The nurse handed over my first-born wrapped in a tiny pink blanket. Transfixed by the onslaught of emotion, I gazed into her angelic face while wondering what in the hell I was going to do. Thirteen months later, this same scene repeated itself.

Bailee Butler and her daddy, Brandon, proudly pose for a photo with her first turkey.

A Midwesterner by birth, my only goal upon college graduation was moving to Montana to become a mountain man. I moved to Montana, but instead of being swept downriver by a rushing current, I was swept off my feet by a woman. We married and had two daughters before I ever arrowed an elk.

Football, fishing and hunting, these are the things I understand. I was supposed to have sons...

Knife blades come in all sorts of different shapes, cuts, weights and sizes. Check out this infographic to learn what each knife was made for!

 

 

We love finding news articles about women hunting and fishing.

The Times Leader in northeastern Pennsylvania recently published, “Casting beyond gender” and follows women who are competing against the guys in fishing tournaments.

Highlight we love:

She admits that as a woman competing in a bass tournament it may be tough to be taken seriously, but there is an easy way to change such mindsets: catch fish.

Check out the full articles on the Times Leader site.

By Jill Alban

Living in Montana is a feast for the eyes, the mind – and the stomach. Before I moved West ten years ago, I was a vegetarian/sometimes vegan – I didn’t eat meat, fish, or cheese. I was concerned with how industrial agriculture exploited animals and polluted water sources. I wanted to take a stand – to make a small difference against a big, complex, overwhelming global system.

That first winter in Missoula, people laughed when I told them I was a vegetarian. At parties, my friends offered up cured meats, spicy sausages, and elk steaks. Unhesitatingly, I said no. “You’ll change your mind,” they’d say, those well-meaning men with thick beards and impressive outdoor resumes. “Vegetarians don’t last long in Montana.”

And – for better, I think – those fella...

In recognition of #Aporkalypse2014 week on Sportsman Channel, Scott Leysath, The Sporting Chef, provides his top five wild pig recipes. Learn more about #Aporkalypse2014 show times and schedules at http://thesportsmanchannel.com

Simple Smoked Shoulder

2014-08-06 08:43:50

My favorite way to cook wild pig or boar is by slow roasting or slow smoking the shoulders, allowing the heat do all the work. It beats the tedious task of boning, trimming and chopping into usable chunks of meat. If you don’t have access to a smoker, use any grill with meat as far away from the heat source as possible. Drop a few wood chunks onto the coals or in a pan above the heat source before adding the pig. Larger bone-in cuts will require more time to reach the tender stage...