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 Editor's Note: Jay Houston a 20-year resident of Colorado who recently moved to Lake Saint Louis, Missouri, has written three best selling books on elk hunting: Elk Hunting 101: A Pocket Book Guide to Elk Hunting; Elk Hunting 201, Big Bulls...Essentials for a Successful Hunt; and Elk Hunting 301, Making It Happen In Elk Country; and has a new book that will be released in the spring of 2008. He also has a DVD titled The Elk Hunter Series Vol. I. You can visit his webpage ElkCamp.com. Alpen Optics talked to Jay about the importance of quality binoculars and riflescopes when hunting elk.
Houston: One of the pieces of gear that you don't want to skimp on when you’re hunting elk is quality optics. You're hunting in big country and you need optics that will allow you to see long distances in less than optimum conditions such as the low-light conditions experienced in early morning or near dusk. Most elk hunters are spot-and-stalk hunters who spend a lot of time looking through a pair of binoculars or a spotting scope. This reason is why I tell elk hunters to buy the best pair of binoculars they can without robbing their children's college funds.
In years past, I have used some of the most-expensive binoculars on the market. But then four years ago, I discovered Alpen binoculars. A friend of mine, who works for Inside Archery Magazine told me, "Jay, you need to look at the Alpen binoculars." I did, and I couldn't believe how good the lenses were in the Alpen binoculars as compared to the higher-priced binocular brands most hunters know. Although I use a spotting scope, most of my time hunting is spent looking through binoculars.
A lot of hunters binocular purchase looks something like this. They drive to the local sporting goods outlet and head to the optics counter. After a brief discussion with the sales clerk, they walk over to the door with the binocs and look around the parking lot through those binoculars for a minute or two. They do this at midday usually on their lunch hour. I suggest making this trip in the evening when lighting is more like the conditions they may encounter while hunting. Then they say, "Okay, these binoculars are great, and they're only $100. I'll buy these binoculars, and save myself some money and not have to buy those more-expensive binoculars." But once they get out to elk country, they'll put those binoculars up to their eyes and begin glassing for elk. This can take as little time as a few minutes or as much as a couple of hours. Before the day's over, they'll get mind-splitting headaches from the amount of eye strain they're encountering trying to look through these "cheapo’ binoculars.
I have a pair of Alpen Rainier binoculars in 10x42, and I love them. I think 10x42s are the best power for elk hunting. The Rainiers are about 10 ounces heavier than the Alpen Apex binoculars. However, I've learned that that little bit of extra weight make the binoculars much steadier for me to hold than lighter binoculars. I don't notice as much movement and wobbling with the Rainiers as I have had with lighter weight binoculars.
I also wear the Alpen binocular harness system. Once I bring the binoculars up from my chest, instead of keeping my elbows out to the side of my body like most people do, I bring my elbows into my chest. Then I use my elbows as a brace to help hold the binoculars steady. With the binocular harness pulling down into my hands and forcing my elbows tight against my chest, I have a much-more-solid, stable platform to hold the binoculars than if I have my elbows out. I don't feel nearly as fatigued after holding the binoculars for a long time as you'll feel if you don't brace the binoculars like I've described. Using this system, I can continuously look through the binoculars without eye strain for longer periods of time. And because of the way that the lenses are ground in the Alpen binoculars, I never get the kind of headaches I did when I used less-expensive binoculars. I've compared both the Apex and the Rainier binoculars to binoculars that cost twice as much or more than these binoculars, and I can see no difference.
I'll put my Alpen binoculars up against any of the more-expensive-made optics on the market today. Alpen binoculars are crystal-clear, and their low-light capability is second to none. These features of Alpen binoculars are critical because you're most likely to see elk either early in the morning before the light's really good or late in the afternoon just before dark. That last 10 or 15 minutes of shooting light is usually when the elk will step out of the woods, and that's when you've got to be able to see the elk standing up against a tree line. You must have a pair of quality binoculars that will separate an animal from its background. And, cheap optics just don't have the horsepower to do that. But the Alpen Apex and the Alpen Rainier are crystal-clear, they don't fog, and they help me see the animals I'm trying to take.
 The same is true of Alpen's riflescopes. If you're hunting in cold weather, you have an opportunity to take an elk, you bring your scope up to your eye to prepare for the shot, you let out a breath of air just before you're ready to squeeze the trigger, and your riflescope fogs, then you're in trouble. With other companies' riflescopes, you probably won't be able to see well enough to make the shot. But you won't have that problem with the Alpen riflescopes.
Question: What else do you like about the Alpen binoculars?
Houston: They're tough. No one deliberately drops a pair of binoculars, but sooner or later, everyone drops his or her binoculars. I've dropped my binoculars out of my truck before when I've been resting on the edge of the window, spotting game. And when I've dropped my binoculars, I've shuddered and said, "Oh, no, I've trashed my binoculars." But when I've picked my Alpens up, the only difference that I can see is they're dirtier from the ground than they've been when I've been resting them on the window of my truck. Even when these binoculars have hit on gravel, they haven't been knocked out of alignment. I have "accidentally" hit trees with them. Since I depend on quality binoculars to make a portion of my living, I've got to have a good pair of binoculars. And for me, you can't beat the Alpen Rainier . I've used the Alpen binoculars while writing three of the four books I've written on elk hunting, and I have no intention of ever changing the binoculars I use. I love my Alpens.
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