With Father’s Day 2022 looming on the calendar, it’s time to think about what you might buy dear old dad, especially one who likes to get outdoors to do a little hunting and fishing.
While budgets can greatly differ for Father’s Day — from a card to the proverbial tie to something more extravagant, say the motorcycle or the vintage Navy fighter plane that Tom Cruise flew in the spellbinding TopGun: Maverick movie now playing — there’s a little something for everyone’s financial needs when it comes to gift buying for this annual holiday in June.
You can win the Father’s Day gift giving cycle right now by doing something amazing, like a new bow from Big O’s Archery in Sherman (or maybe a dozen new arrows and broadheads), a new bass fishing rod-and-reel combo from Sherman’s Academy or the big three down the road (Cabela’s, Bass Pro Shops, and Scheel’s), maybe a Traeger style pellet grill at a spot like Home Depot, or even a Blackstone Griddle from Walmart or Lowe’s.
And if you’re really riding a Vegas-style hot streak of good luck, maybe even finding your dad a box or two of deer hunting, dove hunting, or duck hunting ammunition since that’s as rare as cheap gasoline right now.
If you need some more Father’s Day gift ideas, how about one of these?
Outdoor Books — Since the weather is about to get blistering hot — it’s summertime in Texas, right? — what’s an outdoors enthusiast to do when the mercury is hitting triple digits and threatening to blow the top out of the thermometer?
I’d suggest a glass of iced tea — unsweet for me, please — and a reading session in the easy chair in front of the air conditioning vent. Available at local book retailers like Books-a-Million or various book buying spots online, a few you might consider include The Last Wild Road by T. Edward Nickens; Home Waters: A Chronicle of Family and a River (which is by John N. Maclean, son of A River Runs Through It author Norman MacClean); Casting Forward: Fishing Tales from the Texas Hill Country by Steve Ramirez, and Lords of the Fly: Madness, Obsession, and the Hunt for the World Record Tarpon by Monte Burke, to name a few of the volumes on my nightstand currently.
If those don’t work, get on Amazon and try anything new by top notch outdoor writers like John Gierach, E. Donnall Thomas, Jr., Thomas McGuane, and Tom McIntyre. There’s also the classic works by authors like John Graves (Goodbye to a River), Aldo Leopold (A Sand County Almanac), Tom Kelly (Tenth Legion), Gene Hill (Hill Country and A Listening Walk), Havilah Babcock (My Health Is Better in November and Tales of Quails n’ Such), Gordon MacQuarrie (Stories of the Old Duck Hunters trilogy), and Robert Ruark (The Old Man and the Boy).
Warm Weather Hunting Clothes — With dove season and early archery deer season approaching in a few months, those early fall hunts will be warm, sweaty, and buggy. That’s what makes the new Sitka Gear Equinox Guard collection — including the Guard Hoody and Guard Pants — perfect, even if the original target market might have been spring turkey hunters.
It’s also perfect for western big game hunting and whitetail hunting (especially here in the southern Great Plains, where fall is always hot to begin with) since it’s lightweight, moisture wicking and breathable, comes in the Texas-friendly Subalpine camo pattern, and protects human skin from a variety of buzzng and crawling insects (thanks to built-in Insect-Shield protection and more).
And after a recent caddis hatch fly fishing trip for rainbow and brown trout in Arkansas, I’d also note that it works perfectly well for a day of fishing on a world famous trout stream like the White River, offering bug protection and sun shielding abilities. And that’s while keeping you cool in a lightweight hoodie and bombproof pants that work in the field or on the water.
If that sounds interesting for the dad on your Father’s Day list, visit Big O’s Archery in Sherman or the Sitka Gear website at www.sitkagear.com.
Fishing Clothes and Sun Protection Gear — Fishing in Texas — in the spring, summer, and fall — can be a sweaty, sun-intensive, insect-filled affair.
Meaning that you can never have enough lightweight, breathable, and quick drying shorts, fishing pants, hoodies, long-sleeve t-shirts, breathable shirts, Buff-style face masks, sun gloves, and hats to keep dad protected and away from an ER visit (sun stroke and/or heat exhaustion in the broiling Texas heat) or a dermatologist visit down the road (to check out worrisome spots on his skin). And since sunglasses are a part of the protection equation here, don’t forget those either.
That means that clothing by companies like Sitka Gear, Simms Fishing, Orvis, Duck Camp, Howler Brothers, AFTCO, Fish Hippie, HUK, and more, is a welcome gift at Father’s Day. Ditto for polarized sunglasses by Costa, Smith, Wiley X, Ray-Bans, Oakley, Skeleton, and more.
And since hydration is a must for a hot day out on the water, don’t forget a YETI Coolers’ Hopper (soft-sided cooler), Tundra (hard-sided cooler), and Rambler bottle (to carry lots of cold water and/or Gatorade) onto the water. For products from the famous Austin-based cooler company, see local retailers like Academy or visit www.yeti.com.
Hunting and Fishing Knives — It’s hard to go wrong giving dear old dad a knife that he can use while hunting, fishing, or even trimming up a brisket fresh off the smoker on the back deck.
For a hunting knife, try a DiamondBlade Surge model with a SureGrip handle (www.diamondbladeknives.com). For the fishing knife, try a six-inch Rapala FLF6 Fillet Knife with Leather Sheath and Sharpener (www.rapala.com). And for a knife to trim up a brisket, or steaks and burgers getting ready for the grill, try either the Knives of Alaska Professional Boning Knife (www.knivesofalaska.com), or the Benchmade 15500 Meatcrafter (www.benchmade.com).
Fishing Gear — If dad is an angler, you can never go wrong getting him fishing gear. That could be a new on-the-water paddle-powered rig like a Wilderness Systems or Hobie kayak or an Old Towne Discovery 158 canoe — camo, please, so he can fish and duck hunt out of it.
For rods, reels, line, lures, and electronics, see the local tackle shops around Lake Texoma, the local Walmart and Academy locations, and the big outdoor box stores down south in the DFW Metroplex. And there’s always online, of course.
If your father is partial to fly fishing like I am, you can’t go wrong with a new fly rod and/or fly reel, either an Orvis setup (like a Helios Rod or a Hydros reel, available at Orvis.com or the various Orvis locations in the DFW Metroplex): a Temple Fork Outfitters (www.tforods.com) fly rod and reel (from the longtime Dallas-based company that excels in making high quality and affordable gear like the Axiom II-X); or other top brand fly rods, fly reels, fly lines, leaders, and flies from North Texas fly shops like Tailwaters in downtown Dallas, Grapevine Fly Fishing Shop in Grapevine, or Dirty Water Fly Company in Plano.
Last, but not least, a great gift idea for the angling dad in your family is one of the most excellent Texas Fishing Atlas series by Sportsman’s Connection (www.scmaps.com). If you get dad the Dallas/Fort Worth: East Metro, Dallas/Fort Worth: West Metro, and the East Texas atlases, he’s set for a lifetime of angling discovery on some top notch Texas waters.
Hopefully, one or more of these suggestions will give you a few ideas to help get dad the perfect Father’s Day gift this summer. And if not, gift cards from Cabela’s, Bass Pro Shops, Scheel’s, Orvis, Big O’s Archery, and more, are always welcome.
With any luck, this will be the best gift buying season you’ve ever had for Father’s Day. And with even more luck, maybe the lovely Mrs. B and/or my adult kiddos are reading this outdoors drivel and will be inspired in their own gift giving endeavors this year for dear old dad.
Hey, a loving father and outdoor writer can always dream, right?
Credit: Source link
