They call it Hunting, not Killing

Got to spend some quality time in the mountains with family and friends for the rifle season opener here in Montana (on public land). My dad and I met up with some friends from Great Falls and gave it our best! Nobody got to go home and show off their big bull but they were able to share a few funny stories.
This was the first year I ever really compared hunting to climbing and I found quite a few similarities. Sometimes, on those really warm October days when Im hunting, Im thinking to myself "man, I should be climbing right now!" This year I realized that hunting is actually pretty darn good training for climbing. You have to get up really early and walk around in the dark under headlamp, you're carrying expensive specialized gear, you wear specific outerwear and boots, you hike around the mountains all day, areas get scouted ahead of time, you're prepared to spend the night, start a fire and administer first aid (atleast we are), you're out there no matter what the weather is doing and you get that feeling of a 'just reward' after putting in all kinds of preparation and hard work. You're also out there with a specific group of like minded individuals. Oh yeah, and there is huntin' slang just like climbin' slang! I have to say, as far as trails are concerned, hunting is more adventurous than climbing. I have climbed all over the country and there is usually an obvious trail to point B. That is absolutely not the case with hunting. On Sunday, I probably hiked 6-8 miles of which less than 1 was on any kind of trail. Dead elk walking....

The 'Crows Nest'; same spot I got my bull opening day last year. Great place to see and make a cut-off move if necessary.

Text book elk country. If you're whining about there being no public land to hunt or where there is there are no elk, then look at a map and go somewhere else cause you're wrong. 

The wrong flavor. I actually PREFER there to be other hunters. I think all but one of my elk harvests was a ricochet kill; some other hunter spooked them out of their hiding place and they ran right to me. The more hunters, the fewer places to hide and in an area with healthy elk populations theres no need to be selfish. This year, I was the bird dog that rousted the herd out of their beds and if all the shooting that happened post bust, then a few hunters owe me a beer! 

My dad teaches me how to hunt and I come away with life lessons.  Someday, my kids will hunt too.