Author: Noel Linsey

At the end of September 2021, my hunting partner and I embarked on an epic trip into Atikaki Provincial Park for a 10-day canoe/backpack moose hunting adventure. With more energy than brains, we headed out and experienced the hardest, yet one of the most fun hunts, I’ve ever been on. As all questionable plans do, this one started in the cold heart of winter with a daydream about moose hunting. Bored and somewhat paralyzed by minus 40-degree weather, I sent my hunting partner a simple text that read, “MOOSE HUNT!!!!?” It was answered within seconds, with an even simpler, “Obviously!”…

We approached the clearing that punched a hole in the thick lodgepole pines, underbrush, blowdowns and dead sloughs and caught sight of the big boar we’d been following all morning. Despite the nearly impossible task of staying silent while slipping off of logs and into mud holes and dodging a million dry branches while skirting fallen pines we had managed to get the drop on a nice bruin and we were now about 30 yards from him, wind in our faces and almost within bow range. I needed to close another 10 – 15 yards before I felt comfortable taking…

When spring turkey season rolls around every year I find myself buried with work, family obligations and getting ready for bear season. This means that my turkey hunting dreams usually fall to the wayside as I think about refilling the freezer with bear hams, sausage, burger and steaks stacked neatly and ready for the grill. This year would prove to be different. I’m fascinated with wild turkeys and have been dreaming about killing one with the bow for years so when opportunity knocked I was ready to go. Just before turkey opener I received a message from my good buddy…

Depending on who you talk to, cleaning your guns after use is either the most important thing on earth, or the least. Those that do not clean their firearms regularly are likely the same folks that you will find fighting to remove a seized choke tube while in the blind or wondering why their safety no longer operates correctly on their 10/22. On the other side of the coin are those folks that have never learned how to properly care for a firearm in the first place, so end up using far too much oil, which can cause firing pins…

Ah, the canoe…the backwaters station wagon. The Encyclopedia describes the canoe as, “a small boat, sharp at both ends, paddle-propelled by one or more persons and a propensity to tip unsuspecting paddlers into icy lakes and rivers with little to no provocation or warning.” (I’m paraphrasing). North America is host to thousands of interconnected lakes, rivers, and watersheds, so it’s no surprise that many of our best hunting and angling opportunities are near bodies of water. Even today, the greatest way to get deep into the backcountry, away from hunting pressure and into pristine fishing waters, is the canoe. “Once…

We approached the clearing that punched a hole in the thick lodgepole pines, underbrush, blowdowns and dead sloughs and caught sight of the big boar we’d been following all morning. Despite the nearly impossible task of staying silent while slipping off of logs and into mud holes and dodging a million dry branches while skirting fallen pines we had managed to get the drop on a nice bruin and we were now about 30 yards from him, wind in our faces and almost within bow range. I needed to close another 10 – 15 yards before I felt comfortable taking…

How Weather Patterns Affect Deer Movement I feel like a sausage—an onion-wrapped sausage—as I waddle my way to the tree stand. Layers upon layers of thermal underwear, a sweatsuit, a windbreaker, parka, ski pants, minus 100-degree boots, a neck warmer, toque, and mittens thick enough to safely handle liquid nitrogen have me loaded up and ready to face the absurdly cold temperatures of a late-season Manitoba Whitetail hunt. I’m convinced that this hard freeze will get deer moving around and give me a chance at a buck this year. But, the truth is, I am about to spend the day…

Earlier this year my friends at Zeiss sent me the Zeiss Conquest V4, 4-16 X 50 Rifle Scope to put through its paces. Early on I decided that reviewing a scope from a bench under controlled conditions is great, however as a hunter a bench review doesn’t necessarily give you the whole picture, so I set out to put in as much time as possible in the field operating the scope under as many real-world circumstances as possible. I dragged this scope through the woods, fields, and all over the province in search of deer this season and I hope…

Of all prey species, whitetail deer can be the most challenging to entice with the use of a call, be it a grunt tube, rattling call, or a doe bleat. Learn how, and when to use your calls to improve your odds in the deer woods next hunting season. The Grunt Tube Most deer hunters are familiar with the grunt tube, however many either treat a grunt tube like an unwanted saxophone solo… which is to say way too much and way too frequent, or they’re afraid to use it and the grunt tube sits unused while opportunities to shoot…

There are very few things more exciting or challenging than putting on spot and stalk on a deer. I don’t care if it’s a Pope and Young record breaker or a big bodied doe. If you’re good, and more often than not, incredibly lucky, with a few tips you may be able to punch your tag this year using spot and stalk methods. In many areas, archery season means that you’re out looking for deer before they hit the peak rut, which, in my part of the world happens the first week of rifle season opener… of course you can…