I am a former national board member, and current co-chair of the CO chapter: ww.coloradobackcountryhunters.org. Right now my eyes are blurry from vitamin E ointment for recent minor surgery, so please forgive typos and eccentricities. The last two years of the Traditional Bowhunters Expo (let's hope it returns!) in OR and ID, we had a booth and found traditional bowhunters --no surprise!--to be exceptionally receptive to our message, which is in a nut: keep our public lands backcountry unroaded, unmotorized, unspoiled, wild and challenging -- not only for those who can get there (I still do at 62, on foot, so not too much sympathy for the "If I can't get there on motorized wheels, sitting down, then I've been denied fair access" crowd), but also for the subtle but biologically important "trophy pump" effect of remote backcountry, where bulls and bucks find escape from roadside hunting pressure sufficient to realize their full maturity in antlers, then pass those winning genes along to future generations and, occassionally, even drift near a road where the Easy Chair gang can get a crack at 'em. And so on. We are all-volunteer, thus only as strong as our leaders and members in a given state. But geeze, we've got some dedicated folks and for a young and still-smallish group (we have members in 47 states and two other countries, but not huge numbers yet anywhere), we are bright on the radar screens of not only state but national elected officials. We have a voice and presence and make a difference far beyond our size, because we are the genuine boots-on-the-ground real American muscle-powered hunter-angler thing, and uncharacteristically more in love with the raw hard truths of life than with winning or raising money (rather like, again, trad bowhunters). While all of our best leaders and a growing number of dedicated members give freely of their time and energy and when they have it, money (not all at once necessarily, but it's all necessary and to each his/her own ability to contribute), a few of our folks are absolutely tenacious and utterly unselfish in their support of our causes, like our two AK chapter leaders, both bowhunters, HomerDave (who posted above) and Bushrat, the former, a pure subsistence hunter, trapper and fisherman from interior AK (30 years now!) who goes to the lengths of borrowing money when necessary and relying on likeminded bushpilot friends to get him out of the deep deep bush once or twice a year into Fairbanks to raise some holy hell with the state wildlife commission and the monopolistic big sportmen's group that wants everything easy and profitable as possible. And David Lien, my co-chair here in CO, also chairs the MN chapter and is working hard to get going a MI chapter, in addition to a demanding full-time job and at his own considerable expense. These are the true heroes of the American model of hunting, today and tomorrow, and more abused than celebrated for their efforts. For myself, I have never been a joiner -- except for the Marines (1968-1974) and BHA (life member). Sorry for the rant, Al and other friends, but your arrow of inquiry hit the center of my heart. Keep it wild! Keep it real! Kee it traditional American! Dave2old
Topic: Backcountry Hunters and Anglers... who's in? (Read 1122 times)
