Avalanche 2009 News

On the web - www.avalancheoutfitters.com - email: avalanche@mtintouch.net

Our hunting area consists of private ranch lands that offer excellent elk and deer populations.

Welcome to Avalanche Basin Outfitters – We offer premium guided combination hunts for elk, whitetail and mule deer. Antelope are also taken as available.

Avalanche Basin Outfitters is located in the Big Belt Mountain Range of central Montana, hunting district 446. The hunting area lies 35 miles north of White Sulphur Springs and consists of 76,000 acres of beautiful, mountainous, private ranchlands. Elevations vary from 4,700ft to 7,200ft.

These private ranchlands support a large population of elk and deer. Hunters have averaged 70% success on five and six point bull elk and 60% success on four and five point whitetail and mule deer over the last 27 years. The antelope we are harvesting average 14” in horn length.

These ranch lands produce trophy class elk and deer each season.

We are located in the middle of Meagher County in
south central Montana, Hunting District 446.

Destination point is White Sulphur Springs, Montana. The closest commercial airport is Helena Regional Airport in Helena, Montana. We provide all transportation to and from camps. We also provide airport pickup on request.

We work out of 2 modern camps during the week. Both camps consist of clean, comfortable cook houses, propane heated cabins (2 people per cabin), and hot showers. From these camps, you will travel by 4x4 vehicles and horses to different areas and drainages throughout the week. This enables hunters to access much of the area and harvest the best animals available during their hunt. It also enables us to accommodate people of mixed ages and physical abilities. We offer both 2 hunters per 1 guide, and 1 hunter per 1 guide rates to insure personal service.

We offer 4 x 4 and horseback hunts
for elk, deer and antelope.

We provide all camps, equipment, food, guides, stock, tack and accommodations while you are hunting. You will need to bring your personal effects, sleeping bag, binoculars, ammunition, boots and clothing. You are also responsible for license fees, taxidermy fees, meat processing & shipping.

Please call or write if you have any questions or need further information. Thank you for your time and consideration.

Doug & Zita Caltrider

Avalanche Basin Outfitters

PO Box 17

White Sulphur Springs, MT 59645

(406) 547-3962

avalanche@mtintouch.net

www.avalancheoutfitters.com

One of our modern hunting camps - hot showers,
great food and comfortable lodging.

If you would like to receive
our annual newsletter
click here!

2009 Hunting Summary

We had 11 archery hunters this fall. Joby Matthias and Zita Caltrider did the cooking and camp chores. Jim Bennett, Terry Antonich, and I did the guiding.

We hunted the Rock Creek, Camas Creek, and Fort Logan Ranch during all archery and rifle hunts this season.

The first archery hunt was September 6-11. Brent Strickler and Dale Zahradka of MN were our guests for the week. Temperatures ranged from 70 degrees during the day to 40 degrees at night. We had 4 days of high, shifting winds with no precipitation.

The first evening Brent had a large 7 point bull come to water in upper Indian but had no shot opportunity. The second evening Dale had a bull coming to a wallow in Indian but the bull stopped short and did not offer a shot. The third morning Dale had a group of nine bulls come to a bugle in upper Long Park. The largest of the bulls ended up between Jim and Dale, and Dale was unable to shoot. The fourth evening Brent had a large bull come to a cow call in lower Indian but the bull saw him draw. The fifth morning Brent passed on a bull in upper Indian that came into 25 yards to a cow call. That evening Brent had a very large bull chasing a cow at 34 yards in upper Indian, but the bull did not stop or present a clean shot. Dale worked on a large bull in lower Indian but was unable to get a shot.

Mark Prestrud of Rosemount, MN 9-23-09

Richard Lutz of Schwenksville, PA 11-25-09

Aaron Capps of McCloud, OK 11-11-09

Lewis Selby of Orlando, FL 11-11-09

Roger Hamm of Shartlesville, PA 11-23-09

During the second archery hunt, September 13-18, Doug and Janet Rehak, and Cory and Kevin Sensenig, all of PA joined us for the week. Janet accompanied Doug as an observer throughout the week. This was Doug's eleventh hunt, Cory's eighth, and Kevin's fourth hunt on the ranch. We had sunny, beautiful weather for the week with high's in the 90's & low's in the 40's.

On Sunday evening Doug collected a wide, heavy beamed 6 point bull bugled up to 8 yards in upper Indian. Monday morning Cory harvested a large, symmetrical 6 point bull bugled up to 20 yards in Lower Indian. Tuesday evening Kevin connected on heavy, long tined 6 point bull. The bull was shot at 15 yards out of a tree stand in the upper clear cuts of Indian Creek.

Mark Prestrud of MN, and Doug Brathol of WI, were our guests for the third archery hunt, September 20-25. This was Mark and Doug's fifth hunt with us. The first day was cold with rain and snow mixed. The rest of the week was hot and dry. Daytime temperatures reached 90 degrees with nighttime lows dipping to 40 degrees.

On the second morning Doug passed on a bull bugled up to 15 yards in upper Long Park. That evening Mark passed on a bull out of tree stand in the upper clear cuts in Indian. Doug passed on a nice bull out of a tree stand in the Hole in the Wall. The third morning Mark passed on a bull bugled up to 18 yards in lower Long Park. The fourth morning Mark passed on a bull cow called up to 4 yards in upper Long Park. That evening Mark filled his elk tag with a wide, long tined 6 point bull. The bull was taken from a tree stand in the Hole in the Wall at 20 yards. On the fifth morning Doug passed on a bull called up to 10 yards on top of Watertank. That evening Doug had some hard luck on a large bull called up to 12 yards in upper Long Park.

The fourth archery hunt was September 27-October 2. Don, Rick, and Don Ellingson Sr, and Marty Long, all of WA were our guests for the week. Don Sr. and Marty accompanied as observers. This was Don's sixth and Rick's fifth hunt on the ranch.

We had stormy weather conditions with high, changing winds for four days of the hunt. 12" of new snow covered the higher elevations of the ranches. High temperatures reached the 50's and lows were in the 20's.

On Sunday evening Rick had a bull come to a bugle in lower Long Park but the bull winded him. On Monday morning Rick had a large bull come to a bugle but the bull saw him draw and spooked. That evening Rick had another bull come in to a call but the bull circled and winded him. Don passed on a bull at 14 yards out of a tree stand on Freemon that came to a cow call.

Tuesday morning Don was very close to a bull that came to a cow call in lower Indian but the bull did not present a shot. That evening Don had a bull come to a bugle on Freemon but had no shot opportunity.

On a cold, snowy Wednesday morning Don missed a bull that came in silent to a cow call east of the Hole in the Wall. On Thursday morning Rick had a magnificent bull come close in the Burn, but the bull would not cooperate and didn't offer a shot. That evening Don had a bull come directly to him on Freemon, but the bull was facing him and did not offer a clean shot.

Bryan Long of Shartlesville, PA 11-23-09

Bill Barney of Troy, OH 10-30-09

Pat Garman of Choctaw, OK 10-6-09

Tim and Cody Plecker of Millboro, VA 11-1-09

Paul Self of Oklahoma City, OK 11-9-09

Jay Fisher of Calhoun, GA 10-26-09

On Friday evening Rick missed a bull in lower Long Park that came to a cow call. Later that evening Rick had a bull come to a cow call in Long Park but the bull spooked when Rick drew his bow. Don had a bull come to a cow call in Calamity. The bull came in below them and spooked when Don drew.

During the last archery hunt for the season, October 4-9, Pat Garman and Mike Gilbreath of OK joined us for the week. This was Pat and Mike's second hunt with us. We had a variety of weather throughout the hunt with heavy snows and stormy weather the first two days of the hunt. The rest of the week was cold, windy and snowy, with 18" of new snow at elevations above 6000 ft. Daytime temperatures varied between 20 and 30 degrees, with nighttime temperatures dipping to near zero.

We had some bare ground on the Camas Creek Ranch and hunted there for most of the week. On Tuesday morning Pat connected on a beautiful, wide, long beamed 7x6 bull in Beaver Creek. He stalked to within 30 yards of the bedded bull and made an excellent shot. That evening Mike stalked to within 35 yards of two bulls in the Dry Range, but did not take a shot. On a cold, snowy Thursday morning Pat filled his tags with a dark horned 5 point whitetail in Rock Creek.

We glassed and hunted a lot of great bulls again this season. Everyone hunted hard, endured some extreme weather conditions, looked at a lot of beautiful scenery and had a great time.

Clif Cole of Gloversville, NY 11-17-09

Jim Dietrich of Hamburg, PA 11-27-09

Keith Enscoe of Lanesville, IN 11-17-09

The first rifle hunt was October 25-30. Guests for the week were Randall Fox, Scotty Mashburn, Jay Fisher, James Smith, and Stefan Puryear, all from GA, and Bill Barney of OH. This was Randall's thirteenth and Bill's ninth hunt with us. The first part of the hunt was cool and cloudy. We received 18" of new snow mid-week. Daytime highs were in the 30's with lows reaching 20 degrees at night.

On Sunday evening Jim had some hard luck on a nice bull in lower Long Park. Randall connected on a dark, heavy horned 6 point bull at 165 yards in the Ramsey. On Monday morning Stefan made an excellent shot at 351 steps on a very nice 6 point bull in Beaver Creek.

Jay collected a wide, dark maned 5 point bull at 210 paces in the top of the Dry Range. Gary missed a difficult shot at a bull that morning also. On Tuesday morning Gary and Jay each passed up whitetail bucks on Camas Creek and the Fort Logan Ranch. That evening Gary harvested a very large, heavy horned 6 point bull at 70 yards in the east side of the Clear Range.

On Wednesday evening Stefan missed a whitetail buck in Camas Creek. On Thursday morning Jay missed a whitetail buck in lower Camas Creek. That evening Scotty filled his elk tag with a long beamed 6 point bull at 348 steps above the Clear Range camp. Late Friday evening Bill connected on a nice, symmetrical 6 point bull at 80 paces in the east end of the Dry Range.

During the second rifle hunt, November 1-6, hunters were Tim Plecker and son Cody Plecker, Craig Plecker, Benny Matheny, and Ira Biggs of Va, and Mike Gilbreath of OK. Cody accompanied Tim as an observer. Mike had encountered tough weather conditions during his archery hunt and came back for a rifle hunt. This was Tim's, Craig's, and Mike's third hunt on the ranches. Weather was warm, windy, and sunny throughout the week with no precipitation. Temperatures reached the 50's during the day, and dropped into the 20's at night. The ranches had 15" of snow cover at higher elevations.

On the first morning Craig passed on a 6 point bull in hopes of finding a larger one. That evening Benny made an excellent shot on a heavy horned 6 point bull at 420 yards on Freemon. Tim harvested a magnificent long tined, heavy beamed 6x5 bull at 175 steps at Leo's. On the second morning Mike passed up 4 bulls in the Ramsey in hopes of finding a better bull. That evening Benny and Tim passed on some whitetail bucks on Camas Creek. The third morning Benny filled his tags with a heavy horned, long tined 4 point whitetail buck at 110 paces in lower Camas Creek. Mike passed on 5 bulls in the east side of the Dry Range.

On the fourth morning Mike passed on a small 6 point bull on Freemon. That evening Mike worked on two bulls towards Freemon Creek but ran out of shooting light. Craig passed on a bull in the upper Dry Range.

Benny Matheny of Millboro, VA 11-3-09

Carl Wells of Phoenix, AZ 11-21-09

Scotty Mashburn of Calhoun, GA 10-29-09

Richard Lutz of Schwenksville, PA 11-26-09

Paul Self of Oklahoma City, OK 11-13-09

Craig Plecker of Millboro, PA 11-6-09

After an exciting stalk, Ira connected on a long tined 5 point bull at 220 yards east of the Black Forest. On the sixth morning Craig collected a long tined 6x5 bull at 230 steps in the east side of the Clear Range. Tim filled his tags with a long tined, heavy 4 point whitetail taken by the Sheep Sheds in upper Camas Creek. That afternoon Ira finished his hunt with a nice, symmetrical 4 point whitetail buck shot at 260 yards on the Fort Logan Ranch.

Aaron Capps, Jeff Van Hoose, Dave Priddy, Paul Self, and Brad Troutman, all of OK, and Lewis Selby of FL were our guests for the third rifle hunt, November 8-13.

This week brought cloudy, windy weather with daytime highs in the 40's and nighttime lows in the 20's. We had 3" of fresh snow later in the week.

On Sunday afternoon Aaron and Brad each passed on a nice bull in Long Park. On Monday morning Dave passed up a difficult shot on a nice bull in Butte Creek. That evening Paul harvested a nice, symmetrical 6 point bull in Long Park at 65 steps. On Tuesday morning Paul passed on a whitetail buck at the Sheep Sheds on Camas Creek. Jeff and Dave had a close encounter with an exceptional bull in Long Park but the bull prevailed. That evening Paul passed on a very nice whitetail buck on Camas Creek.

On Wednesday morning Lewis filled his deer tag with a nice symmetrical 4 point mulie buck at 110 paces in Leo's. Dave passed on a five point bull in the Dry Range.

That evening Jeff filled his deer tag with a high horned 4 point whitetail buck at 100 yards on Camas Creek. Brad also connected on a nice 4 point whitetail buck at 125 steps on Elk Creek (no photo). After a long stalk Aaron collected a long tined, symmetrical 6 point bull at 300 paces in the upper Dry Range. On Thursday evening Aaron passed on a good whitetail in Camas Creek. Dave had some hard luck on a large 6 point bull in the upper Dry Range.

On Friday morning Aaron and Paul both finished their hunt with a pair of heavy, long tined 4 point whitetails. Aaron was hunting on the High Bar of Camas Creek and Paul was at the Sheep Sheds in upper Camas. Just at dark on the last evening Brad made an exceptional freehand shot on a tall, broken tined 6 point bull at 125 yards in the east side of the Clear Range.

On the fourth hunt of the season, November 15-20, guests were Carl & Renea Wells of AZ, Clif Cole of NY, Keith Enscoe of IN, and Mark Haglage and son Doug Haglage of OH. This was Carl's third, and Renea's, Clif's, and Mark's second hunt with us.

The weather was warm, partly cloudy and windy. Temperatures reached 45 degrees during the day with nights dropping to 20 degrees. We had no precipitation during the week.

On the first evening Keith connected on a long tined 6x5 bull at 100 steps in the bottom of Long Park.

Stefan Puryear of Chatsworth, GA 10-26-09

Renea and Carl Wells of Phoenix, AZ 11-19-09

Aaron Capps of McCloud, OK 11-13-09

Jim Dietrich of Hamburg, PA 11-24-09

Ira Biggs of Staunton, VA 11-6-09

Clif Cole of Gloversville, NY 11-18-09

On the third morning Cliff missed a large whitetail in lower Rock Creek. Doug harvested a dark horned, long tined 6 point bull at 130 yards above the Hole in the Wall. Clif filled his elk tag with a large bodied 5 point bull at 150 paces in the east side of the Dry Range. Keith finished his hunt with a nice 4 point whitetail buck on the Fort Logan Ranch. On the fourth evening Clif filled his tags with a long tined 4 point whitetail in Camas Creek. On the fifth evening Renea collected a large, wide, broken tined 6 point bull at 165 yards on Freemon. On the last afternoon Mark harvested a hard earned 5 point bull at 156 steps in the Dry Range. Carl and Renea hunted the deer leases Saturday morning, with Carl connecting on a nice 5 point whitetail buck above the Annex.

Roger Hamm, Richard Lutz, Jim Detrich, Steven Fisher, Shane Adam, and Bryan Long, all of PA, joined us for the fifth and final hunt for the season, November 22-27. This was Roger's third hunt on the ranches. We had sunny, beautiful days, cold nights, and no precipitation during the hunt. Daytime highs reached the low 30's, with nighttime lows dipping to 10 degrees.

On Sunday morning Shane collected a high horned 5 point mule deer at 50 yards in Middle Creek. On Monday morning Bryan filled his deer tag with a 5 point whitetail at 80 yards on Rock Creek. Roger made an excellent shot on an odd horned 5x4 bull at 275 yards in the west end of the Dry Range.

On Tuesday morning Jim and Bryan saw 3 very large bulls but had no shot opportunity. That evening Jim worked on an exceptional mulie buck but ended up collecting a 4x3 mulie at 125 steps at dusk. On Wednesday morning Richard made an excellent shot on a dark horned 4 point mule deer buck at 225 paces in the upper Dry Range. Roger had some hard luck on a good whitetail buck in Camas Creek.

Late Thursday morning Richard finished his hunt with a hard earned 5x4 bull at 150 yards in the upper Dry Range. That evening Steve harvested a nice, symmetrical 5 point whitetail on the High Bar of Camas Creek. Early Friday morning Steve finished his hunt with a dark horned 5 point bull at 250 paces in the east end of the Clear Range. Roger worked on a large whitetail but was unable to fill his tag. Jim made an excellent freehand shot on a nice 5 point bull at 100 yards on a timbered ridge north of Beaver Creek.

Janet and Doug Rehak of Freeport, PA 9-13-09

Steven Fisher of Hamburg, PA 11-27-09

Brad Troutman of Oklahoma City, OK
11-13-09

2010 Hunting Information

In Montana, outfitter-sponsored non-resident hunting licenses are sold on a market driven system. Everyone that applies for the outfitter-sponsored license properly and on time is guaranteed a license. (No drawing)

2009 Big Game Combination Elk/Deer License $1250.00 - (March 15th deadline)

2010 Combination
Elk/Deer Hunts

ARCHERY
(6 days actual hunting)

1 guide for 1 hunter - $7800
1 guide for 2 hunters - $6600 per person

Hunt 1 • September 5 - September 10
Hunt 2 • September 12 - September 17
Hunt 3 • September 19 - September 24
Hunt 4 • September 26 -October 1
Hunt 5 • October 3 - October 8

RIFLE
(6 days actual hunting)

1 guide for 2 hunters - $6600 per person
1 guide for 1 hunter - $7800

Hunt 1 • October 24 - October 29
Hunt 2 • October 31 - November 5
Hunt 3 • November 7 - November 12
Hunt 4 • November 14 - November 19
Hunt 5 • November 21 - November 26

Benny Matheny of Millboro, VA 11-1-09

Jeff Van Hoose of Edmond, OK 11-11-09

*ALL HUNTS REQUIRE A 50% DEPOSIT TO HOLD RESERVATIONS

I would like to express a sincere thanks to every client that we’ve had the pleasure of hunting with during the last 27 seasons. Without your business and friendship, the hunting season would not be possible. Also thanks to Galt Ranch, Fort Logan Ranch, and Camas Creek Cattle and Sheep Company for their continued support, understanding, and cooperation with our hunting operation.

Sincerely,

Doug & Zita Caltrider

Outfitter License #515

(406) 547-3962

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Our lease includes the beautiful Rock Creek drainage in Meagher County, Montana - Premium, Private Elk Habitat

Doug Haglage of Milford, OH 11-17-09

Kevin Sensenig of Denver, PA 9-15-09

Gary Holmes of Cohutta, GA 10-27-09