Here is a picture I came across of my brother Russell's kids from a couple of years ago standing so proud with the spike their dad took. He took them with him and thought he would just drive around for the day. The boys ended up spotting this buck with some does. The buck was not quite exactly what Russ was looking for so he tried to tell them it was a doe but they knew better. After a few minutes of three boys begging he decided to punch his tag for them. To this day out of all the bucks Russ has taken this is his best according to his boys!  

The other evening Brooke and I headed up to the mountains. We ended up spending the night and had a great time. We didn't see any big bucks but we did get some cool pictures.

Brooke and I went out looking for deer the other evening and found this old truck. I thought it was kind of cool sitting out in the middle of nowhere.

I enjoy going out and looking for the antlers that have dropped off but I have had nothing to use them for so now I have started trying to make stuff out of them. Here is one of my first projects.

When it comes to finding the perfect hunting area, you can never start too early. These are just a few pictures.

Every spring the deer drop their antlers to grow a new set and I go and find them. Brooke thinks its crazy but what else am I going to do when there is nothing to hunt. It really is a lot of fun. Here are a few pictures of one of the first trips out. And of course I had to bring my trusty huntin' dog Belle

Its time again for the Hunt Expo. The Western Hunting Conservation Expo is coming February 5-8 2009 to the Salt Palace. This is a great expo with some neat displays. I love this expo simply for the fact that its all about saving the habitat of the wildlife we love. For more information you can go to www.huntexpo.com or you can click on the Sportsmen For Fish and Wildlife link on the side of my blog. I encourage everyone to go to this great event.

Hardware Ranch was purchased in 1945 by the State of Utah from the Box Elder Hardware Company. The ranch was purchased using sportsmans' dollars generated from the Wildlife Restoration Act. The original ranch covered 7,560 acres, but subsequent aquisitions expanded the ranch to about 19,000 acres. The state established the Hardware Ranch Wildlife Management Area as a location to operate a winter feeding program for Rocky Mountain Elk.
Hardware Ranch and Blacksmith Fork Canyon
Cache Valley, located 15 miles down Blacksmith Fork Canyon from the ranch, was the historical winter range for local elk herds. By the 1930s, agriculture and towns had encroached upon this winter feeding area, and friction between elk and farmers was mounting. Feeding the elk at Hardware Ranch helped eliminate this problem. Over the years, the elk have learned that they no longer need to migrate to the valley during the winter to find food.
Hardware Ranch WMA has served as a center for elk research since the 1950s. Understanding the biology and population dynamics of elk is important for sound management of the herds. Today, the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources continues these programs and has expanded the mission of the Wildlife Management Area to include public tours of the wintering elk herd.
In addition to elk herd management, Hardware Ranch provides habitat for many species of wildlife, promotes wildlife research and provides visitors with an up-close opportunity to learn about wildlife.
For more information about Hardware Ranch you can visit their website at http://wildlife.utah.gov/hardwareranch/

Here are some pictures from a Lion hunt my buddy Paul Jibson was lucky enough to have last week in Montana. Paul said " I couldn't have done it without my good buddy Tyler Johnerson. We had a great time and I ended up with this great lion. I am deadly at 20 yards, ha ha." Congrats to Paul on a Huge Cat!