Rain-soaked though it may have been, last weekend's inagural Western Sportsman & BC Outdoors Salmon Fishing Derby was a huge success!

Held at Shearwater Resort & Marina , in Shearwater, BC, about 25 brave souls ventured out in a classic West Coast Summer storm to troll for chinook and coho and jig for halibut.

The result? Coho to 17 pounds, chinook to 25 pounds and halibut all the way to a monster

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So you've got the fish, game or birds — now what?

Western Sportsman is about to turn everyone into an outdoor gourmet, with the announcement of the pre-order availability of our first-ever cookbook, "Cooking in the Rough."

"Cooking in the Rough" will feature over 175 recipes for Western Canadian fish, game, birds and native plants , along with numerous tips and advice that range from aging meat to

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Hello Western Sportsman readers.

I'll make this one quick — your favourite outdoors magazine, Western Sportsman, has received a dose of national recognition. We've been nominated for two Canadian Newsstand Marketing awards. These awards recognize the best newsstand magazines in the country — other nominated magazines include bigwigs like Macleans, Elle Canada, a certain not-to-be-named

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It's been a long time coming, but we finally have Western Sportsman magazine's blog up and running! Thanks for stopping by to read — keep checking back, I will be updating it regularly with news, views, events and more; everything that pertains to the outdoor world in Western Canada. In fact, you can even subscribe to this blog, and be notified of any updates.

It's not a bad idea to sign up, as in the future we'll use this blog to mention upcoming special events and even some great contests and giveaways.

There's a great deal happening these days in Western Canada. From extremely controversial events, such as the massive CWD cull in east-central Alberta (pick up the May/June issue to read more on that), to the Open Spaces Alberta pilot project in southern Alberta; to the real reasons we go outside -- the fun stuff. Personally, I am eagerly awaiting the opening of fishing season in northern Alberta. I've got a few honey holes for sturgeon on the North Saskatchewan River I can't wait to try (for more on that, pick up the July/August issue), among others.

In fact -- there are two fishing trips this year I'm particularly excited to take. The first, in early August, is a salmon trip with the Better Half.OK, maybe I'm feeling a bit more uneasy than excited. I've never fished with Her before. I'll keep you posted.

The second is an adventure into a part of Canada few of us ever think of heading into: the Arctic. In partnership with Tourism Nunavut and Plummer's Arctic Lodges, I'll be experiencing angling 160 km north of the Arctic Circle, for the ferocious Arctic char. You can find out all about this trip -- and how to make it a reality for yourself -- in the Jan/Feb 2009 issue of Western Sportsman.

In fact, there is a lot exciting to come. From our July/August issue's special Hunting Gear Roundup, where we intensely review 15 essential items, to the Special Hunting Edition in September, where we have a detailed big game forecast and hunter/animal number breakdown in every management unit in Western Canada -- make sure you don't miss an issue.

Thanks for stopping by. Talk to you soon.

David Webb, editor Western Sportsman

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