2-7 SS Shoot to Eat

 I real sportsman eats what he harvests. I had a wonderful conversation recently with retired fish and game official, Ed Bangs. Just catching up with him from his home in Helena, Montana, I asked him what he had hunted this year. “In Montana elk are the big thing. Had a good elk season, my buddies from Alaska, 2 of them came down and we hunted various spots in the state and my buddy got a nice 5 point bull with his bow so I am eating meat this winter and I went out and shot a couple of whitetails with a rifle later in the season so I have plenty of meat in the freezer so that’s nice. So you enjoy venison and elk? Oh yes. I have eaten wild game ever since I was a teen so  that’s pretty much all I have ever eaten is wild game. I prefer it over beef. Better for you. Yes. While we’re on the subject, let’s say that you get a bull. Do you do all the scanning and butchering? Normally elk are so big you have to cut them up in the field and pack them out in backpacks. I have done that with moose and caribou. Once I was in Alaska and my buddy and I shot these 2 bull caribou and we were 14 miles back up in the mountains. Holy buckets. It took us 4 or 5 days to get all the meat out. I was younger then and I was willing to pack meet a lot further than I am today.”