Matthew Every

2 weeks ago | themeateater.com | Matthew Every

I missed the first buck I ever shot at. It was a nice 10-point dogging a doe at 50 yards. I had my dad’s 308, and I was trembling beyond control. When I finally touched off the trigger, the shot sailed over the buck’s back. The two deer ran, and it took me two years before I got a chance at another buck. Buck fever isn’t the only reason hunters miss. Hitting a wild animal in just the right spot when you have only seconds to make it happen isn’t easy.

2 weeks ago | fieldandstream.com | Matthew Every

We may earn revenue from the products available on this page and participate in affiliate programs. Learn moreYou’re not really supposed to give a knife as a gift. According to folklore (and an ex-girlfriend), a knife brings the gift giver and gift receiver bad luck as it symbolically cuts the relationship. In the case of my ex and I, she may have been right. We broke up soon after I gave her a scary-sharp Benchmade folder. But there are two fixes for this in case you believe in such nonsense.

1 month ago | themeateater.com | Matthew Every

Recently, I was hunting in Alabama for the tail end of their turkey season. To my surprise, a cold front had blown in, leaving us with 32-degree mornings that barely got above 60 degrees during the hottest part of the day. Aside from freezing our asses off in hot-weather turkey gear, several people in my hunting party still punched their tags. The birds were quiet, hung up, and hard to locate, but the gobblers were still there and still looking for hens.

1 month ago | themeateater.com | Matthew Every

Spring is here, and you might have a fired-up gobbler or a fat rainbow trout on your mind. But there’s another reason to get outside with a gun in hand. Several US states have spring squirrel seasons, which means you can hit the woods like it’s September or October and fire up the crock pot when you get home. We all know the best thing about squirrel hunting is that it’s cheap, requires little gear or commitment, and can give you just as good a time in the wilderness as any other hunt.

1 month ago | fieldandstream.com | Phil Bourjaily |Will Brantley |Travis Hall |Matthew Every

A turkey hunter's life, to paraphrase what they say about a soldier’s, is 99 percent boredom, 1 percent sheer excitement (instead of terror). You make plans, scout, walk for miles, and wait for hours, days even, in hopes of a momentary thrill. But those few minutes can change your whole season, even your entire spring. Like many Americans, I am blessed, and slightly cursed, to live a comfortable, unexciting life.