Chronic Wasting Disease Detected in California: Urgent Action Required The recent confirmation of Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) in deer from Madera and Inyo counties marks a critical moment for wildlife conservation in California. As members of the California Chapter of Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, it is our duty to stay informed and engaged in the efforts to manage and hopefully contain this devastating disease. CWD is a fatal neurological disorder that affects deer, elk, moose, and reindeer, known collectively as cervids. This disease deteriorates the brain of infected animals, leadin ..read more

  Letter from a participant at our Learn to Pheasant hunt event in South Dakota. Dec 2022 "Hope your drive to Oklahoma is going well. I wanted to reach out and thank you and the other mentors for this experience. I was in a really Dark Place before coming out here, but after visiting with you, Darren, and Ken I can see the light at the tunnel.  Thank you for everything you do for me and all the other folks like me. Your right I just feel better out here."       ..read more

The Colorado Backcountry Hunters & Anglers (BHA) 15th annual Rendezvous is scheduled for June 21-23, 2024. We will set up camp in the San Isabel National Forest-Salida Ranger District west of Salida/Poncha Springs for the weekend (see Maps 1 & 2 below for detailed directions) at a group camping area, known locally as the “goat wadi.” Also see this link for related information from our 2022 Colorado BHA Rendezvous Report, which was held in the same locale. Camp will be located in an open, level, high-mountain meadow covering about 6 acres at 10,000 feet in the Sawatch Range west of Sal ..read more

On March 23 BHA volunteers partnered up with the BLM, NM Public Lands Interpretive Association, NWF, NM Wild, NM Crag, and NM Mountain Club to clean up 7 miles of Old Buckman Road down to the Rio Grande west of Santa Fe. Two dumpsters were filled with trash diverted from the river, and we cleaned around the old shooting range. Fortunately, there are BLM plans to build and maintain two new and improved public land shooting ranges around the Santa Fe area. BHA values opportunities to work with BLM staff and other conservation minded organizations.  ..read more

Look Near Before You Look Far One of the lessons I have learned over and over while elk hunting is ‘look near before you look far.’ In other words, make sure there are no animals right in front of you before you step out into the open to glass the faraway ridges and slopes. I have found both looking near and far are both effective and important strategies in elk hunting. This past month I had the opportunity to ‘work both far and near’ in my role on the ID BHA boards. First, I was invited to travel to Washington, DC and second I was involved with helping to organize an exciting stewardship pro ..read more

Ben Long is a founding board member of BHA, the author of the Hunter and Angler’s Guide to Raising Hell, and a lifelong hunter-conservationist of the old breed. Ben came to Rendezvous this year to meet with new BHA CEO Patrick Berry of Vermont and help chart a course for the future of the most dynamic hunter and angler conservation organization in history.  Join us as Hal, Patrick and Ben look back at the origins of BHA, the people, the fire, and the issues, and revel in the memories of where we’ve been and celebrate where we’re headed.     ..read more

Sage Advice Washington AFI Volunteers Build a Team   Under clear blue skies, eight volunteers from across the Evergreen State exit their vehicles on the border between ranch and public lands. The low winter sun paints highlights in the sage and snow-covered steppe. While the weather may not be ideal for all forms of hunting, it is almost perfect for spotting grouse. Shawn McCarthy, the state’s outgoing AFI Liaison and organization’s oncoming National Chair, calls the group of strangers together…   Service to the Armed Forces Initiative (AFI) volunteers is concentric. Before becoming ..read more

The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) will be voting to change waterfowl hunting regulations for the restricted portion of the Upper Mississippi Conservation Area (UMCA) starting in the 2026 hunting season.  Previously, waterfowl hunting sites were awarded every two years in the UMCA through a random electronic drawing. Winners drawn could construct permanent blinds in "their spot" and hold that location as their own. If winners were not hunting those locations on a given day, the public would be allowed to use those constructed blinds. This led to arguments over permissions ..read more

You may have seen them at the grocery store. Outside a gas station. Or walking around town.  People are out collecting signatures for a number of proposed ballot initiatives. One in particular has caught the attention of tribal leaders and Montana sportsmen groups, who say it puts tribes, hunters and anglers at risk.  Proposed Ballot Initiative 193 (I-193) says it would “allow increased hunting opportunities for landowners” by blocking regulations that prohibit a landowner from hunting big game on their private property. While the initiative doesn’t directly name the C ..read more

On May 2, U.S. Forest Service officials stationed in the Bitterroot National Forest of western Montana said they’ve received a mining company’s Notice of Intent (NOI) to further explore the headwaters of the Bitterroot River for underground minerals used in smartphones, wind turbines, electric car batteries, and a host of other alternative energy applications. The so-called rare-earth elements are located in the Sheep Creek drainage of the Bitterroot Mountains, which flows into the headwaters of the West Fork of the Bitterroot River. But extraction would likely require a large open-pit mine, a ..read more