Backcountry Rifle Mule Deer Hunt: Day 1

I’m one of the lucky ones.  I’ve been happlily married to my wife, Jodi, for 12 years.  I’m pretty sure she feels the same about me.

However, I must admit that she occassionally entertains a crush on some Food Network chef, Hollywood hunk, country music singer, or other good-lookin’ dude with a talent.  From a few days to a few weeks, she’ll follow his every move while politely ignoring me.

After a few days of playing second fiddle, I’ll try something to get her attention.

“Honey, I’ll take you to dinner tonight.”

“Uhhh, but ‘so-n-so’ is on tonight so why don’t you just go scouting or shooting, honey,” she so sweetly answers.  “And take the kids, too!” 

Good thing she’s beautiful and a great mom.

Her latest foray has been from Netflix- the Fox series “24” with Kiefer Sutherland.  She is a certified addict and watches one or two episodes a night.  Now I like Kiefer, remembering him as the level-headed counterpart of Billy the Kid in “Young Guns”.  In “24” Keifer plays Jack Bauer, a rouge government agent who saves humankind daily.  The brains at Fox Studios had the idea of broadcasting the show in real time; one season of “24” follows Jack for a 24-hour period with each show an hour in the life of the crime fighter.

While I’m completely jealous of the way he can handle a Glock 17, manages to keep a small waist, and never runs out of cell battery, I like the way the show tracks a day in the life of Jack.

I decided this would be a good format to blog about my 12 days in the Idaho backcountry this fall.  I packed a video camera daily and captured some great footage, bucks, and learning experiences (you’ll have to stay tuned to see if I notched a tag.)  The area I hunted has little cell service unless you’re right on top, which means climbing 1,000-2,500′ feet per day to update a Live Hunt.  As much as I like you all, no thanks!

So in the spirit of “24”, I’m going to post in real time for the next 12 days.  One day in the field will be one day on the blog.  It’s as close as I can get you to a Live Hunt.  Like my Live Hunts, there are peaks and valleys with days of extended boredom in-between.  This hunt should give you a feel for what chasing wilderness bucks all alone is really like.  If you follow it through, you might pick up a few tips that can help you on your next backcountry hunt.  I’ll also share my gear and in-the-field reviews.  Stop by a few minutes a day, it’ll be worth your time.

I recommend that you subscribe to the blog (upper right, just under Fitness/Other) so you’ll receive an update to your inbox daily for the next 12 days. I secretly subscribed my wife hoping I might catch her attention again.

Day 1:  Gear, the pack-in, and camp.