Travelogue

If there is one defining characteristic of our family, I would have to say that it is a love of the outdoors and all the wonders it has to offer. Enjoying the outdoors often requires some equipment. As a result, we have a room in our basement affectionately nicknamed Campmor (after a large mail order outdoor outfitter), filled with every conceivable piece of outdoor gear--rock climbing, ice climbing, mountaineering, fishing of every variety, camping, mountain biking, etc., etc. That is why Herb knew that on our drove home on I90, we would be passing a Cabela's in Mitchell, South Dakota. I'm not sure what else we could possibly need, but we decided to stop anyway to break up the long driving day.

Well, apparently we did need something--our poor, deprived sons did not have fly rods. They had caught blues and stripers with their surf rods, bass and trout with their spinning rods, but had not yet had the experience of flailing a fly line and placing a dry fly in front of an unsuspecting trout. They had seen their father's joy in catching a trout with his fly rod in Yellowstone Lake, and now wanted in on the action. At Cabela's they each got a very nice setup for $50, complete with rod, reel, fly line, and case.

Description

Cabela's is the world's foremost outfitter of hunting, fishing, and outdoor gear. It began in 1961 when Dick Cabela ran an ad in a Wyoming newspaper trying to sell hand-tied flies, 12 for $1. From those humble beginnings, Cabela's has grown into an organization with 11 retail stores, a huge mail order and internet business, and 7,000 employees. The founders have kept it a family-owned business and still play a very active role in the organization.