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Tom Keer Earns Prestigious Outdoor Writer Award

Tom's Blog

From the OWAA Headquarters in MISSOULA, Mont. – Wellfleet, Mass. resident Tom Keer earned prestigious Excellence in Craft awards from the Outdoor Writers Association of America, with recognition to be made at OWAA’s annual conference to be held in Lake Placid, N.Y., September 16, 2013.

Keer received three awards. He was awarded first place in the Conservation/Nature category, Magazine contest, which recognizes excellence in communicating articles with an emphasis on successes or challenges within conservation; interesting new discoveries within nature; or a fascinating tale about a creature, plant or ecosystem. His first place submission, “Open Water Catch and Keep?,” was published in the Spring 2012 issue of The Flyfish Journal. The Nature/Conservation contest is sponsored by The Pew Charitable Trusts.

Keer also won two awards in the Blog contest. His submission “National Fishing and Hunting Day: The Cast and Blast,” published Sept. 27, 2012 on TakeMeFishing.org, placed third in the Hunting/Shooting Sports category, which recognizes excellence in communicating hunting for both large and small game, and competitive or recreational shooting, including archery, firearms and other methods. The Hunting/Shooting sports category is sponsored by Crosman Corporation. Keer’s submission “Yes We Have No Bananas,” published Aug. 27, 2012, also on TakeMeFishing,org, placed third in the Blog contest, Humor category which recognizes excellence in communicating humor in outdoor related subjects.

In addition to running his international marketing company, Keer is a widely-published freelance writer and regularly writes for Sporting Classics, Covey Rise, Gray’s Sporting Journal, The Ruffed Grouse Society, Fly Rod and Reel, among others. He is also a columnist for the Upland Almanac, a Contributing Editor for Fly Rod and Reel and a Contributing Editor for Fly Fish America. He’s been a member of OWAA since 2008.

The Outdoor Writers Association of America is the oldest and largest association of professional outdoor communicators in the United States. It was organized in 1927 by members of the Izaak Walton League of America and includes professional communicators dedicated to sharing the outdoor experience. OWAA’s professionals include writers, photographers, outdoors radio and television show hosts, book authors, videographers, lecturers and artists. The association is headquartered in Missoula, Mont. Visit www.owaa.org for more info.

For more information on this award, contact Angela Keer, PO Box 2023, Wellfleet, MA 02667; angela@thekeergroup.com; 508-349-3473.

Notes from the Road – Honey Lake Plantation – The Upland Almanac

Sporting Travel

Quail aficionados are well acquainted with the historic plantation life that rooted in the rolling hills, lakes, rivers, and red clay of the Red Hills region. For over a century, shooters have traveled to the area that encompasses 515 square miles of land in the surrounding Thomasville, Ga., thorugh Tallahassee, Fla., area. A relative newcomer that adds to the region’s already fine patina is North Florida’s Honey Lake Plantation…

May 2013 Dateline: Rhode Island – The Bird Hunting Report

Sporting Travel

Located in the triangle created by Boston, Providence, Rhode island and Hartford, Conn., is Addieville East Farm. The Mapleville, R.I., farm has been a fixture on the sporting scene since it was founded as a private, 460-acre hunt club by Morris Gaebe in the mid-19702. Starting in 1979, his son Geoff applied his watchful eye, expanding the club to 900+ acres and creating an industry-best sporting clays course that plays host to all of the major shooting tournament sin New England. Since Geoff’s death in 2010, his wife Paula has continued his legacy and continues to offer one of the best shooting venues in the United States.

Draped in Spanish Moss – Covey Rise Magazine

Sporting Travel

I have an unparalleled view from my captain’s chair high up on the quail buggy, but I am captivated by the long skeins of Spanish moss draping from a century-old live oak. The combination of a delicate, flowering plant and strapping tree is profound, and when a gust of warm, humid wind blows I’m reminded of a weeping willow in my yard back home.

In the past, Spanish moss was used for insulation, mattress stuffing and voodoo dolls, but now the Tennessee walking horses nick their heads and graze on it as if they were thoroughbreds nibbling bluegrass in Kentucky. Here, however, their worn McClellan-style saddles carry bird hunters instead of jockeys…