Indholdsfortegnelse for May 2024 i Game & Fish

The guys in the shiny red boat above represent more than 120 years of bass-fishing experience. They’re all smiling because they have just wrapped up a week-long evaluation of four dozen new rods and reels—the core of the annual Game & Fish Tackle Test. While they won’t go so far as to say the Tackle Test is an excruciating task (these guys did fish for a week, after all), it does come with long hours of critical attention to detail, careful analysis and objective comparison. If there is a way to make bass fishing seem like work, this is it—and we’re proud of that. Our test team puts in the hours on the water, with clipboards in hand, gauging the performance of new tackle so readers don’t have to. The…

Although the Midwest is blessed with exceptional outdoor activities all year, many of us dream of May all winter long. Cool evenings turn into warm, sunny days that we spend chasing gobblers, fly-casting to trout, throwing jigs to lunker largemouths and running lines for monster catfish. On the best days, we hunt and fish, and maybe even stumble upon a patch of wild morel mushrooms. With winter behind us and summer on the horizon, May is the perfect middle-ground month when one should consider camping as much as possible. State parks and private campgrounds that will stay full after Memorial Day may still have sites available this month. Plan your adventures and enjoy this beautiful time. 1 MISSOURI RIVER CATFISH The Missouri River’s size and current may intimidate anglers, but…

Ask 100 serious bass anglers about their favorite time of year to fish, and I’d wager that about 80 percent of them will tell you it’s spring. It’s a time for big fish, sure, but also numbers. The 2023 Bassmaster Classic Champion, Jeff “Gussy” Gustafson, believes spring is the best bass fishing season for one simple reason: As water warms, fish get hungry. Grab from any tackle tray. Roll spinnerbaits. Crank square-bills and bladed jigs. Drop a Senko next to deadfall. Few lure types are out of play when the spring bite is in full swing and bass are biting. Still, bass catches are never a given in spring. Rains and runoff can churn lake conditions. Weather swings may have bass aggressively feeding one day and lockjawed and lethargic the…

North Dakota’s sprawling Devils Lake is a four-season outdoors destination. Bird hunters flock to it in the fall, and ice anglers descend on it in the winter. However, Devils Lake truly shines brightest during the transition from spring to summer, when the fishing is sizzling hot. Every fish in the lake is snapping as snowmelt and spring rains trickle into the sprawling waterbody. As spring rolls into summer and the water warms, fish will hang shallow, cruising emerging vegetation for freshwater shrimp and minnows. The underwater buffet grows abundant for pike, perch, walleyes and white bass, and these fish are all relatively accessible to visiting anglers. Quite simply, in late spring and early summer, Devils Lake offers some of the best fishing around. ACCESSIBLE ACTION Visiting anglers and families can…

Each spring the small town where Shane lived held a trout derby. In years past, participants were encouraged to keep the fish, which would then be fried in the park pavilion that evening for everyone to enjoy. But this year was different. There was a new mayor, and there were new signs about rules posted all over the park. As Shane rode his bike to his favorite spot along the river, he couldn’t help but notice them. “Notice: Trout Derby contestants must practice catch and release only.” Shane pulled his bike over to read the fine print. Underneath the large words it said: “All entrants will be entered into a drawing for all prizes.” That seemed very odd to the boy. For as long as he could remember, contestants tried…

STRUTTING INTO MAY ACTION Turkey hunters are still chasing longbeards in many areas, and we’ve been telling readers all about it. Our weekly Regional Strut Update reports continue through late May with top local info on gobbler activity, strategies, hunt videos and more. READY TO REEL? The entire U.S. has hot angling going on this month. From largemouth bass, trout and pike to redfish, snook and mahi, we have the expert info you need. Find it all in our “Fishing” section. SPRING THINGS Check out “Great American Spring,” presented by Falken Tires and Yellowstone Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey, for videos and articles that will help you make the most of warmer weather and water. REMEMBERING A MUSIC ICON Toby Keith, the country music superstar who succumbed to cancer in February,…

In Colorado this fall, voters could decide to outlaw hunting for mountain lions and bobcats. That’s on the heels of a controversial reintroduction of wolves—mandated by another Colorado ballot initiative—last December. In Washington two years ago, an activist fish and wildlife commission’s first act was indefinitely closing a popular spring black bear hunt. Meanwhile in New Jersey, black bear hunting has been stop and go for decades as governors flip-flop on their stances regarding bear management (sometimes for the better) and anti-hunting groups pressure lawmakers into hunting bans. On the other side of the yawning abyss that separates predator advocates from predator critics, Idaho’s legislature passed a bill in 2021 that allows hunters and trappers to kill up to 90 percent of the state’s wolf population. Over in Montana, trappers…

Pick a good spot. Put out lines. Wait for the fish to bite. That’s the essence of catfishing, right? By tradition, yes. Often, though, a more mobile strategy will help you find and catch far more—and bigger—catfish. Iowa residents Troy and Amy Hansen fish catfish tournaments throughout the Midwest and travel extensively to fish, field-test products and develop content for Whisker Seeker Tackle. Beginning in spring and continuing through the warm months, they mostly go mobile with their catfishing approach. “It lets us actively chase them and figure out the areas they are using that day,” Troy Hansen says. “It’s usually better for finding the bigger fish, which is what we’re always after.” The Hansens’ primary drifting strategy differs according to whether they are fishing lakes or rivers. PRIMARY TARGETS…

The smart hunters had probably showered and were napping in the cool, dark cabin. As sweat soaked through my facemask and stung my eyes, I wished I’d done so, too. Yet there I was, camped in a timbered creek bottom, running a turkey call in some of the warmest temps I could recall. “Noon and 85 degrees,” I thought to myself. “This is stupid.” But when I walked out of the woods two hours later with a long-spurred gobbler over one shoulder, I couldn’t help but smile at having overcome the hot, sticky conditions. Many weather events can make turkeys unresponsive and less cooperative, but nothing seems to shut down gobbling like unseasonably hot weather during the late season. Promising roost gobbling before sunrise fades as the mercury rises, and…

There are numerous places to stay around Devils Lake, and if you’re traveling with someone who doesn’t like to fish, or you finish your day early, there are plenty of other things to enjoy in the surrounding area. You can find all the lodging opportunities at devilslakend.com. Campers should also check out Grahams Island State Park for a unique stay on the water. For some non-fishing activities, there is some shopping downtown or you can visit the farmers market for fresh local produce and products. You can stay and play at the Spirit Lake Casino, play a little golf at the Creel Bay Golf Course or hike some of the local trails at White Horse Hill or Roosevelt Park. The Dockside Entertainment Center opened in 2024 and includes five simulators…

The Henry rifle helped us begin our love affair with the lever-action rifle more than 150 years ago. It brought fast and repetitive fire to the American shooter and was often described as a rifle you could load on Sunday and shoot all week. It wasn’t long until Winchester and Marlin introduced lever-action rifles, and even with the introduction of more precise-shooting bolt actions and semi-automatics, the lever gun remains a favorite with American hunters. Surprisingly, given how long the lever gun has been around, some hunters still don’t know how to best manage one. To help with that, here’s the proper manual of arms for the traditional, tube-fed, lever-action rifle with an exposed hammer, along with some accessories to make it better. LOADING AND UNLOADING You load most traditional…

My native Kansas didn’t have a deer season until I was a teenager, so my first real whitetail lessons came when I was stationed at Quantico. Those deep-woods Virginia deer kicked my tail. My main takeaway: I didn’t know nothin’. Later, I hunted whitetails in various places. I was never foolish enough to think I had them figured out, but by the time we bought a farm in Kansas I thought I knew a bit. I soon learned it wasn’t as much as I thought. Nearly 20 years later, I know my Kansas woods and their deer OK. You probably know your deer country, too. I won’t tell you how to hunt whitetails in your area. Instead, let’s think about stuff that should apply to whitetail hunting everywhere. Things that…

Finding panfish in spring and summer involves more searching than fishing on some days, as crappies and sunfish move shallower or deeper based on spawning timing, water temperatures and broader schooling behavior and forage availability. Modern electronics remove some guesswork out of finding panfish, but even with these tools, sometimes it’s hard to beat a technique that lets you seek out fish. While casting with a bobber is often highly productive, if you really need to work a stretch of water thoroughly, dropshotting can sometimes yield even better results. The tactic’s versatility can help you cover more water and ultimately find and catch more panfish. FIND FISH There are many electronic shortcuts to finding spring panfish. Side-scanning shorelines and weed edges, running 360-degree live sonar through basins and flats or…

Thankfully for catfish diehards, the Midwest is loaded with top-tier waters, whether they be reservoirs or rivers. Many, if not all, are perfect places to employ a variety of drifting strategies. However, a few fisheries are worthy of special mention. RATHBUN LAKE, IA Channel cats abound in Rathbun Lake, an 11,000-acre reservoir in southern Iowa with a maximum depth of around 50 feet. Two major arms, an open main body and a few significant creek arms create nice variety for drifting and finding catfish. RED ROCK RESERVOIR, IA Just southeast of Des Moines, Red Rock impounds 15,250 acres along the Des Moines River and has a maximum depth around 44 feet. Like Rathbun, Red Rock is loaded with channel catfish, consistently serving up great drift-fishing action and the opportunity to…

After chasing bass for nearly 40 years, I’m aware of my proclivity to jeopardize any fishing trip as a weather jinx. When extended the offer to captain the 2024 Game & Fish Tackle Test in sunny central Florida, I jumped at the chance to try all the best new rods and reels on shallow, pre-spawn bass in mid-January. The subsequent midwinter suntan being the envy of friends and family upon my return home would be icing on the cake. Instead, we were greeted with temps in the 40s and 50s, sustained winds exceeding 30 mph and even a tornado warning. With apologies to my fellow Tackle Test team members, I even managed to jinx a trip to “sunny” Florida. However, the weather challenges proved beneficial in a couple of ways.…