12/18/07

Welcome to the Two Shot Goose Hunt!

Started in 1987, the 2 Shot Goose Hunt initially began as an Economic Development Project to showcase the hunting, landscape, and people of Goshen County.  The idea has been credited to many locals, but by all accounts , it has become a county wide event that residents seem to claim as their own.  The first year the 2 Shot was held the current Governor, and all the surviving governors, were in attendance to show support for this fledgling event.  The first few years the event and banquet were held in conjunction with the Ducks Unlimited Banquet.  Soon the turn outs were so large the two organizations had to separate their events.

The 2 Shot Goose Hunt consists of a whole series of events that focus on a shooting event taking place the second Saturday each December.  The hunt allows approximately forty teams each year, a number that has grown from the original twenty.  Each team consists of two hunters who are allowed two shots each to bag their geese.  Each hunter must shoot his own shells and then the team with the most geese wins the contest.  In the case of a tie, the overall weight of the geese is used to determine the winner.  The teams are guided by experienced local guides that take the teams to heated blinds that are provided by local landowners.  The hunt is conducted according to the rules of the Wyoming Game and Fish.  The only changes are that the birds must be shot in flight, and the hunt ends at 1:00 pm.  The hunters must hunt from their designated blinds.  We insist on strict hunter ethics at all times.

The 2 Shot week starts earlier each year.  The week consists of many varied activities.  The Goshen County Rendezvous Center at the fairgrounds is set up on Tuesday, The Brand Room is readied for the art to be displayed.  The 2 Shot Art Show and Quick Draw Competition has become a huge part of the 2 Shot Week.  This portion of the week attracts many local as well as visiting artists from surrounding states.  Toby and Carolyn Lewis have truly made this a world class art event for Goshen County.  The artists set up their booths for display on Thursday, and their art is on display in the Rendezvous Center until Saturday evening.   The Quick Draw Competition is held on Friday night.  people come from all over the county and surrounding area to witness this event and view the art on display.  Each artist displaying work at the 2 Shot provide an original piece of art for the Saturday night auction.  The auction also consists of hunting and fishing trips, and other assorted donated items.  The proceeds from this auction go toward the 2 Shots various habitat and educational projects throughout Goshen County and the state of Wyoming.

The 2 Shot Past Shooters are a group of past hunters that provide many added attractions to the event each year.  They provide a luncheon for the new hunters each year at the Goshen County Sportsman's Club.  This luncheon, along with a variety of helpful and educational activities, is held on Friday afternoon before the hunt.  The Wyoming Game and Fish Department is always in attendance to provide education in distance assessment of migratory waterfowl as well as shotgun pattern information and a place and instruction in patterning your own gun.  They help the hunters to become better informed about their own guns and the distance to flying birds.  The luncheon also serves as  a forum for the incoming hunters to get some advise from those that have hunted the event before.

The funds raised from the 2 Shot Goose Hunt are used for various activities throughout Goshen County and the great state of Wyoming.  Hunter Safety education is a priority for the 2 Shot.  Several surrounding counties have received funds from the event to support Hunter Safety courses for Wyoming youth.  The 2 Shot also sponsors three scholarships each year to Eastern Wyoming College in Torrington.  We hope to enhance these in the future.  Habitat projects have always been tops on the list for the committee.  Participation in many projects over the years include construction of pits for the public on the Bump Sullivan public hunting project, habitat improvements and aerator on the Table Mountain and Springer Preserve units, cleanup of the Spring, Bump, and Rawhide units, Goose nesting improvements each spring, and many others too numerous to mention here.

The 2 Shot Goose Hunt is a non-profit organization run by a volunteer board of directors and composed of hundreds of volunteers from throughout Goshen County and other parts of Wyoming and Western Nebraska.  We are always looking for ways to improve our hunt, art show, and the overall 2 Shot experience.  If you have any ideas or suggestions please drop us a line at the address listed on our website.

Thanks for visiting our website.  If you have never attended our event we hope you will consider coming to Goshen County this December for a wonderful 2 Shot experience.  It's not just for the hunters! 

If you are interested in joining the hunt, please go to the "Hunting App. Form" tab, download an application, and enjoy the hunt for yourself.