Indholdsfortegnelse for December 2025 i Game & Fish West

Is it just me, or does time seem to compress the older we get? Maybe it’s just a product of our modern lives, in which everyone (or at least everyone I know) seems to be going 100 miles per hour all the time. Or maybe there’s a biological explanation—something to do with a change in our brain’s chemistry as we age that affects our perception of the passage of time. Whatever it is, I can’t help but feel that the duration of the past 12 months was somehow shorter than that the previous 12 months and the 12 before that. At any rate, my goal between now and the end of the year is to try and slow things down as much as I am able. I’m going to make…

Every New Year’s Day, just before we tuck into bowls of traditional Hoppin’ John, a humble stew of black-eyed peas and smoked ham hock, my family passes around scraps of paper. We don’t say a word. Each member knows the routine—we write down two or three resolutions for the coming year, and after breakfast we take turns announcing our intentions. Then, my wife collects the paper scraps and puts them in a small heirloom crock we keep on the kitchen counter. They’re handy to refer to in, say, February and March, to see how we’re tracking. But they’re even more interesting as archived documents, to see how our interests and purpose have changed over the years as our priorities have shifted. “Mind my own business,” my teenage daughter resolved in…

When heavy rains and melting snow in the nearby mountains spiked river levels, ducks dumped into a hidden slough. Armed with a dozen decoys and two panels we brushed-in for a blind, a buddy and I were set well before shooting light the following morning. Ducks buzzed into the tight confines of the brush-choked slough with speedy precision. When shooting time finally arrived, our 20 gauges went to work. In 25 minutes, we shot limits of mallards and wood ducks. We gathered the decoys but left the blind; we’d be back in a couple days. It was our sixth year hunting that spot. We found it while scouting late one season. When public pressure on the river is high and the water level is at a specific height, ducks congregate…

With big game seasons mostly in the rearview mirror, many hunters from coast to coast will shift their attention to waterfowl this month. Some will take to the marsh or the flooded timber in search of ducks. Others will gravitate to harvested crop fields, where they’ll hope to ambush geese keen to feed on waste grain. As many of us have spent the past couple months sitting alone 20 feet up a tree, the camaraderie of a waterfowl hunt serves as a means to transition to more communal pursuits. The tradition of gathering friends and family for a chilly morning in the blind is another way to celebrate the festive season—and maybe bring home a bird for the Christmas table. When dawn comes and the sky turns that winter pink,…

It was mid-November when Shane handed his Christmas wish list to his mother. It was ambitious, but in line with the wishes of a 16-year-old boy. Right at the top was a Remington Model 700 BDL in .308 with a 3–9x40mm scope. A few days later, when word spread to Shane’s father, he breached the topic with his only son. “Shane, I saw your Christmas list.” Shane ceased eating his breakfast and looked up at full attention. “That’s a great rifle, and you know I’d love to get you one,” started Shane’s dad. “But with the new roof and your mother’s car blowing the transmission this year, I’m afraid we just can’t swing it right now. I’m sorry, son, but don’t worry. We’ll still have a great Christmas, just like…

With the introduction of the .300 Blackout cartridge in 2010, hunters became more interested in shooting subsonic ammunition and hunting with suppressors. This might seem odd because since the introduction of the .30-30 Winchester cartridge in 1895, hunters have been gravitating toward ammunition that pushes bullets faster rather than slower. In other words, the trend with hunting cartridges and ammunition has always been for more as opposed to less speed. However, subsonic ammunition makes a lot less noise—especially when shooting suppressed—and it recoils more softly, too. Both make rifles more fun and easier to shoot. But is subsonic ammunition a good fit for hunting, and what cartridges and loads are best? SUB SCIENCE First, let’s define exactly what subsonic ammunition really is. Subsonic ammo leaves the muzzle of a firearm…

Winter affects the entire swath of whitetail country, and when it hits with a hammer it can cause you to rethink your hunting strategy and your sanity for continuing the hunt. Foul winter weather may not last long in the southern half of the nation, but it does occur, especially with ice. In northern whitetail country, where I hail from, you can expect a battle with frigid Mother Nature just about every year. I’ve fought the good fight through almost every imaginable winter weather scenario. Some I have lost, but I have many in the win column due to persistence, planning and spontaneous adaptation to constantly changing conditions. GIMME SHELTER The Dilemma While traveling to Iowa one season, the weather forecast transitioned from threats of a major winter storm to…

As long as you exclude the raucous topwater bite of early June, the best northern pike action in the West is late, just before and just after ice covers low-elevation reservoirs. It’s a season of opportunity for cool-water predators that know skinny times are ahead, and they’ll hit a variety of baits and hardware as long as you know where to put them. In the event that early-winter pike don’t bite your offerings, don’t give them the choice. Spearing in shallow water, sometimes through perilously thin ice, can be the ticket to the biggest, sow-bellied, shoreline-cruising pike in any given body of water. If December is a month of opportunity, it’s also one of uncertainty. If a windless cold snap hits the Northern Rockies, the best pike waters in the…

Christensen Arms built their legacy with the carbon fiber-wrapped barrel. In fact, they were the first company to offer one. However, Christensen’s newest rifle, the Evoke, does not have a carbon fiber-wrapped barrel, and it is the least expensive centerfire rifle in the gun maker’s catalog. While the Evoke was introduced in 2024, the rifle wasn’t available until early 2025. The Evoke is now shipping, though, and Christensen is offering it in four different versions. Here’s a look at all this rifle has to offer and how it performed during our testing. RIFLE DETAILS The Evoke uses a new proprietary action that’s built around a radially fluted, two-lug bolt with a 90-degree throw. This is a push-feed-style action, and the bolt is outfitted with the common plunger-style ejector, but it…

Late-season bowhunting is an entirely different game compared to early-season archery forays. The deer are jumpy after weeks of bullets zinging around them, cover is greatly reduced and the air is bitter. Everything is a touch more difficult for deer and bowhunters alike in the depths of winter. Most hunters reconsider their apparel choices and stand setups when the mercury drops. But few think about one of the most overlooked adjustments you can make for success when the snow flies: changing your bow setup for cold weather. The late season isn’t just about endurance, it’s about adaptation. And that starts with your gear. THE GRIP AND GLOVES The first thing to address is your grip. I wear thin, brown jersey gloves throughout most of October and November. When December and…

The flash of red, green, brown, and—somehow, astonishingly, purple—exploded against the blindingly white background of snow-covered stubble and brush. Somewhere between shucking off my trigger-finger mitten and short-stroking my shotgun’s stock into my heavy winter coat, I let the rooster get out too far. I didn’t have time to cuss my lack of readiness, though, because two more pheasants, a long-tailed rooster and a wild-eyed hen, burst out of the cover nearly at my feet. I waited for the hen to separate and dumped the cock bird in the knee-deep snow. He was a late-season trophy, his arcing tail measuring 24 inches long and his needle-sharp spurs looking more like they belonged to a tom turkey than a ring-necked pheasant. Welcome to the late game, the last weeks of pheasant…

What has two legs but can’t run, offers support in a time of need, can be ready at a moment’s notice, and asks for nothing in return? A bipod, of course. What did you think I was talking about? In certain situations, when it comes to supporting your rifle for a critical shot, there is nothing better than a bipod. Sure, you can shoot off a pack, bag or a tripod, but for getting into position, getting stable and getting the shot off, nothing else offers the same combination of quick deployment and support. There will be times when the terrain or vegetation doesn’t allow for shooting prone, or there isn’t something on which to set-up. But when you can, shooting prone from a bipod should always be your first…

How a shotgun fits a shooter and how it feels in the hands are almost as important as how well it shoots. OK, that sentence may be a bit flippant. A shotgun’s ability to produce a desired pattern downrange, with point of impact relatively near point of aim, is also very important. However, the interface between shooter and scattergun—how naturally it feels in the hands, rests against your cheek and points and swings—absolutely matters. And it can be a big factor in why we shoot one shotgun well and another poorly. This is no surprise to the folks at Franchi. Indeed, “Feels Right” is a prominent slogan for the Italian gunmaker and shows up in ads, social media posts and other marketing efforts, particularly those geared toward European customers. Of…