1) Cabela’s describes nature as something for humans to dive into and get as much out of it as possible. All of their gear promotes being “rugged” and to throw yourself into the midst of nature in the most daring ways possible. It uses nature to advertise its products since it is first and foremost a store, however, it builds upon that to become a “destination.” The huge mountain display, aquarium, and deer country exhibits (just to name a few) showcase some of the trophies that can be acquired from nature. These exhibits make the store feel more like a museum and add to the appeal of the business as a whole. Cabela’s version of nature is one that is there for the taking and humans should go explore and reap the benefits.
On the flip side, Hawk Mountain had a much more reserved display of nature. Their main attraction was the actual mountain, so they did not need a fake mountain or aquarium. Compared to the almost shove it down your throat take on nature in Cabela’s, Hawk Mountain let nature speak for itself. The museum was very fact based and focused on telling the story of Hawk Mountain and how it has evolved from a place of mass killings to a sanctuary. After hiking through the mountain and perusing the visitor center, I came away with a much more authentic feeling of nature than when I left Cabela’s. At Hawk Mountain, I felt as if nature had something to give in the form of a lesson. At Cabela’s, I felt as if I was supposed to forcefully take something from nature in order to experience it.
2) A lot of the gear we saw were recognizable, however there were some which surprised me. For instance, there was dirt-like material which would attract deer for hunters to use as bait. There were also rows upon rows of computer devices for fisherman to use on their boats in order to gauge the river, the location of the fish, and god knows what else. Most of the gear I saw always seemed to be outlayed with camo. A big theme of Cabela’s seemed to be to take something and just add a camo design. This could be anything ranging from a shirt to a doormat to a sofa. They even had pink camo for women which completely ruins the point of camo, but not the fashion sense I guess. This is just one example of how one could see Cabela’s was more focused on profiting from nature as opposed to conserving it.
The chapter And No Birds Sing mirrors the relation between humans and birds at Hawk Mountain in a different setting. In both cases, a large amount of birds were killed due to the ignorance of the human population. However, the killing of raptors at Hawk Mountain was a more active sport whereas the deaths of the robins was a passive result of human actions. While there are these differences between the two, a surprising similarity is that Hawk Mountain and Silent Springs were both the result of women taking action. This is surprising because both happened over 50 years ago when women were treated much differently and usually did not play such a big role in national movements. Both have become major successes for the environmental movement since they were constructed and written.
3) Each display at Cabela’s weaved a different tale. These stories ranged from big game hunting all the way down to local deer hunting. In these spots is where I witnessed the biggest change from the normal Cabela’s feel. People here were reading and learning as opposed to handling a firearm or figuring out the next way they were going to kill a deer. Despite this, the exhibits still had the Cabela’s undertones. For example, the big game hunting exhibit had pictures of the hunters with their kills. This detracted from the educational feel of the exhibit and gave it an arrogant, bragging-like feel instead. The other thing I find funny was when people would pose in front of the dead animals for pictures as if it were a zoo. I think the exhibits were interesting because they did make an attempt to make them look as “natural” as possible, however, the surrounding vibes the store gave off completely ruined it. Cabela’s is also humongous so there were people everywhere. This contrasted strongly with Hawk Mountain which had a much smaller portion of the population.
I was surprised by the way people acted up on the North Outlook. I think this was because I am not cultured in bird watching at all and had no idea what to expect. The first thing I noticed was the number of people. To me, it seemed like the lookout was crowded despite being not a busy day. If it were a busy day, I feel as if it would be a completely different experience. The next thing I noticed was the curt, efficient way all the watchers called out each bird they located. Other than the occasional callout for a bird, the mountain was relatively silent. This atmosphere was very peaceful and would be interrupted if there were a large amount of people there. It seemed as if most of the watchers came here to just share the space with the birds in silence. There was a mutual respect for the other veteran watchers, but as a student there asking questions, I felt as if we were interrupting this environment of theirs. When Terri and I were walking around Cabela’s, we were probably taking a lot louder and more so than when we were at Hawk Mountain, but I did not feel like I was intruding on anyone at anytime.
4) The overall business model at Cabela’s was aimed at as many people as possible, but I think it only really attracts a small portion of the population. With anything from clothes to couches to aquariums, there was something for everyone in the store. A family could come and each person could have something that interested them even if they all had different viewpoints. This being said, I still think a small sliver of the population actually comes for serious business. As mentioned above, it is portrayed as a “destination.” A lot of people come just to see what all the hype is about and say they have been to a Cabela’s. My family came once just to look around and gawk at the overall excessiveness of the store. There was nothing there that we were interested in buying, we just wanted to see what all the hype was about. Despite all of the stuff for sale there, I think only a small fraction of people actually buy things. First off, most of the gear is top of the line so it is extremely expensive. A casual shopper is not going to go to Cabela’s to get some winter clothing or is even looking to buy a paddle board. A big part of their sales is also with the various weaponry they have. This ranged from a crossbow to an antique shotgun worth $10k. Hunters may have a use for some of these, but the majority of the weapons looked like they were for show. Someone mentioned in class that someone is not going to buy a handgun to hunt deer, and you do not need a gun as expensive as a car to go hunting. This high selling point for most of the stuff at Cabela’s really displays the audience they truly are catering to.
Raptors tend to get a bad reputation when they interfere with people’s daily life. For instance, sometimes they may attack or try and kill small dogs. After incidents like this, people are going to be more inclined to think that they are dangerous and could hurt humans. Raptors and wild animals are generally thought of as separate from day to day life which is why it is always such a big deal when one appears near us. A couple days ago, there was a deer near the Conway Residence Hall and at least five people I knew had it on their Snapchat stories. Pennsylvania is known for having quite a few deer and I am sure the majority of them had seen a deer before. And yet, it seemed like such a big occasion for them that they needed to take a picture and document it for others to see. This may also have something to do with the social media world we live in, but I think it demonstrates how removed most of us are from animals and nature. It is not that humans do not like animals, in fact, many are fascinated by them. There channels like Animal Planet and programs like Shark Week which attract millions of viewers. People enjoy going to zoos and seeing all the animals there as well. In these instances, I think people admire raptors. One of the most wanted super powers is the ability to fly. Learning about how birds’ wings are designed to fly and how fast a Peregrine Falcon can dive is fascinating to people. When we compare our own skill set with raptors, we admire how deadly and efficient they are out in the wild.
5) The mental image of Cabela’s that comes to mind is one that someone mentioned in class. They witnessed some fish eating other fish in the tank and some dead fish floating at the top of the tank as well Diver Dan manhandling the catfish. The aquarium was supposed to be an educational exhibit where people can learn about different types of fish. At first glance, that is what it looks like. Then, after stepping back and really looking at the display, one could see just how negligent Cabela’s really was. Their whole store tries to give off a “nature” feel, but this one example displays how much they actually might care about nature. Even within their own exhibit, they do not really care about the animals or wildlife. I think this little detail lets one see through the huge facade that Cabela’s has erected in its store.
On the flip side, my mental image of Hawk Mountain was much more positive. When Terri and I hiked off on our own, we met an older gentleman who was along the Escarpment Trail observing the birds away from the hustle and bustle of North Lookout. We talked to him for a couple minutes before moving along on our way. It was interesting to see how even at a sanctuary like Hawk Mountain, it was still too busy for some people. He seemed just as enthusiastic as the other people we saw on North Lookout and yet he would rather be at a different spot with maybe not as good a view just to have his own privacy. Out of all the people I witnessed on Hawk Mountain, he seemed the most in tune with his surroundings and the most at peace.