September 27 is National Hunting and Fishing Day (press release after the jump). Established in 1972, NH&F day’s not as old as National Doughnut Day or as energizing as National Petroleum Day. But it’s a good excuse to commune with nature, harvest some meat and enjoy a pursuit as old as humanity itself. Sure, A&M may be playing South Carolina on the 27th, but you can always DVR the game and keep the radio off in the car. So what will you do? Dip a line? Down a duck? Bag a buck? When was the last time you took your shooting irons hunting? When you going again? . . .
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (August 26, 2014) – Only a month away, National Hunting and Fishing Day is the perfect opportunity to celebrate the conservation efforts of outdoorsmen and women across the nation. Outdoor enthusiasts everywhere are encouraged to participate at their nearest event. To find the event closest to you, visit http://www.nhfday.org.
Always the fourth Saturday in September, NHF Day 2014 is set to take place on September 27 this year.
Help us celebrate this special annual “holiday” established by Congress in 1972 to recognize hunters, anglers and recreational shooters for their leadership and contributions to the conservation in America. For example, through dues and contributions to conservation organizations, hunters give an additional $280 million annually for wildlife and habitat.
Nobody does more for fish, wildlife and habitat than traditional outdoor enthusiasts. Communicating this message is a daily goal for all of us at Wonders of Wildlife museum—the official home of NHF Day—in Springfield, Missouri.
National Hunting and Fishing Day is one of the easiest ways to recognize the conservation efforts of hunters and fishermen across the nation. It is also a great way to get youth involved in our great heritage.
This year, U.S. Army veteran, country music star and award-winning TV host Craig Morgan is stepping forward to help promote NHF Day with all our national sponsors. He has been slated to serve as the honorary chairman for National Hunting and Fishing Day.
Morgan is well known as an avid outdoorsman and also takes pride in serving others. He has made eleven overseas tours to entertain our troops and received the 2006 USO Merit Award for his tireless support of our U.S. soldiers and their families.
The Tennessee native is also host of the award-winning “Craig Morgan All Access Outdoors,” airing brand new episodes Sundays at 11:00 p.m. ET on Outdoor Channel. The high-octane hit reality show gives viewers an all access, backstage pass to Morgan’s travels as he and his crew pursue big thrills and big laughs across the globe in a quest for the ultimate outdoor adventure.
The first to suggest an official day of thanks to sportsmen was Ira Joffe, owner of Joffe’s Gun Shop in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania. In 1970, Pennsylvania Gov. Raymond Shafer adopted Joffe’s idea and created “Outdoor Sportsman’s Day” in the state.
NHF Day could not happen without the help of great sponsors. The list of sponsors for National Hunting and Fishing Day 2014 includes: Wonders of Wildlife, National Shooting Sports Foundation, Bass Pro Shops, Realtree, National Rifle Association, Yamaha, GunBroker.com, Izaak Walton League, Ducks Unlimited, Limit Out Production, Scout, National Wild Turkey Federation, Smith & Wesson and Outdoor Channel.
For more information, visit http://www.nhfday.org.
Unless I bag my bear this weekend, I’ll be up in the woods. Looking for him.
I’m probably going with D) None of the above.
I’m not morally opposed to hunting or fishing, I’m just morally opposed to going outside unless absolutely necessary.
This is cool, I’ll be sure to look into it. I love to hunt and definitely could do more.
Went bunny busting a few weeks ago.
will probably combine bunny and dove hunting as dove season opens soon.
Hunting public lands for pigs has been a bust, mainly because of the drought.
Come hunt in WI. I’m going opening weekend and we may have another spot open.
I just delivered my son’s household to the La Crosse area. Will be back in time for deer season.
Summer breaks over and I’m back to work. Weekends only for me now. If deer season had been open while I was visiting Dad in KY I could have scored.
3 day weekend coming up. May be able to squeeze a deer or coyote hunt in. Just got a new Wicked Predator light.
I’m not much of a hunter. I’m not opposed to hunting, it’s just not my thing.
Go Gamecocks!!! On the 28th!!!!
Now that you mention it, I think I’ll get sine donuts to munch on while I figure out a they next nearest hunters safety course.
I haven’t hunted in over 30 years. Sold or traded my shotguns around 1970. Traded my Winchester Model 70 for a 1911 sometime around 1980. I have zero interest in hunting. Nothing against anyone else enjoying it but it doesn’t turn my crank anymore. And, really, listening to other people talk about hunting is as boring as listening to people talk about playing golf or bowling, etc. And watching a hunting program on TV is the same.
This will be my first year hunting. Going to be looking for a buck in November.
Scored a pretty good deal on an early 80’s Ruger M77 in 30-06 for the purpose.
Weird coincidence. I was about to make the exact same post (down to the good deal on an older m77 in 30-06). How is your rifle grouping? I’m still trying out various weights and brands of ammo.
The rifle came with a Bushnell Banner 3-9×40 scope which I haven’t been too fond off. I’ll be replacing it this Saturday with a Nikon Prostaff and Sunday I’ll give it a real workout.
I think I’ll be using Federal V-Shok in 160 grain so I’m hoping for good groups on Sunday.
What has amazed more most is the trigger. This is my first bolt gun and the trigger is very different from my ARs and PTR-91. The trigger is amazing, no travel and a clean break.
I don’t hunt nearly often enough, although my wife may have a different opinion.
Small game season in Virginia starts on September 1st. I will be in the woods shortly afterwards. It’s mostly a tune up for deer season.
Dove season starts here in TN on 9/1 and I cannot freaking wait! Benelli Nova was my best purchase 2 years ago.
A&M plays S. Carolina on Aug. 28, not Sept. 27. SEC Network debut should be BIG as this kicks off the football season.
Oh hunt and fish. Since bow season doesn’t open here in Alabama til Oct. 15 or 25 depending on which part of the state you’re in, no deer for me. However, this sounds like a good excuse to jump in the kayak and get after some bass on the Coosa River…
Don’t hunt.
Morally opposed to trophy hunting.
You kill eat, you should eat it.
What about varmint hunting to help ranchers and farmers?
Varmint hunting does little to disuade predators and nuisance animals from easy resources. Not opposed to it all, but there are more efficient means. Animals have been hunted since their very existence. A couple guys with a box of shells really isn’t much in the grand scheme of things.
As a guy who has farmed and shot thousands upon thousands of ground squirrels in hay fields (mine and other farmers’), here’s what happens when we farmers can’t find enough responsible people to shoot rapidly-multiplying pests on a farm:
Out comes the poisons. For ground squirrels, the poisons of choice were strychnine and zinc phosphide. These are absolutely lethal poisons, with strych having horrible secondary kill effects on anything picking up a recently dead squirrel that died above ground. Raptors and canines have especial sensitivity to strych – much more so than squirrels or gophers on a rate per kg of body weight. Raptors need barely a whiff of strych and they’re dead, and squirrels and gophers need to ingest perhaps treble to quintuple the rate per kg for a LD50 dose. Net effect? Possible widespread secondary kill effects. Not good, in other words.
A varmint hunter has the ability to judge a real pest from something else moving in the same environment. There’s little to no secondary kill aspects of shooting pests.
The reason why many varmint hunters don’t actually reduce populations is because they’re not systematic, and they won’t stay the course to really clean out an area of ground. They want quick, easy kills, and when the pest start wising up, the varmint hunters will move on to easier, newer populations.
When I go shooting ground squirrels or p-dogs, I take a .17HMR and then section off about 40 acres, maximum, of a field or range area. I will then shoot that small area for a day or two, until I’ve really cleaned it out, then move to an adjoining area about the same size for one to two days. Are there times when I have 30 to 60 minutes between shots by the end of the day? Yes. But my 40 acre patch will be pretty well cleaned out after two days, whereas the guys who want easy hunting will have merely thinned the numbers by 30% – no more – in a couple hours, then moved on to new grounds.
Varmint and pest hunting is certainly better than poisons.
What on earth makes you think trophy hunters don’t eat their harvest, or supply it to others that do?
This idiotic meme about trophy hunting needs to stop.
PS: I hunt…for meat, so that’s not me be defensive. But is irks the HELL out of me when people get something so simple so wrong.
POACHERS that kill for part of an animal, often on a black market, might kill and not eat. Your moral outrage should be directed at poachers.
But hunters, as a very broad and general rule, do not kill without consumption.
Keeping a trophy is not exclusive to consumption. One can do both, and most so-called “trophy hunters” do just that.
+1
Hunt much? Depends who you ask me or my wife…..
Between bow and gun I’m out at least 40 days. Add in hanging ,moving stands,trail cams,scouting ,bush hogging ,shooting the bow and guns and you can about double that.
No comment … Operation Security and all that.
I hunt for .22LR all the time, with very little success.
Damn right! I plugged a groundhog last week with .22 Long and have been searching for move. .22 Long out of a Henry rifle sounds like a cap gun. I want a steady supply of CCI .22 Long CB.
I’ll be hitting the woods for squirrels for my first time that weekend (it’s opening weekend for me, my hunting safety course is on the 21.)
im no hunter, but ill fish badly all day long.
I have two chest freezers. By the end of January they should be full of boneless cuts of wild game.
I’ve been thinking about getting a bow so I can hunt these urban deer and turkeys I keep seeing without alerting the neighbors (or the police). There’s also some coyotes, skunks, and possums in my neighborhood that need to be “removed.”
One year ago for fishing and almost 10 for hunting. I hope to fix that this fall.
Haven’t had time for my hunter education classes, I’ll just be taking my .270 to punch some holes in things.
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