Greetings fellow maniacs. The time is upon us again to say "screw you" to everything else in our lives, and get together to geek out on all things saddle hunting.
For the last three years SaddlePalooza has taken place on Fort Stewart just outside Savannah, GA. Since I am no longer active duty Army, I'm not allowed to host the event on the base. That's why this took a little longer to organize.
I've found a great spot about 40 minutes south near Darien, GA. There is a TON of public land to hunt (Altamaha WMA, Altama WMA, Clayhole Swamp WMA, etc.). I talked with the game warden for that area and he said the pig herd is extremely healthy. HOWEVER, if you've been to SaddlePalooza before, you know the pig hunting is just the cherry on top. The real fun, and reason to attend, is meeting like-minded hunters and learning new styles, tactics, and techniques. The food is pretty dang good as well.
I'm working through the details now, but the dates will be Thu-Sun, Feb 20-23. This is the weekend AFTER Valentines day...so no excuses. Take care of your lady (or your man) then hightail it down to Southeast GA to hang out with 50 of your closest saddle hunting friends. If you're flying, fly into Jacksonville.
This event is not about making money. It's about connecting with saddle hunters from around the country and enjoying God's great outdoors together. There is NO CHARGE for running the hunt. I'll take care of all the organization, the campground, the food, and all the incidentals. The $145 fee only covers what you see below. There is no profit being made. If we have a surplus at the end, we can donate it to a worthy cause. If you don't want to eat with us or you don't want a t-shirt, you can skip those costs and do your own thing. That's perfectly fine.
Also, a bunch of saddle hunters donated money last year from the raffle that got cancelled. That money will go to buy down the cost of the t-shirts for everyone. I have it listed at $12 because that's the quote I received. However, I think I can get that down a few bucks per person.
Here's the breakdown of the cost.
| ITEM | COST | QTY | TOTAL | DETAILS |
| Campsite | $17.00 | 4 | $68.00 | Atlamaha Regional Park Thu-Sun night. RV sites available for $25/night |
| Food | $10.00 | 5 | $50.00 | BBQ Dinners Thu-Sun + lunch on Saturday (5 meals) |
| Incidentals | $15.00 | 1 | $15.00 | Drinks, plates, cups, napkins, trash, utensils, etc. |
| T-shirt | $12.00 | 1 | $12.00 | Official SaddlePalooza 2020 event shirt |
| | TOTAL | $145.00 | Paid in advance to reserve your spot |
The other costs are:
- GA hunting license - 3 day non-resident small game license is $32
- Food - breakfast and lunch are not included. However, we usually have leftovers every night so the smart saddle hunter grabs a plate at the end and fills his cooler. Just saying.
Kids that sleep in the same tent as a parent only pay $65.
In the past we've done a raffle. It's a lot of work and I don't really want to mess with it. If someone else wanted to organize it and run it, I'm ok with that, but I'll have to talk through the details with you.
As soon as I nail down a couple more details I'll update this thread. I'll also update the sign up method. I'm limiting it to 50 people this year...first come, first served.
What are your questions?
Them Dan me and @Jcar all have a rolling 2 year history of unsuccessful hunting to maintain 
