A 44 Magnum owned by one of the survey respondents

Handguns in the Backcountry: What, when, and why professional guides carry, and should you?

100% of hunting guides who responded to our survey find a handgun useful for their guiding duties. More than half carry a pistol wherever and whenever they legally can. About a third said they carry a handgun in the course of their guiding duties only when they are not carrying a long arm, e.g. during archery hunts or fishing, and a tiny minority packs a handgun “usually, but not always”.

Continue reading

Hunting as a Wildlife Management Tool. By Cleve Cheney

There are very few natural habitats left in the world big enough to allow nature to regulate wildlife populations without any intervention from man. Even South Africa’s biggest national parks are too small to allow for this to happen. Smaller parks and private conservation areas may also not be afforded the luxury of a laissez-faire (“hands off – let nature take its course”) management approach.

Continue reading