Backyard Elk

A band of wintering elk cruised through my backyard yesterday. The animals all look healthy and a few cows look like they are ready to pop! About 500 elk winter in the Minturn, CO area. I feel very fortunate to glass elk from my back porch.

Woodhaven Custom Calls

Listen to this good callin. Check out Woodhaven Custom Calls site for more info

Turkey Hunting Essentials

Turkey season is only a few weeks away. We have had lots of moisture this winter so it will be an interesting year. I am an avid turkey hunter but by no means an expert. I have learned lots from some seasoned veterans and it has improved my success in the field when it comes to consistently calling in birds. The products listed below have improved my odds when it comes to locating and calling in gobblers.Turkey vest, face mask, decoy, box calls, slate call, diaphram calls, locator calls, map and mapping GPS are all essential gear in my book.

Box calls like the Woodhaven Real Hen and Lynch's Fool Proof produce very realistic turkey sounds. Remember to keep a rubber band or Velcro around your calls so they don't' make any noise in your vest. It is also very important to keep plenty of chalk on your call.

I like the diaphram calls like these from Primos. Diaphrams are harder to master but give a very realistic sound. I like to use the diaphram calls if the gobbler is gobbling but not getting closer. Lots of times this call will get the gobbler to commit when no other call is working. If you are hunting by yourself the diaphram is great because it does not require you to use your hands. If everything comes together this call is usually the last call a gobbler hears!

The slate is a softer call that sounds very good in close. I like using the slate when birds are in close and for making soft yelps, clucks, purrs and tree calls. I use the slate to softly call to birds on the roost in the morning.

Locator calls include the owl hooter, coyote howler, crow call and screaming peacock. I use the owl hooter and the coyote howler the most.

These strikers from Primos have a mushroom shaped head and will dramatically improve your calling. Different strikers will give your calls a different sound.

The Primos Power Crystal sounds very good and is a high volume call. I use the Power Crystal and the box calls when I am moving around trying to locate a gobbler after the sun is up. Both the Power Crystal and the box call carry a long ways and are great for locating birds when it is windy.
A mapping GPS is a very critical tool to roosting birds. If I can roost a bird in the evening I like to try and pin point the tree or group of trees the gobbler is in and mark it with my mapping GPS. I use the GPS to slip in close to the roost tree the next morning in the dark. It is way better to be early than late in the mornings.

Good luck this spring to all the turkey hunters!

How it started

Darr and I were talking the other day about how our love for hunting and fishing started. He had some great stories of his Dad making the sacrifices at an early age to expose him to the outdoors. I remember as a little kid being about 8 or so and going on a family trip to the White Mountains of Arizona in a motorhome. We stopped at many of the lakes on the Fort Apache and stayed the night. I would fish from sunup to sundown and rarely catch anything. My family was not a hunting and fishing family but I was hooked on the outdoors from the beginning. I can remember talking to people that walked by trying to get any possible tips on how to catch a trout. I think by the end of the trip I had managed to land a few fish. Salmon eggs, power bait, corn, worms and bobbers were the method of choice. From then on all I could think about was being out on the water. My grandma got me a subscription to Field and Stream and when it would come in the mail I would read from cover to cover in one sitting. Many a night was spent dreaming about getting to hunt and fish like the guys in the magazine stories. Well, now I am living that dream and I wouldn’t trade my passion for the outdoors for anything. I am so grateful the good Lord made all of the things in the outdoors for us to enjoy. Remember to take a kid hunting and fishing this year and share the passion!

Talking Turkey

Listen to Joe Slaton talking turkey! This guy is good with a capital G and an some extra O's. Joe great job on the video as always!

Magnus Broadhead for Turkeys

Check out this video!

Chasing Tales

I had been hearing some fishing tales that the crappie and bass fishing is about to take off due to all the warm stable weather we have had over the last couple of weeks. My boys Parker and Paul are on spring break so we decided to do some fishing. My dad always took me on a fishing trip on spring break and I want to keep up the tradition the with my boys. We headed to Bass Pro Shops in Mesa and got dialed in by the crappie master Bill Eveland. Bill writes the crappie report for the Arizona Game and Fish weekly fishing report. Bill was very helpful and got us all the stuff we needed to load the boat with crappie. We fished for most of the day with the 30-40 other boats and caught a few. The water was muddy but the fish were there. We will be headed back in a few days to try again. Crappie is one best tasting fish. Enjoy the pics.

Parker & Paul with a couple of slabs

The fish are down there.

Trolling

Paul

Muddy water and lots of boats.

Essentials for crappie.

Facebook

Jay Scott Outdoors is now on Facebook.  We are not dialed in yet so bear with us!  Thanks for all of your support!

Hunting Optics

I use the following optics on my hunts: Swarovski 10X42 EL, 10X50 SLC, 8.5X42 EL, 15x56, Docter 40X80, Kowa Highlanders 32X82.  Check out the photos for the tripods and the tripod heads as well as other accessories.  All the items above can be purchased at the Outdoorsmans in Phoenix.  If you have any questions in regards to the equipment listed please just email me.

Outdoorsmans Tripod with Dual Mount with Swarovski 15X56 and Swarovski 80X STS Spotting Scope

Close up of Outdoorsmans Dual Mount

Slik Pro 713 CF II Carbon Fiber legs

Outdoorsmans Bino Adapter mounts very easily

Montana Hopper Time

Check out another great video from Beattie productions,

Gould's Turkey

Jay and I headed South to Mexico for a few days to look at hunting ranches for next year. One of the ranches we looked at was loaded with Gould's Turkeys. We saw probably 30 gobblers in one day driving around! Seeing all those turkeys got us excited for turkey season. We are really excited about the ranches we have next year for Coues deer. Stay tuned for more info on our Mexico Coues deer hunts for next year. Enjoy the video.

Janis' backcountry ski tour

This is how we enjoy Elk Country in Central Colorado in the middle of March! Not only are we enjoying it, but backcountry skiing also keeps us in shape for hunting elk at altitude, keeps us used to wearing a pack, and always learning new areas. Even though it's covered in snow now, this country is loaded with elk in the summer and fall. I'm always keen to be familiarizing myself with the country I hunt elk in. Enjoy the video, sorry for the shakiness!

Janis' Boots

I'm on my second pair of Lowa Tibets and my first pair of Lowa Extreme Hunters are still going strong after four seasons. I'm constantly looking for the best boot for backcountry elk hunting and I believe these two come as close to perfect as anything on the market. The Tibets are the 8" model and do not have insulation. The boot is a bit bulky and heavy to be considered the stealthiest on the market, but it blends awesome support and traction with being as light as possible. I've tried many others that were lighter and faster and quieter, but none could keep my ankles from rolling over when packing an elk quarter across a sage and bunchgrass dotted hillside. The Extreme Hunter is the big brother in the Lowa family. Two inches higher and lined with 400 grams of Primaloft insulation, it's a winner when the temps drop and snow is in the forecast. This boot gives you warmth while still maintaining a nimble, hiking feel. To look at all of Lowa's boots go to http://www.lowaboots.com/

Chasing Hatches in Colorado

Check out this cool video called, "Chasing Hatches in Colorado" by Beattie Outdoors Productions

Scent Away Tek 4 Clothing

I got to meet David Forbes, co-owner and CEO of Hunters Specialities, at the RMEF show.  He showed me the new Scent Away Tek 4 Clothing I have been hearing about.  I am looking forward to trying it out this spring on the turkey hunts.  I also met HS Prostaffers, JR Keller and Al Morris, who were very nice to talk with and it was obvious they liked their jobs.