One of the nice things about doing this column is that besides all the new sportsman’s websites that I get to see while researching, I also get some great tips and recommendations that I might otherwise have missed. This was the case when Shannon Jones, Assistant to the Publisher, at Outdoor Adventurer, pointed me towards a site called HuntersOnly.com.

 

HuntersOnly.com is the brainchild of Olen Grimes. An avid hunter himself, Olen was interested in creating a different sort of hunting site where hunters of all stripes could get together and share their common love of the sport, a site that was to be free from big name advertisers, pop-ups, and paid professionals. The site was launched on October 19, 2005 and currently has 1,182 members. The membership comes from all corners of the US. It is particularly strong east of the Mississippi but is growing in the West and even includes some lady hunters.

 

This was to be a new web experience for me. Until, I began this review I had never been logged on to a web forum that had a membership fee. I was interested to see what difference a $5 membership could make in the quality of the web forum experience. The lack of advertising was definately a plus but was there more? As I was browsing HuntersOnly.com I was impressed with the atmosphere. I didn’t find any signs of conflict between members and the language was all within socially acceptable norms. When I asked Olen about the quality of discourse among members his response was that “As far as language goes we've never had a problem, all our members seem to get along extremely well”. “We are proud that we are a clean family oriented site”, the atmosphere, “is the quality of our members, not our moderation.” As Olen explained to me, the $5 fee is like a dress code at a night club it keeps out trouble makers, spammers and lurkers. It also helps to defray the operational expenses.

 

Once inside HuntersOnly.com you will find an easily navigated straight forward forum. The board topics range from broad subjects like Pictures Only, Hunting Stories, and a Chat Board for general chat, to more narrowly focused subjects such as, The Aviary, for bird hunters, Lady Hunters, for the women, and a page for Young Hunters. There are boards for muzzleloaders, bow hunters, varmint hunters, and one for fans of hunting dogs. You will also find a place to sell gear and to swap or trade hunts. For instance, you may live in an area with excellent turkey hunting and find a guy who lives in mule deer country who would trade you a muley hunt for a gobbler hunt. There are other more or less standard types of boards which are none the less fun to have, these include Recipes, Jokes and Tips and Tricks.

 

Live chat is another feature that is offered for HuntersOnly.com members. For anyone unfamiliar, live chat it is similar to instant messaging except that you opt in to it. Once logged on to the forum then any of the other members can jump in the chat room and have a conversation with you or vise versa.

 

Forum communities frequently put on some impressive get togethers where members have a chance to meet in person and put a face to the guy or gal that they have been corresponding with. When asked if there are any plans in the works for shoots, picnics, or other member based gatherings, Olen responded that, “We are planning the first one for this year, but it is not set in stone yet, as to a date, a place, and a time. We should have something to send to the members by April on the specifics”. He added that he is “going to try and set up some Member hunts with either individual members to guide a group from the site”, or alternately “to team up with an outfitter, (who is a member of the site) to do a member hunt.” Watch for details in the next few months.

 

All in all www.HuntersOnly.com is a very well thought out forum with plenty of appeal for a broad range of outdoor adventurers. As a non hunter I found the member posts to be informative and interesting and I particularly enjoyed the member’s photos. If you are a hunter this site has something to offer that you won’t often find on the internet, that is, peace and companionship without the constant harangue of commercialism. If you are on line give HuntersOnly.com a look and see for yourself.