Bino Dock
By Gary Lewis
Heading home from a wild boar hunt one morning, I spotted movement along a willow-lined creek. I pulled off to the side of the road and got a good look. It was a cougar. This was California, where I couldn't shoot it, but I wanted to see it better. My binocular, though, was just out of reach in the back seat.
Long and sleek, that mountain lion flowed along the bank of the creek. It stopped from time to time, turning its head to look back at me. I think of that cat every time I pack for a trip into the woods or desert. The rifle is close, the camera is within reach and there is a binocular on the dash.
In fact, I've carried a monocular in the glove box for the last fifteen years, for those times when my bino is in a backpack or inside the house. I've used the optic to scout the best way around traffic accidents, inspect a camp before I approach it or glass some suspicious character.
Each time I've used the monocular, I wished it was a binocular. When I saw the Bino Dock, I saw a secure place to store a binocular, in the spare cupholder next to the shifter. Now the bino is close to hand all the time.
A boat, a truck, a utility vehicle; any place equipped with a cupholder is a good spot to dock a binocular. In the field, I carry a bino in a shoulder harness, but that gets in the way behind the steering wheel. The Bino Dock is the solution. To maintain its position in the cupholder, the unit comes equipped with heavy duty bands. An adjustable base allows for a custom fit to avoid a shifter or emergency brake. Inside the housing, a padded floor keeps the binocular from rattling around.
To keep crumbs and coffee out of the ocular, I keep the lenses covered and pull the center strap down to secure the binocular so it doesn't bounce out on a rough road.
MSRP $69.99
binogear.com
