The family farm rests atop a range of hills above the Cass River. Whenever I had any free time as a farm kid during the summer, my favorite fishing holes were only a 10-minute bicycle ride away. My fishing gear was on the simplistic side, featuring a Zebco 202 spin casting rod and reel and only a couple red and white Eppinger dardevle lures, one small and the other medium sized. Nothing more was needed to catch rock bass, smallmouth bass and northern pike. A beauty of dardevle lures is they offer the perfect weight … Read More
IT IS WELL WITH MY POLE -The Spiritual Side of Fishing-
Stream time is sacred, an opportunity to commune with nature. This has always been God’s plan for us. Check out the Bible, Genesis 1:20 And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.” 21 So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing with which the water teems and that moves about in it, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. Mankind has enjoyed the … Read More
Walking on top of the snow is a lot easier than wading through it
Being a farm kid six decades ago, I decided to take up fur-trapping during the winter to supplement my meager allowance I received for doing daily chores. My trapping primarily took place in our nearby orchard (for fox and raccoons) as well as along the drainage ditch (for fox, raccoons, muskrats and mink) which runs across the center of the farm. Checking my traps daily was something I enjoyed and looked forward to because I was always excited to discover what might be in them, and you learn a whole lot about the wild critters … Read More
The Science of Buck Fever
It’s opening day of Deer Season 2025, at least for gun hunters. So much preparation and anticipation goes into this annual activity. For some, it involves year round scouting. As the days of the hunt draw near, serious planners consider not only deer sign, but wind direction. As such, they would do well to have back up sites ready to go based on this factor alone. For those hunters fortunate enough to have a shooting opportunity, their next challenge is surviving a sudden surge of adrenaline that at times does not serve them well at … Read More
The magical atmosphere of fishing during the “Dog Days” of summer
When July eases in, I automatically start longing to go wade-fishing on the nearby Upper Reaches of the Cass River, something I have been doing since childhood. Early July and all the way through the month of August represent what are known as the “Dog Days” of summer. I used to think this timeframe, typically featuring warm and sultry weather, was so named because the usual heat was hard on dogs. However, this is referring to a very bright star, named Sirius, which becomes visible during that timeframe as it arcs across the southern horizon … Read More
Using Dogs to Locate Wounded Bear or Deer
By: Jacob VanHouten. “I can’t believe I lost that buck, with a good shot and strong blood trail… I just don’t get it” was the depressing thought swirling around my mind as I recalled events to my family and friends in deer camp. If you are a deer hunter, the loss of a deer has or may happen to you or someone you know during your hunting life. If so, you may want to now consider an underutilized method to increase your odds of recovery by the use of a tracking dog. As of 2019, … Read More
Rare (Michigan) Bear Behavior
By: Richard P. Smith. After more than 50 years of bear hunting in the UP, I experienced something I’ve never seen before during the 2021 bear season. Before discussing that rare event, some background information is important. I drew a bear tag for the third hunt in the Baraga bear management unit, as did some friends from the Traverse City area who I usually hunt with out of Lac La Belle Lodge in Keweenaw County. The group included father and son Amos and Doug Esman along with father and sons Kent, Shamus and Seth … Read More
Mine Is A Marlin 336 In A .35 Remington!
By: Jim Kushner. It is that time of year when there is not a whole lot going on in the world of hunting & fishing. Depending on where you live in the State of Michigan there may be good ice or not. There are some predator hunters or trappers still out there but mainly it’s that time when you are either preparing for the spring turkey hunt or in my case, just thinking about hunting. Lately, I am thinking and doing a lot of reading about rifles & cartridges. My focus on long guns has … Read More