Video of new world-record whitetail?
Andy Thompson
September 05, 2008 9:40 AM
With whitetail season almost upon us, Field & Stream magazine is fueling the fire with exclusive video footage of one of the largest free ranging deer ever caught on tape. The video was shot this August in Buffalo County, Wisconsin. This could be a world-record deer.
Click here to read more and watch the video.
Gateway to Fall
Andy Thompson
August 30, 2008 10:31 AM
This post includes links to information about all the autumn activities mentioned in my Sunday column.
In order of appearance:
HUNTING: The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries Website has all the information you need—seasons, bag limits, licenses, places to hunt—to get out in the field this fall.
FISHING: Same as above. If you decide to head west for trout, look up Brian and Colby Trow at Mossy Creek Fly Fishing in Harrisonburg.
BIRDING: Click here for the Rockfish Gap Hawk Watch Website. And here for the Hawk Migration Association of North America. Don’t forget the Eastern Shore Birding and Wildlife Festival or the Wings over Water event on the Outer Banks.
RUNNING: The Richmond Sports Backers put on the Richmond marathon as well as the new McDonald’s Half-Marathon and the Maymont half.
FALL FOLIAGE: There are lots of Websites out there dedicated to helping people maximize their leaf peepage. Here are a few: Va. Dept. of Forestry; the Foliage Network; a list of the best places in Va. to see the fall foliage; an explanation of how and why leaves change colors and fall.
APPLE ORCHARDS: Carter Mountain Orchard and Dickie Brothers Orchard are both popular pick-your-own apple orchards near Charlottesville.
BALLOONING: Check out Blue Ridge Balloon for a truly memorable way to watch the leaves change.
Getting involved
Andy Thompson
August 27, 2008 11:36 AM
After reading last Friday’s Outdoors column about citizen anglers involved in conservation work, loyal reader Randy Bishop sent this link: http://www.dgif.virginia.gov/volunteer/
I didn’t realize the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries offered these opportunities. Thanks again, Randy.
One crazy looking fish
Andy Thompson
August 27, 2008 9:45 AM
I had to pass along this picture. I had never heard of a Darwin’s Slimehead before. That’s the name of this pending world record fish caught by Ron Vankirk of Williamsburg. The pic and below description were sent to me by Captain Julie Ball.
I am pleased to announce that I had the honor of assisting with the processing of a new pending IGFA All Tackle World Record Darwin’s Slimehead. This is one of the strangest looking fish I have ever seen. The official weight at Long Bay Pointe Bait and Tackle is a whopping 7lb 8oz. This more than doubles the weight of some recent catches, under 4 pounds. The angler is Ron Vankirk of Williamsburg, VA. He was fishing in the Norfolk Canyon aboard the recreational vessel the “Crystal Clear D” skippered by Sean Doran of South Miles, N.C. The IGFA has accepted the fish for consideration as an All Tackle World Record.
Opponents of hound hunting get organized
Andy Thompson
August 22, 2008 3:37 PM
A newly formed group, Virginians for Hound Hunting Reform, sent out the below press release today. It follow on the heels of the DGIF’s hound project advisory committee recommendations released earlier this month.
For more on the issue of hound hunting in Virginia, click here. To read my recent column on the debate, click here.
PRESS RELEASE
Virginians concerned about the issues with hound hunting identified by the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (DGIF) Study: “Hunting With Hounds in Virginia – A Way Forward,” have banded together to create the organization Virginians for Hound Hunting Reform (VHHR).
Information recently released by the DGIF study indicates that hound trespass was the top issue identified by analysis of correspondence sent to DGIF and Virginia Tech who is facilitating the DGIF study. Conflict between a hunter’s right to retrieve hounds and a landowner’s right to control access to private property was the top issue identified by the DGIF Technical Committee and the study’s Stakeholder Advisory Committee (SAC). According to VHHR, neither of the top issues is addressed by the SAC draft proposed recommendations. While the study is not complete, the SAC will only meet one final time following the close of the public comment period on September 12, 2008.
Hound trespass is an issue because Virginia currently has no regulations governing the amount of land required to release hounds, no time of the year during which they may not be released and no penalty for the owner of the hounds that leave the property where they have permission to be. The state of Georgia dealt with this issue by requiring significant parcel size for the release of hounds. Florida established meaningful penalties for those whose hounds leave the permitted property. Several other southeastern states are considering adopting the Georgia approach. The SAC draft recommendations propose nothing that will address the issue of hound trespass.
At the heart of the conflict between hunter and landowner is Virginia’s “right to retrieve” law. Virginia is the only state that has a “right to retrieve” law which allows hound hunters to enter private posted property without the landowner’s permission under the guise of looking for their hounds. There is growing interest among private landowners to challenge the constitutionality of this law as a violation of property rights granted by the Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The Fifth Amendment provides that an individual’s property may not be taken by a government without just compensation. Hunter’s retrieving their dogs and allowing the chase to continue without a landowner’s permission in effect place one’s property in the public domain without compensation.
The fact that the VDGIF study has not recommended strategies to address the top two issues means the problems may have to be dealt with legislatively and VHHR is preparing to tackle that if necessary. There are over 7 million Virginians while there are only an estimated 135,000 hound hunters in the state.
To learn more about Virginians for Hound Hunting Reform visit their web site at http://www.vhhr.org. Comments to the DGIF regarding the study may be mailed to Hound Hunting SAC c/o Sarah Kozlowski, 111 Cheatham Hall, Dept. of Fisheries and Wildlife, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24060-0321 or emailed to
Barbie does it again…
Andy Thompson
August 21, 2008 8:34 AM
How many state records does Barbie have?
Click here for story.
Blue Beast
Andy Thompson
August 16, 2008 8:52 AM
As promised, the above is the pending North Carolina state record Atlantic blue marlin caught by Trey Irvine yesterday at the Pirate’s Cove Billfish Tournament off the Outer Banks.
1,228.5 pounds...um, wow!
Record Blue Marlin
Andy Thompson
August 15, 2008 6:07 PM
I had to pass along this email from the Pirate’s Cove Billfish Tournament, an annual event held on the Outer Banks. I’ll post a pic of this fish as it’s released. Imagine fighting that monster!
Breaking News from the 25th annual Pirate’s Cove Billfish Tournament.
A pending North Carolina Atlantic Blue Marlin was caught today by angler Trey Irvine onboard the Mimi. The massive 1,228.50 pound Atlantic Blue Marlin was weighed in at Pirate’s Cove Marina at approximately 3:45 p.m. today. When certified this catch will eclipse the 1,142 pounder caught by Jack Herrington in 1974. The world record Atlantic Blue Marlin weighing 1,402.20 pounder was caught in Brazil in 1992.
The Mimi is registered in all tournament categories. Final results to be announced tonight at 9 p.m. during the awards ceremony.
For more information on 25th Annual Pirate’s Cove Billfish Tournament or any of the 2008 Pirate’s Cove Big Game Tournaments go to http://www.pcbiggame.com or call (252) 473-1015.
Largemouth
Andy Thompson
August 14, 2008 9:44 PM
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Today’s column is about monster-bass fisherman Chris Jenkins (above), who I went fishing with this past Saturday. This guy knows more about big largemouth bass and how to catch them than anyone I’ve ever talked to. He’s spent the past few years trying to haul in the Virginia state record.
Click here for an interesting article I found online about going after the biggest bass in Virginia.
As I mentioned in today’s column, Jenkins recommended a book called Sowbelly: The Obsessive Quest for the World-Record Largemouth Bass to me during our trip. I’m just a few chapters into it, but I already know I’ll be passing it on to friends. There are some great characters profiled. A few are like Jenkins in some ways, only they live in California, where it seems inevitable the world record will be broken. Virginia produces some big largemouth, but none have approached the 20-pound mark.
Big bass fishin’…
Andy Thompson
August 13, 2008 10:53 AM
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...True, true, the above does not really qualify as a “big bass,” though it is yours truly with a perfectly respectable 3-4-pound largemouth.
Friday’s column will be about a trip I took recently with a local angler in search of the Virginia record largemouth. It’s was quite an eye-opening day/night of fishing.
(Aside: Cavaliers fans don’t fret. The t-shirt I’m wearing in the picture is more a comment on the gifts my Tech-loving in-laws give me than a statement of my rooting interests. A native Pennsylvanian, I remain a Penn State fan through and through. And, yes, sad to say, it’s time for Joe Paterno to go.)
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