Compass: Assuming you know your location on a map, you can use the map and a compass to take bearings and plan a route to a specific destination. The best compass for this is the orienteering style (pictured) with a clear base plate imprinted with a direction of travel arrow, and a rotating bezel (or compass housing) with compass points, degree markings, orienting lines and an orienting arrow.

Bearing: To take a bearing, align the edge of the compass with your starting and finishing points on the map. Then rotate the bezel so the orienting arrow and orienting lines point north, as indicated on the map. The bearing (the degree marking on the bezel) you need to follow will be aligned with the direction of travel arrow. To follow that bearing, hold the compass level and turn until the red end of the magnetic needle lines up with the north-facing orienting arrow on the bezel. As long as you keep the needle aligned like this, the direction of travel arrow will point in the direction you should go. To avoid major obstacles, such as cliffs or lakes, you may need to plot a number of shorter legs.

Drift: While skirting the likes of trees, boulders and dense undergrowth, you will almost certainly wander off your direct route. Safeguard against this “lateral drift” by taking a back bearing. Before leaving your starting point, turn 180 degrees and look for a distant landmark aligned with the south end of the needle. As you move toward your destination, occasionally turn around. If the white end of the needle isn’t pointing at your rear landmark, regain your line by moving left or right until it is.

Fish

Salmon is one of the few fish that’s fatty and flavourful enough for red wines. I recommend a light red, such as a Pinot Noir or Gamay, especially when you’re cooking with savoury seasonings or using cedar planks or other wood/smoke flavourings. A full-bodied, oak-aged Chardonnay or a dry, crisp rosé can also work well.

Trout are meaty fish, so you could also use a light red if you’re preparing the fish using savoury seasonings or smoke flavouring. If you’re cooking with herbs or citrus, however, go with a white wine or dry rosé. With sweet or spicy elements, select a white wine that’s off-dry with a touch of sweetness, such as a Riesling or Gewürztraminer. They’re perfect for Asian-influenced dishes and also work well if you’re serving trout with a fruit salsa, a glaze or something else with an element of sweetness. Wines that are a touch sweet balance sweetness in food, as well as cool the heat from spicy food.

For pike, whitefish and walleye, a Chardonnay is a great choice. However, you could also try full whites that are fruitier and less oaky, such as a Pinot Gris, Viognier or Grüner Veltliner. A dry rosé also goes well with white-fleshed fish recipes featuring herbs.

Fowl

Wild fowl has darker, more flavourful meat than does regular chicken or turkey, so it can stand up to more flavourful wines. Although fowl is traditionally paired with white wines, fruity reds can work even better. If you do go with a white, stick with full-flavoured choices such as a Chardonnay or Grüner Veltliner. For reds, choose a Pinot Noir, Gamay, light Italian red such as Barbera or Spanish Tempranillo. Waterfowl has rich red meat with incredible flavour that can stand up to much bolder reds. Select a Shiraz or Grenache (or look for the “GSM” blend that has Grenache, Shiraz and Mourvèdre), red blends from France’s Rhone Valley, a Zinfandel from California or a New World Pinot Noir.

Game

Big, bold, intensely flavoured reds are the best pairing for wild game. Pick a fruit-forward New World wine such as a Zinfandel, Shiraz, Grenache, Malbec, Merlot or Baco Noir. And here’s a foolproof wine-pairing tip: cook with the same wine you’ll be serving with the dish, and the tastes will complement one another. If you’re planning to serve a Shiraz with your meal, for example, use a (cheaper) Shiraz in the cooking process

1. Drop the transducer

After you’ve plugged in the battery and turned on the unit, drop the transducer down your ice hole. With older units, make sure the transducer sits at or below the bottom edge of the ice. Otherwise, the signal may bounce off the ice and you may not get as clear a picture. That said, newer units read through the ice much better.

2. Set the range

Depending on the model, flashers can read from one foot to 240 feet of water. If you’ve done your homework with a hydrographic map or you have mapping software on your sonar unit, GPS or smart phone, you should generally know how deep you’re fishing. To get the best reading, set the bottom depth at the next deepest range setting to the actual depth. For example, if the actual depth is 27 feet, set the bottom for 30.

3. Adjust the gain

Essentially, “gain” is the amount of power the transducer emits. It controls the sonar signal, which travels from the transducer to the lake bottom and back to the unit. The deeper the water, the more gain you’re going to need. Start by turning up the gain until you get a lot of interference, then slowly back it off until the screen just starts to clear. This will give you the most gain and the best indication if anything is in the water column.

4. Zoom in

To get the ultimate resolution and the greatest sensitivity possible, zoom in on the section of the water column that’s likely to hold fish. For example, if you’re fishing in 28 feet of water for bottom dwellers such as walleye, zoom in so only the bottom 10 feet shows up on the screen. Every flasher’s zoom works a bit differently, so McAllister recommends you carefully read the user manual for specifics.

5. Start jigging

When you drop your lure down the hole, you should be able to see it clearly on the screen, represented as a bar. The idea is to make that bar as thin as possible by further fine-tuning the gain (see step 3). That way, you can distinguish it from any other movement on the screen. If your lure is not appearing as a solid line, turn the gain up so it stays as a constant line—you don’t want it flickering. Now, any other line you see between the bottom and the ice is either baitfish or—with any luck—the catch of the day.

1. First, the back fillet. Set the pike on its belly (swimming position) and cut across the fish straight down to the backbone just behind the head. Turn the knife so that it’s lying flat atop the backbone, with the sharp edge facing the tail. Cut following the backbone until you reach the dorsal fin, then turn the knife and cut up to remove the back fillet. This should also serve to expose the tips of the Y-bones.

2. Now make a cut on each side of the fish behind the gill plate, from the backbone down to the belly. With the tip of the knife, gently separate the flesh from the outside of the Y-bones down to the belly on both sides, starting from the head and ending at the dorsal fin. You now have two more boneless fillets, but you’re not done yet.

3. There’s another set of Y-bones that runs vertically just below the dorsal fin; you’ll want to avoid this, too. Put the fish on its side and cut just behind the dorsal fin down to the backbone. Then turn the knife so the sharp edge is facing the tail and cut back along the backbone to the tail. Repeat on the other side and you now have a total of five beautiful, boneless fillets (and don’t leave behind the cheeks).

This method works best with pike about five pounds and over (but please, be sure to release the big bruisers). Once you’ve mastered this technique, it will change your mind about passing up pike in favour of more easily cleaned fish. All it takes is one crispy fillet.

Illustration by Malcolm Cullen

For directions, see the diagram below.

Add to that the fact you’ll need to carry out the meat and trophy horns if the hunt is successful, and you begin to realize what a monumental task you’re taking on. No, extended backpack hunts are not for the ill-prepared. But with a little knowledge and a lot of planning, they can be well worth the effort. Just ask Deuling—he took a great eight-year-old ram on day five of our hunt.

Clothing

High-tech fabrics are key. Your clothing needs to be durable, and able to effectively wick moisture and dry quickly. I’ve become a real fan of base layers with silver or some other antimicrobial additive to keep scent down. As for socks—I bring two pairs on a 10-day hunt—merino wool is my choice. A windproof micro-fleece, down jacket and Gore-Tex jacket will suffice to keep your upper body warm, and I’m a huge fan of pants made of hardy Schoeller fabric, coupled with Gore-Tex rainpants for wet days. As well, I always wear gaiters in the mountains to prevent debris and moisture from getting in my boots and up my pants.

Meals

Foodstuffs will be among the bulkiest and heaviest items in your pack, as you’ll need to bring a good number of calories to keep you going. Plan on carrying about one and a half pounds of food per day, depending on the weather—you’ll need to consume more calories when it’s cold out. On my backpack hunts, breakfast is typically two packages of instant oatmeal or some cereal bars. For lunch, protein bars, chocolate bars, jerky and trail mix are my favourites, while a hearty freeze-dried meal is a must for dinner. By keeping meals simple, you only need a small stove, one pot to boil water, a cup and a spoon. You’ll also want to bring a couple of one-litre bottles of water; I carry a four-litre water bladder in case I camp away from a source of fresh water.

Shelter

Tents, sleeping bags and sleeping pads must not only be lightweight, but also compact. Bulk becomes a real issue on extended trips when everything must be carried on your back. I prefer a tent with carbon-fibre poles, as they are more durable and lighter than aluminum. A dual-wall construction with plenty of ventilation is a must, as is a vestibule. For early-season sheep hunting, a down-filled, mummy-style sleeping bag with a rating of 0°C is perfect. Later in the season, I use a -8°C bag.

Backpack

I prefer a 7,000-cubic-inch pack for extended trips. Internal frame packs are definitely better suited to multi-day trips with moderate weight on your back, but few are designed to bear the extra load of a boned-out sheep—it’s not uncommon to carry more than 120 pounds when packing out game. You’ll therefore need a pack that’s up to the task, such as the Mystery Ranch Kodiak. When packing, position the heavy items so they’ll be midway up the pack and close to your back, with lighter, bulky items above and below. By keeping most of the weight close to your core, it’s easier to carry the pack and maintain your balance. I also always use hiking poles to help keep me steady. They’ve saved me from injury many times, and kept me in the game.

Rifle

Your rifle is the most critical piece of equipment on a hunt, yet it’s the most awkward item to carry. While many packs have systems for attaching rifles to the side, I simply lash mine on the back with a couple of nylon straps, ensuring it’s centred to improve balance. And the lighter the rifle, the better. My favourite backpacking gun is a custom-built Rocky Mountain Rifle from Dawson Creek, B.C.’s Corlane Sporting Goods Ltd. It weighs in at a scant six pounds.

After the sound of the shot faded into the surrounding hills, there was nothing but silence. There was no hunting buddy to say “Lucky shot” or to teasingly ask why I hadn’t held out for a bigger buck. No, on this day, I hunted the way I sometimes like to—alone.

Hunting and fishing is often a team effort. We all have close friends or relatives with whom we head afield, and we cherish those special relationships and the memories we make together. But every now and then, like many sportsmen, I like to experience the terrain, the water, the fish and the game by myself. I want to rely on my own wits, make my own decisions and determine myself what will constitute success. I also make sure I’m going to return home in one piece.

Take no chances

As with any fishing and hunting outing, going solo takes some planning. In this case, though, that can mean down-planning, as in choosing outings that aren’t as physically challenging or as risky as those you might do if you had company.

For example, don’t try to climb that remote mountain, where a twisted ankle or other relatively minor injury could be fatal if you have no one to help you. Similarly, don’t risk hypothermia or worse by waterfowl hunting in freezing rain or a thunderstorm. Nor should you attempt to boat across a white-capped lake in hopes of reaching a quiet bay on the other side, or wade across a fast, deep stretch of river.

Hunting and fishing solo means choosing places closer to home, in terrain that’s more user-friendly (read gentler) than where you might otherwise go with a partner or three. And if you aren’t in top shape, certainly don’t push your body to do things it can’t safely and comfortably do. Don’t worry—you’ll still have fun and you’ll still find fish and game. But you’ll be doing it with minimal personal risk.

Follow the program

Everybody likes to return home safely, but it’s always good to have a backup plan. Make sure to tell others where you’re going, in detail, and when you expect to be back. Leave a map if they aren’t familiar with the area.

Also set an agreed-upon panic time—the deadline when authorities should be contacted if you haven’t returned. When you do get home, let your contact know right away. If you’re running late, phone from the road. Solo trips are not the time to stay out longer than you’d planned, no matter how good the bite might be or how much game you’re seeing.
Still, accidents do happen. Make sure you bring enough food and water, as well as a first aid/survival kit that includes a headlamp, small tarp, cord, knife, warm clothing, matches, bandages and extra shells. Going where cougars or bears live? Also pack pepper spray. Basically, you need to take all the usual safety precautions you’d normally take when hunting or fishing with others. And then some.

Keep in touch

Some hunters and anglers don’t like technology, preferring to rely on their own wits and skills. But when you head out alone, the likes of cellphones and GPS units can sometimes be better than having another person with you to help out if things get hairy. They could even mean the difference between life and death.

Tuck your cellphone into a zip-lock bag and keep it in a pocket or pack. Sometimes, even with limited cell coverage, it’s possible to send an emergency text when the signal’s not strong enough for an actual phone call. If you can’t get a signal in a low-lying area, you can often get one by climbing a hill or ridge. Ditto for two-way radios. A handheld GPS unit, meanwhile, can help you from getting lost. It can also provide your coordinates to give to searchers if you can reach them via radio or cellphone.

If you insist on going solo to remote areas, borrow a page from avalanche safety experts and pack an emergency locator beacon. All you have to do is activate it and help will be on its way. Your buddies back home might rib you about it—but at least you’ll be alive.

The best fresh fish for a shorelunch are medium-sized lake trout, pike and walleye. If you’re going to deep-fry the fillets, it’s best to first cut them into cubes so they cook quickly and thoroughly—ditto if you’ll be wrapping them in aluminum foil. Leave the skin on, however, if you’re planning to grill your fillets over a red-hot bed of campfire coals. With that, here are my three favour­ite ways to flash up some fresh fillets.

Deep-fried

Put a few tablespoons of all-purpose flour in a plastic bag, add salt and pepper, to taste, and a blend of your favourite spices. For example, I use various combinations of onion and garlic powders, dill seed, peppercorn, oregano, paprika and thyme. You can also use store-bought seasoning spices such as McCormick’s Lemon & Pepper, Old Bay Seasoning, Cavender’s All Purpose Greek Seasoning or Mrs. Dash Original Seasoning Blend, which also works well with grilled fish. (Note: these same spices can also be added to the fillets cooked in foil.) Next, place the cubed fish in the bag and dredge with the flour mixture. Add a ½ inch of vegetable oil (or canola) to a cast iron skillet and heat over the campfire coals until it bubbles. Place the dredged fillets in the oil in small batches, and deep-fry for a few minutes; they’ll turn golden brown and flake when they’re ready.

Grilled

Place fillets skin-side down on a grill over a bed of hot coals, then season with your favourite spices. I’ve also used Knorr’s Herb & Garlic marinade, as well as salad dressings such as Hidden Valley’s Original Ranch or Kraft’s Catalina. Next, cover the fillets with foil or an aluminum roasting pan and grill for about 15 minutes. You can also place the fillets inside a hand-held grill to cook them over the coals, turning them every 2 to 3 minutes.

Baked

Spread pre-cut hash browns and a diced Spanish onion on a large double layer of foil; top with a layer of well-seasoned, cubed fillets, then add 2 cans of sliced mushrooms, 1 can of cream of mushroom soup and ¼ cup of butter. Fold the foil over top of everything and roll up the edges to ensure a tight seal. Place fish-side down on a grill over a bed of hot coals. Bake until the foil puffs out—about 20 minutes total—turning the package every 2 to 3 minutes (use gloves). Open up, dish up and eat up.

Sides

Deep-fried sliced potatoes—or pre-cut hash brown potatoes and sliced onions, fried in butter or vegetable oil—are a standard shorelunch side dish, along with cans of pork and beans and creamed corn, heated on a grill. Almost any brand of beans or corn does the job for me. I’m usually famished by the time the chow’s ready, what with all the fresh air, and looking for a calories fix.

I enjoy either iced tea, cold beer or steaming hot coffee when feasting on a shorelunch, depending on what the weather’s doing. I’ve even been known to have a dram of Scotch on occasion to toast the cook. Then it’s time to kick back and enjoy whatever goes for dessert while the scent of wood smoke hangs in the air.