Yellowstone Archery opens shop in Burlington

The building next door to the Post Office in Burlington has been home to a bakery and a few different restaurants, but is now all things archery and hunting.
“We were originally going to buy it and the plan was to make it a daycare, but that fell through,” said new owner Henry Lanius. “I had wanted to have a bow shop down the road when my kids were a little older and in school. But when the daycare didn’t work, we decided that we would give the bow shop a try.”
Getting the building ready was a family affair. Lanius’ wife Sara and kids Barrett and Emma played a big role in all steps of construction and all the work was done in house.
Lanius had the idea for an archery shop after moving up to the area. “I’m an archery hunter and when we moved up here, I was shocked at how little there was for bow hunters here. There’s just one shop in Cody and so this will provide a perfect central location.”
Lanius got his start in archery at a young age, shooting a recurve bow in school and gym class and always enjoyed it, but it wasn’t until he got out of the military that he started bowhunting and really came to love it. “You get so much closer to the animals,” he said. “There are more animals and less people. It’s a better time of year and you’re more a part of the experience. You are in the elk herd, you are not 300 yards away. There’s really nothing like it. It is a lot harder, there’s a lot less success but if you measure it by the experience, which I do, there’s more success. If I leave a hunt with a good picture, that’s enough for me.
“We are a full-service bow shop: restringing, paper tuning, adjustments, etc. We sell bows and accessories. We don’t have a range, but we do have a bag that people can use to try out our bows. We have apparel and freeze-dried food. We’re waiting on backordered arrows and anything we don’t currently have in shop, we can order.”
In July, Jarrett Nelson, owner of Burlington Arms, will be joining the shop. “We will be making custom guns and ammunition and ordering anything that people need, getting shipments, etc. We’re working on adding a suppressor kiosk that will hopefully be available at some point. I’ll do all of the major work in my own shop, but this will be like a showroom for my business,” said Nelson.
Lanius continued, “There’s a reason we set up a coach, chairs and a TV. If you’re a hunter and want to come hang out, want some water or coffee and just want to chat, we have space for that. We both served in the military and offer a military discount to any veteran who comes in with their card. We also offer a 4H/youth discount.”
Yellowstone Archery had a soft opening on June 15t and will do a grand opening in the future when more stock is available and systems are set up. Their hours of operation are Tuesday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.