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Elk, Mule Deer, Bear & Wolf Hunting Blog

Here you will find information about our hunts, our area as well as special offers and issues that affect us or are important to us.

Ode to the Good Ones

Jack and Sally hard at work.
Sally was found dead with her head in the feeder on March 24, 2023. Jack had to be put down a week and a day later. He had been having trouble getting up for a while but with his sister Sally gone, he apparently lost his will to stand. When George bought Wild Idaho Outfitters in 2005, included in the purchase was livestock (horses and mules). Part of this livestock was a pair of Percheron mules named Jack and Sally. They were supposedly around the age of 20 at that time.

Coming of Age (Meet Our Newest Guide)

Wyley and his first hunter.
Most of you know Wyley and many of you have watched him grow up in hunting camp helping his mom pack drop camps, pack bear bait, hauling firewood, feeding livestock or simply setting up camp. His smile and laughter are always a welcome sight and sound in hunting camp. It appears his career choice was made for him long before he even knew what it would be.

Spring Prep Underway

2021 Spring Prep Underway
With the days beginning to warm a bit and spring bear season just days away, it is time to ramp up our spring bear prep and get moving a bit faster. Horses need shod, bear bait moved to the backcountry, camps prepped, and wood socked in for the upcoming official opener of Idaho’s 2021 spring bear season.

Perspectives on Long-Range Hunting: Speed Kills

Beginning from about the time Winchester necked the .30/06 case down to .270, long-range-hunting ideology has proclaimed: “speed kills”. Speed is measured by a bullet’s velocity in feet-per-second. Theoretically, a rifle chambered in a cartridge that produces higher velocities than your last rifle increases your odds of a kill by extending your effective range.

Bear Hunting with Our Next Generation

I had an exceedingly refreshing hunting experience this past spring-bear season. In camp we had 2 youths; one was a 12-year-old boy, Austin, who was hunting with his father, the other was my 18-year-old daughter, Suzy, who was our camp cook.

Bam, Bam: A Great Week of Bear Hunting

Congratulations to Brandon, from Michigan, for taking 2 bears on a 5-day bear hunt with Wild Idaho Outfitters. Brandon took an old black sow on the first evening of the hunt, and a young blond boar on the last evening. Brandon stuck with it and remained optimistic through the entire hunt.

Spring Scouting for Elk Hunting Success

Spring is one of the best times of year to get out in the mountains and scout new areas for the upcoming elk season, which won’t arrive yet for another 5 – 6 months. The air is fresh and invigorating, and as the snow melts it exposes game sign from the previous fall that has been preserved in a deep freeze all winter. Game trails, wallows, rubs, and even some tracks still appear fresh.

Wild Idaho Outfitters Welcomes Joe Cavanaugh: Our New Blog Writer

Cavanaugh hunting in Idaho 2019
If you hadn’t already noticed, Joe’s been writing our blogs since the January 31st post. Cavanaugh comes to us with a wide range of experience in the outdoors, and he’s also a graduate of Boise State University, with a BA in English/writing. He worked professionally as a copywriter for Bass Pro Shops before joining us, and his book “The Jungle Hunter” was published by Safari Press in 2000 (now out of print). Cavanaugh started guiding for Wild Idaho Outfitters in 2013, and he will be guiding for us again this year, full time.

Bear Rifles

Conversations about bear rifles, or any species-specific rifle, seem to start and end with cartridge selection. There is much more to a rifle however, than the chamber.