There’s a lot to love about growing up in Montana, but one of my fondest childhood memories was with my dad and brother on opening weekend of rifle season.
We’d be out of the house before the sun came up, every pair of socks we owned were on our feet, and our pockets were stuffed with boloney sandwiches. I would study each trail and track like the Bulldogs playbook, and I was positive every scrape on a tree meant a monster bull elk was lurking just out of sight. When I retired from the Navy and Lola and I moved the kids back to the Flathead that was one of the first things I did with the boys. I passed down their Montana birthright.
Opening weekend is a tradition passed on from generation to generation that can only continue if we maintain public access to public lands and if we are good stewards of the land and wildlife. America’s hunters are our best tool for conservation, and policy needs to reflect that. I’m proud that the majority of the bills I’ve introduced in Congress and orders I signed as Secretary promote stewardship and sportsmanship.