Gift ideas plentiful for area sportsmen Hachey’s wooden desk sets among items

If you have a sportsman or outdoor-oriented woman on your holiday shopping list, there are only two weeks left to buy the perfect Christmas gift. This can be a daunting task since most Pine Tree anglers, hunters, campers and boaters with more than a couple of years into their sport have a fair-size inventory of gear and equipment already. Experienced gift buyers (read this as family who have been burned with wrong choices in the past) often ask for a wish list to prevent duplication, wrong shape, size and color, and items that just aren’t needed. I have a few gift suggestions for various outdoor endeavors that are unique, beneficial, enjoyable and most of all functional.

The write stuff

Many salmon anglers and fly tyers throughout Maine will recognize the name Galen Hachey. Hachey’s Rod and Fly Shop in Veazie is renowned for hand-built rods, professionally tied flies for trout to tarpon and salmon to sailfish, and hand- dyed feathers and fur for tying all shapes, sizes and styles of flies. In the last few years Galen has gotten into crating exceptionally elegant reel seats, from exotic woods, which he now ships all over the world.

Over the last year Hachey has taken his talents in design and woodworking to a new level creating a series of exquisite pens and mechanical pencils with striking wood grain highlights. Writing tools are composed of barrels in a wide variety of shades and colorations, lacquered with a mar-proof finish and appointed with gold accoutrements. Pen and pencil sets can often be built from the same piece of wood, but in most cases the ornate wood pattern and shading are unique to each writing tool.

Recently Hachey has gone a step further with his designer woodworking and created paperweights, pen holders, and desk sets of two pens or a matching pen and pencil set. Once seen, every fly fisherman will covet one of these distinctive desk-top displays, and owners will enjoy their piece of art daily while viewers offer compliments and envious stares. Every design is one of a kind due to the unique wood comprising the base and each pen or pencil, but more so because of the large, breathtaking fly that is the centerpiece. Classic, field-dressed salmon flies on size 6/0 Bartleet hooks are the most popular selection, but buyers can choose any dry, wet or saltwater pattern they desire.

Each hand-tied, vividly colored fly rests on a white, cushioned background. The glass-covered display port is either round or oval shaped and centered on each eye-catching Hachey desktop creation. If there’s a favorite fisherman on your Christmas list who deserves a special present, stop by or call Hachey’s Rod and Fly Shop in Veazie at 207-945-9648. Go on line to www.mainelypens.com to view the pens, pencils and flyscape desk sets available in all their breathtaking beauty. Pens and mechanical pencils cost $35 to $65, and fly centerpiece desk sets start at $300.

Sound investment

While we are on the subject of great gift ideas handcrafted from wood, let met tell you about the best-sounding Canada goose call I’ve heard in years. The Feather Duster goose call offers loud realistic hail or comeback calls to get the attention of distant flocks of honkers, and the next minute can issue low, guttural moans and contented clucks and lay-down sounds. And if audio isn’t enough, Feather Duster calls are constructed from handsomely grained wood, attractively stained and lacquered for an enduring, weatherproof finish.

Chris Davies of East Grand Forks, Minn., has been a fanatic goose hunter since old enough to carry a shotgun, and could never find a call that offered a full range of realistic sounds. Flute calls were easy to blow but had limited range and tones while short reed calls were more versatile, but difficult to master and required both hands to produce the full range of calls. With father-in-law Larry Kouba creating and operating special tools, dies and machines to form wood and plastic components, the two spent more than a year creating and fine-tuning the Feather Duster.

This dymondwood/acrylic call is built to last, yet offers superior range, tone, pitch and volume with the added advantage of ease of use. Comfortable to hold, the length of the call in combination with a custom shaved-reed system yields moderate backpressure when blown that allows even a novice to sound authentic. The system that secures the reed and a special tone chamber allows the call to easily “break” between high and low notes, and be used with only one hand, but still produces maximum volume and steady pitch.

Each Feather Duster call is hand-tuned before shipping and available colors include oak, ruby and camo. Cost is $90 and shipping is free, but hunter interest across the U.S. has skyrocketed so supplies are limited. Call Chris Davies at 701-388-3986 to order and ask questions, or go online to www.featherdustercalls.com to view colors and actually hear an audio track of this great goose call, the last one you’ll ever need.

Hot hands

To hold and manipulate a goose call, safely handle a gun or to effectively set up ice fishing rigs a sportsman must have warm, flexible fingers, which is a perfect transition to our next gift idea. Mossy Oak apparel has come up with a set of gloves that may well be the best all- season, all-sport option on the market today. Pinnacle gloves offer more outstanding features than a month at the movies.

Pinnacles are actually a 3-in- 1 unit with a heavier outer shell and a lighter inner liner. Depending on temperature and conditions a sportsman can choose to wear just the outer shell, just the inner liner or both layers at once. Soft, flexible and breathable Thinsulate offers extreme insulation and warmth without bulk or extra weight. These gloves also feature Vaportex, a moisture management system exclusive to Mossy Oak that disperses and exchanges hand perspiration to maintain comfortable, warm and dry hands. Torrent APX is the final built-in technology, offering the highest level of breathable waterproof and windproof protection to the wearer in the harshest conditions.

Other beneficial features of Pinnacle gloves include a colorfast Break Up camo color in a quiet, durable brushed fabric, snug cuffs to keep elements out and single hand-cord locks to loosen or tighten fit with one pull. Precisely placed suede on the palm gripping surface and cuffs assures a nonslip grip, and slightly curved, fabric-lined fingers assure fit and dexterity for trigger, safety and archery manipulations. Priced at $40 per pair, that’s a lot of glove for not much money.

Pinnacle gloves can be checked out on line at www.mossyoakapparel.com or call 1-800-331-5624 for more information or to request a catalog.

Safety first

For years I have put together my own survival/first-aid kits and have made a practice to carry these compact packs on all outdoor excursions – just in case. Then this year I discovered the BOLS (Basic Outdoor Life Sustainment) kits, the innovative idea of Tim Stutz, while serving with the army in Colorado Springs, and my homemade versions became obsolete. Outdoor-oriented people all expose themselves to chance of injury from a minor cut or burn to a major, life-threatening accident, so it’s always better to have a survival kit and not need it than to really need one and not have it.

BOLS kits are composed only of top-quality products based on years of Tim’s outdoor experience, input from several search and rescue units, and a great deal of intensive research and field testing. Each and every item has been selected for its durability, longevity and usefulness. There are six versions of BOLS kits, each categorized by weight, size and ingredients. At 7.4 ounces and measuring 4 by 6 inches, the SOLO is the basic BOLS kit and sells for $35.99, while the top of the line GUIDE kit is 10 by 12 inches, weight 2 pounds, 7 ounces, and is priced at $99.99.

BOLS SOLO pack has 17 items while the high-end GUIDE unit holds 30 products, each in a sturdy, compact zipper case. I selected the 6 by 8, 1 pound, 2-ounce EXPLORER for $46.99 for my outdoor forays. Among its 21 components are a folding Gerber knife, 20 feet of nylon rope, a 6 by 9 plastic tarp, an emergency blanket, Suunto compass, whistle, signal mirror, toilet paper, Pulsar light, waterproof matches, water bag, and purification tablets, a survival manual and more than a dozen first aid products.

Any outdoorsman who rides a snowmobile or ATV; kayaks or canoes; or hunts, fishes or camps; should carry one of these compact, well-stocked survival and first-aid kits. Check them out on line at www.bolskit.com or call toll-free at 1-877-265-7548 to order one for Christmas.

Portable power

My last gift suggestion is a corker for all traveling sportsmen who often end up stranded far from the nearest service station. Produced by Vector Manufacturing for Black and Decker, the Electromate 400 is a 21-pound portable garage. It is an AC/DC portable power supply, jumpstarter and tire inflator which is cordless and rechargeable. Included with the unit are detachable jumper cables, extendable inflator hose with secure clip, DC vehicle recharge cord and an inflator nozzle adaptor set.

Besides jumpstarting your truck, ATV or boat and filling your flat tire or neglected spare with air, the Electromate 400 checks alternator output, tire pressure on a backlit gauge, powers or recharges DC appliances and provides two 120 volt AC outlets for portable household or camp power. With all of this the mini work station has its own built-in emergency, long-life LED work light. With its built-in 120 V AC rapid charger, the Electromate can recharge or operate camcorders, laptop computers, radios, power tool battery packs, a 13- inch color TV, or a work light. Cell phones, portable car vacs, and portable coolers can be powered with the D.C. output. Whether you have car trouble or just need some extra power for comfort and convenience, B&D’s Electromate 400 is the answer, and sells at an affordable $100. Call Vector Manufacturing to order or for more information on the Electromate 400 or check www.vectormfg.com.

Here’s hoping the jolly old man in the red suit finds your house and leaves some great outdoor toys for big girls and boys under your tree. Merry Christmas to you and yours.

Outdoor feature writer Bill Graves can be reached via e-mail at bgravesoutdoors@ainop.com