Author: Kevin Wilson
Kevin Wilson
Recognized as one of Canada's most prolific outdoor writers, Kevin Wilson has been actively involved in the outdoor industry for over 30 years. An award-winning outdoor writer/photographer, videographer and show host, his work has been widely published in, and broadcast through, many of North America’s top print magazines, newspapers, websites, e-zines, podcasts, radio shows and outdoor television networks. Former co-hosts of Canadian Outdoorsman TV, Kevin and his wife Heather, are currently team members on Wild TV’s popular Bowzone Live. With a passion for all things outdoors, they both confess a particular affinity for bowhunting whitetails and hunting wild sheep. As professional outfitters and guides, Kevin and his wife also own and operate Alberta Hunting Adventures (see www.albertahuntingadventures.com). In the off-season, Kevin owns and operates Wild Encounters Ltd. (see www.wildencountersltd.com) an Alberta-based company through which he provides wildlife conflict management services to industry and the public.
Calling from prime locations and capitalizing on the roster of sounds offered by e-calls can make your set irresistible to curious and hungry coyotes. Peering down into the deep ravine, an open hillside of patchy willows gave way to the frozen creek. It was the perfect calling location. Where there is food, there will be coyotes and from an elevated vantage point, the odds were good that we would not only avoid detection but draw in a curious, if not hungry, coyote in short order. Down the valley, we could see 250 yards in one direction and almost 150 across…
Lake trout can be caught all winter long, but savvy anglers know that the waning days of the ice fishing season can produce some of the best action of the year. Beelining for a shelf 200 metres off shore, we wasted no time firing up the auger to punch a series of holes into the ice. The top crust was soft, but below was still a substantial layer of solid. Eager to wet a line, our party of six cleared the holes and scurried to rig sonars and flashers, then plunged our offerings to a depth of 75 feet. Probing…
Breaking from the tree line, our party of four carefully stepped on to the ice. It was late November, indeed early to be fishing the hardwater. With no snow cover whatsoever, the surface was smooth and slick, best suited for skates, a stick and a puck. A brisk wind made it cool, but the temperature was only about – 2 Celsius. Acutely aware of the precarious nature of first ice, it was more the presence of freshwater springs in the lake that heightened my awareness. Shuffling down the lake, we soon found a suitable location, drilled a series of holes…
Apparel manufacturers are meeting our need for weather, habitat, and activity-specific clothing. No longer is it just about the pattern, functionality and fit now rank as top priorities. Perched 18-feet up in a tall leafless aspen, my wife Heather, was bowhunting the second estrus. With little cover, her subtle camouflage blended in well with the variable grey surroundings. She’d already invested 10 days on stand. If it weren’t for her technical apparel, designed specifically for cold November air, there’s no way should could have endured the frigid temperatures that Alberta throws at deer hunters. It was November 25 and the…
“Clack, clack, clatter…clash, clack, clatter, clack.” The sound of antler on antler resonated through the woods. Then, I gave my best rendition of a Whitetail buck tussle by adding a few soft, but deep, grunts. Moments later, I heard a branch snap. Waiting patiently, I recognized that I had the attention of a buck. I grunted again. Minutes passed before the buck finally stepped out from behind thick cover. Slowly making his way under the spruce trees, he stopped and meticulously sniffed the trail. I recognized then that I had made one of the most critical mistakes in the book.…