Outdoors

Rebirth of a game bird - 07/18/2010
WASHINGTONVILLE - A joint project by the Pennsylvania Game Commission and Pheasants Forever is coming close to re-creating history in one part of the state.

Law right on target in war versus poachers TOM VENESKY OUTDOORS - 07/18/2010
It’s not too often that there is anything positive to say about poaching.

Bulletin Board - 07/18/2010
Fishing for a Cause will host the 10th annual Adult/Child St. Joe’s Children Benefit Tournament on Aug. 1 at the state boat launch on Lake Winola. All proceeds from the bass tournament benefit the St. Josep ...

Weekly Bass Tip - 07/18/2010
Bass fishing on the Susquehanna River and area lakes and ponds is rising in popularity, and so is the number of ways to catch them. Each week local bass angler George Bowers will explain one of the numerous techniques used to catc ...

Weekly Bass Tip: Topwater technique - 07/11/2010
Bass fishing on the Susquehanna River and area lakes and ponds is rising in popularity, and so is the number of ways to catch them. Each week local bass angler George Bowers will explain one of the numerous techniques used to catc ...

Birder ‘tuned in’ to add species to list - 07/11/2010
Forgive Kevin Ripka if he is only half-listening when you talk to him. He’s not being rude.

Bulletin Board - 07/11/2010
Frances Slocum State Park will be the site of a Family Paddling Program instructed by the Pennsylvania Fish & Boat Commission on Saturday, July 17. The program will be held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. This progra ...

Outdoors news - 07/11/2010
Legislation drafted by state Rep. Ed Staback, D-Archbald, that increases the fines and penalties for poaching convictions passed the state Senate last week.

This Week’s Bass Tip: Drop shot and power fishing - 07/04/2010
Bass fishing on the Susquehanna River and area lakes and ponds is rising in popularity, and so is the number of ways to catch them. Each week local bass angler George Bowers will explain one of the numerous techniques used to catc ...

Fungus targets bats, ecosystem - 07/04/2010
In nature, it doesn’t take much to throw an entire ecosystem out of whack.

Casting praise to a special fish who got away TOM VENESKY OUTDOORS - 07/04/2010
The golden rainbow trout glowed in the bottom of the deep, clear pool like a gold bar resting on the gravel bottom.

Outdoors news - 07/04/2010
The highlights from the Pennsylvania Game Commission Board of Commissioners meeting held last week:

Bulletin Board - 07/04/2010
The Pennsylvania Fish & Boat Commission will hold a Family Fishing Program at the Luzerne County River Common on Wednesday. The program will be held from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. This program is being offered in ...

Weekly Bass Fishing Tip: Senko and flickworm - 06/27/2010
Bass fishing on the Susquehanna River and area lakes and ponds is rising in popularity, and so is the number of ways to catch them. Each week local bass angler George Bowers will explain one of the numerous techniques used to catc ...

Outdoors news - 06/27/2010
The Pennsylvania Game Commission Board of Commissioners will meet Monday and Tuesday in the auditorium of the agency’s Harrisburg headquarters at 2001 Elmerton Ave., off the Progress Avenue exit of Interstate 81 in Harrisburg (a ...

Bruins’ travels eyed - 06/27/2010
As the black bear biologist for the Pennsylvania Game Commission, Mark Ternent obviously has a special liking for the state’s bruins.

Hoping Gavlick is back soon as NEPA’s voice TOM VENESKY OUTDOORS - 06/27/2010
Six months is a long time not to have a voice.

Bulletin Board - 06/27/2010
The Factoryville Sportsmen’s Club will hold its regular monthly meeting on Wednesday, at 7:30 p.m. in the clubhouse. At the conclusion of the meeting, a drawing will be held to select the winner of the Buff ...

Bass fishing club for teens catches on at Hanover Area - 06/20/2010
This isn’t your ordinary high school sports team.

Harveys Lake cormorants an overrated threat TOM VENESKY OUTDOORS - 06/20/2010
Bobbing harmlessly on the surface of Harveys Lake, the double-crested cormorant seemed oblivious to my gaze and the handful of bass boats floating nearby.

Rubber worm technique effective for landing a bass - 06/20/2010
Bass fishing on the Susquehanna River and area lakes and ponds is rising in popularity, and so is the number of ways to catch them. Each week local bass angler George Bowers will explain one of the numerous techniques used to catc ...

Bulletin Board - 06/20/2010
will hold a Susquehanna River Bass Tournament on Saturday at the boat launch on state Route 11 between Hunlock and Shickshinny. The tournament will run from 6 a.m. to noon and registration begins at 5 a.m. Failure to weigh-in by n ...

Passion for musky - 06/13/2010
As a dental hygienist, Jackie Kearns has a reverence for teeth.

Anglers toss out good ideas at bass issue TOM VENESKY OUTDOORS - 06/13/2010
The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission got what it was looking for when it came to town on Wednesday night.

Bulletin Board - 06/13/2010
will host the following Family Fishing and Family Paddling programs in Luzerne County this summer (for information, visit www.fishandboat.com):

Outdoors notes - 06/13/2010
Pennsylvania Game Commission executive director Carl G. Roe is reminding hunting clubs to begin making plans to host an organized junior pheasant hunt.

North Branch has abundance of trout - 06/06/2010
If you want to catch a trophy smallmouth bass out of the Susquehanna River, your chances may be better in the Harrisburg area. But if you want to catch a lot of fish, the northeast is the place to go.

Trout could use a little cold water TOM VENESKY OUTDOORS - 06/06/2010
The small school of trout wafted lazily beneath the slow current of Wapwallopen Creek.

Meeting will examine bass issues - 06/06/2010
Rob Rosencrans and Greg Smith have something more in common than the anticipation they share for the June 12 opener of bass season.

Bulletin Board - 06/06/2010
The Stanley Cooper Sr. Chapter of Trout Unlimited will hold its annual Youth Fly Fishing Camp on Saturday, June 12, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Bowman’s Creek.

OUTDOORS NEWS - 06/06/2010
In an effort to better inform anglers, boaters, and other interested individuals, the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission is making it easier to find information about fishing, boating and aquatic resources. Visitors to the comm ...

Oil could endanger ducks - 05/30/2010
Wyoming resident Mike Podwicka had no idea of the monstrocity that loomed in front of him.

Bulletin Board - 05/30/2010
The Stanley Cooper Sr. Chapter of Trout Unlimited will hold its annual Youth Fly Fishing Camp on Saturday, June 12, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Bowman’s Creek.

OUTDOORS NEWS - 05/30/2010
A youth scholastic clay shooting team sponsored by the Factoryville Sportsmen’s Club placed in the top five in three categories during a shoot held in York County on May 8.

Female guides finding way in Adirondacks - 05/23/2010
KEENE, N.Y. — In the male-dominated sport of rock climbing, very few women are working as professional guides.

Adventures on canvas - 05/23/2010
Most people strap on a backpack or head out onto the highway to embark on an adventure.

Humane Society on target with poaching reward - TOM VENESKY OUTDOORS - 05/23/2010
It doesn’t really surprise me that the Humane Society of the United States and hunters alike expressed outrage that a 675-pound bear was killed illegally in Nescopeck State Park earlier this month.

Bulletin Board - 05/23/2010
The Stanley Cooper Sr. Chapter of Trout Unlimited will hold its annual Youth Fly Fishing Camp on Saturday, June 12, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Bowman’s Creek.

Biologists’ quest: Data on bears - 05/16/2010
FAIRVIEW TWP. — To some residents in Wilkes-Barre Township, the 259-pound female bear that likely made a habit of raiding garbage cans and bird feeders is considered a nuisance.

For Ternent, keeping bruins safe a priority TOM VENESKY OUTDOORS - 05/16/2010
With a 259-pound black bear sitting several yards away, Mark Ternent calmly packed his gear into his vehicle.

Bulletin Board - 05/16/2010
The Factoryville Sportsmen’s Club will hold a benefit shoot for the youth shooting team, the FSC Clay Busters. The team is comprised of school-age local shooters, and has successfully competed in statewide ...

OUTDOOR NEWS - 05/16/2010
The Humane Society of the United States and The Humane Society Wildlife Land Trust are offering a reward of up to $2,500 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the individual or individuals responsible for illegal ...

PGC explains hunting season changes - 05/09/2010
The changes to the fall turkey season were proposed in an amendment from PGC commissioner Ralph Martone of New Castle. The following are Martone’s reasons behind the season changes, along with his thoughts on the expansion of all- ...

Poaching pains PGC - 05/08/2010
Chances are the 675-pound bear would’ve weighed close to 900 pounds this fall. There’s also a good possibility that, if it were shot legally by a hunter, the monster bruin would’ve qualified for the record books.

Future seasons hurt gobblers, turkey hunters TOM VENESKY OUTDOORS - 05/08/2010
Not everybody benefited from the sweeping changes the Pennsylvania Game Commission board made at its meeting last month when it set the seasons and bag limits for the upcoming hunting season.

Bulletin Board - 05/08/2010
Misericordia University is hosting a presentation by Scott R. Perry, director of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection’s Bureau of Oil and Gas Management, on Tuesday, May 11, at 5 p.m. in ...

OUTDOOR NEWS - 05/08/2010
After Pennsylvania’s gypsy moth caterpillar population collapsed in 2009, the state’s Bureau of Forestry will not conduct aerial suppression efforts against the invasive species, but recently warned that another destructive insect ...

Hatching an idea - 05/07/2010
WRIGHT TWP. – The juvenile brook trout were released, one by one, into Wapwallopen Creek by Crestwood High School senior Sam Care.

Better habitat in the works - 05/02/2010
EATON TWP., WYOMING COUNTY – It didn’t matter to Joe Ackourey that he couldn’t keep trout from one of his favorite sections of Bowman’s Creek.

This artwork best displayed in the woods TOM VENESKY OUTDOORS - 05/02/2010
Seated at the base of a red oak overlooking a wooded hollow below, I held a piece of art in my hands.

outdoors notes - 05/02/2010
Misericordia University is hosting a presentation by Scott R. Perry, director of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection’s Bureau of Oil and Gas Management, on Tuesday, May 11, at 5 p.m. in ...

A chase of unpredictability - 04/25/2010
Mountain Top resident Jim Eckenrode has a unique approach to hunting gobblers – he calls the hens.

Hoping hunters also on target in deer choices TOM VENESKY OUTDOORS - 04/25/2010
For years the Pennsylvania Game Commission has been a punching bag for hunters upset with the way the agency was managing the state’s deer herd.

BRIEFS - 04/25/2010
The Pennsylvania Game Commission board approved the following items at its meeting last week:

Bulletin Board - 04/25/2010
The Eastern Penn-Jersey Deaf Bass Anglers will host a series of pickerel tournaments in May: Lake Henry (Clayton Recreation) on May 2; Long Pond (PFBC area) on May 16; and Harveys Lake (PFBC access) on May 23. R ...

Hunting tradition passed on - 04/18/2010
A 16-gauge Ithaca shotgun isn’t the only thing that Carl Karaska will be passing down to his son, Reed, when the two head out to hunt gobblers on Saturday.

Bulletin Board - 04/18/2010
The Red Rock Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation will hold its annual JAKES (juniors acquiring knowledge, ethics and sportsmanship) event on April 25 at Moon Lake Park. Cost is $15 per child ages 17 a ...

PGC leader Delaney speaks to Factoryville Sportsmen’s Club - 04/18/2010

Catching family fun - 04/18/2010
Six-year-old Joanna Shaw recently made a list of activities she’d like to do with her father, James.

Fishing wildly popular in area - 04/11/2010
The numbers don’t lie.

PFBC asking for some help - 04/11/2010
The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission would like help from trout anglers fishing on the Lehigh River during the 2010 season.

On the search for violations - 04/11/2010
John Cummings is scheduled to start work at 6 a.m. for the April 17 opener of trout season, but that’s really just a technicality.

Prepping for trout season - 04/04/2010
A pair of hooded mergansers darted above the surface of Nescopeck Creek and disappeared into the tree-lined banks upstream.

Bulletin Board - 04/04/2010
The North Mountain Branch of the Quality Deer Management Association will hold its seventh annual REACH Banquet on Saturday at the Triton Hose Co. in Tunkhannock. Doors open at 4:30 p.m., open bar begins at 5 an ...

BRIEFS - 04/04/2010
State Rep. Neal P. Goodman’s (D-Mahanoy City) bill that would end the requirement for hunters to display their license on the back of their outmost garment unanimously passed the House of Representatives late last month.

A shot at greatness - 03/28/2010
When Brian Halchak draws back on his bow, the watching eyes of the crowd disappear.

At Moon Lake, hoping for more reopening joy TOM VENESKY OUTDOORS - 03/28/2010
An opinion column is often a space used to level criticism or offer another side when something happens that the writer feels is wrong.

Bulletin Board - 03/28/2010
The Western Pocono Chapter of Trout Unlimited will hold its regular meeting on Monday at Bunkers Tavern, 462 S. Poplar St., in Hazleton, at 7 p.m. Featured speaker will be Dean Druckenmiller, president of t ...

BRIEFS - 03/28/2010
The Pennsylvania Game Commission reported that hunters harvested an estimated 308,920 deer in the state’s 2009-10 seasons, which is an 8 percent decline from the previous seasons’ harvest of 335,850.

Page after page of adventures - 03/21/2010
It only makes sense that someone who stood down charging bears four times, experienced the remoteness of the Alaskan wilderness, explored the Galapagos Islands and scuba dived in the Great Barrier Reef in Fiji should write about i ...

Signs-of-spring trek ends with not-so-tasty find TOM VENESKY OUTDOORS - 03/21/2010
A neighbor stopped by last week to tell me about a sound he was glad to hear – a woodcock calling from a nearby swamp.

Bulletin Board - 03/21/2010
The North Mountain Branch of the Quality Deer Management Association will hold its seventh annual REACH Banquet on Saturday, April 10, at the Triton Hose Co. in Tunkhannock. Doors open at 4:30 p.m., with open ba ...

New PFBC head has full plate - 03/14/2010
Earlier this month the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission board selected a new leader.

Bulletin Board - 03/14/2010
The Conservation Coalition will hold a chainsaw safety course at the Luzerne Conservation District Office on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The course will provide comprehensive and hands-on instruction for bas ...

Stocking under way - 03/07/2010
WRIGHT TWP. - Stan Wychock popped up the lid off a plastic bucket and poured a sign of spring into Wapwallopen Creek.

Bulletin Board - 03/07/2010
The Conservation Coalition will hold a chainsaw safety course at the Luzerne Conservation District Office on Saturday, March 20, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The course will provide comprehensive and hands-on instruct ...

BRIEFS - 03/07/2010
Earlier this year, the North Branch Land Trust accepted the fee title to approximately 18.27 acres of land, located on Montage Mountain along the Lackawanna County border in Pittston Township, Luzerne County. By owning the propert ...

No birth control cure-all - 02/28/2010
A new birth control agent recently approved by the U.S. Department of Agriculture designed to address overpopulations of deer, particularly in housing developments, won’t replace hunting as the most effective tool to manage wildli ...

Water-release program could be fatal to trout TOM VENESKY OUTDOORS - 02/28/2010
As a teenager, the days of spring and early summer were spent in one place: in the Lehigh River fishing for trout. With an old pair of shorts, sneakers and a fishing vest packed with extra hooks, salted minnows and spinners, my fr ...

Bulletin Board - 02/28/2010
The Conservation Coalition will hold a chainsaw safety course at the Luzerne Conservation District Office on Saturday, March 20, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The course will provide comprehensive and hands-on instruct ...