POACHING IMPACTS EVERYONE

Last week officials from the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and the U.S. Attorney's office held a press conference in Wichita.  The topic was the culmination of an undercover investigation that revealed Kansas deer poaching violations that ran the gamut.  More than 100 trophy-class deer mounts and antlers confiscated in the case were on display. 

Brothers James and Marlin Butler, both from Texas, were operating Camp Lone Star in Comanche County and catered to non-resident deer hunters.  Deer were shot with the wrong permits, in the wrong units and seasons and with the aid of night-vision equipment.  Many violations were documented and since most of the illegal deer crossed state lines there were numerous Lacey Act violations as well.  The brothers were sentenced to 41 and 27 months in jail, respectively, and ordered to pay $50,000 and $20,000, respectively, in fines and restitution.  Justice was served.

Poaching hurts all Kansas deer hunters and landowners that play by the rules.  More than 100 trophy-class whitetails and mule deer aren't available now as a result of the poaching activity.  These individuals and their unscrupulous clients robbed law abiding citizens of possibly the opportunity of a lifetime. 

All the bucks were likely killed so the "hunters" could brag to their friends and show-off their trophies.  How much pride could you have knowing you didn't take that particular buck under fair-chase conditions?  Anyone could shoot a buck out of a truck window with a spotlight.  That doesn't take any skill and frankly it's cowardly.  It's definitely not the cowboy way.  Matching wits with a big buck legally with archery gear or a firearm on his own turf and winning would be something to brag about and a real accomplishment.  

Kudos to state and federal officials who brought these two men and possibly others in the case to justice.  Good job, gentlemen.  The results definitely send a message about right from wrong and the need for laws intended to protect and conserve natural resources for all to enjoy.   

ONE FISH WONDERFUL

I often say fishing is fun but catching is even better.  This is especially true for youngsters with short attention spans.  Fortunately, my kids have had their fair share of good trips over the years with plenty of success.  While these big-number fish trips provide plenty of experience they may not be the most memorable.  Details are often diluted in the fast and furious action.

Don't get me wrong...we've had plenty of excursions where we never landed a fish or caught very few.  I tend to forget those.  But if something unique or unusual happens my boys tend to remember them vividly.  Such was the case last weekend on our camping trip and a single fish may very well be remembered forever.

We were bank fishing where just two weeks prior we were still catching spawning crappie.  Unfortunately, that party had ended and we basically just casted to see if we couldn't tempt something, anything really.  We moved to the end of a rock jetty near the boat ramp as both boys stood on a lone submerged rock and kept flinging jigs.  I was about to call it a night when all of a sudden I heard a giant splash and Cody hollered.  He crouched down and was holding on to his spinning rod for dear life with both hands.  The drag was singing and line was flying off his reel and he tried to panic.  I warned him not to touch the reel and just hold on.

"Whaaat issss itttt, Dad?" he said frantically trying not to get pulled off his rock.

Cody was just about to lift his jig out of the water with only 5 feet of line out when the fish hit.  His drag was set well and was doing its job as I told him it was likely a big ol' wiper or a tail-snagged carp.  He had an audience of people in boats waiting to load out as he fought the fish.  I hoped he'd at least get to see it and prayed he'd land it.  

It took several minutes but soon the big fish tired.  Both boys were going crazy as was a pontoon boat with several couples on it rooting for him.  I reached down into the water and lipped the fish and there were hoots and hollers when I lifted it out.  It was indeed a nice wiper and on light tackle it was an epic battle.

We shot some photos and released the fish as both boys were grinning ear-to-ear.  We had to send text photos to cousins, my friends and mom and sis back at camp.  Accolades poured in.  For just a brief moment, one fish made Cody a bit of a celebrity and he was proud.  I'm betting it will be decades before the details of that single fish fade from his memory.

WILD WEATHER

I really have no need to chase storms.  They find me.  Particularly, when I'm camping.  One of our state park supervisors used to joke he'd pay me to stay away on certain weekends so the weather would stay nice and the parks would generate more revenue.  While I don't think I'm necessarily bad luck, summer thunderstorms are a way of life for campers.  And this past weekend reminded me to stay vigilant.

My family and I were at Marion Reservoir and just getting ready to enjoy a fire after a late dinner Friday night.  But looking west we could see dark clouds and I knew we were in for a bumpy ride.  Checking the radar my suspicions were confirmed.  High winds and damaging hail were forecasted and our campground was right in the path of the storm.  I didn't take any chances and loaded up my wife and kids and headed to a make-shift storm shelter below the dam to ride it out.  One of my boys said, "Dad, should you put the grill away?"  I replied, "Buddy, if that big ol' heavy thing blows off that picnic table we've got problems!"

The shelter was packed and more than 150 people and pets sought refuge.  We were in there for 2 hours and the storm really didn't seem too bad under tons of earth and concrete.  When we finally headed back to our camper near midnight I was worried when we crossed the dam.  Big chunks of gravel from the side of the road had blown across the blacktop making it a gravel road of sorts.  We turned the corner into the campground and saw huge limbs laying all over.  As we approached our campsite my wife said, "Look at that uprooted tree!"  This caused my heart to skip a beat.  The tree looked like it fell directly on my boat parked in front of my camper.  Limbs were draped all over the cover and sides.  I feared the worst.

But upon closer inspection with a flashlight I found I'd dodged a bullet.  I had to cut several limbs off the tree to get my boat out but the trunk and major limbs had landed just a couple feet away.  The limbs covering the boat hadn't caused any damage other than a scuff on my motor and cover.  I felt extremely fortunate. 

But my favorite Coleman Roadtrip Grill was on the ground and parts were strewn everywhere.  The odd thing was I had a metal dog bowl with about an inch of water in it sitting right next to the grill.  It never moved. The kids searched with flashlights and recovered most of the grill pieces.  The drip pan was the last item needed to possibly salvage the grill when we heard a "clunk, clunk" from the road as a truck passed and ran over it.  Ashley said laughing, "I think I found it, Dad."  

The grill may not be salvageable.  But if I'm only out a couple hundred bucks I feel pretty fortunate.  It could have been much worse and run well into the thousands of dollars with just 2 feet difference.  I couldn't help but think of the people suffering from tornado damage in Reading and Joplin.  My heart felt for them as this was nothing compared to their loss.  But it still serves as a reminder to keep an eye on ol' Mother Nature as she can get a bit nasty on occasion.      

HOOKED ON FISHING

My daughter's boyfriend, Adam, started fishing with me a couple summers ago.  At the time, he debated whether or not to just buy a 24-hour fishing license since he didn't know how often he'd go.  I got the impression he wasn't real sure he'd enjoy it so he was hedging his bets about spending the extra money.  I told him we'd likely fish more that summer and he was welcome to go along if he wanted to buy the yearly license.  I joked I'd buy it for him but since he wasn't related he was on his own.

Since that time, Adam has become a bit of a fishing fanatic.  He now fishes local ponds and creeks on his own and he goes fishing with me and my family every chance he gets.  He fishes at least two or three times a week after work and on weekends.  My daughter blames me for his addiction and the new-found competing interest.

It's all good in my book.  The joy of fishing is getting out and doing it.  It's the thrill of catching something and feeling the steady pull of a fish as it fights.  It doesn't take much to hook a kid on fishing and a trip or two might be all they need to become a lifetime angler.  It worked for Adam and it could work for someone you know, too.  Give it a try.
  

MAYBE THE BEST EVER

All three of my kids enjoy fishing.  While we've had some really good trips over the years, we may have well had our best ever last weekend.  It was our first camping trip of the summer at Marion Reservoir.  The fishing stars must have aligned just right as the action was fast and usually furious.

We arrived Thursday evening and with light fading fast, my two boys and I decided to try casting a jig and bobber from shore to see if any crappie were still nearby.  On Brandon's second cast our question was answered as he landed a nice slab.  In the next 45 minutes we caught and released about 15 crappie and fished until we couldn't see.

The next morning the wind was whipping as I loaded my three kids and wife into the boat.  I rigged each kid's pole with a bottom bouncer and spinner or slow death hook and we started a drift.  Within minutes all kids had caught a fish and it never slowed down.  They were reeling in wipers, white bass and walleye about as fast as they could at times.  I did nothing but bait hooks, remove fish and run the boat for the next several hours.  I never even had time to sit down. 

Since my wife wasn't fishing she decided to keep a tally.  In three hours the kids, each fishing with a single rod, caught 108 fish.  If you divide that evenly that's a fish every 100 seconds.  However, they had numerous doubles and even times when all three were battling a fish.  I could barely keep up and my fingers were cut-up, raw and even bleeding from handling so many fish.  We weren't keeping any fish this day either, although we threw a few legal-sized fish in the livewell for a group photo and then released them, too. 

The next two days the action was similar.  I added another angler to the boat in my daughter's boyfriend.  I also had to wear a white cotton glove on my right hand to protect my mutilated thumb.  Ashley and Adam, the two oldest kids, made fun of my "look" and called me "Michael Jackson."  The glove got a workout but the goofy "look" was worth it as we figured we'd caught well over 300 fish by the end of the weekend.  We kept six walleye and seven crappie and released the rest. 

The kids enjoyed it.  I fished a total of about 15 minutes in my boat and the lack of "me" time didn't bother me a bit.  Fishing is fun but catching is even better.  And when you're watching your kids fish AND catch it truly is special.      

CHILD-LIKE DETERMINATION

It's often said a negative factor of youth is inexperience.  However, it just might be that lack of "experience" that allows kids to reach their own conclusions and learn things first-hand.  This type of learning experience likely creates more of a memory than any adult-aided learning situation.  Such was the case recently for one of my 12-year-old twin boys on a family camping trip.

"Do you think I'll catch anything from shore, Dad?" Brandon asked about fishing from the bank. 
"I doubt it as it's too shallow, the water's hot and the boat traffic is bad," I told him.

Undaunted by my less than encouraging prognosis, Brandon caught a crawdad by hand and pinched the tail off and baited his hook with it.  He waded out to waist deep water and cast his pole.  He let line out as he retreated to shore and wedged his rod into the roots of a Cottonwood tree and waited.

In less than 10 minutes his rod tip started bouncing.  He grabbed the pole and the fight was on.  His twin brother, sister, sister's boyfriend, mom and I were all cheering him on as the battle lasted about 5 minutes on the light rod and reel.  Finally, he beached the 3-4 pound flopping, fat channel catfish and looked up at me smiling from ear-to-ear.  He was truly proud of himself and his accomplishment. 

"I guess it doesn't hurt to try, does it buddy?" I said smiling back. 

The next morning Brandon was back at it as soon as he was awake.  In short order, he caught a nice drum and a fat carp using the same technique.

In this instance, I'm glad Brandon didn't heed my advice.  The fact he did it on his own made the moment even more enjoyable.  He was proud of his accomplishment and I was proud of him for trying despite the odds. 

Maybe I should tell him I don't think he could play quarterback for the New England Patriots or become President of the United States.....     
 

OLDY BUT GOODY

Kansas' first reservoir was Kanopolis which obviously makes it the oldest.  Despite it's age it still doesn't have any trouble producing some nice populations of various fish species like crappie, white bass, walleye and saugeye.  The 3,550 acre lake is a good place to go now if you like to catch walleye.

I met a buddy, Craig Athon, from Topeka at the lake last Sunday.  The wind forecast was brutal but we were greeted with calm conditions and light fog.  We headed out and started looking for likely spots using my electronics.  It had been years since either of us had been to the lake in May so we weren't sure where to go.  I started marking some fish and with no wind Craig suggested we pull spinners and cover some water.

I dropped the trolling motor and monitoring my GPS tried to keep us trolling along at around 1 mph.  We were using 2-ounce bottom bouncers so it wasn't hard to keep them on the bottom in 13 feet of water.  It didn't take long and Craig had the first fish of the day.  He dumped the plump 18-inch fish into the livewell and we were off to a good start. 

Over the next few hours we caught a lot of fish and most were just under the 15-inch minimum length limit.  However, a keeper was landed now and then and my livewell was filling up although the fish weren't big, but big enough to keep.  We stayed in the same area and as more boats showed up others were catching fish, too.

By about 2 p.m. the forecasted wind showed up with a vengeance.  We fished a while longer but were about ready to call it a day anyway.  We guessed we'd caught 50-60 walleye and had a limit of 10 keepers between 15 and 18 inches. 

We headed back to the ramp about 3:30 p.m. and I was reminded of why I try to leave the lake by noon on holiday weekends.  The 3-lane ramp was standing-room only and the line to launch or take out was long.  People couldn't back trailers, worked on their motors while sitting on the ramp and left their vehicle unoccupied in the way of others trying to get in or out.  It was a virtual zoo but really not surprising.  Common sense doesn't seem too common any more. 

It took us nearly 30 minutes to load.  But as we said goodbye it was a good feeling knowing we had a fine day fishing Kansas' oldest reservoir.  Still old, but darn good.