The South Carolina Outdoor Press Association gathered in Lake Murray Country for their annual conference and banquet Oct. 4 – 7. During the banquet, the organization named their Excellence in Craft award winners, which are listed here:
Best outdoor Blog
1: Brian Carroll “Santee Cooper Life” https://santeecooperlife.com/
2: Mike Watts “Rivers and Feathers” https://riversandfeathers.com/
Best Outdoor Audio
1: Pete Rogers “Christian Outdoors Podcast: Episode 176, Turn Your Life Around” https://www.christianoutdoors.org/?s=Turn+your+life+around
2: Brian Cope “New State Record fish and CWD impact on Carolina hunters”
3: Brian Cope “ Is North Carolina’s elk population native to the state?” https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/is-north-carolinas-elk-population-native-to-the-state/id1499066317?i=1000593029918
Best Outdoor Book
1: Whit Gibbons, “Salleyland: Wildlife Adventures in Swamps, Sandhills, and Forests” https://www.uapress.ua.edu/9780817360641/salleyland/
2: Jim Casada “Lords of the Veldt & Vlei” https://www.sportingclassicsstore.com/collections/africa/products/lords-of-the-veldt-vlei-deluxe-edition
3: Jim Mize “The Jon Boat Years” https://uscpress.com/The-Jon-Boat-Years
Bob Glendy Award (Best Fishing Story)
Jim Casada “A Murderer as a Mentor: The Strange Saga of Old Al” https://blindpigandtheacorn.com/a-murderer-as-a-mentor-the-strange-saga-of-old-al/
Terry Madewell Award (Best Hunting Story)
Jim Casada “Fred Selous: Heart of Steel” https://sportingclassicsdaily.com/fred-selous-heart-of-steel/
Best Magazine Story (1000 words or less)
1: Jim Casada “Memories of Butchering Hogs” https://www.smliv.com/api/amp/food/memories-of-butchering-hogs-an-excerpt/
2: Pete Rogers “Smaller is Better in the Muzzleloading world” Minnesota Deer Hunter Association Magazine (Winter 2022)
3: Terry Madewell “Beat the Mid Summer Blues” https://www.carolinasportsman.com/fishing/freshwater-fishing/catfish/beat-the-midsummer-blues-by-catfishing-at-night/
Best Magazine Story (Over 1000 words)
1: Terry Madewell “Santee’s Springtime Slabs” https://www.carolinasportsman.com/fishing/freshwater-fishing/crappie-bream/santees-springtime-slabs/
2: Cindy Thompson “Land of the Pines” South Carolina Wildlife Magazine July/August 2022
3: Cindy Thompson “A River Reborn” South Carolina Wildlife Magazine March/April 2023
Best Outdoor Newspaper Article
1: Whit Gibbons “Corn Snakes make colorful windshield wipers” http://archive-srel.uga.edu/outreach/ecoviews/ecoview230521.htm
2: Whit Gibbons “Okeefenokee Joe” https://www.tuscaloosanews.com/story/opinion/columns/2023/01/21/okefenokee-joe-was-a-great-naturalist-ecoviews/69810413007/
3: Josh Lanier “Wanderlust” https://greercitizen.com/sports/wanderlust
Best Electronic Publishing Story
1: Larry Chesney “No fishing in your pajamas” https://riversandfeathers.com/no-fishing-in-your-pajamas/
2: Jim Casada “Did you ever?” https://www.smliv.com/api/amp/stories/a-look-back-at-the-mountain-past/
3: Corey Hunt “Simple 7’s: Fishing Glacier National Park” (no link available)
Best Conference Site Story
1: Terry Madewell “Take a Swipe at Stripers” https://www.carolinasportsman.com/fishing/freshwater-fishing/striper-freshwater-fishing/deep-thinking-for-santee-stripers/
2: Larry Chesney “Slow Drifting for Spring Cats” https://www.carolinasportsman.com/fishing/freshwater-fishing/catfish/slow-drifting-for-spring-cats/
3: Jim Mize “Almost a fly fishing story” https://riversandfeathers.com/almost-a-fly-fishing-story/
