Idaho Whitetails: Slips & Success

Idaho Whitetails: Slips & Success by Scott Haugen, Editor Western Whitetail The very first whitetail buck I ever saw in Idaho still, to this day, remains one of the biggest I’ve seen in the state. My camera man, Bret Stuart, and I, were perched in a pair of treestands, high in a big Ponderosa pine. The... Read More

Stormy Weather Whitetails

Stormy Weather Whitetails by Scott Haugen Four days of hard hunting, and all I’d seen was a handful of deer, and no bucks. Does and fawns nervously fed along timbered edges, here and there, but the bucks—even the number of does I’d expected—were nowhere to be seen. That night, just as I was ready to... Read More

Early Season Whitetails

Early Season Whitetails by Scott Haugen, Editor Whether scouting or hunting, late summer is one of the best months to locate a Western whitetail buck. Here’s what to look for in your pre-season scouting missions, and early season hunts! A wild flush at my feet, and instinctively the shotgun was shouldered. I have no idea... Read More

Saskatchewan Whitetail, with a Smokepole

Saskatchewan Whitetail, with a Smokepole by Scott Haugen The phone rang early one September morning. It was my TV producer asking if I’d like to go to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan and try filming a whitetail hunt. When Saskatchewan and whitetail deer are mentioned in the same sentence, it gets my attention. In a few week’s time—mid-October... Read More

Idaho Whitetail Hunting, One Exciting Double

Scott Haugen doubles while hunting whitetails in Idaho. Positioned overlooking a rose hip-choked bench, it was obvious whitetails had been everywhere. Trails crisscrossed through and around the brush, and beaten paths led to and from the bordering stands of timber. We’d see a few does on that first evening of the hunt, and then a... Read More

ThermaCell

ThermaCell by Scott Haugen It was September, I’d just dropped a buck in a river bottom and temperatures were hot. Frost had not yet hit the country I was hunting, and the bugs were thick. In the moist surroundings where I was left to skin, cape and bone-out the buck, mosquitoes were particularly bad. I... Read More

LoopRope

LoopRope by Scott Haugen Over the course of a hunting season and throughout the year, I field test all sorts of gear. From clothes to bows, guns to lights, packs to trail cameras, boots to beanies, and much more, there’s always something new I’m being sent to try out. Some of these items are solid... Read More

Get Fit for Western Whitetails

Get Fit for Western Whitetails by Scott Haugen One of the biggest challenges hunters face out West is being in shape. To me it’s amazing how many camps I’ve been to throughout the West where tags go unfilled for the simple reason hunters aren’t in good enough physical or mental shape. Not all whitetail hunts... Read More

Steady Shooting

Steady Shooting by Scott Haugen I’d already filled my Montana whitetail tag, so followed along as another hunter in camp tried to do the same. We were hunting in sagebrush country that bordered brushy creek bottoms. At first glance, the terrain seemed flat, but once you set foot on it you realized the brush was... Read More