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GAIA works well and is my principal GPS software. The ability to toggle between different maps in the field is a huge plus. Lots of great features.

Nothing that I have heard. And nothing on the toxicology reports. Strange that nothing on the dog has been released either.

I use a different approach. I have DeLorme Gazetteers for an overall view. I have old DeLorme topo software. Garmin bought DeLorme and my GPS unit became a brick. The old map software displays down to USGS details. Old topo software has the 'roads less traveled'. The newer software does not and deletes many trails and logging roads in favor of vehicle navigation displays. I am a man and was born with the direction gene so I don't need the vehicle navigation equipment. The USGS site can have several versions of the same map in the way of old survey dates and recent publishing. Look at the survey date and print date. Go for the old ones if you can and they are free to down load in pdf form so you are able to zoom like crazy on your computer and print. Bureau of Land Management maps and survey plat images. Colorful maps can be found for various outdoor activities. The survey plat images have details that go back over 100 years in the Oregon areas that I looked at. Pioneer trails, cabins, telephone lines and trail cabins. I had a mission into Oregon and checked survey plat images. The area that I was going to has a pioneer trail that was used before 1900. I hiked the trail for a short ways and found tracks of a bounding animal. I can't find my notes on the distance between hoof groupings but the animal was running full tilt boogie. I did not find any tracks, claw marks or scuffs from a possible pursuing animal. The area has white tail deer and black bears. Maybe other large predators. Big ravens too. Worth another look when I have the time. There was deer poop everywhere. Navigating the Bureau's site can be difficult. To find survey plats, one should have accurate info on townships, ranges and sections. The adventure starts with: Bureau of Land Management ---> Federal Land Records ------>General Land Office Records ---> Survey Plats & Field Notes ---->survey details --->survey plat details --->plat image. The plat images are not 'pretty pictures' but the history is there. I do not download detailed maps / images onto a small, low-res battery powered screen. Paper works for me.

@norseman Are you going Bow or Rifle? I think that Bow would get your heart racing a little bit more. Since you are really getting personal with the creature and up close with a Bow. But nice pictures. @wiiawiwb That swampy stuff is real relaxing sometimes. I love going into those areas. That stuff that spooks me is those very dark swamps. It just feel weird in those places. But you have some nice places. I am not hunting this year but might just go out and take pictures in my areas. I just want to capture the nature of this area. I just want to see what happens if I am not hunting and how the animals react. If I get some thing good I will post them.

Targeting the Colockum herd. Where I hunting Elk last year is on fire outside of Yakima. I probably talked to about 15 bulls saturday night and saw probably 10 head. One bull was within 100 yards and was just pounding on a tree. Definitely gets the heart pumping! New area, but looks similar as last year. Lots of basalt cliffs and meadows, but this place burnt around a decade ago. And spectacular views of the Cascades. Opening day is Saturday!

Haven't been out in the wild for so long! Been an incredibly hot and dry summer over here in the Idaho/Washington area. Girlfriend of two years and I broke up, so haven't had anyone to go exploring with. Also, been on 12-hour graveyard shifts for over 2 years, so that has hampered my adventures. Had an epiphany last month and decided that quality of life was more important than career ladder climbing and applied for a position in my company that paid less, but let me have normal hours and weekends off. So excited! I have one more shift next Thursday and only working 6 pm to 12 am, then getting up at 7 am the next day and driving to Seattle to visit my son, his girlfriend, my daughter, son-in-law, and three grandsons. I start my new job on Monday the 4th and will work from 2:30 pm to 11 pm, Monday through Friday. I can go to church again, see daylight again, and have a somewhat normal life. I lose around $400 a month in pay, but am re-financing my home to save that amount monthly. Supposed to get some rain on Monday, and have my UTV already loaded in the trailer and ready to hit the woods and look for BF sign on Tuesday. In the last month, I have been going to a local gravel pit and doing some shooting. Started a YouTube channel with gun videos and will be filming on my trip into the Idaho woods next week. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChARtpWQdYQzB7d1XyF8U8Q

Hiked to an area last night to watch the sunset. The full moon was in its glory. A friend of mine brought his drone which provided a little entertainment. Hiked out in the dark and stayed overnight in the woods. Heard a loud and breath-laden whistle this morning around 5am near our tents. Strange.

For anyone with a room-clearing dog, use a bowl to feed them designed to slow down their eating so they forage more and swallow less air. My dog’s spiral bowl does a good job — reduces farting by, say, 70% or more.

I did find that you can buy a specially-designed battery compartment door that has an opening built in that allows the use of an external power source while the door is closed. The GoPro 10 was released a week, or two, ago and the first thing I looked for was whether they continued the 15-second hindsight recording they introduced with the Go Pro 9. They did and increased it to 30 seconds. That's a lot of time to have in the buffer which really helps if that special moment, that sighting actually occurs. It will give me some leeway for error when fumbling around to get, then turn the recorder to "On". That sealed the deal for me and I just pulled the trigger on the GoPro 10. Long learning curve I'm sure but it will be fun. I've also found (I hope) an ingenious system for mounting the recorder my backpack. It is a magnetic mount called SNAP Mount.