Hooked Up

If you’re a fisherman, you need to visit Sportsman’s Warehouse and the reason is simple. They have everything you need for any kind of fishing you’ll ever do. I met the store’s Fishing Manager, Steve Elmgren, he’s a retired fireman who has lived in Southern California and now is making the move to the new store in Visalia. Steve is a bass fisherman through and through and can carry on a pretty decent conversation about our local customs. For example, he knew that the Visalia Bass Club doesn’t hold meetings, something I always thought was unique. He had already met some of the top fishermen in the area and even has some of their trophy fish on display in the store. He even knew about Laser Lure! He’s fished Kaweah Lake more than once in the past month, more than most professed bass fisherman can say. He’s also fished Pine Flat Lake, knows enough to avoid Success Lake, and already knows who’s caught the largest bass in the region and where he should get his hair cut. Best of all, he’s approachable, knowledgeable and friendly.

When you go into Sportman’s Warehouse you’ll find fishing stuff galore. I mean real fishing stuff, from accessories for bass boats, float tubes, rubber worms, bass plugs, jig heads, paint for jigs, to bass fishing books and videos. Trout flies? By the bin, saltwater gear? By the row. Rubber worms of every color, size and brand. I heard one bass fisherman exclaim, “It’s like dying and going to heaven.” Hmmm, that may have been me.

Since fishing was my interest on that particular day, it remained my focus, but there were whole sections of the store devoted to bird shooting, big game hunting, duck hunting, camping, target shooting, and quality men’s and women’s fashion – everything you’d expect to see in one of those bass fishing dream stores. Best of all, it’s our very own bass fishing dream store. Visalia’s Sportsman’s Warehouse. I just like the way that sounds.