Kim Angel Outdoors

01/05/2025

12/13/2024

Join us in Celebrating the Appaloosa on National Horse Day

Today is National Horse Day, and we are celebrating it by singing the praises of Appaloosa horses, a world-famous breed developed by Nez Perce horse breeders here in North Idaho. Nez Perce people, whose 14-million-acre homeland includes our forests have long been known for their impressive horsemanship and horse breeding. The Appaloosa takes its name from a section of these homelands that are partly on our forests, the Palouse region of Eastern Washington and Western Idaho, whose fertile soils provide rich pasturage for the Appaloosas that live there.

These incredibly versatile horses have enabled Nez Perce people to travel rapidly to different parts of their vast homeland to take advantage of seasonally available resources and to venture well beyond its boundaries for trade, friendship, and hunting. During his time with the Nez Perce Tribe, Merriwether Lewis could not help but gush about Appaloosas in his journal: “Their horses appear to be of an excellent race: they are lofty, elegantly formed, active and durable …some of these horses are pided with large spots of white irregularly scattered and intermixed with… some other dark color....in short many of them look like fine English horses.”

Though Appaloosas beautiful spots—a natural form of camouflage—are their most distinctive physical feature, they can also be identified by their sturdy frame, striped hooves, and the white sclera around their eyes. These features are no accident. The Appaloosa is the direct result of a careful and successful breeding program carried out scientifically by Nez Perce people over many years that selected for traits that enabled horses to travel long distances in the rugged terrain of North-Central Idaho.

Appaloosa horses played a key role in the Nez Perce War of 1877, enabling members of the Tribe to elude and often defeat the US military. Recognizing their value to the Tribe, the US military intentionally destroyed Appaloosa horses at the war’s end. Luckily, however, Appaloosas survived and a careful breeding project by members of the Nez Perce and Palouse Tribes has ensured that the Appaloosa will continue to gallop across the mountains and valleys of the Nez Perce homeland, including our Forests.

Do you have an Appaloosa that you love? Please share photos in the comments!

12/05/2024

I would like to say a huge thank you to the Great Burn Conservation Alliance and the Idaho Trails Association for the work they do in the backcountry! Joelle and her crew do great work. Packing their gear in and out of the backcountry is one of the highlights of my summer each year!

11/27/2024

I don’t get to hunt much for myself because I’m usually guiding someone else during hunting season, so it’s always very much appreciated when the outfitter I work for offers us guides a cow tag at the end of the season! The freezer is full and that’s a good feeling going into winter!

🔪 Raghorn | Carbon Fiber

It’s not just a hat. It’s a .

11/25/2024

The one piece of equipment I can’t do my job without as a hunting guide is a sharp knife. The Benchmade Carbon Fiber Raghorn is a great all-around hunting knife that can be used to gut, skin, quarter, debone, and even cape. This week, we killed fourteen elk and mule deer in camp, so I really had the opportunity to put my new Raghorn to the test. It’s lightweight, so I can easily carry it in my pack, even when I’m packing out elk quarters. This knife holds an edge and resharpens easily. The orange blade is highly visible, so I can find it if I set it down during the gutting/quartering process and the carbon fiber handle is easy to grip, even when it’s bloody. The Raghorn is my new go-to hunting knife. Thank you, Benchmade for a great American-made product and for including me in your “It’s not just a hat, it’s a campaign”. All the guys in camp are jealous!

It’s not just a hat. It’s a .

🔪 Raghorn l Carbon Fiber

11/21/2024

Thank you U.S. Forest Service - Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forests for posting some very interesting historical content.

11/20/2024

As hunters, knowing our effective range and being comfortable with our weapon of choice honors the animal. Not only does making a great shot keep the animal from needlessly suffering, it also ensures that the meat is not ruined.

Precision in the hunt is a silent promise to the animal — that its life is valued, its sacrifice respected, and its passing met with dignity and purpose.

The hunter I guided last week made great shots on both animals that he harvested. So thankful that he put in the time behind the trigger before coming on this hunt! Now he’s taking home lots of meat for his freezer that will feed his family through the winter.

11/17/2024

This little fox is a staple here in hunting camp. We named him Todd from the Fox and the Hound. He hangs around and cleans up meat scraps when we skin deer and elk. He’s a sweet little fella and has been so much fun to have in camp this year.

11/13/2024

Some interesting data in Idahos Lolo Region.

11/03/2024

10/24/2024

Hunting teaches us that true strength lies not in the pursuit, but in the patience to wait, the resilience to endure, and the respect for the untamed spirit of the land.

10/07/2024

Sharing my Monday morning view from the office.

Scouting has always been one of my favorite things about hunting, even when I was a kid. Just having the opportunity to be outdoors and learn about the animals I hunt helps me understand and appreciate them even more.

I’m so thankful for the opportunity to live this life of a hunting guide and for all the people who have helped me and encouraged me along this journey.

10/02/2024

My hunter decided to give this small, legal bull a pass, so we just got to sit and enjoy listening to him bugle all evening from about 40 yards away while he was laying down. Be sure to turn your sound on for this one because you can see him stand up and then hear him bugle right after I cow called.

09/29/2024

09/06/2024

Thankful for the opportunity to help people harvest meat to feed their families with all-natural, organic wild game. Know where your food comes from!

08/11/2024

I have to share this with y’all.

Yesterday, I rode out to check a trail because we recently had storms come through and I have to pack in gear for one of the Forest Service trail crews tomorrow. I didn’t want to clear trail with 7 loaded mules on steep terrain.

I was riding a newer mustang, Buck, that is still pretty green, because Shiloh had a stone bruise and the other horses need shoes, so he was my only option.

I was a mile out of camp when I rode up on the first tree. I knew if there was already a tree down, there would be many more scattered throughout the nine miles of trail. I pulled the chainsaw out of the mule’s pack. I looked at the tree to assess where I needed to make my first cut. I looked down at the chainsaw and took a deep breath. I said, “Lord, I’m four hours from the nearest hospital, and I’m all alone back here. Please keep me safe.” I’ve ran a saw, but never alone.

I started the saw, cut the limbs, and easily bucked the tree. I threw the stump and limbs off the trail and got back on Buck.

Another half mile up the trail, Buck got the pack mule’s lead rope under his tail on a switchback and jumped down the steep bank about 15 feet. In the commotion, I came off and landed on my back right in front of him on a soft, flat, sandy spot, holding onto the reins.

The area where I guide is steep and rocky. If it had been anywhere else, things could have been bad, but because I asked God to keep me safe, He did.

I made it another five miles down the trail without any trees down (or any ropes under Buck’s tail). I crossed the river and headed up to an old burn where I knew there would be a lot of trees across the trail.

I noticed a set of fresh horse tracks. Obviously there were a couple of horses and at least three or four mules. I rarely see tracks on this trail.

I rode another mile and saw where a tree had fallen, but someone sawed it out. I passed tree after tree that they had sawed out.

God had kept me safe again AND saved me a ton of work. On the nine mile ride back to camp, I couldn’t help but thank Him for the opportunity I have to live this life.

So, I say all that to say this, God does hear our prayers and I owe it to Him to share this story with y’all.

07/27/2024

The bond that links your true family is not one of blood, but of respect and joy in each other’s life. -Richard Bach

I’ve built a very special bond with these two mustangs and six mules, living in the backcountry for months out of the year. Sure, we are coworkers, but it’s much deeper than that. The mutual respect we have for each other is incredible. I depend on them and they depend on me. To them, I am the leader of their herd. To me, they are like the brothers and sisters I never had. We are a family, even though we are not of the same species.

Perhaps the most incredible part is that there are no fences here. Each night, I turn them out, and each morning, they return on their own free will. They graze around my tent in the late evening and early morning hours. They give me so much peace and comfort during hunting season in the spring and in the summer while I am all alone with them in the backcountry. So thankful for them. 🤎

Thank you for some of these photos . 🤎