Scott’s Blog

The 2012 Oregon archery elk season was one of the best I’d seen in years.  For the last five days of the season I chased Roosevelts on the coast with good friend and guide, Jody Smith.  Jody already had two bulls arrowed by clients, and we were intent on making it three. The first morning found us on public land, following a 280” 6x6.  The bull stuck tight to his harem, and though we got to within 70 yards, there was no shot through the thick brush. Over the next two days we were on bulls and saw lots of elk.  I called in two small 5 pts., but was intent on getting something bigger, specifically a whopper bull we’d just located. The massive 7x9 had a harem of about a dozen cows, with three raghorns hanging around.  We’d spotted the bull on private land, but not even Jody, a 5th generation resident in the area, could gain permission to hunt. The landowners told us they were declining permission for anyone to hunt.  So, we hiked in from the top, hoping to catch the bull as he moved to the herd’s bedding area on public ground. The going was rugged and [...]

The year was 1952, the first time my dad, Jerry Haugen hunted waterfowl at Summer Lake at the age of 12.  In 1976 I hunted Summer Lake for the first time, at age 12.  This past weekend, Braxton, our oldest son, hunted Summer Lake for the first time, also at age 12. As with many Oregon waterfowlers, Summer Lake is a special place that runs deep within our hunting culture.  The sounds, sights and flurry of distant gunshots that erupt throughout the valley the moment legal shooting light hits on opening morning is something that has to be experienced to be appreciated. On this trip we joined up with area guide and owner of Lake In The Dunes, Russ Scott (www.lakeinthedunes.com).  Russ owns and manages several hundred acres just north of Summer Lake Wildlife Refuge. I first discovered the fishing on this wonderful property in 1986.  Then it was a flat, dry, sandy desert pocked with a few lakes created by artesian wells, stuffed full of monster rainbow trout.  Since Russ acquired the property, he’s taken it to a whole new level.  Today, multiple lakes course through the property and are still home to big rainbows.  Willows and Russian Olives now [...]

Washington’s San Juan Archipelago, a place I’ve always wanted to hunt for Columbia blacktail deer.  I’ve been fortunate to pursue blacktails throughout much of their range, but this was my first time on the islands. The open grasslands of San Juan reminded me of Kodiak Island, while the brush-choked portions reminded me of SE Alaska.  At times it felt more like I was hunting Sitka blacktails rather than Columbians. To get a full taste of what San Juan Island was about, the family joined me on this trip.  Three days prior to the start of deer season we arrived.  This gave us time to clam, search the beaches for oysters, grab mussels and go crabbing.  It also gave me time to hookup with good friend, Ron Howard, a 6th generation resident of San Juan Island. Ron had been scouting deer all summer long, just as he’s done for 40 years.  He’d been seeing a couple good bucks, but about the day we arrived, they started shedding their velvet. Over the next few days we caught some good bucks on trail camera, but all were nocturnal.  Often times within a day or two of shedding their velvet, big blacktail bucks travel under [...]

The day before California’s Aug. 18 archery opener for Columbia blacktail deer, we pulled in to Redding, where the temperature read 109º.  The voice on the radio said how nice it was to finally be cooling off! That afternoon I met up with Parrey Cremeans  (www.justforhunting.com), and we headed out to check trail cameras and look at blind setups.  Given the hot, dry conditions and the movement of the buck’s Parrey had been patterning, we agreed it would be best to hunt from a ground blind, hoping to catch deer as they moved between bedding and feeding areas. I’ve been with Parrey in the past, taking turkeys, hogs and a 152” monster blacktail on a rifle hunt.  I love how hard this man works.  We were hunting the B-Zone, with and over-the-counter tag. On opening day we were in the blind by 5:00 a.m., awaiting shooting light.  Temperatures climbed to 106º outside the blind...it felt like 130º inside.  We saw a couple does and a small buck right before dark, moving down the hill to feed.  That was it for the day. Parrey had been regularly catching a pair of mature bucks on trail camera at this spot, but we were [...]