I tested the best power banks and the model that won best overall was the Anker Powercore Slim 10,000 mAh. It will fully charge a phone twice and it’s the perfect size to keep in your pocket or a backpack. At just under $25 it’s also a great value.
By the time Christmas rolls around, deer season is on its way out and hunters are turning their eyes toward spring turkey. Whether you’re shopping for a seasoned turkey hunter or someone new to hunting gobblers a great gift is always a turkey call. Woodhaven makes beautiful custom calls, but one of the best to give as a gift is their Cluck ‘n Purr Pot because it’s a call that a turkey hunter likely won’t have and one they’ll readily use to call in call-shy toms.
I love hunting gear that you can use in the field and in everyday life and the Kuiu Gila LS Hoodie fits that role perfectly. I used my Gila Hoodie while fishing, co*peting in archery, and at the beach for sun protection this summer and then used it for early season hunting in the fall. The UPF 50+ kept my skin from burning and the sweat-wicking material kept my co*fortable in 90 percent humidity.
When hunters aren’t in the woods, it’s still nice to wear technical clothing made by great brands. The Canyon Shirt Jacket is a light jacket from a premium hunting clothing co*pany that’s perfect for wearing out to dinner or around town. It makes a great gift because it’s something a hunter wouldn’t necessarily buy for themselves, but would love to own and appreciate.
If you look at books available at major retailers, you won’t find many options for kids who like hunting and fishing. That’s what inspired author, Josh Ishmael, to write a series of kid’s books for outdoor families. Deer Hunting with Dad follows the journey of a young hunter tagging along with dad on hunt and is both educational and entertaining. You’ll also find a turkey hunting and catfishing book in the same series. At under $15, these books are a great gift for new parents or kids that love the outdoors.
The Benchmade Bugout is one of the best pocket knives, and it makes a great gift for hunters. The knife is available in a ton of colors and material options, which make the price vary from around $150 to $550. You can also order a custom one with different color handles, engraving, and handle materials. Whether you choose the $150 dollar version or the titanium and super steel $550 offering, you’re going to give someone a knife they will have for the rest of their lives and carry daily, as well as on their outdoor adventures. Now that’s a great, and memorable, gift.
As anyone who’s into long-range shooting knows, over the years our rifles have gotten longer while our gun cases have failed to keep pace.
Pelican has addressed that with the 1755 Air Long Case, which has an interior length of 55-inches giving it enough room to handle the oversized co*petition rifles that are par for the course in PRS, NRL and ELR matches. Even for hunting rifles that sport longer barrels and muzzle devices like suppressors have enough breathing room to be co*fortable in the 1755.
The case is built to Pelican’s standards for toughness and durability, but is surprisingly light at 25 pounds.
It has high-quality locking latches, wheels and handles for smooth transport, and co*es with a latching system to attach Molle co*patible panels. These panels let you outfit the case to store all the extras that are a part of precision rifle shooting: bipods, optics, range finders, Kestrel, etc.
Given the cost of a full-blown precision rifle rig, a case like the 1755 is as no-brainer investment.
-John B. Snow
Like a pocket knife, flashlights get used year round for hunters. From finding the way to a hunting spot to taking the dogs for a walk, hunters use flashlights year round. One of the best flashlights for everyday carry is the Streamlight Wedge. It has a slim profile for carrying in a pocket, it’s extremely bright, and it’s rechargeable, everything a hunter needs in a good flashlight.
Product Description
The OL team has been testing power stations for outdoor use for a while now and we’ve been consistently impressed with how well the Jackery’s models perform. They are intuitive to use, reliable, and use cables that are more co*mon (and thus interchangeable) than other brands. During long-term and cold-weather testing it’s also impressed with how well it’s held a charge. Their Explorer 300 model is a great choice for hunters looking for an extra boost of power to store in their truck or at a base camp. Its 293Wh (watt hours) is more than enough to keep phones, cameras, and even laptops charged for multiple days, while still being light enough and small enough to not overwhelm the rest of your kit. Pair it with a Jackery SolarSaga 100 (one of our best solar panels for camping) for continuous off-grid power.
Ground venison is one of the most versatile, and delicious, ways to process venison. Let me tell you that from my experience, manual or stand mixer attachments do not work well and are way more work than they’re worth. A powerful unit like Cabela’s Heavy Duty Meat Grinder is the perfect solution and it’s also a sausage stuffer and jerky gun. If you know a hunter that loves to process their own meat, this is a great gift and it’s likely to result in thank you gifts in the form of sausage, jerky, or ground meat.
Outdoor Life recently co*pleted a test of the best cellular trail cameras and the Moultrie Mobile Edge won the best for the money award. For $100, you get a camera that remotely sends high-quality photos to the owner’s phone and it even works in spotty cell service. Trail cameras are fun and useful tools for hunters and every deer hunter needs at least one more in their arsenal.
I tested all of the best crossbows this year, and the best crossbow for the money was the Centerpoint Wrath 430. It has top-tier accuracy and technology for under $1,000. I co*pletely understand that the price tag is still steep, but in my experience cheap crossbows will leave you wanting.
I tested the best recurve bows this year and the best for beginners is the Samick Sage. At around $150 it offers a lot of performance for the money. And as an archer progresses it’s easy for them to buy new limbs for the bow to increase their draw weight.
Here’s another pick from an Outdoor Life gear test. Turkey hunters need a vest to hold their calls at the ready, carry turkeys out of the woods, and give them a co*fortable seat to wait out hung up toms. We picked the Redhead Classic II as the best turkey vest for the money because of its rich feature set and sub $50 price tag.