Montana Wildlife Federation is humbled to be able to share that an MWF Board Member and Artemis Sportswomen Co-Founder, Kathy Hadley, MWF Field Coordinator, Morgan Marks, and an MWF Ambassador and Founder of D.E.E.R Camp- MT, DeAnna Bublitz, all successfully completed the Master Hunter program through One Montana and are 2022 Master Hunter Program graduates.
If you’re not yet familiar with One Montana (1MT) and the Master Hunter Program, we think you should be. 1MT is an organization that is working to sustain a vibrant Montana by connecting people in both rural and urban communities, building relationships and aggregating expertise and resources. One of their programs is Common Ground and within that scope, is the Master Hunter Program which is a program that provides advanced hunter education to increase skills, competence, ethical behavior and knowledge of agriculture and stewardship.
Photo taken by Morgan Marks, MWF Field Rep.; photo shows the Helena and Havre Master Hunter Program cohorts at their Rendezvous event for skill testing at the infamous Boone and Crockett Club’s Rasmuson Wildlife Conservation Center outside Dupuyer, Montana.
Creating a network of highly skilled, likeminded, ethical and safe hunters as well as hunters that are mindful of fostering and establishing positive relationships with private landowners is the goal. 1MT wants to see and support more knowledgeable hunter voices on issues affecting sportsmen and women. Tensions have been high between landowners and sportsmen and women and 1MT is working to foster and build trust and working relationships between both landowners and sportsmen and women.
Photo taken by Master Hunter, Dave McVeda of Great Falls; photo shows Bruce Rich, 1MT staff and instructor, explaining the tracking and trailing test to participants in the Master Hunter Program with the Rocky Mountain Front in the background.
“The Montana Master Program is a unique and rigorous course that includes classroom and online instruction, and fieldwork. The program offers skills mastery combined with conservation and stewardship education, and specialized ballistics and marksmanship training. Instructors include ranchers, farmers, landowners, university faculty, professional shooting instructors, wildlife managers, wildlife biologists, first aid personnel, as well as backcountry survival and equipment experts.” – 1MT’s website.
Photo taken by Master Hunter, Dave McVeda of Great Falls; photo shows Bruce Rich, 1MT staff and instructor, explaining the tracking and trailing test to participants in the Master Hunter Program.
Topics covered include the following hunter competences and critical areas of knowledge:
- Conservation history and ethics
- Wildlife biology and habitat
- Farm and ranch management
- Landowner/sportsmen relations
- Hunting skills
- Shooting competencies
- Pre-hunt planning
- After the kill
The program is thorough with two full weekends of learning curriculum, sharing in group activities, and skills being tested for competency for navigation, shooting, and tracking and trailing.
And – the program is a lot of fun! With many opportunities for learning and growth, days spent outside testing your skills and throughout, meeting new people, the program is designed so that participants can build a network of fellow hunters who care about ethics and landowner relations. The goal is to create leaders and advocates in the hunting space and a network of individuals that share skills and an ethical mindset around hunting and landowner relations.
Photo taken by Bonny Richard with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in Lewistown; Photo is of participants in the Master Hunter Program, MWF staff, an NWF staff person, and BLM staff standing in front of their haul willows that had been cut for the implementation of beaver dam analogs.
Every Master Hunter must perform service work annually to maintain their certification with One Montana. The service projects allow hunters to cultivate and build relations with landowners, understand challenges landowners face, and expand their knowledge of conservation and stewardship, and wildlife management while giving back at the same time.
Mark your calendars — applications for the Master Hunter Program 2023 will open in October 2022!
Photo taken by Morgan Marks, MWF Field Representative; Photo is of participants in the Master Hunter Program during the trailing portion of testing having successfully tracked a deer.
Photo taken by Blake Towarnicki; Photo is of participants in the Master Hunter Program during the trailing portion of testing having successfully tracked a deer.
By North-Central and Eastern Montana Field Representative Morgan Marks.
