Finally some good news in the hunting/outdoor industry. Reports are that Camping World, which bought Gander Mountain in a bankruptcy auction last year, is on track to open (or reopen) at least 70 stores in 2018. Click here to see the list stores that are scheduled to be opened under the new “Gander Outdoors” banner by May. That’s only a couple months to make it happen, but let’s hope it does. I’ve long loved Gander Mountain..ur, I mean Gander Outdoors.
The press release I got from River’s Edge Products says: Certain to make you the envy of all your hunting buddies, this durable Fiberglass Reinforced Plastic (FRP) design is made to withstand everyday use and the outdoor elements. Crafted with amazing attention to detail and meticulously hand painted, the fade resistant coating will keep it looking great while waiting at the roadside to receive your mail. It is approximately 38” long x 32” tall x 20” wide (with antlers), weighs 25 pounds and mounts on standard 2” x 4” or 4” x 4” on post (not included). Tamper resistant mounting screws are included, which is a very good thing. I'd double-down on locking this mailbox to the post. The deer mailbox [...]
Time to start thinking about what to plant this spring: If you live and hunt in the Northeast: Try planting a 60/40 mix of perennial clover (Imperial Whitetail Clover is my favorite) and chicory. Later in July or August, plant a couple of cool-season (fall) plots heavy with brassicas and the like. If you live and hunt in the Mid-Atlantic: Trebark camo creator turned deer-management guru Jim Crumley plants good old ladino clover on his 300-acre property along the James River in Virginia. “It’s a low-maintenance, high-quality perennial (25% protein) that, once planted, will last for 5 years and can be easily over seeded,” he says. If you hunt in the South: If you have the land, equipment and money [...]
My friend Ricardo, a New Mexico hunting outfitter who specializes in limited-entry archery hunts for giant mule deer, found this antler on public land. Look at the size and deepness of the front and back forks--that is what you look for on a trophy mule buck. The shed taped out a tad over 96 inches. “If you double the antler score for the other side and give him a 30-inch spread the buck would score 223 4/8, potential state record! I’ll keep looking for the other side.” Picture below is last year’s shed off the same buck. “He put on a lot (tine length and mass) this year, but lost the extra point,” Ricardo says. Deadline to apply for the [...]
In its latest study on outdoor recreation the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS) reports that 11.5 million people hunted in 2016, and of those, 9.2 million hunted big game. Take away I million or so that hunted mule deer and elk (my estimate) and that leaves more than 8 million that hunt the white-tailed deer each year. As I have long said, hunting the whitetail is what supports our industry. If whitetail herds were to crash significantly across the country, it would be devastating. That is why the threat of Chronic Wasting Disease is so concerning. Back to the survey, the 11.5 million hunters spend about $25.6 billion a year on licenses, equipment, trips, gas, land leases, etc. That [...]