[runamuck]

in reply to: Wolf observation. #56656

I grew up in the middle of now where, first in the swan valley and then below Glacier Park. I’ve picked huckleberries with grizzlies, but we had almost no wolves. For us this is a new thing especially in the south. I live in Idaho but also hunt in Montana on the Ruby river with my father and brother. We hunt on a family ranch which has 4 generations on it. I want to point out that like us traditional hunters who do not want to be placed under the “Big Tent” family ranchers should not be placed under the “Big Tent” of the corporate farms. This farm like all family farms are extremely affected by the loss of baby animals by wolves. We can not allow them to be use by corporate farms as examples nor can we let the government red tape them to death. As ethical hunters and woodmans we need to get rid of the polarization of the issue and illuminate the multiplicity of problems and solutions that are making up this debate.

Erik

[runamuck]

in reply to: New bowhunter born today! #56644

Thanks for the great pic. Congrats to you and your wife!!!!

[runamuck]

in reply to: CO BHA needs member photos #27759

Thanks for the Idaho link.

[runamuck]

in reply to: ghillie's #25520

I hunt with one, and love it. I’m in a suite that covers me from head to toe, face to fingernails. Match a suite to your environment you can’t be seen if you know how to move. I hunt is some areas that are not nice (drug dealers), and so I like the concealment that it provides, and more importantly I like scaring my hunting partner with it. Stump shoot with one, see what is wrong and then fix it, I’ve found that a gillie suite is cheaper then modern camo but the best being the suite that you make yourself.

Erik

[runamuck]

in reply to: Turkey season starts this saturday #20130

I can not sleep in 4 short hours I’m going to be in the mountains whatching turkeys. Going to have to shoot 100 arrows just to get the twitches out. Best wishes to all you.

Erik

[runamuck]

in reply to: Sad to say….. #16751

I have hunted raccoons, and I hunt rabbits, cougars, and bears, so I’m not arguing from an inexperienced base. I agree with the use of dogs for bird hunting, especially in the retrieval of fallen animals. The use of dogs to “corner” an animal and hold it there to be killed at the convenience of the hunter is not an ethical hunt, as is baiting. I support the use of rifles to spears in hunting, as long as it is done in an ethical way. In this case the use of bait and/or dogs is not ethical to me. The use of dogs is cruel and baiting is a sloppy easy path designed to make taking an animal easier with as little effort as possible. This would be an ethical act for me if the hunter/family depended on the meat for food, but it is because the hunter(s) are lazy not hungry. Being silent or ignoring what others do, which we find as unethical is not the path to resolving a problem. Smith has a great point, if we cannot resolve this issue between hunters. Non-hunters will not make the decision for us and it will not be the PETA members, it will be those that are neutral and the visuals of baiting and dog hunting will persuade them against all hunting. I do not seek your support but I do ask that you discuss this issue.

Erik

[runamuck]

in reply to: Turkey season starts this saturday #16717

David,

Thanks for the great story I love it! Thanks for the support I am not trophy hunter never have been and never will be. I am a meat hunter only, so yes I agree with you in looking for the most tasty not the biggest animal. Thanks again.

Erik

[runamuck]

in reply to: Sad to say….. #15506

“The way to preserve the flag’s special role is not to punish those who feel differently about these matters. It is to persuade them that they are wrong. … We can imagine no more appropriate response to burning a flag than waving one’s own, no better way to counter a flag burner’s message than by saluting the flag that burns” Justice Brennan writing for the majority opinion in Texas v. Johnson 1989.

The above statement is one that I’ve found to be a profound guidance to me since I read it. We can not be silent but at the same time it is what we “do” that makes us the more honorable position, and adds weight to our arguments. We may disagree with those that bait, but it is our “obligation to persuade them that they are wrong.”

Erik

[runamuck]

in reply to: Turkey season starts this saturday #15469

Opening day is the 15th here in Idaho. I’m taking my longbow my first set of cedar arrows I’ve ever made and some good tweezers (I hunt barefoot). This year I’m taking a young man who just passed his hunter education class and who’s single mother doesn’t have the ability to make a hunt happen for him. He’s going to use a shotgun (I know I know sacrilege), but he has not passed his bow hunter ed class yet. Keep the fingers crossed I hope to be posting pictures of this young man’s first turkey. Good luck to you all can’t wait for the 2011 pictures to start being posted. Hopefully I’ll have some too this year.

Erik

[runamuck]

in reply to: Sad to say….. #15464

Just got back from the local range and as the only traditional shooter I’m always a thing of curiosity. They were talking about their bait sites for their spring bear hunts. The goal it seems it to create a location of ready food that animals learn where it is and keep coming back so all they have to do is sit an wait for the animal to come and they then kill it. I think the only thing that offends me more is the use of dogs to torture an animal before its killed while its curled up, scared, and peeing itself. This type of thinking is partly why I’ve moved to the traditional hunting, the respect for the hunt has not been lost.

Erik

[runamuck]

in reply to: Does this make you feel as bad as it does me? #15456

“horn-porn” love it hope you don’t mind if I use this label. It embodies everything that modern sportsman’s are.

Erik

[runamuck]

in reply to: Ruck #9661

I’m sorry I’m looking for each individual does. I get asked everything from how to pack for a simple a morning hike to advanced 7+ day backpack trips and everything in between. It can be for hunting, fishing or just a hiking. I’m getting a few students who have never been outdoors and have no intention of hunting. Their goal is to learn how to be safe while out in the wilderness. I have two separate pack builds, one for the desert and one for the woods, but both are heavy packs for the average person and are built for the terrain and types of hunts that I do. Ultimately what I hope to do is make a handout with three to four different types of packs with some general variations for geography that I can handout to students and their parents so that they have a guide to reference as they build their own packs for whatever it is that they enjoy doing in the wilds. I can do it now but its always better to get other input because none of us are omnipotent and I know everyone has great little tricks that they have learned over the years. Hope this helps to clarify.

Erik

[runamuck]

in reply to: How do you get these amazing hunts #63960

I have to agree with Mr. Graf. Its about what what you love about the hunt, for Mr. Graf its not the game but the hunt and how its done. I am personally moving in the same direction as he is, making my own equipment, glue, clothing etc… For others the “exotic” is the game and/or geography. You have to decide for you what it is you love and want to do. Plan and then save for it. Make sure that you do what you love to do, follow your heart its the best guide. Good hunting hope to hear your stories about your travels.

[runamuck]

in reply to: Dealing with Back Troubles. #63950

Steve,

Just my two cents: by the time I had hit 25 I had been told I had ruined my back permenantly. The problem at the time was that I did not have any other option but to continue doing my job. So I got all the help that I could and here is what I learned. Ibuprofen is good either after you have become inflamed or as a preventive such as when you know you are going to put some strain on your back. Make sure you eat something with it and keep in within the recommended daily dose only; eats the liver. Don’t wear a brace (weakens the muscles that need to be exercised). Make sure that any weight you are carrying (such as a ruck) is equally distributed over your torso and has the proper supports built in. The best thing that you can do is find a PT that specializes in backs and have him/her develop a program for you. Mine centered on conditioning the abs witch tightened the and took some of the strain off of the lower back mussels, and lots of stretching. I have to be careful with my back but I’m back up to about 90% of what I was at, at my peak, after about 3 years of training.

[runamuck]

in reply to: Cultivating an Archer #63929

I tell my all the students in my hunter’s ed classes that its not about the kill, its all about the hunt. No matter how unsuccessful the hunt is in regards to bringing home filled tags, a mentor can get a new hunter hooked for life by showing them all the wonders of the hunt, besides the kill, (IMOP the kill is the worst part of a hunt). Joe, love to hear that you mentoring, and a big thanks for mentoring a young service member.

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