From The Editor
Readers' Hunts
column By: Lee Hoots | March, 20
From the dawn of time, hunting has largely been a social affair, and for most of us that hasn’t changed. Beginning in the fall of 2015, Successful Hunter has shared success stories written by hunters whose names do not appear on our masthead listing of regular contributors. These new bylines, and the well-written stories of public land success that follow them have piqued a great deal of interest. There is a reason for this. Tales of antlered game adventure and success typed out by hunters one might bump into on a dirt road or on a high-country ridgeline on public ground during bow or rifle season are inspiring.
They are inspiring to all hunters. There is a certain satisfaction all hunters share when a friend (or stranger) is successful on his own time and own dime, and it matters little if the buck or bull (or whatever game) is of record book proportion. The satisfaction comes from the time and effort involved to achieve the outcome, be it a trophy or meat for the freezer.
What has caught my attention to a greater degree, however, has been to hear from a few long-time readers that the subtle change in content over the last few years has made Successful Hunter a more well-rounded magazine. To me, such subscriber-offered encouragement should not be ignored.
It is, after all, Wolfe Publishing’s intent to provide a “well-rounded magazine” to inform or at least entertain as many readers as possible with every single issue. As a result of all this, we want more of your public land, big-game success stories to add to the mix of content. Even fair-chase guided hunts will be considered. The point is to share them with the whole of our readership.
Now for the good part: Successful Hunter is willing to pay for the best stories and photos – in other words, the most well-rounded submissions accepted will be followed by a paycheck upon publication! Successful Hunter is willing to provide more than a T-shirt and/or a pair of boots that some storyteller may or may not even want.
Any hunter who has experienced the best public land hunt of his or her life will be given consideration. Of course, not all stories can be published, but all will be considered. Details regarding the submittal of articles and photos can be found on our Facebook page, and on page 43 of this issue.