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Midwinter Thunderstorm |
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Outfitted with Hardcore gear, Native Thunder Outfitters deliver blue-chip hunting coupled with a memorable experience. |
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By Jay Anglin |
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MUSKEGON, Mich. (January 30, 2025) – Established in 2020, Native Thunder Outfitters is located smack dab in the middle of the Central Flyway near Great Bend, Kansas. Nestled between Quivira National Wildlife Refuge and Cheyenne Bottoms Refuge – two of the most iconic waterfowl magnets in North America – the area is a veritable superhighway and stopping point for millions of migrating ducks and geese annually. The region is also known for outstanding turkey, white-tailed deer, and upland bird hunting opportunities. “I’m from a small town in Georgia, and I’ve always been in love with the outdoors. I wasn’t the kind of kid that could sit in front of the TV, I’d do whatever I could to stay outside,” said Native Thunder owner and guide, Cole Smith. “My dad managed a quail plantation, so I always knew that’s what I wanted to do.” Smith’s first guiding experience was for quail, closer to home, but soon he would end up in the Stuttgart, Arkansas area guiding duck hunts, and he fell in love with it. Like so many guides he continued to explore new gigs in different regions. |
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“I branched out and started guiding waterfowl in Canada, then eventually started doing turkey hunts in Kansas. I discovered how great the hunting was here – the bird numbers were incredible,” Smith said. “I ran 30 clients the first year, and we tagged 30 turkeys. The next year I was 50 for 50 guiding turkeys.” Smith credits his success to having spent time with other outfitters who inspired and helped him better understand the business. These mentors coupled with his broad range of guide experience helped him hone-in on what he thought the ideal outfitter business should be. “I started Native Thunder with a nice lodge that served great food. So many outfitters don’t focus on the overall experience, and I started this one with the idea that the client’s experience matters. As soon as they walk through the door of the lodge that experience begins,” explained Smith. “You can serve peanut butter and jelly if the hunting is good, but after a rough day – like we all know happens – you better back up your outfit with a good lodge experience, which includes great food and personable employees that talk with guests and make them feel at home. We use the best equipment and spare no expense on how we run this operation. Waking up every day and doing what you love – it’s a dream come true.” |
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Native Thunder has grown each year, but Smith says the operation remains controllable by limiting the number of guests at any given time. “We take one group of ten every three days, and really focus on that one group to assure they have the great experience we strive for. During peak times, we’ll run a second group at the same time, but when you have so much land access, you can really narrow down the best opportunities, so every hunt counts,” added Smith. The annual last hurrah for waterfowl hunters is the Light Goose Conservation Order season which was implemented by the federal government to help control over-populated snow and Ross geese. Native Thunder just so happens to be located within one of North America’s main snow goose migration corridors. “We like to wait until we see how the season going – how the migration is going, so we can book our clients during peak times. We have a late dark goose season in Kansas, too, that runs to Feb 17th, so we have to wait to run conservation hunts until after that. We’ll continue to schedule those hunts until the birds leave sometime in March. We have our first group of hunters coming on February 20th this season,” Smith said. |
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Once the snow geese have pushed northward on their long journey to their tundra nesting grounds, Smith and the Native Thunder crew stow the waterfowl gear and switch gears to turkey mode. Kansas is a lottery state and interested hunters need to apply for tags prior to mid-February. The lodge is always bustling with confident turkey hunters who know they have invested in an operation with astonishingly high success rates and an experience they will never forget. Smith concluded, “We’ve tried many brands of decoys over the years, but switched over to Hardcore and couldn’t be happier. These decoys have been well received by our guides and customers for their realism and durability, and no doubt factored in to many awesome hunts this season. We are really pleased with the partnership we’ve formed with Hardcore.” For more information on waterfowl, turkey, and deer hunting, visit: Native Thunder Outfitters. |
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ABOUT NEXUS OUTDOORS Nexus Outdoors, headquartered in Muskegon, MI, USA, is a leading worldwide designer, marketer and distributor of performance, hunting and casual odor-controlling apparel, footwear and equipment under the ScentLok Technologies®, OZ®, Blocker Outdoors®, Whitewater, HARDCORE, and Tree Spider® brands. It also owns American Range Systems, manufacturer and distributor of the world’s strongest and safest bullet traps. Nexus Outdoors is the only company with access to all scent-controlling technologies, including their patented Carbon Alloy™ and Cold Fusion Catalyst™ technologies, which provide superior success in the field. ScentLok and Blocker Outdoors are pioneers in the hunting industry, which many credit with creating a market focused on superior scent control to get closer to big game. |