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Fishing club hosts annual muskie school

WAUNAKEE, Wis. (AP) — The half-foot-long bait darted through the gin-clear water. The tip of the 9-foot rod bounced up and down, and eyes were transfixed as the bait made its way through the shallows. “This is what they’re eating. It’s about the same size as a bluegill on (lakes) Monona, Waubesa and Wingra,” said Leif Spilde, a seasoned muskie angler, as he pointed his rod tip down and focused on the bait. “My four or five biggest fish in Madison have been on this.” But despite Spilde’s skill and experience, there was zero chance of a monster fish magically ...

Scent elimination is good all year-round

On social media, I often see newer turkey hunters being hazed by the elders of the sport, suggesting they not forget to use their scent elimination spray and attractant sprays for turkeys. Anyone even slightly familiar with the sport knows that turkeys cannot smell and that this is bogus information, but there are some pros to putting effort into your scent control year round. I was once seated on a ridge top on a mid-morning hunt, and I’d already covered a lot of ground. It was a hot day and I had been sweating quite a bit. A turkey had gobbled and was headed my way when a few deer ...

Wild brook trout are among state’s best catches

I grew up spending time in the outdoors in and around the Juniata Valley. For as long as I can remember, I have memories of being on the mountain or along a stream. Those early experiences molded me into someone who greatly appreciates how beautiful, and yet delicate, our natural resources can be. Those two attributes are the best ways to describe one of my favorite creatures and its required habitat in Penn’s Woods. In my eyes, the wild brook trout that call Pennsylvania’s mountainous, cold-water streams home are truly a gift that must be protected so that future generations ...

Mentor change may be most important

HARRISBURG — Just the thought or mention of deer in Pennsylvania is guaranteed to get the juices of sportsmen flowing. So, as expected, the news coming out of January’s quarterly meeting of the Pennsylvania Game Commission’s board of game commissioners that a Saturday opener for the firearms deer season is in place got the most attention. On the back burner, however, was a matter that has finally been brought to a boil after simmering for far too long. At that same meeting the commission gave final approval to a measure that bridges the mentored youth and mentored adult hunting ...

Erie group helps Veterans gather for day of bird hunting and camaraderie

HARTSTOWN (AP) — Eyeing the pile of ring-tailed pheasants and chukar partridges in front of him, Dan Stafford of Erie wondered if he had enough to edge out his brother in the sibling competition the two had waged in fields about one mile north of Hartstown on Saturday. As it happened, his brother, Josh Stafford of Rochester, New York, had managed to lose count of how many birds he had taken. Whether Josh Stafford’s memory slip was unlucky or suspiciously convenient was unclear, but the spirit of fraternal conviviality and good-natured competition evident between the two proved a ...

NWTF survey enhances scouting and hunting

To borrow from lyrics written by Roger Waters, indeed it has been a helluva start for the National Wild Turkey Federation Pennsylvania State Chapter Hunter Co-op Survey — but the project could truly become a monster if even more turkey hunters participate and all pull together as a team. Organized and managed by Pennsylvania State Chapter treasurer and board member Jim Panaro, contributing to the Hunter Co-op Survey requires minimum effort from participants who keep a written record of what they see and hear during preseason scouting. Recording that information continues once the ...