July’s Woman of the Wild-Katherine Browne

I didn’t grow up in hunting family but my family and I have always shared a passion for the outdoors.  As a child my parents would take us fishing for pumpkin seeds and small mouth bass on the lake across the street from our house.  We used bobbers and worms and I used to get so excited when my bobber starting dipping and would scream and laugh when I hooked a fish. I loved it.  I   have always really enjoyed fishing. I derive the same giddy pleasure from catching a fish now as I did when I was a little girl. However I’ve upgraded from bait fishing to flyfishing.   My fiancée Eric Grand taught me how to flyfish and along with falconry flyfishing is my greatest passion in life.  Currently I am the only female flyfishing guide at Willowfly Anglers in Almont CO.

I love flyfishing because it is incredibly dynamic. Every aspect is dynamic from movement of the line, to the timing of your cast, to the placement and presentation of your flys on a moving river. Everything is in motion, and timing is everything. The river is constantly moving, constantly changing. Fish move, their feeding habits change, the insect populations are constantly rotating through their lifecycles on different timetables. You are continually solving a puzzle and by the time you have solved it that puzzle has changed!  It’s the most natural form of fishing because you are showing the fish exactly what they want to eat naturally in the same way they want to eat it.  This past year I founded and became president of a women’s flyfishing club in the Gunnison Valley named the Fishin’ Chicks.  We are a chapter of Colorado Woman Flyfishers but since Gunnison Valley Chapter of Colorado Woman Flyfishers was a bit long winded we voted on a nickname.  I was pushing for the Damsel Flys but I was outvoted.

My other greatest passion in life is falconry.  Falconry is the art of hunting game with a trained raptor. It is one of the oldest sports known to man, originating in the Far East around 4000 B.C. Many falconers describe falconry as a life style rather than a hobby because of the daily time commitment and devotion this sport requires.  Many people ask me how I first got interested in falconry when we talk about the sport.  I have always been very interested in birds of prey. When I was a child I took classes at a nature center that often had talks on birds of prey. I was absolutely enthralled from the first time I got up close to one of these majestic animals. When I was working abroad in Costa Rica with a captive breeding program for macaws, one of my close friends and research partners had a friend that was a falconer back in England. I think this was the moment the seed to become a falconer was planted. Before that point, I was totally unaware that people were still practicing falconry. When I returned to the States, I was flipping through the channels one day and came across a program where two men were rabbit hawking with a red-tailed hawk and at that moment I thought, “If they can do it, I can do it.” After that, I began ravenously consuming all the literature I could find about falconry. It was still a couple years before I had a place to build a hawk house (AKA a mews) and had the time to commit to the sport. When I moved to Oregon, I was able to find a sponsor and become an apprentice falconer. As an apprentice falconer, you, are required to have a sponsor your first two years, take a test on falconry, falconry regulations and raptor biology, and have your facility inspected by the state. After passing my test, I trapped my first red-tailed hawk, Artemus.  Since then I have trapped and flown two red-tailed hawks and an American kestrel.  This year I hope to trap a goshawk or a prairie falcon so I can hunt ducks, grouse, pheasant, and quail, in addition to cottontails and jack rabbits.

Falconry is different from conventional hunting because a rabbit can’t see a bullet coming, but has been hunted everyday for thousands of years by hawks and knows what to do when a hawk appears. That’s what makes it one of the most natural forms of hunting. Falconers are more observers of what goes on everyday in the wild than a gun hunter. It is like an advanced form of bird watching. As a falconer you get to see things most people will never see in a lifetime. Also unlike a weapon you have limited control of the bird.  Unlike a gun or a bow and arrow, a bird of prey has a mind of it’s own. Finally, falconry is more about the flight and the chase than the capture of the quarry. There is often cause to cheer the rabbit when it gets away and outsmarts the hawk.

So far I have only kept each bird until spring, trapping it in fall or winter then releasing it when the ground is clear of snow and small prey is readily available. Trapping a raptor and using it for a passage falconry bird dramatically increases its chances of survival. Seventy to eighty percent of wild red-tailed hawks die during their first year of life. A red-tailed hawk flown by a falconer has a mortality rate of less than 5%. This increased in survival applies to all birds used in falconry. Each subsequent year a bird of prey survives into adulthood their survival rate increases as do their chances of producing the next generation. Furthermore the falconer introduces the red-tail to larger prey such as rabbits and squirrels that are available during the winter when smaller prey is scarce. This is incredibly important to the bird’s future success in the wild during a time of year when the mortality rate of raptors and most animals is at its highest. I plan on keeping a bird for more than one season in the future because the longer you have a bird the better falconry bird it can become. However, I have never liked the idea of keeping a wild thing forever.

Beyond flyfishing and falconry I love doing pretty much anything in the outdoors. In the winter I enjoy, ice fishing, snowboarding, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing.  Year round I hike, camp and hunt and in the summer I spend as much time on the river as possible, white water rafting, floating and fishing. In addition to guiding flyfishing I work for Prόis Hunting Apparel, a women’s hunting and field apparel company, as their Dealer Relations and Pro-Staff Coordinator.  I love working for Prόis.  Kirstie Pike is the best boss I have ever had and I am so passionate about the apparel we make.  Prόis makes the most technical woman’s hunting gear available with incredible fit and the most technical fabrics and technologies available.  It is so important to do something you love and I am very happy to say I have achieved that goal on all fronts.

Bonefishing Report from Capt. Rick Grassett

Capt. Rick Grassett, is a full-time fishing guide and outdoor writer based in Sarasota, FL. He’s a great host and a super guy, and as luck would have it he hosts a group at Andros South each year.

Here’s Capt. Grassett’s report from last week. Thanks Rick!

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I spent the last week from Saturday, May 2nd through Saturday, May 9th, hosting a group of friends and customers at Andros South bonefish lodge on South Andros in the Bahamas. Nick Reding, Bob Harness and Bob Reynolds, all from St. Louis, MO, Frank Rhodes, from Auburndale, FL, Hal Lutz, from Parrish, FL and Jon Yenari and I, from Sarasota, met in Ft. Lauderdale on Saturday afternoon, May 2nd. We had a smooth, one hour flight over on a Lynx Air twin engine Cessna 402 and were greeted by managers Rick Sisler and Kateri Clay.

The weather and fishing were near perfect! I had an opportunity to fish with each member of the group and fish a variety of areas. Some days were better than others and some days were fantastic! Anglers fishing the vast sand flats to the south fished near Jackfish Channel, the Water Cays, Curly Cut Cays, Fish Key and the “airport flat”. Some of these flats are so big they go all the way to the horizon. Frank and Jon had a great day at the “airport flat” one day catching and releasing more than 50 bones. Hal and I fished the south end one day and had a great morning wading along a mangrove shoreline on a flood tide. We caught 15 or 20 fish before noon. Frank, Jon, Hal and Kateri went offshore one day and landed more than 30 mahi mahi (dolphin) to 12-pounds on flies and conventional tackle. Their first mahis on fly!

Several creeks – Deep Creek, Little Creek and Grassy Creek all cut through to the west side, crossing the ”Devil’s Backbone” ridge and open up into large flats and salt ponds with smaller creeks feeding into them. We caught lots and lots of bonefish to 6-pounds with most of them in the 2 to 3-pound class. Some were smaller and a few were even bigger. Another angler at the lodge, John from British Columbia, landed an 8-pounder one day. Bob Reynolds and I had a great day on a huge school over on the west side one day with guide, Fredlon. We waded and doubled and tripled for more than an hour. I also landed a 30-pound ‘cuda that day! Nick and I fished with Torrie one day and learned a lot about targeting big bonefish.

Even though catching lots of fish out of a big school is a lot of fun, the most rewarding to me is stalking singles, doubles and smaller schools. A couple of the most rewarding fish I caught were tailing on a slick, calm morning when we had to wade like a “heron” and make a perfect cast to catch them! Top flies were Gotchas, Peterson’s Spawning Shrimp and variations of them. We also encountered lots of sharks and ‘cudas. Several ‘cudas, up to 30-pounds, were landed on flies and conventional tackle.

Bob Reynolds from St. Louis, Mo, with a nice South Andros bonefish
Photo: Rick Grassett

I hated to come back to the real world, but the good thing is that tarpon fishing is getting ready to take off back at home in Sarasota. I have already received several reports of tarpon being jumped and landed from Tampa Bay to Sarasota. I’ll be on the water this week hunting tarpon, which should get even better as we get further away from last week’s full moon.

Tight Lines,
Capt. Rick Grassett

See the original article at GotHunts.com

Spot And Stalk Trout

Fishing for trout can certainly be done by fishing blind, finding likely holding water and casting a good imitation of trout food into these places hoping for action.  Admittedly a lot of my time on the water is spent this way and sometimes it is your only option.  However, it is a truly rewarding experience when you are able to spot a subtly feeding fish, devise a game plan, and stalk within casting range without disturbing its feeding pattern.  Then choose the right fly, make a perfect cast, manage any tricky currents, bring the fly into the feeding zone at the right moment, and seeing it all come together at the intersection of fly and trout snout.

This spring I had plenty of occasions to practice my trout stalking skills on a local river.  It is a tail water fishery, and the flows in this river are quite low all winter and spring until they bump up sometime after the reservoir above fills in mid April.  This means that in March and early April there is a lot of skinny water, and you will often find large fish hanging in water barely deep enough to cover their backs.  These fish are relatively easy to spot and thus make for a perfect opportunity to apply the spot and stalk method to fly fishing.   I have really enjoyed testing my skills and finding out just how much fun stalking big trout can be.

Late March on this river also ushers in a highly anticipated event.  Skwalas.  An early stonefly that is welcomed with open arms as they offer a much needed break from fishing tiny midge and baetis patterns all winter.  The Skwala Stoneflies are not overly prolific but fish do often gobble up the unfortunate few adults that find themselves clumsily flailing about on the rivers surface.  There was one particular outing this spring where my intention from the beginning was to hammer the bigger bugs into likely holding water and watch the trout go nuts for the big juicy morsels.  In my over exuberance I made some critical mistakes that undoubtedly cost me a few fish that day.

After rigging up my fly rod at the truck with a trusted adult Skwala pattern, I barged down to the water and without much grace waded right into the current.  After casting into likely holding water below riffles, and around mostly submerged rocks for about 20 minutes, and coming up empty I turned to wade up river to the next run.  There about 20 feet from me just off the bank in some very shallow water I could see a good sized fish working back and forth in the trickling current.  With my mind still set on Skwalas I threw a nice cast landing a few feet out in front of the fish.  As the fly drifted overhead the big fish made a lazy start up at it then turned away at the last moment.  I made a few more casts and each one got similar results.  Finally I took a breather and just watched the fish as it fed.  It was feeding in a small channel of current that flowed between two small submerged rocks.  It was darting back and forth and at times rising nearly to the surface to intercept its food.  As I watched it I knew it was time to put away the big bugs and break out my midge box again.    As the fish continued to feed, its mouth slashing from one side to the other in the buffet line drifting by it in that soft current, I devised my game plan.  Seeing that the fish had not shied away from the Skwala pattern I had passed over it a few minutes earlier, I used one of my favorite methods of fishing small hard to see flies that are fished subsurface.  I tied about 18 inches of tippet to the bend of the hook on my bullet head Skwala pattern and tied on a #20 zebra midge as a dropper.  This would allow me to watch the larger fly to detect a strike on the smaller submerged fly without using an unnatural looking indicator that would likely spook or tip off the fish.

As the cast unfurled and landed a few feet above the slot the fish was feeding in, I watched in anticipation.  The flies drifted through the slot cleanly and as the Skwala pattern passed over the feeding fish I saw it make a quick movement and the Skwala gently dipped below the surface.  I brought up the rod tip and felt the heavy head shake of a hooked trout.  As the big brown trout blasted across the river ripping line from my reel a smile broke out on my face.  This is what it is all about.

A few moments later after releasing the 20 inch brown back into the current I took a very close look up the stream ahead of me.  There about 15 feet in front of where I had just caught this fish was another very similar fish in a similar lie slashing from side to side.  And up beyond that fish I could see the dark form of yet another fish also feeding a couple feet off the bank in the shallow water.  I was glad to see it but became quite aware that with fish stacked up like this tight to  the bank I surely had busted a couple feeding fish out of their water when I had pushed my way down to the river.  That day turned out to be one of my better ones on the river as I stalked and caught visibly feeding fish right up until dark.

If you are like me you value your time on the water fishing.  Quite a lot of energy can be built up just anticipating the moment that you arrive at the river.  The problem is our tendency to allow this energy to push us along right into the river where we begin to waive our rod madly about, without stopping to simply observe what is happening on the water.  The solution is a matter of taking the energy built up within us and dialing it back a couple notches before we arrive at our fishing spot.   Slow down and use your senses.  Too often I am in such a rush when I get to the river my main goal is just to get a fly tied on and get in the water.  While the advice we have all gotten at some point in our lives that “you can’t catch a fish without your line in the water,” is technically true, it can also cause you to miss out on a lot of fish.  Rather than rushing down to the water’s edge it is sometimes better to start by hunting rather than fishing.  Look for feeding fish, look for insects, keep your options open, and don’t solidify your game plan until you have taken some time to truly observe what is happening that day on the river.  Rivers are a changing environment and no two days will be the same.  We can’t just assume what worked for us last time we were here will work the same way again.  It is this constant challenge that keeps us coming back.

So the next time you pull up to your favorite fishing hole remember the words of baseball’s wordsmith, Yogi Bera, “you can observe a lot by just watching.”

This article by: BaseCampLegends.com

August’s Woman of the Wild-Tammy Ballew

Tammy Ballew is a court reporter by profession and a huntress by passion. She has spent hundred of hours over the last 30 years hunting deer, turkey and several small game species, in addition to fishing in her home state of Missouri. An avid outdoorswoman in many respects, Tammy’s love of hunting and fishing has enabled her in her outdoor writing career also. She currently is a member of WOMA, Women’s Outdoor Media Association, and is the field staff editor for the “Women in the Outdoors—Gals with Guns and Fishing Females” section of the West Tennessee Outdoor and Michigan’s Hooks and Bullets Magazine. Tammy also writes for The WON, The Women’s Outdoor News, and contributes to their “In the Bag” reviews. Tammy recently joined the Pro Staff at HuntingLife.com

Tammy started hunting in her early 20s, and although deer hunting was her first experience, she soon grew equally as excited about turkey hunting. “I loved the vocalness of the turkeys and the amazing transformation of Mother Nature during the early weeks of spring turkey season.” She admits she knew nothing about turkey hunting, but she bought a couple turkey calls and a training tape, and read as many articles as she could on the subject, and was soon on her way to chasing gobblers. In fact, the first turkeys she called up, she was so shocked that she did it, she didn’t even shoot. Lesson learned, she has since been successful on several toms.

She and her husband have five children, and most of them hunt at least some species. One of her fondest hunts was with her son, Travis, a Marine currently serving in Iraq. They doubled up on a couple gobblers after a morning of whatever-could-go-wrong-went-wrong hunt.

They also have five grandchildren, which Tammy holds a Kuzin’ Kamp each summer where she teaches the kids to fish, shoot BB guns and .22s, catch-and-release frogs and any other critter that comes in their path.

Tammy’s goals are to pass down the traditions of hunting and fishing to her children, grandchildren, and anyone else that wants to share in the experience.

See the original article at CampWildGirls.com

Fishing With Kids

One of the best parts about being in the outdoor industry is having the opportunity to host family groups at awesome locations. We absolutely love having kids around, and watching the experiences that family groups have together couldn’t be more gratifying. Fathers, daughters, sons, mothers, uncles, grandparents and more – we’ve seen it all and we love it.

We get a lot of questions from people looking to take their kids fishing, so here’s a little primer.

Where Should We Go?

As far as our lodges are concerned, unless your child is a passionate steelheader or bonefish angler, you should probably go to Alaska. Here’s why:

• The fishery on the Kanektok is extremely productive. Catch rates are high. For the majority of the season, less-experienced anglers can certainly catch fish every day, and usually lots of ‘em. When you’re fishing with kids, catching is pretty important.
• The Kanektok also has lots of variety. If Mom likes hunting giant rainbows around snags (a fairly challenging fishery), but Son wants to hammer bright silvers (which takes less skill), both can easily happen in the same day. There really is something for everyone.
• The crew in Alaska loves fishing with kids. They love their energy, their curiosity, and the speed with which they learn. They’ve hosted lots of kids, and know what works with them and what doesn’t. Besides, kids tend to be really ‘fishy’!
• Logistics are easy. Travel is simple. Boat rides are short. Wading is a piece of cake.

How Old is Old Enough?

It really depends on the kid, but we find that for destination lodge trips, somewhere between 10 and 12 is probably the age at which most kids are ready for a trip. It’s mainly a function of attention span – our fishing programs are built around long days (10 hours of fishing at Alaska West), and if your daughter decides at 10am on day two that she’d rather be someplace else, you’re the one who’s going to have a tough trip. Strength, skill and ability to stay safe tend to be a lot less important than attention span, and you know your kid’s attention span better than anyone.

Tips for Fishing with Kids

• You’re doing a wonderful thing for your family when you takes your kid(s) to a fishing lodge. Keep that in mind when you plan your day – it’s about them, not about you! There’s plenty of incredible fishing to be had, so resist the temptation to fish where and how you want to. Build most of your days around what the kids want to do, and everyone will be a lot happier. Don’t worry – you’re going to catch a bunch of great fish regardless.
• Be safe! We very strongly recommend lifejackets for kids. Wading belts are a must, as are lectures about safe wading practices. We pride ourselves on providing a very safe enviroment for kids, but even so, don’t forget that you’re way out in the middle of nowhere…and be safe.
• At the same time, give the kids some latitude! Resist the temptation to hover. Our guides are great with kids – wander off on your own while your grandson has a fun hour with your guide. Let them experiment – kids can be incredibly intuitive anglers, and you might be surprised how successful they can be on their own.
• Put some time into your travel logistics, keeping the kids in mind. Consider breaking long travel days into a couple of days with some stops along the way. Ask in advance for hotel and restaurant recommendations along the way that work well for kids.

The most important thing isn’t where you go, it’s that you go. Take your kids fishing!

This post by Deneki

See the original article at GotHunts.com

Taking the Perfect Hero Shot

Cameron Miller is a long-time veteran of Alaska West. He spent a bunch of years guiding and taking pictures, and the past few years has made the transition into nearly full-time photography. If you’re headed to Alaska West this summer, you’ll see slideshows from Cameron at the beginning and the end of your week, and you’ll leave camp with a DVD packed with pictures from your week. Not a bad memento!

Cameron gives a great presentation on how to take hero shots (the classic angler-with-fish pose), and we asked him to summarize his tips in a post.

We now present Cameron Miller on ‘Capturing the Moment’.

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1. Read this list and then have fishing buddies read it. You may know how to get a decent fish pic, but the fact is that you’ve gotta hold the fish while your pal takes the photo.

2. Take a deep breath and calm down. After the excitement of a good fight and the disbelief that you landed a hog, the first instinct of most anglers is to dive into the net and touch the fish. Rushing into the handling of the fish most often leads to a bad case of “Oh-crap-itis.”

3. Tidy yourself up. After a second to catch your breath, give yourself a good once-over. You want to make sure that you look good for the photo so try to have all your zippers up, your pockets closed, and your wader pouch tucked in.

4. Prepare the camera. While you are busy making yourself pretty, have the photographer turn on the camera and make sure the settings are correct. If it is your camera, prepare it for the photographer so that all they have to do is frame you and the fish and push the shutter release button.
5. Get in position. You want to look comfortable when you are holding the fish, so try to avoid awkward positions (such as standing hunched-over trying to hold the fish and look at the camera). The easiest position is to take a knee in about six to eight inches of water.

6. Determine where the sun/light is. Generally you want the sun or the strongest light that is filtering through the clouds behind the photographer. Try to have even light on the angler’s face and on the fish, and if possible frame the shot with a darker background. If the light is strong like with mid-day sun, the fish is going to be by far the brightest object in the frame. Try to hold the fish so that the light reflects off of it with the shallowest angle possible – that is to say have the sun off to the left or right side and not directly behind the photographer.

7. Determine the fish’s good side. Before handling the fish, determine which side of the fish should be presented towards the camera. Obviously you want the side that looks the prettiest and has the fewest scars or marks on it (although sometimes a scar or deformity makes the photo memorable). Usually the mouth and the position of the fly are the most important parts of this equation.

8. Look comfortable. You can always tell the guys who have handled lots of fish because they look like that fish should be in their hands. Try to be comfortable and confident. Smile or don’t smile, look at the camera or look at the head of the fish. It doesn’t really matter – just try not to have the deer-in-the-headlights look.

9. Handle the fish with care. Fish that are being squeezed look like their eyes are going to pop out and their mouths look like they are going to projectile vomit. With a proper grip there is no reason to squeeze the fish.

10. Hide the fingers, leader, and fly line. Try to present as much of the fish as possible to camera. Avoid grips that hide the fish behind fingers and hands. Also, be conscious of where the leader and fly line are and make sure they are not crossing between the camera and fish.

11. Keep the fish close to the water. I believe that fish look more natural close to their home (the water) and that they only need to be lifted out of the water a few inches for a good photo. If the light is good, such as in the early morning or late evening, the reflection of the fish in the water is often present and can add a lot to the photo. Always take photos above water in case the fish is dropped, and avoid completely outstretched arms as if you were a five year old showing off an ice cream cone.

12. Fill the frame. The important things in a hero shot are the angler and the fish. Therefore you want them to fill the frame with just a little bit of the background around the edges to provide spacing. What you don’t want is a scenery shot that has an indiscernible blob of angler and fish in the very center of it.

13. Be quick. Even though this list of tips is long, the process of photographing a fish should be quick. The fish just fought for its life and is stressed and oxygen-deprived. It is not fair to torture it even more just to get a decoration for you desk. Keep the fish in the water until the moment everybody is ready to take the picture. Take a quick picture or two and then put it back in the water and revive it until it swims out of your hand. If the photographer is quick, he can often get a good picture of the revival/release process.

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One last note on reviving fish – in rivers, a fish must be pointed upstream for it to breathe properly. I’m surprised at how many people don’t know this.

With these tips in mind, your next close encounter of the lunker kind will get a photo that not only shows that you are an angler that gets results, but that you look good while you are doing it.

Cheers!

This post by Deneki Outdoors

See the original article at GotHunts.com