OutdoorHub
Georgia Angler Breaks 38-year-old Bowfin State Record
The Georgia Department of Natural Resources confirmed last week that Jimmy Tucker of Statenville is the new state record holder for bowfin. On June 21, the 55-year-old angler caught a 16-pound, three-ounce bowfin from the Suwannee River. Tucker's fish bested the state's previous best, caught in 1976, by more than three ounces.
“Landing a 16-plus pound bowfin is no easy feat, so we are thrilled that Tucker and his fishing buddy---Tyler Carter---were able to get the fish in the boat to claim this new record,” said John Biagi, Georgia...
3-Gunning for Home Defense
In a rare fit of advance planning and organization, I’m starting to think about what gear to use at this year’s Crimson Trace Midnight 3 Gun Invitational (M3GI) match. The event takes place August 12 through 17 in the high desert outside of Bend, Oregon, so I’ve got a little time.
As the event title implies, I need to pick, you guessed it, three guns to use---one handgun, one shotgun, and one rifle. Stages are designed in such a way that you must always use at least two, and usually all three...
Mountain Lion Tranquilized after Invading Utah Mall
A 100-pound feline prowled Salt Lake City's Jordon Commons Mall last Friday, and it was certainly not a house cat. The Salt Lake Tribune reported that the big predator wandered onto the shopping center's parking lot and got close to the building, enough to send some shoppers and employees running.
"At first I saw it was a big dog," said Jann Smith, who was among the first to spot the animal. "Then it dawned on me it was a mountain lion [...] I was definitely surprised, I wasn’t sure what...
Fishing Hot-weather Nights for Crappie
The thick, mushroom-shaped clouds on this muggy night allowed the moon only an occasional glimpse of our boat. Large swarms of gnats, mosquitoes, and sometimes a mayfly circled the white beam that the Coleman lantern cast into the dark water below. After fishing for three hours, we'd only caught two or three small crappie.
"Sometimes the papermouths don't turn on until 1 to 3 a.m.," a fishing buddy of mine explained. "But if and when the crappie start biting, we'll take plenty of good-sized crappie---fast and furious."
At 2:48 a.m., large numbers of slab-sized crappie schooled-up under...
NRA Freestyle’s ‘NOIR’: Protecting Means Celebrating
There’s a lot to celebrate when it comes to firearms---our history, recreation and most of all our freedoms. In NOIR Episode 8 "Protecting Means Celebrating," Colion and Amy discuss why it’s important to protect our rights earned during the founding of our country. When it comes to guns, protecting means celebrating.
...
Video: Grizzly Munches on GoPro Camera
Wildlife photographer Chris Weston mined a river in Alaska's Katmai Peninsula with cameras hoping to get a closer look at its denizens, but one bear decided it was time for a close up---and a snack. Caters News Agency reported that an estimated 500-pound grizzly began chewing on one of Weston's expensive GoPro cameras after it mistook it for something edible. It didn't take long for the bear to realize the camera was anything but a tasty treat, but that didn't stop it from tearing the camera off its flexible tripod. Luckily for the photographer, the camera survived with footage captured from...
The BAREBOW! Chronicles: Todagin Mountain, 1991
Some readers who are avid hunters may wax skeptical about my reasons for moving to British Columbia in the fall of 1988, but I want to assure them it was not so I could hunt Stone sheep for the price of a resident’s $50 tag. Not that that’s a bad reason for moving there, mind you, but it wasn’t my reason at the time. I had bigger fish to fry. Actually, I guess the better metaphor would be that I had bigger game to pursue---under the rules of Fair Chase. I was in between marriages, and I was hunting all right, but I was hunting for the right lady with whom to spend the rest of my...
Video: The SKINZIT Fish Skinner
The SKINZIT Fish Skinner from Ultimate Fishing Gear is hardly the first tool to advertise easier, pain-free fish cleaning---but it does seem to work almost too well to believe. It may look a bit like a handheld lawn mower, but the SKINZIT claims to be capable of removing both bone and skin in a few easy passes. But will anglers feel inclined to buy the device? After all, cleaning fish by hand and knife has changed little since the time our ancestors were doing the same with pieces of flint.
The SKINZIT has impressed at least one notable...
Chicago City Council Votes to Allow Gun Stores, Just Not in Most of the City
Last week the Chicago City Council voted unanimously to pass an ordinance that would allow gun sales to take place in the city. The ordinance came after a federal court struck down the city's decades-long ban on gun stores earlier this year. According to The Chicago Sun-Times, Mayor Rahm Emanuel and city aldermen made it clear during the meeting that the ordinance will satisfy the court order, but still severely restrict gun sales in the city.
“We...
Getting the Drift for Lake St. Clair Bass
Not too many fishing holes exist where you can launch your kayak, buzz a little ways offshore, and catch a bunch of keeper bass in the space of four hours. Michigan’s 430-square-mile Lake St. Clair is one of them.
Bassmaster Magazine annually touts Lake St. Clair as one of the top bass fishing destinations in the country. Last year it was number one; this year it fell to 16. Nationally known for its big, plentiful smallmouth, it is loaded with largemouth, too.
Recently I met my fishing buddy Rich Ofner from Windsor, Ontario at St. Clair Metropark. We launched our 14-foot Hobie...
Cookin’ in Camo: Hunting Chef Tyler Viars
Among a line of white chef coats and toques, it is easy to spot Tyler Viars in his woodland camo. Tyler is one of the 22 contestants on the fifth season of the popular show MasterChef hosted by popular UK culinary expert and personality Gordon Ramsay. This hunter-turned-chef may not be a household name yet, but Tyler, who has also worked a field producer and videographer for the Outdoor Channel, plans on changing that. Competing for the the title of MasterChef isn't the extent of the 27-year-old Tyler's ambitions, and he has much bigger plans in mind.
"Food is emotional....
Rifle Practice and Training the Professional Way at FTW Ranch
What distance do you consider to be your longest acceptable shot when hunting with a rifle? Two hundred yards? Three hundred? Four hundred? How do you practice with your rifle, other than sighting in at the range? Many hunters would benefit from attending the Sportsmen’s All-Weather All-Terrain Marksmanship (SAAM) school at FTW Ranch. Nestled in a remote and beautiful spot in the hill country of southwest Texas, this incredible ranch-based school will not just improve skills, but is a heckuva lot of fun. In fact, the experience may rank just as...
Eagle Chick Dies on Live Webcam, Viewers Alarmed
Nature can be harsh and uncompromising, especially for newborn wildlife. Viewers of a popular Maine "eaglecam" were alarmed over the weekend when a bald eagle chick perished and was later cannibalized by its sibling and parents. It is a reminder that as likable and cute as these animals are, not all survive into adulthood. The Biodiversity Research Institute (BRI), which runs the webcam, defended their decision to not care for the two eagle chicks in the nest after their parents apparently abandoned them.
"While we understand the strong urge to intervene in circumstances that may be...
Video: Easy Way to Skin a Pheasant
There are probably as many ways to skin and clean a pheasant as there are hunters. Okay, maybe there are a great deal less, but there are certainly bad ways to pluck these birds. First-time pheasant hunters may notice that pheasants have thinner and looser skin than other birds such as duck and geese. Don't let this intimidate you, however, preparing a pheasant is easier than it looks.
Here is a quick and relatively simple method shared by the Military and survival channel on YouTube. Most impressively, this method requires just minimal...
Sneak Peek for NRA Freestyle’s ‘Media Lab’: Yo, Homie
In next week’s episode of Media Lab, Dom shows another example of how non-violent posture and situational awareness skills from great training can be used for self-defense in any situation. Full episode coming July 2.
The Edge of Light: Fishing the Shade
Followers of practically any wild game, furred or feathered, know that most critters are creatures of edges---transition zones between one cover type or another. The edge where the forest meets the open field, the edge between two crop types, the edge of a briar thicket, or the edge of the treeline often harbor more than their fair share of game.
The same is true of fish. The edge of a weed bed, the edge of a current break, the edge of a drop-off, or the "edge" of the thermocline are often where the densest concentrations of baitfish---and the gamefish that feed on them---are located.
An...
Hot Spots for Summertime Catfish
The temperature of water that catfish live in governs how actively they feed, because the enzyme action in a catfish's stomach doubles with each eight-degree increase in water temperature. The hotter the weather becomes, the more catfish feed. Let’s look at some places where catfish hang out in hot weather.
Small streams and little rivers
Oftentimes small streams and little rivers are overlooked, yet highly productive areas to catch numbers of catfish. You can pinpoint catfish hot spots, like current breaks, logs, and rocks. Several years ago, my children and I spotted a large boulder...
Bowfishing: Keeping It Simple
The heavy splashing only made my smile wider, grinning through my teeth, as they say. I held on to the thin line with both hands, pulling as gently as possible so as to not have it break again. It’s happened before and will time after time, especially when you’ve just stuck a good fish.
Shooting fish with a bow has long been a favorite pastime of mine. My good friend Lyle and I started in our high school days when there wasn’t much else to do around our little town. I can’t remember exactly which one of us first heard about bowfishing (probably Lyle), but we found that it was a way...
Video: Hunting Rabbits with a Tomahawk
When you think of a tomahawk, the first thing that comes to mind likely won't be hunting with one. There is a small community of devoted tomahawk hunters who harvest anything from muskrats to squirrels and rabbits. Experienced knife or spear hunters may even try one against a feral hog, although it can certainly be more dangerous.
In the video below, competitive shooter and Top Shot winner Dustin Ellermann apparently manages to take down a cottontail while demonstrating a Cold Steel Norse tomahawk to students. Ellermann makes the sidearm throw look almost...
Attempted Murder Blamed on Illusory Bear Attack in Vermont
A Vermont man is facing charges of attempted murder, arson, domestic assault, and reckless endangerment after he set fire to a cabin near Milton, urged his girlfriend to jump off a cliff, and opened fire on a vehicle with a rifle. According to the Milton Police Department, 28-year-old Lucas Gingras blamed the series of events on a bear attack.
The incident occurred last Wednesday when Gingras and his girlfriend Ladonna Merriman, 44, were staying at his cousin's cabin. The Read more »