Conservation
Public Land Hunting Etiquette You Learn the Hard Way
I showed up to my first public land hunt with everything I’d read on forums. Camo head to toe. Scent killer sprayed on my…
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Field Hunter
Field Hunter is the Field Honest house byline for real field narratives shaped by the editorial desk. Stories may come from our own experience, friends and contributors, or reader submissions. First-person voice preserves the source narrator's perspective; the byline does not claim that one person lived every story.
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Let me tell you something embarrassing. For two years, I thought I was a decent…
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30 Years Calling Catfish Trash – One Meal Changed Everything
I grew up thinking catfish were garbage fish. You know the type. Bottom feeders. Mud…
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I don’t talk about this hunt much. Not because it’s embarrassing — although some of it is — but because…
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I used to think “conservation” was something other people did. Biologists. Government agencies. Guys with wildlife management degrees and clipboards.…
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Squirrel Stew Tastes Better When Your Wife Thinks It’s Chicken
There’s a particular look people give you when you tell them you ate a squirrel. It’s somewhere between “are you…
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Gutting Your First Deer in the Dark With 3% Battery (Don’t Do This)
Nobody wants to talk about gutting a deer in the dark. The photos you see are always trophy shots —…
Gear
A Rangefinder Is the One Piece of Gear I Ignored for a Decade (Don’t Be Me)
I used to think a rangefinder was a luxury item. Something for bowhunters who needed exact yardage, or long-range guys…
Fishing
You’re Allowed to Fish for Bluegill – The Fishing Industry Won’t Tell You That
I don’t know who needs to hear this, but you’re allowed to fish for bluegill. You’re allowed to sit on…
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For the first five years I hunted deer, I didn’t really hunt. I walked into the woods with a rifle,…