This is the first of a three-part series about gifts for outdoor-minded people.

December means Christmas and a chance to give outdoor-related gifts to the outdoor-minded people on your shopping list.

Buck Knife

The top item on my list, to both give and receive is a Buck Knife. Yes, this brand of outdoor tool is mentioned in this column several times a year.

Over the years my wife, Garnet, and I have become friends with the Buck family, especially Chuck Buck, the chairman of the board. However, these knives are made to last through hard outdoor chores.

Knives are an essential tool during many outdoor activities and especially during survival situations. I feel confident my Buck Knife would not let me down during any of my activities outside the front door.

The important point at this time is these knives make great gifts. They are suitable for everyone on your gift list, such as daughter, son, niece, nephew, brother, sister, husband, wife...OK you get the idea about family members, but this instrument is also a great gift for a friend, neighbor or boss.

There are many models of these knives to use while hunting, camping or in everyday life, such as a small one in my left front pocket. It is difficult for me to think of a time when a smallish pocket knife is not in my pocket. The only place where it is not taken is where a search is required, such as during airline flights.

The advantage of giving a knife is the ability to have it personalized, with a message, such as Jerry, Christmas 2013, Dennis. There are two ways to present a message; engraving or etching. I recommend etching, as the letters are black and stand out on the steel blade.

The Buck Knife Factory has the ability to either engrave or etch a message on the blade. If such a gift is contemplated, suggest the order be submitted soon, as the time for completing an order is getting shorter by the day.

My expectation for gifts of any kind, Christmas, birthday, etc., is a Buck Knife and my family knows this fact. Plus my hunting buddies in The Hut Crew give each other such a knife.

This is true for all seven of us except Chuck Buck. After all he is able to walk onto the factory floor and pick out any knife he wants. Instead, we all pitch in and give him a gift card to a hardware and gardening store, as his hobby is landscaping.

Firearm

My first firearm was an over and under .410 shotgun and .22 rifle, giving to me during Christmas when I was 10. The firearm is still used with the last bird taken being a wild turkey.

The gift of a firearm requires much thought. Is the person receiving the gift mature enough to use it responsibly? What caliber of rifle or shotgun gauge will be appropriate?

These are questions parents need to discuss before proceeding to the purchase. Steel shot, required for hunting waterfowl and other birds in nontoxic hunting areas, is relative new for the .410. A 20 gauge would be more appropriate for most youth. Garnet uses and enjoys shooting her 20 gauge and this is the firearm she used to legally shoot three turkeys in one day.

I have one also and have used it on all types of birds. The point here is a 12 gauge is not needed to take game birds.

A common rifle for youth is a .243, used to take deer mostly. I have one and it has dropped several deer. Larger game, elk and moose, should be hunted with a larger caliber rifle. My arsenal includes a .270 and .30-06 for this purpose.

Ammunition is suitable as a stocking stuffer when a firearm is the Christmas present. A box or two of shotgun shells or enough rifle shells to sight in the rifle and participate in a hunt.

Next week: Optics and other gadgets.