Those of us that shoot for fun, in competitive shooting or hunt varmints, birds or big game are an opinionated bunch. Nowhere is that more evident than the controversy over whether we shoot several three-shot groups or five-shot groups and then let the rifle cool off before shooting a second or third group while sighting in our rifles.

I suspect most of us shoot the groups our fathers or other instructors taught us to shoot when we were first being taught to handle firearms safely. In my case I was taught to shoot three-shot groups and then let the rifle cool down between one or two more three-shot groups. But I was never told why to shoot three-shot groups instead of five-shot groups.

About the time I was in my mid-teens, it became obvious that some of my friends had been taught to sight in with two or three five-shot groups. At least we all agreed that we should shoot several groups, letting the rifle cool between groups.

I’m sure that many people would think that it really doesn’t matter whether three- or five-shot groups are used to sight in a rifle as long as the shooter has sighted in his rifle before trying to accurately hit targets or going hunting. However, this issue was a big deal to me, and I decided to get to the bottom of this controversy and find out which number of shots was best for sighting in my rifle.

So, which is the correct group: three or five? Are you ready for this? It depends on the intended purpose of the rifle and in some cases the caliber of rifle you intend to shoot.

Asking a 5.5 pound custom mountain rifle to shoot minute of angle five-shot groups is like asking a Ferrari to pull a horse trailer. It is a high-performance machine but it wasn’t built for that purpose. It will, however, shoot sub-minute of angle three-shot groups. Adding two more shots to the group will open up the group from a sub-minute of angle to as much as two inches. The light weight barrel on the custom mountain rifle makes carrying the rifle much easier in rugged terrain, but that barrel is more susceptible to the heat of firing several rounds than a heavier barrel and will start throwing shots a couple of inches off as the heat increases from firing.

It is probably a good idea to shoot some five-round shots through the light rifle to see where those extra rounds go, but don’t base a light rifle’s accuracy on more than three shot groups. We all want to make one-shot kills. Occasionally a follow-up shot is needed, but if you are sending four or five shots after an animal, you either need to spend more time at the range improving your marksmanship or you are trying to make low percentage shots you shouldn’t be taking.

On the other hand, if you are into long-distance shooting for fun or are competing in long-distance shooting, your rifle is probably much heavier than a light mountain hunting rifle and the barrel is heavier also. Five-shot groups are the norm for sighting in heavier rifles that will normally be shot from magnum rifles at long distances, the bench or at least at a shooting range. Those heavier barrels will handle a lot more heat with out throwing shots off than hunting rifles with lighter barrels.

If you plan on competing at Camp Perry or somewhere else where you will be shooting as many as twenty shots in each round, then you should shoot 20 shots when you sight in and when you practice.

Many three-gun competitors sight in their AR-15s with 10 rounds, but when preparing for matches they shoot twenty shot groups to make sure the rifle will shoot accurately during each round of competition

The three-shot group makes sense if I am shooting one of the .300 magnums or bigger. If I’m taking 40 foot-pounds of energy or more of recoil with each shot, I prefer to really concentrate on sighting in and get it done with two or three three-shot groups.

Not all hunting rifles carry five shots in the magazine. The .300 magnums and above normally carry three rounds with a fourth in the chamber if one desires.

If you are still not sure whether to sight in with three or five shots, let your rifle tell you by when it starts to throw shots off because of barrel heat. I still shoot three groups of three shots, letting my rifle cool between groups because that is what my father, grandfather and uncles told me to do.

Smokey Merkley was raised in Idaho and has been hunting since he was 10 years old. He was a member of the faculty of Texas A&M University for 25 years. There he taught orienteering, marksmanship, self-defense, fencing, scuba diving and boxing. He was among the first DPS-certified Texas Concealed Handgun Instructors. He can be contacted at mokeydo41245@hotmail.com.

TWIN FALLS — It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s an adventurer plummeting nearly 500 feet down into the Snake River Canyon!

It’s summer in the Magic Valley, and that means BASE jumping season. While some outdoorsmen and -women choose to seek their thrills via raft or mountain bike, others prefer to leap off the Perrine Bridge with a parachute.

The canyon’s scenic views attract visitors from all over the world to Twin Falls. But it also offers a prime jump site year-round for those who want to experience the rush of hurtling, then floating, through the air.

BASE jumping, a sport that involves jumping with a parachute from a building, antenna, span (such as a bridge) or earth (such as a cliff) is considered more extreme than skydiving: you’re jumping from a lower altitude, giving you less time to pull your parachute or work out any issues you may have in the air.

The act of jumping off a bridge or cliff, with or without a parachute, is inherently risky. But there are fewer accidents in Twin Falls than you might think.

The sheriff’s office has responded to 17 calls for BASE jumping-related incidents since the beginning of 2017, Lt. Daron Brown said. Most of those calls are from jumpers who have landed wrong and hurt their leg or ankle. Calls for fatal accidents, Brown said, are rare.

“Compared to the number of jumps that go off the bridge every day, they’re very uncommon,” Brown said, noting that on some days as many as 100 jumps will take place on the Perrine Bridge.

Last month, a female BASE jumper in Twin Falls was flown to Boise with “serious but not life-threatening” injuries after she landed several hundred feet from the landing pad.

The relatively low percentage of jumps gone wrong may be due in part to the fact that many first-time solo BASE jumpers already have some experience falling through the air. It’s recommended that a person have about 200 skydives under their belt before they attempt BASE jumping solo, though there are no official rules or regulations.

Legally, somebody with no experience could buy their own gear and jump off the bridge — but it’s “not very smart,” said Marc Lambert, owner of Twin Falls BASE.

Lambert offers courses to people interested in taking the leap alone for the first time. Most of his clients are skydivers, he said, and many come from out of the state or country.

His four- to five-day courses include the practical basics, such as packing a parachute, landing patterns and how to jump in the right position and from the correct angle.

Other aspects of the course, such as discussions on the ethics of BASE jumping — “just being a good person, not burning bridges, respecting the areas and the objects” — are less technical. He also teaches his clients relaxation calming techniques, such as breathing exercises, in case nerves kick in once they’re up on the ledge.

“A lot of it is mental,” Lambert said. “If you’re going to jump off a bridge, it can kind of mess with your mind a little bit.”

The mental aspect of the sport shouldn’t be underestimated, said Sean Chuma, a professional BASE jumper who has completed more than 5,400 jumps over his career.

“A lot of it has to do with a person’s mindset and type of personality,” Chuma said. “You have to be open to the possibilities and have your mind prepared for whatever can happen. Sometimes people get in a little bit over their head.”

Chuma, owner of Tandem BASE in Twin Falls, offers both solo lessons and a tandem jumping service to beginners. He said his college degree in psychology has come in handy as an instructor.

“I understand the emotions involved,” Chuma said. “I can tell when I need to either use the yoga voice or use a bit more tension.”

Because tandem jumpers are strapped onto an instructor, they don’t need any prior skydiving experience, and the preparation is less intense, consisting mostly of some basic rules and guidelines. Chuma’s customers over the years have included Dorothy Custer, who did a tandem jump in 2013 when she was 102.

The goal of tandem jumping is to “share the sport,” Chuma said.

“It’s a small group of people, and all you can do is wonder what it’s like for these crazy people who go and jump off of stuff with parachutes,” Chuma said. “Once you see it…it really does change your perspective of why someone would do such a thing.”

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — A 13-year-old boy who became separated from his Boy Scout group during a hiking trip in the Wyoming wilderness survived partly on bugs and tree bark for the nearly 37 hours he was alone.

Searchers found Garrett Hunter of Draper, Utah, in good health about 10:15 p.m. Sunday after happening to camp near him for the night and calling out his name, according to Sublette County sheriff’s Sgt. Travis Bingham.

Rough terrain and darkness forced the group to camp overnight and wait until Monday morning to take the boy out of the mountainous Bridger Wilderness.

Garrett became separated from other Boy Scouts and their leaders around 9:30 a.m. Saturday when he went off a trail to go to the bathroom, Bingham said. The group of about 20 boys and adults were on the way out from a weeklong, 50-mile (81-kilometer) backcountry hiking trip.

Garrett had a sleeping bag, a water filtration device, a little food and part of a tent. Not sure how long he might be lost, the boy ate ants and bark to preserve what little food he had.

“He didn’t like bark so much, but the bugs weren’t too bad,” Bingham said after interviewing Garrett Monday. “He had trouble starting a fire with the fire starters staying lit. He improvised, using bug spray with his lighter even though his mom told him not to and did get a fire that one night.”

Searchers, aided by dogs and a helicopter, scoured the rugged terrain Saturday afternoon and Sunday. The search was suspended about 7 p.m. Sunday, but one group of volunteers decided to camp near a lake that night.

When one of the volunteers yelled out Garrett’s name, they heard a reply: “Help,” Bingham said.

The boy was found on a ledge overlooking the lake where he had stopped to wait for rescuers, Bingham said. Authorities said he did everything right to survive, including staying in one place after initially hiking about a mile.

LIVINGSTON, Mont. (AP) — A boating accident on Montana’s Yellowstone River that killed a woman took another grim turn as the search for her teenage son shifted from a rescue operation to an effort to recover his body.

The search for James Anderson, 15, after his family’s boat capsized near Livingston led to a two-day rescue effort that included nearly 150 people searching from the water, the shoreline and the air. A stretch of the river from Livingston to Columbus that had been closed to boat traffic over the weekend reopened Sunday night, Gallatin County sheriff’s officials said in a statement.

Gallatin County Sheriff’s Capt. Jim Anderson, his wife Angie, son James and a daughter were floating the river on a drift boat Friday night when it capsized, authorities said. Jim Anderson and his daughter were able to make it to shore safely, but Angie died and James couldn’t be found.

“As the search shifts into recovery, we will be reducing the size of the search teams but the search will continue,” the sheriff’s office statement said.

Five counties and state officials sent search and rescue crews that included boats, divers, search dogs and a helicopter. The search continued after dark using thermal cameras.

The sheriff’s office said Jim Anderson thanked the rescuers for their efforts.

“Family is everything, it’s why we do what we do and it’s also why it hurts that much more when it’s our family,” Sheriff Brian Gootkin said in a statement. “We hurt for Jim and his family. They have a long, difficult road ahead but they are not alone. We will help and support them no matter what they need or how long it takes.”

YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Wyo. (AP) — A 29-year-old man has been charged with assaulting a man and woman in a Yellowstone National Park restroom with bear spray.

Federal prosecutors charged Jackson Coombs with two counts of assault with a dangerous weapon. No hometown for Coombs was provided.

The Casper Star-Tribune reports that court documents state the incident occurred July 18 when the woman and her boyfriend went to use community restrooms near Mammoth Hot Springs.

The woman told rangers that a man with toilet paper wrapped around his neck and lower face attacked her. The woman’s boyfriend heard her screams and started fighting with the man, who discharged bear spray.

An attorney for Coombs didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

Coombs waived a preliminary hearing on Tuesday and was being held without bond.

TWIN FALLS, Idaho (AP) — Public health advisories have been issued for two south-central Idaho reservoirs due to harmful algae blooms.

The Times-News reports that the South Central Public Health District and Idaho Department of Environmental Quality on Friday issued the advisories for Mormon Reservoir and Salmon Falls Creek Reservoir.

Officials say a toxin produced by the algae is at unhealthy levels, and that children and pets are particularly susceptible.

Officials say they will monitor water quality until the algae bloom dissipates.

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Information from: The Times-News, http://www.magicvalley.com

There’s something fulfilling about surviving off of the wild, isn’t there?

I just noticed a story about a man they discovered down in South America. The scientist discovered him a few years ago but said he has made it clear that he doesn’t want any contact with them so they just keep up with him on trail cameras.

Somehow, he has been able to eke out a living in the jungle all of these years. They figure the rest of his tribe has died. While most of us might not be quite that tough, it is fun to be able to at least supplement our food supply off of nature, isn’t it? Someday I’m going to get a book and learn more of what wild plants are edible. But, for now, I can only supplement.

This topic is fresh on my mind because I just returned from a backpacking trip into the wilderness. As of right now, the huckleberries are starting to ripen and the thimbleberries are barely starting. I picked two to four of them.

While backpacking, I always eat flavored oatmeal for breakfast. It’s lightweight and you only have to add hot water to have a meal. There’s no better breakfast than to throw a handful of huckleberries in the bowl to enhance the oatmeal.

If you’re going out for a day of berry picking, then you’ll be more organized than if you are picking on a backpacking trip. By that I mean you’ll have buckets and such to use. What I’ve done when I’m backpacking the last few years is just put them in water bottles.

If you’ve ever picked huckleberries, then you know that it can be time consuming. And because they’re so small, they’re easy to drop. As long as it takes to pick a bunch, you sure don’t want to waste any, so here’s how I do it.

I pick them and put them in my baseball cap. While transferring them into the water bottle, you’re going to drop a lot. Bad deal. So here’s what I do. I stick the water bottle in back of the cap (the hole where you adjust the size). Pick up the berries and pour them into the bottle. If you miss, no biggie — they just fall back into the cap.

You probably know more uses for wild berries than me, but here’s some of the ways that I like using them.

Of course the first way is gobbling them down while picking them. Then as mentioned above, I love putting them in my oatmeal. They really add to the flavor.

Another thing I like to do is put some in my water bottle that I’m drinking out of. That is the original berry-flavored drink. It’s especially nice if you’re drinking water out of the river sterilized in your coffee pot over a campfire. The berries will help mask the aluminum aftertaste and the smoky flavor due to the smoke and ashes falling into the pot while heating.

Another way I love them, and this may almost be my most favorite, is to throw some on top of a bowl of ice cream. Ahhh, they’re to die for. Because they’re so small, they freeze while eating the ice cream and are not quite crunchy but for sure crystalized.

Then of course you’ll want to freeze the excess to use for the rest of the year. We love making smoothies out of them. Smoothies are super easy to make. I just got a new Weston blender and it works great for making smoothies.

Here’s how I make them.

1. Freeze some yogurt.

2. Throw it on a cutting board and cut it into smaller chunks.

3. Put it in the blender. Pour in 1 1/2 times as much milk.

4. Throw in any frozen fruit, in this case huckleberries and nuts (almonds, walnuts or cashews). Believe it or not, even a little frozen spinach is great.

With it being as hot as it is and not feeling like cooking or eating a big meal, we often times eat a smoothie for lunch or supper. It’s light, tasty and my contribution to eating healthy.

Tom Claycomb lives in Idaho and has outdoors columns in newspapers in Alaska, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, Colorado and Louisiana. He also writes for various outdoors magazines and teaches outdoors seminars at stores like Cabela’s, Sportsman’s Warehouse and Bass Pro Shop.

JACKSON, Wyoming (AP) — An extensive effort to capture and kill non-native lake trout in Yellowstone Lake is showing progress with fewer of the invasive fish being found.

“In 2018 so far, we’ve caught basically 155,000 lake trout, and that’s 63,000 less than this time last year,” Yellowstone National Park fisheries chief Todd Koel told the Jackson Hole News & Guide. “That’s huge. It’s a real signal that this population is finally crashing. It’s what our science has predicted and the population modeling has predicted, and now we’ve finally started seeing it on the ground, which is great.”

The effort against the lake trout is the centerpiece of a long-term fight to help Yellowstone’s native cutthroat trout. Lake trout feed on cutthroats, causing the native fish population to decline.

The decline in lake trout is showing up in the size of the fish being caught, Koel said.

“There have been less and less large lake trout out there for many, many years,” he told the newspaper. “Now we’re seeing declines in the smaller fish.”

The lack of 2- and 3-year-old lake trout showing up in gill nets suggests that the slaying of larger lake trout slowed down reproduction several years ago.

The National Park Service had been predicting the crash of Yellowstone’s lake trout population for several years. Entirely eliminating lake trout in the 136-square-mile lake is believed to be impossible, and so the suppression efforts, in some form, will likely continue in perpetuity.

A 2015 Montana State University dissertation predicted that it would take another 14 years of intensive lake trout killing to rebound native cutthroat trout to conservation goals sought by managers.

“We have no intention of letting off on the netting pressure at all,” Koel said. “In fact, we’ve been talking about increasing it more. We want to put the nail in the coffin of these lake trout.”

Yellowstone’s netting program costs about $2 million a year.

KILGORE (AP) — Authorities say a 530-pound male grizzly bear that killed a calf in eastern Idaho has been captured and relocated to a remote area.

The Idaho Department of Fish and Game in a news release Tuesday says the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Wildlife Services on Friday investigated the death of the domestic calf near Kilgore and determined a grizzly bear killed it.

Fish and Game says workers with the state agency and Wildlife Services set a culvert trap that day and captured the bear estimated to be 10 to 12 years old.

Officials say the bear was immobilized, given a health assessment, fitted with a GPS tracking collar and released in the Fish Creek drainage on U.S. Forest Service land.

Fish and Game says it will monitor the bear’s movements.

BOZEMAN, Montana — After fewer than six minutes and $170,000, an original 1936 Yellowstone National Park bus went to the highest bidder Saturday — an anonymous new owner with plans for the time capsule on wheels still unknown.

The touring bus was one of 27 of its kind and carried visitors past the park’s erupting geysers and mysterious landscape for more than 20 years. It was donated to the Museum of the Rockies in 1980 and has been a consistent prop in Bozeman parades ever since.

“It’s one of the nicest buses I’ve had the opportunity to see,” Tucker Markovich of North American Auction Company said to the crowd Saturday before rolling into the rhythm of taking bids.

Saturday’s auction brought buyers and curious witnesses alike who wanted to see what would become of the piece of Yellowstone history. A small group of older gents circled the yellow bus with a faded park sticker on it’s side displaying a bear. They peered over its retractable canvas roof and and through its large windows toward its four rows made to fit 14 passengers.

Museum executive director Shelley McKamey said while it will be hard to part with the bus, the museum has a second one on display that is unaltered from its days on the road and will forever remain part of the nonprofit’s collection.

“It’s been a lot of fun having it, but it’s valuable and that money can be used to care for our collections,” McKamey said.

It’s a Yellowstone Transportation Company original White Motor Company Model 706. For those who aren’t classic enthusiasts, that’s the last generation of the touring buses, according to the North American Auction Company.

Saturday’s bidding war for the bus went on more than five minutes, with the anonymous winner head-to-head with the Buses of Yellowstone Preservation Trust.

A man with a cellphone to his ear came out the winner. John Wallace of Continental Construction said he competed for the item on behalf of a client who he said at the moment would remain anonymous.

“It will more than likely stay in the state, probably on display in Big Sky,” Wallace said. “It’s a thing of prestige, a really cool piece of history.”

With a straw hat in the seat next to his and his thick glasses on, the bus caretaker watched as hands flew in the air to try to claim the prize. Dave Swingle with the museum has lubricated the bus every 100 miles, changed its oil every 500 miles and put the 1,600-pound vehicle on stands each winter to preserve its wheels. He also happens to be on the Chronicle’s editorial board.

“I’m getting old,” Swingle said. “You need someone who knows what they’re doing to drive and maintain it.”

Making it even more rare, he said, the bus is one the few to hold onto title as “fully originally,” from its engine and wires to its four rows of seats.

Kristi Mills, the museum’s director of finance, said the $170,000 from the auction will go toward protecting the museum’s collection. She said that’s even more important as the nonprofit’s crowds continue to grow.

In 2017, the museum set a record of 196,201 individual visits. And that increase continues, with June breaking the record for most people walking in its doors within a month with 27,632 visits.

“We’re happy the bus will stay in Montana.” Mills said. “It’s from a really unique time of history in Yellowstone that’s been preserved. We’ve owned it for 35 years, and it’s time for someone else to have it who’s going to really love it.”