I work a lot of hours. So when I finally get out in the woods, I don’t want to worry about work, politics or bills. I just want to go have fun.

Along these lines, I think a lot of times the safety people in the world tend to make their gospel pretty negative. Don’t do this or you get written up. Violate this rule and you’ll get fired. So because of their negativity, we throw safety in the same group of things we want to get away from while hunting. We just want to get out in the woods and forget about all things stressful.

But I’d beg you to think again on safety. Recently at the 2018 SHOT Show, I ran across an outfit named SafeShoot and got introduced to their product. In talking to them, it prompted me to think about safety while hunting. Here is how they advertise it on their website:

“SafeShoot is a unique system that creates a safety network for hunters and assists in preventing friendly fire incidents. By attaching a shooter device that fits most rifles, shooters will be automatically alerted when another SafeShoot device holder is downrange and in their line of fire. The system does not need line of sight because the SafeShoot advanced system uses radio frequency communication.

“Each member of a hunting party is equipped with a SafeShoot device (Shooter or Dog Defender). When taking aim, SafeShoot alerts the Shooters immediately and automatically when there is another SafeShoot device downrange and in the line of fire. SafeShoot alerts Shooters visually and audibly, thus assisting in preventing a fatal outcome.”

At first blush, I didn’t think that SafeShoot would fit into my world. But after thinking on it, I thought of three applications where it might just work. I haven’t tested them yet so this is not the gospel, so to speak.

FIRST APPLICATION

It would be a good training tool for teaching kids. Think back years ago when you were in grade school. How many times while out hunting with a BB gun did your buddy twirl around and accidentally point his gun at you? And vice versa? So I think it could be used as a training tool for new gun users.

SECOND APPLICATION

For dog safety. I don’t have a bird dog, but over the years I have hunted with some. How many times was I about to shoot a flushing pheasant or quail and was so focused on him that I didn’t notice that the dog had busted his point and was jumping up after the flushing bird.

THIRD APPLICATION

I try to be aware of my surroundings and background as to where I am shooting, but there is one scenario that is easy to get disoriented in and not know where everyone is at.

Years ago, we were hunting some brushy draws for pheasants and quail over in Nebraska. As we pushed the draws, it was easy for a hunter to get out in front of the other hunters because the draws curved and twisted through the pastures.

Also, with the head-high plum thickets, it was easy to lose each other. And then if a quail blew out there was no telling which way he’d fly. So as you swung your shotgun you had to be super cognizant of where everyone was before you pulled the trigger. Everyone laughed about the Dick Cheney hunt, but I could see how easily it could happen.

I’ve never been a proponent of wearing orange but in this scenario I am. As you bore down on a bird, the orange would stand out in the background. I think SafeShoot would work great under these scenarios, too.

So as we close, let me summarize. Hunting is a lot of fun. I love it. But God forbid you ever shot anyone. It’d devastate you for life. Who do you hunt with? Family or close friends. No one that you would ever want to hurt. So if something can take care of the ones I love, I’m all about checking it out. For further info on SafeShoot, check out www.safe-shoot.com.

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) — A 30-year-old skier was critically injured after falling over 1,000 feet when a snow ledge he was standing on gave way in northwest Wyoming.

Search and rescue volunteer Tim Ciocarlan says the incident occurred late Tuesday morning in a backcountry area outside the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort.

Resort officials say Bryce Newcomb of Jackson was preparing to ski down to meet others when the cornice gave way.

Ciocarlan tells the Jackson Hole News & Guide that Newcomb was unconscious when emergency responders arrived just before 11 a.m.

Newcomb was flown to Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center in Idaho Falls, Idaho, where he was listed in critical condition Wednesday morning.

Two injured snowmobilers were rescued in separate incidents on Sunday at nearly the same time on Sawtell Peak near Island Park.

The Fremont County Search and Rescue received the first call at around 3:15 p.m. Sunday. A 41-year-old snowmobiler from Garettson, South Dakota, was with a group when he hit a tree on the east side of Sawtell. He was injured and said he was suffering from hip and back pain.

FCSR called an air ambulance to help. However, search and rescue crews were not able to get the helicopter to land so they placed the injured snowmobiler in a banana sled and took him to Sawtelle Peak Road. He was later transported by air ambulance to a local hospital.

The snowmobiler’s current condition is not known.

Following that rescue, FCSR headed about a mile northwest on Sawtell to another injured man, a 22-year-old from Rigby.

Though the man told rescuers by cellphone that he was all right, he had built a snow cave.

The Rigby man had been riding with two friends when he hit a tree. In the process, he damaged the “A-arm” on his snow-machine.

FCSR reached the Rigby man at around 6:30 p.m where he expressed concern that he might have had a concussion.

“The rescuers spent the next three and a half hours navigating a safe route down off of the mountain. They arrived back to base camp shortly after 10 p.m.,” FSCR secretary Eric Thomas said.

Thomas said that weather and rough mountain conditions made it difficult to leave Sawtell with the injured man.

“They spent that whole time working their way out of that mountain. There wasn’t a trail or anything from where he was. It took quite a while to work our way through the trees and terrain,” Thomas said.

Sunday’s incidents bring the total number of snowmobiling accidents in the Island Park area to eight. Two of those involved fatalities.

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — The Shoshone-Bannock Tribes are seeking to intervene in a utility’s attempt to negate an Oregon law requiring fish passage as part of relicensing for a hydroelectric project on the Snake River.

The Tribes on Tuesday filed documents with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit seeking to intervene in support of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

Idaho Power in February petitioned the court to review a 2017 decision by the commission dismissing the Boise-based utility’s request that it exempt the three-dam Hells Canyon Complex from an Oregon law requiring fish passage as part of relicensing.

The tribes cite their 1868 Treaty of Fort Bridger with the U.S. government.

The tribes said they could be adversely affected because the treaty gives them rights to fish off-reservation in the waters of the Snake River and its tributaries.

Brad Bowlin, Idaho Power spokesman, said the company was reviewing the document.

“Idaho Power is still actively working with the states to resolve the fish passage issue, and we remain hopeful that further litigation of this issue will be unnecessary,” he said in an email to The Associated Press on Wednesday.

Idaho Power’s 50-year license to operate the complex on the Idaho-Oregon border expired in 2005, and the company has since been operating on annually issued licenses.

Oregon wants salmon and steelhead to be able to access four Oregon tributaries that feed into the Hells Canyon Complex. But Idaho lawmakers have prohibited moving salmon and steelhead upstream of the three dams.

At issue before the appeals court is Idaho Power’s argument that the supremacy clause of the U.S. Constitution that has to do with federal authority over states pre-empts the Oregon law. The commission said it found no reason why Oregon couldn’t require fish passage and reintroduction as part of relicensing.

Biologists have said the Snake River above the dams is so degraded it couldn’t support salmon and steelhead without significant rehabilitation work, which would require cooperation from landowners.

Idaho Power supplies electricity to nearly 550,000 customers in southern Idaho and eastern Oregon. The Hells Canyon Complex in a normal water year produces about 30 percent of the company’s total annual power generation.

Beginning Wednesday, March 28, bicyclists willing to brave the unpredictable elements of spring can cycle select roads in Yellowstone National Park.

Road segments include Mammoth Hot Springs to Willow Park and the West Entrance to Roaring Mountain. Until conditions improve, it will not be possible to bicycle between Mammoth Hot Springs and the West Entrance because the road construction area (about five miles between Willow Park and Roaring Mountain) is under construction, unpaved, deeply rutted, and muddy. 

As conditions allow, bicycles will be permitted from the East Entrance to the east end of Sylvan Pass, and the South Entrance to West Thumb. Check the Spring and Fall Bicycling web page for the status of the road segments.

There is no bicycle access to Old Faithful or Canyon until those interior park roads open to public motorized vehicle access on Friday, April 20.  

A spring bicycle trip into Yellowstone must be taken seriously. Quickly changing weather can be challenging. Roads may close temporarily due to weather conditions. Snow and ice may still cover sections of road. Tall snow banks may line roads and pullouts may be snow packed. Wildlife may be on the roads. 

Bicyclists will likely encounter and must yield to snowplows and other motorized vehicles operated by park employees or construction workers readying the park for spring opening. Bicyclists are required to ride single file and follow all other rules of the road. 

Bicyclists should prepare to encounter bears, bison, elk, wolves, and other wildlife at any time. It’s illegal to approach wildlife, within any distance that disturbs or displaces the animal. Riders are strongly encouraged to turn around if they encounter wildlife on the road and carry bear spray. Riders must stay out of closed areas. 

No services are available along these sections of road. Cell phone coverage throughout the park is sparse and unreliable for communicating emergencies. Riders should plan for self-rescue or repair, and be prepared to spend an extended period of time in winter conditions in the event they experience a mechanical breakdown, injury, or other emergency. 

Cyclists can call 307-344-2109 from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on weekdays for updated road access information.

Aaron Gardner of Victor recently returned from a fat bike race in Alaska, where he rode 350 miles from Knik through the vast interior to McGrath.

In January 2017, Gardner was the only finisher in the 200-mile Fat Pursuit race in Island Park. Incredibly cold temperatures and deep snow felled his competitors and forced him to use all of his mountaineering experience to ride and trudge to the finish. Race director and long-time fat biking veteran Jay Petervary awarded him a free entry to this year’s Iditarod Trail Invitational.

Gardner said that with two kids and a demanding job, his time on the bike is limited, but he felt prepared when he arrived in Alaska.

“The lousy skiing conditions in Teton Valley this winter definitely made training for the race easier. With the combination of a mild snow year and the amazing groomed single track trails we have in Victor (Huge thanks to TVTAP and all of the volunteer groomers!), I was able to be reasonably fit at the start.”

He did extensive equipment testing and research of the route, and said by the time February rolled around, “I was pretty sick of thinking about it and just wanted to start riding. Pre-race jitters are nothing new, but I cannot describe how big of a relief it was hearing the starting pistol fire.”

The Iditarod Trail Invitational course follows the historic route of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race and racers on bikes, skis or on foot depend on snowmachine paths that cut through river valleys and over windy passes.

“My reasons for doing the race were to have an adventure and see part of Alaska,” Gardner said. “My plan was to simply ride at my own pace and wherever that put me, so be it. As usual though I did get slightly sucked into the competitive spirit, which led to getting less sleep than I would have preferred.”

On the afternoon of Feb. 25, the race started fast. The field of racers became stretched out after the first day, when the leaders rode through the night and most of the other racers stopped and slept. Wind and deep snow challenged Gardner on the second and third day, but he later learned that racers half a day behind him had it even worse.

“No surprise, but Alaska delivered a variety of difficult conditions,” Gardner said. “It started snowing the first evening but remained rideable until the second day when the wind picked up. The strong winds drifted snow onto the trail and erased it, which led to miles of walking. When the storm cleared out on the third day, the temperature dropped. The coldest temp I dealt with during the race was -28 F, which ‘isn’t that bad’ and ‘kinda warm’ according to some of the Fairbanks, Alaska-based riders I was around. But -28 definitely got my attention and required absolute focus on layering and venting in order to not let it turn into a bad experience. Thankfully, I made it through the cold with hardly any discomfort.”

In an old burn area late in the race, Gardner and a couple of fellow riders encountered bison.

“I had no idea there were bison in Alaska but, like everything else, they were seemingly twice the size of their cousins in the lower 48,” Gardner said. “One bull in particular was watching us. What do we do? Should we shine a light on it? Will that just make it mad? Eventually we tried the light and it made the herd move off the trail enough that we felt comfortable passing.”

He said the final miles were slow because of drifting snow. While riding in soft snow in Victor had paid off, he was happy to see the finish after a long day of pedaling.

“The food and hosts at the finish were incredible and I ate with gusto,” he remembered.

Gardner finished on March 1 in fifth place with a time of three days and 23 hours. He is pleased with the placement, saying it was better than he could ever have expected.

“But hats off to all the entrants in the race,” he added. “It takes a special mindset and a lot of dedication to pursue and enjoy this level of type two fun.”

While Gardner knows that post-expedition depression is a very real thing and has dealt with it in the past, he said this time that coming back to real life has been very easy.

“I’m not sure if it’s experience or my age or my family that makes it easier to come home now, but I feel great,” Gardner said.

Gardner doubts he will attempt the Iditarod Trail Invitational a second time.

“Overall I had a very positive experience, but I’m not someone that likes to do the same thing over and over,” Gardner said. “I tend to move on to new adventures and experiences. Right now going camping and rock climbing with my wife and two boys sounds like a pretty great adventure.”

When I was about 8 years old, I received two Fanner 50s and a double holster set for Christmas. The Fanner 50 was a Mattel toy Colt single-action revolver with an enlarged hammer spur for practicing fast draw and playing the part of a dangerous gunfighter.

Those toy guns got me interested in fast draw at an early age, and I read everything I could get my hands on about fast draw, point shooting and correct technique.

By the time I was 13 years old, I was certainly the fastest kid on the block with toy single-action revolvers. I was also faster than the quick-draw machines at Lagoon’s Western town north of Salt Lake City and county fairs in the late 1950s and early 1960s.

Although I never lost my interest in fast draw and the gunfighter period of the mid- to late 1800s, I never practiced fast draw with a real single-action revolver and ammunition until about 1967. Even then, I started out real slow to avoid any stupid mistakes because I was learning from some very experienced shooters that “slow is smooth, and smooth is fast.”

I was still interested in who the fastest gun that ever lived was, and how fast he was, so I kept reading and researching the subject. So who was the fastest gun that ever lived?

That is still a tough question to answer with any certainty because the actual speed of the draw wasn’t really measured until technology made it possible to record the speed of a draw and accurate placement of one or two shots. During the 1800s, the guy that walked away from the gun fight was considered faster than the guy who lay sprawled in the street afterward.

However, gunfighters in the Old West weren’t always willing to simply meet in the street and risk getting shot by someone who was faster, making most gunfights anything but fair fights.

One of the most famous fair fights occurred in Texas, when Luke Short and the Kingfisher met in the street in front of the Kingfisher’s saloon. Both men went for their pistols and Luke Short fired first, blowing the Kingfishers thumb off so he couldn’t cock his revolver.

While the Kingfisher was trying to cock his revolver with his left hand, Luke took the time to place another shot where it really counted and ended the fight.

Although the speed of his draw and first accurate shot was never recorded, I think the Old West gunfighter who may have been the fastest of his time in the 1870s and 1880s was a mysterious fellow named Dave Mather.

Mather was actually an outlaw in Missouri and Arkansas, but was a lawman in New Mexico for a brief period of time. In his role as a lawman, he went to the local saloon to arrest three men who were shooting up the saloon before they killed someone. As he walked through the entrance to the saloon, the three men turned and tried to shoot him. Mather drew and shot all three dead before any of them could fire.

Shortly after this incident, Mather seemingly disappeared and was never heard from again. In about 1900, there was a report that he had ended up in Canada and had been a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. However, that report has never been verified so it is simply an interesting report, but no one I’m aware of really knows what happened to him after he left his law enforcement duties in New Mexico.

In the early 1900s, Ed McGivern, who was born in 1874, was an exhibition shooter who accomplished some incredible feats with double-action revolvers, among them, shooting five shots from a .38 caliber revolver at 15 feet in 45/100ths of a second and covering the group on the target with his hand.

Ed was primarily interested in firearms for police work and researching the boundaries of human performance and in eye/hand coordination in relation to fast multiple shots. He was apparently able to draw quickly, but his speed in relation to drawing his gun was not his focus in his exhibitions.

Bill Jordan, a U.S Border Patrol officer and author of “No Second Place Winner,” could draw, fire and hit his target in 0.27 of a second. The target was a dinner-sized paper plate and the range was usually 25 feet. Jordan was active in law enforcement and wrote articles for gun magazines until the early 1970s. He died in 1987 at the age of 85.

By the 1950s, fast draw was a sport that many enjoyed competing in with single-action revolvers. During the 1970s and 1980s, Bob Mundun was known as the fastest gun alive, with a claimed 0.15 second draw, fire time and accurately placing a hit on the target, as well as 18 world records in fast draw.

There has been some controversy as to Mundun’s 0.15 seconds time, but fortunately his draw has been preserved in an action film on the internet. Just type in and click on Bob Mundun and watch the film and see what you think.

Just remember if you decide to try fast draw yourself, “slow is smooth, and smooth is fast.” Stay safe, pardner.

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.

RATHDRUM, Idaho (AP) — Officials in the northern Idaho city of Rathdrum are hoping a new designation will attract a new kind of tourists: Monarch butterflies.

The city is the first in the state to receive the Monarch City USA designation from the nonprofit group by the same name based in Maple Valley, Washington.

“The mayor (Vic Holmes) remembers the time when the monarch came through here, but it doesn’t anymore,” Leon Duce, city administrator, told the Coeur d’Alene Press . “He asked the Parks Department to look into this and, when the city council heard about this, it felt that it would be a good thing for the city to do.”

To get the designation, cities plant milkweed and nectar plants within their boundaries to attract and aid the iconic orange and black butterflies. The cities also may hold monarch festivals or other events. So far, 11 cities, villages and schools in eight states have become members of Monarch City USA. A lifetime membership costs $50.

Data from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service show that nearly a billion monarch butterflies have vanished since 1990. The milkweed and nectar plants they rely on are decreasing across the country.

Rathdrum city administrator Leon Duce said city officials sought the designation after looking into whether milkweed is a noxious weed. Duce says they learned the plant category includes many flowering and native wildflowers.

“We didn’t want to be spreading weeds, but it turns out that there are a lot of flowering plants under the milkweed category,” he said. “Nobody wants to start spreading weeds. We want to plant plants that are flowering and makes the community look better.”

Duce said the Parks Department is coordinating with the volunteers of the adjacent community garden on organizing a spring planting of milkweeds at the site and exploring other ideas.

However, don’t necessarily expect a cluster of monarchs to land in Rathdrum this year, Duce said.

“Monarchs don’t have a road map of where the food is located so it may take a couple years before they find their way to Rathdrum as they migrate to discover their food sources,” he said.

The western population of monarchs often migrates to southern California, but has been found overwintering in Mexico as well.

———

Information from: Coeur d’Alene Press, http://www.cdapress.com

BOZEMAN, Montana (AP) — While Idaho and Wyoming pursue plans to allow grizzly bear hunting outside Yellowstone National Park, Montana wildlife officials say they don’t regret deciding against holding a hunt this year.

This past week, Idaho opened public comment on a proposal for a hunt of one male grizzly. Wyoming has released a proposal to sell 24 grizzly tags.

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Department officials decided against proposing a hunt in February.

“We made the decisions we feel are best for our state,” agency spokesman Greg Lemon said. “Wyoming and Idaho and their departments have done the same.”

Yellowstone spokeswoman Morgan Warthin said Friday that the park didn’t have any concerns about the proposed hunts.

Frank van Manen, the leader of the Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team, said kill limits enshrined in the management guidelines should ensure any impact to the population will likely be “pretty minor.”

But critics are worried that the proposed hunts threaten the newly delisted grizzly population, the Bozeman Daily Chronicle reported. They are especially concerned about Wyoming’s plan, which includes allowing hunters to take two female bears.

Bonnie Rice, of the Sierra Club, said in a statement this week that Wyoming’s proposal is “extreme and irresponsible” and that killing females could have an impact on reproductive rates.

Nick Gevock, conservation director for the Montana Wildlife Federation, a delisting supporter, said Wyoming’s proposal is a bit much.

“I think it’s a very aggressive hunt for the first year,” Gevock said. “The species just came off the endangered species list.”

Brian Nesvik, chief game warden for Wyoming Game and Fish, said the proposal meets all the required thresholds and was created with public feedback, and that the state believes it’s biologically sound.

“I would disagree that this is overly aggressive,” Nesvik said. “When you consider the total number of bears in the ecosystem, this is a very low number.”

Government scientists estimate that there are more than 700 grizzlies in the Yellowstone area. The federal government lifted Endangered Species Act protections from the bears in August 2017, ceding management responsibility to the three states and opening the door for the first grizzly hunts in decades.

Several environmental groups and Native Americans have sued in federal court to restore federal protections for the bears.

The three states have an agreement that lines out how many bears could be taken by hunters each year in areas outside Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks, where bear hunting will not be allowed.

Dan Vermillion, the chairman of Montana’s Fish and Wildlife Commission, said the risk of killing a female bear was something Montana wrestled with when considering a hunting season.

“It’s really hard to guarantee that somebody’s not going to shoot the wrong bear,” Vermillion said.

BOZEMAN, Mont. (AP) — While Idaho and Wyoming pursue plans to allow grizzly bear hunting outside Yellowstone National Park, Montana wildlife officials say they don’t regret deciding against holding a hunt this year.

This past week, Idaho opened public comment on a proposal for a hunt of one male grizzly. Wyoming has released a proposal to sell 24 grizzly tags.

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Department officials decided against proposing a hunt in February.

“We made the decisions we feel are best for our state,” agency spokesman Greg Lemon said. “Wyoming and Idaho and their departments have done the same.”

Yellowstone spokeswoman Morgan Warthin said Friday that the park didn’t have any concerns about the proposed hunts.

Frank van Manen, the leader of the Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team, said kill limits enshrined in the management guidelines should ensure any impact to the population will likely be “pretty minor.”

But critics are worried that the proposed hunts threaten the newly delisted grizzly population, the Bozeman Daily Chronicle reported . They are especially concerned about Wyoming’s plan, which includes allowing hunters to take two female bears.

Bonnie Rice, of the Sierra Club, said in a statement this week that Wyoming’s proposal is “extreme and irresponsible” and that killing females could have an impact on reproductive rates.

Nick Gevock, conservation director for the Montana Wildlife Federation, a delisting supporter, said Wyoming’s proposal is a bit much.

“I think it’s a very aggressive hunt for the first year,” Gevock said. “The species just came off the endangered species list.”

Brian Nesvik, chief game warden for Wyoming Game and Fish, said the proposal meets all the required thresholds and was created with public feedback, and that the state believes it’s biologically sound.

“I would disagree that this is overly aggressive,” Nesvik said. “When you consider the total number of bears in the ecosystem, this is a very low number.”

Government scientists estimate that there are more than 700 grizzlies in the Yellowstone area. The federal government lifted Endangered Species Act protections from the bears in August 2017, ceding management responsibility to the three states and opening the door for the first grizzly hunts in decades.

Several environmental groups and Native Americans have sued in federal court to restore federal protections for the bears.

The three states have an agreement that lines out how many bears could be taken by hunters each year in areas outside Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks, where bear hunting will not be allowed.

Dan Vermillion, the chairman of Montana’s Fish and Wildlife Commission, said the risk of killing a female bear was something Montana wrestled with when considering a hunting season.

“It’s really hard to guarantee that somebody’s not going to shoot the wrong bear,” Vermillion said.

———

Information from: Bozeman Daily Chronicle, http://www.bozemandailychronicle.com