Hunters Spending Money Differently in Rural Utah Towns

Hunters Spending Money Differently in Rural Utah Towns


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Ashley Hayes Reporting We'll be seeing a lot of orange this weekend in the more rural parts of Utah.

That's because it's opening weekend for the annual rifle deer hunt. In towns like Manti and Ephraim that means a lot more folks, and you'd think a lot more business.

According to the last U.S. Fish and Wildlife census more than $800-thousand are spent on fishing and hunting in Utah each year.

About a quarter of million of that is spent specifically on hunting. That's about 13 hundred dollars for every hunter.

But as we found out, they're not spending it where they used to.

At last count 3,040 people live in Manti. Coming from Salt Lake City where there are 60 times as many people, some say town square looks like a ghost town.

But not for long.

Dave Laub, Hunter: "We come from Ogden, a couple of hours [away]."

Justin Allred, Hunter: "We were up till after midnight packing."

Starting Saturday the town and nearby hills will host thousands of strangers.

Darleane Blackham, Sanpete County Native: "There's a lot more trucks with a lot of mud on them."

Saturday is opening day for the annual riffle deer hunt. At Miller's Drive-In, hot food is waiting for hungry hunters.

Hunters Spending Money Differently in Rural Utah Towns

Travis Miller, Owner Miller Drive-In: "We do enjoy having people come in town and see people hunting and the business we do get from it."

Blackham: "It just adds a lot of excitement. You can definitely tell when it's the deer hunt because of the colors."

Hunting season still looks the same in small towns like Manti. Hunters are out wearing orange all through town. But business owners will tell you they're not buying it here, despite gear dispayed in their windows.

Jared Simmons, Simmons Hardware: "You get a lot left over. You put it in storage for next year."

Hunters Spending Money Differently in Rural Utah Towns

Simmons Hardware is quiet. The third generation proprietor is the only one you'll see down the isles. Since the state introduced an electronic draw system years back to distribute hunting licenses, Simmons says hunters don't have a reason to shop in Manti anymore.

Jared Simmons/ Simmons Hardware: "It used to be big business. It's not near the business it used to be."

And unlike the days when Miller's dad owned the diner..

Miller: "When he was running it, the evenings and the weekends I would say the business probably tripled."

Burger orders are down too. These days, most out-of-town money spent in Manti is poured by the gallon.

Allred: "Gas is usually $150."

As we said, some store owners say spending is down because of the licensing changes. Others say it's because the deer herds aren't as large as they once were and don't attract as many hunters.

The other source of competition, they say, is the new Wal-Mart in Ephraim.

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