Update from Chapter Chair

Hey all, I hope everyone is managing to stay cool! This month, I want to encourage you all to take the time this summer to meet your fellow BHA members.  We have two big gatherings happening here in our neck of the woods this August. The first is the annual Muster in the Mountains.  This is happening in north central PA and will have BHA members and staff from all over joining to hang out for a day of storytelling, cooking and just hanging out. The second event is the NY BHA Rally in the Valley, happening in Little Valley, NY. This is going to be a great time with amazing speakers, really amazing raffle prizes and lots of activities/seminars for folks to enjoy.  Both big events are selling tickets now at the links below and we hope to see you at one or both next month! I again want to encourage you all to please tag and follow us on social media, join us at Pint Nights and conservation stewardship events, let your legislators hear from you about proposed bills impacting hunters and anglers, and make sure your BHA membership is current! Get out there and enjoy your NY public lands and waters!

Greg Whalin - NY BHA Chapter Chair 

Chapter News from June

Archery Day for New Hunters - Westchester County

On June 22, NY Hunters of Color (HOC), NY BHA, and The Nature Conservancy of New York hosted an intro to archery and deer hunting event at a TNC property in Westchester, NY. We had roughly 40 new archers show up and spend the day learning to shoot archery as well as learning wilderness skills related to deer hunting. This is the third year of this program, and it remains an amazing community building and learning experience.  See more details and photos at the above link!

NY onX Pint Night with NYSDEC - Albany

On Wednesday June 26th we met at the Common Roots Brewing Company, Albany Outpost for a great onX sponsored Pint Night with the NYSDEC Bureau Chief of Fisheries, Steve Hurst.

Steve enlightened us with an informal talk about the latest proposed plan for Brook Trout Management in the Adirondacks. Be sure to follow along on this topic as comments on regulations will follow. Check out NYSDEC's Guide to
Brook Trout Fishing in Adirondack Ponds. See more details and photos of the event at the above link!

Drink & Duck : Paint Your Own Duck Decoy Night at Filson - NYC

This past June 27th, NY BHA hosted a ticketed event at Filson NYC to paint black duck decoys. The chapter purchased the decoys and paint kits from Dixie Decoys and refreshments were generously donated by West Kill Brewing.  The attendees all did a great job at painting their black ducks and more than a few folks were inspired to want to hunt ducks this upcoming season! See more details and photos at the above link!

NY BHA with Alone star Melanie Sawyer at Filson NYC - NYC

It was a great evening at Filson NYC with History Channel's Alone Season 10 star, Melanie Sawyer! She spent the evening talking about her experience on Alone Season 10 and showing the tools she brought with her. Melanie shared her foraging knowledge that kept her well fed during the show and even brought many wild edibles including rock tripe, cattails, birch bark and many varieties of edible mushrooms. Those in attendance had the opportunity to ask questions and chat with Melanie throughout the presentation. Two lucky guests won a couple of great prizes. The Meateater Guide to Wilderness Skills and Survival book and BHA member JP won a trip to go to Melanie's place deep into the Adirondack Mountains for a three day wilderness skills class for two in a tent with a fire pit, food and the beautiful night sky, ALONE STYLE! with one on one teaching core survival points and even touring a local historic Fort. See more details and photos at the above link!

Upcoming Events

NY Huntstock - Vernon Center, July 19 - 21

NY BHA will be attending the first ever NY Huntstock event taking place this summer! This event is sure to be a blast and we would love to see you swing by our table if you make it to the event! More details can be found at the Huntstock website below.

Huntstock NY - Learn More

Muster in the Mountains, North Central Pennsylvania, August 9-11

Join BHA President & CEO Patrick Berry, BHA staff, chapter leaders, members, partners and other public land owners to celebrate public lands with the usual BHA mix of comradery, competition, education, entertainment and feasting! Join us for some great conversation, some fun raffles/auctions, and the Wild Game Cookoff.  We'll have a good time and join together to support our public lands mission!

Muster in the Mountains 2024 - Get Your Tickets Here! 

Rally in the Valley - Cattaraugus County Fairgrounds, Little Valley, August 16 - 18

Join NY BHA members at our annual weekend gathering. This year it is happening at Cattaraugus County Fairgrounds in Little Valley NY, starting on Friday August 16th. This is going to be a blast with good people, great food, lots of opportunities to learn new skills (cooking, fly casting, butchering, and much much more) and a fun 3D archery course/competition. We will have several sponsors present and lots of auction and raffle items from guided trips to awesome outdoor gear! We will have Professor Krysten Schuler of Cornell University’s Wildlife Health Lab as our keynote speaker.

NY BHA Rally in the Valley - Get Your Tickets Here!

Legislative / Policy Update

Legislative Updates

The legislative session for 2024 has wrapped for the year.

DEC Updates

Unit/Recreation Management Plans and Proposals - DEC regularly seeks public input as they work to manage our public lands. While they will regularly receive input from other groups, often hunters and anglers are fairly silent.  It directly benefits the hunting and angling communities for you to take a look at these plans and voice your feedback directly to DEC.   They do listen to your input and in the past, our voices have resulted in wins for hunters and anglers. Current plans open for feedback include:

Region 8

• Keuka Highlands UMP and Keuka Lowlands UMP - comments open until further notice
• Great Divide Unit Management Plan (formerly Erwin UMP and Great Divide UMP) - comments open until further notice

NY BHA Call for Volunteers

We need your help!  We are looking for volunteers to help with the following efforts.

• Regional Event Coordinators - Want to help us plan gatherings for your fellow NY BHA members?  We need help with local Pint Nights as well as our upcoming NY Rendezvous (Rally in the Valley)
• Policy and Legislative work - Our Policy team and newly forming Legislative team needs passionate folks to jump in and help us do the important work to protect our public lands and access for hunters and anglers!
• Mentorship work - We want to build a list of folks in the state who are open to being mentors for new hunters and anglers. We have opportunities and need for folks who can give a little all the way up to folks who want to really invest a lot.  Everything from answering questions to being a one on one coach to participating on our larger weekend long hunt camps for new hunters.
• Conservation work - We are working with DEC to have more opportunities for events to do quality habitat work on our public lands. Want to roll your sleeves up and help, we would love to have you!

If you are interested in volunteering a bit of your time and talents, please let us know by filling out and submitting this form.

How to Connect with Us

Here are a few ways you can keep in touch with the New York BHA chapter:

Stay up to date with events and blogs from New York on our BHA web page at New York Backcountry Hunters & Anglers.  

Join our Facebook group at New York BHA on Facebook. 

Follow us on Instagram New York BHA (@newyorkbha).

Contact the Chapter Board by email: [email protected]

Thank our sponsors: New York BHA Corporate Sponsors

Join us at an upcoming event: NY BHA Events

Signup to be a volunteer: NY BHA Volunteer

Last but not least, make sure your BHA membership is current and give the gift of BHA to a friend or family member!