Matt Hardinge

Oregon Mule deer camp complete. It was a blast running around the Sage brush for the last week in search of Muleys. Too many people, not enough deer, but we made the most of the full moon and 30mph winds and filled the freezer. Grateful for my buddy @mlamarw who drove 4 hours to join me scouting a few days before the season started. We went to an area I had scouted heavily on @onxhunt , dropping pins on just about everything weeks before the season. It was the furthest drive from anything and our only chance to get away from people. It was Micah, who after hours of glassing the same hillside decided to stand up and look behind us. There they were, chewing their grass, wondering what these two idiots we’re looking it. Targets acquired! I spent the next few days patterning them before making my move and getting the job done nice and early with my @gunwerks 6.5PRC. After filling my tag things went completely quiet, we didn’t see a thing for days, @taraibe and I were on doe patrol grinding by on not enough sleep or coffee, but on our last morning she got it done. After stalking her buck for an hour and a half, from peak to peak, working the wind and avoiding the prying eyes of the surrounding does, she took her decisive shot and had her buzzer beater buck in the back of the @canamoffroad . We saw just about every animal Eastern Oregon has to offer, had great company and we’re both incredibly grateful to punch our tags on the only two shooters we saw over a week of hunting.

Grey Wings & Black Hooves Our film from our mixed bag adventure in South Africa is dropping soon! A big thanks to all that made it possible: @fgesafaris @gunwerks @onxhunt @garminfishhunt @revicoptics @crispihunting 🎥 @si_onthefly

A couple of jackasses. Fun times as always with @shallowwaterexpeditions

Ceder ⛰️ @matthardinge A3 portrait done in pastel pencils and pan pastels

And now, the long wait until September begins. All we can do is look back on the memories made and look forward to tuning in the dogs for next season. The work starts now

When the whole squad rolls up 💪🏼

It’s going to be a long wait until September, but I’m excited to build on the progress these two made in their first season. Getting two pups from the same litter and mostly running them together has had its challenges but I am beyond stoked with their development and their manners with both birds and other dogs. Remember kids, wild birds make bird dogs.

The old man doesn’t like letting the pups beat him to a retrieve. He’s still finding most of the birds, so it’s only fair.

One bonus of an unusually warm winter is that the mallards have been hanging around the farm a lot later. Usually they are gone by the end of Nov but we’ve been getting into them as recently as last week. The pond is frozen now and the season nearly over, the days of some quick dog work are behind us. It was fun while it lasted!

Atlas man. While it’s easy to make the comparison to uncle Summit and there are indeed similarities, he’s slowly emerging as something quite different. He has the natural retrieve that summit loves, but is far steadier at this young age. Despite some early season competitiveness with Roy, running the pups together has been error free for the past several hunts. He’s a mid ranging dog, has a stylish point and backs the find well, and importantly knows when the pressure on birds is too much. Now if he’d just stop killing our chickens…

Rooiberg, aka Mr Roy. This young gun is showing signs of being the next Ceder. He’s the sweetest little pup but when cut loose in the hills, his mind focuses, his range intensifies and he’s determined to be the most savage dog on the mountain that day. His point may not be the most stylish, but to see this dog lock in solo find after solo find is a joy to watch.

Plenty of birds, great company and stellar dog work from the pups. Last weekend was one to remember 🤌🏼