backcountry

GEAR REVIEW: Shay Butler Knives Feather Lite

By Johnny Mack

A sharp knife is a good knife and a high quality sharp knife specifically made for the backcountry hunter is the best knife. With that said, I am always on the lookout for new and better gear. When I came across Shay Butler Knives, I knew I needed to try one out. There was only one issue and it was that he didn’t make a specific lightweight knife option ideal for the backcountry. When I addressed this issue with him, an idea was sparked and his creation of the SKB Feather Lite was born!

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GEAR REVIEW: Initial Ascent IA4K Backpack

By Johnny Mack

When it comes to hunting gear, people often talk about a good pair of boots and a comfortable backpack as being the most essential gear to make or break a hunt (besides your weapon of course). After spending several seasons hunting and packing out animals, I was always left with a excruciating pain between my shoulder blades that would eventually beat me down and made me despise the pack I was wearing.

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GEAR REVIEW: Work Sharp Guided Field Sharpener

By Johnny Mack

This last year I decided to try out a fixed blade knife for processing game instead of constantly having to remember to refill my replaceable blades. Once I settled on the Benchmade Altitude, I knew that a fixed blade is only as good as how sharp you keep it. With that in mind, I set off to find a small, lightweight and convenient sharpener that I could trust and rely upon while hunting.

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This Is How I Hunt – No. 28 Jeff Barlow

By Johnny Mack

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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This Is How I Hunt – No. 27 Jeff Lusk

By Johnny Mack

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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This Is How I Hunt – No. 26 Dustin Coy

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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This Is How I Hunt – No. 25 Ryan Lampers

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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This Is How I Hunt – No. 24 Mark Huelsing

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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This Is How I Hunt – No. 23 Christian Armstrong

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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Hunting 101: Part 4 – Understanding Wind & Thermals

By Johnny Mack

Being a successful hunter requires a lot of grit, patience, knowledge and a little bit of luck.  One of the ways to build your own luck, is to understand how and why wind and thermals play an important role in the success of your hunt. Luck is often confused with preparation and experience. In part 4 of our Hunting 101 series we are going to cover and explain the importance of wind and thermals while hunting. Applying this information while out in the field will not only help you but also explain why things did not go as planned .

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A Letter From The Soulful Hunter

By Johnny Mack

When was the last time you did something for the first time? Try to take yourself back to your mindset when you were there? Were you nervous? Unsure? Felt lost and maybe even overwhelmed?

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This Is How I Hunt Series – No. 22 Chad Ryker

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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This Is How I Hunt Series – No. 21 Travis Greenwood

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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This Is How I Hunt Series – No. 20 Jon Collins

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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This Is How I Hunt Series – No. 19 Wesley Smith

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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This Is How I Hunt Series – No. 18 Tyler Nelson

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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This Is How I Hunt Series – No. 17 Kyle Kamp

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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This Is How I Hunt Series – No. 16 Lexi Hokett

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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This Is How I Hunt Series – No. 15 Taren Weigandt

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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This Is How I Hunt Series – No. 14 Josh Kirchner

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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This Is How I Hunt Series – No. 13 Jared Larsen

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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This Is How I Hunt Series – No. 12 Garrett Weaver

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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This Is How I Hunt Series – No.11 Tom Ryle

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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GEAR REVIEW: MAVEN B.2 11×45 BINOCULARS

By Johnny Mack

If you are in the market for binoculars, spotting scope, or a rifle scope and have not heard of Maven optics, listen up.  Maven jumped into the optics market in 2014, and is based out of Lander Wyoming. The company is built upon the idea that optics can be developed without compromise in quality or performance, all without the big box store markup.

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This Is How I Hunt Series – No. 10 Chase Gunnell

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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This Is How I Hunt Series – No. 9 Tony Wintrip

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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This Is How I Hunt Series – No. 8 Jeremiah Doughty

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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GEAR REVIEW: Hunter’s Blend Coffee

Do you smell it?  The beautiful aroma of delicious fresh coffee being made in the morning.  That wonderful sound of coffee dripping down into a pot, or percolating on the stove.  These are the sounds that remind us that it is time to focus.  That it is time to prepare.

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Hunting 101: Part 2 – How To Find Animals

By Johnny Mack

Finding animals to hunt is difficult.  I used to believe that if you simply walked into the woods, you would find them.  Turns out, that is not the case.  Over all my years of backpacking and hiking, I can count on one hand the amount of times I have come across deer, bear or any other game animals while in the wild.  Hunting is difficult as proven by harvest statistics every year.   In the state of Washington approximately 20% of hunters successfully harvest a buck yearly.  To find animals you need to understand the three basic things needed for survival: food, water and shelter.  Just like humans, animals would prefer not to travel miles and miles to get each one.  If you can narrow it down to all three within a close distance, you are on the right track.

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This Is How I Hunt Series – No. 7 Andrew McKean

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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GEAR REVIEW: Crispi Lapponia

By Johnny Mack

I have spent most of my life in the woods starting with backpacking when I was 7 years old.  That first trip was a portion of the Pacific Crest Trail in northern Washington.  Growing up I hiked in any pair of available athletic shoes that my mother wouldn’t kill me for ruining.  Year after year, hike after hike, were spent stomping around the wilderness with some type of everyday rubber soled average athletic shoe.  Although hiking in those shoes proved to be comfortable for the way they fit, they were by no means waterproof, durable or had enough support.

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This Is How I Hunt Series – No. 6 Beau Martonik

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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Hunting 101: Part 1 – Finding Land To Hunt

By Johnny Mack

This last weekend Washington Backcountry had the pleasure of hunting mule deer with a new hunter who reached out to us for some help and guidance.  It was the first time that we had the opportunity to practice what we preach when it comes to mentoring new and prospective hunters.

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GEAR REVIEW: Vortex Viper PST Gen II

By Johnny Mack

There is an abundance of optics companies these day all competing for your dollar and loyalty.  Vortex Optics is one of those companies and they have developed quite the cult following in recent years.  That following was built upon their “VIP” warranty.  It states that no matter what happens, your Vortex product will either be fixed or replaced. In the world of hunting, if your optics fail, you are going to have a slim chance of success.  Hopefully you will never have to test their warranty, but it is nice to know it is there.

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This Is How I Hunt Series – No. 5 Hannah Kycek

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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This Is How I Hunt Series – No. 4 Jana Waller

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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This Is How I Hunt Series – No. 1 Jason M Grove

Hunting is hard.  Flat out. It takes patience, courage, and grit.  More often than not you are left with an unfilled tag in your pocket and a long walk back to the truck.  So why do it? Why put in so much time, money and effort if percentages do not go in your favor? I know why I do it.  I do it because the effort it takes to successfully harvest an animal is unlike any other feeling in life. Because with no risk there can be no reward.  It is what makes hunting and harvesting your own meat so special.

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The Use Of Social Media – Meeting Hunting Partners & Building Community

By Johnny Mack

Five years ago I met my best friend and now my wife through the power of the internet and social media.  We didn’t know each other growing up nor did we even know of each other’s existence until we met using the free dating app Plenty Of Fish.  It was love at first sight and it has been nothing but love ever since. The irony of it as it relates to hunting is, people have no problem using the internet to meet their spouses and significant others, but how many people will not use it to meet hunting partners or build community in the hunting world?   

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Nutrition In The Backcountry – How To Eat For Success

By Johnny Mack

We recently had the pleasure of getting to know and talk with Registered Dietician Kyle Kamp of Valley To Peak Nutrition located in Boise Idaho.  Kyle has been featured on the Hunt Backcountry Podcast presented by EXO Mountain Gear (https://exomountaingear.com/124/), and is an amazing person who decided to make a change in his own personal life after realizing how unhealthy he was and the hardships it was causing.  Kyle decided to pursue nutrition and exercise to make a change in his own life, and after losing 140 pounds, he chose to become a licensed and registered dietician as a way to inspire and help others on their own journey.

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More Than Meets The Eye – Using Scouting As A Recruiting Tool

By Johnny Mack

Summer is here and hunters are in full-blown scouting mode for this coming fall.  Welcoming summer brings about velvet antlers, new adventures, and plenty of fresh air as people are looking forward to exploring the different parts of the country.  As hunters are hitting the hills, there is another group of outdoor public land enthusiasts gearing up to do the same.

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Hunting Answers The Call To Fulfill Our Need For Spiritual Health

By Johnny Mack

Have you ever been questioned about your passion or obsession with hunting?  How about being told that all you focus on or talk about is hunting and chasing animals.  My wife hounds me nonstop about how it is always on my mind and preoccupies my thoughts. She says it is the best worst thing to happen to me and our family.  It might be sad to say, but I can’t help it. Fulfilling my innermost primordial call to hunt and be wild is at the core of my existence, and hunting answers that call.  

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