BCJ_SPRING 17 Digital Edition

OUR HERITAGE OF DESERT: PUBLIC LANDS IN AMERICAN HISTORY. PAGE 40
BACKCOUNTRY
JOURNAL
The Magazine of Backcountry Hunters & Anglers Spring 2017
PLUS: SPRING STEELHEAD, WILD
AND SCENIC MISSOURI RIVER
BREAKS, A CONVERSATION WITH
SHANE MAHONEY AND MORE

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
IN THE ARENA
HUNTING MAPS FOR EVERY DEVICE
#HUNTSMARTER
WITH THE NEW ERA OF GPS
Search onXmaps
View maps online at huntinggpsmaps.com/web
ONE OF MY FAVORITE QUOTES comes
from Theodore Roosevelt. The year was
1910, and Roosevelt was contemplating
coming out of retirement and running for
president again. He was disappointed in
how his hand-picked successor, William
Howard Taft, was dismantling his legacy.
Not one to sit idle, he re-entered the fray
and formed the Bull Moose Party.
Roosevelt’s willingness to think altruistically
and actually do, rather than just talk,
mirrors our ethos here at BHA. For those
who don’t know that quote:
It is not the critic who counts; not the man
who points out how the strong man stumbles,
or where the doer of deeds could have
done them better. The credit belongs to the
man who is actually in the arena, whose
face is marred by dust and sweat and blood;
who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes
short again and again, because there is no
effort without error and shortcoming; but
who does actually strive to do the deeds;
who knows great enthusiasms, the great
devotions; who spends himself in a worthy
cause; who at the best knows in the end the
triumph of high achievement, and who at
the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring
greatly, so that his place shall never be
with those cold and timid souls who neither
know victory nor defeat.
Every time I read these words I can hear
his voice and see him shake his fists as he issues
his greatest call to arms. What I would
do to have another politician like T.R.!
Alas, I’m not holding my breath. Instead,
just like T.R., we here at BHA are charging
forward. Our ranks are swelling. Membership
numbers have almost quadrupled from
a year ago. Chapters continue to increase in
number, leadership and clout. Our growing
staff is providing expertise to help amplify
the voices of our boots on the ground, all
across North America.
I couldn’t be more proud of our members.
In particular, the work you all did to
convince Rep. Jason Chaffetz to pull his
support of H.R. 621, the Disposal of Excess
Federal Lands Act of 2017, was nothing
short of phenomenal.
In 17 years working on sportsmen’s
policy issues, I have never seen a member
of Congress abandon a bill he or she had
introduced a week before. Never. Our ire
was swift and unapologetic. We the people
made it clear that we would not tolerate the
wholesale disposal of our public lands, in
this case, 3 million-plus acres in 11 Western
states.
Our opposition came in the form of
phone calls, emails, social media posts
and appearances at the congressman’s own
town hall meeting. It was unrelenting. And
it achieved results. Just like democracy is
supposed to work, our voices made him
listen. Rep. Chaffetz shouldn’t have introduced
H.R. 621 in the first place, but he
did, and this exercise should give notice to
any other politicians foolish enough to take
us on. Public lands are our second Second
Amendment, and we won’t be silent as the
modern-day robber barons try to steal them
from us. From above, Roosevelt has to be
flashing that big ol’ Cheshire Cat grin – all
the while urging us forward.
While we should revel in the demise of
the Chaffetz bill, that was just one skirmish.
The war is far from over. On the
horizon emerge new attempts to wrest away
our public lands and waters, as well as attacks
on clean water, the Land and Water
Conservation Fund, conservation of wildlife-rich
landscapes like the Western sagebrush
steppe, and funding for the agencies
that hold the key to the future of our fish
and wildlife and hunting and fishing traditions.
Our backs are strong, we are determined,
and we are ready to fight. Rest assured,
BHA will be in the arena for each and every
battle for our lands and waters, our public
access opportunities, and our invaluable
outdoors heritage. Victory might be hard
won, but I have faith in our members, volunteers
and partners to give it everything
we’ve got. To do otherwise just ain’t in our
nature.
For those of you traveling to Missoula
for BHA’s North American Rendezvous in
April, I can’t wait to give you a high five,
swap some stories, and plot and scheme
into the wee hours how we can protect our
great legacy. For those who can’t make it, we
know you will be there in spirit and we will
raise our glasses in your honor. Our army
is building, and we will not be denied.
Land derives much of his inspiration – and humor – from
Theodore Roosevelt, our greatest conservationist president.
Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress.
Onward and Upward,
Land Tawney
President & CEO
SPRING 2017 BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL | 3

YOUR BACKCOUNTRY
WHAT IS BHA?
BACKCOUNTRY HUNTERS & ANGLERS
is a North American conservation
nonprofit 501(c)(3) dedicated to the
conservation of backcountry fish and
wildlife habitat, sustaining and expanding
access to important lands and waters, and
upholding the principles of fair chase.
This is our quarterly magazine. We fight to
maintain and enhance the backcountry
values that define our passions: challenge,
solitude and beauty. Join us. Become
part of the sportsmen’s voice for our wild
public lands, waters and wildlife.
Sign up at www.backcountryhunters.org.
STATE CHAPTERS
BHA HAS MEMBERS across the
continent, with chapters representing 25
states and provinces. Grassroots public
lands sportsmen and women are the
driving force behind BHA. Learn more
about what BHA is doing in your state on
page 26. If you are looking for ways to get
involved, email your state chapter chair at
the following addresses:
• alaska@backcountryhunters.org
• arizona@backcountryhunters.org
• britishcolumbia@backcountryhunters.org
• california@backcountryhunters.org
• colorado@backcountryhunters.org
• idaho@backcountryhunters.org
• michigan@backcountryhunters.org
• minnesota@backcountryhunters.org
• montana@backcountryhunters.org
• nevada@backcountryhunters.org
• newengland@backcountryhunters.org
• newmexico@backcountryhunters.org
• newyork@backcountryhunters.org
• oregon@backcountryhunters.org
• pennsylvania@backcountryhunters.org
• texas@backcountryhunters.org
• utah@backcountryhunters.org
• washington@backcountryhunters.org
• wisconsin@backcountryhunters.org
• wyoming@backcountryhunters.org
THE SPORTSMEN’S VOICE FOR OUR WILD PUBLIC LANDS, WATERS AND WILDLIFE
Ryan Busse (Montana) Chairman
Jay Banta (Utah)
Heather Kelly (Alaska)
T. Edward Nickens (North Carolina)
Rachel Vandevoort (Montana)
Michael Beagle (Oregon) President Emeritus
President & CEO
Land Tawney, tawney@backcountryhunters.org
Southwest Chapter Coordinator
Jason Amaro, jason@backcountryhunters.org
Campus Outreach Coordinator
Sawyer Connelly, sawyer@backcountryhunters.org
Office Manager
Caitlin Frisbie, frisbie@backcountryhunters.org
Great Lakes Coordinator
Will Jenkins, will@thewilltohunt.com
Central Idaho Coordinator
Mike McConnell, whiteh2omac@gmail.com
Operations Director
Frankie McBurney Olson, frankie@backcountryhunters.org
Social Media and Online Advocacy Coordinator
Nicole Qualtieri, nicole@backcountryhunters.org
Chapter Coordinator
Ty Stubblefield, ty@backcountryhunters.org
JOURNAL CONTRIBUTORS
Jesse Alston, Edward Anderson, Bendrix Bailey, Matt
Breton, Sawyer Connelly, Allie D’Andrea, Michael
Furtman, T.J. Hauge, Bryan Huskey, Michael Lein, Mike
McConnell, Kris Millgate, Jeff Mishler, Katie Morrison,
Eric Nuse, Nicole Qualtieri, Tim Romano, Dale Spartas,
E. Donnall Thomas Jr., Lori Thomas, Alec Underwood,
Louis S. Warren, J.R. Young, Isaac Zarecki
Cover photo: Sam Lungren, Washington Steelhead
Backcountry Journal is the quarterly membership
publication of Backcountry Hunters & Anglers. All
rights reserved. Content may not be reproduced in any
manner without the consent of the publisher. Writing
and photography queries, submissions and advertising
questions contact sam@backcountryhunters.org
Published Spring 2017. Volume XII, Issue II
BHA HEADQUARTERS
P.O. Box 9257, Missoula, MT 59807
www.backcountryhunters.org
admin@backcountryhunters.org
(406) 926-1908
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
STAFF
Sean Carriere (Idaho) Treasurer
Ben Bulis (Montana)
Ted Koch (New Mexico)
Mike Schoby (Montana)
J.R. Young (California)
Joel Webster (Montana) Chairman Emeritus
Donor and Corporate Relations Manager
Grant Alban, grant@backcountryhunters.org
State Policy Director
Tim Brass, tim@backcountryhunters.org
Conservation Director
John Gale, gale@backcountryhunters.org
Montana Chapter Coordinator
Jeff Lukas, jeff@bakcountryhunters.org
Backcountry Journal Editor
Sam Lungren, sam@backcountryhunters.org
Communications Director
Katie McKalip, mckalip@backcountryhunters.org
Northwest Outreach Coordinator
Jesse Salsberry, jesse@crowfly.cc
Membership Coordinator
Ryan Silcox, ryan@backcountryhunters.org
Interns: Trey Curtiss, Alex Kim, Liam Rossier,
Ty Smail, Isaac Zarecki
BHA LEGACY PARTNERS
The following Legacy Partners have committed
$1000 or more to BHA for the next three years. To
find out how you can become a Legacy Partner,
please contact grant@backcountryhunters.org.
Bendrix Bailey, Mike Beagle, Cidney Brown, Dave
Cline, Todd DeBonis, Dan Edwards, Blake Fischer,
Whit Fosburgh, Stephen Graf, Ryan Huckeby,
Richard Kacin, Ted Koch, Peter Lupsha, Robert
Magill, Chol McGlynn, Nick Miller, Nick Nichols,
John Pollard, William Rahr, Adam Ratner, Robert
Tammen, Karl Van Calcar, Michael Verville, Barry
Whitehill, J.R. Young, Dr. Renee Young
JOIN THE CONVERSATION
facebook.com/backcountryhabitat
plus.google.com/+BackcountryHuntersAnglers
twitter.com/Backcountry_H_A
youtube.com/BackcountryHunters1
instagram.com/backcountryhunters
Katie Morrison photo
BIGHORN WILDLAND PROVINCIAL PARK, ALBERTA
BY KATIE MORRISON
IN MY EARLY 20S, I WENT PADDLING with my dad on the
North Saskatchewan River just east of the Bighorn Wildland of
Alberta. Dad introduced me to fishing at a young age, and time
on the water with him helped keep us close even as I grew up and
spent more time away from home. Unfortunately, this trip was
one of the last we would take together. He passed away a couple
of years later, but in that moment I remember feeling as far away
from civilization as one could get – just two of us alone with the
river and the fish.
A few years ago a friend and I paddled the same section of the
river, expecting to feel the same quiet connection to place. But
this time it was a completely different experience. Hardly an hour
went by that we did not hear the thrum of motorized vehicles or
the splash of trucks driving into the river or see the light of flare
stacks on the horizon. The wild place I had escaped to 15 years
earlier was gone. These are the changes pushing farther into Alberta’s
foothills, chasing backcountry users into fewer and smaller
quiet places.
Last year I went farther west and deeper into the Bighorn,
searching out this missing solitude. The sun broke through the
clouds just as we reached our alpine destination. Our little group
had spent the day carting packs and gear under drizzling skies to
reach Lake of the Falls in the heart of the Bighorn backcountry. At
first glance it looked like we had the turquoise lake to ourselves,
but as we drew near a couple of other anglers appeared on the far
side of the lake, their lures hitting the water with light splashes.
The sun was now warm on our faces, and the clear, trout-filled
water sparkled against the scree slopes before diving downstream
to gurgle its way through a series of braided creeks.
As we found our spot on the lake, I realized that something was
missing that made this Alberta experience different from exploring
so many other areas on the front range of the Northern Rocky
Mountains. The constant drone of off-highway vehicles and industrial
activity was conspicuously absent. It is this absence as
much as the abundance of trout, birds, elk, grizzly bears, cougars
and bighorn sheep, that make the Bighorn such a draw for backcountry
enthusiasts.
The Bighorn Wildland is among Alberta’s last wild places. Like
the missing piece of a jigsaw puzzle between Banff and Jasper
National Parks and nestled against the White Goat and Siffleur
Wilderness Areas, the 1.25-million-acre Bighorn area is one of the
few relatively intact, roadless areas that remain in Alberta.
Its forests, rivers and streams are the headwaters for the North
Saskatchewan River, supplying the vast majority of clean water
to central Alberta communities, including the capital city of Edmonton.
But it is the escape from the city and from the constant
noise and scars on so many other public lands that makes this
place so special. Just mentioning the Bighorn to Albertan hunters
will often invoke stories of elk hunts and the trophy rams to
which the Bighorn owes its name.
But even this is changing. I recently had a conversation with
Alberta BHA member Kevin Van Tighem, who has been hunting
the front range of the Rockies for decades. He told me of hunting
sheep in Job Creek in the ’80s and how his party got two rams one
year. It was classic wilderness sheep hunting, packing in by horse
over Cline Pass and camping in wall tents. “Even then, off-roaders
were just starting to sneak in from the Brazeau side,” Kevin
said. “I don’t know what it’s like now, but I suspect it’s a gong
show as I seem to recall the government officially allowed quad
access a few years later.”
Although parts of the Bighorn are quiet and wild, much of the
rest of the area is open to off-highway vehicle use. It also is facing
threats from industrial activities such as logging, oil and gas
development, and open-pit coal mines, which are creeping into
previously undisturbed lands, dirtying municipal watersheds and
pushing the wild farther and farther back.
It is because of these changes and the future they foreshadow
that conservation organizations, hiking groups, local community
members, guides and passionate hunters and anglers are trying to
protect this iconic area while working to find more appropriate
places for controlled motorized use.
Thirty years ago, the Alberta government promised permanent
protection for the Bighorn in its Eastern Slopes Policy, a promise
which has yet to be fulfilled.
The soon to be formed Alberta Chapter of Backcountry Hunters
& Anglers is the most recent group to join the call for protection
of the Bighorn as a wildland provincial park, a designation
that will protect nature and wilderness values while providing unparalleled
hunting and fishing opportunities.
The Alberta government has committed to expanding our protected
areas system, and after so many years of waiting, the Bighorn
is an obvious next step. They will need the support of all
Albertans, but especially those of us who know the power of these
wild places to connect us to the land, to our wild heritage, and to
each other.
Standing by the Lake of the Falls that day, I once again felt the
power of the Bighorn backcountry. I now am more committed
than ever to its protection – as a Canadian, as an Albertan and as
one who loves to feel the tug of a healthy, native cutthroat trout
on the end of my line.
Katie is an ecologist and backcountry enthusiast living in Calgary.
She is a board member of the soon to be Alberta BHA Chapter.
SPRING 2017 BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL | 5

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Departments
President’s Message 3
In the Arena
Your Backcountry 5
Bighorn Wildland Provincial Park, Alberta
BHA Headquarters News 8
New Staff and Board Members, Membership Quadruples
Backcountry Bounty 9
Members Making Meat from Idaho to Texas, Arizona to Alaska
Policy 11
H.R. 622: Another Kick at the Hornet’s Nest
Public Land Owner 13
Kingdom Heritage Lands, Vermont
Faces of BHA 15
Ashley Kurtenbach – Deadwood, South Dakota
Opinion 16
Mea Culpa
Backcountry Bistro 19
Leftover Salmon Burgers
Instructional 20
How to be a Social Media Advocate for Conservation
Kids’ Corner 25
Eagle Eye Ash
Chapter News 26
End of the Line 62
A Monumental Success
Features
Low and Slow: An Early Spring Float for Steelhead (Illustration) 32
By Edward Anderson
Q&A With Shane Mahoney 34
By Sam Lungren
Floating Through History and Wilderness: Retracing the Trail of 36
Lewis and Clark in the Missouri River Breaks
By E. Donnall Thomas Jr.
Our Heritage of Desert: Public Lands in American History 40
By Louis S. Warren
The Ditch: A Love for Pheasants 44
By Jeff Mishler
Hunter-Angler-Biologist 50
By Jesse Alston
Five Places to Die (Fiction) 52
By Michael Lein
Someday 57
By T.J. Hauge
Alec Underwood photo
6 | BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL SPRING 2017
SPRING 2017 BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL | 7

BHA HEADQUARTERS
BACKCOUNTRY BOUNTY
BHA MEMBERSHIP QUADRUPLES
BACKCOUNTRY HUNTERS & ANGLERS STARTED AS A GROUP OF SEVEN PEOPLE AROUND A CAMPFIRE in Oregon in
the spring of 2004. Today, the organization counts more than 11,000 members around the campfire. With the raging debate regarding
public lands over the past year, we’ve seen our membership double, triple and recently quadruple. As the campfire circle grows, so grows
the movement to keep public lands in public hands. Welcome, new members!
FOUR NEW STAFFERS HIRED
1
AS BHA’S MEMBERSHIP GROWS, the staff follows suit. Four public lands sportsmen and women have joined the BHA team in
in recent months and are already contributing across the country.
JASON AMARO, Southwest Chapter Coordinator. Growing up on
the Rio Grande, Jason has chased everything that could swim, flock or
walk. With his deep knowledge of the Southwest, he’s committed to
serving the needs of the landscape and the BHA community from the
ground up. He lives in Silver City, New Mexico.
4
CAITLIN FRISBIE, Office Manager. An avid angler and native Montanan,
Caitlin brings a plethora of expertise and organizational drive
to keep our Missoula, Montana, headquarters running smoothly and
efficiently.
2
MIKE MCCONNELL, Central Idaho Coordinator. Mike is a bornand-bred
Idahoan. With his strong background in wildlife biology, guiding
and consulting, Mike is serving Central Idaho on the ground to
conserve public lands, waters and wildlife for future generations.
NICOLE QUALTIERI, Social Media and Online Advocacy Coordinator.
Nicole comes to BHA from the world of hunting media. Through
nearly two years of volunteering for BHA, she’s witnessed BHA’s growth
firsthand and is looking forward to telling the BHA story online.
NEW FACES ON NATIONAL BOARD
3
1
2
3
Hunter: Omari Bunn, BHA Member Species: Mule deer
State: Idaho Method: Rifle Distance from nearest road:
Five miles Transportation: Foot
Hunter: Kyle Rademacher, BHA Member
Species: Whitetail Deer State: Texas Method: Rifle
Distance from nearest road: One mile
Transportation: Foot
Hunter: Troy Givens, BHA Member
Species: Coues Deer State: Arizona Method: Rifle
Distance from nearest road: One mile
Transportation: Foot
Angler: Emily Rex, BHA Member Species: Westslope
Cutthroat State: Montana Method: Tenkara Distance
nearest road: Four miles Transportation: Foot
Hunter: Ford Van Fossan, BHA Member Species:
Mountain Goat State: Idaho Method: Rifle Distance
from nearest road: Four miles Transportation: Foot
Hunter: CarolAnn Herring, BHA Member
Species: Mule deer State: Montana Method: Rifle
Distance from nearest road: Two miles
Transportation: Bicycle
Hunter: George Naughton, BHA Member
Species: Caribou State: Alaska Method: Rifle Distance
from nearest road: Seven miles Transportation: Canoe
BHA WELCOMES HEATHER KELLY AND J.R. YOUNG to the national
board of directors. An Anchorage, Alaska, native and owner of
Heather’s Choice Meals for Adventuring, Heather brings a vast array of
4
outdoors experience and business savvy to the board. J.R., of Los Gatos,
California, is a lifelong hunter and angler and a longtime member
of BHA, moving up through the ranks from member to chapter leader,
5
to a natural fit on our national board.
A big BHA thank you goes to Ben Long and Sean Clarkson for their
extensive service and the time spent on the national board. Ben was the
6
glue that held together BHA for many years, during times when the
future of the organization was uncertain. Sean provided an anchor on
the East Coast that allowed BHA to expand rapidly. Their contributions
to this organization’s growth and success cannot be overstated.
7
6
7
Send submissions to sam@backcountryhunters.org
8 | BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL SPRING 2017 SPRING 2017 BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL | 9
5

1
2
3
PROTECT THE BACKCOUNTRY FOR LIFE
BHA IS EXCITED TO ANNOUNCE A NEW PARTNERSHIP
WITH ORVIS! BECOME A LIFE MEMBER TODAY AND
RECEIVE A HELIOS II FLY ROD AND REEL COMBO.
Backcountry Hunters & Anglers is proud to offer an extraordinary opportunity. Receive a FREE Orvis fly rod
and reel package, Jackson kayak, Seek Outside bundle or Kimber firearm with your BHA Life Membership
commitment. Become a leading contributor to a community of like-minded sportsmen and women who value
the solitude, challenge and freedom of the backcountry experience. Help us protect and promote our legacy.
Join for $2,500 and get a Jackson Kilroy LT Kayak (MSRP $1,899) or Coosa HD Kayak (MSRP $1,799)
Or a Seek Outside 12-man Tipi Tent with liner and XXL stove (MSRP $2,135)
Or a Kimber Mountain Ascent Rifle in the caliber of your choice (MSRP $2,040)
Join for $1,500 and receive a Seek Outside Cimarron Shelter, stove jack, carbon pole, medium wood stove
and a Unaweep Fortress 4800 Backpack with base talon (MSRP $1,250)
Or a Kimber Stainless II .45 ACP pistol (MSRP $998)
Or an Orvis Helios II Rod and Hydros Reel with line in 4, 5 or 6-weight in mid- or tip-flex (MSRP $1,349)
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Or a Kimber Micro Carry .380 pistol (MSRP $651)
IN ADDITION YOU WILL RECEIVE:
• Subscription to quarterly Backcountry Journal
• Recognition in Backcountry Journal
• Assurance that your dollars are helping conserve
valued backcountry hunting and fishing traditions
WELCOME, NEW LIFE MEMBERS!
Charles Arbuckle
Jeff Armantrout
Michelle Bailey
Mark W. Banks
James Beabout
Randall Beasley
Nick Bissett
Rick Blake
Terrell Blanchard
Bill Brass
Ryan Brenteson
Brian Bullock
Damon Bungard
Jason Burgess
Julio Cabrera
Daniel Callahan
Sean Callahan
Kendall Card
Chris Cholette
Scott Cripe
Dan Crockett
William Cullins
Daniel Dale
Pete Dial
Jacob Dima
Paul Dinkins
Mitchel Doolin
David Draper
Dan Duncan
Brandon Ellsworth
Thomas Filgo
Wesley Ford
M.T. Gallagher
John Garofalo
John Gibson
Steve Gili
Alan Guile
Taylor Hansen
Jason Haskell
Sean Hatch
Mikkel Haugen
Howard Holmes
Brooks Horan
Tyler Houston
Tom Hull
Michael Iten
James Johnson
Jason Kremer
Jesse Kurtenbach
Matthew Lee
William Logiodice
Braun Lowry
Matt Maples
Chris Maples
John Marian
Anthony Mastromarino
Scott Mayer
Mike Mihlfried
Kyle Miller
Robert Miller
Mike Mongelli
Kurt Mueller
T.J. Nevin
Ross Niebur
Michael Panasci
Kevin Parrott
Anthony Perlinski
Michael Peterson
Shane Pinzka
Tom Plaugher
Sean Powell
John Rasmussen
John Redpath
Brian Riopelle
Shannon Scott
Mark Seacat
Terry Sloan
Brian Solan
James Stevens
Hunter Stier
Trevon Stoltzfus
Patrick Stump
Jack Tawney
Michael Tollefsrud
Lyle Vinson
Camron Vollbrecht
Todd Waldron
Oliver White
Luke Wiedel
Matthew Wilcox
Matt Williams
Randall Williams
Thomas Wilshusen
James Zeck
Abdul Zubaid
INTERESTED? CALL OR EMAIL RYAN SILCOX:
admin@backcountryhunters.org (406) 926-1908
Photo courtesy of The Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association
POLICY
H.R. 622: ANOTHER KICK AT THE HORNET’S NEST
BY ERIC NUSE
ON JANUARY 24, REP. JASON CHAFFETZ introduced H.R.
622, the so-called “Local Enforcement for Local Lands Act,”
which would terminate the law enforcement functions of the
U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management. In their
place, this legislation would provide block grants to states for the
enforcement of federal law on federal land.
If you support small government and lower taxes, this might
appear to be a good thing. According to Lanny Wagner, retired
state chief law enforcement ranger with the BLM, thousands of
federal law enforcement officers from the BLM and USFS would
have their jobs eliminated. This would ostensibly save lots of
money in salaries and benefits. Or would it? I suspect the under-staffed
Border Patrol would scoop up these officers, resulting
in a cost shift but no savings to taxpayers.
So who fills in for these USFS and BLM officers? H.R. 622 proposes
block grants to local and state law enforcement. As a former
state game warden, I know these agencies could use more money.
I also know that most don’t have the capacity to take on more
work, especially outside their areas of expertise. Big money is pretty
tempting bait, particularly for politicians who are only looking
as far as the next election. Block grants are also notoriously easy
to underfund or cut altogether. I doubt most agencies would be
willing to invest in the training costs to take on new officers or
retrain veteran officers based on shaky year-to-year block grants.
This looks a lot like a bait-and-switch scheme to me.
But even assuming the best – that funding is sufficient and the
powers that be in Washington do continue the funding, what
would be lost? According to Jay Webster, a retired patrol captain
with USFS Law Enforcement and Investigations, “Local law enforcement
is not going to be able to deal with specific issues like
tribal rights, timber, fire and special uses.”
Sen. Martin Heinrich described the proposed bill in a Huffington
Post article as “a gift to poachers and drug runners.”
Wagner added, “The potential loss of both natural and cultural
resources due to the inability of the crimes to be investigated
properly – or at all – would be devastating to current and future
generations.”
Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association (FLEOA) Executive
Director Pat O’Carroll said, “Forest Service and Bureau of
Land Management officers and agents conduct complex investigations
crossing county, state and international borders. They are
highly trained and routinely investigate the destruction of archaeological
sites, timber theft, drug trafficking, illegal immigration,
wildlife poaching and catastrophic wildfires.”
In a letter to Rep. Chaffetz, FLEOA President Nathan Catura
said the bill “will embolden those who view federal public lands as
an intrusion on their constitutional rights. It will lead to further
hostilities and encounters such as those recently played out on the
Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon.”
Beyond the diminished law enforcement function is the less
obvious but very important function of officers being the on-theground
representatives of their agencies. Most visitors to national
forests or BLM lands will never see managers, who spend most of
their time behind desks. But visitors will see officers who can answer
their questions, pass along feedback to the resource managers
and provide emergency assistance. Local law enforcement is great
at what they do, but there is no way they can replace the agency
knowledge and dedication of the USFS and BLM officers.
Randy Newberg, host of the TV show Fresh Tracks and a passionate
public lands user, summed up the threat to sportsmen as
well as to the public at large: “What we see in H.R. 622 is surely
an attack on the integrity of our public lands. This bill represents
just one of many efforts by fringe elements seeking to impose
their radical ideology on Americans, millions of Americans, who
treasure these public lands. Public lands are one of America’s
greatest treasures. Attacks on these lands and all they represent to
American public land users are anti-hunting, anti-fishing and, at
their core, anti-American.”
Rep. Chaffetz quickly withdrew another bill introduced in conjunction
with H.R. 622, the “Disposal of Excess Federal Lands
Act,” H.R. 621. That bill would have mandated the sale of 3.3
million acres of public lands. His decision to abandon the bill
followed strong, outspoken and unrelenting criticism from BHA
and other groups.
We need to show lawmakers that messing with our public lands
and the folks who manage and protect them is, as BHA President
and CEO Land Tawney said, “Like kicking a hornet’s nest.” Most
folks only kick once, but some are slow learners.
Eric is a retired Vermont game warden and board member of the
New England BHA Chapter.
SPRING 2017 BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL | 11

Michael Furtman photo
PUBLIC LAND OWNER
KINGDOM HERITAGE LANDS, VERMONT
BY MATT BRETON
I CUT THE BUCK’S TRACK BEFORE DAYLIGHT where he
crossed the road off the snow-covered mountains to the west. It
was the second to last day of the Vermont muzzleloader deer season,
and the sand was rapidly sliding out of my hourglass. Following
his track at sunup, I worked on sorting out his nighttime
wanderings through private timberland, trying to stay warm on a
cold December morning.
The Kingdom Heritage Lands, tucked away in the northeast
corner of Vermont, are a patchwork of private and government
properties open to public hunting. Public access to these acres is
protected through the collaboration of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service, the State of Vermont as well as nonprofit and private
interests that demonstrate the value of conservation partnerships.
The habitat is an extensive area of northern lowland forest and
wetlands, ringed by hills and mountains of moderate elevation,
drained by numerous streams flowing into the Connecticut River.
Primarily boreal forest intermixed with hardwood, these lands
support activities ranging from recreation-based tourism to wood
harvest and maple sugaring. This forest region provides important
habitat for numerous animal species on the edge of their ranges
such as moose and spruce grouse. For New England sportsmen,
the ability to hunt and fish timber company land borders on sacred.
With 70 million people within a day’s drive, the existence
of areas like this is uniquely important in satisfying the need to
venture into remote stretches of wild country to track a whitetail
buck or to land a brook trout that never before has risen to a
fisherman’s fly.
With the rut behind him, this buck was focused on recovering.
His antlers left an impression in the snow on an old stump
where he’d fed on mushrooms. Inadvertently I jumped him out
of his morning bed, and the chase was on. The bucks of these
big woods are wanderers by nature and typically cover miles of
territory to feed, breed and finally head to their wintering areas.
I followed him across several ridges heading steadily back uphill,
noting where he stopped to check the wind. As the time and miles
passed, I wondered if I’d get a chance to put my tag in his ear.
In 1997, timber company Champion International decided to
sell 132,000 acres in northeastern Vermont. This land had been
managed for decades to produce an array of forest products with
an emphasis on spruce-fir pulp wood for paper. The Conservation
Fund of Arlington, Virginia purchased the ground in 1998 and
a number of interested parties came together to protect and preserve
this rich, multi-use area. TCF worked in partnership with
the Vermont Land Trust, Vermont Agency of Natural Resources,
Vermont Housing and Conservation Board, Vermont Chapter of
The Nature Conservancy and USFWS to create a new model for
the protection and management of large acreages in the northeast.
This partnership is particularly special because of the focus
on complementary management across the ownerships to achieve
three equally important goals: working forests, ecological protection
and public access.
Doug Morin, a wildlife biologist/state land planner for the Vermont
Department of Fish & Wildlife, called this arrangement
“unique for Vermont and rare for New England.” He also said,
“It might be a model for future public-private partnerships for
industrial timberland.”
The region’s people had a voice in shaping the direction of the
Kingdom Heritage Lands with 35 public meetings, workshops
and comment sessions – a level of input without precedent in Vermont.
The management plan divided ecologically significant areas
into federal land as part of the Silvio O. Conte National Wildlife
Refuge and state land in the West Mountain Wildlife Management
Area. The remaining acreage was purchased by Essex Timber
Company, later sold to current owner Plum Creek Timber
Company, for working forestry with easements protecting certain
natural resources and guaranteeing perpetual public access.
After several miles, the buck finally fed again and I knew he
soon would lie down. Slowing my pace, I began to search the
timber for his bedded form. I eased through one opening and
then into another with slow, quiet steps. Then I spotted him only
40 yards away. He slowly turned his head, revealing his antlers
and confirming what his tracks had told me several hours earlier.
The hanging black powder smoke slowly cleared. With the
tracking job now complete, I set myself to the reverent tasks of
dragging the deer out and getting him into my freezer.
The Northeast is not known for its public hunting opportunities.
As the timber industry changes, this unique collaboration
of public, private and nonprofit partners has been a successful
means to preserve and protect our wild places and traditions. I’ve
hunted the Rocky Mountain West and I am thankful for the vast
expanses available there, but being able to track a buck in classic
New England fashion leaves me with a sense of accomplishment
rooted in tradition. I am lucky to have a home landscape as rich
and accessible as our Kingdom Heritage Lands.
Matt is a native Vermonter who joined BHA after it dawned on
him just how important public lands are, following a trip to Colorado
to hunt elk. He helps produce the New England chapter e-newsletter.
12 | BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL FALL 2016
SPRING 2017 BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL | 13

FACES OF BHA
WAYS TO GIVE:
BECOME A LEGACY PARTNER
PLANNED GIVING
BEQUESTS
COMBINED FEDERAL CAMPAIGN
WORKPLACE MATCH
CHARITABLE ANNUITIES
IRA ROLLOVER
GO TO BACKCOUNTRYHUNTERS.ORG OR CALL GRANT ALBAN AT 406-926-1908 TODAY!
ASHLEY KURTENBACH: Deadwood, South Dakota
Fitness Competitor and Coach, Corporate Recruiter
HOW DID YOU GET
INTO HUNTING AND
FISHING?
I was born and raised in
Iowa. My dad is a huge pheasant
hunter and an avid deer
hunter. I was around it but
didn’t really do it. I didn’t have
the equipment or the money.
I’d ask my dad to come and
he’d say, “Is this a joke? Because
I’m not going to go out
and buy stuff for you if you’re
not 100 percent serious.”
I didn’t get into hunting
until I met Jesse. When we
started dating, he was into
hunting. I’d always wanted
to learn and he was willing to
teach me. I got my first bow.
He made me practice for two
years before we even went
turkey hunting. At that time
we lived on the east side of
South Dakota. There wasn’t a
lot of public lands so we had
fewer opportunities. When
we moved to the Black Hills,
I was able to step it up because
there’s so much more
public land. I could go out
every weekend. The last three
or four years we’ve been going
nonstop, as much as we can. I
love it.
WHAT ATTRACTED
YOU TO BHA?
I heard of it through social
media last year. Jesse had an
antelope tag in Utah last fall,
and he filled it within a few
days. We decided to get me an
over-the-counter archery elk
tag because we had blocked
out 11 days for the antelope
hunt. We have some friends
who are on the board in Utah,
Jason and Kait West. They said
we’d be perfect to start a BHA
chapter in South Dakota. We
were talking general public
lands stuff while we were on
our trip, and they were helping
us with our elk hunt.
We talked about how it
would be nice for South Dakota
to have a chapter because
it is needed. We have the same
issues that so many other
states are fighting. So, I contacted
the organization and
got enough people around it.
We are just starting out, telling
people, “Hey, this is a great
organization. It’s been around
for a while, but we are just getting
the ball rolling in South
Dakota.”
HOW DOES FITNESS
FACTOR INTO YOUR
HUNTING?
I train every year, regardless
of competitions, for hunting
season. I like to keep up with
the boys as much as possible.
I like carrying my fair share.
I pack out my own animals.
I train like mad for about six
months before hunting season.
I do cardio to help my endurance
in the mountains. Weight
training helps me carry my fair
share of a deer. When I shoot
an antelope, I carry the whole
thing out by myself. I feel like
I can contribute and people aren’t
taking care of me.
I also hunt a lot on my own.
That’s a big thing for me and
other women. If I go out and
harvest something, I don’t need
to call anyone because I know
what to do. That’s rewarding
to me. Especially when I am
in a backcountry camp with a
bunch of men and they’re like,
“Holy crap, you can keep up
with us.” That’s a compliment
to me because that’s what I
train for. It’s nice to be respected
on that level, especially in
a sport where men dominate.
WHAT IS THE BIGGEST
THREAT TO HUNTING
AND FISHING?
It’s a dying activity anymore.
This is why I love BHA.
It draws attention to future
generations. If we lose public
lands now, it won’t be here.
Future generations won’t even
get the option. I don’t have
kids, but I’m super passionate
about passing down the love of
the outdoors.
I see a lot of women getting
involved. With more women
hunting and fishing, hopefully
there will be more kids. We
also live in a world where kids
are in a lot of extracurricular
activities. Unfortunately, fewer
people are taking the time
to bring kids into the outdoors.
If we lose public lands
we will lose hunting even faster
because there will be even
fewer opportunities.
SPRING 2017 BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL | 15

OPINION
MEA CULPA
BY BENDRIX BAILEY
I AM A POSTER BOY FOR BACKCOUNTRY PUBLIC LANDS
conservation, literally (see Backcountry Journal Fall 2016, page
18). The Nature Conservancy received my first ever donation to a
charity when I was 28. I’ve lost track of all the conservation donations
since then, other than my recent enlistments as a Backcountry
Hunters & Anglers Life Member and Legacy Partner. Every
day of the 33 years since that first donation I have advocated for,
donated to and voted in favor of preserving wild places for all of
us to enjoy. Yet, when I look in the mirror, I see the enemy.
Success in business provided me with the means to purchase
raw land, both near my home in Rochester, Massachusetts, and
farther north in the unorganized township of T2R12, Maine. It
is an accumulation of over 2,600 acres that will remain, as long as
I live, wild and undeveloped. It is also posted against entry and I
have no intention of opening it to the public.
“What a hypocrite,” you might say. Here is a fellow who advocates
for public wilderness but bars the public from land he owns.
In 1998 I purchased my first parcel of wild land, a run-down
cranberry bog with some upland and swamp totaling 50 acres. It
is bordered by a road, a lake, a farm and, to the rear, over 2,000
acres of largely untrammeled Swamp-Yankee wetland of brown
brush, cedar, maple, white oak and tupelo. It is a whitetail haven
in the midst of an ever crowding southeastern Massachusetts.
Thanks to the gracious permission of the prior owner, I had
been hunting the land for several years before I purchased it.
There were others hunting the property, some with permission
and some without. I purchased the land for bowhunting whitetail
deer in the fall and the enjoyment of nature in the months
between hunting seasons. I kept the land open, granted access to
those who had it prior and asked those who did not to leave. Because
I hunt exclusively with a longbow and because bowhunting
is allowed during our shotgun and primitive arms season, I asked
the other hunters to limit themselves to archery on that property.
I’m just not comfortable up a tree in camo where guns are in use.
Then one day while in my treestand I was rocked by the blast
of a nearby 12 gauge. After helping the hunter drag his deer out,
I revoked his permission to hunt on my property. Later that same
year I caught another hunter and his pal removing my treestand.
I won’t waste your time with the excuses each offered for violating
the trust, but over time, I tired of dealing with other hunters and
the frustration of having hunts disrupted, so I put up a fence and
locked it. You can’t imagine how pleasurable it is for me to sit in
the midst of all that wildness, undisturbed.
A few years later I purchased some undevelopable swampland
one town over. It is bordered by a highway, an industrial park and
a neighborhood. I posted the land but provided contact information
on the signs with an invitation to call for permission. Again
I was startled out of my tree by an unpermitted shotgunner, was
threatened by another who, as an ex-cop, promised I’d be persecuted
by his fellow officers, and had treestands stolen.
In 2011 I purchased 2,500 acres of timberland in Maine. It has
eight and one half miles of logging roads with a single entrance
and is backed by many square miles of conservation land. Hewing
to Maine tradition, I left the land open to other hunters and
nature lovers. Well, I did for a while. Over the course of the first
year I was threatened by a drunk whom I asked to clean up the
beer bottles he had strewn about and had my truck vandalized
by a crew of bird hunters who objected to my blocking one of
the roads while bowhunting at the end of it. You guessed it. A
gate went up at that single entrance. My phone number is welded
into that gate, and I still allow those who ask first to access the
property, but like more and more land in Maine and elsewhere,
there is that gate. That gate means you can’t enjoy those woods
on a whim. You can’t meander up into those four square miles,
fish the two ponds and the brooks that flow from them, and you
can’t camp at the old campsite out back while exploring Maine’s
forests. You have to plan ahead and get permission. Mostly, you
just slow down then drive by. You might be one of the good guys,
but sadly, there are enough bad guys out there to ruin it for all.
I could explain how hard I worked to afford those properties.
I could describe how much the hunting, the solitude and the nature
mean to me, and how stressful interactions with unpleasant
people can ruin it. I could explain, but when I was done, you’d
probably just say something like Don Thomas said when he characterized
one Montana landowner as a man who, “would be of
little consequence except for the staggering number of zeros on
the numbers at the end of his bank account.” While mine will
stagger no one, the point is made. A man who can afford to purchase
land and lock it up deserves the worst sort of vilification
from those who cannot.
Or does he? And be patient for just a moment more. I’m getting to
the point.
I hunt public lands also. I love public lands. It was all I had for
years. I hang with other public lands hunters and I’ve heard the stories
of hunts busted by inconsiderate hunters who blow in, knowingly or
otherwise, and spoil a perfect setup. It only happens so many times before
you start wishing you could have this little corner all to yourself,
for just a day or two.
Closer to home, I don’t open my door to random strangers, and
most likely, neither do you. There is a thing about ownership that
makes us feel we have a right to control what we own. It is in our nature,
and it is in our laws. And that is why when I look in the mirror I
see the enemy. And why, when you look in the mirror, you should see
the enemy. We all become the enemy of general public access as soon
as we own the land. Given the means to own it, someone, someday
will motivate you to restrict or perhaps close it.
And that’s my point, and that’s why I’m a Life Member and Legacy
Partner of BHA. Without public lands our hunting heritage will devolve
into a feudal system of owned wildlife that only the privileged
may pursue. The North American Model is unique, and it relies on
public lands. Public lands are our only protection against our own
nature. For that reason, the fight to preserve the public lands heritage
is one we must not lose.
Bendrix hunts with a longbow, canoes and camps with his family and
is a registered Maine guide. Founder of Measurement Computing, he has
participated in three technology startups since graduating from Babson
College in 1979.
16 | BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL SPRING 2017 WINTER 2016 BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL | 17

BACKCOUNTRY BISTRO
LEFTOVER SALMON BURGERS
BY J.R. YOUNG
WHEN I STARTED FISHING REGULARLY with a local charter
for salmon out of Emeryville, California, I noticed the sea lions
awaiting the fleet’s return to the harbor. Once back at the docks,
the deckhands would feverishly work to finish fileting out everyone’s
fish. They often tossed the carcasses into the water for an
easy meal for the sea lions lurking close by. Solid eats for them,
but I’d always opt to take my fish home whole and process them
myself, much to the lions’ disappointment. After cutting up my
fish, I save the heads to bury deep beneath the tomato plants in
my garden (based on the recommendations of a world-renowned
tomato specialist; but really, this is a whole other story). I boil the
carcasses for fish stock, but I quickly noticed just how much meat
still remained from fileting. I figured it could be put to better use.
Looking at a salmon carcass that has been fileted, you’ll notice
there’s quite of bit of meat hanging between the bones around the
spine. This is true for most fish over two or three pounds, and I
would recomend this recipe for pike, bass, trout and pretty much
any fish large enough. Now I can’t remember if it was a technique
I saw in a recipe or if, one day, I just decided to pick up a spoon
and try and get all the additional meat. Running the spoon down
the spine initially and then parallel with the rib bones I was able
to clear most of the flesh. I was amazed at just how much was
there. Four Chinook at roughly 10 to 12 pounds each (whole)
yielded a couple pounds of meat.
With a bowl full of bonus raw salmon, the possibilities are endless.
Fresh king salmon loves a grill, so burgers, in my opinion, are
a fantastic option. Some might call it a cake, for the similarity to
crab cakes. You can really go any way you want with seasoning,
but I like to keep it simple. The trick is to make sure any larger
bits of meat are finely chopped, and that there is something to
bind the meat together.
INGREDIENTS:
1½-2 lbs of finely chopped salmon meat
1 egg
¼ cup breadcrumbs
1 tsp fresh ground pepper
1 tsp sea salt
1 tbs lemon juice
1 clove garlic, pressed
1 tsp dried thyme
First, scrape your salmon carcasses of all residual meat. In a
bowl, mix the salmon, egg, breadcrumbs, pepper, lemon juice,
pressed garlic and thyme (hold the salt for now). Once all is incorporated,
let it rest for 10 minutes to help binding. Next form the
burger patties. Work as gently as possible, but get the job done. If
they aren’t binding, try adding a little more egg or breadcrumbs.
Once the patties are formed, sprinkle salt on top and start grilling
over your favorite form of fire. I like to grill mine medium,
but there’s nothing wrong with cooking a little more. Well done it
will get dense and chewy, however.
Once the burgers are done, dress them up with an aioli or tartar
sauce. Toss on a tomato, grilled onions and/or some lettuce. It’s a
burger; make it your way. Once you get the basics, tweak the spices,
add a dash of soy sauce or toasted sesame oil. Add some ginger
for an Asian flair, chipotle and cumin for Mexican or Herbes de
Provence for French. Have fun and get more from your fish!
J.R. was born and raised in Washington where salmon was a staple
of his diet. He currently lives in the Bay Area of California with his
wife, son, dog and chickens. He recently joined BHA’s national board
and will be cooking at the Field to Table Dinner at the 2017 BHA
North American Rendezvous.
SPRING 2017 BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL | 19

INSTRUCTIONAL
2
SHOW OFF WHAT MOTHER NATURE GAVE YA
Your coworkers might not understand why wild
places are important to you, but with the help of
social media it’s easy to shine a light on what makes
these lands great. Showcase stunning landscapes,
demonstrate your knowledge of and reverence for the
animals or fish you’re chasing, and share the reasons
why public lands are meaningful to you.
FOLLOW POLICYMAKERS
3
These days, social media can have
a major impact on legislation. Think
about it: These platforms give us the
means to react instantly to proposed
bills and voice our support or opposition
directly to the source, our elected
officials. We witnessed the impact social
media can have on legislation firsthand back in February when
Rep. Jason Chaffetz announced on Instagram that he was withdrawing
H.R. 621, which called for the sale of 3.3 million acres
of public lands, within days of its introduction. He backpedaled
after a tidal wave of opposition crashed over his social media accounts.
Collectively, thousands of public land enthusiasts made a
difference by using hashtags such as #keepitpublic and explaining
why any sale of our public lands is a bad thing.
When you decide to comment on elected officials’ social media
pages, be sure to compose your thoughts in a respectful and positive
manner. Cursing, threatening and trolling are unnecessary
and can perpetuate misleading stereotypes surrounding the hunting
and angling community.
How to be a Social Media Advocate
for Conservation and Public Lands
BY ALLIE D’ANDREA
#KEEPITPUBLIC
SOCIAL MEDIA IS NO LONGER JUST FOR CREEPING on
your ex or showing off the buck you killed last fall. Several of
the popular platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter have
morphed into forums of public opinion, virtual soapboxes for the
presentation and debate of ideas. These are places to raise awareness
for issues near and dear to our hearts, start conversations and
show the world who we are as conservation-minded sportsmen
and women.
You don’t need to be the world’s next selfie-studded Instagram
star to be an effective advocate for conservation. In fact, your page
does not even need to be public! There’s a pretty good chance
that some of your friends and family are not up to speed on current
policy and legislation regarding wildlife, public lands transfers
and natural resources. Every person you enlighten is another
potential vote on our behalf. Here are a few tips for how you
can join the fight to protect our sporting heritage through your
smartphone or computer.
Allie is the digital marketing manager at First Lite and shares her
adventures through social media under the handle Outdoors Allie.
She is a lover of all things outdoors and uses her platform to highlight
the importance of conservation and the vitality of our public lands.
4
SHARE CONSERVATION EVENTS
Going to your local BHA chapter’s
pint night? Volunteering on a habitat
restoration project? Headed to Missoula
for the North American Rendezvous
this spring? Post about it! Sharing events
KEEP IT CLASSY
5
No one wants to see that weird photo
of your brother biting the head off
a trout; you can save it for blackmail
at Thanksgiving. Hunters, anglers and
outdoor enthusiasts alike have a responsibility
to show respect for America’s
public lands, including the critters that
live there. Blood is unavoidable when killing an animal, but try to
keep it to a minimum in posts online. The uninitiated are often
on social media helps spread the word. The more folks who know
about and attend these gatherings, the better. Never been to a
BHA event? Give it a go. You can expect good beer, good people
and great conversation. Make sure to take pictures while you’re
there and show how much fun you had!
more sensitive to gore. Keep that trout wet, tuck that lolling elk
tongue and lay out your ducks in a way that displays their beauty
rather than a pile of wet feathers.
We’ve entered an age where social media can mold public opinion,
change policy, even affect elections. It’s up to us as sportsmen
and women to take advantage of that capacity and advocate for
the things that matter to us: clean water, intact ecosystems, sporting
traditions and keeping public lands in public hands.
1
PRESS #
Hashtags have the power to unite our voices as
public land owners and increase engagement among
new folks looking to join our ranks. Don’t know
what hashtag to use? Check the bio of BHA’s Instagram
for the latest: #KeepItPublic, #PublicLand-
Owner, #StreamAccessNow.
For those of you with private pages, your photos
will not pop up in the hashtag streams; however,
that does not mean you should disregard this point.
Hashtags in your post will be seen by your followers
(including your nosey mom who likes every single
one of your photos), which still helps raise awareness.
Tim Romano photo
20 | BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL SPRING 2017

22 | BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL FALL 2016
SPRING 2017 BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL | 23

KIDS’ CORNER
EAGLE EYE ASH
The View from a Young
Birdwatcher’s Treehouse
BY KRIS MILLGATE
MY NAME IS ASHLEY AND I’M 12.
I was born in Pennsylvania, but I live in Idaho.
Our house is in the country and we have big trees.
We’re building a tree cabin in one of the trees.
There’s a spotting scope up there too.
I use it to spy on a bald eagle nest about a mile away.
I’ve fished a few times, but I’ve never caught anything.
With birds, I always see something.
Sometimes I see the mom, or dad, it’s hard to tell, sitting on top of the nest feeding the babies.
To pass food, the mom puts her legs on top of the nest and bends down to the baby’s head, just like a little kiss.
Baby eagles have black heads, but adults have white heads.
I was born blond, but now I’m brown so it’s probably something like that.
A lot of other kids don’t know about eagles because they don’t go outside.
They stay inside on their technology all day, but they should go out.
If you see something on your phone, that’s not like seeing something for real. On Instagram, you can just scroll past something and
like it. That’s not like actually being there. If you’re outside, you feel nature all around you instead of sitting on the couch.
It’s better outside.
Kris is an outdoor journalist based in Idaho Falls. See more of her work at www.tightlinemedia.com.
24 | BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL FALL 2016 SPRING 2017 BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL | 25

CHAPTER NEWS
BHA STATE CHAPTERS:
Spreading the Word from State
Capitals to Breweries and Instagram
ARIZONA
The main focus of the Arizona
Chapter currently is our OHV signage
project. The purpose of this project is to
educate Arizona OHV users on the impact
that improper use has on habitat and wildlife.
With the help of the Arizona Game &
Fish Department and Arizona State Parks,
we are working with the appropriate land
agencies to nail down the final locations
where the signs will be installed. Once this
is complete we will reach out to local volunteers
to install signs across the state that
stress the importance of riding legally.
Our membership is growing due in
large part to the hard work of all of our
chapter leaders and members who help
spread awareness for BHA’s mission. This
will lead to more events and activities that
the whole family can enjoy. We have also
created an AZ BHA Instagram account (@
backcountryhuntersaz) in addition to our
Facebook group to help spread the word
about what we do. These are great ways to
notify members and prospective members
about upcoming events and issues. Give us
a follow to find out when and where we
hold events! -Justin Nelson
BRITISH COLUMBIA
British Columbia BHA has had
an amazingly busy first three months of
2017. We hosted our 3 rd annual Hunting
Film Tour at the Key City Theatre in
Cranbrook on February 25. The event
continues to grow each year. We attracted
over 300 local hunters to this year’s event.
We signed up 14 new members and 11
renewals that night as well. Thank you to
Alan Duffy, the chair of the HFT committee,
and his hard-working committee for
another successful fundraiser to propagate
our cause here in British Columbia.
BCBHA also spearheaded a collaboration
of diverse stakeholder groups, the
Wildlife Management Roundtable, in
Cranbrook on March 11. It was a collaboration
of diverse stakeholder groups. Wildlife
populations are on the decline across
the province, and that urged BCBHA
to organize and host this unprecedented
event to make wildlife management a
priority in British Columbia ahead of the
provincial election in May. The groups invited
to collaborate included the East Kootenay
Wildlife Association, the Elk Valley
Rod & Gun Clubs, Southern Guides &
Outfitters, First Nations and Wildsight,
the largest environmental organization
in the Kootenays. We put our differences
aside for the day and aligned our common
interests in unity for wildlife and habitat.
The format for the roundtable included a
neutral moderator, a “state of the resource”
slide presentation and an opportunity for
a representative from each group to speak
on the issues as they pertain to their membership/mandate.
The meeting was an
overwhelming success in the goals we set
out to achieve. We packed the venue with
a capacity crowd of over 350 people, and
we had a clear message to government to
make wildlife management a priority in
BC. All candidates, six in total, running
for the two MLA (Member of Legislative
Assembly) seats in our region also had an
opportunity to address the crowd on what
they were going to do for wildlife if elected.
There was overwhelming media attention
from radio and newspaper, global TV and
Shaw cable. Although BCBHA was the
catalyst to get these groups together and
for the common message, this event raised
our profile in the province and boosted
our credibility as a legitimate stakeholder
in BC. Thank you to the hard-working
committee who organized and succeeded
in hosting one of the most important, if
not the most important, wildlife meetings
in the Kootenays in over 25 years. -Bill
Hanlon
CALIFORNIA
Friday, Feb. 17 was the deadline
to introduce legislation for the California
State legislature. We are currently poring
through the 2495 bills introduced this
year. As we identify bills in the course doing
this, we’ll compile that list and post it
to chapter members. Many of these bills
are considered spot bills and do not yet
contain details necessary for a complete
analysis. All of them need to be in print for
30 days before they can be heard in committee.
The first policy committee hearing
is generally where bills take their first substantive
amendments.
In February we were in Sacramento at
the Hunting Film Tour. The chapter raised
almost $1,000 at the event, which, despite
a lower than expected turnout, was a great
success for us. Every person who walked in
to the theater wanted to know about BHA
and what we represent!
Look for regional chapter events in the
state this year. We’re currently working on
a pint night event for both Northern and
Southern California to kick things off and
raise awareness. We’ll also be represented
at the “1000 BC Shoot” at San Francisco
Archers in August, where we hope to have
a booth and support the event with some
archers. Please plan on attending an event
in your region, even if it means a long
drive! -George McCloskey and J.R. Young
COLORADO
The Colorado Chapter welcomed
Don Holmstrom to their leadership
team as the habitat watch volunteer
program coordinator. In addition, two
new HWVs have joined the ranks: John
Grosvenor is Colorado BHA’s first HWV
for the Grand Mesa National Forest and
Rob Mahaffey is the chapter’s first HWV
for the Pawnee National Grasslands.
Thanks guys!
The chapter held public lands pint
The British Columbia Chapter
hosted a highly successful
roundtable in March to
discuss wildlife issues with all
concerned user groups.
nights in Gunnison, Paonia, Fort Collins,
Grand Junction, Greenwood Village and
Colorado Springs (with more to follow)!
Thanks to Adam Gall, Tony Prendergast,
Kevin Alexander, Sawyer Connelly, Rick
Seymour, Jeff Finn and Tyrell Woodward
for setting these up.
Southwest Regional Director Dan Parkinson
wrote an op-ed on the impacts of
sheep grazing allotments on bighorn sheep
in southwest Colorado’s San Juan Mountains.
Central West Slope Regional Director
Craig Grother submitted comments
on motorized recreational trail grant applications,
and the chapter submitted BLM
Little Snake Field Office Travel Management
Area 2 scoping comments. Join us
for Colorado BHA’s 3rd Annual Wild
Game Cook-Off at Grossen Bart Brewery
in Longmont on May 5. Contact Geordie
Robinson for additional information
at geordie.robinson4@gmail.com. -David
Lien
IDAHO
The Idaho Chapter’s annual board
meeting was held in December
along the banks of the Snake River. Cochair
terms expired for Derrick Reeves
and Ian Malepeai, who were replaced by
Wildlife Management Roundtable
March 11th, 1-3pm
Heritage Inn- Cranbrook
B.C
Admission: Free and
open to the General
Public
THIS UNPRECEDENTED EVENT is
a collaboration of conservation
groups aligning their common
interests to make wildlife
management a priority in British
Columbia and improve wildlife
populations in the Kootenays and
the province.
Invites have been extended to the
political candidates for the upcoming
provincial election in both the
Kootenay East and Columbia ridings
and all have indicated they will be in
attendance.
Everyone concerned with the state of our
wildlife populations is urged to attend.
Eric Crawford (Moscow) and Josh Kuntz
(Boise), who now join Merritt Horsmon
(Pocatello) as co-chairs. Sierra Robatchek
became the University of Idaho BHA
program coordinator. In an effort to have
better representation across the state, the
Idaho Chapter developed a plan to have
seven BHA regional reps, one for each of
the state’s fish & game regions. Thus far,
we have regional reps in Region 4 (Ross
Copperman, Ketchum), Region 6 (Rob
Parkins, Driggs) and Region 7 (Chad Fealko,
Salmon).
Idaho BHA has created four committees:
1) Membership, Fundraising and
Events, 2) Legislation and Policy, 3) Community
and Habitat Projects, and 4) Marketing,
Media and Partnerships. We continue
to grow our Habitat Watch program
as well. -Eric Crawford
Sponsored by:
British Columbia Back Country
Hunters and Anglers
In co-operation with:
Elk Valley Rod and Gun Clubs
East Kootenay Wildlife Assoc.
First Nations
Wildsight
Southern Guide Outfitters
MONTANA
Our Quiet Waters Initiative – a
proposal written by the Montana
Chapter and designed to place protections
on many unprotected waters and commonsense
limits on heavily used streams
to reduce user conflict – opened for public
comment in late November. The public
comment period lasted until mid-February
and was lively. We look forward to
commission’s final decision on our proposal
sometime late in the spring.
We were the lead sponsor of a Public
Lands Rally in Helena that made national
news, and we intend to keep pressure
on any efforts that threaten our public
lands. The Region 3 crew (Bozeman area)
planned and hosted our 2nd annual storytelling
event called “Tales From the Backcountry:
Celebrating Public Lands.” Nearly
300 people showed up in support of
public lands and to hear stories from BHA
heroes including Land Tawney, Rachel
Vandevoort, Elliott Woods, Sarah Keller,
Ryan Callaghan and Jason Matzinger. We
planned and hosted two clinics on how to
effectively engage legislators on public land
and conservation issues. Our Chapter Coordinator
Jeff Lukas has been traveling the
state expanding our footprint, increasing
our influence and participating in the legislature.
Leaders across the state are hosting
regular general membership meetings
to engage, educate and strengthen our base
on hyper-local issues as well as statewide
and national topics. Our Region 5 Board
Member, Doug Krings, is planning our
Montana Chapter Campout in June near
Lewistown, MT. -John Sullivan III
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SPRING 2017 BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL | 27

A packed house at a BHA Pint Night in Portland, Oregon.
NEVADA
The Nevada Chapter has been
confronted with challenges as well
as opportunities during the past quarter.
Members from our chapter have been
invited to many events and presentations
regarding conservation initiatives. In addition,
the BHA Nevada Chapter has been
spreading word of military expansion
proposals in Fallon, NV, and the Desert
National Wildlife Refuge. Our engagement
with the community has prompted
numerous comment letters in response to
the expansions.
We have submitted a bill draft for a Nevada
Public Lands Day. This has been chosen
as a top priority for the common agenda
group of conservation organizations.
Several of our board members were invited
to a stakeholder listening session with Rep.
Mark Amodei to discuss the proposed revision
of his land transfer bill. A wildlife
commission meeting addressing the bill
was filled with sportsmen and BHA members.
The commission voted in support of
public lands and the event gathered attention
from the media. At the hearing, the
University of Nevada BHA Chapter let
their presence be known, and members of
the school club became acquainted with
members of the state chapter.
In conclusion, we have also had two
very successful pint nights so far this year,
which introduced many new members
into our chapter. Our January pint night
was visited by Land Tawney and other
BHA members from distant locations. The
Nevada Chapter of Backcountry Hunters
& Anglers has displayed a strong presence
and voice in the legislature of Nevada.
-Ryan Hughes
NEW ENGLAND
A diverse group of current and
prospective New England BHA
members from Massachusetts, Connecticut,
New Hampshire and Maine garnered
at the home of Ben and Michelle Bailey
in Rochester, MA, on Feb. 18 for a day
that included venison stew, an informal
3-D archery shoot and lively discussion
that ranged from engagement with the locavore
food movement to Western public
lands concerns. BHA member and biologist
Tom Wansleben gave an overview of
land protection and habitat management
objectives at MassWildlife. He also identified
challenges the agency faces in the form
of unauthorized OHV use and resistance
to scientific management.
Outreach efforts continued when members
Eric Nuse and Tovar Cerulli spoke
about BHA at the Mad Dog Trout Unlimited
chapter meeting in March. Eric also
represented BHA at the Wilderness Paddlers
gathering and the Yankee Sportsman
Classic over the last couple of months.
NEBHA recently submitted comments
on the draft management plan revision for
the Nash Stream Forest in northern New
Hampshire. Several members got out on
cross-country skis to explore some of the
newly designated Katahdin Woods and
Waters National Monument.
Work continues on the development of
a habitat stewardship program, which we
hope will become a valuable tool for New
England BHA members to have more involvement
and input with their local public
lands. -Matt Breton
NEW MEXICO
The New Mexico Chapter had
a shake-up in October 2016, voting in a
new board and breathing new life into the
organization. The efforts from this new
team have culminated in a 600 percent increase
of members in New Mexico.
In January there was board meeting and
a pint night held with the best turnout to
date. At the board meeting, leaders created
new positions for different geographic
regions of the state to ensure that all members
are represented equally.
The chapter was busy in February doing
a fundraiser and membership rally at the
New Mexico Department of Game and
Fish outdoor show, as well as participating
in public lands rally at the state capitol
building in Sante Fe. -Jon Graham
NEW YORK
Chapter Chair Ron Rohrbaugh
has been making the rounds promoting
conservation, hunting and public
land access throughout New York State.
His radio interviews served Buffalo, Albany
and Utica areas, and in November he
was a guest on the MeatEater Podcast with
Steve Rinella.
The chapter recently submitted written
comments to the Adirondack Park Agency
for the Boreas Ponds state land-use
classification process in support of the
Adirondack Council and BeWildNY’s
proposal. The 20,758-acre “Boreas Tract”
was purchased by the New York Department
of Environmental Conservation last
spring from The Nature Conservancy and
is widely recognized as one of the crown
jewels of the Adirondacks.
NYBHA was recently interviewed
by Adirondack Life magazine for an article
focused on the ethics of drones, which will
appear in the April photography edition.
We recently launched the 2nd issue of our
quarterly newsletter.
A Salmon River Cleanup Day for Saturday,
May 13, is being coordinated by
board members Garrett Burback and Brett
Hebberecht.
NYBHA’s spring meeting will be held
at the Catskill Fly Fishing Center & Museum
in Livingston Manor, starting at 10
a.m. on Saturday, April 29. RSVP details
to follow soon. A huge thanks to NY BHA
Board Member John Armistead for coordinating
this event. -Todd Waldron
OREGON
A thunderous rumble bellowed
out from the halls in Salem, OR,
home to our state capital where the new
state legislative session brought us three
bills aimed at the transfer of federal public
land: HB 2365, HJM 2 and SJM 4. The
Oregon Chapter was ready.
Oregon BHA believes the continued attack
on our public land is appalling and
our locally elected officials pushing this
agenda can no longer hide in the shadows.
Our chapter of dedicated members
has been working tirelessly to fight against
these attempts to defraud the hardworking
Oregon taxpayers of their wild lands and
waters.
Our 2017 calendar is chock-full of local
events, volunteer opportunities and
fundraisers, all aimed to aide in this fight.
Headlined by our first annual Beer, Bands
& Public Lands Celebration to be held on
Saturday, June 10 in Bend’s historic Drake
Park.
Through hard work, education and that
kick-ass Oregonian attitude, this chapter
will continue the legacy of Theodore Roosevelt,
Gifford Pinchot and others who had
the foresight to create our federal public
land system, the greatest gift ever given.
Our chapter grows stronger each and every
day and the remarkable people who make
up our membership only make this possible.
Make sure to check out our events calendar
on the Oregon page of the website,
like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram
@oregon_bha for announcements
and updates. -Ian Isaacson
PENNSYLVANIA
In January, Pennsylvania BHA
members were active in voicing
their opposition to the efforts of the U.S.
Forest Service to introduce mountain
biking into the Tracy Ridge region of the
Allegheny National Forest, the only federal
forest holding within the Keystone
State. Tracy Ridge is one of several areas
that have been proposed for wilderness
designation to bring the number of acres
of designated wilderness in the ANF in
line with the Wilderness Act of 1964.
Currently the popular Tracy Ridge and
surrounding forest is open to foot traffic
only. In December, Co-Chair Jeff Sample
was interviewed by three radio stations
that broadcast in the southern tier of the
state as part of BHA’s radio tour. Topics
included the mountain biking issue in
the ANF, resource extraction on state and
federal lands used by PA sportsmen and
women, and recent bills introduced to
increase commercial development in state
parks, particularly within southwestern
PA. There are plans to man a BHA booth
at the Total Archery Challenge in Seven
Springs near Pittsburg, June 2-4. We also
hope to host a few BHA brewfests around
the state this summer, as our membership
has been growing at a very fast pace, with a
large number of members stepping up and
asking to get involved! -Jeff Sample
TEXAS
Texas Chapter leadership has
made good progress in continuing
to fill board positions, and we’ve been
recruiting members from across the state
to lead our public outreach activities. We
still fall short in a few places where we’d
like representation, so if anyone is interested
in becoming involved, let us know! As
our chapter faces unique challenges, we’ve
also continued to fine-tune our leadership
structure to be as effective as possible.
Our public outreach efforts began afresh
in March. We started with a pint night at
the Busted Sandal Brewery in San Antonio
on March 10. That same weekend, we
manned a table at the Texas Fly Fishing &
Brew Festival in Plano. This event attracted
sportsmen from across Texas and beyond,
and was a great opportunity to introduce
attendees to BHA. Other public outreach
activities included promotional booths at
the Cabela’s Spring Great Outdoor Days
Celebration (Buda) and the Rinehart
R100 archery competition at Cinnamon
Creek (Roanoke).
We’re happy to report the recent publication
of our first newsletter, which can
be found on the Texas Chapter page of the
BHA website. We envision this to become
a quarterly publication dispersed directly
to BHA members in Texas, and also posted
on our website. Finally, our chapter
responded to the emergency rule enacted
by the Texas Department of Agriculture
allowing the use of warfarin-containing
toxic baits to control wild hog populations
in Texas. Sportsmen in Texas have extreme
reservations about the pesticide and its
implications, and our chapter released a
position statement opposing the rule on
grounds of public safety, environmental
and non-target impacts, and ethical considerations,
and we asked Texas Department
of Agriculture to immediately rescind
the order.
Planning is in the works for an array of
summer activities. If anyone is interested
in becoming involved, feel free to reach
out. To stay up to date with our activities,
events and other information relevant to
Texas sportsmen, find us on Facebook
(Texas Hunters & Anglers), Twitter (@
tx_bha)s and Instagram (@texas_bha).
-Michael Panasci
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SPRING 2017 BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL | 29

UTAH
In an effort to grow the BHA
Utah Chapter leadership, general elections
were held in January. To be eligible
to become a board member, nominees
were required to be active members over
the past 6-12 months and submit an application
explaining their desire to serve on
the board and how they hope to contribute
to the growth, missions and values of
the chapter and the national organization.
The chapter would like to welcome four
new Central Region board members: Rachel
Dees, Dave Terrion, Jason West and
Kait West. The chapter also voted in one
Southern Region board member, Braxton
McCoy. You can find updated bios for all
Utah Chapter Executive Committee and
board members on our chapter page.
In addition to the general elections, the
Utah Chapter also participated in several
events including: a rally at Rep. Jason
Chaffetz town hall to voice opposition
against HR 622; a booth staffed by BHA
volunteers at the Western Hunting and
Conservation Expo held in Salt Lake City;
and promoting the Hunting Film Tour
where BHA members were invited on
stage during intermission to raffle prizes,
explain BHA to unfamiliar attendees, and
sign up new members. Upcoming events
include a chapter meeting in Logan in
April and the Utah Chapter Rendezvous
which is tentative planned for late May
or early June. Email the Utah chapter for
more details. -Joshua Lenart
WASHINGTON
The Washington State board is
currently in the process of drafting and
adopting a constitution and bylaws. We
hope that it establishes a good framework
to run the chapter efficiently and that it
lubricates the communication channels
between the chapter board, members in
Washington State and BHA national. If
members want to communicate with the
board, the best way to do it is to send an
email to Secretary.bha.wa@gmail.com.
The Washington Chapter sent a statement
to earlier in the year to state representatives
in opposition to House bills 1103
(concerning the transfer of federal land to
the state) and 1008 (concerning the acquisition
of land by state natural resources
agencies). Chapter member Buck Bouck is
representing hunters and anglers interests
in Whatcom county as a member of the
Baker to Bellingham Recreation Planning
Committee by ensuring that we continue
to have access to these DNR lands to hunt
and fish.
Chapter Co-Chair Bart George was featured
on the MeatEater Podcast, Episode
57 in what may be BHA Member Steven
Rinella’s most exciting episode yet! Stay
tuned for upcoming pint nights and make
sure to look for the BHA booth at the
Northwest Mountain Challenge at Stevens
Pass in July! -Andres Orams
WYOMING
The Wyoming Chapter has been
very active and busy this winter. WYBHA
was very active and busy with the legislative
session the last two months. We
helped to defeat an amendment to the
state constitution that would have created
a “plan” for newly acquired federal lands
under a transfer of federal public lands to
the state. Several BHA members testified
against the amendment and thankfully it
was defeated. WYBHA also testified and
wrote many emails to our elected State officials
on several other bills as well during
the legislative session.
We also held a few pint nights across the
State, including one with College Chapter
Coordinator Sawyer Connelly to help get
University of Wyoming students involved.
The Wyoming Chapter also got involved
with and volunteered on two deer captures
to fit mule deer with GPS collars in the
Casper and Laramie areas. It was a great
experience and we’re hopeful that the data
collected will help identify and find solutions
to some of the challenges that mule
deer are facing. It was great working with
the dedicated biologists and wardens with
the Wyoming Game and Fish Department
on this project. -Buzz Hettick
Montana Collegiate BHA Clubs
‘Hunting for Sustainability’
BHA GOES TO COLLEGE
BHA COLLEGE CHAPTERS ARE POPPING UP all over the
country, adding more youthful energy to the dynamic group.
From its humble beginings as BHA’s first collegiate club, University
of Montana’s club has begun to flourish. Membership is
growing and the club has exciting events planned for the spring
and fall. UM’s second annual Hunting for Sustainability weekend
is promising to be a great event. This year, Hunting for Sustainability
will include students from both University of Montana
and Montana State University clubs and will take place Sept.
8-10. In partnership with the Boone and Crockett Club, the
Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation and the Phil Tawney Hunters
Conservation Endowment, the event is taking place at the
B&C’s Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Ranch on Montana’s Rocky
Mountain Front. College students with little to no hunting experience
engage with curriculum regarding the land ethic, the North
American Model of Wildlife Conservation, public lands, licensing,
in-the-field preparation and strategy, habitat evaluation, field
dressing, butchering, cooking and more. Check out the Collegiate
Program on BHA’s website to learn more.
In Colorado, Western State Colorado University remains one
of BHA’s most active clubs. This past fall they took home 1st place
for their BHA float in the Western State homecoming parade.
This spring they have a handful of archery shoots and packing
classes in the works. Students at Colorado State University are
working to establish a club and grow membership.
At the University of Idaho and University of Wyoming, the
BHA clubs are hosting a few informative evening gatherings to
grow membership over the coming months.
More college chapters are in the works at College of the Atlantic
(Maine), Kansas State University, University of Missouri,
University of Arkansas Law School, University of Kentucky, University
of Nevada-Reno and Utah State.
Several BHA collegiate leaders will be attending BHA’s North
American Rendezvous. If you’re attending, be sure to look them
up and talk about their respective clubs.
To learn more about BHA’s collegiate program or to bring a
club to a campus near you, visit BHA’s website or shoot Campus
Outreach Coordinator Sawyer Connelly an email at sawyer@
backcountryhunters.org.
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32 | BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL SPRING 2017 SPRING 2017 BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL | 33

A Conversation With
SHANE MAHONEY
Part scientist, part historian, part philosopher, Shane Mahoney is considered one of
the world’s foremost authorities on wildlife conservation. His writing and speeches
have motivated and inspired audiences around the world. He is a BHA member.
INTERVIEW BY SAM LUNGREN
COMPILED BY ISAAC ZARECKI
BHA: How did you start hunting and fishing?
SHANE: I grew up in rural Newfoundland. Naturally, I grew
up around people who hunted and fished. A very strong motivation
in my culture was food. People didn’t hunt unless there was
meat at the end of the tunnel. When the first American sportsmen
showed up, it was considered astounding that people went there
to hunt for what Newfoundlanders called “the horns.”
I started fishing early in life. I spent an inordinate amount of
time on my own. No one in my family hunted. Neither of my
parents had the background. I started studying animals at an early
age: reading, writing, hiking and watching nature behave. My first
hunt came at the age of 22. By that time I had a deep hunter’s
knowledge of animals from observing them every season. The first
animal I ever hunted was a huge bull moose. Hunting brought a
more intense interaction.
I don’t hunt a huge amount. My career requires more time for
the animals. I’ve studied hunting in all forms, particularly the
“how” and “why” aspects. It made us who we are. Art, religion,
speech, communication, cooperation and technology all emerged
as we became great hunters. I believe hunting is an intellectual
pursuit. Unfortunately, that isn’t discussed today.
You took a very deliberate path into hunting. Coming from
a naturalist/biologist perspective, what flaws do you see in our
hunting culture today?
One problem is there are fewer of us, less that 4.8 percent of the
population. If there are too few of us, we will wither away. There
is a rising empathy for animals worldwide. As people kill less of
their own food, the part of people in love with animals has died.
It isn’t new. If you look at the cave art in Spain, those people who
hunted out of pure necessity put all their artistic energy into the
animals. There were no landscapes, trees, flowers, and people were
only stick figures.
I do not believe the only avenue to increasing involvement is to
attract young people to the sport. You can easily become a hunter
later in life, and you can do it for many reasons. Some care deeply
for wildlife. Some aren’t as sentimental or emotionally attached to
the animals. To some it’s a business.
Another problem facing hunting is the overwhelming knowledge
that animals are in trouble. Young people have a misunderstanding
that everything is threatened or endangered so you
shouldn’t kill it.
The largest challenge comes from looking at the great writers of
the past like Hemingway and others. Up until the ’60s the focus
of the writing was on the incredible dynamic of nature, experiences,
and the amazing attributes of the animals pursued. Jack
O’Connor wrote about flooded-out tents, losing horses on the
pack train and amazing animals eluding him for days. They glorified
the animal and the experience.
New communication mediums brought great benefits but also
great risks. Hunting became a product. The product glorified the
kill and the hunter. A plethora of shows came out focusing on kill
shots. In the public eye, it was harder to see hunters as conservationists.
While many hunters didn’t buy into it, it became the
face of the sport. Now there’s an effort to go back and glorify the
experience and the animal.
Natural empathy towards animals is colliding head on with the
glorification of the kill and hunter. Fortunately, there are people
coming to hunting for different reasons: taking responsibility for
the planet, varying ecological and social views, and believing it’s
honorable to take responsibility for an animal’s death.
Because of the challenges, hunting is under scrutiny. Because of
the scrutiny, hunting must take itself seriously again. Image and
perspective need to change. Focus more on wildlife, conservation
and animal use for a significant purpose. Hunters should be the
lead spokespeople for animal welfare, but that’s difficult to accomplish
when only the kill is glorified.
What do you think is the most effective way to bring people
into the conservation fold?
Ultimately, I believe it’s our fascination and attachment to
animals. It doesn’t matter where you’re from: Manhattan, Newfoundland
or Bozeman. People have an evolutionary fascination
with animals. We had to be interested in them to be good hunters.
That fascination will lure people to the outdoors. Bring people
to the animals first, then you can connect them in a deeper way.
Do you believe there is a relationship between our changing
society and the stagnation in the number of hunters in the United
States?
Hunters tend to talk about hunting as if it’s a mountain, isolated
from the greater societal matrix. It’s not. Values, social circumstances,
family matters, religious and political views change constantly.
Hunting, animal usage and our relationship with animals
are being pulled by any number of issues.
If there is one thing I want to do for hunting in this world, it’s
to make the sport normal. Hunting wildlife should mimic someone
choosing to raise meat or grow produce. To do that, hunters
need to see it as a part of the greater social system. Food is a
valuable dialogue between the hunting community and the rest
of society.
Do you think some spokespeople are being counterproductive
in the messaging of hunting?
Yes, it’s a complex issue. People are going to have many perspectives.
I don’t want hunting to be exclusionary. I want hunting to
be inclusive, the way it always was for me.
In any hunting culture, there were only certain people who
were good at it. Many people participated in butchering and preparing.
When Native Americans talked about the hunt, it wasn’t
just about the man on the pony, shooting. It was about the ceremony,
preparation, finding the game, the hunt, the kill, butchering,
curing the meat and feasting. When they said “the hunt,”
that’s what they meant. This is what I think the hunt means.
In our North American context, it’s supposed to be opportunity
for all. There’s opportunity for specialization. For example,
you could exclusively hunt high altitude as opposed to someone
who prefers waterfowl hunting. There is room for all. However,
we cannot let hunting become single faceted.
Polls have indicated for a long time the public generally favors
hunting as long as it’s for the right reasons. Hunters are a small
part of the population. We need a lot of support to keep going.
Just because we’re passionate about the activity and its benefits
doesn’t mean everyone knows. Our task is to reach those who
don’t know. If we kept it as an elite pursuit, how long would it
survive? All the benefits to wildlife conservation only come if
there is strength to the movement. I don’t think it is wise to make
it a smaller segment of society.
What are your thoughts on the value of public lands?
One of the greatest achievements of the United States is the
conservation system that was put in place. It’s simply the most
rigorous, mature, complex, diverse, innovative system of wildlife
conservation ever seen on this scale. So many pieces are at work:
farm bills, public lands, wildlife refuges and national forests. It
would take a book to describe the accomplishments of the American
system.
The practice of market hunting kick-started it all. The genius
of Roosevelt and Grinnell made personal harvest a rescue mechanism.
The situation was so dire that the logical thing would’ve
been to stop all killing of wildlife. Instead, they came up with this
brilliant approach. The product was public lands.
Almost 60 percent of the U.S. is private lands, but at the same
time, the U.S. kept these reservoirs of inspiration and peace available
to everyone. It’s a national legacy. Anything that jeopardizes
that is a huge mistake. They’re long lasting and have benefited so
many. What’s the incentive to change that relationship? Once it’s
gone, especially in a country where private property rights are so
strong, there’s no getting it back.
Why are some people targeting public lands?
The capitalistic DNA of the U.S. isn’t a tap you can turn off.
Public lands and land ownership are what drove the wealth of
America. It’s natural that this communal item, not maximized for
its economic value, will always be in contradiction to a part of the
American soul.
A person with strong capitalist leanings might point to a place
like South Africa as an example of private conservation succeeding,
but we already have that, too. We have a mixture. I believe it’s
a mistake to look at the conflict as necessarily malicious. They are
people with a viewpoint.
I see the fight over American public lands and conservation
as inevitable and never-ending. It is clear that the motivation of
recategorizing public land is to maximize its economic value.
Just because a person has never been there doesn’t mean their
children will be the same. You can’t pick apart the North American
model and assume it will be fine. Roosevelt touched something
in the American soul. Despite all the political and social
change in the last 100 years, this country teems with wildlife. Isn’t
it amazing no president has torn down what he built?
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FLOATING THROUGH
HISTORY AND WILDERNESS
Retracing the Trail of Lewis and Clark
in the Missouri River Breaks
The water…on either side of the river has trickled down the soft sand cliffs and worn it into
a thousand grotesque figures which, with the help of a little imagination, and an oblique view,
at a distance are made to represent elegant ranges of lofty freestone buildings, having their
parapets well stocked with statuary.
Captain Meriwether Lewis
May 31, 1805
BY E. DONNALL THOMAS JR.
PHOTOS BY LORI THOMAS AND THE AUTHOR
WE HAD LAUNCHED AT COAL BANKS LANDING NEAR THE MONTANA HAMLET OF VIRGELLE THE PREVIOUS
EVENING AND COVERED 11 RIVER MILES BY THE TIME WE REACHED THE WHITE CLIFFS SECTION OF THE MIS-
SOURI RIVER BREAKS. SEVERAL YEARS HAD PASSED SINCE I’D LAST SEEN THESE REMARKABLE FORMATIONS,
AND THEY AROUSED THE SAME WONDER LEWIS HAD RHAPSODIZED ABOUT TWO CENTURIES EARLIER. IN
CONTRAST TO THE MONTANA THAT HAS BEEN SUBDIVIDED AND GENTRIFIED DURING THE LAST DECADE, THIS
SECTION OF THE MISSOURI RIVER HAS HARDLY CHANGED AT ALL – NOT JUST IN 10 YEARS, BUT IN 200. AND
IT’S THERE FOR ALL TO ENJOY, WHETHER THE AGENDA FOCUSES ON HUNTING, FISHING, PHOTOGRAPHY OR
SIMPLY THE URGE TO RECONNECT WITH THE RAPIDLY VANISHING WILD.
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Goldeye on the fly
Channel cat, playing with the yarn
BEGINNING AT FORT BENTON and running 150 river miles
to the Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge (the largest
NWR in the Lower 48), the Upper Missouri River Breaks National
Monument did not come gently into the world. Created by
proclamation during the last days of the Clinton administration,
the new status aroused concern among local ranchers worried that
this designation would prevent them from running livestock on
the 80,000 private acres within monument boundaries (not to
mention BLM grazing leases). Although none of that has happened,
the conflict still simmers as an expression of a peculiarly
Western sense of entitlement coupled with extreme distrust of all
things federal. Fortunately, it’s easy to leave that behind once your
boat is in the water.
This time we were floating my favorite stretch of the river, from
Coal Banks to Judith Landing 46 miles downstream. Along with
my wife, Lori, and two old friends from Billings, Dick and Annie
LeBlond, I’d actually conceived this float as a fishing trip, and
a fly-fishing trip at that. Upstream, the tailwater section of the
Missouri below Holter Dam has become a world-class fly rod destination,
loaded with trout, drift boats and guides. Down here,
we have walleyes, channel cats and solitude – a trade I’ll make any
day. We also have a unique little game fish virtually unknown to
most anglers.
The goldeye (Hiodon alsoides) is a vigorous, silvery fish whose
appearance reminds me of a shad. Meriwether Lewis wrote the
first description of the goldeye for western science in June, 1805,
near the confluence of the Missouri and the Marias rivers. The
bad news: Goldeyes rarely exceed one pound in weight and make
poor table fare unless smoked. The good news: They strike readily
and fight hard for their size. The best news: They love dry flies and
surface poppers.
We’d been targeting walleyes (which share neither the bad news
nor the good news outlined above) with flies I’d tied to imitate
nothing so much as a walleye jig, but hadn’t picked up a fish by
the time we made camp. When I awoke the next morning I found
the surface of the river covered with dimples, reminding me of a
mayfly hatch on the Bighorn. Sensing what was up, I tied on a
popper and spent an hour catching topwater goldeyes.
We were floating in late July, the worst time to fish the Missouri
for walleyes. (If you’re serious about it, go during spring or fall.)
By the time we broke camp and pushed away from the bank, I’d
stopped worrying about walleyes no matter how much I’d looked
forward to some fillets fried over the campfire. After we saw several
large carp feeding near the bank, I found a San Juan Worm
buried deep in my vest and suggested that Lori tie it on and sight
fish from the bow.
It didn’t take long to spot a bronze tail tip moving slowly in the
current. Fly-fishing for carp is a quirky affair that usually produces
more refusals than takes, so I registered surprise when Lori cried,
“Got him!” In fact (please don’t tell her this), I thought she had
probably snagged bottom until I saw the tip of her rod begin
to pulse. However, something looked strange. The fish was obviously
bigger than a goldeye, but the 20-pound carp she’d cast to
should have had her into the backing. The mystery resolved when
a 5-pound channel catfish emerged from the depths with Lori’s fly
in its lip. A catfish on a fly is always an accomplishment, and we
finally had our fillets despite the uncooperative walleyes.
Any float trip on the Wild and Scenic section of the Missouri
involves some logistics, since the only reasonable access points between
Fort Benton and the Fred Robinson Bridge (mile 149) are
at Judith Landing (mile 88) and the McClelland/Stafford Ferry
(mile 101). The inconvenience seems a small price to pay for solitude.
We had dropped a rig at Judith Landing on the way north
from home and proceeded to Coal Banks with both boat trailers.
The shuttle at the end of the float is still a three-hour round trip
on back roads. A commercial service in Fort Benton will take care
of this for you – at a price.
There is no technically challenging water anywhere on this
stretch of river despite the frequent appearance of the word “rapids”
in place names. These shallows may have been troublesome
for the steamboats that opened the region to commerce in the
mid-1800s, but they won’t be for a raft or canoe. Rafts and drift
boats have the advantage of greater load capacity and easier fishing
at a cost of slow speed, especially if the wind blows upriver.
Canoes and kayaks offer a faster alternative. The choice is ultimately
personal.
This river corridor offers more than scenery, solitude and
warm-water fish. Most, but not all, of the surrounding land is
public. Be sure to use an accurate map or GPS so you can tell
the difference and avoid landowner conflict. The public land is
open to hunting, governed by Montana regulations. Because of
difficult logistics, the area receives little pressure and the hunting
can be excellent for upland birds, geese, deer, elk, pronghorn and
bighorn sheep.
It was not always so. While elk were a staple food for Lewis and
Clark on their way upriver in 1805, they were completely extirpated
from the Breaks by the early 1900s. That began to change
in 1951, when the state first re-introduced elk to the area. Now
the Breaks are home to one of the most robust elk herds in the
country.
On May 29, 1806, while camped near the mouth of what is
now Arrow Creek, Lewis reported a “great abundance of the Argalia
or bighorned animals in the high country.” When John James
Audubon described the same animals in the North Dakota badlands
on an 1843 expedition they became known as Audubon
sheep. For years, biologists regarded them as a distinct subspecies
of Rocky Mountain bighorn. Modern DNA studies suggest that
the Audubon sheep never existed as a subspecies, and that the
Breaks sheep were simply mountain bighorns gone walkabout.
Whatever they were, the last one was killed in 1916. The Breaks
remained devoid of sheep until 1947, when 16 Colorado bighorns
were released in Garfield County. After the reintroduction
endured its share of ups and downs, the herd took off, and today
a Breaks ram tag is one of the most highly sought after in the
country. After decades of unsuccessful application I have about
given up, but in 2002 Lori drew one.
We hunted by boat, on the north side of the river downstream
from Judith Landing. We spent nearly 30 days and stalked big
rams on almost all of them. Although there were no weapons restrictions
on the tag, Lori was determined to operate within the
limits of her recurve bow. After numerous close calls, she never
did fill the tag. Nonetheless, that may have been the most exciting
hunt of my life, and I’ve been on a lot of exciting hunts.
The appeal of the Wild and Scenic Missouri extends beyond
the fish you do or do not catch, the game you do or do not shoot.
First, there’s the solitude. While visitor traffic received a bump
during the Lewis and Clark Bicentennial, you still will see more
boats in an hour on the Madison than in a week on the Wild and
Scenic Missouri. There aren’t many places left where you can do
that in the Lower 48. Second, there’s the history. Imagine consulting
a map and camping on the exact spot where Lewis and
Clark stopped at the end of a long day. Third, most of the Breaks
lie within the public domain. Finally, there is the utter wildness
of the place. How many corners of the country remain virtually
unchanged since first European contact?
Every outdoor enthusiast deserves to experience this once… or,
like me, again and again.
Don and his wife Lori now live in rural Montana. Don writes
about fly-fishing, wing-shooting, bowhunting and wildlife for a number
of magazines. His strong opinions about public lands and access
issues sometimes get him in trouble.
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OUR HERITAGE OF DESERT
Public Lands in American History
Bryan Huskey photo
BY LOUIS S. WARREN
WALLACE STEGNER CALLED THE WEST “the geography of
hope.” There could scarce be a better description of the nation’s
public lands. The playas of Nevada’s Black Rock Desert, the piñon
and juniper forests of Arizona’s Kaibab Plateau, the soaring peaks
and Great Plains vistas of the Bighorn Scenic Byway in Wyoming
– these and many other publicaly owned places have found their
way into American hearts. For millions, they inspire reflection
and even a sense of redemptive awe.
But now, confronting the same stark beauty, ranks of corporate
lobbyists are energized by a new hope, to hand these lands over
to the states, make them private property, and make them pay.
In reality, the public lands are already profitable. A $646 billion
outdoor recreation industry depends on them, and communities
across the country rely on the water that flows through them and
the wildlife they produce. But for anybody who knows the real
history of this beloved West, there are other reasons to resist the
sales pitch of the privatizers.
This is because, for more than two centuries, Congress repeatedly
tried to give the public lands to private owners and to the
Western states. Again and again, Westerners rejected the offer, for
the very good reason that the lands were (and are) too arid to
support either crops or homes. The question now is whether Congress
should try again, and at what cost. The West has been hard
done by generations of hucksters and con artists. The campaign
to privatize the public lands is proof they’re not done with us yet.
How is it that a vast swath of Western public lands – hundreds
of millions acres – has remained in government hands? The short
answer is that, except for the Indians from whom they had been
taken and a small number of Hispanic settlers in New Mexico,
practically nobody wanted them. The longer answer begins with
a journey back in time, way back, to the end of the American
Revolution, before the U.S. Constitution became law.
As every schoolchild knows, when the revolution ended, the 13
former colonies became states, and their initial constitution was
called the Articles of Confederation. Less widely known is that
six of the 13 new states claimed millions of acres that had been
seized during the war from Indian tribes across the Ohio River.
The remaining seven states had no such claims. To avoid dispute
over these lands, and as part of their agreement to create a new
nation, the states ceded the new Western lands to the new confederal
government. Congress, not the states, took responsibility for
disposing of this newly created public domain.
In short order, Congress passed laws to assure the surveying and
sale of the public domain. The aim was to draw settlers to Western
lands and allow them to create more states. A portion of the land
was granted to new state governments to sell and raise funds for
schools. Most of the rest was privatized immediately, or as fast
as buyers could be found. Much of it was sold to individuals for
about a dollar per acre. Congress thus dispensed with the earliest
public domain quite handily, birthing the states of Ohio, Illinois,
Indiana, Wisconsin and Michigan. Today, precious little public
land in those states remains.
This system continued after the new constitution was adopted
in 1789 and the new nation expanded west. The Louisiana Purchase
in 1803, the cession of Oregon country by the British in
1846, the grabbing of today’s Southwest from Mexico in 1848,
and the Gadsden Purchase in 1853 filled out the map of the nation
we know today. A wave of settlers washed ashore in California
and Oregon by the late 1840s, and the federal government
busily surveyed the land and worked to dispose of it quickly. They
gave away millions of acres to new states to aid internal improvements.
In far away Oregon, they even experimented with giving
free farm land to some immigrants.
But the great interior of the country still awaited its farmers. As
the tide of settlement pushed west of Iowa, the Civil War erupted
and in 1862 Congress, hoping to keep the West from falling into
the hands of the South, passed two new laws to give the land
away. First came the Homestead Act, by which Congress expanded
the Oregon experiment and offered settlers up to 160 acres
simply for making a farm and living on it for five years. Those
who did not want to wait to “prove up” could buy the land after
six months, at $1.25 an acre.
Second, Congress passed the Pacific Railway Act, which gave to
the corporations building the new transcontinental railroads ten
square miles of land for every mile of track they laid. Congress
later doubled this generous subsidy and, before the railroad boom
was over, an area bigger than California would pass to the railroad
companies who mostly sold it to settlers and speculators.
With so much cheap or even free land suddenly available,
during the 1870s eager farmers swarmed into Nebraska, Kansas
and the Dakotas. But the rush hit a headwind. Because of the rain
shadow cast by the Rocky Mountains, precipitation diminishes
markedly on the west side of the Hundredth Meridian. Most of
this high Great Plains country– the western two-thirds of Kansas,
Nebraska and the Dakotas, all of Wyoming and most of Colorado
and Montana, was too cold and too dry to allow much farming.
The arid Plains were not the only obstacles. Further west still,
the mountains of the Sierra Nevada and the Cascades cast their
own rain shadows. Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico and much of
Idaho, Washington, Oregon, and even southern California were
unrelentingly dry.
When it came to dispensing with this thirsty public domain,
Congress would act in ways visionary, desperate or craven – and
sometimes all three. In 1872, they recognized a new value for
the remote highlands and established Yellowstone National Park,
beginning a tradition of reserving scenic wonders for public enjoyment.
But that same year, they began to up the ante on the great giveaway.
They offered land for five dollars an acre to anybody who
staked a valid mining claim on it. The next year, in 1873, they
offered any homesteader a second 160-acre parcel in return for
planting trees on it, in hopes that trees would bring rain. (They
did not; the trees mostly died.) They began to enlarge maximum
homestead claims in hopes of compensating for the land’s aridity.
By 1909, they had doubled the old 160 acre homesteading limit
to 320 acres, and in some places to 640 acres.
At the same time, Congress reserved other lands in hopes of
better sustaining Western settlements. Recognizing that farms
and cities on the dry lowlands depended on rivers fed by mountain
snow, and that those rivers could erode and fill with sediment
if their banks were ploughed, overgrazed or overcut, Congress
in 1891 passed a law allowing the creation of “forest reserves”
– soon to be called national forests. These high elevation stands
of trees under federal management would protect Western rivers
and streams.
Putting those rivers to use, Congress set out to water the desert
they had been unable to give away, with dams and irrigation
works funded by the National Reclamation Act of 1902. Soon
they were offering “reclamation homesteads” on these projects,
and under this and other, expanded versions of the old homestead
law, more land was claimed in homesteads after 1900 than before.
But the growth of private land ownership finally stalled. The
1920s saw a ferocious Western drought coincide with a global
glut of grain. Farms and ranches that barely got enough rain in
good years now turned to dust, while market prices for their produce
plummeted. Many settlers simply abandoned their homestead
claims without proving up, and the land reverted to federal
ownership. In the end, homesteaders would take 269 million
acres from the public lands. But by 1930, they had rejected an
area almost as large, 200 million acres, as too high or dry. These
lands remained unclaimed by private owners or any government
agency.
Eager to cut federal expenses, President Herbert Hoover tried
to give to the states some of the remaining public lands. But the
states refused them. As George H. Dern, governor of Utah from
1925 to 1933, explained, the states already owned millions of
acres “of this same kind of land, which they can neither sell nor
lease, and which is yielding no income. Why should they want
more of this precious heritage of desert?”
As that dismal decade wore on and Plains states choked on
the fatal storms of the Dust Bowl, it became clear that farming
the arid lands had been a disaster. Western state governors, beset
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y farm abandonment and a public health nightmare, demanded
Congress end homesteading on most of the remaining public
domain. Better, they maintained, that the federal government
should manage the land for the more benign purpose of grazing.
Congress instituted these reforms with the Taylor Grazing Act of
1934 and created a leasing system that would allow ranchers to
put livestock on public lands without the burdens of purchase
price or property tax. Congress also began to expand the public
domain, buying some broken farms in arid areas so the owners
could move on. In 1946, to administer the public lands and their
growing system of grazing leases, President Truman created the
Bureau of Land Management, the agency that today manages 245
million acres of the public domain.
In 1976, Congress finally acknowledged the permanence of the
public lands. They repealed the Homestead Act and its successors,
and required that remaining public lands be managed not
only for grazing but for other uses, including hunting, fishing and
recreation. They also mandated attention to the land’s ecological
health. Congress even paid public land counties to compensate
for property taxes they might have received if the land had been
privatized. States with large public acreages have received billions
of dollars in compensation.
Such payments helped to block the next move to terminate
the public lands, the Sagebrush Rebellion of the late 1970s. The
movement helped elect a sympathetic Ronald Reagan to the
White House in 1980. But on the cusp of victory, the rebels began
to have doubts. Western states and counties, it turned out,
wanted the federal payments more than they wanted the land.
Meanwhile, miners and oil companies preferred loose federal
regulations to potentially more intrusive state laws, and ranchers
worried their leaseholds might become more expensive if the
states actually controlled public lands. The rebellion fizzled.
Although the insurgency has returned periodically in the years
since, the economic and ecological realities of Western life have
only increased the obstacles to its success. Hunters and anglers
now depend on the public lands. Millions of tourists flock to
them. And today, states and counties rely on federal aid to do
all the things that public lands management requires: repel invasive
species, prevent and mitigate vandalism and poaching, and
perhaps most expensive of all, fight increasingly destructive wildfires.
If the federal government gave away these public lands now,
cash-strapped states would shoulder the costs of owning land that
Congress – despite its best efforts – could not give away.
And to what end? To be sure, ExxonMobil, Barrick Gold and
other industrial giants would find some valuable minerals beneath
the surface of that sagebrush sea that sweeps up to Great Basin
highways and among the stark sandstone monuments of the Colorado
Plateau. Perhaps there is yet a trace of gold and copper
somewhere beneath the lava beds of the Snake River Plain. The
new owners would blast new roads to their land and ring it with
barbed wire and “Keep Out” signs. They would wrench some
treasure from the depths, padding the company bottom line by
some measurable amount. But this, too, would end. After a year,
or 10 years, the minerals would peter out or glut the market. It
seems likely that the new owners would behave similarly to the
ones who came before. One day they would abandon the work
and leave the public to pick up the tab for whatever shattered
topsoils, emptied aquifers, acid drainage and cyanide dumps they
left behind on this, our precious heritage of desert.
Louis grew up in Nevada hiking public lands. He is a BHA member,
the W. Turrentine Jackson Professor of Western U.S. History at
the University of California, Davis, and the author most recently of
God’s Red Son: The Ghost Dance Religion and the Making of
Modern America.
Tim Romano photo
42 | BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL SPRING 2017

The Ditch
BY JEFF MISHLER
IF THE LOVE OF HUNTING IS INTANGIBLE, meaning, in this
case, that the quantity or quality of it cannot be made lesser or
greater by merely trying to explain its presence, then my affection
for the Chinese pheasant is perhaps nothing more than an innate
desire that needs no further explanation. But that wouldn’t be any
fun to write or read about.
I love the taste of their flesh. I love how the dogs become spellbound
and crazed when the waft of one penetrates their senses.
I love all processes of the hunt and the peace of mind at a day’s
end when the dogs are resting, well fed in their kennels and a
short glass of whiskey readies my palate for the evening’s meal.
Predictably, I love the roosters. The hard flush. The cackle. Their
brilliant colors. Their cagy antics. I love (and hate) how fast a
rooster can run, short legs a blur, their body laid-out flat like a
chunky bowling pin levitating two inches off the ground. Blink
and they are gone.
My affection for pheasants can be traced to a specific moment
in my childhood when my father decided that I was old enough
to walk beside him during a short hunt. My grandfather on my
mother’s side owned a 600 acre farm in the Willamette Valley bisected
by a deep, half-mile long overgrown ditch. The creek trickling
through it drained a small wetland tucked into the southwest
corner of his property. He let the weeds and brushy willows grow
wild because The Ditch was his pheasant factory. The memory
of my first pheasant moment is brief. It is vivid and in pieces but
I can’t be sure of its authenticity; I was about 5 years old and a
lot has happened to me since then. I suffered six concussions on
the football field in high school and was told by more than one
girlfriend that I have a tendency to like the idea of things, rather
than their reality, meaning, as I understand it, my memories tend
to ripen with time.
I bounced between majors in college. For two terms I chose
wildlife science and if it weren’t for the ae, eae, iae endings in
botany, and the perplexion I experienced in explaining the difference
between gametes and gametophytes, I might have stuck with
it long enough to realize that an outdoor career chasing critters
would be more satisfying than the one I chose. During that brief
period of my commitment to a lifetime of GS-4 austerity, I wrote
a paper focused on the life history of the ring-necked pheasant.
My lifelong take away from that effort was this: Pheasants need
three types of cover (among other things) to maintain a sustainable
population. The dense understory of grasses and low shrubs
provide thermal shelter and protections from large ground predators.
A mid-story tangle of larger shrubs combined with a third,
higher level of large hardwoods secure the pheasant from aerial attacks
and compliment the dense understory. Remove any of these
habitat essentials and the population suffers at some point during
the lifecycle. My grandfather’s ditch lacked the large hardwood
over-story but was a dense tangle of stubby willows and grasses.
It offered the best cover for all upland creatures for as far as one
could see. Of course, I couldn’t see very far on my first hunt, being
only three feet tall at the time.
Dewey, the small setter, dropped into the ditch at the culvert
where the farm road crossed.
“Try to keep up,” my father nudged me along.
The sharp wheat stubble was as high as my hip. If I stayed in
one row the walking was easy. When my father moved about I had
to cross over rows and the chopped tops of the wheat shafts poked
and scratched the skin up inside my shirt. I moved as quickly as I
could, but moving faster meant more ouch!
I am sure that we weren’t a hundred yards from the truck when
the flush happened, and, luckily, because it partially fueled my
lifelong passion for pursuit, I was looking at the ditch and not
at my feet when the three birds erupted. Two roosters and a hen.
Their pounding wings seemed far away. The roosters fell from the
sky after two shots. The 12 gauge explosions surprised me. My father
did not shoot. The shiny nickel steel Model 12 in my grandfather’s
hands made quick work of the hunt. My next memory is
of two colorful birds and two shotguns lying in the rusty bed of
a pickup. During the short ride back to the farmhouse I knelt on
the bench seat facing backwards between my dad and grandfather,
peering through the dirty glass of the truck cab at the dead birds.
“Look at Dewey.” My grandfather pointed out the passenger
window.
The little dog sprang from tall grasses in the field beside the
farm road trying to keep pace with the truck. Boing, boing, boing,
like a bounding deer, disappearing completely at touch down,
reappearing at the top of each leap. I laughed. Dewey was smiling.
And I now understand the expression the men in my life shared as
the truck bounced along. They were content.
If contentment is as tangible as love gets, then it is a very familiar
feeling. In the moments following a successful hunt, in the
days following your marriage, in the hours after your child’s birth,
in the years following the grieving of a loss the peace that eventually
comes is love. Simple love. Easy love.
In 1971 after the wheat harvest, my grandfather drove his trac-
Mike McConnell photo
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SPRING 2017 BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL | 45

tor close to the ditch, like he did every season, pulling a field rake a
little faster than usual to toss the chaff a bit farther. No one knows
why he was loading the pheasant factory with dry stubble. On his
last pass, the tractor veered towards the steep lip, rolled onto its
side and slid to the bottom of the ravine. He was crushed beneath
the rear wheel. My grandmother discovered his body when he did
not come up to the farmhouse for lunch. Was it a heart attack or
stroke, inattention or a surprise flush of young birds? All that we
will ever know is that he died in The Ditch he so loved to hunt.
But it was never hunted by our family again.
On a frosty October morning of the next year, following my
tenth birthday, I stood in a field of wheat stubble in Oregon’s
Yamhill County on the opening day of my first pheasant season. I
heard two gunshots sound off from across the river. Moments later,
a lone rooster emerged from a cottonwood stand on a straightline
path to me. I locked my body position until the bird seemed
destined to cross within range, and then, with a numb, frozen
thumb, struggled to pull the hammer back on my newly gifted
20 gauge single shot. Click. The gun came up. I tracked the bird
for a moment and clearly thought, I’ve never done this before.
Where do I point the gun? I moved the bead out in front of the
bird. I saw a lot of barrel. I squeezed the trigger. The recoil shoved
me hard. The rooster did not flinch. Dang! And then the bird
locked its wings and sailed, and sailed, and sailed. It tumbled into
the stubble, 50 yards from our parked truck at the edge of the
field. My father, holding the inherited Model 12, brought the
dead pheasant over to me and preened the feathers, looking for
a wound.
“I think you scared him to death.”
On closer examination, we found that one No. 6 pellet entered
the bird under the wing and penetrated its lungs. One pellet.
My father doesn’t hunt anymore. He’s only 76 years old, about
the age of my grandfather when he died. This confirms my early
suspicions that, when I was a boy, he hunted pheasants for two
reasons: My mother suggested, after she caught his eye, that going
hunting with her father was a good idea if he wanted to take her
to the movies; then, many years later, I relentlessly pestered him
to take me.
Today, I am so grateful for his effort. I’m deep into my second
bird dog, meaning by the math I’ve spent 25 seasons since
my college years chasing roosters. My love of pheasant hunting
is not going away any time soon. It is simply the time and often
the place – the season and the open spaces – of which I dream
in the off season. Involuntary or innate, I don’t care to define
or understand the reasons I love to hunt. This desire is simply a
manifestation of my earliest inspirations: a ditch, a dog, a man
and his gentle content smile, loving every minute of it. Oh, how
I know that feeling.
Between producing the Skagit Master DVD series, writing for various
outdoor magazines, photographing the hapless adventures of his
wandering alter ego (and its lowly friends) and tending the fire close
to home, Jeff stays pretty busy. He is a BHA member.
If You’re not first you’re last
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Jesse Alston photo
ta-Duluth studying habitat use by martens and fishers (members
of the weasel family), says hunting has helped him do better research
as well. “The quiet solitude of a deer stand is often a good
place for me to think deeply and critically about questions I’m
grappling with in my research,” he said. I can’t say that I disagree.
Hunting also helps with work in the field. “Hunting, in particular,
has helped me learn about navigation, dealing with harsh
weather and troubleshooting when something doesn’t go according
to plan,” he said. “It has certainly provided ample opportunity
for me to hone skills and to think about the factors that influence
animal behavior.”
Having hunters and anglers in game and fish agency positions
benefits other sportsmen, too. As Lindley said, “I think it’s vital
to have fishermen and hunters in wildlife management positions.
People who have a vested interest in the health of fish and wildlife
stocks are particularly well suited for positions of management.”
This leads into perhaps the biggest issue facing hunters and anglers
today: Conservation. Wildlife biologists rarely get to work
with species that are doing well. Despite our best efforts, our careers
are peppered with the death and destruction of the wildlife
we love. This can lead to tension with other groups who love wildlife
and think we could study and manage them better.
Fellow sportsmen are one of those groups and can both exacerbate
and alleviate this problem. “I know the sentiment among
many fishermen is that regulations are overbearing,” Lindley said.
“But I think the only reason stocks are starting to show an uptick
in the last few years is because managers and fishermen alike are
coming together to protect fish in new and inventive ways.”
In managing the demands of the public, biologists also often
face intense political pressure, from both above and below. As I’ve
heard one biologist I know say, expecting biologists not to advocate
for wildlife is like expecting dentists not to advocate for clean
teeth. But agency biologists often can’t advocate their positions
out of fear that the public might not agree.
Despite these difficulties, I’m convinced there’s no better job.
I’ve spent over half my workdays over the past few years in the
great outdoors, becoming a better scientist and a better sportsman
along the way. I’ve met a lot of great biologists and hope other
sportsmen can do the same. It’s easy to grumble about regulations,
but ultimately, no one has a greater stake in successful management
than sportsmen-biologists, and no one takes more pride in
a job well done.
McCarty captures this idea perfectly: “Managing wildlife resources
for the American people gives me a sense of pride and
patriotism similar to my time in the service.”
Among wildlife biologists, he’s far from alone. So next time
you meet one of us, let us know what you’re seeing in the field.
We’re glad to hear your stories, and we might have some for you
as well.
Jesse is a graduate student in the University of Wyoming’s zoology
and physiology department and a proud BHA member. You can check
out his research and field photography at jmalston.com or have a conversation
on Twitter @integratecology.
HUNTER-ANGLER-BIOLOGIST
BY JESSE ALSTON
I GREW UP IN THE BOONDOCKS of northeastern North Carolina,
spending the warm months chasing bass and bluegills in
local waterways and the colder ones chasing deer and squirrels in
the woods around my home. Robert Ruark’s The Old Man and
the Boy and Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea served as my
twin bibles, and I read Fur-Fish-Game magazine cover to cover
each and every month.
This love of all things outdoors led me to an environmental
studies major in college and, eventually, a decision to pack everything
I could fit in my car and head West to a wildlife technician
job with the U.S. Forest Service. As it turns out, I’m far from
alone in having a love for hunting and fishing lead to a career in
wildlife biology. At each step of my career, I’ve worked with great
biologists who were equally passionate sportsmen and women.
Jesse McCarty is one of these. A district biologist on the Rio
Grande National Forest in southwestern Colorado, he’s also an
avid bowhunter. After six years of service in the Navy, he wanted
to return to the Western landscapes where he grew up. “I wanted
to work outside where fresh air soothed my lungs instead of
recycled air onboard a ship,” he said. “I grew up hunting and
ranching and understood what a steward is. We took care of what
didn’t belong to us for the good of everyone, much like the work
I do now.”
Chester Lindley, an avid fly fisherman and graduate student
at the University of California, Santa Barbara, echoes that sentiment.
He’s spent the past two years doing fisheries research off
the coasts of Alabama and Maryland. “I’ve been fishing since I
was five,” he said. “Seeing the swings in the health of fish stocks
I targeted recreationally inspired me to try to learn more about
how fish were managed, and the chance to have part of my job
be something I enjoy doing on my personal time was something
that intrigued me.”
For sportsmen, studying the creatures we hunt and fish has its
advantages. “My time spent working in fisheries has made me a
better fisherman,” Lindley said. “I’ve gotten to study fish habitats,
water quality, fish behavior and fish diet. I think I’ve gotten a lot
better at fish targeting and captaining boats.”
That’s not to say the reverse isn’t also true. McCarty thinks
hunting and fishing have made him a better natural resource
steward. “My experiences hunting and fishing have changed the
way I do my work today. I feel I have a better understanding of
‘preservation,’ ‘conservation’ and ‘commercial’ mindsets and how
they can and should be implemented.”
Michael Joyce, a Ph.D. student at the University of Minneso-
50 | BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL SPRING 2017
SPRING 2017 BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL | 51

FICTION
FIVE PLACES
TO DIE
BY MICHAEL LEIN
THE STINK OF PENETRATING OIL STAIN HUNG HEAVY in the air as I
brushed the gunk into cracks of my cabin’s log siding. It was a dirty, tedious job
that had to be done. Grouse and bear hunting seasons were already in progress.
Woodcock, waterfowl and deer opening days would soon follow. Some projects
needed to be finished if I wanted to roam and hunt the thousands of acres of
state forest surrounding the cabin. I stepped back for a breath of fresh air. That’s
when an unfamiliar voice weighed in from behind me.
“Hey, Mike – got a minute to talk?”
I dropped the brush in surprise, swore, picked it up, and turned to see who
needed to be dealt with. Here was a serious looking guy in a blue suit, white shirt
and power tie. I thought the worst – another politician.
I tried to be Minnesota Nice. “So what’s there to talk about? I know who I’m
voting for.”
The stranger looked surprised and glanced down at his suit. “No, I’m not a
politician. Shoulda thought about that. Let me change.”
He didn’t say “Abra Cadabra,” snap his fingers, or make any sound. He just
changed clothes in an instant and was now standing before me wearing a plaid
shirt, jeans and a three day beard.
I backed away, eyes wide, stuttering - “Whaaat the hell…”
“Hey, sorry about that! I’m friendly!” the guy fast talked. “It’s not your day
today – I just need to get some info. Just stay calm, don’t freak out!”
Running for the woods seemed like a good idea. Somehow I held my ground.
“What do you mean it’s not my day? Who the hell are you? And how did you
do that?”
The guy laid down his sales pitch. “Don’t worry about the change thing – I had
to get your attention. You can call me Bob. Now let me explain a few things.”
“Ok, try me.”
He kept up the fast talk. “There’s no easy explanation. Call me
your Guardian Angel if that helps, but I’m more like your personal
Grim Reaper. I help people through the death process. This isn’t
an official visit. It’s not your day today. Just hear me out.”
If it hadn’t been for that appearance change thing, he was just
another crazy guy in the woods. I felt a sudden urge to take a leak
and started planning an escape route while playing along. “So
you’re ‘Bob the Reaper?’ Where’s your black cloak and scythe?
And what do you mean this isn’t an official visit?”
“We gave up that uniform. It scared some people to death
when all we wanted to do was talk. Bob isn’t my real name –
you couldn’t pronounce that one. Here’s the deal. Us reapers have
been asked by the guys in charge to do a survey about making the
death experience less scary.”
“The guys in charge? Don’t you mean ‘The Guy?’”
Bob took a deep breath and went on. “I just report up the chain
like everyone else. We need to gather info, survey people about
where they might want to die. Sometimes we can arrange that.
Think about it. You wouldn’t know when your number’s up, but
it could be in your favorite place. Less pain and anguish and your
friends could say, ‘Well, at least he died happy.’”
“So I could pick when and where?”
“No, I can’t control the ‘When’ – that’s way beyond my authority.”
“Your authority? You’re the Reaper!”
“Just one of many,” he said. “And I follow orders from above.”
“So who’s above you?” I asked.
“That,” said Bob, “is on a need-to-know basis. And you don’t
need to know until your time. Want me to speed that up?”
“No! I can wait!”
“Thought so…” Bob got down to business. “Times a-wasting
and there’s no overtime at this job. Name five places where you
wouldn’t mind dying. And this cabin don’t count. You’ve written
enough about this place. You’ve done some traveling – name me
your favorite places and add in some details. We need data!”
“Hey, I like it here!” I looked out over the lake, shining in the
mid-day sun, thinking. “How about out on that island, during
duck season, watching a sunrise with my black Lab?”
“That’s what I’m talking about – great details!” Bob exclaimed.
“That’s close to the cabin but good. Now think. It can’t be in the
past. No going back to college and dying in an old girlfriend’s
arms. And what the hell were you thinking when you took up
with that lawyer back then?”
Now that was low. “I had no idea she wanted to be a lawyer.
And I left her!”
“Sure,” Bob nodded. “Keep thinking that. Now come on, there
has to be somewhere farther away.”
“Here’s an easy one. You know that island up in Canada where
we park the houseboat and catch walleyes? Stumpfire Island? Dying
with a glass of brandy in my hand, at the campfire while the
loons yodel wouldn’t be so bad.”
“Ok, that’s two. Three to go.”
This was starting to feel like a challenge. I threw out another
option. “How about that ridge overlooking the Missouri River
out in Montana? You can see forever up there – mule deer sunning
themselves, elk bugling, coyotes howling. I love sitting there with
my spotting scope and rifle.”
“So,” Bob asked. “Which is your favorite rifle? Your collection
is getting out of hand.”
“What are you, my wife?” I challenged him.
He wagged a finger at me. “Stay calm – just pointing out the
obvious. It’s that old Husqvarna bolt action anyway. Now hurry
up, the clock’s ticking.”
“Might have chosen one of the muzzleloaders but I could live
with the Husqvarna – or actually die with it I guess.”
“Cut the comedy. What’s number four?”
“Let’s go with Burntside Lake up on the edge of the Boundary
Waters Canoe Area, ice fishing for lake trout. It’s kinda cold but
those lake trout are big and strong!”
Bob shook his head. “What the hell… Ok, way too cold for
me. I like it hot – hotter than you can imagine.”
This time I gave him the look. “So there really is a hot place?”
“Not what you think,” he said. “I don’t sit around with the
Devil in his lava hot tub – I just like it hot.”
“So – there is a Devil?”
He gave me a pained look. “Need-to-know basis. One more.”
“How about that cabin out in the Wyoming mountains? It’s a
52 | BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL SPRING 2017 SPRING 2017 BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL | 53

2016 ORLANDO, FLORIDA
TM
cabin but not this one.”
“The one in the national forest with the trout stream? I was on
duty the last time you and your wife tried to find the waterfall in
the canyon. Thought sure your number was up that day. Rock
climbing at your age isn’t the smartest thing. And if you wouldn’t
have gotten so hung up on the brook trout in the stream, you
might have had time to find the waterfall. Why not at that waterfall
with a fly rod and a trout on your line?”
“Great. I was starting to think that waterfall was a myth. What’s
next?
“Nothing,” he said. “You might hear from me again, might not.
Depends on the people upstairs. They’ve got a lot on their minds.”
I tried one last question. “So how will I know when you make
that ‘official’ visit?”
He gave me that pained look one more time. “Trust me, you’ll
know. And by the way – mistaking me for a politician didn’t buy
you any extra time. Be careful who you call that.”
Then he was gone. No poof. No fade out. No Starship Enterprise
transporter sound and sparkling lights. Just gone, leaving me
standing in front of the cabin with a dripping brush, the stink of
oil stain thick in the air, and weak in the knees.
Real experience? Hallucination from the oil fumes? I’m not
sure. Either way, I’m in no hurry to see Bob the Reaper again
anytime soon.
Two things struck me as I thought over this conversation. Two
common threads run through this paint fume influenced train of
thought. One, I choose to die hunting, fishing and exploring wild
country. That probably wouldn’t surprise anyone who knows me.
Two, every one of my five places to die is a piece of unspoiled
publicly owned land. An island in a Minnesota state forest where I
duck hunt and watch sunrises with my black Lab. “Crown” property
in Ontario where the evening silence of the Canadian North
Country settles under a moonrise, broken only by the crazy calling
of loons. A national wildlife refuge in Montana with a killer
view. The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in Minnesota
where wolves howl just over the next ridge. And a national forest
in Wyoming where a mystery waterfall and a stream full of big
brook trout keep pulling me back, looking for adventure while
I still can.
I’m no psychiatrist, but it appears these places are leaving marks
on my conscious and subconscious being. And while I may have
used motors and other modern conveniences to get into some
of these places, the times that stand out are when motors and
cell phones are silent and raw natural beauty can shine. Bob the
Reaper, or his not-so-fictional counterpart, is bound to catch up
to me for an official visit one of these days, hopefully not any time
soon. When that happens, it might as well be in one of these five
wild and public places.
Mike is a freelance writer who hangs out at his rustic cabin in
northern Minnesota and writes about Labrador retrievers, muzzleloaders,
hunting, fishing and other ways to waste time and money.
His creative nonfiction stories have been featured in many magazines
and one book – Firewood Happens.
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SOMEDAY...
BY T.J. HAUGE
“SOMEDAY.” THIS ISN’T JUST A WORD – IT’S A DREAM. Every hunter I know
says “someday” when they talk about their dream hunts. Voices soften and eyes drift off.
You can see their minds wander as they imagine the wilderness, the wildlife, the success
they undoubtedly would achieve. Then the walls close in as they remember their responsibilities,
work, family, home. A subtle shake of the head brings them back to reality. “Not
this year. But someday.”
My someday started at the age of 10. The local video store had hunting films. A Friday
night at home meant I’d grab two or three movies and escape to the woods through the TV.
One night, my dad threw an elk hunting tape into the pile. At this point in my life I knew
of elk but didn’t have a burning desire to chase them. Whitetails hold greater value in the
eyes of Wisconsin hunters than oxygen, so I was concerned about proving myself as a deer
hunter. I don’t particularly remember the elk video or that the hunts themselves moved
me towards elk hunting. What I do remember is Dad sitting next to me and the words he
spoke. “Someday we’re going to do that.” And there it was: I had my someday. Someday
I’m going to hunt elk with Dad.
As I got older, the fascination with elk hunting occurred naturally as I gained experience
as a hunter and my mind opened to all the possibilities the sport had to offer. It was
mentioned amongst my friends as we’d dream up all the hunting trips we wanted to go
on. Someday.
In October of 2007, Dad was diagnosed with cancer. My mother once told me that she
didn’t know why, but that the woods were a place where Dad and I healed. So, while Dad
went through treatments, I hid in the woods. I had been forced to walk into the woods
alone. His absence weighed heavy on my shoulders. The best hunting partner I had was
being taken from me. After months of chemotherapy and surgery to remove the remainder
of the tumor, we believed this setback was behind us. Our someday lived on.
Then I got a phone call. It was my parents, and they were both crying. Dad’s latest scan
revealed the tumor had returned, and due to the proximity to his heart we weren’t sure
anything could be done. I’d never heard these voices from my parents. They had trouble
speaking, and you could hear a loss of hope. I have never been so shaken in my life. All of
our somedays suddenly vanished. Dreams were dying.
We got lucky. Specialists reversed the initial prognosis. Chemotherapy and radiation
resumed. The tumor disappeared without further surgery. And the dreams returned to my
mind, this time with urgency and drive. The realities of life would push their way back in,
but I refused to acknowledge their limitations. I looked at Dad and told him I was going
elk hunting whether he came or not. “Okay,” was all he said. Our someday was here.
We spent the next year learning, choosing a location and buying all the gear “needed”
for a backpack elk hunt into a designated wilderness area. We couldn’t afford an outfitter,
but we could hunt public lands on our own.
The two weeks spent in Colorado were life changing. It was the first time I had seen
mountains, let alone hunted them. The experience was new to both Dad and me. The
vistas we shared in silence and awe were as fresh to him as they were to me. I would stand
behind Dad as he witnessed sunsets from the top of a mountain. I watched him as he
walked inside of his someday. I watched him live a dream.
When you chase down your someday, the path inevitably leads to a sense of purpose. My
purpose is to fight. I fight the walls closing in on the somedays of my friends and family.
I push them toward that someday, knowing life can steal it away with a phone call. I fight
to protect our public lands, because I know what those public lands mean. I know that
without those public lands, my someday would have never come. I know that without
those public lands, the unrealized somedays in the minds of other hunters will never come.
I fight for those public lands. I fight for those somedays. I fight for those dreams.
T.J. is a board member of the Wisconsin BHA Chapter and works as a paramedic in La
Crosse. You can follow his outdoor pursuits on Instagram @mountain_disciple.
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END OF THE LINE
Browns in Browns. The
author (left) and friend Miles
with a double on healthy
trout from Browns Canyon
National Monument.
A MONUMENTAL SUCCESS
IN FEBRUARY OF 1907, Congress included a rider on mustpass
legislation to try and stop the ebullient President Theodore
Roosevelt from creating any more national forest preserves without
their approval. T.R. signed the bill a week later, but only after
placing 16 million more acres – areas now known as the Midnight
Forests – under management of the U.S. Forest Service.
The congressmen of the day probably wished they hadn’t
passed, just a year earlier, a different bill that specifically allowed
presidents to protect special places by executive action – the Antiquities
Act of 1906. Roosevelt had already used the act three
times for some of the archeological sites it was written to conserve.
But after Congress stripped him of the power to designate
forest reserves, he seized on this other method of landscape conservation.
By the end of his second term two years later, Roosevelt
had designated 15 more national monuments, ever to the chagrin
of the timber barons, copper kings and the congressmen they
more or less owned.
Since T.R.’s tenure, presidents have declared 111 national
monuments, often near the end of their time in office, often to
buck political gridlock. Often there has been a broad coalition of
on-the-ground support from sportsmen, recreationists, ranchers,
tribes and other user groups. Sixteen presidents – eight Republicans
and eight Democrats – have used their Antiquities Act authority.
President Jimmy Carter did it with Alaska’s Misty Fjords
National Monument. President George W. Bush did it with the
Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument, the largest
ever. President Barack Obama gave Roosevelt a run for his money,
using the Antiquities Act 34 times to create or expand monuments
and conserve nearly half a billion acres of land and water.
Even a century later, Congress is no less resistant to these presidential
proclamations. But for sportsmen who have sometimes
spent decades seeking protected area designation, it’s just good
to know their special place is safe. Colorado’s Browns Canyon of
the Arkansas River is one of those places, and Bill Dvorak is one
of those people.
“People have been working on [landscape conservation] here
for 40 years I suppose,” Bill said. “I think it was ’79 when the
wilderness study areas came out, something like 120,000 acres of
wilderness quality land. Over the years we had several wilderness
proposals. That kind of went nowhere.”
Bill owns Dvorak Rafting and Kayaking Expeditions and has
been guiding on the Arkansas River since 1985, along with his
wife, son and daughter. He is the president of the conservation -Sam Lungren, editor
group Friends of Browns Canyon and remembers a public hearing
in Salida, Colorado, where, out of 900 attendees, 95 percent were
in favor of protecting the canyon.
62 | BACKCOUNTRY JOURNAL SPRING 2017
Soon after the meeting, a promising wilderness bill sponsored
by that district’s Rep. Joel Hefly was derailed, Bill says, because
Hefly, then-chairman of the House Ethics Committee, chose to
indict then-House Majority Leader Tom DeLay on criminal conspiracy
charges.
“Because of that, they never let his bill come to the floor,” Bill
said. “We had every legislator in the state – House and Senate
both – everybody was behind it. But that squashed the effort.”
In an average year, more than 300,000 people visit Browns
Canyon between Buena Vista and Salida in Chaffee County,
generating an estimated $55 million for the area economy. The
narrow, technical chutes between towering walls of bulbous sandstone
create one of the most popular whitewater runs in the nation.
Guaranteed in-stream flows and intensive recovery efforts to
clean up old mine waste have created a Gold Medal trout fishery.
The rugged mountains sweeping upward to 10,000 feet offer outstanding
bighorn, elk and mule deer hunting opportunities.
On Feb. 19, 2015, at the behest of Colorado’s congressional
delegation and Chaffee County sportsmen, President Obama declared
21,587 acres as the Browns Canyon National Monument,
with grandfathered rights for hunting, fishing, livestock grazing,
horse riding, dog walking, OHV riding on designated routes and
other traditional uses.
Monument status is not static; in fact nearly half of our nation’s
national parks, including Grand Canyon, Zion, Arches and
Olympic national parks, were initially protected as national monuments.
These days, local sportsmen and conservationists often
see a monument as a step toward the wilderness area designation
they want to achieve – like the current effort in New Mexico’s
Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument.
No president has ever tried to abolish a national monument,
and several attorneys general have issued opinions asserting that
such a move would probably be illegal under the Antiquities Act.
Most modern legal scholars agree.
Theodore Roosevelt’s image is still evoked by a spectrum of lawmakers,
while many choose to ignore the man’s policy. He conserved
special places when there was little political will to do so.
He did it because those places were rapidly disappearing, and he
wanted to leave some areas for future generations of Americans
to hunt, fish and enjoy our country’s natural beauty. I hope our
government chooses to pay more than lip service to that legacy.
Learn more about the Antiquities Act and sportsmen’s
tenets for supporting monument designation in the
national monuments report on our website.
Know your limits: it’s the only way you can push
beyond them. Leupold ® . American to the Core.
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