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Tuesday 22 December 2015
Tuesday 15 December 2015
Barack Obama prayed with Bear Grylls in Alaskan wilderness
Survival expert reveals he shared a special moment with the leader of the free world during filming of television documentary. Bear Grylls, the survival expert, has disclosed he prayed with Barack Obama, the US president, during the filming of his latest documentary in the Alaskan wilderness. Grylls said he spent “special” time with Obama, who […]
Barack Obama prayed with Bear Grylls in Alaskan wilderness
Survival expert reveals he shared a special moment with the leader of the free world during filming of television documentary.
Bear Grylls, the survival expert, has disclosed he prayed with Barack Obama, the US president, during the filming of his latest documentary in the Alaskan wilderness.
Grylls said he spent “special” time with Obama, who admitted he felt like he had been “living in a bubble” during his time in the White House.
Saturday 12 December 2015
Barack and Michelle Obama Reveal Favorite Movies and TV Shows of 2015
Obama said one of his favorite moments of the year was filming his episode of Running Wild with Bear Grylls. “The landscape was breathtaking, and so were the very real effects of climate change, which become hard to ignore when the ice is melting into your hands,” he said in his interview of his trek […]
Thursday 10 December 2015
Barack and Michelle Obama Reveal Favorite Movies and TV Shows of 2015
Obama said one of his favorite moments of the year was filming his episode of Running Wild with Bear Grylls.
“The landscape was breathtaking, and so were the very real effects of climate change, which become hard to ignore when the ice is melting into your hands,” he said in his interview of his trek through the Alaskan wilderness. “I thought it was important to talk about protecting the only planet we have, but I never thought I’d be Running Wild with Bear Grylls.”
The episode Obama is referring to will air Dec. 17 on NBC.
Saturday 5 December 2015
Gun Stories of the Week: Americans Shatter Single-Day Gun Sales Record on Black Friday
TOP STORY
Americans forego gun control turkey talk, shatter single-day gun sales record
According to the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System, more Americans had their backgrounds checked while purchasing guns on Black Friday than any day on record.
The NIC Background Check System processed 185,345 requests on Nov. 27 — a 5 percent increase over the 175,754 received on Black Friday 2014, according to Stephen Fischer, the FBI's chief of multimedia productions.
The previous high for receipts were the 177,170 received on Dec. 21, 2012, he said.
But since an estimated 40 percent of all gun sales are through unlicensed sellers, Jon Vernick, co-director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Policy and Research, told the Associated Press that the “official” number of transactions doesn’t include those made at large gun shows held on Black Friday in Texas, Tennessee, Kentucky, North Carolina and Missouri.
This was probably not the response President Obama was hop[ing for when he lectured the nation about having gun control conversations over the Thanksgiving table.
“Citizens responded by buying enough firearms in one day to field an entire new military the size of the Marine Corps, with guns left over to equip 2-4 Army divisions,” Bob Owens writes at Bearingarms.com on Dec. 2. “Mr. President you have you answer. It was a rousing, 'Screw you.’”
Previous spikes in background checks occurred after prominent mass shootings, like in December 2012 in the wake of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. With the Colorado Planned Parenthood shooting and terrorist attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, Calif., fresh on minds, many expect this Christmas season to be a lucrative one for firearms retailers and manufacturers.
For more, go to:
Black Friday breaks record with 185K gun background checks
Black Friday Gun Sales Soared, F.B.I. Data Shows
Gun Industry Executives Say Mass Shootings Are Good for Business
NEW YORK STATE (NOT CITY) OF MINDCatskills sheriff asks those licensed to carry to ‘PLEASE DO SO’
A county sheriff in New York’s Catskills is asking residents who are licensed to carry a firearm to “PLEASE DO SO” to protect themselves and others from potential terrorist attacks.
“In light of recent events that have occurred in the United States and around the world, I want to encourage citizens of Ulster County who are licensed to carry a firearm to PLEASE DO SO,” Ulster County Sheriff Paul J. Van Blarcum wrote in a Facebook post published on Dec. 3.
Within seven hours, the post had 14,687 likes, 1,700 comments, 19,829 shares and was drawing attention from media around the globe.
“I urge you to responsibly take advantage of your legal right to carry a firearm,” Van Blarcum wrote in his post. “To ensure the safety of yourself and others, make sure you are comfortable and proficient with your weapon, and knowledgeable of the laws in New York State with regards to carrying a weapon and when it is legal to use it.
I also,” he continued, “want to remind all Police/Peace Officers both active duty and retired to please carry a weapon whenever you leave your house. We are the thin blue line that is entrusted in keeping this country safe, and we must be prepared to act at any given moment.”
Ulster County is about two hours north of New York City. Van Blarcum, a Democrat who’s been sheriff for almost nine years, told the Daily Freeman that his call to arms is to ensure “that if something happens, there is an armed citizen around.”
Van Blarcum’s post came less than 24 hours after 14 people died in a mass shooting in San Bernardino, Calif., less than two weeks after a gunman killed three people at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado Springs, Colo., and about three weeks after shootings by terrorists in Paris left 130 people dead.
“I think it’s important to remind everybody with the way things are, you’ve got people coming in with long rifles just slaughtering people,” Van Blarcum said, noting in instances like the recent mass shootings, if people aren’t armed, they are “useless.”
For more, go to:
N.Y. sheriff urges licensed gun owners to carry firearms after San Bernardino shooting
Ulster County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page
Ulster County Sheriff: All Licensed Handgun Owners Should Carry Them
Ulster County Sheriff’s Office
Milwaukee County Sheriff: 'You Have A Duty To Protect Yourself'
EDITORIAL: Detroit police chief wants citizens to arm themselves
STATE ROUNDUP
Christie veto of New Jersey gun control bill survives override attempt
New Jersey Democrats narrowly failed on Dec. 3 to override Gov. Chris Christie's veto of a gun safety bill that called for police to be consulted when judges are considering whether to expunge mental health records of prospective gun buyers.
Federal law prohibits the purchase of firearms by anyone who has been involuntarily committed to a mental health facility, but that record can be erased by a judge if the person is deemed unlikely to pose a public danger.
According to Joseph Ax of Reuters, Christie vetoed the bill in August after it passed overwhelmingly in both houses, including by a vote of 74-0 in the Assembly. The state Senate had already voted for an override in October, when a handful of Republicans joined Democrats to reach the 27 votes needed in the 40-member chamber.
But when the veto went to the Assembly on Dec. 3, Democrats in the 80-member chamber were three votes short of securing the 54 needed to override Christie's veto, Ax writes.
The bill was pulled before the vote was formally recorded, which allows Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto to introduce the legislation again at a later date. "I will put this bill back up again and again," he said in a statement criticizing Republicans.
Christie, a long-shot GOP Presidential candidate, has boasted on the campaign trail that none of his hundreds of vetoes have been overturned by the legislature since he took office in 2010. Ax said a spokesman for the governor's office declined to comment, and instead referred to the governor's statements on the issue in November, when he said Democrats should "stop playing politics" and fix the problem.
For more, go to:
N.J. legislature fails to override Christie gun control veto
Florida bill prohibiting backyard gun ranges overdue
Tennessee — Metro Council to take up fairgrounds gun show issue
California — Poll: Do you support tighter gun laws or more concealed carry permits?
Ohio — Man carrying gun around Akron gets big response, prompts talk of racial tension, gun laws
Nebraska — Sen. Garrett proposes to eliminate gun-free zones, prompts UNL response
Missouri — Newman Pre-Files New Gun Legislation
Texas — Coalition to reduce gun violence launched at state capitol
New NC gun law loosens background check requirement
Michigan law takes effect eliminating gun license screening by local boards
DISARMED FORCES
Bill gives commanders ability to restore 2nd Amendment on their bases
President Obama on Nov. 25 signed the NRA-backed National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) which contains a provision that give local commanders the ability to allow base personnel to be armed.
The provision came in response to the national outcry following the July 16 attack on defenseless Marines and sailors in Chattanooga, Tenn., that killed five.
“The brave men and women in our Armed Forces should not be left defenseless against terrorists on American soil,” wrote The National Rifle Association Institute for Legislative Action’s Chris Cox. “Local commanders now have the authority to allow service men and women to be armed while on base. Members of the military should have the same ability to defend themselves as every other law-abiding citizen.”
The annual defense authorization bill calls for Defense Secretary Ashton Carter to establish a process by Dec. 31 in which commanders can authorize a service member at a military installation, reserve center, recruiting location or defense facility in the U.S. to carry a gun on the premises if he or she "determines that carrying such a firearm is necessary as a personal- or force-protection measures."
The existing policy, which dates to 1992, states that arming service members beyond military police and those who work in law enforcement "shall be limited to missions or threats."
Obama was under pressure to rescind the 1992 policy following the Chattanooga shooting and a spate of others that targeted service members on their own bases, including the 2009 shooting at Fort Hood, Texas, in which 13 people were killed; the 2013 shooting in the Washington Navy Yard that left 12 dead; the 2014 shooting at Fort Hood, in which four people were killed; and a June 2015 incident at Little Rock Air Force Base, Ark., where an armed man was shot and killed after crashing his SUV while trying to break into the installation.
Another provision in the expands military-to-civilian gun sales, meaning Army “excess” M1911A1 pistols can now be sold to civilians via the Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP).
According to the NRA, that program “was long known as being a way for civilians to get the classic M1 Garand military rifle, and will now be a way to get the equally classic and historical .45 auto.”
The third NRA-backed provision in the NDAA prohibits the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from banning lead ammo under the auspices of the Toxic Substances Control Act.
“This provision [was] necessary because extreme anti-hunting groups have filed multiple petitions with the EPA to ban the use of lead ammunition,” writes AWR Hawkins on Breitbart.com. “Protecting traditional lead ammo is way to keep ammunition prices at ‘reasonable/ levels for the foreseeable future.”
For more, go to:
NRA Thanks Obama For Signing Pro-Gun Legislation
Obama Signs NRA-Backed Bill Expanding Military-to-Civilian Gun Sales
President Obama Signs NRA-Backed Measures into Law
Bill Would Let Commanders Authorize Troops to Carry Guns on US Bases
Obama signs defense bill, finalizing military retirement overhaul
Welcoming in the Locavores: Why You Might Be Sharing Your Venison with the Wrong People
Hunters have been sharing their venison since venison was discovered. We share it among ourselves (the hunting party) and hand it out to friends and relatives (in the spirit of community). We share venison for all kinds of reasons not the least of which is to create good will toward hunters. And it works; research clearly shows that the majority of Americans support hunting (77 percent) especially when it is done for food, not sport or trophy taking.
Some of us share our kill hoping that it will help bring new hunters into the fold. We serve up a fine dish of venison and go on about how venison has fewer calories than beef and far less cholesterol, and how it’s a great source of protein and is every bit as tasty as beef. We tell anyone within earshot how hunting funds wildlife conservation and how good hunting is for both the hunter and the animals we hunt. We offer to take them out to the range next summer and get them off to a good start. That’s the rap. We run it (or at least we should), because our numbers are dropping precipitously. We need numbers, because no hunters means no wildlife and no more hunting. It’s about that simple.
The trouble is, it doesn’t work—at least it hasn’t for me. I have been sharing my venison for damn close to half a century and I can honestly say the number of hunters I have recruited by passing around deer meat is … zero. It’s not that I can’t cook the stuff, or haven’t shared some of the best cuts, but all I have accomplished is turning a bunch of people into venison lovers.
For years I’ve been passing out venison to folks who had no interest in ever taking up hunting. Their lifestyles were already fairly well set and hunting had no place in them. They golfed and played tennis and ran 5K’s and went to football games and went to work every day and came home. They didn’t care much about where their food came from or how it was produced. Try as I would, I just couldn’t turn these venison eaters into venison hunters.
I either had to develop a new recruitment pitch or find a new audience to pitch it to.
A few years ago I started hearing about a new movement that emphasized healthy living by eating locally grown foods — fruits, meats, and vegetables that were not degraded by long distance shipping, premature harvest, and genetically modified for shelf life and appearance over taste and nutrition. Local, natural “grass-fed” beef was a favorite as was organically grown pork and free-range chickens and natural brown eggs. Growth hormones, chemically enhanced feeds, genetic engineering, food factories, long distance shipping, and UPC codes were out.
These folks were referred to as “locavores” as they tried mostly to eat and buy foods from local sources. They brought the concept to life roughly ten years ago and it has been growing in leaps and bounds ever since. Farmer’s markets featuring locally produced foods in season are booming, supermarkets have special sections for locally grown foods and chemical-free natural meats are flying off the shelf at premium prices. My pitch radar was on high alert. Maybe these were the kind of folks who would get the connection between venison and healthy living/eating. It was worth a try.
In the middle of wrapping my mind around the locavore concept, I had a conversation with young hunter who lives in New York City about the difficulty in recruiting new hunters. She mentioned how she recruited a new hunter simply by cooking a few meals of venison for her. According to my friend, the key to recruiting the new hunter was in helping her understand where venison fits into her life philosophy. The recruit was eager to learn about the health benefits of venison and very much into the concept of forging a link between herself and the foods she ate. The concept of hunting and harvesting her own food was very appealing to this young lady who was a self-identified locavore. The concept of knowing where her meat came from and how it was transformed from a living breathing creature to table fare was highly attractive this young person.
The young woman asked to accompany my friend on a hunting trip and see first-hand how the circle of life is completed. None of the folks I had supplied venison to gave a damn how their food got to their table or what it ate or how it was killed. My eyes were opened, the dots connected, and I was sold. I had been talking to the wrong people for the past 50 years. I needed to find me some locavores who really cared about the food they ate. That would be the venison/hunting connection.
A pair of after dinner talks at last year’s National Deer Alliance Deer Summit in Louisville sealed the deal. World-famous lecturer and conservationist, Shane Mahoney mesmerized the audience with his perspective, which centered on the importance of fish and wild game as important food sources to the future of an ever-growing North America. Noted author and TV celebrity, Steven Rinella elaborated on the importance of hunting wild animals and killing what you eat was critical to the psychological make up of man, the meat eating hunter. They were preaching from the same hymnal, just different verses.
So, I’ll be doing my part this year by sharing my extra venison with not only the hungry but the locavores as well. My neighbor can eat cake—it may improve his golf game.
The Best Bass Bite I've Ever Experienced
For mine, I’m going with quality.
The quality of fish was certainly present, but so was the ambiance, the company, the learning, and a special honor I wasn’t expecting.
October 6, I joined Texas pro Ray Hanselman for an afternoon of grass mat fishing on Tennessee’s Kentucky Lake. The memories are many, but I’ll hit the high points:
—When last I saw Hanselman, I was interviewing him five months earlier for his Rayovac FLW Series win on Lake Texoma. That victory completed his historic sweep of the Texas Division’s three events—a fact that would come into play later in our trip.
—An unseasonably warm, calm day allowed us comfortable running and efficient fishing conditions, so we had no trouble thoroughly working a sneaky little mat tucked along the lake’s western shore.
—Thick, seasonal algae known as “cheese” coated the mat, choked out weed growth, and left spacious caverns for bass below. Cheese mats hold thousands of aquatic insects and the constant percussion of bluegill smacking bugs below bespoke serious bass attraction.
—“On” was a gross understatement of the general largemouth demeanor that afternoon. We pulled a bunch of nice ones out of the grass, but equally entertaining were the big bass that tracked our frogs and bumped the mats with their heads, often knocking the baits a few inches off the cheese. Several eventually found spots thin enough to push through and gobble the frogs.
Complementing the show, aggressive fish boiled and busted big gizzard shad in the open holes scattered throughout the grass. Twice the green back beasts chased terrified shad out of the water and onto the matted grass.
Three, two, one—kabloom! The ensuing explosion of bass snatching vulnerable prey from below was worth the price of admission.
I asked a lot of questions, but even in my silence, insightful tips rolled out of Hanselman with casual ease. For example, track marks and blow-up holes indicated previous anglers had found takers.
“That’s a good sign,” Hanselman said of these obvious marks. “I’ll target those recent blow-up holes because there’s something down there that’s holding fish. It might be rocks, a stump, or logs.”
Another tip: During sunny conditions, work the corners of holes and breaks because dragging a frog through the open middles while bass are tucked into the shadows only spooks the near side with braided line crossing overhead.
The aforementioned honor came toward the end of our trip. I’d just boated a chunky bass and as I released the fish, Hanselman nonchalantly dropped this chest thumper on me:
“That rod you’re using, that’s the one I used to catch 90 percent of my Texoma fish.”
I’ve caught larger fish; I’ve caught more fish. I’ve caught them in more exotic locations. But the totality of tangible, intangible, and downright meaningful elements I experienced in just a few hours on Kentucky Lake combined to make this a soul-filling experience.
My best fishing trip. Thanks Ray.
Note: Three weeks after this trip, Hanselman would go on to win the Rayovac FLW Series Championship on the Ohio River. I’d like to think that our trip helped prepare him for this accomplishment, but…
Hunting Solo? Don’t Break Your Back While Hauling and Butchering, Get a Rack Jack
But Viking Solutions, an Alabama-based company, makes some innovative products that are actually useful for those of us who handle our own game care. One of the latest products from Viking Solutions is the Rack Jack Magnum. It’s the big brother of the original Rack Jack, but the Magnum can handle a heavier load. The Rack Jack is a handy device that plugs into the receiver of a pickup truck or UTV. It comes in three pieces for easy breakdown and transportation, and it’s equally hassle-free to set up and use within minutes. At the top you’ll find a hand winch with a stout cable and a hook, which can be attached to a gambrel (warning: you need to buy the gambrel separately).
The purpose of the Rack Jack is two-fold. It:
1. Allows a single person to hoist a big-game animal into the cargo bed of their truck or utility vehicle. A swivel makes it really easy to swing an animal into the bed once it’s lifted.
2. Acts as a mobile meat pole.
The original Rack Jack retails for $180; the Magnum is $229. You can get an optional Ground Stand Attachment for the original Rack Jack to use it free standing—no need to hook it into a receiver—for an additional $75. Unfortunately, the stand isn’t currently available for the Magnum, but keep an eye on vikingsl.com.
These 4 Trail Blazers Earned the 2016 Outdoor Life Open Country Awards
Luckily, there are far-sighted people among us who are looking out not only for our beloved public parcels, but who also speak up for the larger idea of the public’s right to access public land. These are legislators, public-policy watchers, business owners, and recreationists who recognize that any erosion of that public-access doctrine anywhere is a threat to the idea of accessible public land everywhere.
This year’s awards will be presented at the SHOT Show in January in Las Vegas. They go to a non-profit that has doggedly defended public access in the courts, to a company that built its business on public-land hunting, to an advocate of accessible shooting ranges, and to the oldest state-agency access program in the nation.
1. NON-PROFIT
Public Land/Water Access Association
PLWA got its start in the 1970s, litigating to defend angler access to Montana’s blue-ribbon trout streams. Its landmark cases led to the state’s Stream Access Law in 1985. But the PLWA didn’t stop at streams. In 1988, the group successfully sued for public access to state school-trust lands, and members continue to fight road closures. In July, PLWA won a 10-year battle to open a gated road blocking access to the West Deer Creek area of the Custer-Gallatin National Forest, restoring the public’s access to 16,000 acres of public lands.
2. CORPORATE
First Lite
An outdoor clothing company based in Ketchum, Idaho, First Lite has become one of the loudest corporate voices against efforts to sell or transfer public lands. Company founders Kenton Carruth and Scott Robinson and marketing manager Ryan Callahan know that public lands are essential for quality hunting—and their business. “If you have wild places that are relatively untouched, then the game takes care of itself and hunters have great access,” says Carruth. “Once the place is gone, so is the game and the hunting. That’s what would happen if we gave away federal lands.”
3. STATE/GOVERNMENT AGENCY
Pennsylvania Game Commission
The PGC’s Hunter Access Program was started in 1936 and is the oldest in the country. It focuses on providing sportsmen with access, mainly near populated areas, because places to hunt with ample game close to home are key to recruiting and retaining hunters. The agency’s interactive online map provides information for hunters to find places to go. The 2.6 million acres enrolled in the habitat-focused Hunter Access Program make up more than a third of the accessible land open to hunting in Pennsylvania, says Mike Pruss, PGC’s private lands chief.
4. INDIVIDUAL
Susan Recce, National Rifle Association
Recce began her career with the NRA 40 years ago, but her tenure was interrupted by stints at the Department of the Interior. She now leads the NRA’s efforts on hunting, conservation, and wildlife resource issues, including affirming hunting access to national wildlife refuges and increasing funding for shooting ranges. As the long-term chair of the Public Lands Hunting, Fishing, and Shooting Sports Roundtable, Recce works to ensure access for hunting and shooting on public lands and advocates for sportsmen.
Tending trails in California and Pennsylvania
Open Country was never intended to remain only on the pages of this magazine. Because the program is all about creating, retaining, and enhancing public access to public land, we helped sponsor a pair of access festivals on both sides of the nation last summer.
The first, held in conjunction with the Indian Creek Valley ATV Club in southwestern Pennsylvania, focused on building new ATV trails on a network of private lands leased for off-road riding.
The second festival was held on National Public Lands Day on California’s San Bernardino National Forest and involved nearly 60 volunteers who helped restore the Cactus Flat off-highway vehicle area, one of Southern California’s most popular ATV riding areas. The San Bernardino National Forest is the second-most-visited public property in the nation.
Volunteers helped plant native shrubs and trees, collected seeds from native plants to be used for restoration work on the site and elsewhere, and restored trails that had been damaged by erosion.The work was co-sponsored by Southern California Mountains Foundation, REI, the U.S. Forest Service, and by Open Country sponsor Yamaha Motor Corp. USA.
—Andrew McKean
Where Do You Stand on Catch and Release vs. Filling Limits?
On occasion, I’ll bring a striped bass home for the table or give one away to a friend or family. I actually love the taste of striped bass. But others exercise the right to keep their legal limit every time they go out. Problem is, with stripers, sometimes I think the limits are a bit too liberal, especially when I see stacks of stripers stacked like cordwood on the deck of a boat.
Fire away with comments. I realize that this can be a very contentious topic, but would love to hear your opinions. Meanwhile, I’ve already released a striper back into the surf this morning, but am going out tomorrow to put some blackfish in the cooler for dinner.
Thursday 3 December 2015
3 Types of Survival Knives Everyone Should Own
1. A Bushcraft Woodcarver
Swedish woodcarving blades have largely been popularized by the living legend of the north woods, Mors Kochanski, and his acolytes. In recent years, they have become one of the most popular wilderness blades on the market. They are rugged, easy to sharpen and dirt cheap. The entry level on these knives is around $12-15. You could buy ten of these for the price of one name-brand survival knife. “Why a wood carver?” you may ask. Simple. Most of the tasks in survival revolve around wood working. From cutting the sticks to make traps and other gear, to carving a friction fire set, you’ll need a dependable wood cutter that is easy to field sharpen, and this is the best one for the price.
2. A Self-Defense Blade
As the name indicates, these blades are made with hand-to-hand fighting in mind, and utility as a secondary use. A single-edged, high carbon steel straight blade with a clip point allows the wielder to both thrust and slash. On the large side, the KA-BARs made famous by the United States Marine Corps are popular for their design and proven, field-tested effectiveness. Smaller knives, such as folders, can also be designed for the business of self-defense. These blades are often used as backup for firearms. Whether big or small, a self-defense blade should be rugged and razor sharp. They should also have a penetrating blade tip. The tanto style point is very popular these days, though a classic drop point will get the job done too.
3. A Heavy Utility Blade
The Bowie-style knife, popularized by the Western hero Colonel James “Jim” Bowie, is the quintessential heavy utility blade. It has been used for hunting, fighting, chopping, and all things survival. Modern incarnations abound; but make sure you buy one that has a full tang (the blade metal extends all the way through the handle). Pick one that has some weight to it for chopping, but isn’t so heavy that you don’t want to carry it. Many different types of steel are (and have been) used for Bowies, so do your research. You’ll want steel that will keep an edge without being brittle.
What are your go-to blades and favorites? What knives would you buy if money was no object? Please share your thoughts—and your wish-list—by leaving a comment.
10 Great Rifles, Shotguns, and Handguns for Hunting Rabbits
RIFLES
If there’s a must-have gun for every hunter, it’s a good small-game rifle. Of course, the first thing that comes to mind is a good .22 LR. The “ol’ two-two” has no doubt been more hunters’ first firearm than anything else, and options range from dusty antiques to slick tactical guns, with just about any action or configuration you could ever want.
Although the .22 LR adequately covers the gamut of small game, it’s also worth talking about the .17 HMR and .17 Hornet. Both are awesome cartridges that can do everything the .22 can, but faster, farther, and more accurately.
$360 / henryrifles.com
These are quality rifles, and I get nostalgic just picking one up. It takes me back to my childhood days of stalking irrigation ditches and sagebrush for cottontails. It’s a rifle that you can count on passing down to your grandchildren.
$409 / ruger.com
It’s hard to argue against the 10/22. It’s earned a reputation as one of the most reliable semi-autos on the market. Loaded with CCI Stingers, it’s formidable on even larger critters—I have killed a lot of coyotes with them.
$284 / savagearms.com
This bolt-action .22 with a tactical twist lives up to Savage’s reputation for accuracy, and it comes threaded for a suppressor. Mine wears a Liberty Regulator suppressor and, shooting subsonic Eley match ammo, is a quiet tack-driver.
$465 / savagearms.com
Savage’s new hot rod has filled a huge gap for the .17 HMR. This great cartridge has needed a reliable semi-auto for years, and here it is. This is a quick-shooting, reliable, and ergonomic package. Furry critters, beware.
$775 / cz-usa.com
Although a little hot for a standard small-game rifle, the .17 Hornet is a deadly accurate round. Whether you’re knocking the heads off cottontails from 150 yards or hunting the larger end of the spectrum, like lynxes, bobcats, foxes, and coyotes, the CZ–.17 Hornet combo has you covered. Hornady’s 20-grain V-Max factory loads shoot sub-MOA, and unlike rimfire rounds, the .17 Hornet can be reloaded.
SHOTGUNS
Whether you’re wingshooting grouse, ptarmigan, pheasants, or other upland birds, or chasing running rabbits, no small-game arsenal is complete without a good shotgun.
$330 / mossberg.com
Probably the first shotgun I ever fired was my dad’s Mossberg .410. A full choke on doves will truly test your wingshooting skills, and using 3-inch shells with No. 6 shot will knock down grouse or ptarmigan.
$417 / remington.com
It’s hard to discuss shotguns without bringing up the 870. Along with the Mossberg, it is one of the most time-proven and widely used shotguns out there, and it is responsible for more filled bird bags than any other shotgun.
$449 / stoegerindustries.com
There’s something about the feel of a side-by-side while you’re kicking up birds in the brush, but I probably will never shell out the money for a high-end one. I tend to beat the tar out of shotguns, and it won’t break your heart to beat this one up. It is affordable and, in my experience, dependable. No frills, chokes, or anything fancy, but I still get a smile on my face when I fold up a flushing ruffed grouse and crack the action.
HANDGUNS
There may be a lot of rifles and shotguns to take care of your small-game needs, but sometimes a handgun is in order.
$659 / ruger.com
This is my main go-to handgun, whether I’m popping ptarmigan, dispatching animals on the trap line, or taking down grouse or rabbits while I’m hunting bigger critters. It’s an accurate, versatile, and very dependable handgun that will last a lifetime.
$429 / browning.com
In a sea of lead-spraying semi-autos, the Buck Mark has been building a reputation as an accurate, dependable pistol. Most semis can’t keep groups inside a coffee can at 20 yards, but the Buck Mark does.
It’s a given that with small game, you’ll have a small target. You won’t have much room for error if you’re looking to salvage meat, so head shots are your best bet. Practice shooting, but forget the bench. Work on offhand and kneeling shots, and using improvised rests such as trees or fence posts.
Fundamentals are key, and the more you practice repeating a good shot sequence from each position, the better your shooting will become. Shoot groups from each position and save your targets so you can track your progress over time.
Frosted Flocks: Hunting and Calling Wintertime Turkeys
The otherwise peaceful winter morning was disrupted by two dozen strutters and subordinate toms aggressively gobbling, challenge-purring, and posturing as they made their way to my tail fan. I tried to sort out the best beards in this approaching wave, but it didn’t matter. These were all adult gobblers, and at least 50 more longbeards were coming behind the first gang. The legal limit was four. If they separated, I might have the chance to fill all my tags in this single crazy calling session.
This is my favorite of all turkey hunts—the winter season in Kansas. A hunter will see more turkeys, hear more turkeys, and potentially call in more gobblers now than during any other season of the year. This is true not only in Kansas, but also in its neighboring states, including Nebraska and South Dakota.
Virginia and other states east of the Mississippi reopen their turkey season in January, providing hunters with winter opportunities as well, but wintering flocks of Easterns are generally not as large as those of Rios found across the open plains.
Adding to the appeal of a Sunflower State hunt are limits that are double those of the spring season. Plus, the season extends to the end of January, which means you can combine turkey hunting with some fantastic waterfowling.
THE UNDISCOVERED APPEAL OF WINTER HUNTING
Hunters who pursue turkeys in late December or in January often get access to private lands that are closed to deer hunters during the gun season. There is virtually nobody turkey hunting in January. That may be because of the sometimes brutal cold and snowy weather, or it may simply be because hunters have yet to discover this opportunity.
The sight of hundreds of wild turkeys in their winter flocks is something to behold, and the turkey vocalizations can be intense and almost deafening when you’re close to the roost. The birds generally segregate according to sex, and they will be bunched together when they’re at a common food source. I’ve seen gobbler groups that exceeded a hundred.
These birds are often a mix of Rios, Easterns, and Merriams, or hybrids of all three. In the open country of Kansas, Nebraska, and South Dakota, the birds are very visible, providing the hunter with the opportunity to develop his strategy.
My approach is simple: Get as close to that gobbler group as possible and then set up undetected, generally in the edge of timber, along a brushy fence line, or in other cover. Then I place my tail fan or a Montana Decoy strutter between my calling position and the turkeys. Once I return to cover, I begin gobbling on a tube, and I throw in challenge-purring and gobbler clucking on a double slate and mouth yelper. I try to make as much commotion as possible, which includes using a dried turkey wing or my cap to flog the ground or my pant leg. This simulates the almost constant fighting and reestablishment of the pecking order that goes on within a gobbler group from the time they fly down from the roost in the morning until they fly up in the afternoon.
I watched that flock of Kansas gobblers approach my setup, and then I watched the toms flogging and spurring my tail fan, I had to wait carefully until a single longbeard peeled off to the side of the melee. I needed to keep my 20-gauge load of tungsten-alloy 7s from taking out multiple birds. Even with four tags in my pocket, I didn’t want to end the hunt on the first morning.
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