Another one in the books. I suspect that the nature of my business model is similar to a football coach's, regarding the annual cycle of activities, spending much of the year preparing for our ramped up fall schedule, working through the grind of weekly challenges, knowing there will be some disappointments, but relishing the moments of success and looking forward to the highs associated with seeing things come together. In reality, our schedule at WSI is not as pronounced as it once was, in terms of how much is weighted toward the fall season, as we have hunting and wildlife activities a bit more scattered through the course of the year, but the crescendo of our late-year schedule is enough to pacify most adrenaline junkies, I assure you.  

The 2012 year, as a whole is what I'll describe as a relatively good rebound year from the harsh realities of 2011, where Texas witnessed our worst drought on record, punctuated by some millions of acres of wildfires around the state. This past season saw some decent rains across much of the state, although there were some areas of lower south Texas, as well as parts of North Texas, that missed many of these timely rains. None the less, for WSI and the majority of our hunters, it was a pretty darn good year.  

Early January is my least favorite time of the year, as it is a busy and confusing point of time in trying to wrap up the previous year, while putting things back together at the same time; at times, I don't know if I'm coming or going. However, once we get to about the third week of the month, it seems as though we are generally at a stage where we can become focused on the new year, and things tend to have better clarity by then.  

I'm looking forward to 2013. Certain areas of the state have received some decent January moisture, which is a bonus in these parts. Business is off to a brisk pace, our Texas economy is vibrant, and Texas A&M will be returning Johnny "Football" Manziel......what else could a guy ask for?  

Peace Out,

Greg Simons, Proprietor of WSI

Spring Turkey Season Around the Corner

For those of you who have never experienced hunting gobblers during the spring in Texas, when birds are thundering their beckoning calls to prospective mates, and wild flowers are in bloom, well, let's just say you're missing something special. 

We still have some openings on a few of our turkey properties for any of you who would like to sneak in a late March or April hunt. Our Chaparrosa Ranch hunt, with fantastic lodge and pool area provides a unique blend of being able to take a gobbler, hog, and javelina all on the same hunt. This huge property in South Texas, near Crystal City, has many miles of creek bottoms and lots of wildlife. This 3 day, 3 night package is priced at $1595.  

The historic H. Yturria Ranches in the Lower Rio Grande Valley area is home to an abundance of turkeys, and when you combine a very nice camp setting, with lots of other wildlife, and some South Texas Mexican Cuisine, you have a recipe for a fun time at a great destination. This 2.5 day hunt is $1175 which includes 2x1 guide, meals, lodging, and 1 bird, with an option on a second bird for an additional $525. We still have room for couple of more hunters.

At this time, we also have availability for 3-4 hunters on an unassisted hunt in West Texas near Sanderson. This 3 day package includes housing in a modest facility, a large ranch to hunt, and you can harvest up to two birds each. Price is $795, plus an additional fee for someone to meet and show you around, getting you familiar with the property. 

Payment Policy

Please be reminded that on any hunts that are fixed price hunts, where total amount of hunting fees are already established, balance payments are due 30 days prior to the hunt. As is stated in our Booking Agreements, hunters who fail to meet these obligations, potentially run the risk of having their hunts cancelled, forfeiting their already paid deposits as liquidated damages.

Also very important, on those hunts where there are fees due at time of hunt, such as trophy fees on exotic hunts, balance must be paid in cash, cashier's check, or credit card prior to departure. All credit card charges are assessed a 3% upcharge on amount being charged.

Not Too Early to Schedule Your Whitetail Hunt

As many of you know, WSI has long been one of the "go-to" outfitters in the state when it comes to white-tailed deer hunting. We have numerous properties in which we schedule hunts, with varying prices and options to consider. Our properties vary from large, extensively managed low fenced places, to intensive high-fenced programs. We have open-ended Trophy Hunts to more economical restricted hunts, where you can receive excellent value for your dollar. These are great hunts for friends, parent/child hunts, as well as excellent corporate events where everyone sees plenty of game.

Our bookings are already at a steady pace, so give us a call and we'll discuss our options with you, to try and match you with what is best suited for your taste and budget. 

For an extra fee, WSI does provide airport shuttle on some hunts, but not on all of our hunts. On all far West Texas hunts for mule deer and aoudad sheep, as well as our New Mexico antelope hunts, we do not offer shuttle services, so clients attending any of those hunts will need to rent a vehicle if they choose to fly.

Also, and very importantly, we only offer shuttles for an additional fee if our clients can schedule their flights in/out of our recommended time slots. Due to the nature of how we are scattered in many areas, with little support help in some locations, the logistics and constraints that we face often make it difficult for us to coordinate these shuttles when things are not synchronized or coordinated properly. It is our goal to help make your travel as seamless as possible, and one way we can often accomplish this is to have you simply rental a vehicle, which provides you with a degree of flexibility on the front and tail-end of the trip.

Ruben Cantu and Greg Simons Join Forces

Retired Texas Parks & Wildlife Department biologist Ruben Cantu, and WSI owner Greg Simons, have recently merged their talents to form a new wildlife consulting business, Wildlife Consultants, LLC. Together, they combine almost 60 years of active experience in the wildlife field.

Ruben is a certified wildlife biologist, with a BS and MS degree from Texas A&M University, Kingsville, in Range and Wildlife Sciences, and has worked with over 200 landowners managing in excess of 2,000,000 acres in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Mexico. He has previous employment experience with NRCS as a rangeland specialist, and most recently served as District Supervisor for TPWD in the western portion of Texas. Ruben is past president of Texas Chapter of The Wildlife Society, past Executive Committee member of Texas Wildlife Society, and is a member of several other groups and has served on many different relevant committees. He has authored and co-authored several different wildlife related publications, and has given seminars and speaking engagements at many functions across Texas and much of the western U.S. In 2010, Ruben was recognized as the Outstanding Alumnus from the Dick and Mary Kleberg College of Agriculture at Texas A&M, and also received the prestigious Sam Beasom Conservation Leader Award from Texas Wildlife Association in 2012.

Wildlife Consultants will initially focus on assisting landowners with population surveys, management plans, enterprise plans, and other wildlife-related needs. Additionally, this company will assimilate into a host of other needs that are oriented at helping to manage and conserve our important wildlife resources in Texas, and elsewhere. The company's website will be live within the next few weeks; more details to come.