Every Hunt Is A Good Hunt

Every Hunt Is A Good Hunt
By Diane Tipton, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks
Statewide Information Officer
There are as many ways to make a big game hunt
memorable and fun as there are hunters, or so it
seemed in talking with long-time hunters at Montana
Fish, Wildlife & Parks.
Montana's general big game hunting season for
deer and elk opens Oct. 23 and ends Nov. 27.
While each hunter I interviewed described their
personal experiences, the ways they made hunting
more fun generally fell into two main categories: the
tried and true and the new and unexpected.
A really good hunt is in the eye of the hunter, of
course. But hunters who are thinking of adding
something different to their hunting this year might
find something that interests them here.
Hunters at FWP who like something new, and who
enjoy telling hunting stories about the unexpected or
unusual, made these suggestions.
*Get to know the small, rural community near where
you hunt. Tom Dickson, FWP's Montana Outdoors
magazine editor, said, "The slower pace of small-
town Montana can be a balm...and remind you to
slow things down a bit."
*Invite a new hunting partner to join you, or take your
child or a young friend hunting. Jim Hansen, FWP
Pacific Flyway coordinator in Billings said a young
person's pleasure adds immeasurably to his own.
Other hunters offered tried and true ways to keep
hunting fun and memorable. Harvey Nyberg, FWP
Region 5 regional supervisor in Billings, may have
been the firmest believer in the tried and true. He
has hunted with the same fellow for the past 30
years.











"We have a lot of shared experiences to reflect on
and enjoy," Nyberg said. He likes to go to the same
place, camp in the same spot, hike the same trails.
There was a sense of ritual and return to the hunting
he described.
Keeping a hunting diary is another ritual. Ron
Aasheim, FWP Conservation Education division
administrator, has kept a hunting diary for the past
25 years. He has made hundreds of entries about
the species sighted, weather, landowner contacts
and other interesting and useful information.
Most hunters couldn't resist sharing their favorite
sensory experiences: the smell of wet leaves on the
ground; the crunch of unmarked snow; the merp-
merp-merp of a red-breasted nuthatch; spotting
mountain lion tracks; watching squirrels collect and
cache pine cones; relishing Belgian chocolate, trail
mix, and peanut butter cookies in the cold outdoors.
Almost everyone I interviewed said something about
slowing down to enjoy the experience, or taking the
time to hunt well, with care and deliberation, under
safe conditions. Maybe the biggest secret to a good
hunt is simply giving yourself enough time to enjoy it.