JM
Jim Massett
Adirondack tracker · Legend
Mid-80s and still chasing bucks. Known for packing deer out on his back rather than dragging them. Featured in Outdoor News and the Big Woods Bucks podcasts. 2021 NYON Person of the Year.
Adirondack Big Woods · Since the 1930s
Jim and Tom Massett spent decades packing camps deep into the Adirondacks, still-hunting and tracking bucks the hard way. This is their story — and the next generation carrying it forward.
The Foundation
Miles from the road. Full tent camps packed in on their backs. The Massetts hunted the way few still do — remote, self-reliant, and committed.
Jim Massett is known across the Adirondacks for reading sign and tracking bucks in snow. No high fences. No food plots. Just woods and knowledge.
Tom Massett’s grandson Mark and the next generation are documenting the methods, the stories, and the standard so the tradition doesn’t end with one generation.
The People
Adirondack tracker · Legend
Mid-80s and still chasing bucks. Known for packing deer out on his back rather than dragging them. Featured in Outdoor News and the Big Woods Bucks podcasts. 2021 NYON Person of the Year.
Big woods hunter · Storyteller
Decades of hard hunting in the Adirondacks alongside his brother. The family camps, the long walks in, and the bucks taken in country most people never see.
Next generation
Carrying the tradition forward — documenting the methods, the family stories, and keeping the standard alive for those who still want to hunt the hard way.
Next generation
Part of the next generation of Massett hunters carrying the big-woods tradition forward.
Next generation
Part of the next generation of Massett hunters carrying the big-woods tradition forward.
Next generation
Part of the next generation of Massett hunters carrying the big-woods tradition forward.
Next generation
Part of the next generation of Massett hunters carrying the big-woods tradition forward.
From the Woods
Real hunts. Real tracking. No highlights for the algorithm.
Dropped off a mile and a half down. Green stuff. Ice-block tracks. A doe flying off the ridge. Then the buck. Classic Adirondack still-hunting.
Watch on Instagram →Jim and Tom sit down with the Adirondack Hunt Podcast to talk a lifetime of packing camps, reading sign, and hunting country that doesn’t give up easy.
Listen to the podcast →Jim’s simple rule, learned the hard way from his father: if there are no tracks, you’re wasting your time. Get out of the empty green and go where the deer have been.
Watch the clip →In the Field
We favor the same kind of equipment the Massetts have relied on for decades — wool, solid packs, and tools that don’t quit when you’re miles from the road.
Quiet, warm when wet, and proven in Adirondack winters. The kind of gear that still works when synthetic fails.
When you’re packing in for days, a proper shelter and stove change everything. The Massett style of hunting depends on it.
Binoculars, a good knife, and the knowledge to use them. Less is more when every ounce is on your back.
Affiliate and partner links coming soon. We’ll only recommend what we’d actually carry ourselves.
Stay in the loop
Occasional stories from the woods, tracking notes, family updates, and the occasional tip from Jim and Tom. No spam. No daily noise.