Croatia may be one of Europe’s best-kept hunting secrets. From free-range mouflon sheep on rugged Adriatic islands to roe deer, red stag, wild boar, and fallow deer on the mainland, the country offers world-class hunting wrapped in breathtaking scenery, rich history, and warm hospitality.
Mention a European hunting destination and most American hunters immediately think of Spain, Scotland, or perhaps Germany.
Croatia rarely makes the list.
According to outfitter Mike van Bekkum, that’s beginning to change.
The hunting lodges operated by Mike van Bekkum throughout Croatia embody that spirit. Comfortable without being pretentious, authentic without trying too hard, and staffed by people who genuinely care about the experience, these lodges serve as the perfect base camps for pursuing mouflon, roe deer, red stag, wild boar, and other European game.
“Croatia is one of the hidden germs of Europe, you know,” van Bekkum said. “Here it’s the place where there was not a lot of hunting going on, because the people really don’t know about Croatia. Everybody thought Croatia was still in the war, and I don’t know, but that’s absolutely not true. It’s in the EU. It’s a safe country.”
Van Bekkum would know.
Nearly two decades ago, he built a successful hunting business in Germany, operating seven hunting areas and a hotel catering to hunters from across Europe. Then came COVID.
“The Corona came, and in the time of the Corona, everybody was in panic, of course,” he recalled.
At the same time, changing wildlife regulations in Germany convinced him it was time to move on.
“There is law in Germany that says the forest is more important than the animals who live in it. That means we have to shoot everything, like 85% of the deer and red deer and fallow deer. That means the quality was so bad. So I was finished with Germany.”
After selling his operation, van Bekkum and his team looked south.
What they found was Croatia.
Today, he owns hunting properties in the Croatian mountains and on the Adriatic island of Dugi Otok while also managing access to additional hunting concessions offering species ranging from mouflon and wild boar to red stag, chamois, and roe deer.
The transition, however, wasn’t easy.
“Knowing what I went through, I would never do that again,” he said. “It’s the most difficult thing I’ve ever did in the hunting business.”
Yet after five years, the effort appears to be paying off.
One of the biggest surprises has been Croatia’s approach to wildlife management.
“I’m surprised about the game management,” van Bekkum said. “I didn’t expect they will do that so well over here.”
Unlike some European countries where harvest numbers focus heavily on reducing animal populations, Croatia uses strict age-class management systems that regulate exactly which animals may be harvested.
When most hunters think of axis deer, they think of Texas. Few realize that free-range axis deer also roam the rugged hills and valleys of Croatia’s Dugi Otok, an island better known for its dramatic Adriatic coastline than its exceptional hunting.
“If you have my area, let’s say you shoot 25 stags, it has to be stacked, so many of, let’s say, eight years, plus then so many of five years, plus so many of three years,” he explained. “That is because that’s the reason why, in especially Croatia, you will be able to shoot really big, big trophies.”
Strong enforcement also plays a role.
“There is hardly any poaching,” he said. “The police are very hard on that, you know. There are laws, if you don’t follow the law, you will lose your hunting area like this.”
While many American hunters may still be unfamiliar with Croatia, van Bekkum’s clients are increasingly coming from the United States.
That partnership began roughly five years ago after representatives from Worldwide Trophy Adventures visited Croatia looking for new opportunities for their clients.
“He stayed for three days, and after that we became friends,” van Bekkum said. “I was very surprised about WTA, about the professionality of this company is amazing.”
The relationship has grown steadily since.
“It works so well for us that we are also working now for the WTA.”
Beyond simply booking hunts, van Bekkum believes American hunters bring something else to the table.
Trust.
“What I love about Americans is just they will go with the plan,” he said. “I tell you, okay, we will go hunt like this, we will go in the morning and evening, we will make this. Americans will just say, okay, super, let’s go for it.”
That willingness to trust guides and local expertise stands out to him when compared with many European hunters.
“Europeans say, oh no, I think the wind is not good, or the weather is not here, or blah, blah, blah. They will make the story for you.”
For outfitters, that difference matters.
“For us, it’s important that people work with us,” he said.
The distinction extends beyond hunting styles.
Van Bekkum also sees major differences in shooting culture.
“If I hunt with Americans, I will easily shoot an animal on 400 yards, even 500,” he said. “Europeans, 150, 180 the max, because they’re not used to shoot too much.”
He attributes that largely to range time and familiarity with equipment.
“Americans do a lot of shooting at the range; they know their guns.”
The same cannot always be said elsewhere.
Hunting Dugi Otok is not a leisurely stroll through open country. The island’s steep limestone hills, rocky slopes, and dense Mediterranean vegetation demand patience, persistence, and a willingness to earn every opportunity. One moment you’re glassing an open hillside, and the next you’re picking your way through thick brush that seems determined to grab your rifle, pack, and dignity all at once.
“Europeans put their gun in the safe, and once a year it comes out of the safe, and then they’re hunting.”
For American hunters considering a trip overseas, van Bekkum believes Croatia offers far more than game animals.
“It is Croatia, especially. It’s very good to combine with family.”
The country offers historic cities, wineries, national parks, fishing opportunities, spas, cooking experiences, and one of Europe’s most celebrated coastlines.
“We have the most beautiful coast of Europe,” he said. “We have the clearest water together with Sardinia.”
For non-hunting spouses, customized itineraries have become common.
“We will ask them what the ladies want,” he said. “Okay, we want to do this, this, and this.”
That combination of hunting, tourism, culture, and wildlife management may ultimately explain why more Americans are discovering Croatia.
For decades, the country remained largely overlooked by North American hunters.
That appears to be changing.
And if van Bekkum is correct, many hunters may soon discover what Europeans have known for years: Croatia isn’t simply a place to hunt.
It’s a destination.
The crystal-clear waters of Zman are a reminder that adventure isn’t measured only by what you harvest, but by the places that leave you speechless
– Jay Pinsky, Editor, The Hunting Wire & The Archery Wire
Celebrate America's 250th Anniversary with Iron Valley Supply and Colt! This beautiful 1911 CLASSIC GOVERNMENT MODEL is adorned with gold embellishments that exhibit the signing of the Declaration of Independence while honoring those who have fought to defend the freedoms we enjoy every day!
The man whose guns helped win the West founded Colt's Patent Firearms Manufacturing Company in 1855, the company we now know today as Colt's Manufacturing Company.
Samuel Colt is best known for firearms such as the Colt Walker and Colt Single Action Army. Later, Colt’s Manufacturing Company would roll out iconic models including the Colt Python, the Colt M1911, and later versions of the AR-15 and M16 rifles.
While we think of Colt as a designer and manufacturer who revolutionized firearms production through the use of interchangeable machined parts, it was his marketing that truly stood out.
Nearly everybody is familiar with the phrase ‘God created men, but Sam Colt made them equal.’ The line became closely associated with Colt's marketing and remains part of popular culture today through movies and television.
What many people don't realize is that Sam Colt was among the first to use what we'd now call influencers and even created a rudimentary affiliate marketing program.
He and his staff sought out unsolicited news mentions of Colt products to reprint excerpts for marketing purposes. Later, Colt hired people in other states to seek out such stories, purchase copies, and in some cases reward editors with free revolvers for publishing those stories.
Samuel Colt’s use of custom engraved firearms as gifts to celebrities, military officers, and heads of state—which was considered innovative at the time—mirrors what many companies do today with those they hope will promote their brand.
These original Colt customs are certainly among the most highly collectible models produced by Colt, especially those engraved with Colt’s name and later his signature.
Which brings us to today.
The tradition of highly customized Colt firearms continues. This week, two distributors announced the availability of limited run Colt products customized to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the United States.
On Tuesday, Iron Valley Supply announced the exclusive availability of a Colt 1911 USA 250th Anniversary Special Edition. Limited to just 500 pistols, this classic Government Model 1911 features a high-polish blued finish and gold embellishments by Baron Engraving depicting the signing of the Declaration of Independence while honoring those who have fought to defend our freedoms.
The pistol is outfitted with satin-finished dark walnut grips inlaid with a Betsy Ross Flag medallion. The MSRP for this exclusive pistol is $2,625. In speaking with Iron Valley Supply, they expect these will sell out in short order, so contact your local retailer if you are interested in adding one to your collection.
Following Iron Valley’s announcement, Orion Wholesale on Wednesday announced its own tribute to America's 250th anniversary with a Colt America 250 Set.
This is a limited-edition set of three handguns, a Colt King Cobra Target 22, Colt 1911 Government, and a Colt Python. Each is intricately embellished with deep laser engraving “inspired by American patriotism and history creating a collector-grade presentation worthy of the nation's 250-year milestone.”
Only 250 sequentially numbered sets are being produced.
Each firearm in the Colt America 250 collection features sequential numbering and comes with a handcrafted premium walnut display case featuring a custom-etched presentation glass lid, along with an official certificate of authenticity.
Orion says that the Colt America 250 is expected to be one of the most sought-after commemorative firearm releases tied to the nation's Semi-quincentennial celebration.
The MSRP for the set is $11,999. According to the Orion representative working on the project, the company expects to start shipping sets as early as next week with the shipping of the entire 250 completed by the end of July.
These are being distributed through allocation to Orion’s dealer network, so if you are interested in obtaining one, be sure to contact your local dealer. Otherwise, you may have to seek one out on the resale or auction market, where the $12,000 price tag could quickly become wishful thinking.
Perhaps the earliest Colt 250th commemorative to reach the market was an exclusive offering from Crow Wholesale.
The Colt 1911 .45 ACP Union of Time 250th Anniversary is limited to just 100 units and created to honor America’s 250th. The pistol is beautifully embellished with a high polished finish and accented with 24K gold.
The Union of Time features deep-relief patriotic engraving with hand-painted accents incorporated in the grips, as well as the frame and slide. All designed to commemorate the nation’s enduring legacy through craftsmanship and detail.
The package comes complete with a collector-grade premium leather presentation case with combination locks and a certificate of authenticity.
With its long legacy and heritage of producing custom firearms, Colt is likely to offer additional limited-edition handguns celebrating America's 250th anniversary, giving collectors something to look forward to.
– Paul Erhardt, Managing Editor, the Outdoor Wire Digital Network
The proposed PEACE Act may be the most unmistakably Portland development in modern American politics: a ballot initiative so detached from practical reality that it sounds less like legislation and more like the product of a group hallucination that occurred during an anarchist kombucha tasting behind a vegan tattoo parlor. Yet somehow — and this is the truly astonishing part — the measure reportedly gathered enough signatures to potentially qualify for Oregon’s statewide ballot. That alone deserves a federally funded academic inquiry involving sociologists, behavioral psychologists, and perhaps a priest carrying holy water.
After all, consider the sort of person who would willingly stop on a rainy Portland sidewalk, listen to a petition circulator explain that the proposal would effectively criminalize hunting, fishing, ranching, pet breeding, rodent traps, and even putting down a mortally injured animal, and then enthusiastically respond: “Finally, someone is addressing the real issues.” You would have to possess the political judgment of a raccoon experiencing a ayahuasca retreat.
The PEACE Act is not merely “far left” or “fringe.” Fringe implies proximity to normality. This thing was launched from another dimension entirely — one where cows are constitutional stakeholders, salmon possess civil liberties, and a Labrador retriever can apparently become the centerpiece of a felony indictment. By removing long-standing exemptions from Oregon’s animal cruelty statutes, the measure would essentially transform huge portions of ordinary rural life into criminal conduct. Hunting and fishing? Illegal. Livestock operations? Criminalized. Rodeos? Gone. Mouse traps? Potentially unlawful. Humanely euthanizing a suffering animal outside a veterinarian’s office? Better lawyer up, cowboy.
And still, more than 120,000 people allegedly signed onto this.
Of course they did. This is Portland we’re talking about: a city that crossed the line between “quirky” and “fully operational social experiment” sometime around the second Bush administration. Portland no longer behaves like a municipality. It behaves like a graduate thesis that escaped containment.
This is, after all, the same cultural ecosystem where activists have protested the existence of sidewalks because concrete allegedly “imposes colonial geometry upon the Earth.” It is a city where adults have organized demonstrations mourning the “emotional trauma” experienced by harvested mushrooms. Somewhere along the way, Portland evolved from a mildly eccentric Pacific Northwest town into a live-action parody of itself — a place where every civic issue eventually devolves into interpretive dance, emotional vocabulary, and a guy with a unicycle explaining systems theory through spoken-word poetry.
The PEACE Act feels less like an isolated proposal and more like the inevitable final form of decades of unchecked performative activism. Because this isn’t really about preventing cruelty to animals — a principle nearly everyone already supports. It’s about ideological escalation. Ethical treatment of animals is too mainstream now. Too boring. The new frontier is apparently abolishing the very concept of human dominion over nature while continuing to enjoy oat milk imported across the Pacific Ocean aboard diesel-powered cargo ships.
The contradictions are so massive they ought to have their own ZIP code. The same activists who believe cattle branding is barbaric somehow have no problem outsourcing all food production to industrial systems thousands of miles away. The same people denouncing ranchers — people who actually raise and care for livestock — often speak as though groceries emerge spontaneously under fluorescent lighting in upscale organic markets. One increasingly suspects many PEACE Act supporters genuinely believe hamburgers originate naturally from compost bins behind artisan coffee shops.
Perhaps the funniest detail of all is that many of the measure’s own backers openly admit they do not necessarily expect it to pass immediately. The goal, they explain, is to “shift public consciousness.” In other words: “Yes, we understand this sounds completely insane right now, but if we repeat it loudly enough for a decade, eventually exhausted suburban professionals and university administrators will pretend it’s reasonable.”
That strategy has become the defining feature of modern activist politics. Propose something absurd. Get mocked. Repeat it constantly. Wait for corporations, HR departments, and nervous politicians to slowly normalize it out of sheer fatigue. The PEACE campaign itself sounds less like a grassroots movement and more like a deleted subplot from Portlandia. One can easily imagine clipboard-wielding volunteers sprinting through farmers markets asking bewildered pedestrians whether they’d like to criminalize crabbing “in pursuit of interspecies justice.”
Meanwhile, somewhere in eastern Oregon, a fourth-generation rancher hears about this proposal and immediately develops blood pressure levels capable of powering a hydroelectric dam.
The economic consequences alone would be catastrophic. Hunting and fishing industries worth billions would evaporate overnight. Agricultural communities would be devastated. Rural Oregon would collapse under the weight of policies designed primarily by people whose closest interaction with livestock involves naming the sourdough starter in their apartment kitchen. Oregon would ultimately end up importing enormous quantities of meat from out of state while congratulating itself for achieving moral enlightenment. It is luxury-belief politics at its purest: affluent urban activists experimenting with utopian theories while working-class rural communities absorb the consequences.
Still, perhaps critics are being unfair. Maybe the PEACE Act truly is visionary. Maybe Portland really is the future. Given current trajectories, one can easily imagine the city unveiling its next groundbreaking initiative within the decade: The Dignity for Vegetables Act. Under the proposal, carrots may no longer be uprooted without informed consent. Potatoes will receive trauma counseling prior to harvest. Salad preparation becomes a Class B felony. Citizens caught grilling mushrooms without a permit will be sentenced to restorative justice seminars facilitated by unemployed theater majors.
By 2032, Portland residents may survive entirely on ethically sourced air and emotional validation.
At that point, the tourism campaign practically writes itself: Visit Portland: Where Reality Comes to Die.
At some point, Oregon voters must decide whether they still inhabit a functioning state or whether the entire place has become a sociology experiment conducted by sleep-deprived graduate students with unlimited access to nonprofit funding. Because when a proposal criminalizing fishing, ranching, and ordinary pet ownership gathers six figures’ worth of signatures, that is no longer merely activism.
It is performance art with legal paperwork.
And if this measure actually reaches the ballot, it may serve as the strongest evidence yet that Portland is no longer governed by elected officials at all, but by a sentient Tumblr account experiencing a prolonged manic episode.
In case you missed it this week, President Trump announced his intent to nominate Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche to the permanent position.
The House Committee on Appropriations approved the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Fiscal 2027 spending bill. Among the industry priorities, a prohibition of funds from being used to ban traditional ammunition absent sound scientific evidence, as well as blocking the use of funds to limit fishing and hunting on federal lands for reasons other than public safety.
He was one of us…until he wasn’t…but he won’t be a U.S. House of Representatives member…Gun control activist Ryan Busse lost his latest try for public office, this time in Montana’s Democratic primary for the House Seat of current U.S. Representative (and former Interior Secretary) Ryan Zinke.…the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms has added the Chicago White Sox baseball team to their “Don’t Feed Them” list because White Sox were supporting Everytown for Gun Safety and other gun control groups on “Gun Violence Awareness Day.” The CCRKBAnow has 200 companies and their CEOs on “Don’t Feed Them” list.
Despite being anti-gun, Oregon Governor Tina Kotek has voiced her opposition to Initiative Petition 28, a ballot proposal that would erase legal protections for regulated outdoor activities, including hunting. Gov. Kotek saysthe measure risks criminalizing many “common agricultural practices” and seeks to penalize “the Oregonians to feed us.”
In the business world, West Marine’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy reformation plan was unveiled, with the company naming 34 locations scheduled to begin “Store Closing Sales” on June 11. West said the closures were necessary business decisions to keep the company going….not sure what’s ahead for Aero Precision, Ballistic Advantage, Stag Arms and VG6, but the outlook’s not good. According to the Aero Precision instagram account, they are “currently operating through a receivership process while a transition to new ownership is underway.” The same post also acknowledges that production and fulfillment are “currently moving at a slower pace than we would like…”
And as if we didn’t have enough to be worried about…the New World screwworm is back. Texas and the USDA announced preventative measures to halt the spread of the flesh-eating fly larvae. Thought to have been eliminated in 1982 via the Sterile Insect Technique (SIT), five cases were reported across Texas this week. Reducing the wild NWS population is a slow process. The USDAestimates the cost of an outbreak to be $1.9 billion annually for Texas alone.
In California, the trial of an Uber driver accused of starting the Pacific Palisades fires that destroyed more than 6,000 structures began on Wednesday. If/when convicted, Johnathan Rinderknecht, 30, faces up to 45 years in prison.
And… no resolution of the U.S./Iran hostilities. As the conflict passed the 100-day mark, U.S. inflation rose 4.2 percent to reflect the economic uncertainty those hostilities have caused. And as the week drew to a close, hostilities resumed.
Finally...SpaceX debuted as a public company yesterday. It is now the 6th largest public company in the United States behind Nvidia, Alphabet, Apple, Microsoft, and Amazon. We can all remember fondly the "good old days" when Elon Musk was only worth a paltry $800 billion...it was last Thursday.
The week ahead is shaping up to be another tumultuous one. No financial drama like last week’s SpaceX public launch, but the issues that remain (inflation, oil uncertainty, stagnant housing market, etc.)should suffice to keep us all on edge.
As the New World Screwworm outbreak spreads, officials in Texas and the USDA are working to contain the pest. Meanwhile, everyone — from boaters to RV travelers — are being warned to take steps to protect themselves and their pets from the pest. The USDA is working on treatments, preventatives and response strategies, including better traps and lures, assessing possible e-beam and radiation technology and creation of a sterile insect dispersal facility to be located on Moore Air Force base in south Texas.
And the heat may inadvertently be on for more than a million Jeep owners. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is warning owners of certain 2021–2025 Jeep Wrangler and Gladiator vehicles to park outside and away from buildings or other vehicles until a recall repair is completed. The issue involves an electrical connection in the electric hydraulic power steering pump wiring. It has the potential to overhead and cause a fire, even with the vehicle turned off. The NHTSA is aware of fifty-one fires and one injury related to the vehicles.
The court fights seemingly never end…especially if they involve gun rights. Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon is headed to court with suits against anti-gun measures in Virginia, Colorado and Washington, D.C.
AAG Dhillon says the suits are part of a larger strategy that she hopes will result in a definitive ruling on the 2A by the Supreme Court that makes it clear “AR-15s and similar semi-automatic rifles that are popular and sought for use by law-abiding citizens” are legal, “making it very clear and striking down contrary laws around the country.” Not good news for anti-gun legislators like U.S. Representative Bonnie Watson (D-NJ) . She has just introduced a suppressor ban bill. Watson’s Help Empower Americans to Respond (HEAR) Act, H.R. 9208, seeks to ban the importation, sale, manufacture, transfer and possession of suppressors.
Anti-gun legislators apparently don’t care about the costs, legal and otherwise, but Virginia Governor Abigail Spangenberger and the Virginia Assembly have driven another company out of the state. Georgia Governor Brian Kemp has announced that Rideout Arsenal, formerly a Virginia Company, is moving to Thomasville, Georgia. They’re bringing a $22 million investment and 120 jobs with them.
