Wombat Wrestling Influencer Nailed for Wyoming Residency Fraud 🤳

I’m currently at the “it’s Thanksgiving already?” phase of the year and am unsure as to whether or not that is a good thing as of yet.

With that in mind, let’s all take a minute to grab some cranberry, coffee or whiskey (no judgement) and get this Thanksgiving edition of your favorite dispatch out the door.

All jokes aside, we’d like to wish all of you a very happy and meaningful Thanksgiving Holiday. We’ll see you on Monday. 🦃

Here's what's worth reading about today:

KEEPING IT IN THE FAMILY
FROM WOMBAT WRESTLER TO WYOMING RESIDENCY FRAUD, INFLUENCER SAMANTHA STRABLE IS BACK IN THE HOT SEAT

In the wild world of social media influencers, few stories capture the absurdity of fame quite like that of Samantha Strable. The 25-year-old from Great Falls, Montana who is known online as "Sam Jones" with over 90,000 followers, has graduated from viral villain in Australia to accused poacher in Wyoming. What ties these scandals together seems to be a consistent and blatant disregard for wildlife rules, wrapped in a self-proclaimed ecology expert's resume. Strable's latest brush with the law isn't just another social media spectacle; it's eight misdemeanor charges that could land her in jail and will likely cost her tens of thousands in fines.

If you’ll recall, the Strable drama began in the Land Down Under in March of this year. Working as a Professional/Fauna Spotter Catcher/Ecologist for Kleinfelder in Newcastle, Australia, the influencer was caught on video snatching a baby wombat from its mother and bolting toward her car. The clip exploded online, igniting fury across Australia, including backlash from Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who slammed the act as "unacceptable" and urged respect for native wildlife.

Fast-forward to present day, and Strable's back stateside, this time allegedly gaming Wyoming's hunting system…

🚣 WDFW Warden Crosses Freezing River to Seize Fake Tags & Trophy. On the last day of muzzleloader deer season in Washington, a report tipped off the Department of Fish and Wildlife about an illegal mule deer kill in a remote, hard-to-reach area straddling Stevens and Ferry counties. The suspects were holed up in an isolated camp, accessible only by crossing private land or fording the Kettle River, and were accused of using a modern rifle instead of the season's required muzzleloader. Officer King sprang into action, grabbing a kayak to paddle across the chilly river and reach the site, where he quickly spotted the deer carcass and two heads. The camp's occupants revealed that the two shooters had just left to stash the meat in a cooler at their home, prompting King to loop in Sergeant Bahrenburg for backup.

As night crept in, the officers regrouped at the camp just in time to intercept the returning suspects. Over extended interviews, the men confessed to a slew of violations including party hunting, slapping magnified scopes on their muzzleloaders with sneaky quick-disconnect setups to dodge rules, and skipping proper tagging of the kills. One suspect, pegged as the rifle user, decided to lawyered up, while a background check showed the group had past felony records. The officers seized the bogus tags and a mule deer head as evidence, then braved the river again, lashing the trophy to the kayak for the haul back. Plans are underway to grab the rest of the meat from the suspects' place, and the probe into the rifle claim remains ongoing, with charges headed to prosecutors soon.

🚔 Kentucky Man Wins $1.1M Lottery While Gaming from the Deer Stand. A McCreary County man struck gold on Tuesday while perched in his deer stand during hunting season after wagering just $30 on the Kentucky Lottery's Wolf Ridge Jackpots online game. The 50-year-old winner, who remains unnamed in reports, nearly tumbled from his 30-foot perch when the jackpot hit $1.1 million—initially mistaking it for a modest $1,500 payout. Family calls kept interrupting his session, freezing his phone and adding to the frustration, but the game's rumbling alert soon pierced the quiet woods, confirming the life-changing win. In a haze of disbelief, he snapped a screenshot and dialed his wife, who assumed the frantic call was about bagging a big buck instead of putting literal bucks in the bank.

The couple, both in tears and reeling from the shock, hustled three hours to the lottery headquarters to claim their prize, netting nearly $800,000 after taxes. With plans to wipe out debts, snag a new home on sprawling land, and stash savings for their family, the winner reflected on the surreal twist: "It’s pretty awesome... it took me 50 years to become a millionaire all at once."

🧑‍⚖️ The Show Goes On: Florida Judge Rejects Injunction Plea to Stop This Year’s Bear Hunt. In a swift legal setback for conservationists, a Leon County circuit judge denied a last-minute plea from Bear Warriors United to block Florida's first black bear hunt in over a decade. The Central Florida nonprofit had filed an emergency lawsuit against the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, arguing the hunt—set to kick off December 6—threatens the state's recovering black bear population without adequate justification. This week’s ruling clears the way for the five-day quota hunt in seven bear management units across northern and central Florida.

The decision stems from years of debate over Florida's 1.5 million acres of bear habitat and a population estimated at 4,000 bears, up from just 300 in the 1970s. Bear Warriors United claimed the FWC's approval process violated public notice rules and ignored ethical concerns, but the judge ultimately found insufficient grounds for any sort of an injunction. The group is reportedly planning to appeal the decision, but with just over a week until the hunt kicks off, it’s looking like the show is (rightfully) going on without them.

🐊 I’m always in disbelief that people mess with these things. I had one cross the street in front of me the other day. I gave him ample space and after you see what he did to this boat, you’ll understand why.

Just another day in the great state of Florida…

🤗 Giving Thanks to Thanksgiving Bulls: Naked aspens and dark timber caped in white. Frozen streams run through remnants of lush meadows. An intricate combination of elk and boot tracks dot the landscape. This is late-season elk hunting in Colorado.

Last fall, I was lucky enough to experience this elk hunters’ paradise for the first time. Brought to Colorado for school, I decided to apply for my first big-game draw as a resident. After receiving news of a successful draw, my family decided they would fly out to help me punch my first bull tag. Luckily enough, we were also able to connect with longtime family friend and renowned outfitter Fred Eichler to make it happen. Read the full story.

🪶 Spoiled by Surprise, Surprised by Spoils: With the long autumnal sun just failing to pierce the South Dakota cold, we had the perfect start to a week of pheasant hunting. It was our second outing and my brother and I felt confident. We believed we had all the rookie mistakes out of the way and that even without a dog, we could fill our game bags. We ended our first trip shooting three birds on our final day, so we assured our two first-timer friends that we knew what to do. I even made predictions.

We began that first day riding the confidence of our beginner’s luck, ready to limit out. Not fifteen minutes after we loaded our guns, we came upon the ideal pheasant hiding spot, a little pond surrounded by cattails with a section of thick switchgrass sheltered just out of the wind. Our next step was simple enough, find and shoot the bird.  Read the full story.

🦌 An Unforgettable Thanksgiving Mule Deer Hunt: Blessed with an elk early in the year, I have been able to afford the luxury of passing up bucks, on the occasions that I am fortunate enough to see any, and it is halfway in my mind that I would like to wait until my younger brother B.J.—visiting from Texas—is with me, before possibly taking an animal. It certainly does not work that way—the hunter never does all of the choosing, and is never capable of determining in advance on which date, if any, an animal might be taken—but still, it’s in my mind that if it works out that way, it would be nice for B.J. to participate in a good backcountry hunt.

The plan calls for B.J. to fly up from his home in Austin to Spokane, arriving the night before Thanksgiving, and to then wait six hours in Spokane before catching an Amtrak train after midnight that will travel east to Libby, arriving about 5:30 a.m. I’ll drive over the summit and pick him up, and since he can only stay two days, we’ll go hunting straight from the station on Thanksgiving morning.  Read the full story.

Oh, and one more thing…