I have been know to hang out on internet forums or bulletin boards quite a lot in the past two years. I have found my favorites in each of the areas of interest that I am looking for. When it comes to one of my oldest and dearest pursuits, upland hunting and bird dogs, there is no better community than Upland Journal.

This past weekend I had the pleasure of meeting and hanging out with a few of the members of the Upland Journal, and I have to say that in person, these men and women are some of the nicest people I have ever met.

I have to give credit to Brad Eden, owner of Upland Journal, for creating a no nonsense approach to online community building. Tight moderating (by Brad and his head moderator Alan Briere)and clear rules have attracted the aforementioned group of upstanding e-citizens.

The get-together of the members of Upland Journal, took place in Scarborough, Maine and probably started out as a regional gathering of northeastern (and southeastern Canadian) members, but as a testament to the community, the event attracted members from as far away as Wisconsin, Michigan and Kentucky with upwards of 100 people in attendance.

Events of the day included clay target shooting in the form of five stand and wobble trap, drawing of some very attractive door prizes, a grand prize gun raffle, secondary raffle of some excellent prizes, a clam and lobster bake and to end the night off, there was entertainment from members Lee Sykes and Brian Dietz and socializing til the wee hours. From the feedback on the forum, the general consensus is that this was a special event, made special by those who attended as well as those who wished they had attended. Good Job UJers, it is a privilege to be associated with you all.