Christmas an exciting time for outdoors enthusiasts

Last week, Andy Couch wrote a good column about potential Christmas presents for the angler in your family. Christmas is only 11 days away, so I don’t leave you much time to track down some of the gift ideas presented here for the hunter or shooter in your household, but consider it a challenge toward finding the perfect gift.

The obvious gift suggestion would be a new rifle, shotgun or bow, depending on your shooter’s preference and the depth of your pocketbook. The list of accessories for these hunting implements, like scopes, slings, ammunition, choke tubes, shooting sticks, arrows, broadheads, sights, stabilizers and limb silencers, is almost endless, and selecting any one of them as a gift would be appreciated. Finding the item of choice shouldn’t be too hard locally, since the Valley has two pro archery shops and several outdoor stores that sell archery equipment and/or firearms and their accessories.

A new hunting outfit is always a nice present and, again, we have several local stores selling a selection of shirts, jackets, pants, hats, raingear and boots. A couple of items either my wife or I have picked up in the past year include neoprene gloves and neoprene chest waders to use while dipnetting or when pursuing other activities like duck hunting. Alaska waters are cold, even in the summer. I like the warmth provided by the neoprene material. My wife also bought a lighter-weight hooligan dip net since she thought the one I have is heavy for extended dipping sessions. A new net bag for the dip net would make a thoughtful present, whether the net is for hooligan or salmon.

I discovered a long time ago that winter camo really does help “hide” the human shape when the countryside has a nice snow cover. I’m looking at a new set of pants and jacket and have already found a hat to replace the older gear I’ve used over the years. I looked a long time before I finally found a winter camo backpack to go with my winter “outfit.” Hunters are always toting extra gear and a backpack or fanny pack is a useful and welcomed gift.

Rangefinders are another useful item for a hunter, whether he shoots a rifle or a bow. If your nimrod already has one, a set of fresh batteries is another thoughtful gift – my rangefinder burns up a battery about every six weeks or so.

Since we’re talking outdoor electronics, something I plan to try is a trail camera – one of those gadgets you hang on a tree along the trail you want to watch to see when the critters are moving and how big they might be. This item is popular Outside among the deer hunting clans and I think could be quite useful up here for black bear baiting and perhaps some types of moose hunting. I’ll use it in conjunction with the ladder-type tree stand I have for baiting and moose hunting. A full body harness is the only safe way to go in the event of a fall if you do use a tree stand.

A stand-alone GPS is getting to be obsolete given today’s smartphones, but I prefer using one and saving my cellphone for making phone calls. A backup compass and topo map along with fire starting materials, a small first aid kit, some water and snacks, a set of spare vehicle keys and a change of socks or an extra pair of gloves usually are packed inside that daypack I mentioned earlier.

A hunter can never have too many game bags. I prefer the linen-type bags because they can be washed and reused, but the cheesecloth bags work and are inexpensive if money is a concern. Knives, sharpeners, game saws and small axes are also possible gift items, especially if your hunter has been eying a particular style in the display case. I’ve got several lifetimes worth of knives already, but I still look and occasionally am tempted to add a new knife to my own collection.

If your hunter uses either an ATV or snowmachine to access their favorite haunts, a whole new avenue for gift ideas just opened up. If your shooter reloads ammunition or casts their own bullets, again, the sky’s the limit on gift suggestions. As Andy mentioned in his column, a gift card to a preferred archery shop, outdoor store or snowmachine dealership could be the best and most appreciated gift of all.

Howard Delo is a retired fisheries biologist with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. You can leave him a message by emailing sports@frontiersman.com.