the ground experience elk hunting, which is more valuable than anything that you or I can say on a microphone. That's what you need and that's something that you need to compound on year after year. Start planning on things that you want to do differently, whether that's like a tactic that you tried that didn't work out or an area that you tried that was overcrowded."
Read MoreJames: Once you've shot an elk, what's your process for field dressing?
Joe: "I don't gut any elk. I almost always do the gutless method, even if it is an overnight situation. I just open them up. Get that hide off of them as soon as you can. The first thing I would do in any situation is flip it to the opposite side whether there's snow or not. That's just a good practice if you can flip it."
Read MoreJames: How does late season elk hunting differ from hunting during the rut?
Joe: "Rifle, anything post rut is going to be significantly impacted by weather much more than what your rut will. Obviously, if you have nice cool mornings and the pressure is nice, the moon phase is right, like the rut is more amplified, but I've also been out on 90° days where the bulls are freaking going nuts 'cause there's a hot cow in the area. It's more determined by her than it is the weather. Late season, much more the opposite. Weather is king, it determines almost everything. Then you have pressure mixed into that, and then where they're at after the rut as far as how depleted are they."
Read MoreJames: What's your approach when you first arrive in an elk hunting area?
Joe: "The first thing that I do when I walk into an area whether it's one that I know or I don't know is try to remind myself like it's been, it's September 15, I've been thinking about this for nine months, I've been geeked up about it. I try to just calm my craziness down a little bit because my internal gut is just going 'There, find them, kill them.'
But I've kind of learned over the years that if you back off on the gas a little bit, you get up in there and you just kind of watch the world unfold a little bit, you're a lot more deadly on that next morning which you've kind of digested the whole situation."
Read MoreYou’ve bought an elk tag and scouted out the area, now what do you need? How are you going to get there?
Welcome to the 4th of 8 episodes on Western Elk with Joe and James from The Fair Chase.
In this episode, we'll discuss flying vs driving to an elk hunt, what gear is important to take with you, and more importantly what you should leave at home.
Read MoreIf you're reading this blog, you likely don't live close to the elk you pursue. Busy lives, limited vacation time, and hundreds of miles separate you from boots on the ground scouting.
Welcome to the 3rd of 8 episodes on Western Elk with Joe and James from The Fair Chase.
In this episode, you will learn how to do some valuable "e-scouting" from the comfort of your own couch. Mix this with some woodsmanship and hard work and you'll probably find some elk.
Read MoreThis is a continuation of the conversation between James and Joe from The Fair Chase Podcast, focusing on strategies for different types of elk tags.
James: So Joe, what are the different categories of elk tags?
Joe: "Basically there's a few different categories for the types of tags that you can draw and those happen in different points of the year and some cost a lot more than others, some of them cost points some of them don't.
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