We had a blast at our Missoula Valley pint night meet-up on October 19, 2021. About 60 members joined us outside for beverages and pizza at Highlander Beer in Missoula. Thanks to everyone who came out in this slow week between archery and rifles seasons!
Burch Barrel, one of our state-based corporate sponsors, demoed their wood burning stoves as everyone was able to sample a delicious elk slider. A big shout out to both Highlander and Burch Barrel both for hosting this event! It was great to see both old and new members come together for an evening as we talked about all the things that matter to us DIY hunters.
We socialized, ate and drank, and enjoyed an evening with old friends and new. But you can't get a group of engaged sportsmen and women like this together without talking a little shop. We discussed Montana BHA’s growing concern that Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP) continues to cater to landowners over public land hunters by giving away elk tags for them to profit on.
We also talked about our request for a Coldwater Fisheries Taskforce to address ongoing issues with our coldwater fisheries, particularly in southwestern Montana. We're calling on Governor Gianforte and FWP to protect our cold-water fisheries like they do with agriculture entities who were given hand outs this summer. So far nothing has been done for our waterways as we experienced record breaking heat and drought in 2021.
Finally, we encouraged all our motivated members to pay attention to FWP’s reorganization and simplification of the proposed changes to hunting districts. We recommended that all hunters look into how this would affect where and how they hunt in their favorite units.
As usual, we had some amazing sponsors and partners willing to donate great raffle prizes. Public land owners at the event took home: a Benchmade Meatcrafter knife, BruTrek travel coffee mugs, a Gerber hatchet, Victory “Public Lands” arrows, some Stanley steel cups, a gift bag from Highlander Beer and some other BHA logo apparel.
Welcome to our new BHA members who signed up at the event! We hope all that new BHA gear brings you luck in the field. Thanks for a great evening out under the outdoor pavilion at Highlander. We hope to see you at our next event most likely this coming spring.
All images provided by BHA Member Dylan Truesdale.
About Scott Mylnechuk