By David Draper

Cannellini, or white kidney, beans are staple in my kitchen and I always try to keep several cans in the pantry. Truthfully, we usually have several cans of beans, along with a few pounds of dried beans, on hand, but cannellinis are probably my favorite. They’re creamy and readily take on the flavor of whatever they’re cooked with. I toss them with tomatoes for a quick and easy side dish and incorporate them into several different main dishes, including this simple braise with some venison merguez the I made from last summer’s axis deer. [ Read Full Post ]

By CJ Lotz

Wisconsin is moving closer to allowing hunters to use crossbows during archery deer hunting season. One of the top deer-hunting states, Wisconsin has also been one of the strictest against crossbow hunting.

The state Legislature is reviewing a bill that would create a crossbow license and allow hunters to pursue deer with the weapon. Proponents of Assembly Bill 194 say crossbows recruit new hunters and retain older hunters because they are easy to use. [ Read Full Post ]

By David E. Petzal

Whilst in Kansas, I took a Hail Mary shot—I think the sixth of my career—at just a hell of a whitetail. If you’re not familiar with the term, Hail Mary refers to a shot at a distance in which prayer is required. A friend and I were sitting in a blind with about 15 minutes of shooting light left when we saw a really sensational buck 500 yards-plus away, up on a ridge. There was no chance he was going to feed within shooting range (300 yards and change) before the light ran out, so we decided we’d best try and cover the 200 yards on foot, and fast.

Up the ridge we walked, and when we were what appeared to be 300 yards away, but turned out to be 380, the deer saw us and got ready to sprint. There was no time to do anything but shoot, which I had to do offhand. I missed. The bullet, as nearly as I can calculate, went under him because I misjudged the distance. If I had held on the very top of his back I might have had him.

[ Read Full Post ]

By Scott Bestul

No, not “buck” as in a dollar. You can’t do much of anything in Alaska for a dollar. But you might be able to save a whole bunch of money chasing trout, salmon, or halibut if you have access to some good whitetail hunting. I know because I’ve done it, and if you don’t believe me, you can ask my friend Greg Brush, owner of EZ Limit Guide Service in Soldotna, AK. That’s him in the photos.

Greg and I met on a bowhunt a few years back, and that’s when I learned he’s nuts about whitetails, which are damned rare near his home. So every fall he travels somewhere in the Lower 48 to chase deer. And to save money, he tries to swap a guided fishing trip in Alaska for a whitetail hunt. [ Read Full Post ]

By Peter B. Mathiesen

Three years ago, outdoor writer, photographer, and consummate sportsman Peter Mathiesen left his hometown of St. Louis to start a new life in Alaska. Here’s why he made the move, what everyday life is like, and how it feels to have Denali right outside your window.

Few experiences can equal the first time you view a river filled with giant crimson salmon. The arresting image is simply what Alaska is all about.

Salmon are an inextricable link to Alaskan culture and, even today, to the survival to its people. Alaskan residents are the only non-Native Americans allowed to subsistence-fish during a salmon run. [ Read Full Post ]

By David Draper

Last fall, I was lucky enough to finally fulfill my dream of hunting Sitka blacktail deer on Kodiak Island. The trip was pure Alaska: rough-water beach landings, white-knuckle bush plane rides, brown bear encounters, whale sightings, and mountain vistas so magnificent I won’t even try to describe them here.

And, of course, the food.

You might think it would be hard to eat well on boat with a galley the size of a closet, but with the help of Camp Chef’s Steve McGrath, we dined mighty fine. It didn’t hurt we had access to some incredibly fresh protein, including blacktail deer and tanner crab plucked from the Gulf of Alaska just hours earlier. [ Read Full Post ]