Cabela's; A Wildlife Museum and Top Notch Oufitter

A cross between a wildlife museum and an hunting, fishing, camping outfitter, Cabela's is my new favorite store. Their slogan, "Like no other retail store on earth," is absolutely the truth. You have to see it to believe it. With 18 locations nationwide and 12 more coming soon to a neighborhood near you, Cabela's is a must visit store.

I recently discovered Cabela's on a business trip to Fort Worth, Texas. By happenstance a friend of mine was in the area. We got together for supper and had some time to kill. He told me about Cabela's and suggested we go check it out. Cabela's Fort Worth, Texas Retail Store is located at junction of state highway 170 and I-35W. My friend and I spent over an hour in the 230,000 square foot facility and didn't come close to seeing everything.

According to Cabela's website their "massive 230,000 sq. ft. showroom is an educational and entertainment attraction, featuring a décor of museum-quality animal displays, huge aquariums and trophy animals interacting in realistic re-creations of their natural habitats." You read a lot of ad agency hype and it is usually just that; hype. But what Cabela's says about their store is not hype. In fact you really have to see it to believe it.

Recently I took a day off work and my 6 year old son, my friends Matt and Dave took a 2 hour drive to Dundee, Michigan to visit the Cabela's located there. At a mere 225,000 square feet, this Cabela's is only slightly smaller than the Fort Worth location. But I guess being as it's in Texas it has to bigger. Everything in Texas is bigger isn't it? Well not when it comes to Cabela's. Texas is second to Hamburg, Pennsylvania. The Hamburg Cabela's is 250 Square feet making it the largest Cabela's in the chain, with the Dundee location a close third. The smallest Cabela's location is in Kearny, Nebraska and comes in at a mere 35,000 square feet. The average Cabela's retail store is round 150,000 square feet.