Indholdsfortegnelse for August 2025 i Game & Fish South

I’ll just come right out and say it: August makes me anxious. Some of the blame goes to the godforsaken heat that comes with it. I grew up in the Northeast, where the end of summer was typically far more temperate than it is in my adopted home state of Kansas. If you know anything about late summer in the southern Great Plains, you know that the heat and humidity will conspire to make any time spent outside in the daylight hours fairly miserable.That doesn’t mean folks here don’t get out on the water or scout for deer. It just means we need to bring a lot of extra water and a change of clothes for when we sweat through the first. The other reason August makes me anxious is…

There was a time not all that long ago when I had a plan. Once August rolled in, I’d start running trail cameras, scouting travel corridors and checking for fresh sign. I’d block off a couple weeks in November and dive into my favorite tracts of public ground like they were my own personal playgrounds. Public land was my go-to for many years. It was accessible and productive. It wasn’t always easy, but it was rewarding. It was mine—not in a legal sense, of course, but in the way every hunter who puts in the miles and hangs stands in the dark eventually claims a little piece of wild ground as his own. Now, those days are over. WHAT CHANGED? Somewhere along the way, the game shifted. Drawing tags has…

“Use enough gun.” Robert Ruark coined that phrase and used it as the title of a book on African hunting, but the sentiment holds true today whether hunting the Dark Continent or North American big game. It especially holds true when elk are your target. Elk are big and tough and live in some of the roughest terrain of any of the deer species. They are the second-largest member of the North American deer family, trailing only the moose. Cow elk can push 650 pounds, while bulls can exceed 800 and even 1,000 pounds in some regions. For the sake of clarification, a “large” caliber is any in the .30 group (or very close). Top contenders include the 7 mm Remington Magnum, 7 mm PRC, .308 Winchester, .300 Winchester Magnum,…

We were in less than 3 feet of water as a buddy prepared to release a redfish on a calm Florida Gulf Coast flat while I stood overhead to photograph the parting moment. Suddenly, a surge of water slapped the boat. My friend’s quick reaction saved both the redfish and his fingers, as he recoiled no more than a second before a 6-foot bull shark bounced off the transom. “Where did he come from?” my shocked and wide-eyed friend asked. There had been no sign of the shark prior to the instant when it made its move to claim the red. We never detected the faintest of hints that such a predator was anywhere close. Until it was. The fact is, bulls and several other shark species, like blacktips, lemons,…

Aside from the incredible fishing, Georgetown, S.C., has many beautiful and fun places to check out, such as Huntington Beach State Park, Brookgreen Gardens and Litchfield Beach. If you need a place to stay, you won’t go wrong booking a room at the Hampton Inn Georgetown-Marina or Oceanfront Litchfield Inn. For casual waterfront dining, head to Wahoo’s Fish House or the Claw House, both at Murrells Inlet. Should you want to sample the freshwater angling options at the Santee Cooper, Black’s Camp at Lake Moultrie offers accommodations, dining, fish-cleaning services, tackle, a boat launch and hosts of fishing guides (blackscamp.com). Speaking of guides, you could also try Bob’s Guide Service Encore (bobsguideserviceencore.com) or Capt. Corey Casey (coreycaseyfishingandguideservice.com) for striper or catfish trips (Casey guides for largemouths too). For inshore charters,…

Little about the SIG Sauer Cross bolt-action rifle is classic in form. Indeed, not a lick of wood or blued metal can be found on the gun. However, after extensive range testing and in-the-field use, I’m confident even my late grandfather would appreciate what the Cross offers hunters. While not a typical bolt-action hunting rifle, the Cross offers undeniable capability. If you enjoy lightweight rifles that get on target quickly, feature a sub-4-pound match trigger, a fully adjustable folding buttstock and a threaded barrel, and are chambered in a round that punches above its weight, you’d be wise to consider the SIG Cross. THE CHAMBERING With personal defense, law enforcement and military-centric products such an integral part of SIG’s business model, many were surprised when the bolt-action Cross, a blend…

With summer winding down and the baseball team eliminated from the tourney, Shane suddenly found himself with one last free week before school started. He planned to make the most of it. “Mark,” said Shane into the telephone, “losing might have been a blessing.” “What do you mean?” replied Mark. “Have you looked outside lately?” “It’s nice. Much cooler than usual.” “Exactly,” said Shane. “And it’s supposed to hold for the next few days.” “What are you getting at?” “The fish will be hammering. Plus, most of the other schools started back this week, so when we hit the river for a couple nights of camping, we might have it all to ourselves.” “You thinking Smith Fork?” “Yup,” said Shane. “You in?” “Yup,” said Mark. “I’ll bring my canoe, you…

FOR THE RECORD BOOKS What’s the heaviest crappie or bass caught in your state? See the latest updates on records for freshwater and saltwater fish under the “Fishing” section. RANGE REPORT: MARLIN MODEL 1895 Get the full report on Marlin’s reintroduced Model 1895 lever-action rifle. Find the rundown on the rifle under the “Gear” section. GO HOG WILD WITH BURRIS THERMAL OPTICS As boars become more nocturnal during the hotter months, Burris’ economically priced thermal units provide hunters the ability to control pig populations. WILDLIFE CONSERVATION NEWS Check out the latest in conservation efforts and issues, including voter initiatives, fair-chase ethics and best practices for using public-land resources under the “Hunting” section. AROUND THE OUTDOORS If you’re looking for the latest in hunting, shooting and fishing content, you can find…

Randy Ferguson describes deer hunting as a social service. He’s not talking about hunters’ mutually beneficial relationship with farmers in his native Pennsylvania, or the social and economic fabric that’s knit by hunters and their traditions in rural communities around the country. Instead, he’s talking about the million pounds of venison that Pennsylvania hunters have donated to public food banks in the Keystone State over the last 5 years. “We’ve been breaking records every year with the donated portion of the deer harvest,” says Ferguson, executive director of Pennsylvania’s chapter of Hunters Sharing the Harvest (HSH) program, now in its 34th year. “Last season, hunters donated 262,000 pounds from about 6,900 deer. That’s an all-time record for us, topping the 235,000 pounds from the year before. When you compound the…

There’s a strange beauty in the long, hot drift of August. Mornings still feel like soup and the sun is merciless. But for those of us who live to hunt and fish, sweating a little more for each bite or sighting, while simultaneously beating the heat and the fair-weather competition, makes the hard-earned rewards even sweeter. These are the dog days, yes, but they’re not the dead days. There’s both game and fish to chase—if you know where to search and what to look for. Some opportunities are slipping away, others are just getting started. Either way, this is the time of year when diehards throughout the South stake their claim. 1 FLORIDA EARLY DEER Florida’s Zone A kicks off the whitetail archery season early—really early. By August’s first week,…

It’s well know that largemouth bass seek shade and cooler water during the dog days of summer, but that doesn’t mean they don’t continue to forage aggressively. In fact, anglers can score big this time of year if they know where to look and employ the right baits and tactics. When fishing a river, however, it’s imperative to remember that current also plays a major role in a bass’s positioning and feeding activity. As is the case in natural lakes and reservoirs, river bass will bury themselves in the thickest and gnarliest cover available when the summer sun is high and water temperatures keep creeping up. Not only does this afford the fish shelter from the bright, hot sun’s rays, it also provides them with prime spots where they can…

In fashion, mixing spots and stripes is considered a major faux pas. For inshore fishing pursuits, however, it’s not only acceptable, but highly recommended. Despite their differences in appearance, redfish (aka “spot tails”) and snook (aka “linesiders”) have a lot in common. Both frequent the same areas and gravitate toward similar types of cover. The two species are also opportunistic feeders that will gladly make a meal out of most baitfish and crustaceans. Those shared tendencies double the potential for success for anglers who know where and when to focus their efforts and select the ideal baits and strategy for the location and conditions. And with snook expanding their range northward along both Florida coasts in recent years, the odds of encountering them in what was previously mostly redfish territory…

Dawn came over the vineyards, the air fresh and crisp and carrying just a faint hint of the distant Pacific Coast. I checked the chamber of my rifle and set it in guide Ryan Newkirk’s pickup. In every direction stretched vast fields of verdant green vines loaded with grapes. Perfectly ordered rows roller-coasted over the undulating hills. I felt like I was hunting in Paradise—a far different experience than the hardcore backcountry territory I usually hunt. Full morning light was upon us as we climbed into the truck, dropped it into gear and slowly motored away from Steinbeck Vineyards’ headquarters. Turning into a lane bordered on either side by grapes, we eased up the road, looking carefully down the length of each row of vines. I was astonished at how…

The .22 Long Rifle cartridge has been training new shooters and satisfying everyone else for well over a century. But as prolific and perfect as the .22 Long Rifle cartridge might seem, it has a design flaw—one that, in the world of modern cartridges, limits its performance. Winchester designed the .21 Sharp to correct that flaw, and you could argue it’s also partly the product of government regulations. But is the .21 Sharp a cartridge you need, and should you ditch your favorite .22 Long Rifle for one? Let’s take a closer look. AN UNFORTUNATE FLAW Have you ever looked at a .22 Long Rifle cartridge beside a .22 Magnum or .17 HMR cartridge? There’s a distinct difference. The bullets on the .22 Magnum and .17 HMR cartridges are smaller…

With my hand behind my back, motioning for my pal Joe to stop, I whispered hoarsely at a barely audible volume. “Don’t move.” Joe likely thought I had momentarily gone insane since we were walking slowly in total darkness, and seeing anything ahead to stop abruptly for was questionable indeed. If that was his thought, he was wrong. By nature’s design, my eyes were dilated and the photoreceptor cells in my retinas were already working overtime to pierce the darkness. What they detected were the two tan forms standing out in the otherwise complete black of the Wyoming backcountry. I lifted my binocular to my eyes in slow motion and whispered my next insight to Joe. “Bulls.” I had spied the bulls while summiting a small rise ahead of Joe.…

It was still dark when we arrived, but we rushed to load our gear, ice chest, dove buckets and folding stools into pier-fishing carts, then fit the e-collar on my Lab, Betty. I had drawn an opening-day permit for a public dove field in North Carolina, and since I was allowed up to five hunters in my party, I had invited my wife, my son and two of his buddies to come along. We made our way around a locked gate to a stand of trees at the edge of the field that would provide shade as the sun rose and steadily climbed higher. After setting our decoys, we took our seats and watched other hunters arrive, their headlamps bobbing in the darkness and their muffled conversations punctuated by the…

When it comes to inshore fishing, few areas rival South Carolina’s Lowcountry, where red drum (redfish), speckled trout, sheepshead, black drum, flounder, tarpon and other favorites thrive. Georgetown, located at the confluence of the Great Pee Dee, Waccamaw, Black and Sampit rivers, which combine to form the headwaters of the Winyah Bay estuary, is the epicenter of many angling opportunities. Georgetown is South Carolina’s third oldest city and within an hour’s drive of both Myrtle Beach and Charleston. It has a population of only 9,000 but boasts a number of unique shops, award-winning restaurants, waterfront parks and 200-year-old historic homes to go along with the many gifts afforded by Mother Nature. FLOOD TIDE BOUNTY From May through October, the higher incoming tides during the new- and full-moon periods flood expanses…

To hunt in California, you are required to use ammo loaded with a lead-free projectile. That’s okay; there are plenty of good copper/alloy options available. Time was short, but a bit of shopping turned up exactly what I wanted: three boxes of 150-grain .308 Winchester Copper Impact ammo. With a muzzle velocity of 2,810 fps, these loads hit hard, penetrate deeply and expand aggressively—qualities ideal for these vineyard deer. The rifle I chose for this hunt was a compact and handy Mossberg Patriot chambered in .308 Win. For stalking through vines and crawling along the rows, this choice proved excellent. Most shot opportunities were expected to be 200 yards or less, so I zeroed the rifle two inches high at 100. After smacking a vital-sized steel plate several times at…

For a long time, low-power variable optics, or LPVOs, were usually 1–4X riflescopes. But time and technology march on, and the magnification range of LPVOs increased to 1–6X and then 1–8X. LPVOs typically have an eyepiece and a straight tube at the objective end instead of an objective bell, keeping them more compact but also limiting the size of the objective lens. As such, these sometimes stubby looking telescopic sights are great on rifles used for close-range hunting, AR-15s, lever-action rifles and even shotguns. This brings us to the latest addition to the Trijicon Credo HX lineup, a 1–10x28 riflescope in the LPVO configuration. This newest Credo HX is a little powerhouse of a scope, giving shooters a functionally true 1X at the low end, a sizable mid-range and 10X…