Let's play dress up 🎭

We’ve officially made it to yet another workweek and for that, I believe we all deserve a pat on the back.

With the weekend now in the rearview, let’s focus solely on coffee for today and get another Monday edition of your favorite outdoors newsletter out the door.

Here's what's worth reading about today:

• Operation Bear Claw - Playing dress up doesn’t pay 🎭

• New rules in Mizzou - Make sure you’re up to date 👮

• Off to a good start - In Michigan at least 🦌

• Sunday hunting? - It’s looking like a possibility in PA ⛪️

• Northern deer down south - How Wisconsin whitetails helped the south 🤝

OH BOY
“OPERATION BEAR CLAW” LEADS TO FOUR ARRESTS IN BEAR COSTUME-THEMED INSURANCE FRAUD CASE

A group of California residents have been charged in a bizarre case of dress up after an apparent insurance fraud scheme was dismantled by the California Department of Insurance.

According to a release by the CDI, an investigation, known internally as “Operation Bear Claw” was launched following a peculiar insurance claim that was filed in January from the Lake Arrowhead community in the San Bernardino Mountains. According to reports, the claim involved a 2010 Rolls Royce, a bear and a whole lot of destruction to the luxury vehicle. 

Backing up their claim that the bear destroyed the interior of the vehicle, the claimants went as far as submitting security camera footage to their insurance agency as part of the claim. In what looks to be some nighttime footage of the car in the driveway, a bear soon enters stage left and “opens” the passenger door without much of an issue. While it is common for bears to open and enter cars, the agency was skeptical and instead decided to call bullsh*t on both the video evidence and, hence, the claim…

Missouri's peak deer hunting season kicks off with new rules: As hunters take to their stands this year, numerous new rules could either help or hinder their progress toward breaking that record again. Find a summary of this year's regulation changes here.

Deer hunting season temporarily closed in part of Louisiana:  According to the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, the closure is due to high water levels. When the water gauge reaches three feet, an automatic deer hunting season closure is triggered. The closed area will reopen once water levels fall to below 2.5 feet. Read the full story.

Michigan hunter shoots 20-plus point buck on first day of firearm season: Firearm deer season has kicked off in Michigan, and one local hunter has already struck gold. Brennan Dee, a Vicksburg resident, had a successful first day hunting by nabbing a buck that's at least 20 points, by the hunter's estimate. Read the full story.

Country music star shot while hunting in Texas: Country music star Sundance Head has been hospitalized in Texas after he was shot while deer hunting on his ranch. The 46-year-old was reportedly flown by helicopter to a hospital in Tyler. Read the full story.

Pa. Game Commission temporarily expands Sunday hunting, hopes for permanent change next year: Sunday hunting is normally illegal in Pennsylvania. But, thanks to state legislation passed in 2019, Sunday hunting is allowed for three consecutive weekends in mid-November and early December. The Pennsylvania Game Commission is hopeful a state ban on Sunday hunting will be completely lifted next year. Read the full story.

🦩 Miami Beach Spearo: If you’ve gone on a Miami boat day, and the tropical ocean was calm, chances are you anchored off Fowey Rocks Light House.

The structure sits just at the point where the city becomes a hazy mirage on the horizon. Around its base coral grows and tropical fish enjoy this underwater version of a third-tier city. Boats anchor around it and locals who aren’t drunk—or don’t care—go for a snorkel. The current can be strong but that only adds to the fun.

In 1945 this now party destination was the hunting ground of Art Pinder, one of spearfishing’s legends. Read the full story.

🦿 What I Lost to Win: Tagging a Trophy after Leg Amputation:  The morning of Sept. 14, 2015, my father and I were putting the finishing touches on a ground blind. Dad had spent the last couple weeks designing a blind perfect for a bowhunting amputee, something I would soon be.

Thirty-seven years ago, I was born with Bilateral Congenital Vertical Talus (CVT), better known as “rocker bottom feet.” Despite years of failed attempts at reconstructive surgery, CVT had stolen enough from me, including a college football career and my personal joy. For the last 10 years, my mobility had significantly declined, and I was living with severe pain, 24 hours a day, in both legs.

We finally finished the blind; it was time to head home, pack and drive to the motel near the hospital in Columbus, Ohio. As I got ready to leave and hugged my dad, through tear-filled eyes, I choked out the words, “Dad, I am so scared.” Read the full story.

🦌 How Wisconsin whitetails rescued the South's dwindling deer herds:  Though the rack was never measured according to Boone and Crockett Club standards, those who saw it regarded it as the biggest whitetail the Panhandle had produced up to that time. And anyone who knew anything about deer hunting accepted as gospel that Gilmore’s buck wasn’t born in Florida, but rather in Wisconsin.

How might a deer from the upper Midwest wind up in Florida’s Panhandle? Although unlikely, it was possible. Gilmore, who died in 2014 at the age of 73, downed the buck during an era when wildlife managers were trying to revive the Sunshine State’s deer herd by importing whitetails, some of which came from Wisconsin, a state famous for its big-bodied bucks with heavy racks. It’s no coincidence that the “Jordan Buck,” a previous world record, came from Wisconsin, as did thousands of other typical bucks listed in the Boone and Crockett Club (B&C) record book. Read the full story.

Oh, and one more thing…