OUTDOOR
GUIDE
May-June 2022
MAGAZINE
Crappie in timber...... Page 6
Rabbit Cacciatore.....Page 14
Quail habitat...........Page 17
Topwater fly fishing...Page 18
Be a good guest.......Page 26
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Outdoor Guide
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May-June 2022
Over and Outdoors
A to-do list for helping native plants
Photo and Text By JOHN WINKELMAN Guide Associate Editor
You may have never heard me curse about them, but if you have followed this column for any length of time, you have certainly seen my complaints about honeysuckle bushes and callery pear trees. The invasive species are at the top of my hit list, and I advocate for others to add assault on them to their to-do lists. In my backyard and the common ground in my subdivision, I have been making progress. Like many suburban areas, the infestation is significant. A book I found on the new releases shelf at my local library provided inspiration and an idea that maybe my efforts are not in vain. Getting others to take up the cause could be world changing.
The 2020 best-seller, “Nature’s Best Hope” by Douglas Tallamy is a follow-up to his similar, previous book “Bringing Nature Home.” Both books are about the importance of restoring native species to provide for and protect the environment. With a realist’s approach, simple language, and examples and analogies we all can understand, the University of Delaware ecology professor avoids the textbook talk and encourages people to help restore the planet, one little plot of ground at a time. With all of the native species on our continent, how could a few imported plants disrupt an entire ecosystem? Tallamy says the number of invasive species is more than 3,300, but he answers the question by asking how one little tumor might affect a whole human body. Like cancer, the unchecked invaders can spread quickly. Another analogy I liked was in response to the lack of concern over the loss of
individual species. Why worry about one bird or two? An engine, he said, may continue to run even if you remove a few seemingly unnecessary parts, but it will never operate at its peak efficiency. Eventually, missing additional parts will stop it dead. A HOME-GROWN NATIONAL PARK My favorite comparison targeted those who deny the
The cover of Douglas Tallamy’s newest book features an eastern bluebird holding a caterpillar meal. The text highlights the importance of sustaining and restoring one to save the other.
negative impact humans have on the environment. Tallamy likened it to being on board a leaking boat. While some people are at least attempting to bail, others continue to pour bucketfuls of water into the boat. His solution is to establish a home-grown national park. Not big tracts of land for someone else to take care of, but individual efforts to plant natives. If every little suburban yard in America had a 10-by-10 native garden, the restored land would provide more habitat than our biggest parks combined. Those locations will attract the insects that have evolved alongside the plants for millennia, providing food for birds and other wildlife that rely on them to sustain their populations. The National Wildlife Federation hosts a Native Plant Finder list that can be searched by zip code. Its content is provided in part through Tallamy’s research. When I entered my home-
This roadside ditch has been overtaken by invasive honeysuckle bushes and callery pear trees, descendants of someone’s ornamental landscaping plants.
town, I found suggestions for flowers and grasses including goldenrod, indigo, hibiscus and more than 200 other plants. The website also offers the best trees and shrubs for attracting and restoring native caterpillars, including oaks, birches, hickories, dogwoods, blueberries, blackberries and dozens more. The Audubon Society has
a similar online resource that suggests the best plants for birds. For my zip code, it recommended 123 best options and almost 500 in the full results list. Working in conjunction with neighbors to expand these new refuges in the midst of suburban landscapes will increase the size of the See WINKLEMAN page 4
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Outdoor Guide
May-June 2022
RENEW YOUR
HUNTING FISHING and
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Buy Missouri hunting and fishing permits from vendors around the state, online at mdc.mo.gov/buypermits, or through MDC’s free mobile apps, MO Hunting and MO Fishing.
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Outdoor Guide
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Photo andText By BRENT FRAZEE When I was a kid, fishing seemed like an inexpensive endeavor. I needed only a rod and reel, a few hooks, bobbers and split shot, plus a coffee can full of worms. I never could have foreseen a day when I would be using a lure that cost $25, or that I would have a tackle tray full of those lures. But that’s where I am today. I bought those Megabass Vision jerkbaits because … well, if they cost that much, they had to be good. And I have to admit, they haven’t disappointed. They cast further than other jerkbaits I have used, they suspend perfectly when paused and they run true out of the box. One other thing: They catch bass! I went out the other day and caught eight keepers – three of them pushing five pounds – in two hours of fishing. That kind of justified my expensive shopping habits, in my mind. Never mind that I may have caught those bass on far less expensive jerkbaits, like the Rogues I once used.
May-June 2022
Going fishing’s not the low-cost game anymore THE FISHING SNOB? Then it hit me. Am I becoming a bass-fishing snob? You know, the kind of angler who will throw money at anything with a high price tag that will catch fish? I gotta admit, my tastes are becoming increasingly highbrow. I no longer go to the bargain bin when I shop for lures or fishing equipment. I go straight to the high-dollar stuff that the pros use to catch big ones. I have bought expensive, limited edition glide baits from well-known lure designers after writing a story about a fisherman who catches huge bass on them. I have antique topwater lures such as the Creek Chub Plunker that I use each summer. And I have expensive swimbaits that I break out when I’m fishing for giant bass. The point is, if it’s expensive, it has to catch fish, right? And there must not be many of them made, so the bass haven’t seen many of them. That’s another advantage. IF I WERE RICH I always try to buy two of each lure. That way, if I throw one of them into a tree
or get it hung up in the brush, I’ll always have another one to go to. But I have to admit, my spending habits would be a lot easier if I were rich. I have to hide my receipts from the tackle shop so my wife won’t see them. If she does, I just plead that I had to buy those lures to conduct research for an article. I guess my dad had the same habits years ago when he was into fishing. Years ago, he listened to a clerk at a bait shop talk about the fish-catching powers of a new Rapala crankbait, a lure so effective that stores in some parts were renting them by the hour. True story. Dad was hooked, and he bought one. He gave me strict instructions not to use it unless he was supervising. Which was like daring me to use it. I slipped out in our boat one day and couldn’t resist using that shiny new lure. On my first cast, I threw it into a tree and immediately panicked. What was I going to tell Dad? I devised a fish story about a big muskie inhaling the bait and fighting so hard that it broke the line. I could tell Dad didn’t believe me, but he wasn’t going to call his son a liar.
So he went along with it. The next morning, we went out and we spotted a shiny object bobbing in the shallows under the tree that had eaten Dad’s prized lure. It was the Rapala. We retrieved the bait and all was good. LESSON LEARNED? You would think I should have learned my lesson. But I continue to buy the high-dollar stuff as though it’s some kind of rare treasure. Yeah, I catch fish on them, and every time I do I look at myself as a wise investor. But do I really need them? Probably not. That’s the reason I’m writing this column – to add to my till from freelance writing to fund my crazy shopping habits. I read about a glide bait made by a guy in the Ozarks that’s only $200. Let me check my bank account. If I can convince my wife that we have to subsist on Ramen noodles and Hamburger Helper for a week, I think I can afford it. Brent Frazee is a freelance writer who lives in Parkville, Mo. He was the outdoors editor for The Kansas City Star for 36 years before retiring in 2016. He continues to freelance for magazines, websites, newspapers and blogs.
Frazee with a couple of nice bass – the point of it all!
‘Saunter’ on May 7 will see bison herd • Winkelman
MISSOURI STATE PARKS What do you do when you see a bunch of Missouri bison? Well, you just might take a saunter, at least from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday, May 7 at Prairie State Park in southwestern Missouri. The event starts at Regal Tallgrass Prairie Nature Center in the park. The public may come and join the park staff for the event, but they need to pre-register with a phone call. “What is a ‘saunter’?” you may ask. According to Merriam-Webster, it means “to walk about in an idle or leisurely manner; to stroll.” In other words, to walk at a slower pace and take in all the surroundings. Visitors are invited to experience that prairie feeling from centuries past.
Prairie State Park encompasses almost 4,000 acres of tallgrass prairie, which once covered a third of Missouri. Now less than half of 1 percent remains. BE READY Visitors should be prepared for at least a 2-mile saunter
over uneven terrain. Weather can be unpredictable, so please prepare for it. Participants should bring water and snacks, wear sturdy footwear and dress appropriately. Due to the unique and rare diversity of life preserved at Prairie State Park, pets are not allowed on park trails, except for the Path of the Earth People and Path of the Sky People trails. Bison graze freely in the park, and this regulation protects both you and your pets. You are welcome to bring your leashed pet to the park’s campground and picnic area, but you must follow Missouri State Parks’ pet rules. This applies to all types of pets except service animals assisting people with disabilities. CALL AHEAD Registration for this event is
required, and there is a limit of 25 participants. Call the park at (417) 843-6711 to register and get additional information. This event is being held in conjunction with the National Park Trust’s “Kids to Parks Day.” For more information and to see a complete list of associated events at Missouri state parks, go online to mostateparks.com/page/88241/ kids-to-parks-day. Prairie State Park is located at 128 NW 150th Lane north of Mindenmines, along U.S. 160 west of Springfield. The park has a campground and prairie trails. For more information on state parks and historic sites, go to mostateparks.com. Missouri State Parks is a division of the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.
home-grown national park. The first step is to identify and eliminate invasive species like callery pear trees, honeysuckle bushes, garlic mustard plants and others. WHY ARE LAWNS LIKE AREA RUGS? Our dedication to the manicured lawn as a status symbol needs to give way to the importance of restoring balance in our environment. Turf-type grasses can be used as pathways between native species gardens, but Tallamy suggests lawns should be more like area rugs rather than wall-to-wall carpets. The widely broadcast fertilizers, weedkillers and insecticides we use to keep that lawn looking lush defeat the purpose of bringing our ailing ecosystem back to full health.
from page 2 The amount of water needed to keep the grass green is another big negative impact. Native species which have evolved to survive through the dog days of summer and bloom at different times of the year are better targets for a landowner’s tender loving care. If you hang out with me while I attack the honeysuckle bushes by my house, you may hear a bad word or two, or you can make a difference in your own backyard. The language you use is up to you. John Winkelman is Marketing Director for Liguori Publications near Barnhart, Mo., and associate editor for Outdoor Guide Magazine. Send story ideas to ogmjohnw@aol.com, and find more outdoor news and updates at johnjwink.com.
Outdoor Guide
May-June 2022
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Outdoor Guide
May-June 2022
The timber connection for crappie
Photos and Text by TIM HUFFMAN
CRAIG NICHOLS: After the Spawn A fishing guide, tournament fisherman and the 2019 Crappie Masters National Champion, Crappie Cowboy Craig Nichols (918-430-6884) fishes all over the country. He says wood is a crappie magnet all year long, with timber and brush being great targets. The spawn is dependent on water temperatures, with 60 to 65 degrees being the magic numbers. “When males go to the bank, it’s a great time to catch big females full of eggs,” Nichols said. “The females will hang back on the first break line, sometimes on wood, while the males make the beds. “Catch the males by casting with a cork,” he added. “It’s a fun way to fish and keeps
you a distance away so you won’t spook them. You can turn around in your boat and start working that same depth of water and catch the females hanging out over the break or on a flat with cover.” Post-spawn is when Nichols concentrates on the stumps and timber. Exact locations depend upon the lake and its water clarity, plus other factors. DOWNSIZING BAITS “The fish are a little lethargic after the spawn,” he said. “I downsize my baits, use a 12or 13-foot ACC Crappie Stix Crossover rod, drop the bait down to them and dead-stick the bait. I hold it still for a while to give the fish time to bite. “Late post-spawn is when the fish may make a quick trip back to shallower water. Lakes with a mayfly hatch bring the fish into the shallow gravel and rocky areas where fish gorge on
Craig Nichols works a shallow flat filled with underwater stumps. He says to set the drag where it slips a little because there is a lot of leverage with a 12-foot pole and braided line.
the mayflies. You’ll know when it happens because there will be millions of mayflies everywhere. A small hair or plastic jig works best. After the mayfly gorge is over, fishing will be very tough for a few days.” When summer rolls around, Nichols heads to timber on flats
OUTDOOR
GUIDE
May-June 2022
MAGAZINE
HUNTING • FISHING • CAMPING • BOATING • SHOOTING • TRAVEL
Volume 30, No. 3 • Published six times a year Office: 505 S. Ewing, St. Louis, MO 63103 News department — 618-972-3744
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Tim Huffman Russell Hively Roxanne Wilson Michael Wardlaw Tyler Mahoney Richard Aites
and ledges. Fish won’t be as aggressive as in spring, but they get into a pattern and stay in that pattern most of the hot months. “People think 100-plus degree summer crappie are deep, but I fish three to six feet deep on some lakes. Fish will always be above the thermocline but will move up shallow some. Early and late are the best bites, but mid-day bites are consistent because the sun pushes the fish into the shade. Fish the shady side of a tree or brush pile. “Some fishermen downsize, but I prefer a bigger bait in the summer. The crappie knows it must kill the bigger bait to eat it, so they just hammer a big jig or minnow.” Gear is important to Nichols. He uses LiveScope but says the tactics discussed can be performed using basic electronics. The key is using sonar and imaging to find the right cover at the right depth. THE SHORT AND THE LONG He uses 6.5-foot and 7.5foot medium-light action ACC Crappie Stix for casting. The shorter rod gives accuracy while the longer one provides more distance. He uses Pflueger reels with 6-pound-test fluorocarbon for casting. Jigs are 1/32- to 1/8-ounce, depending on the application. Warmer water usually means upsizing profiles. “Set the drag where it slips a little during hookset,” Nichols recommends. “It will help you set the hook without pulling the hook from its mouth. This is especially important when fishing braid because the line does not give. There is a lot of leverage with a 12-foot pole. A quick wrist set is all you need.” JACKIE ALBIN: Stump Jumper Timber, stumps and stake beds are the timber connections
in Missouri’s Truman Lake. A lake expert and tournament fisherman, JackieAlbin, also owner of Stump Jumper Transducer Protectors (660-383-2234), took me on a foggy morning fishing trip. Our goal was to catch crappie during low water conditions. “Fish have been on stake beds in three to 10 feet of water and right on the bottom,” he said. “The trick to getting a bite is to just hold the bait there. Usually, they are usually on the hedges, which are different, but we believe the lower water level has them acting differently this year. “Our beds are PVC pile-driven, separated eight to 12 inches apart. We might have 30 to 50 stakes per bed,” he added. “We place them in areas where we
catch big fish. The purpose is to concentrate fish into one spot. A lot of tournaments here are won on stake beds. Beds can be made different ways, including hedge limbs tied together. No matter what fish are on, the key is to learn the pattern and stick with that type of cover.” GEAR FOR TRUMAN LAKE Gear includes a Huckabee 10-foot Dippin’ Rod, 8-poundtest P-Line, Bobby Garland plastics and MidSouth jig heads. Each fisherman in the boat starts with a different color jig. When the fish show which color they like, all jigs are switched to the best one. On our trip, the best two were black-chartreuse and sparkle-glow. The bite was tough so tipping with a minnow provided a little edge needed to draw more strikes. Tips for placing beds? Albin recommends areas where big fish have been caught. The next step is to pair them with natural cover, like between two stumps or trees. Location is much more important than the material used. Tim Huffman has written for Outdoor Guide Magazine for over three decades. His new book, Crappie Annual & Product Guide, is available from Grizzly Jig Company 800305-9866, at Amazon.com or MonsterCrappie.com. See the book review on Page 23.
Jackie Albin displays a nice crappie from Truman Lake in Missouri. He says it’s critical to find the right type of cover and concentrate all fishing efforts to it.
Outdoor Guide
May-June 2022
Page 7
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Recovering Wildlife Act closer to passing
By BRANDON BUTLER
Wildlife across the United States is in peril. State fish and wildlife agencies have collectively identified more than 12,000 species of mammals, birds, fish and insects, many of which you have likely never heard of, as in need of proactive conservation measures. If passed, Recovering America’s Wildlife Act (RAWA) will provide funding necessary for such efforts. The RAWA is a bipartisan piece of legislation. It was originally drafted a few years ago but was reintroduced by Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-NM, and Sen. Roy Blunt, R-MO, in July 2021. It currently has 32 bipartisan cosponsors. The U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee (EPW) has voted to advance the legislation to the Senate for final passage. The summary of the bill, which is formally titled S.2372, states: “This bill provides funding for (1) the conservation or restoration of wildlife and plant species of greatest conservation need; (2) the wildlife conservation strategies of states, territories, or the District of Columbia; and (3) wildlife conservation education and recreation projects. “The Department of the Interior must use a portion of the funding for a grant program. The grants must be used for innovative recovery efforts for species of greatest conservation need, species listed as endangered or threatened species, or the habitats of such species. In addition, the bill requires certain revenues generated from fees and penalties for violations of environmental requirements to be used as a source for the funding.” The Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (AFWA) serves as the collective voice of state, provincial and territorial fish and wildlife agencies. The organization issued a press release acknowledging the advancement of the act and their support for final passage. BLUNT IS WORKING IT In the release, Senator Blunt said, “Protecting habitats and wildlife is not only important to states like Missouri – with some of the best hunting, fishing, and outdoor recreation in the country – it’s important to communities
Editorial
The Recovering America’s Wildlife Act will provide funding necessary for conservation efforts.
all across the nation. By encouraging states, territories and Tribes to make significant contributions to voluntary conservation efforts, we can preserve our nation’s wildlife for future generations. Heinrich, who represents New Mexico, is a Missouri native and accomplished big game hunter. He is also the only federal legislator whom I’ve shared a meal with in their home. When visiting the senator in New Mexico, he personally prepared a dish of spicy caribou stew from a bull he took in Alaska, for me and my friend Jesse Duebel. I know his passion for wildlife is authentic, and it’s reassuring to know we have elected officials like Heinrich serving the interests of those who love wildlife and wild places. WIDESPREAD SUPPORT Heinrich lauded the broad group of supporters of the bill. “The outdoors has once again proven to be a real uniting force,” he said. “I’m so proud of the bipartisan leadership and widespread support that is moving the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act forward. Senator Blunt has been a great partner, and EPW Chairman Tom Carper and Ranking Member Shelley Moore Capito helped us advance this landmark conservation legislation. I am confident that if we can keep up our momentum, we will pass this bill through the full Senate with broad, bipartisan support.” The significance of this bill is monumental. Without a serious influx of funding for critical habitat work, we will continue to lose species to extinction. When considering the loss of a single species forever, I believe it is fair to say, that is a priceless cost. How do you put a financial value on the loss of the passenger pigeon or phantom shiner? “This Recovering America’s Wildlife Act is the single most exciting wildlife conservation bill in a generation,” said Ron Regan, executive director of the Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies. “This legislation will benefit nature, outdoor recreation and our overall quality of life, leaving a lasting conservation legacy for all Americans.” Heinrich speaks from a deep love of wildlife. His home is adorned with mementos from past hunts. When he speaks about conservation, he is doing so as an individual who walks the talk. Having him and one of Washington’s leading statesmen in Senator Blunt, leading the efforts to pass RAWA gives me great optimism that we will see this legislation enacted. “Without enough resources, state, and Tribal wildlife agencies have been forced to pick and choose which species are worth saving,” Heinrich said. “Instead of doing the proactive work that is necessary to maintain healthy wildlife populations on the front end, they have been forced into using reactive measures to rescue species after they are listed as threatened or endangered. We urgently need to change this paradigm and save thousands of species with a solution that matches the magnitude of the challenge. For outdoor writer Brandon Butler’s podcasts, go to www.driftwoodoutdoors. com or anywhere podcasts are streamed.
May-June 2022
The Life Outdoors Momo – and other monsters of youth
By RICHARD W. AITES
While scrolling through the cable guide recently, I came across a show on the Travel Channel called “Expedition Bigfoot”. Somewhere between the Kardashians and the “Real Housewives of New Jersey,” I also found “Searching for Sasquatch” and “Mountain Monsters.” Wow! Who would’ve thought the mythical beast would be so popular on reality TV? PATTERSON’S SASQUATCH The current Bigfoot craze started in 1967 when Roger Patterson’s camera footage of the alleged creature made national headlines. Some experts examined the grainy footage and were convinced that Patterson had filmed a real, live sasquatch strolling through a remote forest in northern California. Skeptics however, disagreed, believing the images were merely a man in a monkey suit. It wasn’t until the late 1990s, following Patterson’s death, that some of his closest family and friends admitted it was all a hoax. Yet even to this day, some crypto-zoologists believe that Patterson actually filmed a real live bigfoot. MOMO Exactly 50 years ago, a bigfoot-like creature was reported to be lurking in the woods of Louisiana, MO. The first encounter occurred on a summer afternoon in 1972, when three children spotted a large, hairy, beast in woods near their home. According to the children, the 7-foot tall creature had a pumpkin-shaped head with glowing orange eyes and reeked of something awful. It was also carrying a mutilated, dead dog. Not long afterward, other residents, including the fire chief, began seeing the creature. Some pet owners reported their dogs and cats missing. Shortly after making national news, the creature became known as “the Missouri Monster” or Momo for short. Later that summer, the local police chief and a small posse of men canvassed the woods surrounding the little Mississippi River town. They never found their monster, but did find a set of muddy-footprints. When the plaster casts were examined by an anthropologist from a local university, she concluded that the prints belonged to a large, yet-to-be-identified primate. But as quickly as the sightings began, they stopped, and by the late 1970’s Momo was nothing more than a theme park ride at Six-Flags, and the protagonist of some scary campfire tales. 18th CENTURY BEAR HUNT In the early 1980s, my family moved from Missouri to rural Venango County in northwestern Pennsylvania. The Seneca people had
thrived in this area until the late 18th century. According to local legend, sometime in the mid1700s a lone Senecan boy was hunting along a tall bluff that overlooked the Allegheny River. When the boy spotted what he thought was a bear feeding among some blackberry bushes, he quietly stalked to within bow range. Convinced this was the nuisance bear that had been raiding the tribe’s stores of maize and beans, the young hunter was certain he’d be celebrated by his people for killing it. The meat would also be welcomed, and a bearskin rug would look nice in his family’s cedar lodge, he thought. As he drew closer, he strung an arrow and readied the powerful hickory bow. “That’s the biggest bear I’ve ever seen,” he whispered to himself while searching for an opening within the tangled, thorny vines of the bushes. The boy then waited for the animal to give him a good broadside shot, but it never did. Growing impatient, the young archer decided to shoot an arrow into the animal’s rump. Then when it turned to face him down, he’d send another sharp, flint-tipped arrow into its chest, hopefully killing the huge bear. He steadied his aim and unleashed the arrow. THUS THE LEGEND What happened next is indeed a thing of legend. There was the thump of the arrow followed by an agonizing groan. Then the animal stood upright and turned toward the boy. “That’s no bear!” the boy hollered while dropping the bow to the ground. Seeing that this thing would have towered over the tallest warrior in the tribe and probably weighed as much as two adult bears, the boy was overcome with fear. The angry beast then let out a piercing howl before it pummeled its way through the thorny berry bushes and was on top of the boy in a matter of seconds. Its fiery red eyes were consumed with rage when it grabbed the young archer by the back of his buckskin britches and carried him to the edge of the bluff. The boy struggled to break free but was no match for the beast. Before he knew it, he was dangling in the air, some 80 feet above the jagged rocks of the river’s edge. Believing his death was imminent, he recited a prayer to the Great Spirit. Then something
See AITES page 9
‘Bigfoot at Twilight’ poster by Charles Guthrie, available at redbubble.com.
Outdoor Guide
May-June 2022
Page 9
Katy Trail offers trams, wins plaudits
Missouri State Parks is offering an experience along Katy Trail State Park in the comfort of a tram coach with its “Tuesdays on the Trail” tours, a series of eight tours of various sections along the trail. The May 10 tours will run from Rocheport to McBaine and back, offering a chance for visitors to see a stretch of the trail they may not be able to experience otherwise. The free tours will be at 10 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. and last around two hours each. An interpretive guide with a PA system will provide a presentation about the history of the Katy Trail and commentary on the local natural and cultural history along the trail. Snacks and bottled water will be provided to each participant. CALL ONE MONTH AHEAD Each tour will host approximately 25 people. Tours are free but space is limited. Reservations will open one month prior to each date. To reserve a seat, call the park office at (573) 449-7402 or go online to icampo1.usedirect.com/MSPWeb/Activities/Search.aspx and then search for “Tuesdays on the Trail.” Other tours are: • May 24 – McKittrick to Rhineland; register beginning April 24. • June 14 – Windsor to Chilhowee on the Rock Island Spur; register beginning May 14. • June 28 – St. Charles to Machens; register beginning May 28. • Sept. 13 – St. Charles to Machens; register beginning Aug. 13. • Sept. 27 – Hartsburg to North Jefferson; register beginning Aug. 27. • Oct. 11 – Windsor to Cal-
• Aites
houn; register beginning Sept. 11. • Oct. 25 – Treloar to Bernhiemer; register beginning Sept. 25. July and August were not scheduled to avoid summer heat and dusty trail conditions. For more information, go to mostateparks.com/ page/63908/Tuesdays-trailtram-tours. KATY SCORES HIGH ON USA TODAY LISTS Katy Trail State Park won national recognition this year and last in USAToday’s 10 Best Readers’ Choice Awards, placing 10th in 2021 and 2nd this year for best recreational trail. The Missouri Department of Natural Resources and Missouri State Parks asked trail supporters to cast their votes and thanked everyone who participated. For more information on Katy Trail State Park and to plan an adventure along it, go online to mostateparks.com/ park/katy-trail-state-park. To see all of the winners, go to 10best.com/awards/travel// best-recreational-trail-2022. To see the 2021 winners, use the same address but change the year at the end to 2021. Katy Trail State Park is the longest rails-to-trails conversion project in the nation. The largely flat 240-mile trail passes through the Missouri countryside and is a popular option for runners, walkers and cyclists. The path has 26 trailheads and four fully restored railroad depots along the way. TRAIL WAS CLOSED FOR BLASTING The Department of Natural Resources announced that they had to close the trail April 25-27 at Rocheport while the Missouri Department of Transportation
from page 8
very strange happened. The beast pulled the boy back from over the edge of the cliff, set him down on the ground and then yanked the cedar arrow from his hairy rump, snapped it in two like a twig, and tossed the broken pieces onto the boy’s lap. The beast snarled at the boy before storming and disappearing into the forest beyond the berry-patch. THE ELDER BROTHER The young Seneca boy, named “Handsome Lake,” would share the encounter with
the tribe’s spiritual leader, who recognized the creature as “Chiye-tanka.” To the Seneca people it means “big elder brother.” The wise old man told the boy that the spirit brother is a caretaker of the forest and can transform itself from animal to spirit form and vice versa. The encounter and the forgiveness the creature displayed was an epiphany for the boy. Years later, he became the chief spiritual advisor for the Seneca nation and was named John Abeel, better known as “Chief Cornplanter.”
and contractor Lunda Construction replaced the I-70 Missouri River Bridge there. That work required blasting on the bluff alongside the trail. Lunda was blasting on April 25 and removing stone until April 27.Any additional hauling was to be done later, when the trail was closed for the night. Detours were not feasible for the work because there was no safe way to reroute visitors during the blasting. For more information, go online to modot. org/RocheportBridge.
A scene on the Katy Trail where it follows alongside the Missouri River. – Missouri State Parks photo
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Page 10
Outdoor Guide
Spot-N-Stalk crappie hunting
Photo and Text By DON GASAWAY
One of the spring rites of passage is early crappie fishing. Locating the crappie is a matter of going where they should be and going where they are. The latter probably requires electronic fish locators. The former is a matter of experience in that you go where they were during past springs. A good topo map is helpful. Dark bottoms on the north side of lakes are a good prospect in that they get early sun and hold warmth. Of the two crappie species, the white crappie prefers the large open water. Both species will suspend in relation to lake points, sunken islands, sand bars, creek beds and debris found in most waterways. Both
can and do inhabit the same water. Both crappie species have roughly the same spawning habits, laying eggs in water 3 to 8 feet in depth once the water temperature approaches the mid-60s degree range near cover. White crappies tend to like brush piles, bushes or sunken logs. The black crappies like reeds or other weeds. There can be a great deal of prespawn angling in channels and bays due to early ice out and the water being too cold for spawning. DEEP CREEK BEDS Deep creek beds are a key to cold-water crappie locations. Begin by searching likely summer holding areas and then backtrack to the nearest deep creek bed. Then follow the channel to
A key location for early season crappie is in the willow and buck brush along the flooded shoreline. Long poles allow anglers to dip into secluded pools.
the best available holding area. On a large lake, this can be a considerable distance. Some creek beds are more promising than others. One with wood in or near the creekbed is best. Lacking any wood either visible or hidden, try bends or intersections. Sharp bends or intersections with roads and secondary channels often produce fish. Should good bays not have adequate channels, try deeper water. JIGS ARE THE BREAD AND BUTTER Jigs are the bread-andbutter lure for cold-water crappie. A good assortment of leadhead jigs in 1/16th to 1/64th ounce in colors of white, black or yellow is good basic tackle. Couple them with tube bodies of
May-June 2022
the same colors. For the natural baits, minnows and waxworms are best. It is important to remember that the fish are very spooky this time of year. If scared, they will stop feeding. The best bet is to locate fish and then make long casts to the school with a slip-float rig. Make short pauses in the retrieve of about 30 seconds each. Crappie strikes come as the jig begins to settle to the bottom of the length of line below the float. Small floats are more sensitive and show very light bites that often occur. Fishing for crappie just after ice out requires stalking to find them as well as a lot of hunting to find schools. It is however very productive and provides time to unlimber that old casting arm and get rid of spring fever.
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Gentle rivers full of twists and turns, spectacular Ozark scenery, and phenomenal fishing make for a fantastic outdoor adventure! But that only scratches the surface of all Pulaski County offers. Fill up on tales as old as time at our historic military and Route 66 stops. Test your skills at archery, golf, indoor shooting, and more. Grab delicious eats and treats at our unique diners. Then do it all again as you work your way through our day-after-day adventures.
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Outdoor Guide
May-June 2022
Page 11
EXPERIENCE ELLINGTON missouri the
&explore outdoors e l l i n g ton mo . com Hike the ozark trail
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~ Only 2 Hours South of St. Louis ~
Clearwater Lake & Webb Creek Park – Hwy H –Bring the family to camp, boat, fish, and unwind on crystal clear Clearwater Lake. This area of the lake is formed where Webb Creek and Logan Creek empty into Clearwater Lake. The lake is known for its crappie, catfish and bass fishing. Camping is available at Webb Creek Recreation Park; plus a full service marina with boat/wave runner rentals on site. Webb Creek Webb Creek Marina Park features over 40 campsites, swim beach, playground, showers, picnic pavilions, boat launch, and more. Services are limited after mid-September but camping is still permitted. Call Webb Creek Marina at 573-461-2344 for marina, boat rental and campsite information or visit www.recreation.gov to make reservations. If you are interested in all the conveniences of home call Webb Creek Cabins for cabin rentals, 573-461-2244. Black River and K Bridge Recreation Area – K Hwy – Float, canoe, fish and explore the beautiful Black River. Enjoy swimming, camping and picnicking right on the banks of the Black River. K Bridge Recreation Area and Campground offers playground, showers, electric and comfort station, visit www. recreation.gov to make reservations. Floats (raft or canoe) can be arranged on site by calling Jeff’s Canoe Rental at 573-598-4555. A small Highway K Camping general store is also available on site.
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Current River & Log Yard Gravel Bar – Hwy 106 to
HH Highway- Fish, swim, camp and relax on majestic Current River. Great place to explore Current River. This area is often referred to as Cardareva by locals and is a favorite summer hangout. Primitive camping is available right on the river bank, camping is also available at the nearby School Yard with picnic tables, lantern hooks and fire pits. These sites are available on a first come basis. Bring your canoes, rafts and kayaks; Camp Current Riv er a perfect day float….Powder Mill to Log Yard. Boat launch available. Powder Mill Recreation Area and Campground re-opened. Camping available with views of the Current River. Picnic table, firepit & lantern hook available at each site, reservations not available. Water/elect not provided.
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Current River, Blue Spring & Powder Mill Recreation Area – Hwy 106 near Current River bridge
Powder Mill reopened summer 2020. Camping is available with views of the river, picnic tables, fire pit and lantern hook. Reservations are not available. Powder Mill is a perfect camp base for day trips to area attractions like Blue Spring, Rocky Falls, Peck Ranch, Johnson Shut-Ins, Elephant Rocks and more. Wild horses are often seen in the fields near the bridge. The Ozarks offers countless options for family adventure.
Blue Spring
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Rocky Falls- NN Hwy- A cascading crystal Rocky Creek
drops from the Ozark Mountains into a lazy pool which eventually winds through the Ozarks to Current River. A must see if you are in the area and fun for all ages. Wear non-slip shoes and use caution when climbing on the falls. Picnic tables provided.
Current River Conservation Area –Consists of 28,000 acres of state land. Deer, turkey, eagles, elk and a multitude of wildlife can be seen. UTV’s, ATV’s and vehicle traffic are welcome on miles of gravel roads and trails that wind through some 60+ food plots. Buford Pond, Missouri’s first fire tower, a 1926 log cabin and an earthen Fort Barnesville can all be found here. Buford Pond provides fishing and picnicking and is a favorite location of all. For hunting enthusiasts an unstaffed rifle and archery range are provided. Current River Conservation Area is home to the Missouri Ozark Ecosystem Project, the world’s most comprehensive forest management study. This 100 year project spans over 9,000 acres. Main park entrance located on South Road in Ellington, other entrances located off Hwy 106 and HH highway. Primitive camping is available. Elk viewing and maps of the area are available at the main park entrance.
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Local Flavor – While in town you won’t want to miss the Reynolds County Museum. This Museum is filled with relicts from days gone by and the rich history of the Ozarks. Volunteers staff the establishment and are happy to answer questions; Open March-November, Reynolds Co Museum Tues-Fri, 10-4 or by appointment. Call 573-663-3233 for more information. Want some nostalgia from a couple decades back; how about a drive in movie? One of only a few drive-ins left in the Midwest is located just south of Ellington Wild Horses on highway 21. 21 Drive-In opens in May with summer family favorites and offers movie events into the fall including Halloween and Christmas.
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Blair Creek- Hwy 106 – This area is a favorite of the local’s spring, summer and fall. For the person who is looking for the unknown, adventure into the wild Ozark hills for the beautiful views, caves, swimming, picnicking. Here riding the back roads in ATV’s, UTV’s and 4-wheel drives is exciting and fun. Entrance located North of Hwy 106 across from Blair Creek Blue Spring entrance.
10 Ozark Trail
- Hwy 106- Blair Creek & Current River section; Hwy 106 – Whether you are looking for a one day hike or want to make a few days of it; hiking these sections of the Ozark Trail is rewarding and adventurous. Such splendid locations as Rocky Falls, Klepzig Mill and Buzzard Mountain Shut-Ins are located right on the trail. For the adventurous visitor Klepzig Mill this is a must!
11 Peck Ranch
- H Highway, Shannon County- Listen for the bugle this fall! Elk are now roaming the hills of the Ozarks and can be seen in Peck Ranch, Current River Conservation Area and the surrounding region. Thanks to the Missouri Department of Conservation’s recent Elk Restoration Program elk were released into the elk zone beginning in the summer of 2011. With the third release the Elk summer of 2013 the elk herd is nearing 200 bulls, cows and calves. Peck Ranch is open from sunrise/sunset daily and offers a driving tour. Bugling occurs in the fall, Sept-Nov. Check the Missouri Dept of Conservation website for park closing details. Maps are available at park entrance.
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Scenic Highway 106 - This 26
mile drive between Ellington and Eminence is known state wide for its scenic views and beauty, and is especially a favorite in the fall. This section of highway is also home to the Trans-America Trail and sees many bicycle travelers from April-October. Bicycle enthusiasts say it’s one of the “toughest sections on TransAmerica Trail the trail” and known for the steep hills & hollers.
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Ellington Chamber of Commerce | www.ellingtonmo.com | Find us
Outdoor Guide
Page 12
May-June 2022
Tips, Tricks and Thoughts for the Great Outdoors
Try a family panfishing adventure
By LARRY L. WHITELEY
One of the best fishing adventures you can take the family on is a panfishing trip. They are called panfish because they’re small enough to fit in a frying pan. Panfish include bluegill, redear sunfish, redbreasted
sunfish, rock bass (also known as goggle-eye) and several others. Some people also count crappie as panfish. They are all fun to catch and good to eat. If you want to plan a family panfishing trip, the most important thing you need to do is have fun. It’s important to remember that your children and your spouse really don’t care if you fish from a boat or not.
They also don’t care about using a bunch of expensive equipment or learning special techniques, either. For them, the experience is about spending time with the family out in nature. Kids have short attention spans, so limit your family panfishing trip to an hour or two, unless of course they really want to stay. Fishing along the shores of ponds, rivers and lakes works
just fine, and all you’ll need is a minimal setup and some bait. Crickets and worms are great for catching panfish. In fact, instead of buying them at the local bait store, why not let the kids catch their own crickets and dig their own worms to make it a part of the overall family panfishing adventure? You can usually find both under rocks or old boards in your yard. If they want to play with
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them, go ahead and let them. Kids get a kick out of carefully watching their bobbers for movement, and even the slightest movement of the bobber brings excitement. Use lightweight, flexible rods that make even a small fish feel like a monster to a kid or your spouse. Kids and adults will love the experience no matter what, but they’ll also want to be reeling in something, even if it’s just a tiny panfish. After about 10 or 15 minutes, if you’re not catching fish, move to a different location until you find them. If for some reason the fish aren’t biting that day, stop fishing, and teach the kids to skip a rock, catch a crawdad, pick wildflowers or take a hike. It’s all a part of having fun. If you do catch fish, take some home and fry them up into a special meal for a perfect ending to your family panfishing adventure. SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT A can of worms, a fishing pole, a boy, his dog and a fishing hole. A fragrant smell, a touch of spring, a hungry fish and birds that sing. All thoughts are his and his alone, to catch a fish and go back home. Never a care what tomorrow will bring, this little boy had everything. – Unknown A GREAT TIME FOR CAMPING To me, May and June are the best months for camping with family, friends or by yourself. It’s not too hot and not too cold. Camping areas aren’t very crowded yet. Camping allows you the opportunity to experience the simple pleasures of life. It is a great escape from the crazy world we live in today. No sitting at a traffic light, no blaring TV, no computer screens, no work to be done, no bills to be paid. Camping is sitting around a campfire watching the flames dance and a dark sky filled with millions of stars. Camping is lying in your tent, listening to the music of crickets and
Rock bass, also known as ‘Goggle-Eye,’ are one of the panfish. – Arkansas Democrat-Gazette photo
frogs. Camping is just being lazy, going for a hike or trying to catch a fish. Sounds good doesn’t it? Then what are you waiting for? It’s a great time for camping. A DIFFERENT KIND OF FISHING Crawfish, crayfish, crawdads – they are known by many names. They are a great bait for catching fish, but they are also fun to catch with a rod and reel. It’s a slow way to get a bunch of them for fishing or eating, but it sure is fun. Simply tie a piece of fish or meat to the end of your line and drop it in where you know they live. They usually hang onto the bait long enough to be netted or hoisted to the bank. NOW THAT’S FUNNY A recent story on the internet tells of two vodka-drinking Siberian men out fishing who fled in terror when two African hippos surfaced near their riverside fishing spot. Turns out the wayward hippos had escaped from the local zoo. Friends of the two fishermen say that they have given up both fishing AND alcohol. CATFISH BAIT The next time you decide to go fishing for catfish, instead of taking messy stink baits just try this. Take equal parts of peanut butter and flour and roll into balls big enough to cover your hook. The catfish love it and if you get hungry you will too. NATURE NOTE When you begin to develop a relationship with nature, you will begin to feel a pull. The force begins to call to you and pull you away from the chaotic monotony of everyday life. There’s no greater escape than God’s great outdoors. Larry K. Whiteley has been an award-winning magazine and newspaper writer, radio host and blogger for more than 40 years.
May-June 2022
Outdoor Guide
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Outdoor Guide
May-June 2022
Wild Wine Life
Rabbit Cacciatore, healthy and easy to make Photo and Text By RAY MAXWELL
Hunters will say there is more than one way to skin a rabbit, and the same goes for cooking the rabbit. Rabbit Cacciatore, a popular dish from northern Italy, is a healthy and easy comfort meal, and like pasta sauce, most people have their own versions. If you are seeking something different to do with some rabbit in the freezer, you will find this dish very popular. INGREDIENTS • 1 rabbit, cut into pieces • 3 tablespoons of butter • 3 cups of chopped onion • 6 cups of tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped • Half a cup of prosciutto, chopped • 1 cup of white wine (dry, prefer non-oaked) • 1 fresh thyme sprig • 1 teaspoon of basil • Salt and pepper to taste • Soft polenta (cornmeal porridge)
COOKING After cutting the rabbit into pieces, marinade the rabbit in a dry white wine. You should have at least a cup remaining in the bottle; save that for the cooking. Marinade the rabbit in the wine for a day. I like to use a timer to remind me how much time has passed, but the following is a reference, and I will sometimes extend or shorten the time based on how things look. Melt the butter in a pan and add the onions and prosciutto. Cook over a low heat for five minutes while stirring on occasion. Add the rabbit and increase the heat, turning the rabbit often
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until fully browned. Then add the salt, pepper, basil, thyme and wine, and cook for an additional 20 minutes with the cover on the pan. After this is completed, add the tomatoes and cook for an additional 60 minutes. I prefer to have the pan covered, with a vent in the lid. If the dish is not thick enough and there is too much juice for your taste, you can add some flour, remove the cover and extend the cooking time. Next, discard the thyme, and serve with a soft polenta. TWO RED WINES Adam Puchta Hunter’s Red and Ruffino’s Chianti 2020 are two wines that I truly enjoy with this dish. Both wines offer fruit that complement the wine while not overpowering the dish, while possessing acidity that cuts through the food. The Hunter’s Red offers big berry and cherry aromas with a touch of earthiness. The upfront fruit flavors of raspberries and blackberries and the cherry finish make this a fun and enjoyable wine. The wine is a Chambourcin and Norton blend that brings out the best qualities in both wines. You can find this wine for under $12.99 retail. The Ruffino Chianti you will discover to be a wonderful wine bringing cherries, spice and leather aromatics. Dark cherry, dark fruit hints and spice continue as flavor components, matching with soft light tannins and crisp acidity to make this a wonderful wine to enhance any meal. You can find this wine for under $12.99 retail. To see the video version of this recipe and other recipes, visit Wild Wine Life on Facebook or Youtube.
Outdoor Guide
May-June 2022
Page 15
Women invited to hike at Danville Conservation Area
The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) is inviting women and girls 14 and older to join in a guided nature hike from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, May 28 at Danville Conservation Area in Montgomery County. Participants will hike a mile and a half through the 3,100-acre area, partially on established trails and partially off-trail through natural vegetation to reach views not often seen by visitors. Danville is about 70 miles west of St. Louis on Interstate 70. MDC Forester Angela George and Wildlife Biologist Tracey Prenger will lead the hike, pointing out key features of the trails and discussing animals and plants in the area, how forest and woodland ecosystems work and more. “Danville ConservationArea is located where the rugged woods of the Missouri River Hills meet the prairies to the
A view from Danville Conservation Area.
north, and it is home to unique and beautiful natural features,” said George. “A lot of spring flowers should be blooming.” SIGN UP BY MAY 27 Space is limited for this event. Registration is required by May 27. Go online to https://short. mdc.mo.gov/4UR. The program is free and open to women ages 14 and older. Girls ages 14-17 must be accompanied by a registered adult. Hikers should wear long pants and sturdy shoes, dress for the weather, bring their own water, lunch or a snack, and binoculars, if they wish.
– MDC photo
Program registrants now have the option to link their children’s accounts to their own, which will streamline the registration process. Once registrants have set up an account, parents can register their children for events without having to logout and login for each family member. This allows parents to register an entire family or select family members for an event at the same time. For more information about this guided hike, contactAngela George at Angela.George@ mdc.mo.gov. To find more MDC events near you, go to mdc.mo.gov/events.
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Outdoor Guide
Page 16
May-June 2022
Prepper’s Guide
Factors causing inflation By DAVID HOSKING
My eight previous articles in Outdoor Guide provided guidance to readers to help them prepare for short-term emergencies, like power outages and ice storms that can last from 3 days to a month or so. My article in the September-October 2021 edition focused on acquiring and storing food supplies to alleviate the effects of shortages such as what we saw during the
early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. Now that most stores have returned to fully-stocked shelves, the panic-buying and hoarding that we saw in 2020 seems to have disappeared. However, I believe that many folks have become complacent once again. Although food and consumables have become plentiful again, we are facing new complications that are hurting our supply chains and our ability to
afford food and consumables. Over the past year, the annual inflation rate accelerated to almost 8 percent, the highest in 40 years. For example, the price of beef is up 20 percent, milk 8 percent, and cereal 20 percent, and further increases are predicted for the future. ‘SHRINKFLATION’ A sneaky way in which companies hide cost increases is “shrinkflation,” when they
reduce the quantity or volume of a product while keeping the selling price constant. Some good examples of “shrinkflation” are as follows: • Walmart Great Value Paper Towels dropped from 168
sheets per roll to only 120, while the price stayed the same. • Charmin toilet paper originally had 650 sheets per roll but now only contains around half of that. • General Mills shrunk its
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Stores are stocked again, but prices are still higher than before.
“family size” cereal boxes from 19.3 ounces to 18.1 ounces – a drop of nearly 10 percent. In effect, consumers are paying more and getting less. A perfect storm of influences is causing today’s rising costs for food and commodities, including supply chain issues and driver shortages, scarcity of packaging, labor shortages at production plants, and higher input costs for such things as livestock feed and antibiotics, fertilizer, chemicals and seed, labor and fuel, and strong consumer demand. UKRAINE CONFLICT Also, the current Ukraine/ Russia conflict has hurt our long-standing business relationships with Russia. Russia is the world’s largest fertilizer exporter, and the U.S. imports approximately 96 percent of its potassium fertilizer from Russia. In retaliation for U.S. support for Ukraine, Russian fertilizer producers have reduced exports to the U.S. The Ukraine conflict also is pushing up the cost of natural gas, the main input for nitrogen fertilizer production.As a result, our reliance on foreign sources of farm inputs is driving up costs to American farmers that, in turn, must be passed on to processors and consumers alike. Another element of this perfect storm is the historically high costs of automobile and home heating fuel. In addition to the hottest inflation in 40 years, the past year has presented a 58 percent increase in gas prices and a 59 percent increase in fuel oil prices. While I am not an oil industry expert, it seems clear to me that President Biden’s election promise, “We are going to get rid of fossil fuels” and his “Green Energy” policies are significant contributors to our current fuel supply shortages and fuel price increases. Additionally, the administration’s retaliatory decision to cut off the importation of Russian oil and gas further contributes to higher fuel prices. The administration likes to blame the oil industry for to-
day’s higher gas prices because of the industry’s 9,000 untapped gas and oil leases. However, just because an oil company owns a lease, it doesn’t mean they can just start drilling. Also, it is not widely appreciated that many of these leases are speculative and that most may not result in actual production. Finally, in light of the administration’s election promise to eliminate the oil and gas sector, most oil companies are reluctant to invest in the development of new leases. A PERFECT STORM So, this perfect storm of events means that food and fuel costs have reached levels that are hurting poor and middle-class Americans. Consequently, many Americans are faced with tough choices between putting groceries on the table or paying for gas to drive to and from work. Likewise, farmers are struggling to keep their operations from going bankrupt. A recent TV news story interviewed a long-haul truck driver who paid nearly $1,100 to fill up his tanks with diesel fuel. How long can we keep our economy afloat? In my previous Outdoor Guide articles about emergency preparedness, I tried to offer good advice and solutions on how people can weather relatively short-term disasters and emergencies through forward planning. However, writing about our current state of affairs leads me to think that we are heading into a perfect storm for which very few of us can prepare. Unless you’re an ultra-rich Hollywood celebrity or a fat-cat politician in Washington, many American families are going to be financially hurt and possibly hungry in the coming year. To my mind, there is really no way to prepare for this fast-approaching crisis. The old adage that the pie is only so big applies to every family; income will remain fixed but each family will need to divide the pie into smaller slices to account for extraordinary food, consumables, and fuel costs. I wish I had better advice.
Outdoor Guide
May-June 2022
Page 17
Habitat key to building quail population By LEN PATTON
In the movie, “Field of Dreams,” a young Iowa farmer has a dream that if he converts his cornfield into a baseball diamond, ballplayers from the past and present will come to play. The dream was created and produced in a Hollywood studio. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could have a movie studio to realize our dream of bringing healthy quail populations back to Missouri? We know that many good things are born from a dream. We also know that in our state, we can achieve our dream only through a good management plan and hard work, not through the magic of a Hollywood studio. How do we build it so they will come? In the world of real estate, the three key words are “location, location, location.” In quail management the words are “habitat, habitat, habitat.” Unlike other game animals in Missouri that have been able to grow in numbers and adapt to a changing environment, quail have been
unable to survive when their habitat is altered, THE SEVEN NEEDS Quail have seven basic needs. It all begins with food, but not just any food (not fescue.) Without quality food throughout the year, quail mortality can reach or exceed 80 percent. Legumes with high protein levels are needed during the nesting season, April through September. During this time the chicks will get most of their food from insects, which are also high in protein. From October to March, survival depends on high-energy foods that produce fat and warmth. We must keep in mind that quail are small and need most of their food either at ground level or no more than several inches high. All animals need water, but quail have the ability to survive on small amounts of water, which they can gain from insects, berries, dew, frost, snow and rain puddles. Providing sources of water for quail is not necessary, but landowners should supply
occur from sundown to sunup, are misunderstood and overlooked in many management plans. These birds roost on the ground in grass (not fescue), weedy patches or open woods without overhead cover. If they have the need to flush during this time, they want to rise up and move with no overhead interference. Quail face the challenge of escape on a daily basis. They may sit still, run or fly when faced with danger. Every plan must include escape opportunities such as well-constructed brush piles, timber, weedy
fence rows, berry patches and other thickets. Quail will often use these same areas at mid-day to rest. These areas are commonly called covey headquarters. Under severe weather conditions they may be used for roosting. A good plan is developed with one simple idea – keep it close. All aspects of quail habitat should be arranged so the birds can meet their needs with minimal effort and exposure to predators. It can be done, and it will not cost a great deal of money. “Build it and they will come.”
Quail roost in grass, weedy patches or open woods without overhead cover. – MDC photo
open, bare ground for quail to forage, and dust, which is vital for quail to maintain good health. Nesting and brooding habitat can be achieved by developing a mix of erect grasses (not fescue), scattered shrubs, and brambles that provide shelter and overhead protection. These vegetated areas should not be so thick that
the young chicks are unable to move about in search of insects. Quail are extremely vulnerable during the nesting and brooding stages, with mortality reaching as much as 50 percent or more. ROOSTING HABITATS The usual characteristics of quail roosting habitats, which
During nesting season, chicks get most of their food from high-protein insects. – MDC photo
Outdoor Guide
Page 18
May-June 2022
Topwater fly fishing can be addictive
By TERRY AND ROXANNE WILSON Dew glistened in the first rays of morning light in contrast to the water, which appeared foreboding, dark and mysterious. The stillness was shattered by the noisy splashing of surface feeding bass, and our strides toward the source hastened. Our deer-hair popper lit with a splat in a pocket of lily pads, causing miniature shock waves to alert the subsurface world to its presence. A twitch of the rod tip caused a gurgling lurch of the brightly colored puff of deer hair before it disappeared as the pond bottom exploded with the violent strike of a largemouth bass. Time stopped as the battle raged until the assailant was subdued, admired and released. Be forewarned: Topwater fly fishing for largemouth bass is addictive. Everything about the largemouth bass lends itself to
indulging the dry-fly soul of fly fishers, from the explosive strike to the visible fight that is often waged above the water’s surface. Their eyes are located nearly on the top of their heads. So the bass’s natural inclination is to search above its position for a meal. This aggressive, ambush predator’s cavernous mouth and extensive menu remove selectivity from the fishing equation. Our weapons of choice are 7-, 8- and 9-weight rods. We need a strong fighting butt to wrench big bass out of heavy cover, and our large, wind-resistant surface flies require big rods with bass taper floating lines to deliver them efficiently. Leaders tapered to tippets of 8- to 16-pound test balance the delivery system. POPPERS AND FLOATER/DIVERS We use various popper types, colors, sizes and materials, and a selection of floater/ divers to fill our topwater
Flies like this Hula Diver are must-haves for the spring and summer flybox. – RoxanneWilson photo
A twitch of the rod tip might be all you need to make the story of the summer. – Roxanne Wilson photo
bass boxes. Poppers with cupped faces create surface disturbances, which imitate struggling prey, triggering the predator’s instinct to search them out and attack. Yet, the cup faces cause the movements without allowing the flies to advance very far across the water’s surface. This is a decided advantage when fishing small pockets in weeds and moss. Whatever your material of choice, try these poppers in sizes 2/0 through 4/0. If the largemouth waters of choice contain strong-stemmed weed growth, such as milfoil or lilies, the addition of weed guards will save lots of aggravation. White, yellow and chartreuse are our favorite popper colors because they are easily seen by the bass as
well as the fly fisher. Floater/divers are another class of flies that seduce bass from the water’s surface. These flies float at rest but are fashioned with a sloping head that enables them to be pulled under the water a few inches, then pop back to the surface when line tension is released. Their effectiveness can be traced to the appearance of vulnerability created as a hapless creature tries to swim but cannot go far before coming to rest again. Also, floater/divers provide a more visual target to the bass even when wind makes a choppy water surface. MUDDLER TO HULA DIVER Six decades ago, Don Gapen described the effectiveness
of fishing his creation, the Muddler Minnow, by dressing the deer-hair head with floatant, then pulling them under before allowing them to resurface. It took another 20 years before Larry Dahlberg clipped deer hair to form the sloping-style head that now bears his name. Once again, cork, foam strips and deer hair have been used to create buoyant heads for these flies, while a variety of tailing materials, such as strands of tinsel, rabbit strip, feathers, craft hair and rubber hackle are utilized to provide flash and action. Using the same principle, we tie Sili Legs tails onto a clipped deer-hair head, resulting in a fly we call “Hula Diver.” Those tantalizing legs continue to wiggle after the fly returns to the surface. We favor bi-colored deer hair in yellow/orange and chartreuse/ red on a size 2 Tiemco 8089 hook. Floater/divers can be fished successfully in a variety of ways. One of our favorite
retrieves involves a strip to pull the fly under, followed by moving the rod tip in the same direction at an accelerated pace before releasing the tension. This technique is designed to simulate distressed prey desperately trying to escape. Predators such as largemouth bass are stimulated to attack by the possibility of the prey’s escape. THE DRY-FLY SOUL Weed lines, especially pockets in the weeds, can provide excellent targets for surface flies, as can wood structure such as downed trees, brush, and docks. Target the shady side of these structures for the best results. As summer progresses and waters warm, fish early mornings when the surface is coolest after the long night. It’s easy to understand why generations of bass aficionados have become enamored by the explosive surface strike of largemouth bass. It satisfies the dry-fly soul in all of us.
Generations of fishermen have become enamored with the surface strike of largemouth bass. – Roxanne Wilson photo
Minnesota tribes’ protected fishing returns Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Each spring, Native American tribal members in Minnesota preserve their cultural heritage while providing a vital food source for tribal communities by harvesting fish through netting and spearing. This legally protected, regulated harvest of fish usually begins in mid-April at ice-out. With the tribal spring harvest season underway, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) expressed support for tribal members exercising their harvest rights within the 1837 Ceded Territory and within reservation boundaries. The 1837 treaty reserves
to tribal members the right to hunt and fish in the ceded territory, free of state regulation. WALLEYE UNDER TREATY The DNR reminded state residents that it is illegal to interfere or attempt to interfere with tribal members exercising treaty rights, including the spring harvesting of walleye. “As we look forward to warmer spring weather and ice-out, we are taking the important step of expressing the DNR’s continued support of tribal fish harvests,” DNR Commissioner Sarah Strommen said. “These activities are sustainably managed and profoundly important to Native American communities.” The tribal harvest within
the 1837 Ceded Territory is regulated by the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission. Every season, both the state and tribes agree on the amount of fish that can be harvested, based on the long-term health of the resource. Each tribe then declares to the DNR how many of each species of fish they intend to harvest from each lake in each ceded territory.
“The Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa is looking forward to the spring harvest to exercise our treaty rights to hunt, fish and gather,” Fond du Lac Chairman Kevin Dupuis Sr. said “Collectively, with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission, we look forward to preserving this important cultural, natural and
economic resource for future generations.” EACH FISH IS COUNTED Harvest begins shortly after the ice melts, with fishing permits issued by the tribes to their members. Each fish – whether harvested by spear or net – is counted individually and recorded for data used in fishery management, including lake-by-lake determinations of when the year’s declared harvest is reached and further harvest is closed for the year. “The Band’s harvest of fish in the ceded territory is a right that was retained and guaranteed by the 1837 Treaty and affirmed by the courts,” Mille Lacs Band Commis-
sioner of Natural Resources Kelly Applegate said. “Our ancestors knew the importance of the rights to hunt, fish and gather resources to preserve our culture into the future.” Tribal members follow conservation codes set forth by the governing bodies of their nations for harvest within reservation boundaries. It is illegal to interfere or attempt to interfere with tribal members who are exercising treaty rights, including the spring harvest of walleye. Prohibited conduct against any tribal member includes, but is not limited to: stalking, obstructing access to lakes, recklessly operating watercraft, creating hazardous wakes, threatening violence or committing acts of violence.
May-June 2022
Outdoor Guide
Here’s a fine pair of fishy tales
By GERALD J. SCOTT A relatively recent but very avid reader suggested I write a column about some of my most memorable fishing moments. It was a challenging request. I’d been fishing somewhere around 68 years, so I had ample time to gather thousands of memories – the majority of them good. Plus I’d been writing professionally for 34 years, so I’d already told hundreds of my best fishy tales. But be that as it may, here are two tales that logic would deem to be virtually unique. The first was pure fun; the second, not so much. 1: THE HIGH DIVING BULLHEAD Pipe Creek bisects my maternal great-great-grandfather’s Ottawa County, Kansas homestead. In the 1950s, it was still a living stream with a few pools deep enough to float your hat. Big bullheads were Pipe Creek’s main attraction, and multiple generations of my family spent many a Sunday afternoon on its banks, catching them by the dozen. Of course, you can’t have big bullheads without having little bullheads, and on this particular morning, my grandfather and I were trying to catch little bullheads to use for flathead bait. It was, as Walter Cronkite used to say, “a day like all days,” until we came to a high-banked pool. Since nobody – me, that is – wanted to walk 50 yards and then clamber down the bank to where we’d tied our floating bait buckets every time either of us caught a fish, I set a halffull bucket of water between
us when we sat down on the bank to fish. The 12-foot cane poles we were using made being five feet above the water irrelevant, and we started sorting through big fish in search of small ones. As anyone who’s fished for them knows, a bullhead can swallow a hook almost before you know you’ve had a bite, so we both had quick strike reflexes whenever our bobbers wiggled. That may explain why my grandfather swept his pole upward rather vigorously when his bobber disappeared. A sixinch bullhead was rocketed out of the water and flung upward until it reached the height not just of the 12-foot cane pole but also the 11 feet of line attached to it. At this point, the bullhead came unhooked and continued upward for an undetermined distance. Then, while dramatically rotating slowly, end over end, it dove into the nothing-but-net center of the bucket of water. I asked him to do it again, but he declined. 2: WHEN PIKE STRIKE BACK My wife Amber and I were fishing a small lake deep in the Canadian bush when I attempted to bring an 18-inch northern pike into the boat by grabbing the line just above the steel leader – something I’d done at least 1,000 times before. As the fish cleared the gunnel, I lost my grip, and the fish hit the side of the boat. It flopped and buried one of the lure’s three treble hooks into my right thumb past the barb. I called Amber for help and, amazing as it sounds, the fish remained motionless while
she worked her way past a mountain of fishing tackle and camera equipment to reach my end of the boat. The obvious first step was to unhook the fish, which she did. But now what? This was the first time in my life I’d been the “hookee,” but I’d read somewhere that the proper technique was to push the hook on through the flesh, clip off the barb and then pull it back out. A tentative push on the hook convinced
me that this was a procedure best done under a general anesthetic. Besides, doing it that way would leave a wound channel that would be virtually impossible to clean. A QUICK HOOK I was in the process of explaining another alleged technique that involved pulling out the hook with a loop of line, when Amber took my thumb in her left hand, her needlenose pliers in her right
hand. and instantly solved the problem. Fast forward 24 hours. I’m fishing the same shoreline with the same lure when it came time to land another pike about the same size as the first one. This time I was gunshy and determined to stay out of trouble. I don’t know how, but I wound up with a hook buried to the bend in my right index finger. This time it hurt like blue blazes, a situation that the thrashing pike didn’t
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help one bit. As I recall – Amber may recall it differently – I had to beg to get her to come to my aid. She did, of course, but this time her hook removal technique was, shall we say, unceremonious. I’m certain she said something about not coming back there again. I’ve only had one hook in my hand – or any other part of my body – since. I removed it myself, using the Amber method, and went back to fishing.
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Outdoor Guide
Page 20
May-June 2022
McClelland’s approach to post-spawn bass By JOHN NEPORADNY JR.
The post spawn can be a time for either slowing down or speeding up to catch recuperating bass. Major League Fishing pro Mike McClelland acknowledges there is a period during the post spawn when bass get sluggish while recuperating from the rigors of spawning and prefer slower moving lures. “I don’t know when that window really is because I don’t know exactly when every fish spawns,” he said. He also notices that once bass get past that phase, the
fish get “super aggressive” – especially when they start schooling – and chase faster moving baits. So McClelland favors throwing a lure throughout the post spawn that he can retrieve at various speeds. “There are so many ways to catch bass during that post spawn period but for me, I like to throw a bulked-up football jig,” he said. “A crankbait is a phenomenal post spawn bait, but it is one of those baits that you almost have to have the right water conditions. A football jig is one of those baits that, regardless of the clarity of the water, you can typically catch fish on it. You can work it
in so many different manners. You can stroke it or drag it on the bottom. “Sometimes you have to drag it around to get the first bite, but once you get that first bite and get the school fired up, you can stroke the jig or even swim it at times,” McClelland said. “You can throw it out, let it hit the bottom and then almost wind it like we do with a hardhead (jig) or something like that.” USING BIG BAITS Football jigs can be used as finesse baits by selecting smaller jigs and trailers, but McClelland favors beefing up his baits by selecting larger jigs and “bigger than average”
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spawn bass. “They generally want to eat big baits then,” he said.
A couple of factors determine which size jig McClelland selects during the post spawn. “You have to consider the type of lake and the depth the fish go to,” he said. “Sometimes in the post spawn period on Ozark lakes, it seems like you catch bass as deep as you will catch them right during that period when they start feeding back up.” When those fish are feeding in deeper water, McClelland favors jigs ranging in size from 5/8 to 1 ounce. IN THE SHALLOWS For shallow-water presentations, McClelland usually See NEPORADNY page 26
Outdoor Guide
May-June 2022
The Rural Rambler
There’s no time like May and June
Page 21
TAKE
5
Improve your shotgun bird hunting skills!
4
Owls have a more positive image these days.
By RUSSELL HIVELY May and June are the end months of spring and the beginning of summer. These are times when most trees and shrubs have reached their peaks, and blossoms abound, some so small and beautiful that you don’t want to mow your lawn, and for sure never put weed spray on it. These are times when the fish bite next to the shore. *** Owls have a more positive image with humans these days than in the past. People still stop when they hear an owl. Today it is probably fascination and not fear. *** Making homemade ice cream has always been a joyful family event. Today, electric motors power the machine. Years ago, kids turned a handle “until you can’t turn the handle any more.” The smallest child usually sat on top of the machine to keep it from jumping around. *** Did you realize that most of Forsyth, MO, was once moved to build a dam to create a good fishing lake? *** How many hunters today adhere to the old legend that if a rabbit crossed your path, you were to go back home and start over? ***
Wages have improved over the years. John Ross, the first postmaster of Jasper, Missouri earned $7.09 in 1845. *** Bragging about how good a coon dog is makes many men liars. For example, one coon dog was found treeing a coon in a hollow tree. When the tree was cut down, the coon had been dead for an estimated two weeks. *** Bat guano found in caves was once a source for the manufacture of gunpowder. *** The making of the movie “Jesse James” in McDonald County, MO, required nearly 100 horses. *** Did you realize that 90 percent of the world’s self-storage is in the United States? An old-timer found this easy to explain. He said, “Americans have too much junk.” *** Did you know that one deer can eat 300 acorns per day? *** Picking cherries when they first ripen occurs in May. An old-timer once remarked, “If one robin eats one cherry, the crop is gone.” *** Outdoorsmen and women
Both MDC shooting ranges in the St. Louis region are hosting 5-stand at the following times through Aug. 31:
– San Diego Zoo photo
can satisfy the need to be outdoors by picking wild and tame blackberries, strawberries and blue berries in early summer. Some people even pick mulberries for pies and fruit sauce. Do youngsters today even know what “sauce” is? *** Persimmons are a snackable treat while treading through the fall woods. The persimmon trees bloom in May. *** Why does joy in our life always arise when we hear the sound of a bat on a baseball? *** Children always marvel at the sighting of the first lightning bugs of the summer. Soon jars with holes in the lid will be filled with the shining bugs. *** Some red cedar trees release so much pollen it looks like clouds of smoke. *** May and June are those beginning months. They begin with late spring and move into early summer. There are days which are hot and nights that are cold. Still, they are a time of rebirth and a time for all outdoorsmen to enjoy with walks in the woods and full days of fishing. Anyway, that’s what this old rural rambler thinks.
2
1
1 2 3 4 5
Targets in 5-stand shotgun shooting imitate the flight patterns of popular game birds. Shooters rotate through five stations where clay targets can fly left and right, toward, and away and at different angles and speeds – even bounce on the ground.
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5-stand is excellent prep for game bird hunting and can sharpen your shotgun skills. $4 per round, cash or check only. Includes clay birds; eye and ear protection available. No reservations, first come first served. Visit mdc.mo.gov/shootingranges to learn more.
Outdoor Guide
Page 22
May-June 2022
Your Guide to
GREAT GEAR
Lightweight Salomon boot ranked best of ‘22
When the Switch Back Travel website ranked its “Best Hiking Boots of 2022,” only one could come out on top, and that one was the Salomon X Ultra 3 Mid GTX. Now that’s a mouthful of a title, but this is a worthy boot, too, in the lightweight category, weighing just under two pounds in waterproof Gore-Tex. They called it “fast, light, flexible and reasonably priced,” saying it was built like a trail running shoe but with extra ankle support and toe protection, for both comfort and low weight. It’s also one of the only lightweight designs made in wide foot sizes, and it beats out other lightweights on durability, support and traction. Salomon X Ultra 3 Mid GTX lists for $165. A review is at https://www.switchbacktravel.com/reviews/salomon-xultra-3-mid-gtx.
Outdoor dish set brings a touch of class to the campout The GSI Outdoor Cascadian Table Set makes your campground dinner like a night out on the town. The set has everything you need and nothing that you don’t with its four 91/2-inch plates, four 6-inch bowls, four 12-ounce cups and a mesh storage bag. It’s lightweight and flexible, made of food-grade polypropylene plastic, easy to pack, stack and carry. Each piece is made for a long life-cycle, but they are fully recylable when the time comes. The whole set weighs only 27.6 ounces, so bring it along. The GSI Outdoor Cascadian Table Set can be seen and purchased at rei.com for $34.95.
Hunter’s Devotional lets outdoorsmen bring God along Since his “A Look at Life from a Deer Stand” first made a splash, Steve Chapman has been writing books encouraging hunters and other outdoors enthusiasts to bring God along. One of his more recent books is called “The Hunter’s Devotional,” a small volume designed to come along on hunting trips. It features stories from Chapman’s hunting and fishing adventures written into devotionals that include scripture, insight, anecdotes and prayers. He has also written “Another Look at Life from a Deer Stand,” “A Look at Life from the Riverbank” and “Stories from the Deer Stand,” among others. “The Hunter’s Devotional” sells in hardcover for $7.99 at amazon.com. Used copies can be had for $4 plus shipping.
Suuntu compass has all the basics for under $30.
Suuntu of Finland has been making a name for itself by creating accurate and durable compasses that also are affordable. The Suuntu A-10 compass is described as “fast, simple and accurate.” Features include a high-grade steel needle with jewel bearing, a liquid-filled capsule for stable operations and a detachable snaplock lanyard. The analog compass is only 1.06 ounce and is 4.09 inches by 2.2 inches. It includes a ruler and is balanced for the Northern Hemisphere. The Suunto A-10 is available for under $30 from REI, Amazon. com, Suunto.com or Moosejaw.com.
Blackout firewood hammer ready for nails, or zombies Hardcore Hammers’ new Blackout Survivalist Hammer adds a black matte finish to its American Hickory curved, 18” handle that matches its blackened, treated head and custom black leather sheath. The 19-ounce head is toughened with FNC (Ferritic Nitrocarburizing) that uses heat, nitrogen and carbon to toughen the steel surface. The head is 4140 tool steel, known as “ordnance steel” for its use in guns and cannon. It’s more durable and corrosion resistant. A nail or tent stake puller is incorporated into the design. Hardcore says it’s great “whether it’s pounding nails, chopping and splitting firewood, or fending off the zombie apocalypse.” The Blackout Survivalist Hammer lists for $164 at hardcorehammers.com.
Daiwa brings out versatile Emcast LT spinning reel
The Emcast LT Bite ‘n Run Spinning Reel is the first “live-liner” or “bait-runner” reel to be built on Daiwa’s LT Light and Tough platform. The versatile reel includes a secondary drag system that can be engaged while live or chunk bait is in the water, reducing drag pressure and allowing fish to run after taking the bait. Flip the rear switch or turn the handle, and the reel then re-engages its Advanced Tournament Drag System, placing up to 26 pounds of smooth drag pressure to put the brakes on the target – more effective than opening the bail or loosening the primary drag. The Emcast LT has a lightweight but highly rigid carbon body and rotor, making it one of the lightest live-lining spinning reels. Sizes range from 2500 to 5000, with models suitable for both fresh and saltwater live bait anglers. Daiwa Emcast reels can be seen at tackledirect.com with some available for $99.99 plus shipping.
Updated star-gazing guide ready for backyard observations There are cheaper guides to star gazing, but “The Backyard Astronome’s Guide” has been a classic for 30 years, now is in its fourth edition, and this may be the best one. Written by Terence Dickinson and Alan Dyer as a straight-forward field manual, it has been updated to cover the latest discoveries. It now has 416 pages, illustrated with star charts and photographs. Five new chapters discuss binoculars, telescopes and Moon tours, written by astronomy author Ken Hewitt-White. Techniques for observing the sun, moon and solar and lunar eclipses are described – just in time for solar eclipses coming in 2023 and 2024. “The Backyard Astronomer’s Guide” is available at Barnes & Noble.com for $49.95.
Mossberg offers optic-ready, autoloading 940 shotgun
Deuce #2 will do when you need a ‘number two’ hole
The newest member of Mossberg’s 940 Pro family of 12-gauge shotguns is the optic-ready 940 Pro Tactical 8-shot autoloading shotgun, based on Mossberg’s clean-running and redesigned gas operating system. The 940 Pro Tactical delivers ease of operation, reliability, adjustability and performance-driven features including optic-ready receiver; oversized controls; stock adjustability and an 18.5” barrel with interchangeable choke system. It has corrosion-resistant internal parts and finishes including nickel boron-coated gas piston, magazine tube, hammer and sear. The durable gas system is compatible with factory-manufactured 2.75” and 3” shotshells.The stock is user-adjustable with a range of 12.5” to 14.25”. The 940 can be seen online at www.mossberg.com. List price is $1,120, and it weighs 7.5 lbs.
This might be something you want to look into, but not too closely! It’s the Deuce #2 latrine trowel that can come in very handy when you need it to be. TentLab, from Colorado, makes this smart new two-way tool of aluminum in several colors. It has four teeth on the leading edge of the blade, shaped and placed for cutting roots up to half an inch thick using a thin edge of aluminum, but they don’t obstruct normal digging. The Deuce weighs just 17 grams, or as much as 75 cents, and finger-grip contours ensure a secure hold. It’s 6.8” long and 2.5” high, and weighs just .6 ounces. Other uses for it include sand stake, shoehorn, bottle opener and sandcastle sculptor. TentLab’s Deuce #2 comes in red, blue and green and lists for $19.95 at REI.com.
Outdoor Guide
May-June 2022
Page 23
Book Shelf
Huffman tells all about crappie
By CARL GREEN Editor
Tim Huffman stands behind no one in his knowledge of fishing, especially for crappie. And unlike some, he’s totally willing to share that knowledge. That’s why it’s great news that he has published a new book, “Crappie Annual and Product Guide.” It’s a steal for $12.99 online from Huffman Publishing at MonsterCrappie.com. Most of the book is a great read in itself, with chapters explaining the do’s and don’ts and some of the why’s of crappie fishing, for beginners or for higher-level crappie fans who
Winchester event lets you shoot with pros Registration is open for the first-ever Winchester Shoot With the Pros event, to be held June 7-9 the Winchester headquarters in East Alton, IL and the NILO hunting and shooting preserve in Brighton, IL. The cost to attend this experience is $3,500 per person, with only 18 slots available. The event includes: • Training with six of the most accomplished clay target shooters in the world. • An exclusive tour of the Winchester shotshell facility. • Shooting at legendary NILO and the Winchester trap and skeet facility. • Meals, lodging, ammunition, clay targets and a Winchester gear package. SKEET • Kim Rhode, six time Olympic medalist, and the most decorated sport shooter of all time, plus Frank Thompson, two-time Olympian. TRAP • Matt Bartholow and Foster Bartholow, both Grand American Trap Shooting champions. SPORTING CLAYS • Zach Kienbaum and Desirae Edmunds, both sporting clays national champions. For more information and to register, contact Donny Ballard at (618) 258-2000 or dgballard@olin.com.
would like to compare notes with an expert. The last third of the book really distinguishes itself, though, with a thorough, illustrated survey of crappie fishing equipment that names names, reveals prices and explains how to use dozens of crappie fishing products, including an assortment of baits, poles, rods, reels, racks and rod holders. He includes gear for young anglers, too. This part of the guide takes up a full 70 pages. Other useful topics in the book include:
• Telling the difference between a black and a white crappie. • Recognizing a blacknose crappie. • The seasons of crappie fishing. • Using technology such as LiveScoping to find crappie. EXPERT ADVICE While Huffman qualifies as an expert, he is willing to bring some other crappie mavens into the book to give the rest of us some lessons, such as: • Eric Cagle on the importance of casting. • Scott Williams on spider rigging. • John Godwin on pulling rigs. • Kyle Schoenherr on using underbody spinners.
• Todd Huckabee on fishing
in rocky areas.
• Ronnie Capps and Steve Coleman on slow trolling
double-hook minnow rigs. The foreword states: Huffman’s Crappie Annual & Product Guide provides how-to chapters on a variety of crappie fishing techniques and situations, discussed by experts, guides and tournament fishermen and illustrated with photographs. Their experience provides solutions and tips to make your next trip to the lake or river a more productive one. Setup, finding fish and presentations are included, whether you’re pursuing shallow-water crappie, loners or deep wood-hugging slabs. The chapters in the last
section are guides for finding and buying rods, reels, jigs and pole holders. Numerous manufacturers are listed, along with featured companies and products. Also, there are two destination trips you’ll want to add to your bucket list. TWO DESTINATIONS FOR FINDING CRAPPIE In one chapter, guide Will Hutto describes 18 ways to catch fish at Lake Washington in Mississippi – and how they work in other waters, too. Lake Washington is a 5,000acre, natural oxbow lake believed to be about 700 years old, with depths from 6 to 22 feet. It’s along the Mississippi River near the town of Glen Allen. Places to stay and to eat there
plus fishing tips are included. Another destination is closer to home – Grizzly Jig Co. in Caruthersville, MO, founded in 1986, which founder and owner Louie Mansfield says is the largest crappie store in the world, with customers coming from 35 states and the annual Grizzly Spring Tackle Show the weekend before every Super Bowl. So don’t you want to know more of what Huffman has assembled in this manual? What a gift for a dedicated angler! Just go online or get a teen-ager to do it for you at monstercrappie.com. By the way, Huffman’s 2019 book, Limiting Out for Crappie, is still available from amazon.com for $12.99.
Outdoor Guide
Page 24
May-June 2022
Wildlife Wrangling and Outdoor Ramblings
When power tools slip, try cowboy coffee Photo and Text By RANDALL P. DAVIS
The wound looked innocent enough. My disposition, however, refused to agree. You see, for me, a slip from a high-speed drill burying a
No. 2 Phillips head bit into my left thumb is typical. Usually it occurs when mounting a cage trap overhead where a female raccoon – in the throes of labor – has breached a client’s soffit, choosing a comfortable nursery within the attic, gen-
erally right above the client’s bedroom. But this time the maiming developed from a simple project of building a few shelves in the tool shed to house my ever-expanding supply of trapping equipment.
OUTDOOR M a rch - A p r i l
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A SPECIAL TRIBUTE to Bobby Whitehead upon his retirement, starting on Page 18
A Veteran’s Tale ................
At that instant of cold, spinning steel penetrating tender tissue, there was an immediate orchestra of loud and blue language detailing my incompetence and foolish impatience to get the job done a little too quickly.
The Big Woods
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Beaver’s lesson
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She’s fishing again ... Page 4
Spring Turkey Hunt
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Missouri wildlife
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Elk hunt lottery ........ Page 5
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The Visiting Otter.......
30 CELEBRATING
age 12 A Bluegill Pond ...............P
Spoon feeding ........Page 15
Amazing wolves ......Page 24
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Kayak fishing .........Pa
YEARS
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Spicy Squirrel ................
Coyote language
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Cowboy coffee always helps.
LOLA STEPS IN What was unique this time was that my wife, Lola, was assisting in this endeavor, and after my initial convulsive fit, strongly suggested we go to the house and properly treat said wound. Being me as I am, I waived such a generous offer. It would delay progress. However, two minutes later and with a continuous flow of life’s essence, I had a rational thought – and went to the house. Now, I’ve treated many wounds in the past – mine mostly – so I proceeded to thoroughly wash the epidermal crater and applied generous amounts of alcohol. After the third bathing – and with gritted teeth and teary eyes – I bound the hole with an antique bandage I found in an equally antique first aid kit. Finally, I had regained enough composure (I was still seething about my ineptitude and time lost plugging holes) that I returned to the work site. Retracing my earlier path I noticed one or two splotches of blood. Then some more. And then MORE. In fact, I could easy track myself back to ground zero, like following a blood trail from a wounded deer. Once back, I showed Lola I still had my medical prowess (even though the bandage had soaked up with blood) and that I could easily handle most situations presented to a M.A.S.H unit. She wasn’t impressed. GOING DEEP But two days later, this
wound was a little more than it appeared. I guess that bit head dug really deep into the hypodermal layer and, for a nano-second, spun and chewed at my delicate flesh. More simply, I think I messed up some deep tissue, as there still was little feeling in the area. And too, at the time, I had lanced it twice to expel the infection and re-medicate it. I know, I know, “You should have went to the doctor.” Well, from my experience they would have done the very same thing I had ... with a whopping gratuity expected. We completed the project, and I felt that after such a traumatic industrial accident, I needed a strong cup of coffee to settle my nerves. THE LEGEND OF COWBOY COFFEE Now, I’ve read in vintage outdoor literature about old woodsmen and trappers making cowboy coffee – the culinary technique of throwing fresh grounds on top of the old. Historically, this was produced in the latter part of winter when supplies were running low and staples had to be stretched to last until spring. In my case, I needed something just south of bourbon to settle my nerves. I thought of cowboy coffee. What assisted the motion was that the coffee grounds were already in place from yesterday, and the only effort required to complete this ensemble was an additional healthy, quarter-cup scoop of See WRANGLING page 25
Outdoor Guide
May-June 2022
Camping season ’22 is finally here!
Photo and Text By BOB HOLZHEI Memorial Day weekend is the beginning of the 2022 camping season! Not only does camping allow travelers to spend time outdoors in the fresh air, camping has become more popular than ever during the pandemic. Some dealers are having difficulty keeping RVs on their lots. Camping is very budget-friendly, too. It has allowed our family of six to afford more time vacationing than if we were to stay in motels. Our current RV is a self-contained, 30-foot motor home with a kitchen, dining area, bath, shower, living room, televisions, and a sleeping area which accommodates eight. Choosing where to camp involves deciding on a state or national park, or maybe a luxury, full-service RV resort offering of amenities including a clubhouse for social gatherings, a swimming pool, a hot tub, bocce ball, golf cart rentals, horseshoes, and shuffleboard.
• Wrangling Folgers’ finest … you know, to punch it up a bit. With all the elements in place, I irrigated the reservoir, flipped the lid to go, and went to find a clean bandage while the modern appliance earned its keep. Returning 10 minutes later, I discovered that Mr. Bunn had not intended for his creation to be involved in fanciful forays regarding some antiquated cowboy/barista technique. A KITCHEN VISION The countertop was under a shallow brown pond, complete with regurgitated grounds, while the coffee maker sat squarely in the center, like a cherry atop a sundae. The carafe housed a black, viscous, fluid perfectly suited for lining pickup beds – or perhaps back in the day, melting quills from porcupines. Apparently, cowboy coffee is best brewed in an enamel percolator – or frying pan – where the contents can moil (obviously for days) unencumbered. Put out because now this endeavor had taken more time
DOWN IN FLORIDA An RV resort in Arcadia, FL, that just opened three years ago is expanding with additional RV sites and an elegant clubhouse scheduled to be finished by next winter. The clubhouse will have exercise equipment, a pool table and weekly activities such as dances, poker nights, bingo and pool exercises. One weekend, seven hosting campsites offered complementary snacks and drinks at their campsites as a meetand-greet social event. At the resort, the spacious RV sites are 20 by 70 feet and are paved with a brick base. The bulletin board in the on-site laundry had a sign-up sheet for additional activities including golf, pickleball and Mexican train dominos. During our first winter camping trip to Florida, my wife and I were surprised to discover food trailers arriving at the RV resort each week. Our initial week stay quickly turned into a month reservation and led to reserving a spot for a longer time
from page 24 than if I had brewed coffee “the right way,” I fumed as I quickly mopped up the evidence before spousal detection could occur. However, in the spirit of outdoor adventure and in honor of those old timers who did what they could with what they had, and to firmly affix in my mind that the “Good Old Days” weren’t always so good, I sat there and drank the mess. Lola then appears and inquires, “How’s the thumb and your coffee?” I gave a throbbing thumbs up, a tip of the cup, and then lied, “Both are great!” ONE-THUMB SALUTE I’ve got to salute those old cowboys. They must have not had a taste bud in their mouths. As for the thumb, it’s much better now, getting more feeling in the flesh. I may do some hitchhiking. Amazing what alcohol, Epsom salt, sharp utility blades and a little cowboy coffee can do. So, should you need any in-the-field medical advice or treatment, it’s always available here at the Outpost!
next winter. “It looks like we’re eating out tonight,” said Becky, a fellow camper whom my wife Shirley befriended. An assortment of various food trailers arrived weekly, offering pizza, burritos, chicken wings, fries, filet mignon, porterhouse steak, plus salmon and other fish dishes. Other amenities included poker nights, bingo, pool exercises and social meeting opportunities.
INFORMATION PLEASE Across the United States, you can request free state campground directories, which list the locations and amenities offered. Reading through the literature during winter is a great way to prepare for the upcoming camping season. As new amenities are offered by RV parks, roughing it has taken on a brand-new meaning!
Page 25
You never know what you’re going to find at America’s RV resorts.
Outdoor Guide
Page 26
May-June 2022
How to be a great outdoors guest Photo and Text By BILL COOPER Being invited to a hunting or fishing camp, or any outdoor trip for that matter, is a grand occurrence for lovers of the outdoors. If you are fortunate enough to be invited on such a trip, a few common courtesies on your part will help get you invited back. Kindness is a virtue. The kindness you show to others who have been gracious to you will solidify relationships that may very well last a lifetime. Bill Bryan, former director of Missouri State Parks, has attended many hunting and fishing camps. “You have to go into any camp situation with the right expectations,” he said. “It’s only being fair to both yourself and the host.” I have attended dozens of hunting and fishing camps from Alaska to the Yucatan, spanning several decades. I learned early in my career that demonstrating appreciation through both word and deed is the key to building lasting relationships and enjoying the pleasure of being invited to return. A CAMERA IN SOUTH TEXAS I served five years on the board of Bay Ridge Christian College in south Texas in the early 1990s. Rev. Horace Germany served as chairman of the board and managed several thousand acres of prime quail-hunting property near Cotulla, close to the Mexico border. Rev. Germany extended an invitation to join him and a couple of others for a threeday hunt on the property. He had managed the ranch for quail for over 20 years. At
• Neporadny opts for a 1/2- or 5/8-ounce football jig, but sometimes he uses heavier jigs in the shallower water to trigger reaction strikes. “The speed that the fish want the bait can be a real key,” he said. “There are times when I have caught bass on a 3/4 or 1 ounce in water less than 15 feet deep because the fish wanted that bait moving fast.“ The Arkansas pro likes contrast when choosing the
the time, he owned Jake, his best pointer ever. He beamed with pride as he introduced us to Jake. I had an immediate epiphany. I quickly slid my shotgun back into its case and grabbed my 35mm camera. I spent the first day of the hunt recording the events of the day with Rev. Germany and Jake. I could never have predicted what would occur. The bird hunting proved phenomenal as dogs pointed covey after covey and great shots were executed. I, however, managed one of the greatest camera shots of my entire career. Jake went on point. Rev. Germany moved in to flush the quail. And I captured it all – Jake on point, Rev. Germany shouldering his shotgun, and the covey rising. I mailed several photos to Rev. Germany upon my return home. He called me as soon as he received the photos. As he spoke, he was obviously choked up. “Bill, in 30 years of having friends come to quail camp, no one ever took the time to do what you did for me,” he said. “Thank you. You are welcome in my hunting camp any time you want to come.” Kindness, thoughtfulness and a little effort go a long way. NEVER ABOUT YOU Receiving an invitation to a camp is not about you, period. It is about the hosts graciously sharing personal resources which they may have spent long years and huge investments to build. They will most likely want to share the story. Remain low key, especially if you are the newbie in camp. Demonstrate basic respect and appreciation by
Arriving in camp as a guest with a positive attitude and few expectations will never leave you disappointed. And always remember to express your appreciation to your host.
not talking in every conversation. Follow the lead of the host, and by all means, respect his requests to the nth degree. Hosts fret over their guests having a good camp experience. Arrive with a positive attitude and few expectations and you will never be personally disappointed. Your host will recognize your attitude immediately and enjoy your company. Rather than attempt to impress your host with tales about yourself, ask him about the history of his camp and how he went about developing it. Your sincerity is a great way to break the ice and build bonds. OFFER TO HELP Never show up to a camp empty-handed. The smallest gesture of kindness to the host makes a memorable first impression. A gift of
food, a drink, a t-shirt, cap, or useful tool for camp is appreciated. If meals are prepared in camp, offer to help. Help with clean-up and other camp chores. R e m e m b e r, h o w e v e r, many camp hosts have established routines and don’t want help. Don’t force yourself on them. One of the biggest sins of camp guests I’ve witnessed over the years was by those who act like slobs. They are untidy with clothes and equipment. They leave food, drink and trash in their rooms and scatter their personal effects all over. Being untidy in the house sends a clear message to the host that you might not be trustworthy in the field as well. HUNTING AND FISHING ETIQUETTE Unless you are a regular at a camp, don’t assume it’s OK
to do things your way. If it’s a camp involving dogs, such as a duck camp or pheasant camp, do not bring your dog. And don’t make the host uncomfortable by asking. If he wants your dog there, he will ask. And never attempt to handle someone else’s dog. That is a mortal sin. Don’t be a game hog. Nobody, nobody will like you. Follow all rules and safety precautions to a T. If in doubt, pass the shot or the cast. Allow others the chance to go first. Be certain to offer thanks with a handshake when camp is over. It speaks volumes. Send a text or e-mail of appreciation when you get back home. Attach a photo of yourself with game or fish you harvested. A courteous follow-up often solidifies relationships. Take any fish or game you harvest home with you,
unless regulations prevent it. Leave it at camp, and you automatically leave a negative impression. You host has far too many chores to attend to without having to deal with your harvests. In summary, simple gestures of kindness, both while in camp and once you return home, often lead to future invitations. FINAL WORDS Bill Bryan, an associate with U.S. e-Direct, who works with park agencies around the world, and whom I consider an expert in relations, summed it up. “Manners are important,” he said. “Saying ‘Yes sir’ or ‘No ma’am’ is basic human respect. And never forget that while you are on holiday and having fun in camp, your host is working. Always express your appreciation through word and deed.”
chartreuse. He believes postspawn bass feed heavily on bream, so he dips the tail of his trailer in chartreuse dye to mimic the shiny chartreuse tail of a bluegill. STROKING THE JIG Power generation frequently determines how McClelland retrieves his football jig during the post spawn. He notices bass tend to suspend more over ledges and points
when there is no current from generation, so he prefers “stroking” the jig then with a vertical presentation. The eight-time B.A.S.S. winner starts his stroking presentation with a short cast to a steep ledge and then lets the jig hit the bottom. After dropping his rod to the 9 a.m. position, he pops the rod up to 11 a.m. and holds it there for a short while before popping the rod again and lifting it to
the noon or 1 p.m. position. He estimates this double hop causes his jig to rise 6 to 7 feet off the ledge. Then he lets his jig fall on a “relatively slack line” and keeps a close vigil on the line. If the line stops falling before all the slack straightens out, McClelland sets the hook because he knows a bass has inhaled his jig on the fall. When McClelland notices a lot of current from generation is sweeping across the main
lake structure, he tries to keep his jig closer to the bottom. He knows bass are staying closer to the bottom and using ambush points along specific parts of structure where current is running across the hardest. So McClelland makes a long cast across structure, such as a main lake point, and employs a series of hops to make his jig lift and fall about 11/2 to 2 feet off the bottom.
from page 20 colors for his jig and trailer. “A lot of guys, if they throw a black-and-blue jig, tend to go with a black-and-blue or a blue trailer,” he said. “But I like to mix and match a little bit. If I am throwing a lighter color such as watermelon or a light green pumpkin jig, I like to make my trailer a little bit darker.” McClelland also dotes on dipping his soft plastic trailer in JJ’s Magic Dippin’ Dye
Outdoor Guide
May-June 2022
Page 27
Claudette’s Cottage
Making bubbly – and home vinaigrette By CLAUDETTE ROPER
“Man, it sure didn’t waste any time getting hot! Would you like a cold bubbly?” Oh my goodness, if looks could kill. “You know we don’t drink!” he replied (and rather tartly at that). Oh boy, here we go, another opportunity to show off our SodaStream, but not without some explanation. No, Mountain Man was not offering a New Year’s Eve beverage and yes, he used the word incorrectly. In defense of the poor guy, however, how many times have you offered someone Kleenex when what you handed them was Puffs? Yes, “sparkling water” or “flavored sparkling water” would have been more accurate, as “paper facial tissue” would have been. I thought about researching why it wasn’t called a paper handkerchief, but then I still haven’t figured out what HANDkerchiefs have to do with noses.
STARTING WITH BUBLY In fact, there is a brand of sparkling water named Bubly, and we got accustomed to drinking it in the heat of the summer last year. Sometimes it would have been nice just to have a little sparkling water, with “little” being the issue. Lest you had forgotten, this tightwad here factors in the cost. Large bottles are cheaper by the ounce, but it goes flat before it’s half used up. Small bottles are more expensive and a waste of resources. No, I’m not a tree hugger, but I do respect some sensible forms of conservation. Note I stated that in a way that I can pick and choose, LOL This past Christmas, one of our sons and his wife bought us the ideal gift to solve our dilemma: a SodaStream. For those who are not familiar with it, it simply uses a CO2 cartridge to carbonate your water. There are a variety of models; ours is a simple pump. It makes you
feel like you are actually doing something – kind of like the real one-armed bandits versus computer screens. A variety of flavors are available to add if you want something more than just sparkling water. Had we purchased the machine, the flavorings, and the CO2 cartridge, the cost per ounce in comparison to canned flavored sparkling water would have been an improvement. Additionally, when purchasing a new cartridge, the empty gets you up to 50 percent off your new one in many places. A LITTLE HOME BREW… I have been experimenting with carbonating some of my homemade apple juice, because – let’s face it – who doesn’t like sparkling apple juice? My next try will be cooking up fresh ginger tea, cooling it and carbonating it. There’s a good chance it will need a little sweetening of sorts, but either way it’s healthier than soda. Full disclosure: I am not selling a product. I’m not paid
to write about SodaStream. I am, however, extremely excited and pleased to have one. It’s amazing how, back in the early ‘60s, my dad talked about wanting one but apparently it was not common enough to be affordable back then. It is now, especially if you watch Marketplace and similar sites. …OF VINAIGRETTE There is no good segue from this to vinaigrette, so I’ll spare you an explanation of how my brain got there. Let’s simply say that the raspberry vinaigrette from the store is delicious … and sweet, very sweet. Too sweet! Oh, but we like it. So, what’s a girl to do? I made a simple vinaigrette, added a little Bubly flavoring meant for the SodaStream and a few drops of Stevia. Did the raspberry flavor knock me over? No, but just that hint satisfied our taste buds. We are enjoying it enough that I wanted to share it with you. Don’t limit yourself to using this only on tossed salads. Cut a tomato into bite-sized pieces,
add some chopped onions, a smattering of chopped parsley and dress liberally. It’s great on pasta salads, too. RASPBERRY BLUSH VINAIGRETTE
Any purchased Italian spice mix will do. If you find yourself using a lot of the following blend, you might consider making it. ITALIAN SPICE MIX
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar • 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar • 1/2 cup olive oil • 1 tsp garlic powder • 1 tsp Italian spice mix • 3/4 tsp salt • /2 tsp onion powder • 1/2 tsp pepper • 1/2 tsp lemon juice • 1/4 tsp Bubly raspberry or to taste • 10 drops Stevia
• 2 tbs each dried basil, marjoram, oregano and parsley flakes. • 1 tbs rubbed sage. • 1 tsp dried thyme. • 1 tsp dried crushed rosemary
Notes: I would have used all red wine but had only a quarter-cup left at the time. In retrospect, I’m keeping it that way because the apple cider vinegar seems to give some freshness. The half-teaspoon of lemon juice can easily be replaced with the same amount of vinegar if you don’t have lemon juice handy. If you prefer another sweetener, just substitute it. Nothing here is set in concrete.
Enjoy your summer!
A scene from a SodaStream commercial
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Outdoor Guide
Page 28
May-June 2022
Outdoor Gallery
GEESE PATROL – Bruce Cashion (left), and Gary Crowe, seen on their hunt of snow geese, taken on private ground near Carlyle, IL.
THRD SEASON – Chris Clark took this nice turkey in the third season on private ground in Massac County, IL.
BIG FISH, SMALL BOY – Lane Pirtle, age 5, caught this big bass on a private pond in Marine, IL. It made his day because he brought it in all by himself, as you can see by the smile on his face.
LOGAN GETS IT – Logan Miller, 10, harvested his first turkey in March in Franklin County, MO, while hunting with his father, Neil Miller. Its beard was 10.5 and it had inch-long spurs. “It was an absolutely amazing experience for both of us,” his dad reports.
RICK’S PICK – Rick Story, retired from the United Sportsman’s Alliance, harvested this beautiful Osceola in south Florida this spring. He also caught some nice bass.
BULL MOOSE CLUB – After five days of hunting, Hope Muckerman was able to kill this bull moose on a once-ina-lifetime tag she drew in Idaho this winter. At 10 years old, it was the first year she was eligible to hunt big game. She used a suppressed 6.5 Creedmoor.
Send in your favorite outdoor photo to carl@labortribune.com or mail to Outdoor Guide Magazine Gallery – 505 S. Ewing, St. Louis, MO 63103
Outdoor Guide
May-June 2022
Page 29
State record fish
New record paddlefish tops 140 pounds
It took a big fish to do it, and just barely at that, but Jim Dain of Pittsfield, IL set a new Missouri record by landing a paddlefish weighing in at 140 pounds, 10 ounces at Lake of the Ozarks on March 18. It was only one ounce more than the previous record, set in 2015 at Table Rock Lake. Dain said he was on a fishing trip with his family and almost didn’t get the boat out that day because the weather kept changing. “The forecast was calling for storms, and then it changed to no rain, so we went out, but it just kept getting colder,” he recalled. “We weren’t having much luck but decided to fish for another
hour, so we took another turn. And that’s when the drag on the reel started. It felt like a tree was on the line!” Dain said it took at least 20 minutes before they got the fish into the boat. After getting back to the boat ramp, Steven Henson of Bonne Terre, who happens to hold the Missouri state record for river carpsucker, was in the area and mentioned that Dain should get in touch with the Department of Conservation (MDC). “He was at the boat ramp and happened to hold a state record,” Dain said. “He’s looking at the fish and says to me, ‘Boy, I think you should get that checked out because
it could be a state record.’ ” WEIGHED IN MONTREAL Dain contacted MDC Camden County Agent Tyler Brown, who advised him to go to Tom’s Slaughterhouse in Montreal, MO, to use a certified scale that could handle weight over 100 pounds. It was the second state-record fish caught in 2022. “We got 16 one-gallon bags of meat out of this catch,” Dain noted. “We’ve fried it, grilled it and made paddlefish tacos the other night. We’ll be having paddlefish for a while!” Missouri state-record fish are recognized in two categories: pole-and-line and
Record quillback taken from Table Rock Lake Josh Lawmaster of La Russell MO is the first state record holder of 2022 after shooting an 8-pound, 5-ounce quillback from Table Rock Lake while bowfishing on March 15. The catch breaks the previous record of 7 pounds, 10 ounces set in 2015. Lawmaster said he was out with his bowfishing team the day he shot the record. “We were actually fishing for common carp that day when I had just come across this little dude,” he said. “We knew it was pretty good size, but it wasn’t until the next morning we were thinking about it and decided to contact the department.” Quillback is a non-game species that’s often confused with river carpsucker. This species is widely distributed, and most common in the clearer prairie streams of central and northeastern Missouri. It’s also fairly common in the upper Mississippi River and in large reservoirs of the Ozark uplands. Missouri Department of Conservation staff verified the fish’s weight on a certified scale at its Southwest Regional Office in Springfield. “I wasn’t at all expecting to get a state record, so it’s pretty neat,” Lawmaster said. “Now I can say I actually accomplished something!”
Josh Lawmaster of La Russell MO took this 8-pound, 5-ounce quillback from Table Rock Lake using a bow. –MDC photo
Missouri state record fish are recognized in two categories: pole-and-line and alternative methods. Alternative methods include: trotline, throwline, limb line,
bank line, jug line, gig, bow, crossbow, underwater spearfishing, snagging, snaring, grabbing, or atlatl. For more information, go online to http://bit.ly/2efqlvl.
Jim Dain of Pittsfield, IL, snagged this 140-pound paddlefish at Lake of the Ozarks to set a new state record. –MDC photo
alternative methods. Alternative methods include: trotline, throwline, limb line,
bank line, jug line, gig, bow, crossbow, underwater spearfishing, snagging, snaring,
grabbing, or atlatl. For more information, go online to http://bitly/2efqlvl.
Page 30
Outdoor Guide
DIRECTORY Outdoor
LAND & FARM GROUND
WE KNOW LAND. We farm, hunt and raise our families on it.
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FLOAT
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Floats/Fishing & Cabin Rental Group services are avialble. Trips include a shore lunch. Floats are 7-8 hours with shorter trips available upon request. Cabins are located 10 miles west of Licking near the Big Piney River. Includes Full Kitchen, 2 Bedroom, Full Bath, Washer/Dryer, and Air/Heat.
Open Year-Round, 7 days a week. For more information on guided floats and cabin rentals, contact Jeff Wade at
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Outdoor Guide
May-June 2022
Page 31
E15 fuel prohibited for use in boats By BOAT U.S. There’s been a lot of pain at the pump lately with gas prices. The Biden administration’s April 12 move to give a waiver from the Clean Air Act to allow the sale of gasoline containing 15 percent ethanol (E15) during summer months was intended to lower costs and stretch the nation’s fuel supply. However, Boat Owners Association of the United States (BoatUS) says the unintended consequence of the waiver could inadvertently put a harmful fuel – prohibited for use in recreational vessels – into your boat’s gas tank. BoatUS notes that recreational vessels are never compatible with E15 (15 percent ethanol). It is not permitted by federal law to use E15 fuel in boats (as well as motorcycles, off-road vehicles and power equipment), it voids the engine warranty, and it has been proven to cause damage to marine engines. RUNS HOTTER THAN E10 FUEL E15 also causes engines to run hotter and contains less
energy than E10. Recreational vessel engines may only use gasoline containing no more than 10 percent ethanol (E10). “While we understand the need to save money, we are concerned that fuel retailers may market E15 (15 percent ethanol) fuel, such as ‘regular 88’ or ‘regular unleaded’ as a lower-cost alternative to E10,” said BoatUS Manager of Government Affairs David Kennedy. “And therein lies the problem — the majority of recreational boats are refueled at roadside gas stations and, with almost no safeguards in place, there is a real chance that boat owners, looking for a bargain, will misfuel their boats with E15 fuel.” E15 dispensing pumps have a poor warning regime, sometimes just a single orange label on the pump, which is ineffective at informing consumers. A 2020 Outdoor Power Equipment Institute poll shows that only about one in five consumers knew that “regular 88” — or 88 octane fuel — has more ethanol (15
It’s hard to see the small, orange label on this pump that warns consumers its regular unleaded fuel is prohibited for use in boats and power equipment. – National Marine Manufacturers Association photo
percent) in it than 87 octane (10% ethanol) fuel. Kennedy further explains: “To refuel, boaters head to their local gas station with the boat in tow for a fill-up. Newer tow vehicles may be compatible with E15. Regular 88 is selected and dispensed into the tow vehicle’s gas tank. Then the boater pulls the trailer rig forward to refuel the boat. “Without a clear understanding, the Regular 88 fuel dispensing nozzle is put in the boat’s fuel tank fill, and you soon end up with a tank full of prohibited E15 fuel.” PROHIBITED IN SUMMER Without the waiver, E15 fuels are prohibited for sale during the summer months (June 1-Sept. 15) as a way to address the higher ethanol fuel’s contribution to ground level ozone (smog) on hot days. The administration’s April 12 fact sheet also noted that USDA is considering additional action to facilitate use of E15 year-round and
other actions to significantly increase the sale and use of higher blends of ethanol fuels. It is also notes that EPA is considering modifications to pump labeling. “That is something BoatUS fully supports,” added Kennedy. Celebrating more than 50 years, BoatUS is the nation’s largest organization of recreational boaters. with more than 800,000 members. We are the boat owners’ voice on Capitol Hill and fight for their rights. We are the boat owners Auto Club and help ensure a roadside trailer breakdown doesn’t end a boating or fishing trip before it begins. When boats break down on the water, TowBoatUS brings them safely back to the launch ramp or dock, 24/7. BoatUS offers GEICO boat insurance policies that give boat owners affordable, specialized coverage and superior service they need. We help keep boaters safe and our waters clean with assistance from the nonprofit BoatUS Foundation for Boating Safety and Clean Water. Visit us at BoatUS.com.
MEET THE
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5935 S. LINDBERGH BLVD., ST. LOUIS, MO 63123 MUNGENASTMOTORSPORTS.COM | (314) 649-1200 BE A RESPONSIBLE RIDER Remember, Multipurpose Utility Vehicles (Side-by-Sides) can be hazardous to operate. Always wear your seat belt, helmet, eye protection, and clothing appropriate to the driving situation. Keep doors and side nets closed. Never carry a passenger in the cargo bed, stay off public roads, obey cargo limits and guidelines, and never drink and drive. ALL MUV DRIVERS SHOULD WATCH THE SAFETY VIDEO “MULTIPURPOSE UTILITY VEHICLES: A GUIDE TO SAFE OPERATION.” Be sure to follow the Owner’s Manual directions when carrying cargo or towing a trailer. Avoid excessive speeds, and never drive faster than conditions permit. All Pioneer models are recommended for drivers 16 years of age and older, and tall enough to wear the seat belt properly and reach all the controls. The passenger(s) should also be tall enough for the seat belt to fit properly and brace themselves, if needed, by placing both feet firmly on the floor while firmly grasping a hand hold. Whenever you drive off-road, make sure you follow all the “TREAD LIGHTLY” guidelines, and always stay on established trails in approved areas. Keep your off-road area clean, use common sense, and respect the rights of others. We strongly recommend that you use only Honda approved accessories that have been specifically designed and tested for your vehicle and do not remove any original equipment or modify your Honda in any way that would change its design or operation. Operating your Side-by-Side vehicle with a modified engine, emissions control system, or noise-control system may be illegal. Always obtain written permission before driving on private lands, and obey all the laws and regulations governing your off-road areas. Specifications, programs and availability subject to change without notice. All specifications in this brochure—including colors, etc.— apply only to models sold and registered in the United States. Some models shown with optional accessories. Pioneer,™ Unicam,® Honda Phantom Camo,® QuickFlip,® are trademarks of Honda Motor Co., Ltd. FOX® is a registered trademark of Fox Factory, Inc. ©2017 American Honda Motor Co., Inc. A3909
Outdoor Guide
Page 32
May-June 2022
SUMMER FAMILY FUN!
DISCOVER BENTON COUNTY, MO FOR FUN SUMMER FESTIVALS. WHILE YOU’RE THERE ENJOY THE SMALL-TOWN HOSPITALITY, OUTDOOR RECREATION, UNIQUE DINING AND SHOPPING EXPERIENCES, AND LODGING ACCOMMODATIONS TO SUIT ANY NEED!
JUNE
4 COLE CAMP CLASSIC CAR CRUISE 10-11 WARSAW JUBILEE DAYS 18 WARSAW JUNK MARKET 25 COLE CAMP BOOZE & BLUEGRASS IN THE GARDEN
JULY
AUGUST
2 DRAKE HARBOR 5 TASTE OF BENTON FIREWORKS COUNTY BBQ FESTIVAL 4 LINCOLN PARADE & 5-6 KCBS SANCTIONED FIREWORKS COLE CAMP MASTER SERIES 9 MSTPA TRACTOR PULL COMPETITION 16 COLE CAMP ZUCCHINI RACES Event dates subject to change/cancellation.
2-3 BENTON COUNTY RODEO 8-10 COLE CAMP FAIR 10 LINCOLN FLY-IN 17 WARSAW JUNK MARKET 17 LINCOLN BALLOON GLOW/ FALL MARKET/STRONGMAN COMPETITION/MOZARKITE ROCK AND GEM SHOW 24 COLE CAMP OKTOBERFEST
FOR MORE INFORMATION, GO TO
SEPTEMBER
WWW.VISITBENTONCOMO.COM
AND “LIKE” BENTON COUNTY TOURISM AND RECREATION ON FACEBOOK.
