More than 150 outdoor sports outfitters, vendors and speakers are scheduled to gather Friday through the weekend at the Charleston Coliseum & Convention Center as the West Virginia Hunting and Fishing Show makes its 35th appearance in the capital city.
The state’s largest indoor show dealing with outdoor sports gives hunters, anglers and other outdoor enthusiasts the chance to plan trips with outfitters and see the latest improvements in equipment and apparel from a wide variety of vendors.
Thanks to a partnership with Cabela’s, this year’s show will make use of a new stage and sound system in the Convention Center’s Grand Hall to showcase live award ceremonies, auctions and presentations by wildlife managers and experts in a variety of hunting and fishing skills.
“Presentations from the stage will take place throughout the show,” said Glen Jarrell, spokesman for the West Virginia Trophy Hunters Association, which sponsors the annual event. “There will be seminars on such topics as mountain whitetail hunting, predator calling, fishing ethics, the state’s elk restoration program and how to prepare for western big-game hunts.”
A live auction will include trips donated by outfitters, along with vendor-donated hunting and fishing gear, game processing equipment, knives and items of apparel.
Outfitters from more than 20 states will be on hand to discuss fly-in and drive-to hunting and fishing vacations at locations ranging from the Great Lakes and the Alaskan wilderness to Florida and the Carolina coast.
“We have several new outfitters this year, including one from [Wrightsville Beach,] North Carolina that specializes in offshore fishing,” Jarrell said. “We also have a number of outfitters from Canada, and this year, seven outfitters from South Africa.”
Outfitters who take part in the annual show “say they enjoy working with West Virginia sportsmen,” Jarrell said. “They have a reputation for being good at the sports they pursue, they show up with the appropriate gear and they’re generally pleasant to work with.”
Although Hunting and Fishing Show attendees can book trips on the spot, “they more typically will talk to outfitters about what their trips involve and what they will cost, and then check their schedules and see what friends or family members might be able to go with them,” Jarrell said. “Then they will call the outfitter back to book their trips.”
Several West Virginia-based hunting, fishing and outdoor recreation organizations will staff booths at the show, as will several state wildlife and conservation agencies.
Personnel from the state Division of Natural Resources will score trophy buck antlers free of charge from 3 to 8 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. The West Virginia Trophy Hunters Association will accept qualifying mounts into its Whitetail Hall of Fame.
Hours for this year’s West Virginia Hunting and Fishing Show are noon to 9 p.m. Friday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. Admission is $9 for adults, $1 for children ages 6 to 12, and free to those age 5 and younger.
After costs are covered, all proceeds from the show benefit West Virginia hunting, fishing and conservation organizations.
Rick Steelhammer is a features reporter. He can be reached at 304-348-5169 or rsteelhammer
