Putting cows on the front page since 1885.
Putting cows on the front page since 1885.
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In 2019 the Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC) shifted the opening day of rifle deer season from the Monday following Thanksgiving to the Saturday following Thanksgiving. PGC spokesmen told us that this would allow more people to participate, workers who are off work on Saturdays and students whose Saturdays are free. Some hunters favored the move to Saturday, while others strenuously opposed it. However, the PGC did not have any data to support which position most sportsmen favored. So, the...
At the end of winter, the Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC) distributed a press release reporting that the busy time for monitoring Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) was winding down. Although the PGC monitors CWD all year long, the most intense surveillance occurs during deer season when the PGC collects more data than at any other time of the year. The press release noted that the PGC had collected more than 11,000 CWD samples of whitetail deer after July 1, 2020. Hunters from the three Disease...
TV weather forecasters have been telling us for more than a month that meteorological spring began on March 1. As if that weren't enough, the official first day of spring was listed as March 20 on most calendars. True, we have enjoyed some lovely spring-like days after both of these dates, but sportsmen know that the real first day of spring occurs this Saturday, April 3. It is the first day of the traditional trout season. The first day of trout season is magical. It probably draws more people...
I have occasionally been asked why I do not write columns about guns. I guess I should be embarrassed when I reply, "I am not a real 'gun nut.' I possess only the ones I hunt with. Anyhow, the February issue of the "Pennsylvania Game News" included an article about shotgun-rifle combination guns. The article concludes with a short write-up of a turkey combination gun that became popular in the 1970s. This is the Tikka Turkey Gun, a product of a manufacturing company from Finland. The top barrel...
On the last Sunday of February, Donna decided that she; Sage, her dog; Amber, our granddaughter; and I needed to make a trip to Snow Shoe to see my sister, Anne Houck, and her husband, Bruce. "We still have their Christmas gift here. If we don't get it to them soon, it will be Easter." Having procrastinated about as long as I could, I agreed that we needed to make the trip to Snow Shoe. It was a convenient Sunday to do it: It was still too cold to fish, and I really did not feel like exercising...
As an enthusiastic reader and former English teacher, I like to think I have a solid vocabulary. I can often decipher sesquipedalian terms (long words) from the context clues in the sentences where I find them. In a recent issue of "National Wildlife" magazine, I encountered two words I had not previously run into. The first of these was "zoonotic." Zoonotic refers to a disease that humans contract that was caused by a pathogen that originally lived in animals. Examples of these include MERS,...
At its recent quarterly meeting, the Board of the Pennsylvania Fish & Boat Commission announced changes for the upcoming 2021 trout season. These changes were prompted by the changes necessitated by the COVID-19 virus that dramatically altered things last year. For a number of years, there have been two trout-season openers: one in 16 southeastern counties and another one two weeks later in the rest of the state. In addition, preceding the regular openers, there were two Mentored Youth Fishing D...
Prior to last winter, I had never written a column concerning Valentine's Day. I intended that column as a tribute to Donna, my wife, and to all of the other wives of sportsmen who support – or at least tolerate – our outdoor activities. Several people stopped me downtown and complimented me on the column. However, a couple others asked me what I was thinking when I wrote the column. "Holy cow, Rich," one said, "when you wrote that you gave your wife a fancy card, bought her flowers, and the...
The COVID-19 virus is one of the most horrible events of my lifetime. I hope the people responsible for distributing the vaccines can get them out soon so the effects of the virus can be mitigated and we can return to relatively normal lives. Besides all of the medical issues presented by the virus, it has been responsible for cancelling many events, some of which have affected sportsmen. Probably the most evident cancellations for sportsmen are the popular outdoor shows that are normally held i...
"Rich, you need to a column about littering. There's more trash around in the outdoors than I have seen in years," Donna told me during a recent walk with her dog on the rail trail. "Yes, dear. But, you know my writing about it doesn't do any good. The pigs who throw their junk out along roads or in obscure places probably aren't the ones who read my column." The most recent event that had Donna fired up was that a local man who is nearly our age was cleaning up a mess along the local rail...
Winter is often not conducive for effective fly-fishing for trout. Howling winds and freezing temperatures make outings uncomfortable, and cold water temperatures often inhibit the activity of the fish. Many fly-fishermen sink back into rocking chairs near their wood burners and settle in with some winter reading. Winter reading can help them prepare for the upcoming season. Hundreds of fly-fishing books are available in bookstores, fly shops, or online that will help an angler devise tactics...
One morning in mid-December, Amber, my granddaughter, was driving along Route 866 on her way to her final morning classes in Johnstown. When she spotted a dead bear lying along the road, she called me. "You ought to go out and see it. It's not damaged too badly." So, Donna; Sage, her dog; and I hopped into my old Ranger. Five minutes later we were looking at the dead bear. It was relatively small but not a cub. I snapped a photo of it and talked about it with a couple other sportsmen who...
Proverbs 21:20 (KJV) says that "a fool and his money are soon parted." I suppose the same can be said about sportsmen. Sportsmen seem to need the latest gadgets and gear that are developed for our favorite pastimes. Deer hunters stock up on the latest scents and odor-free clothing that might help them put tags on whitetails. Turkey hunters collect all sorts of turkey calls to trick even the most reticent of gobblers. Fly-fishermen need the best feathers to construct their flies and the most...
"Rich, aren't you going to write up what you did this past year in the outdoors?" a sportsman asked me recently at a local store. "I know you didn't write about how things went in 2019." It's humbling to know that some people pay attention to what I write. Anyhow, here are a few items from the pandemic year. During 2020 I noticed more than ever that my age (71) is catching up with me. This was especially evident during May when I was trying to burn the candle at both ends – attempting to r...
Both good and bad events occurred during the past rifle deer season. Let's begin with one of the good things. My friend Brady built a number of deer stands two summers ago. Mine is a "Taj Mahal," though I had him build it in a poor location. However, he is smarter than I am and chose a good spot to build one for himself. For the second consecutive year he downed a nice buck from his stand. While he and I were tugging it uphill, my son arrived just when we needed his help. Bob pulled Brady's...
I was interested to read the article "Never the Same Again" in the December 2020 "Pennsylvania Game News." The author, Associate Editor Joe Kosack, takes us through the past 20 years of deer management from the Pennsylvania Game Commission's perspective. Kosack lauds the management decisions made by PGC biologist Gary Alt and his successors. Kosack praises Alt's team's promotion of concurrent season and antler restrictions. He concludes that Alt and his team "made deer hunting better for...
Several weeks ago, on Nov. 25, 2020, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced its decision to deny a permit for the proposed Pebble Mine in the Bristol Bay region of Alaska under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act and Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act. In a statement, Army Corps Alaska District Commander, Col. Damon Delarose, said the mine would be "contrary to the public interest" because "it does not comply with Clean Water Act guidelines." This decision has the potential to end a...
When people my age (71) fall down, we can suffer serious long-term consequences. I believed that I was immune to falling down and hurting myself, though I am glad that my son, Bob, bought me a wading staff for fishing, since I often slip and slide around while fishing big streams. However, I didn't think I needed a walking stick to maneuver on uneven ground in the woods. Well, live and learn. On Oct. 30 I had accompanied Bob on a turkey-scouting mission. We hoped to put a flock of birds "to bed"...
My son, Bob, has killed quite a few bucks during his 28 years of hunting. The best of these was a perfect 10-point that he downed a couple years ago. Each tine was perfectly matched with one on the opposite antler beam, and there were no chips or broken points on the rack. It was a beautiful buck. A few years prior to that, he downed an eight-point whose rack had a wider spread than the 10-point's, but the tines were not as evenly matched. Though these bucks and others he has killed mean a...
The statewide rifle bear season comes in this Saturday, Nov. 21, and will run through Nov. 24. This is the first time bear season will include a Sunday of hunting – Nov. 22. Archers already enjoyed a lengthy bear-hunting season in late October and early November, and various extended bear seasons will be in effect during deer season. Locally, in Wildlife Management Areas 4A and 4D, the extended bear season will run from Nov. 30 through Dec. 5. This extended season does not include the first two days of rifle deer season. Including the a...
It is nearly here: the week of the whitetail rut that bowhunters and crossbow hunters have lobbied to have added to the autumn archery season. Next week is the big week. In the past, the first two weeks of November have been the ones that archers have hoped would get wary bucks moving past their stands. However, archers have lamented that the week following these two weeks is the one when power-rack bucks that are rarely seen leave their security areas and are out looking for does to breed. "We...
Last fall my son, Bob, called a nice young gobbler in for me on the opening day of the season. To my credit, I took advantage of the shot that was presented and collected my Thanksgiving turkey. However, Bob could not call in a turkey for himself that day, so he had to use his time after work each day to try to run down a bird. He rose early each day so that he could complete his work early in the afternoons, leaving himself several afternoon hours to hunt for a wild turkey. Finally, on...
Like the previous autumn, 2019's fall turkey season was to last only one week in our area (unless you counted the two days prior to the new Saturday opener for rifle deer season). So, I had to try to tag a turkey during the one-week season. Like my friend Scout, I had done my due diligence, scouting for birds a number of times; but the turkeys I'd found vanished a week before the season. Unlike Scout and me, my son, Bob, is not retired and had only limited time to scout prior to the opener, yet...
My wife, my son and my granddaughter tell me that I live in a confined world. "All you want to do is to go fly-fishing for trout and hunt for wild turkeys in season. You need to broaden your horizons." "I like to go out to eat whenever I can," I protest. "We go to lots of different places." "No, we don't," they tell me. My wife is especially forceful about this. "We eat at the same three or four places most of the time. No, Rich, you're a real stick in the mud." Of course I am hurt by these accu...
Pennsylvania's bear population has expanded dramatically over the past several decades, so much that special bear seasons outside the regular firearms season that lasts from Nov. 21 through Nov. 24 this fall have been established. The first of these statewide seasons actually begins this Saturday, Oct. 17. This is the statewide archery season for bears that lasts from Oct. 7 until Nov. 7. This is the season that exists in our local wildlife management area. The archery bear season lasts even...
When I got home from a successful fishing adventure this morning, I decided that I still had enough energy left to wash and wax my 10-year-old Ford Ranger. The Ranger is my most recent fishing (and hunting) truck; and during the 10 years I have used it, it has performed well. My mechanic tells me it should keep going for a while longer. As I washed and waxed the dark blue truck, I noticed that it does sport a few bumps and bruises that I have inflicted on it over the years. My local body-repair...
From the time he was old enough to realize what a gun was, my son, Bob, showed great interest in shooting and then a little later, hunting. I probably wasn't the best teacher, but I encouraged these interests from the time he was in early elementary school. The first thing I did to encourage his interest in shooting was to buy him a BB gun. After numerous sessions of Bob's shooting from a bench, I was confident enough to let him shoot the gun without my standing over his shoulder. He got to...
I recently ran into a young fly-fisherman who had bought my book, "The Trout at the Walnut Tree," which appeared 30 years ago and was probably the worst-selling book in the history of fly-fishing. He'd found it online for a dollar, which didn't do much for my ego either. "Are the stories true?" he asked. "Pretty much," I answered. "How about the one called 'The First Fly-Fisherman' where you and Dr. Archie O. Logist went cave exploring and found cave art that you thought showed that a caveman...
Students of literature remember that Oedipus the King was a major figure in tragic Greek drama. Unwitting actions ruined his life. Oedipus had become king by solving the riddle of the Sphinx: "What begins life on four legs, then walks upon two legs, and then in old age walks upon three legs?" Oedipus's answer, of course, was "man," who crawls as a baby, walks upon two legs as an adult, then needs a cane to help support him in old age. I would guess that most sportsmen reading this couldn't care...
After 45 years of marriage, I have learned when my presence is not needed around the house. Such was the case one hot August evening when Donna was having a meeting at our house for one of the committees of the Williamsburg Women's Civic Club. I realized that I'd better make myself scarce. For years I have been mumbling about gathering some old bass-fishing gear and heading off to the "big river" below Huntingdon to catch some smallmouth bass. I have not used this gear in more than 30 years, tho...
Although it seems odd to me, Pennsylvania's autumn hunting seasons open next Tuesday, Sept. 1. One of the hunting targets will be mourning doves, which may be hunted from one-half hour before sunrise till one-half hour after sunset. The season runs till Nov.27 and then resumes from Dec. 18 until Jan. 2. When my son was young, we tried hunting for doves several times; and unlike me Bob could hit them. I have never harvested a dove. The limit is 15 per day, with a possession limit of 45 birds. Ano...
When I am fishing, I occasionally encounter unusual things that have nothing to do with my fly-fishing adventures. One of the weirdest outdoor encounters I have had recently was finding a little mole trying to get himself out of an in-stream patch of dirty gunk that must once have been foam. Since moles live underground and are basically blind, this little guy had no idea how to extricate himself from the morass. I had an easy solution to his problem. I removed my landing net from my vest, slid...
Summer is supposed to be the season of plenty in the wild. Young animals that have been born during the recent spring are growing and are becoming aware of the world around them. By now, whitetail fawns are beginning to venture into fields where they are visible. These charismatic animals give you a fuzzy feeling when you spot them on evening rides. However, things are not always easy and pleasant for wild creatures. Summer can be a time of cruel death as well. For instance, along any road you d...
I have a friend we'll call "John Doe" who owns a nice outdoor property. John keeps a few trout in a small pond there. However, by this spring the population was down to one large palomino (yes, I know it's actually a golden rainbow). During the dry weather the pond was drying up. John knew he'd have to move the trout out of the pond if it were to survive. Recently he asked me if I'd help him get the palomino to the Big Spring in town. "Yes," I agreed in front of my new pastor, Matt Roberts. "I'l...
The Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC) hosted a webinar on Monday, July 27, that presented the updated Chronic Wasting Disease Plan that was presented to the Board of Game Commissioners on Saturday, July 25. Andrea Korman, the game commission’s CWD biologist, presented an overview of the new plan. She noted that the two main goals of the plan are to minimize the impacts of CWD in deer and elk, and to increase stakeholders’ understanding of the plan. Korman said that the PGC hopes to reduce human-related activities that amplify and spread CWD...
To hunt turkeys the way I do, I must be in good physical condition. At 70 it has become increasingly difficult to remain in the type of condition I need to be in so that I can pursue wild turkeys over several miles of difficult ground during an autumn day of hunting. When the Y was still able to host morning basketball for players 60 and over, I got a good workout two days a week while trying to chase other players around the court. The ageless Galen Bickel from Altoona really forced me to work...
By now, most hunters have purchased their licenses for the 2020-21 hunting year. Many have bought additional tags and stamps so that they can hunt with a bow, crossbow, or muzzleloader for deer. In addition, pheasant-hunting enthusiasts have plunked down an extra fee so that they can pursue stocked ringnecks. More than 100,000 hunters will likely have bought a license so that they can hunt for bears during one of the many seasons that will be available to pursue Pennsylvania's bruins. The...
The term "sartorial splendor" means "magnificent in the manner of dress." In relation to fishing, sartorial splendor could mean that an angler dresses himself so that he looks magnificent to other anglers. When I am out fishing, especially when I visit the BFO (big, famous, overfished) River, I often encounter other fly-fishermen who look like they are models for fly-fishing catalogues. These guys wear the latest in brand-name breathable waders, even on smaller creeks. Underneath their waders I...
We are now in the period of summer when catching trout becomes a matter of degree. No, I am not talking about the degree of difficulty, though summer trout are much tougher to deal with than the trout of the early season are. By now, trout have seen just about every kind of live bait, spinning lure, and fly imaginable. The fortunate trout that have been caught and released, perhaps more than once, have become wise regarding the wiles of fishermen and often examine a fisherman's wares critically...
"You're just an old fogey, Rich," the young fly-fisherman told me. "You need to get up to date on modern fly-fishing tactics." The young man's comment was made to me not too long ago when we were discussing nymph-fishing techniques. He had told me that his nymphs' effectiveness was more than doubled by dipping his nymphs in a solution of scent. "Why don't you just use live bait?" I blurted out. "That's what you're making your nymphs by dipping them into that gunk." "Ah, Rich, you're out of the l...
May is my favorite month. Redbud and dogwood come into full bloom against the pastel green of developing plants. Eventually ground phlox and dame's rocket make their lavender appearances as well. As the month advances, things warm up; and the month produces some of the nicest days of the year. One May day not too long ago demonstrates why I often become zombie-like before the end of the month. There are so many things to try to squeeze in that May often presents an "embarrassment of riches." I...
With the coronavirus closing many things down, including age-level basketball at the Y, I find that I still have lots of things to do. So should most sportsmen. Enthusiastic trout fishermen have been on the water since April 7. The PFBC opened the season 11 days early to try to mitigate the crowded conditions that usually accompany the opening day. I have been on the water frequently since then with mixed results. I would say that the fly-fishing has ranged from fair to average most of the...
A month ago, I wrote that the Unified Sportsmen of Pennsylvania (USP) was continuing to back the research of Dr. Frank Bastian and that Bastian's work needs financial support. When the PA Department of Agriculture recently awarded $1 million in funding for CWD research in three chunks, Bastian's group did not receive any money. Instead, two of the three awards went to researchers associated with the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine, which has entered a working relationshi...
After my son, Bob, tagged his big opening-day 2019 spring gobbler, he wanted to know if I wanted to keep hunting. "Nope," I replied. "With this wind howling, I don't think that we'll hear another bird." The following Monday, I heard a couple of gobblers hollering at dawn. However, they were across a deep hollow from me. When I was younger, I would have tried to relocate by crossing the gorge and then calling to them. However, at 69, I knew that I couldn't do that, so I went home for a nap...
My son, Bob, is a better hunter than I am. This has become increasingly evident during the spring when he has managed to kill gobblers almost every spring for the past 10 years without having much time to scout ahead of the season or to hunt during the season. Last year was no different. In fact, he killed a big gobbler on the season's first day. I had scouted a lot of different places prior to the season and had located a gobbler that hung out on a ridge that is one of Bob's favorite places to...
When I got home this morning, April 7, from fishing on one of the specially regulated waters where trout fishing is open the year round, Donna greeted me by saying, "Do you know that trout season is open today? Kendra called and told me that Justin wanted you to know the regular trout season opened this morning at eight." "That's not right," I replied. "That's just a rumor. Guys on the internet have been saying they've seen people fishing on stocked trout streams already. They are not supposed t...
This time every spring, trout fishermen start getting "antsy." With the traditional opener still nearly a month away, most wile away their time doing other things, including odious yard work. However, if a sportsman wants to fish for trout during the days leading up to regular trout season, he has some options. If a fisherman peeks inside the booklet accompanying his fishing license, he will discover that quite a few trout stream sections are open to trout fishing prior to the traditional...
Although Dr. Frank Bastian's research concerning Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) has not been able to be replicated by other researchers, the Unified Sportsmen of Pennsylvania (USP) is continuing to support his research. To review: Bastian believes that spiroplasma bacteria cause CWD in deer and other cervids. Conventional research has determined that misfolded proteins called prions cause CWD. Bastian believes that the prions are byproducts of the bacterial action. For a number of years, Bastian...
An informational meeting concerning Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) was held on Saturday, March 7, at the Freedom Township Fire Hall with approximately 150 sportsmen in attendance. State Rep. Jim Gregory began the meeting by noting that this was a follow-up to a meeting held a year ago where sportsmen had gathered to oppose targeted culling of the local deer herd. He said that the March 7 meeting was set up to discuss CWD a year later. State Sen. Judy Ward said that the Department of Agriculture h...
Five years ago, my friend Brady killed a buck that ran down the wrong side of the mountain after being hit with a shot that should have dropped him in his tracks. It took the two of us more than six hours to get the eight-point back to Brady's truck. After that strenuous effort, I told him I didn't think we should hunt deer there any longer. I was then 65; he, slightly younger. "We'd be risking our health if we keep hunting there," I told him. For the next few years, we hunted various other...
