It was a strong year across the board for Chester Moore, who picked up five honors at the Texas Outdoor Writers Association Excellence in Craft Awards in Rockport, TX May 2.
A big part of that recognition came through work published here at Higher Calling Wildlife on highercalling.net. The site has built a consistent track record, having also been named the top blog by the Press Club of Southeast Texas for four consecutive years.
At TOWA, Moore earned a first-place finish in the Outdoor Humor category for Encountering the Devil’s Boar, a story that takes a different angle on a memorable wildlife encounter. Another Higher Calling Wildlife piece, focused on the challenges facing Key deer and the ongoing screwworm issue, placed second in the Best Outdoors Blog category.
His work in other areas was recognized as well.
He took first place honors for his work in the Conservation Impact publication for the Wild Sheep Foundation (WSF) as well as placing for his Dire Wolves & Designer Sheep article for WSF.
The Dark Outdoors podcast was named Best Outdoors Podcast for the second year in a row. The show looks at the darker side of the outdoors—true crime, animal attacks, and unsolved mysteries that happen in remote places—and continues to grow its audience.
There are plans to expand Dark Outdoors in 2026, with more episodes than in the past, along with new programs and continued development of the blog at DarkOutdoors.com.
On the conservation side, the Gulf Great White Shark Society also received recognition. GulfGreatWhites.com was named Best Website for the second year in a row, and the documentary Gulf Great Whtie Sharks: Return of an Icon took first place in the video category.
Moore wrote, produced, and narrated the film, working with Paul Fuzinski, who handled videography and editing.
Reflecting on the awards, Moore said:
“I am extremely grateful and humbled to be honored by TOWA, such a great organization, and to have the opportunity to compete with such great outdoor media people. This inspires me to work even harder. This year was very special winning for something I care so much about, which is work on great white sharks.”
Taken together, the awards reflect a mix of writing, podcasting, and conservation work, with continued growth expected across all platforms moving forward
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Email Chester at chester@chestermoore.com.
Congratulation Chester
You provide the best content for outdoors people. Thank you for the hard work. I can not wait for the next episode. I watch and read them all.
Rusty Adams
Thank you so much!