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John Hollenhorst ReportingIf you love animals or if you love to hunt 'em, an event is shaping up in Salt Lake City over the next few days that might get your attention. It's a hunting show that's drawing worldwide interest.
If you're a hunter you probably already know about the hunting expo starting tomorrow.
If you're not a hunter, well, we can't say if you'll like the event, but there are certainly some amazing animals here. And hunters this week are expected to pay astounding prices for some future hunts.
It may be the greatest conglomeration of stuffed animals ever assembled in Utah. Others are big game animals you never see in Utah.
Don Peay, Expo Co-Manager: "Anyone that likes the outdoors, wildlife and hunting has got to be at this show."
Taxidermy is only part of what's coming together for the first annual Western Hunting & Conservation Expo. Booths are being set up to show off almost any hunting product or service you can think of. Five-hundred fifty exhibitors and thousands of attendees stretching from Salt Lake City to Tajikistan.
Don Peay: "We think 20,000 utahns will show up and we think there will be another 10,000 people from out of state."
Utah organizers hope the message gets out that big-game quality in Utah has dramtically improved, largely because of money from hunters. Governor Huntsman is promoting the expo, highlighting habitat restoration and wildlife relocation projects paid for with hunting fees.
Voice of Governor Jon Huntsman: "Utah has established 28 new bighorn sheep herds."
A highlight of the expo will be an auction of special hunting permits. Wealthy sportsmen are expected to bid sky-high for the right to shoot and tag Utah's best animals.
Don Peay: "I won't be surprised to see tags over 200,000."
One of the bidders will be former Jazz great Karl Malone, who's helping promote the event.
Karl Malone, Promotional Video: "2007. Salt Lake City. Super show. It'll be the best. Bring a lot of money."
Don Peay: "he hopes to come in and buy a few of these high-dollar auction tags. I told him, 'karl, you may not have enough money to play in this game'."
Overall, organizers hope to raise ten million dollars for wildlife projects in the next four days. And by the way, they've already donated ten high-dollar hunting packages to servicemen just returned from Iraq.
