Is the 6.5 Grendel the perfect 250 yard hunting round?

Benjamin David | November 21, 2023

Photo Credit: Keith Knoxsville

A Hen and a Drake Green Teal on the truck bed. Not a limit on anything, but a fun morning out.

There are plenty of nay-sayers for the AR15 pattern rifle, or modern sporting rifle, but give a modern sporting rifle chambered in 6.5 Grendel to your smaller framed wife for her deer or antelope hunt, and she’ll love the lower recoil of the round, and lighter weight of the rifle platform. She’ll never wince, and if she can hold steady, she shouldn’t miss within 250 yards.

This is precisely how our recent 6.5 Grendel AR15 upper build was used. A few weeks prior to my wife’s antelope hunt she expressed concerns about making a stalk then a shot with her current, heavy, higher recoiling hunting rifle. We ended up mounting her hunting scope on the 6.5 Grendel upper, sighted it in, and had her take a few shots prior to her hunt at the range. Her confidence was immediately bolstered by the AR, and in her words “it has almost no recoil”. She took that confidence to the field, and dropped her antelope buck on opening morning with a single well placed and devastating shot. Read about her 2023 antelope hunt here.

The devastation of the 6.5 Grendel on an antelope is obvious.

Sure, if you feel good about toting a beast of a rifle and some combination of skills, ego, or stupidity allow you to confidently take 600+ yard shots on animals, then this isn’t an impressive rifle build to you. However, for those looking at an accurate, light weight, ergonomic, easy to transport, easy to use, and relatively economical medium game and short to medium range hunting rifle, then this is the perfect build.

Ballistics

When zeroed to 200 yards the typical 123 grain Grendel bullet will rise from the muzzle about 1.9 inches, before dropping 3.7 inches at 250 yards and about 9 inches at 300 yards. Essentially, that means a shot aiming at the center of the boiler room, or an 8 inch kill zone, will drop an animal at any range under 250 yards with nearly 1300 foot pounds of energy.

Combining longer shots with an app, or just knowing your hold over with your specific rifle scope, and it could be an adequate rifle for 400 to 450 yard shots on medium sized animals like mule deer and antelope. Energy drops under 1000 foot pounds between 400 and 425 feet, and you can anticipate a drop of about 24 to 26 inches in that range, but again that is plenty for deer and antelope.

The 6.5 Grendel round is exceptionally accurate as it maintains supersonic stability at 1000 yards, although energy at that point is only a few hundred pounds, and is more suited to target shooting or coyotes.

Hornady Black 6.5 Grendel Ammo.

Ammunition

Off the shelf 6.5 Grendel ammunition is on par with most common hunting rounds and is very accurate. You don’t have to get into precision hand loading to get a consistent performing round at the range and in the field.

More and more bullet options have become available, and the supply has become more abundant in the last year, post COVID ammo shitstorm.

Versatility

The ballistics of the 6.5 Grendel 123 grain bullet are not more impressive than many typical hunting rifles you may carry, but the AR platform elevates the practical nature of this round. Our AR15 style rifle includes an adjustable shoulder stock, which allows my wife to get a proper eye relief, and me to get mine when I am using it. The lighter weight platform is an advantage for carrying, and multiple sling styles and location mounts make stalking an easier task than with traditional rifle slings.

There are a plethora of optics options when it comes to the modern sporting rifle platform.

A forend can be customized with extra grip, forend stops and indexers, and even co-witnessed or canted iron sights to increase the ergonomics and short range usability of the rifle. Most AR barrels are also threaded, so adding a compensator or muzzle brake is easy. By comparison, many affordable hunting rifles still don’t have threaded barrels or iron sights, nor do they have adjustable stocks. The picatinny rail is integrated into the AR upper, meaning you’ll have a wide range of mounting options, and depending on the style of handguard, which do to its design does not place stress on the barrel like a cheap plastic stock might under stress, you’ll also have the opportunity to mount a scope or optics more forward than the upper receiver if needed.

Economics

If you already own a modern sporting rifle, you can swap uppers from predator and home defense uppers chambered in 223 or 5.56, to a 6.5 upper for hunting. A budget 6.5 upper can be purchased for as little as 250 bucks, and a higher quality build will put you back about half a grand or more. We also suggest putting a better trigger in your lower regardless of whether or not you plan to hunt, which will add between 100 and 300 bucks, and a good hunting scope like the Monstrum Cantilever Picatinny Scope Mount, and be sure to select the model that matches your scope tube diameter. (Either 30mm or 1 inch)

Also, in the world of hunting optics, there is always good, better, and best. We love all of our Vortex and Maven optics, but understand they can be cost prohibitive. Companies like Monstrum offer a good alternative to more expensive scopes, like the Monstrum G3 3-18x50 FFP Rifle Scope, which gets you in the realm of first focal plane scopes with optics that match the practical 250 yard hunting range of the Grendel setup we’ve suggested quite well.

Tags: 6.5, 6.5 Grendel, AR15, Grendel, hunting, MSR | Comments

One Hot Antelope Hunting Tip to Harvest Speedgoats!!

Benjamin David | November 21, 2023

Photo Credit: Keith Knoxsville

A Hen and a Drake Green Teal on the truck bed. Not a limit on anything, but a fun morning out.

After 3 separate stalks, on 3 different bucks, my wife harvested on the opening day of the antelope season 2023. While there are a lot of factors that go into antelope hunting, and I’ll touch on those in a bit, there is one good tip for antelope hunting that applies to most big game hunting in general.

What Not to Do

While it’s meant to be funny and sound like trash YouTube video clickbait, it’s also very true. Don’t be a lazy ass.

I frequently see hunters park a car, only to walk 25 feet from a parked vehicle, spook an animal from a couple hundred yards away, and push them to a distance they are unable to shoot or unwilling to pursue. The opening morning was no exception to this sad, sloppy, and lazy tactic of roadside hunting, while my wife and I made the effort to manifest success.

Antelope hunting in Wyoming offers hunters an opportunity to glass long distances from dirt roads, and cover a lot of ground in the vast and open spaces of our state. However, with such vast open distances to find antelope and clear lines of sight, they are almost equally aware of you as you are of them. A vehicle stopping in the distance is an instant red flag for antelope. Simply stopping a vehicle in sight of antelope, even five hundred yards away, is often enough to get them up and moving.

The best approach we’ve found to hunting antelope is to drive beyond a hill or into a depression where your vehicle is out of sight, before stopping. Get out quietly, and execute a plan on stealthily getting closer to the antelope you intend to shoot. Be mindful of wind, and any other animals that might spook and alert your target to your presence.

Also, private and public lands aren’t always indicated, so be aware of where you are, use an app like OnX Maps, and make sure you aren’t accidentally hunting on private property that isn’t marked.

The Hunt

The first good looking buck we saw on opening morning was near private property, and by the time I had dropped my wife off at a good point to start her approach, the buck had already made its way to the edge of unfenced private property. When she came up on it at less than 60 yards, it was too close to private property to risk shooting it, only to have it run onto private property before expiring. So she practiced self control that I’d like to think all hunters would practice, and returned to the truck.

We continued driving on dirt roads, and saw a few more nice looking bucks. The best shooter bucks were on private property, so we continued our search until we saw a decent buck and parked beyond its sight, so that my wife could get her second stalk going. With the wind in her favor, she followed a depression then got within 100 yards of it, just in time to see it spook when 2 other vehicles stopped hundreds of yards away in the opposite direction. The vehicles stopped in plain sight of the antelope, then hunters proceeded to hop out and glass from next to their vehicles as it took off.

A few moments later, one of those vehicles stopped and talked to me as I held my 10 month old and hung out at the truck, still completely unaware that they busted my wife’s stalk with their poor tactics, and further adding “it seems like they are all pretty long shots”. While being good at taking long shots can be helpful hunting antelope, so can putting a little leg work in, as my wife had already proven, by getting within very comfortable shooting distances to two decent bucks.

With my wife somewhat irritated by other hunters, compounded by a baby now a little fussy from car rides and an irregular morning schedule riding dirt roads in the truck, she suggested we scrap it for the day. I suggested we keep trying and if nothing seems like a great opportunity, we won’t make the effort. Ten minutes later we spotted a very distant group of antelope with a poor road heading in the general direction. I decided to follow it since it closed a significant amount of distance before it veered away from the group of antelope to an opposite side of a cluster of small hills. Without stopping, we spotted a decent buck before placing the truck well out of sight.

The wind was generally in my wife’s favor as she stealthily approached them from the opposite side of the hills. After a couple hundred yards she was slightly disoriented by cattle she had used as a waypoint, when she discovered even more cattle. Unsure of her precise position and distance from the antelope she climbed a hill before being spotted by a doe. Immediately freezing, she waited until the doe didn’t perceive her as a threat, then continued stalking a bit further to the side of the group of antelope where she had last seen a buck.

She climbed back up to the ridge of the hill, but as soon as her head cleared sagebrush she was made by her target buck. It spooked and ran to about 150 yards before pausing broadside and looking back at her, giving her the perfect chance to take a shot from an AR15 chambered in 6.5 Grendel.

Antelope on The MainFrame

Hearing the shot from the vehicle, me and my 10 month old approached to get a vantage in the event an animal needed to be pursued and recovered. I watched five does run a few hundred yards, pause then run another few hundred yards before dropping out of sight. I never saw anything drop, but continued to the location of the shot to find my wife looking for a buck. Minutes later, we found her buck, it had collapsed into a depression in the landscape, only a few yards from where it had been shot. We immediately worked at field dressing, then carrying it to the truck before returning home to start the process of butchering.

Final Thoughts

Roadside hunters may get lucky once in a while, but I prefer to stay positive in the face of frustrating hurdles, to be diligent about formulating a plan of approach, and to make a real effort in order to manifest success. We wrapped up the opening morning at 10:45 am with an antelope in the bed of the truck, and the majority of the weekend left to take care of other tasks. In most cases, just like many things in life, hunting will give back what you put into it. While you can get lucky roadside hunting, it is just better not to be lazy and put in a little bit of effort.

Tags: Antelope hunt, Speedgoat, Wy, Wyoming | Comments

Elk Ridge Trek Knife Set

Benjamin David | November 28, 2022

Photo Credit: Keith Knoxsville

A Hen and a Drake Green Teal on the truck bed. Not a limit on anything, but a fun morning out.

We had an opportunity to review Elk Ridge's Trek 8 Piece Knife Set, and at a great time of the year too. We put them to use on a deer and an antelope this year, and this is what we think of them a few weeks later.

When Sharper Edges reached out to us to do a gear review on a few of their knives, we didn’t exactly get super excited. Our previous experiences with Elk Ridge products have been with an overly large survival-style knife, and a machete, both of which were gifts and too large and heavy to ever consider taking into the field. Although, while the bowie-style blade never felt like the highest quality implement, it has split hundreds if not thousands of pieces of kindling over the years for a wood-burning stove, and it has even been used as a scrape for hide tanning more than a few times. The machete has also been pretty useful around our 4-acre farmstead, helping clear brush, when pulling out the brush hog seems like overkill. So with those considerations, we decided to keep an open mind and take a look at some of the knives Elk Ridge has to offer.

We suggested to Sharper Edges that the Trek system of knives would be pretty useful to us in our hunting pursuits at Sportsman’s Magazine, and the 8 piece Trek knife set would be interesting to evaluate. They agreed and sent us the knife set to review.

Evaluating the Trek Knife Set

When the Trek knife set arrived, we quickly unboxed it, unsure of the level of quality to expect. Overall, we were pleasantly surprised. Fit and finish were all better than what we imagined they would be, and they all felt pretty good in hand. The injection molded ABS, incorporates a rubberized overmolded texture where it matters, so you won’t lose grip when covered in blood, which we put to the test. This is a very complete field dressing knife set, which includes a large drop point, caping blade, folding drop point, 5 inch saw, soft case, and accessories to keep things sharp.

Specifications of the included knives are below – all knives incorporate the injection molded nylon, with rubber overmolding.
Fixed Blade Drop Point and Gut Hook (replaceable full tang) – Total Length: 9.50″ | Blade Length: 4.50″
Caping Blade (full tang) – Total Length: 9.00″ | Blade Length: 4.000″

The Trek drop point and the Trek caping knife are a good balance of size, quality, ergonomics, and edge retention.

Folding Drop Point – Total Length: 8.25″ | Blade Length: 3.50″ | Back Lock

The Trek folding knife was the surprising hero of the review. It’s a solid folder for the price point, and has earned a place in the pocket of a guy that was firmly in the fixed blade camp before this review.

Bone Saw – Total Length: 7.5″ | Blade Length: 5.00″

We can remove some of the subjectivity about the quality of the knife blade with some actual research and data. The Trek Knives use an 8CR13MOV steel alloy, which is a similar metal to the Japanese AUS 8, but with a higher Rockwell Hardness rating of 62 versus the AUS rating of 59. It belongs to the CR13 series of steel, which is high in Carbon and Chromium. It’s actually a steel that has been made very popular by Spyderco’s ‘Tenacious’ knife. Those knives are well-liked and command somewhat of a premium price that I chalk up to marketing and fanboyism because the quality and materials seem to be on par with the Trek knives we handled for this review.

Our team members that handled each of the knives in the field enjoyed using them. When covered in blood, these knives were much nicer to hold onto than the really rigid and slick plastic on Havalon knives, and the large fixed point with a thick full tang allowed us to confidently pop tendons and free ball joints. – The kind of work that can break blades on replaceable blade systems, and leave a surgically sharp hazard in the critter that you are working on.

In the field, the caping knife does its job, but by the nature of its design, it is just less ergonomic than other knives, and so it got limited use, that is until my wife used it in the kitchen to help break down quarters. It seemed to do well in smaller, more delicate hands, on precision jobs.

We also didn’t use the saw, we rarely use them in general, so it was no surprise that nobody gravitated toward using it for anything. If you are the type that uses a saw to field process, then it is a good option that provides a firm grip with its ergonomic handle design, but I can’t really see packing this with me on longer trips.

Everybody has a preference when it comes to blades, some folks are hardcore fixed blade types, some folks live for an excuse to whip out a folder from one of their many pants pockets. Personally, I’ve always been a fixed blade guy, but the ergonomic, simple, and useful Trek folding knife, and the positive experience we had with it in the field, has driven me to carry it on me when I am in the garage, shop, or the field. At a minimu it gets packed into a convenient pocket on my pack system, or tossed into the brain alongside a fixed blade.

Final Thoughts

Were more than satisfied with the performance of these knives, and in particular, got good use out of everything but the saw, and though the smaller fixed blade wasn’t the most ergonomic for some, it proved very useful for others with smaller hands-on precision work.

Elk Ridge provided a knife sharpener with two sides, one for getting an edge back and the other for honing the edge. It’s nice for field use, but we generally carry a small stone for sharpening anyway, and when we are able, we generally take knives to the bench grinder for more major re-sharpening. With that said, the 8CR13MOV steel that Elk Ridge is using strikes a good balance of edge retention between sharpening, without being overly difficult to sharpen.

Context and a correct perspective matter. Elk Ridge Trek series knives are a utility type of field dressing knife, and not a timeless heirloom somebody passes down from generation to generation. They are well made, ergonomic, very reasonably priced, and do what they are intended to do. So if you had some less-than-great impressions of Elk Ridge knives in the past, like we might have had, it may be time for you to revisit what they have to offer, and improve your field dressing kit.

Utility

4.4/5

Quality

4.2/5

Ergonomics

4.2/5

Value

4.4/5

Overall

4.3/5

The Elk Ridge fixed blade drop point with changeable blades is a nice size with good ergonomics that let you keep hold of it, even when covered in blood. A thick Full length tang makes this guy STRONG.

Is the Elk Ridge Trek 8 Piece Hunting Knife Set Good To Go?

After spending a few weeks butchering both a deer and an antelope with the Trek knife set, we feel good about recommending these knives to the fellow hunter. So before you go out and buy some gimmicky as seen on TV knife as a gift this holiday season or impulse buy a knife from the local sporting goods shop at the checkout stand, take a look at the Trek Knife set, or just a couple of the Trek knives in the set that we thought were most useful, the large drop point and the folding drop point.

Other Recommendations

We have always used and generally recommended Havalon knives for their flexibility and packability in the field, but the biggest drawback to one of the replaceable blade systems is that the blades are flimsy, and the rigid plastic on those knives can get slick when wet. They also need replacement in the field when dressing a large animal, and so you also need to carry pliers. What we can definitely say, is that you will always benefit from carrying a sturdy fixed or folding blade in addition to a replaceable blade system, for popping joints and breaking big tendonsin the field.

Tags: field processing, gear review, hunting knife | Comments

Sage Grouse Hunting Tips for Success

Benjamin David | September 28, 2022

Photo Credit: Keith Knoxsville

A Hen and a Drake Green Teal on the truck bed. Not a limit on anything, but a fun morning out.

Watch our Ultra Short on Sage Grouse Hunting: Sage Grouse Hunt (YouTube)

Sage Grouse hunting isn’t simply a pursuit that rewards those that cover as much ground as possible. It certainly can help to cover a lot of ground, but a smarter approach can improve your hunt, and reduce a significant amount of walking. While no strategy is bulletproof when it comes to the pursuit of Sage Grouse, these tips should help.

Habitat and Sign

The most important factor in finding birds is knowing where they like to be in their habitat. Like every other critter, they require food, shelter, and water. We always start our hunt by targeting areas with slightly taller sagebrush that provides shelter at the edges of large clearings, depressions, bottoms of draws, and watering holes, then walk the perimeters.

You’ll know where they have spent time by watching for droppings in these areas, and while they can move quite a bit, they are probably still in the area, as it’s either their semi-permanent feeding ground or shelter. The Sage Grouse is a survivor, and able to get enough water from their food sources, primarily consisting of tender sage buds and shoots, that they don’t need watering holes. Therefore, it isn’t necessary to locate water, to be successful. If you do harvest a bird, its helpful to examine the contents of its crop, and know exactly what they’ve been feeding on, so that you can locate better habitat later.

The contents of a birds crop can teach you a lot about the habitat and feeding behaviors of birds.

Weather

Both waterfowl and upland birds tend to lock down when it is too windy, and grouse are no exception. If it’s too hot, they’ll seek shelter under taller sagebrush. If it’s too windy, they’ll seek refuge under taller sagebrush. If it’s raining, they’ll seek shelter under taller sagebrush. Essentially, they’ll be sheltered under sagebrush, and therefore walking areas with grouse droppings and good habitat is the best method for finding birds, regardless of the weather. However, a recent rain or dusting of snow, can make it easy to identify the footprints left by sage grouse, and will confirm you are in an area recently used by grouse.

The interesting dinosaur like legs and feet of the sage grouse

Be Ready

Never expect the flush to be over. Whether hunting with or without dogs, grouse frequently remain locked down and well hidden, until the last possible second – especially when other birds have already flushed.

So instead of sitting there in disbelief that you didn’t get a shot off, or maybe you missed, snap out of it and reload. Reload quickly and be ready for more birds to flush – or be surprised and disappointed that you weren’t ready to take a shot.

Glassing

If you continue to fail at locating and flushing birds, consider getting a high vantage where you can glass vast fields of sage at sunset. You’ll hopefully spot a covey of grouse flying in or around the area. Make a note of where they settle down for the evening and plan to start your morning hunt right there.

Conclusion

Hopefully, you’ll put some of our advice to work in the field and find more success. But beyond success, safety is a huge factor when sage grouse hunting. With other big game seasons open at the same time as the limited Sage Grouse season, we make absolutely sure to stay visible and avoid pressuring big game animals and hunters. Also make sure your hunting dogs do the same. We protect our dogs with vests and skid plates, collars, high visibility blaze, and provide plenty of water for everyone, as the dessert makes things disappear, and can be a rather unforgiving place.

The Mendota skid plate, or a tactical dog harness adorned with custom blaze patches with your dog’s name and your phone number on them is a great idea, should you lose your dog. If your dog is still young and in training, then a collar like the SportDOG 425X Remote Trainer is a great shock collar with a 500 yard range. However, you may eventually want to get a GPS collar and tracking system like the Dogtra Pathfinder or the Garmin Astro 430, depending on the seriousness of your hunting, your dog, and your pursuits.

Following the Sage Grouse opener, we grabbed a bite to eat and met a hunter that lost her dogs. It happens, so at a minimum, be sure your dogs have identification information on them and are highly visible.

Working on the retrieval of a downed sage grouse with a young puppy

Tags: Sage Grouse, upland hunting | Comments

Cora The Catahoula Hunting Dog

Benjamin David | August 16, 2022

Photo Credit: Keith Knoxsville

A Hen and a Drake Green Teal on the truck bed. Not a limit on anything, but a fun morning out.

We are happy to announce our relocation to the more sportsman-friendly state of Wyoming, and the addition of a new team member Cora, our new Catahoula Leopard and the first hunting dog to be part of our content. Cora was born at the end of March and is already working farm animals, but also putting in mileage in the backcountry, working with dummies, and getting ready for the upcoming upland bird season. She is a wonderful puppy, has the classic Catahoula temperament and exhibits a red leopard appearance.

The upland season is only a couple of weeks away. If you aren’t ready yet then check out our article on the best dove decoys. Also, consider equipping your hunting dog with a good GPS collar, and a high viz vest or skid plate. Or maybe work with a dummy with some bird scent on it if you are also training a young hunting dog.

Why a Catahoula? In the relocation, @ben_ya_mean purchased a property and began setting up a small farmstead that would benefit from a good work dog. He has had Catahoulas in the past and has used them for both work and hunting, so he knew what to expect and loves the breed.

Cora happily bounding back with a dummy in her mouth during some retrieval training.

If you are considering a Catahoula for yourself, then there are some things that you MUST know. They are not for the inexperienced dog owner as they are a very headstrong breed that requires a lot of attention and exercise. They have an abundance of energy that can easily wear out an owner or trainer, and a very strong desire to herd and hunt. While not aggressive, they can at times be defiant or even defensive, they may even nip back out of defiance; a behavior that can be properly trained out of them by an experienced trainer and good socialization.

The breed has a wide range of appearances and even sizes but always has a rectangular structure. Some are more solid in color while a merle coat and white colors appear in a percentage of each litter. Ironically, it’s said that the Catahoula was bred to continue to improve its ability and not its appearance, but if you have a Catahoula Leopard you will receive no shortage of compliments on your dog. You should have good knowledge of your future puppies genetics, as breeding a merle leopard Catahoula to another merle can lead to health issues, including bilateral deafness. While that may be okay for a family dog, it could be trouble for a work or hunting dog, so get information from a breeder on the parentage of your future puppy.

Catahoulas have an exceptional herding instinct and a heritage of hunting that predates the European settlers’ use as hunting dogs, with their use by Native Americans. They have been used to hunt everything from rabbits to raccoons, squirrels, deer, pigs, mountain lions, bears, and feral pigs in Louisiana. As such, they have also earned the moniker of “Louisiana Hunting Dog”, and the honor of the state dog of Louisiana.

Retrieval training with a winged dummy is all about positive reinforcement and repetition. Especially with a very young puppy.

We are looking forward to having Cora in the field and sharing the hunting experience as soon as the upland bird season starts this September in Wyoming. We are also looking forward to getting her in the field this waterfowl season. To follow along with Cora’s progress as a hunting companion, follow us on Instagram, @sportsmansmagazine.

Why Wyoming? Our editor @ben_ya_mean lived in Wyoming for years with his wife and left for work and family reasons. He and his wife have since returned to a free state that supports a pro-sportsman and pro-freedom stance, after experiencing the California mismanagement of people, businesses, disease, wildlife, money, and forest management; which included shutting down forests, because of the inability to control or properly mitigate fires and the threats that start them.

Tags: bird dog, catahoula, catahoula leopard, hunting dog, upland hunting, upland vest | Comments

High Sierra Fishing Report (SMFR)

Benjamin David | July 6, 2022

Photo Credit: Keith Knoxsville

A Hen and a Drake Green Teal on the truck bed. Not a limit on anything, but a fun morning out.

From the Editor:

It took a while for us to get around to publishing, we’re sorry, and figured it better a little late than never.

Things are heating up in the Eastern Sierra’s high country! A low snow year and warm temperatures allowed us to check out a few locations over the past couple of weeks. We discovered that dry fly season is already underway in the alpine lakes and streams. Now is the time to get into the mountains, and here’s what you’ll need to know to hook some hungry high country trout.

First, be aware that the only lakes that are completely thawed at this time are those below 11,000 feet. Luckily, that’s where many of the Sierra’s larger lakes are located. If you plan to cross any high passes to get to a specific area, be prepared to encounter snowfields and the potential for a stray thunderstorm.

A beautiful trout from the scenic High Sierra’s

We observed trout actively surface feeding everywhere we went, so you shouldn’t have much trouble slinging dry flies. Elk Hair Caddis, Pale Morning Dun, and Parachute Adams all worked pretty well and the Purple Royal Para Wulff seemed to entice some of the pickier fish. It’s always a good idea to bring along a variety of nymphs and streamers for when the fish aren’t surface feeding or the weather changes to cloudy or windy. Brightly colored Copper Johns and Zebra Midges, and small to medium streamers are typically effective.

Be prepared for the high altitude and the normally cloudless Sierra days by bringing sunscreen, and sunglasses, and consider a sun shirt and a hat. Extra layers, like a wind/rain jacket, are always a good idea. The snow is still melting so plan for wet, muddy trails and consider waterproof hiking boots or shoes. Always be sure to check the weather before heading into the high country.

Catch and release fishing in the High Sierra’s

Tags: fish report, fishing, fishing report, high sierra, smfr | Comments

Wolf and Grizzly Grill and Fire Safe

Benjamin David | April 19, 2022

Photo Credit: Keith Knoxsville

A Hen and a Drake Green Teal on the truck bed. Not a limit on anything, but a fun morning out.

The Wolf and Grizzly Fire Safe

We had been toying with the idea of doing a series of firepit and backcountry stove reviews for a while. So many people seem to be venturing into hot tenting, or just looking for portable fireboxes and cook systems to set up while backpacking and overlanding. So it was a timely coincidence when Wolf and Grizzly reached out to our team to ask if we were interested in reviewing the Wolf and Grizzly Fire Safe and Grill. We said we’d love to.

Fire Safe First Impressions

The Wolf and Grizzly Fire Safe fits into a compact carrying case, that is a little wider and longer than a pencil case.

The W&G Fire Safe came in a surprisingly compact package. It’s a two piece design, with a frame and base. The frame hinges at the corners, and also in the middle of two sides, so it can go from flat to deployed in seconds. The base is essentially a six-panel accordion, that is designed to unfold, and be supported by slots in the frame.

The Wolf And Grizzly Fire Safe is simple to set up and incredibly stable, due in large part to the really clever engineering.

Everything is very practically designed, taking advantage of basic geometry to create a very stable firebox. The stainless steel used to manufacture the Fire Safe is of good quality, and thin enough so that the Fire Safe remains lightweight. The parts are stamped with some contours, which is common practice in products engineered from flat stock, especially vehicles, to improve rigidity. It also happens to give the Fire Safe a nice aesthetic.

The frame elevates the base high enough that it does not touch the ground. This is a great feature that protects the surface it is on, and promotes a “leave no trace” approach to using it. We love the “leave no trace” approach to everything we do outdoors, from backpacking, climbing, car camping, to hunting, and fishing. It gets really old finding firepits anywhere somebody can access the great outdoors, and even more frustrating when you find multiple used and dirty fire pits only a few paces away from each other.

Anyway, back to the Fire Safe, it is a very practical and clever design made from quality 304 stainless steel.

Fire Safe In The Field

We assembled the Fire Safe to get our first impressions and already discussed setup, so we’ll just briefly reiterate that the Fire Safe is incredibly simple to set up.

A lot of people may cringe at the idea of brightly polished stainless steel changing color with use, but that patina doesn’t bother us one bit. The first time we used the grill we decided to break it in for a while and make sure any lubricants from a metal press or packaging residue baked off, even though none were observed. We were actually quite unforgiving, and started a fire with Fatwood, then proceeded to pile on charcoal. A small breeze kept the fire stoked and the heat pretty intense.

We honestly expected the stainless steel to warp or deform under the intense heat, but to our surprise, it didn’t. We were all very impressed that the Fire Safe held up to the abuse so well.

The Wolf and Grizzly Fire Safe can function as a small fire pit, so we continued to use the Fire Safe after we were finished cooking on the companion grill to provide a little bit of heat as temperatures dropped. It worked better than expected down to subfreezing temperatures before we retreated to tents. We certainly got the max use out of the Fire Safe for its intended roles. You could potentially use the Fire Safe for tent camping heat if you had a vestibule big enough for it, proper ventilation, and were experienced at hot tenting, but it’s not a recommendation. In fact, we’d advise against it, as it has no spark arresting protection, and could be dangerous for the inexperienced. However, it does an exceptional job containing fires big enough to cook on without scarring the landscape or footprint underneath it, and it’s small and light enough to pack almost anywhere.

Buy The Fire Safe on Amazon | See it at Wolf and Grizzly

Ease of Use

4.5/5

Portability

4.5/5

Quality

4.9/5

Price

4.2/5

We pushed the Wolf And Grizzly about as far as you can go temperature-wise, for out testing, and it outperformed our expectations.

The Wolf and Grizzly Backpack Grill

Grill First Impressions

Much like the W&G Fire Safe, the Grill came in a compact package. However, the grill comes rolled and does not sit flush like the Fire Safe. The W&G Grill when unrolled and set up is a pretty ingenious little grilling grate and stand.

The Wolf and Grizzly grill stand accordions down to a compact size.

The stand accordions open and closed, and fits perfectly around the Fire Safe. The grill grate itself is constructed a little bit like a rope ladder, with small but strong wire rods creating the grill surface, held together at the ends with a stainless steel cable. A supporting structure twists open to support the span of solid wire rods.

Most ingenious is the way the grill grate attaches to the adjustable stand. 3 swage sleeves fit into the corners of the grill stand in a similar way to a brake cable on a bike or motorcycle. The 3 swage sleeves on each of the four cable ends are placed at increments that regulate the depth and width of the grill stand.

As the stand gets wider the grill height is lower over a fire, or companion Fire Safe. The opposite is also true. You can use the first set of swage sleeves, for a higher grilling height, and slightly narrower width and length on the stand.

The Wolf and Grizzly Grill top rolls up, making it very compact and portable.

Backpack Grill In The Field

In the field, the Backpack Grill is easy and intuitive to set up. Again as we’ve already stated, the design is quite clever, resulting in a very stable grilling platform. The stated weight capacity of the grill is 30lbs, and with no issues with stability, this is a very reasonable maximum loading. You obviously won’t be cooking an entire dear ham straight on this grill, and it wouldn’t fit if you tried.

The grill can easily handle small cast iron skillets and large roasts when car camping. However, as a backpacking grill, it’s unlikely you’ll be bringing a cast iron with you, and if you do, you’ll likely never do it again; but the grill does support a surprising amount of weight, without wobbling.

Buy The Grill on Amazon | See it at Wolf and Grizzly

Ease of Use

4.2/5

Portability

4.8/5

Quality

4.5/5

Price

4.4/5

The Wolf and Grizzly Grill is easy to set up, and supports a surprisingly large amount of food. It produces enough heat and surface area to cook more than enough food for two, without adding additional charcoal.

Conclusion

There are a handful of options when it comes to portable, lightweight fire pit and grill systems. Some are cheaper and lighter, but most often, they do not have as much cooking area and are only capable of burning wood. In our experience with other similar-role lightweight stove and cooking systems, they usually leave a lot to be desired.

We think the Wolf and Grizzly Fire Safe and Backpacking Grill are both very reasonably priced for what you get, which is an effective, high-quality, portable fire pit and grill system that is light enough to be carried into the backcountry. Smaller systems like Solo Stoves offer less for a similar price, so by comparison, the Fire Safe and Grill system are a much better value, and even more versatile.

Alternatively, if you only want or need the Fire Safe for a better leave-no-trace camping experience, or you only want the grill for a very practical and portable grill system, they both individually provide a lot of value for the price.

When we first saw the Wolf and Grizzly Fire Safe and Grill, we were super interested in trying it and also a little skeptical it could handle the abuse of an intense fire. However, it has surpassed all of our expectations, and we can highly recommend it for car camping, overlanding, backpacking, raft trips, beach trips, and even cooking up lunch in the driveway. It’s also a great alternative to a mini Weber, but in our opinion is even better because it cleans up nicely, and takes up no space when done.

Buy The Fire Safe and Grill Now | Learn more at Wolf and Grizzly

The Wolf and Grizzly stayed pretty clean after cooking on it, and never deformed, even when burning charcoal.

Tags: backcountry grill, backcountry stove, fire box, fire pit | Comments

Pan-Fried Bluegill

Benjamin David | February 24, 2022

Photo Credit: Keith Knoxsville

A Hen and a Drake Green Teal on the truck bed. Not a limit on anything, but a fun morning out.

Bluegill are referred to as panfish for a reason, they fit in a pan and taste great fried. We recently harvested some bluegill from our living room aquaponic system and decided to cook them up minutes after they came out of the tanks.

We kept the preparation incredibly simple, which is the best way to treat any fresh and clean fish. We choose to cook our fish whole because when properly cooked, fish should pull away from the bone easily.

We also do not dredge our fish in anything, and still end up with a firm, clean-tasting fish, with crispy skin and natural flavors enhanced by seasonings, not masked by them.

Preparation Time

20 minutes

Cooking Time

10 minutes

Total Time

30 minutes

Servings

1-2

Ingredients

4 – 8 Bluegill

Salt

Lemon Pepper

Garlic Powder

Olive Oil

2-4 Lemon Wedges

1 Bunch Parsley (optional)

Freshly harvested bluegill, are descaled, cleaned, and and ready to fry.

Directions

Slice 2 – 4 Lemon wedges.
Mince Parsley, if you intend to use it as a garnish later.
Descale Bluegill.
Remove heads just behind the gill plate.
Rinse Bluegill.
Pat Dry.
Heat olive oil to about 350F.
Season fish, inside and out, with Salt, Lemon Pepper, and Garlic Powder.
Carefully place fish in hot oil.
While the fish are cooking, squeeze some lemon juice over them.
Cook until the skin becomes crispy and well browned, and the flesh turns white and firm, then remove from oil.
Let rest on a plate for a few minutes, and pat any excess oil dry.
Garnish with parsley.
Serve with a lemon wedge.
Enjoy!

Tags: bluegill, panfish, recipe, sunfish | Comments

Spring Turkey Hunting 101

Benjamin David | February 18, 2022

Photo Credit: Keith Knoxsville

A Hen and a Drake Green Teal on the truck bed. Not a limit on anything, but a fun morning out.

Are you ready for the spring turkey season? It’s really not that far away, so if you want to successfully harvest a gobbler this spring, then you need a game plan and a few pieces of gear.

Develop A Game Plan

Scouting is the biggest part of any hunting success, whether it’s a predator, moose, dove, or turkey. All spring turkeys are very limited in their focus and priorities. They aren’t exactly concerned with Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, they are simply trying to avoid predators, eat, and breed.

They roost at night and descend to the forest floor in the morning, going through routines of feeding, and moving around looking for partners. With their focus so limited, they will respond to predatorial sounds, challenges from other gobblers, and hen calls. Although, from experience, they will quite literally respond to almost anything at least once. So locating them is not too difficult.

Fifteen days before the season starts is a great time to scout an area you intend to hunt. You should look for food, shelter, and water, and try to locate birds as they roost, so you know what nearby fields they will be on early in the morning. Fifteen days is close enough to the start of the season that whatever birds are doing, will likely be the same thing they will be doing at the start of the season.

The Gear

At a bare minimum, you will need good camouflage, a turkey call, and a shotgun. Some states allow rifles and even airguns as a legal method of take, so check your state’s rules and regulations because they may open up some additional hunting opportunities for you.

Turkeys have excellent vision and a keen ability to detect shapes and movement, so it’s critical to wear camo. Good camo will break up your pattern and allow you to remain undetected. At a minimum, your camo should include a quality shirt, like the First Lite Phantom Top, and a face mask or balaclava, like the First Lite Phantom Balaclava. Adding camo pants, versus solid tan or olive drab colors will also improve your concealment, but isn’t completely necessary. Although, others might argue differently.

First Lite Phantom Balaclava | First Lite Phantom Top

You will also need a turkey call. There are a ton of options, and you can use whatever you want. A box call is a good choice, so is a slate, or a reed call, but we prefer a reed call because it lets you operate hands-free, and requires no movement. Movement is a sure way to get busted by a turkey, so a reed call is an ideal choice.

Lynch Box Call | Primos Slate Call | Woodhaven Reed Call

A shotgun is the standard weapon of choice for turkey hunts. You will want a 12 gauge or 20 gauge, and quality ammunition. Of course, if you already have archery equipment, or your laws allow you to use a rifle or air rifle, then you should consider those options as well.

Another piece of equipment to consider is a tighter, extended choke for your shotgun. We use and recommend Carlson's chokes, and do all of our longer-range shotgunning, whether it’s waterfowl, dove, or turkey with them. They pattern well with a wide range of ammo, and outside of a heavier and hotter load, and knowing how your shotgun patterns can have a significant impact on your shooting.

We don’t typically use them, but a sitting pad or turkey seat can be a nicety. Some turkey vests, like the Knight and Hale Run and Gun include an attached butt pad, but sitting pads like the ALPS Outdoorz hunting seat, can be picked up on their own. Either will make sitting dead still a more comfortable endeavor.

You don’t need to hunt over a decoy. However, many people do, as it can visually guide birds into a desirable kill zone, or simply draw in a bird that is more visually driven. The Primos Gobstopper Jake & Hen decoy combo is a good choice for static decoys, and the MOJO Scoot-N-Shoot Max is another great option for a more aggressive style of hunt.

Pattern Your Shotgun

If we’ve made it sound like turkeys are rather un-complex creatures, it is because it’s true. Turkeys evolved to breed, eat, and avoid predators, but not do a whole lot else. As such they have a small brain, which means you are shooting a small target.

No two shotguns will pattern the same, and the same is true with different types of ammunition, so it’s essential that you pattern your shotgun. You should, at a bare minimum, shoot your shotgun with the load you intend to hunt with. Shoot it at a couple of distances and know if you have any holes in your pattern, or any left or right bias of a concentration of shot.

If your shotgun patterns heavily to the left of your point of aim, you may end up aiming to the right of a turkey’s head to ensure the concentration of shot lands on a turkey’s brain or brain stem.

If you add a new choke to the mix, you must pattern the gun with the new choke!

A gobbler successfully taken with a 20 gauge CZ over and under.

Final Thoughts

A successful turkey hunt is going to be more fun than an unsuccessful one, and it’s really not too difficult to prepare for the turkey season. When you are successful, or if you simply want to increase your level of safety when you are not actively hunting, bring and wear some blaze. At a minimum, if you are carrying a turkey out of the field on your pack, tie a blaze handkerchief to your pack, or wear a blaze hat. The blaze should help, even the most trigger happy beginner, to identify a dead turkey on a human and you’ll avoid getting shot.

Be safe, have fun, and good luck!

Tags: gobbler, spring, turkey | Comments