Salt Lake City, Utah- In just one week, the Mule Deer Foundation and Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife’s 2018 Western Hunting & Conservation Expo (Hunt Expo) will open and this year’s show will be bigger and better than ever. Hunt Expo, sponsored by Ammo & More and ACI, is held in the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City, Utah and opens at 10 am on Thursday, February 8. For the next four days, until the show closes at 4 pm on Sunday, February 11, attendees can visit the more than 400 exhibiting companies throughout the 500,000 square feet of exhibit space. Evening entertainment at the ticketed banquets will feature speeches by Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke, Bass Pro Founder Johnny Morris, and entertainment by country musicians Ned Ledoux, Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives, and Sara Evans.
“Hunt Expo is the foremost event for the avid hunter in the West. Not only does it offer the opportunity to buy the latest and greatest outdoor equipment or book your dream hunting expedition, but it also offers the chance to buy or draw some of the most coveted tags in the country,” noted Mule Deer Foundation president/CEO, Miles Moretti. “But most importantly it is our annual convention and all of the money raised from tag sales and auctions supports our conservation mission for the coming year.”
One of the highlights of Hunt Expo are the 200 tags featuring some of the most prized and “once-in-a-lifetime” Utah hunts available to resident and non-resident hunters. For just $5 per hunt unit application fee, Hunt Expo attendees can apply for these premium tags which are drawn two weeks after the show closes. In addition, theevening auctions will feature governor’s tags in several western states, the tags for Utah’s famed Antelope Island and Henry Mountain, and numerous other exceptional opportunities. This year will also be the first time in more than twenty years that a permit to hunt on the Heaton Ranch in the Paunsaugunt unit will be sold at auction. The 2018 Auction Catalog is available now and buyers who are unable to attend the banquets in person can sign up for online bidding.
Although big game hunting has always been a focus, Hunt Expo has never been just about big game and a new event at this year’s Hunt Expo proves just that. The 2018 Great Salt Lake Waterfowl Calling Championships will be held on Saturday, February 10 with a variety of duck and goose calling contests going on throughout the day. Onsite registration will be held starting at 8 am with the junior duck contest starting at 8:30 am. Prizes across the various categories total more than $15,000 in cash and prizes.
Hunt Expo is always a family friendly event with the extra wide aisles making it easier to push a stroller or herd a group of kids. Of course, those kids will need something to keep them busy and the Youth Wildlife Conservation Experience is just the thing with indoor shooting opportunities as well as plenty of interactive youth activities. And don’t forget to buy a chance to win a M.U.L.E.Y. rifle and pick up M.U.L.E.Y. antlers for all the kids. For the ladies, the ever popular Ladies Luncheonthemed Western Nights and City Lights, will be held on Friday, February 9 with doors opening at 11 am; tickets are still available.
“We know that Hunt Expo is the top consumer sportsmen’s show in the West and we are excited to keep growing and offering new things,” commented Troy Justensen, president of Sportsmen for Fish & Wildlife. “If you haven’t yet made your plans to attend the 2018 show, there’s only one week left to make your travel arrangements – I can promise you won’t regret the decision to come!”
The schedule of events, online registration, and the details of auctions, tags, and seminars are available on the WHCE website at www.huntexpo.com.
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About MDF
The Mule Deer Foundation is the only conservation group in North America dedicated to restoring, improving and protecting mule deer, black-tailed deer, and their habitat, with a focus on science and program efficiency. MDF is a strong voice for hunters in access, wildlife management, and conservation policy issues. MDF acknowledges regulated hunting as a viable management component and is committed to recruitment and retention of youth into the shooting sports and conservation. Get involved at www.muledeer.org or call 1-888-375-3337.
About SFW
Headquartered in North Salt Lake, Utah, Sportsmen for Fish & Wildlife is a charitable, non-profit 501(c)(3) organization. The mission of SFW is to promote the protection and enhancement of wildlife habitat, assist in providing quality wildlife management programs, educating the public about the role hunters play in wildlife conservation, and perpetuating the family tradition of hunting and fishing. Visit www.sfw.net or call 801-936-1386.
Contact: Miles Moretti, (801) 230-2207, miles@muledeer.org
Troy Justensen, (801) 557-3352, troy@sfw.net