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Eric Morken

Eric Morken is a writer and web editor for Outdoor News who lives in west-central Minnesota with his wife and two daughters. Morken graduated with a journalism degree from Augustana College (now Augustana University) in Sioux Falls, South Dakota in 2007. He has worked in the journalism field ever since, and his outdoor work has been in print and digital publications across the country. When not writing about the outdoors, Morken is an active participant in them. He can be found doing some casual fishing in the summer and chasing turkeys in the spring, but his passion is centered around bowhunting whitetails. It’s a year-round commitment of scouting and hunting different regions of Minnesota and surrounding states on public and shared-private lands every chance he gets. Contact Morken at emorken@outdoornews.com. Follow him on Twitter @EricOutdoorNews or on Instagram @elmorken.

Minnesota’s firearms deer forecast: Many factors will affect how hunters fare

Featured, Home Page News, Hunting, Minnesota, National Hunting /

How will hunters fare during the 2023 Minnesota firearms deer season? It seems like as much as any time in recent memory, the answer to that question may depend on where you hunt.
Parts of northern Minnesota are coming off a second straight severe winter that has managers concerned about overall deer numbers in multiple deer permit areas. On the opposite end of the spectrum are the 300 and 600 series DPAs in southeastern Minnesota. Hunters again have opportunities to shoot more than one deer almost across the board in the southeast.

Minnesota’s firearms deer forecast: Many factors will affect how hunters fare Read More »

Video: Filling a Minnesota doe tag, and why this location also sets up well for bucks

Featured, Features, Hunting, Minnesota, National Hunting, Videos /

It has been a warm start to the archery deer season in Minnesota, but temperatures in the mid-30s on the morning of Oct. 7 made for a beautiful day to be in the woods.
Eric Morken of Outdoor News was able to fill one of his bonus tags on a doe. In this video, Morken discusses shot placement on whitetails, how a new broadhead performed and why this specific location sets up so well for both general deer movement, as well as for buck movement once they start looking for does in late October and into November.

Video: Filling a Minnesota doe tag, and why this location also sets up well for bucks Read More »

A Quick Chat with bowhunting great Andy May

Featured, Home Page News, Hunting, Michigan, National Hunting, Quick Chats /

Andy May made his way through the marsh this summer to reach a small island that has about three dozen oak trees on it to see which of those trees, if any, are producing acorns.
That is not how most people spend a day in late July. For May, this work leading up to the archery deer season is the difference between capitalizing on the first days of the season or watching them slip away without a punched tag.
“There were three trees that were producing and the rest weren’t. That is a really good early-season spot,” May said. “You wouldn’t know to key in on that unless you made the long trek out there to check it. I do every year because I have killed a couple good ones on there, but it really only gets activity when there’s acorns.”

A Quick Chat with bowhunting great Andy May Read More »

Kids learn trout fishing, habitat work at Wisconsin’s Trout Unlimited camp

Featured, Fishing, National Fishing, News, Wisconsin /

Harlon Meade’s 16 birthdays belie the fact he’s already a seasoned trout fisherman.
The Antigo High School senior was one of about 20 kids at Trout Unlimited’s annual youth camp Aug. 17-20 in Waupaca and Waushara counties in Wisconsin. Linn Beck, president of TU’s Central Wisconsin Chapter, helped organize this year’s event at Pine Lake Camp near Waupaca.

Kids learn trout fishing, habitat work at Wisconsin’s Trout Unlimited camp Read More »

What the ideal morning setup looks like during the early archery season

Featured, Featured, Home Page News, Hunting, Hunting, Hunting, Hunting, Hunting, Hunting, Hunting, Hunting, Hunting, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, National Hunting, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin /

Anyone who consumes plenty of whitetail media has surely heard mixed opinions on hunting mornings during the early archery season. Is it worth it or not? 
That depends on what you are looking for. Mornings during the early season can be a good time to fill a doe tag if you have that option. But what about older bucks? Many voices in the whitetail world say skip the mornings until bucks are on their feet longer when it gets closer to the rut, but there are situations where it can work in September and early October.
Here are the ingredients that need to come together.

What the ideal morning setup looks like during the early archery season Read More »

Youth Outdoor Activity Day in Minnesota draws thousands to Alexandria Shooting Park

Featured, Fishing, Hunting, Minnesota, National Fishing, National Hunting, News /

The annual Youth Outdoor Activity Day in Alexandria has become a model for how to host a one-day event that focuses on introducing and keeping kids active in the outdoors. Sunday’s event was another example of that. 
This year’s youth day at the Alexandria Shooting Park featured ideal weather conditions and drew 4,643 people, including an estimated 2,785 kids. The six-hour, completely-free event hosted by Douglas County Pheasants Forever and the Alexandria Viking Sportsmen Club provided participants with more than 50 outdoor-related activities for kids.

Youth Outdoor Activity Day in Minnesota draws thousands to Alexandria Shooting Park Read More »

Here’s what to pinpoint with scouting leading up to archery deer season

Featured, Features, Home Page News, Hunting, Hunting, Hunting, Hunting, Hunting, Hunting, Hunting, Hunting, Hunting, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, National Hunting, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin /

It had been almost a year since I’d been on this property in North Dakota, and my first order of business was checking out a specific bedding area. 
It’s actually more of a single bedroom – the tip of an oxbow so small on a narrow river system that the cover is going to hold only a deer or two, but that deer could very well be the biggest buck on the property. I believe the buck I tagged during the 2022 archery season was bedded here before he presented me with a shot coming out to the edge of the standing cornfield. 
My buddy Sam Schmid and I were back on the property a few weeks ago as we followed a subtle trail through the canary grass and found a good-sized deer bed.

Here’s what to pinpoint with scouting leading up to archery deer season Read More »

New ownership group brings archery to Alexandria at west-central Minnesota shooting park

Featured, Hunting, Minnesota, National Hunting, News /

The Alexandria area in west-central Minnesota is a popular destination for outdoor users across the state, most notably those who want to spend time on the water fishing or otherwise recreating on the hundreds of lakes in the area.
Now there’s a reason to grab a bow when coming to town. A new ownership group that took over this year at the Alexandria Shooting Park has wide-ranging plans for the future of that park. Part of those plans involves making archery a primary component of the park’s offerings.

New ownership group brings archery to Alexandria at west-central Minnesota shooting park Read More »

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