Innholdsfortegnelse for March 2018 i Game & Fish East

I had a bad day. I asked two of my sons if they’d like to go fishing. “No, Dad. We’re good. We have a new video game we want to play.” That was a first. In the past they’d jump at the chance. I wondered if technology was killing their drive to be outdoors. The next day I was checking wireless trail-cam photos popping up on my iPhone. My son’s friend nearly jumped out of her seat. “What’s that?” She pointed to a fox running across a field. The field was actually her back yard. She had never seen a fox in the wild and was amazed that one lived just outside her door. Other kids gathered around as we checked out photos of young bucks, does, fawns, coyotes, owls,…

THERE ARE certain things about wary trout. It’s not so much they are shrewd or crafty, but they can sense shoreline activity, moving shadows and the splash of artificial lures. The most important thing to know about outsmarting wary trout is finding out what they eat and when they eat it. Even the most complacent stocker trout gets hungry after awhile. Once you have a handle on their feeding habits, focus angling efforts on where these cautious fish spend most of their time. Older and wiser trout hide out where there’s protection from predators and they can remain well fed. If that’s not enough to think about, then consider how environmental factors that include temperature, the amount of sunlight and weather influence their behavior. WHAT TROUT EAT While it’s not…

BACK IN 1978, I found myself at first light calling an Easter gobbler in southern Minnesota during the first ever turkey season held in the state. Only 420 permits were issued and I was lucky, especially with the big gobbler strutting along at 30 yards with a harem of six hens. Using a Remington 870 Wingmaster and a stiff duck load of Federal 3-inch 1 7/8-ounce of copper-plated No. 5 lead took one of 94 birds killed that historic season. In those early days of turkey hunting we didn’t have turkey-specific loads or guns. Equipment was very basic, and even turkey-hunting clothing was made up mostly of old government-issue leftovers that were dated around the time of the second World War. Save for a few Southern states, the whole idea…

Leupold VX-1 2-7x33mm with Turkey Plex Reticle This scope’s unique Turkey Plex reticle will change the way you aim at a gobbler. When the scope is at 7X — the power at which it was designed to be used — the head of an adult turkey at 40 yards fills the center circle. If the head appears to be twice that large, the bird is at 20 yards, and if it’s half that size, the turkey is 80 yards away. The scope’s heavy post quickly draws the eye to the center point, which is critical when a bird appears suddenly. Low profile and waterproof, the scope is built to Leupold’s demanding requirements for ruggedness and reliability. leupold.com Trijicon MRO This sight takes the science of red-dot scopes to the next…

MARCH 3-4 THE FLY FISHING SHOW The Fly Fishing Show will be held at the Lancaster County Convention Center. Adult admission $15, children 6-12 $2, children under 5 free. flyfishingshow.com/lancaster-pa/ MARCH 9-11 GREATER PHILADELPHIA BOAT SHOW The Greater Philadelphia Boat show will be held at the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center at Oaks. Friday 1-8, Saturday 10-7, Sunday 11-5. Adult Admission $8. Kids 16 and under free. phillyboatshow.com MARCH 24 MENTORED YOUTH TROUT FISHING Youth under the age of 16 can join a mentor (adult angler who has a current fishing license and trout permit) to fish on Saturday, March 24 on stocked trout waters within the 18 southeastern regional counties. Youth anglers must obtain a Mentored Youth Fishing Permit or Voluntary Youth Fishing License from the Commission. fishandboat.com/Fish MARCH 31…

THE SNOW WE’D hoped to have but didn’t get for the rifle deer season had finally fallen a few weeks ago. But its days were already numbered. Oh, it was hanging on wherever there was shade, but was slowly receding everywhere else. And we had the bug. The calendar had turned to March and it felt like time to go fishing. That we did. A friend and I grabbed our gear — suspending jerkbaits for bass, live bait and jigheads for panfish, among other things — and set out. We were fishing from shore and the walk in was a bit tricky at times, given the last bits of ice in some spots and the slick mud it left behind in others. But we caught fish and kicked off the…

WINTER WALLEYE ANGLERS get conditioned. Most realize that walleyes spend much of the winter shadowing deep structure — humps and reefs — and their movements are relatively limited. Targeting the same locations throughout the winter capitalizes on the brief feeding flurries winter walleyes exhibit, usually at dusk and dawn, before reverting to a prolonged period of relative inactivity. But at some point in late winter there’s a stirring, a beckoning, a calling that walleyes heed. There’s a certain population of walleyes still occupying offshore structure nearly year around, but as spring approaches increasing numbers of walleyes heed the siren’s song to head shallow. “THE CLOSER YOU get to spring the more walleyes are going to relate to moving water,” said veteran ice-angler Walt Matan of Custom Jigs & Spins Inc.(www.customjigs.com).…

TURKEY LOADS have advanced beyond the wildest imagination of old-time hunters of a bygone era. In effect, we have evolved toward a very specialized type of ammunition designed for unique field applications. Like fly-fishermen, turkey hunters want a specialized load for every situation encountered in the field. The short form to all this advanced planning is that shooters hunting birds under 30 yards can get by with basic duck loads or heavy field loads of lead or steel shot (Remington Nitro Mag and Winchester Super X by example) that are not a great deal different than those loads used during the 1970s. However, 40-yard shooting should involve more precisely tailored turkey loads, but need not push the limits of ballistics to the point of harnessing ultra-long-range fodder. For hung-up birds,…

1. TURKEY OR DEER? Yeah, a lot of people don’t realize I got my start as a competitive turkey caller. I love turkey hunting probably more than anything because it’s offensive. You’re relying on strategy and skill more than sheer luck — which drives me nuts when hunting deer. It's a game of cat-and-mouse, with the winner being the one who plays the game best. 2. IF YOU WERE LIMITED TO JUST ONE TURKEY CALL, WHICH ONE WOULD IT BE? Hands down, it’s a mouth call. I can manipulate different sounds a hen makes with all kinds of different inflections. You can call softly, hands free, when a gobbler gets close. And, you can use a mouth call aggressively to help locate, strike and fire a turkey up. I found…

I F YOU’RE going to fish Pennsylvania in spring – and in March especially – be aware of seasons. Walleyes, for example, can be harvested through the first half of the month. Usually, somewhere around March 14 is the last day. Thereafter, though, they’re protected through early May. That’s to allow for the fish to spawn unmolested. The fishing for muskies and tiger muskies is open year-round. That’s a change that’s been in effect for just a few years now. The tradeoff is that fish now have to be at least 40 inches to be creeled. As for panfish, it’s not seasons you have to worry about — they’re fair game all year — but location. On most waters, anglers can target crappies, bluegills, perch and the like year-round, with…

A QUALITY PAIR of binoculars can be a vital part of a turkey hunter’s arsenal. When approaching a known strutting zone, such as a field, binoculars are a must-have to ensure that gobblers are not already strutting. They also are handy when walking old roads, field edges or even an open powerline. The Nikon 10x42 Laser Force Binocular/Rangefinder has became a piece of equipment I do not turkey hunt without. Having a combo of binoculars and a range-finder allows ranging decoys to understand how far a gobbler needs to come before it is in range. The convenient combo eliminates one more thing in my turkey vest.…

Walleye fishing seasons vary greatly from state to state. Be sure to check the regulations where you’re planning on fishing. Walleye season in some states closes at the end of February, others close in the middle of March and in some states the walleye season never closes. There are areas in states where the season is closed on specific waters, but remains open on others. Generally, waters on the Great Lakes and connecting water remain open year around, but wherever you are planning to fish, check the regulations before you go.…

WHEN PURSUING spring gobblers, hunters need at least some knowledge of the property, the ability to make some calls and a shotgun paired with a good choke and load combination. There are many shotguns, ranging from a couple of hundred dollars up to a few thousand. Of course, choosing a shotgun typically comes down to preference, features and money. Here are two fairly new options to consider if you need a new gun. TRISTAR VIPER G2 CAMO Based in Kansas City, Mo., TriStar has built a reputation of making excellent but affordable firearms, with the trade - marked slogan “The Value Experts.” Given that, I was excited to try out the company’s Viper G2 semi-auto shotgun with a 26-inch barrel on spring turkeys. Just like TriStar claims, the Viper G2…

More than 30 years ago, while still a novice turkey hunter, I looked to veterans to borrow from their experience and to mimic some of their skills. In those early years of “turkey school,” I learned that the decoys of that era were rather drab when compared to a live bird. To spice up a turkey decoy, it was time to pull out the paints and give them a more realistic look. I recall taking an old Feather Flex hen and adding more whites to wing feathers, slight touches of bronze, green and other colors to give them more iridescence. The crowning touch was to take some white paint, or something as simple as Wite-Out, or Liquid Paper, and putting a small dot in the decoy’s eyes. That seemed to…

GOOD CATFISH bait stinks, but not everything that stinks is good catfish bait. Not all stink is created equal. As important, good bait needs a consistency that you can keep on a hook (most likely with the aid of a sponge, tube or ribbed bait worm). But it will also need to break up in the water to attract catfish. Fortunately, various combinations of ingredients will create concoctions that will call in channel catfish. So, if you’re a do-it-yourselfer, you can enjoy the added satisfaction of catching fish on something you created, or if maybe you just want a bait that no one else is using, you definitely can make your own catfish bait. The first step is to find a working space that is away from the house and…

EMERGENCIES REQUIRE you to rethink your priorities and also tend to reveal your true character. “What would we do if there was a real catastrophe?” I asked. “I’ve adjusted my life to catastrophe ever since we were married,” Dawn said. “Catastrophe is just another day in the life of an overworked mother.” “I’m talking about serious things here: hurricanes, tornadoes, wildfires, monumental mayhem and unprecedented upheaval. We need to be prepared.” “Is this going to be another one of your excuses to buy more hunting and fishing gear?” she asked. “We need to be ready in case the worst happens,” I said. “I always figured that if we were stranded here, we’d break out the camp stove and the oil lamps and it would be just like any other camping…