Montana Deer Hunting

Diane Tipton, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Statewide Information Officer

Two Hunters

hunters, or so it seemed in talking with long-time hunters at Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks.

Montana’s general big game hunting season for deer and elk opens Oct. 23 and ends Nov. 27.

While each hunter I interviewed described their personal experiences, the ways they made hunting more fun generally fell into two main categories: the tried and true and the new and unexpected.

A really good hunt is in the eye of the hunter, of course. But hunters who are thinking of adding something different to their hunting this year might find something that interests them here.

Hunters at FWP who like something new, and who enjoy telling hunting stories about the unexpected or unusual, made these suggestions.

*   Get to know the small, rural community near where you hunt. Tom Dickson, FWP’s Montana Outdoors magazine editor, said, "The slower pace of small-town Montana can be a balm…and remind you to slow things down a bit."

* I nvite a new hunting partner to join you, or take your child or a young friend hunting. Jim Hansen, FWP Pacific Flyway coordinator in Billings said a young person’s pleasure adds immeasurably to his own.

Other hunters offered tried and true ways to keep hunting fun and memorable. Harvey Nyberg, FWP Region 5 regional supervisor in Billings, may have been the firmest believer in the tried and true. He has hunted with the same fellow for the past 30 years.

"We have a lot of shared experiences to reflect on and enjoy," Nyberg said. He likes to go to the same place, camp in the same spot, hike the same trails. There was a sense of ritual and return to the hunting he described.

Keeping a hunting diary is another ritual. Ron Aasheim, FWP Conservation Education division administrator, has kept a hunting diary for the past 25 years.   He has made hundreds of entries about the species sighted, weather, landowner contacts and other interesting and useful information.

Most hunters couldn’t resist sharing their favorite sensory experiences:   the smell of wet leaves on the ground; the crunch of unmarked snow; the merp-merp-merp of a red-breasted nuthatch; spotting mountain lion tracks; watching squirrels collect and cache pine cones; relishing Belgian chocolate, trail mix, and peanut butter cookies in the cold outdoors.

Almost everyone I interviewed said something about slowing down to enjoy the experience, or taking the time to hunt well, with care and deliberation, under safe conditions. Maybe the biggest secret to a good hunt is simply giving yourself enough time to enjoy it.