About Don Thomas

Co-editor Don Thomas and his wife Lori divide their time between homes in rural Montana and somewhere warm. He has been writing for the magazine since 1990. His books can be found at www.donthomasbooks.com

When to Begin Tracking

The moment of truth has come and gone. You have released the arrow, and the excitement is slowly giving way to guarded optimism as you replay the shot in your mind. You have taken landmarks and stared at the exact spot where you last saw the fleeing deer until you are certain it [...]

When to Begin Tracking2022-09-26T08:19:37-06:00

Kids, Bows, and Arrows

I was the beneficiary of a wonderful childhood. In addition to his scientific accomplishments (his pioneering work in the field of bone marrow transplantation earned him the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1990), my father was a highly skilled outdoorsman. My mother also loved the outdoors. Best of all, they always made every [...]

Kids, Bows, and Arrows2021-07-29T16:48:49-06:00

Across The River

There aren’t many bridges in the backcountry. Travel around much there and you’ll eventually have to cross some flowing water to get where you want to go, a process that can range from mildly inconvenient to outright dangerous. Experience eventually teaches that some ways are better than others. In smaller streams, the only [...]

Across The River2020-12-04T13:03:00-07:00

Home Sweet Home: Picking a Backcountry Camp Site

I have no idea how many nights I’ve spent camped out in the field, but it’s a lot. Most of them were pleasant and highly enjoyable, either because I was engaged in exciting hunting or fishing nearby or simply because my surroundings were free of the noise and clutter of daily life closer [...]

Home Sweet Home: Picking a Backcountry Camp Site2021-04-22T12:20:10-06:00

Packing An Animal Without a Pack

This is an excerpt from Don's article, And One For All, in the Oct/Nov 2019 issue. We weren’t quite done yet. Back when we had four kids at home our household could consume amazing amounts of wild game. Now that it was just Lori and me, two deer would about do it. Knowing [...]

Packing An Animal Without a Pack2019-11-21T09:20:15-07:00

Game Profile—American Antelope

Where the deer and the antelope play… As the words from Home on the Range suggest, the American pronghorn, familiarly known as antelope, practically defined the prairie wilderness settlers encountered as they pushed west across the Great Plains. There's still something uniquely western about the species, and the very thought of hunting them [...]

Game Profile—American Antelope2019-08-08T14:27:49-06:00

Build a Better Venison Burger

An entire article on making a hamburger? I’m kidding, right? Wrong, and I’ll tell you why. First, I feel strongly that eating what we shoot doesn’t get nearly the attention it deserves nowadays. Too many hunting magazines have devolved to endless streams of “grab-and-grin” hero photos separated by breathless prose descriptions of G-2s [...]

Build a Better Venison Burger2019-07-03T09:05:36-06:00

Eating Javelina

In the Jun/Jul 2019 issue’s Ground Game column, Built for the Ground, I talked about javelina as a great bowhunting spot-and-stalk quarry. One point I tried to emphasize is that despite their reputation to the contrary, they actually make good eating with proper handling in the field and preparation in the kitchen. I [...]

Eating Javelina2019-07-03T09:05:42-06:00

Hunting High—Altitude Sickness

Some years back, a friend came out from the East Coast to go cougar hunting. The morning after he arrived, we set out early and were fortunate enough to strike a good track. By the time the hounds were out of hearing range, he was struggling to keep up with me as we [...]

Hunting High—Altitude Sickness2019-07-03T09:05:53-06:00

Big Five—Revisiting a Legend: Bill Negley

In the fall of 1994, I received a phone call out of the blue from a man who identified himself as Dick in a rich Texas drawl that reminded me of my own parents, who had deep roots in the Lone Star State. He explained that he was in the area with family [...]

Big Five—Revisiting a Legend: Bill Negley2019-07-03T09:06:02-06:00
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