BOZEMAN — General hunting season kicks off this weekend in Montana, and as many people reach for their guns, they’ll also be reaching for their phones.
“I’ve got my jacket for some scouting tonight before we get out to camp, and it gets to be sunset. We're going to do some glassing and see who’s in the area,” says Nick Schaefer, the workplace operation specialist for onX.
Founded in Missoula back in 2009, the onX app was created to help hunters know exactly where they are out in the field.
Nick has been hunting for around five years. In fact, I caught him on his way out to a family hunting trip this weekend, to celebrate the start of big game hunting season.
“I’ve actually got this buck that I've been watching for a couple months now. I'm really, really stoked. So he’s target number one for opening day,” says Nick.
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But how has Nick been keeping track of that buck? He’s been using onX to keep tabs on it—but the app helps hunters do much more than keep track of game.
“Most hunters love that they can open up their phone, even if they’re far away from cell phone service, and see their blue dot and identify, ‘Gosh am I on public land? What public land is it? Am I on block management or walk-in program land? Or am I hunting on private land?’” says Molly Stoecklein, the PR manager for onX.
Now the app is used by millions nationwide, with an office right here in Bozeman. But why is it so important for hunters to know exactly where they are?
“In Montana, we’re really lucky to have 32 million acres of public land. But depending on what type of public land you’re on, whether it’s state, federal, or even different types of private land, it’s really important to know where those boundaries are. And what you are able to do and not to do,” says Molly.
According to Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, more than 200,000 hunters pursue big game in Montana every year. Around one-third of the Treasure State is public land, but if you’re caught hunting on private land? You can face a fine, potentially lose your hunting license, and in some cases, face jail time.
“It’s really important that we are good stewards of the land for hunters. So, going and knocking on doors asking for permission is super important. And not knowing it was private land isn’t going to fly these days,” says Nick.
Nick tells me he’ll be using the onX app quite a bit during his hunting trip this weekend. And he expects hundreds of others around the state to be doing the same for the start of the season.
