Dilly Steelhead and Rice Salad

This is an easy and refreshing salad that makes for the perfect light dinner or lunch. I used steelhead, but any pink-fleshed fish will do, including any type of salmon or trout. You could even make it with canned salmon in a pinch. 

Don’t sleep on the lemon zest, as it adds a brightness to this dish that will be missing otherwise. If you don’t have a zesting tool or a rasp, use a vegetable peeler to carefully remove the peel without including much white pith, then mince it finely with a knife. 

I made the garlic optional in the salad, as it adds a punchiness and light heat that may not be up everyone’s alley. I’m always good for it, though!

How to Pack for a 5-Day Solo Mule Deer Hunt

Hunting deep in the backcountry with nothing but the gear you can carry on your back is one of the most rewarding ways to access wild, hard-to-reach mule deer country. It’s an adventure rooted in self-reliance, and while it can open the door to areas few others reach, it also adds a layer of complexity you won’t find when hunting from a truck or a traditional base camp.

In this article, we break down the Mule Deer Foundation’s recommended backcountry gear list — including tips and specific product suggestions — to help you prepare for your next hunt.

New Video Series Showcases the Mule Deer Foundation and USDA Forest Service’s Long-term Partnership  

An upcoming Crossroads Project video series showcases the long-standing partnership between the Mule Deer Foundation and the USDA Forest Service.

Archery Mule Deer Tips: Stalking Smart in Open Country

Bowhunting mule deer in open country is one of the most  rewarding — and frustrating — challenges a Western hunter can take on. There’s no treestand to sit in, no food plot to watch. It’s you, the sagebrush, the sun, and a buck that can pick you off at 400 yards if you blink wrong.

Addressing Fragmented Landscapes: Roads, Fences, and Development

From supporting wildlife crossings to retrofitting fences and improving habitat, MDF is helping mule deer move safely across the lands they’ve relied on for centuries.

Federal Fusion Gets Tipped Off

Federal Ammunition introduced its popular Fusion line of hunting ammo in 2005. The development of Fusion was driven by a desire to create a rifle cartridge that combined the best qualities of traditional hunting bullets with the advantages of modern projectile design. The result was a full line of ammunition featuring bonded bullets specifically engineered for deer hunting, offering excellent weight retention, expansion, and accuracy. The addition of a polymer tip brought a fresh evolution to these time-tested hunting loads.

Early Season Mule Deer Tactics: Spot-and-Stalk Success in Velvet

Early season mule deer hunting is a long game. You might spend days glassing and never make a stalk — or you might get it done on the first morning. Either way, keep your head in the game and your ego in check. Velvet season rewards the patient and punishes the reckless.

Colorado’s Mule Deer: Conservation in Action

Colorado’s conservation story relies on the cooperation of Mother Nature and state and agency partners.

Win Sonora, Mexico Mule Deer Hunt

The Mule Deer Foundation is proud to share an incredible opportunity for those who dream of hunting the legendary giants of Sonora, Mexico. Known for producing some of the biggest mule deer bucks in North America, Sonora offers the perfect combination of rugged desert landscapes, prime winter rut timing, and expert local guides who know exactly where to find world-class animals.

Spot-and-Stalk vs. Ambush: Choosing Your Mule Deer Hunting Style

Ask a dozen mule deer hunters how they get it done, and you’ll hear two main camps: spot-and-stalk and ambush hunting. Both get the job done — but they take different mindsets, skills, and situations to pull off. Let’s break ‘em down.

Behind the Scenes: How the Mule Deer Foundation Works for Hunters

That’s where the Mule Deer Foundation (MDF) comes in. You might know the name. You might have gone to a banquet, read the magazine, or thrown a few bucks in the raffle. But what you might not know is just how much MDF does every single day to protect the deer, the ground they walk on, and the hunting lifestyle we live for.

Juicy Wild Turkey Burgers with Herby Aioli

I was gifted some wild turkey thighs and thought that I would try grinding them up, which I’d never done before. I found the resulting grind a little too dark and rich, so I sacrificed some of my ever-dwindling wild turkey breast to round it out, which worked great. I figured I’d try to make some wild turkey burgers with it. 

The only problem was that, even when cooked perfectly, the burgers came out quite dry due to the lack of fat in the bird. 

I considered adding fatty pork to the grind, but thought better of it, not wanting to sacrifice the flavor of the turkey meat.