How one Alberta family is passing down hunting tradition through the generations

In one of Sarah Marthaller's earliest memories, she is curled up beneath a pine tree to stay out of the wind on a mountain before sunrise with her parents on a hunting trip.

The southern Alberta woman inherited the legacy of hunting from her parents, Joe and Doreen Jacobson, who also taught the skills to her husband, Chris Marthaller. 

Now the Marthallers are sharing the legacy with their daughters: Hanah, 16, Jessica, 14, Julia, 12, and Samantha, 8.

They're not alone. Women and families are hunting in higher numbers in Alberta than in any other province in Canada, according to the Alberta Hunter Education Instructors' Association (AHEIA).

"When we're out in the field, and my girls are catching birds or they're shooting birds or they got their deer, it's super powerful for them, and an empowering moment for a mom, that they have the confidence to do that," Sarah Marthaller said.

"I know they will be able to feed their families if they have to."

The family also raises pheasants for hunting. Their farm is about 25 kilometres southeast of Nanton, near the hamlet of Parkland.

Photographer Christina Ryan joined them last October for the yearly Little Bow Pheasant Hunt and took all the images in this photo essay.

When it comes time to help out raising pheasants for the family business, Mosquito Creek Kennels & Game Birds, it's all hands on deck. With hunting parties booked through to March, the girls help out in everything from breeding, training and running hunting dogs, to competitive shooting.

Here, Marthaller and daughter Jessica, 14, carry bird crates into the catch pen. After the family gently drives the male pheasants into a corner, they will start catching the 21-week-old birds for the yearly Little Bow Pheasant Hunt happening later that morning. 

The Marthallers' company was retained to supply 124 pheasants. It will take Sarah and Chris — with help from their daughters Julia, Hanah, Jessica and Samantha (just out of frame) — a little more than an hour to catch and cage the birds for the hunting event.

As the pheasants take flight, Samantha ducks behind her mom as Hanah works to keep the birds contained. They say the trick is to move slowly so the birds aren't startled. If one loses its nerve, they will all take to the air, creating a hazard for the catchers as well as the birds. A male pheasant in flight can knock down a human, and their beaks and claws are razor sharp.

Chris and Hanah catch birds for the hunt. A friendly competitive streak runs between the Marthallers as they see who can catch the most game birds in the shortest amount of time.

Hunting wild hens is illegal, but the family has a game bird shooting licence that allows their farm hens to be hunted on private property. However, if the hens fly off the private property used for the hunt, they fall under jurisdiction of the Alberta Wildlife Act and can no longer be hunted. 

Jessica holds a male pheasant by the legs as her sister Julia cuts the pin holding the beak guard. In game bird rearing, beak guards are fitted to cover the beaks of the pheasants to prevent feather pecking and cannibalism. Before the pheasants are released for a hunt, the guards are taken off. 

Marthaller places the birds in cages for transport to the private shooting grounds. The annual two-day Little Bow Pheasant Hunt will take place near Parkland. 

Leaving the pen, Jessica brings four pheasants to her mom to place in the bird pens. "Jessica is always kissing the birds," her mother said.

Like a well-oiled team, the Marthallers catch and load more than 150 pheasants in little over an hour, starting at first light. 

Once the birds are loaded, the Marthallers race 20 minutes across the prairie to the hunting grounds on property owned by John Ellis, who is originally from Boston, Mass. The Little Bow Pheasant Hunt started 10 years ago as a chance for Ellis to bring everybody together as a social event.

The Marthallers say hunting is quality time that brings them closer together.

Hanah and Sarah divide up 56 birds into four crates. Each birdcage is placed in the back of a truck and driven to different locations on the property before being released. Before being sent off, the four hunting parties are given strict locations with boundaries to hunt in, so there is no human error. Every hunter wears orange to be more visible in the field. 

Sarah, third from left, watches her clients to make sure they walk a firing line for safety as they start the hunt. When a bird is flushed up, everybody knows which area to shoot in. Hanah is running her two dogs (not pictured) to point at the camouflaged pheasants for the hunters. 

A German wirehaired pointer named Bleu jumps at the bird he flushed as Sarah mentors Abigail Carroll during her first pheasant hunt. Visiting from Maine, Carroll says she was surprised with the intimacy developed with the dogs during the hunt.

Bleu, run by Hanah, returns with a pheasant shot by Abigail. Hanah has been training hunting dogs since she was 14.

"I love to see all these women out here hunting," said Abigail, who was surprised by the closeness of the bird flushed less then six metres from where she was standing. 

The annual two-day hunt provides a social gathering for people to see each other, especially amid the isolation of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is a time to make sure neighbours are doing well, and a chance for people to catch up on stories of old hunts and happenings in the community. 

During a midday lunch break, Kimberly Meyer, Chris Stangal, Sarah and Hanah swap stories about their dogs, hunting and their families. It is a revered time to get together to hunt, hone skills and spend time with families and friends. It is not uncommon to hear comments like, "I'm too busy hunting, my husband has to cook."

Searching for dark spots while cleaning the bird and processing the meat, the hunters remove a shot pellet from the pheasant's breast.

Using the back of a flatbed, Tom LeBoldus and Jeff Wallace start cleaning the pheasants at the end of the day. Out of the 124 birds released over the two-day event, 60 per cent were shot. 

With sunset nearing, Hanah and Sarah leave the hunting field, pleased that the dogs pointed and retrieved successfully and the pheasants flew well in another year's hunt.