Innholdsfortegnelse for April 2016 i Field & Stream

In “The Slam Man” on p. 66, editor-atlarge Bill Heavey takes a road trip with Jeff Budz, the turkey hunter with 91 grand slams, and three of Budz’s friends. Here are some more stats from the story: 5 DAYS ON THE ROAD 3 STATES HUNTED 1,200 MILES COVERED 1 STUCK SUV O MINUTES HEAVEY HELPED GETTING SAID SUV UNSTUCK 4,307 Times Budz shook his head in disbelief at Heavey’s incompetence—give or take HOURS OF SLEEP EACH NIGHT GOBBLERS KILLED DURING THE TRIP…

EVER SINCE I STARTED turkey hunting in the ’80s, people have been trying to turn turkey hunting into deer hunting. First came turkey scoring, then blinds. Now turkey hunters scout with trail cameras, and more of them than ever spend spring inside a camo nylon cube, watching a decoy or, where legal, a feeder or bait pile. Since I believe that turkey hunting is what deer hunting would be if deer hunting were still fun, I am not a fan of this trend—except when it comes to shotguns. We will never make turkey shotguns into deer rifles, but we’re trying hard. With the advent of Winchester Long Beard and Federal Heavyweight ammo, 60 yards is not too far with the right equipment. Not long ago, 20 to 25 yards was…

THE LABEL ON the ammo box says SUBSONIC, so this stuff won’t spook every deer in the county like your earth-shattering aught-six does, right? Well, sort of. Subsonic cartridges do produce less noise than full-velocity rounds, but there’s no free lunch—as usual. Your rifle will still go bang, and none of this quieter ammo is powerful enough for hunting big game much past slingshot range. Still, subsonic ammo does fill an important niche for many hunters and shooters. LOWER THE BOOM At sea level, the speed of sound is roughly 1127 feet per second. When a moving object, such as a bullet, breaks that threshold, there is an audible shock wave that sounds like the crack of a bullwhip. Most of the noise inherent with shooting a rifle, however,…

Dry Flies When a trout rises to a dry fly, it will sip the bug off the surface, turn around, and swim back down to its lie. In this case the classic upward set—a.k.a. “trout set”—is appropriate, because it gets your line and fly moving in the opposite direction of the fish, helping plant the hook solidly. Poppers Even though species like bass, bluegills, and pike will hit a foam or hair popper with more force than a trout sipping a dry fly, they still tend to smash, turn, and swim back down. With that in mind, a hard upward set seals the deal with these patterns. Large Streamers Large streamers intended for pike, trophy trout, or muskies are usually taken at or close to eye level of the fish.…

Tactic No. 1 FLANK THE STRUT ZONE Back when George Mayfield was a turkey guide, hunting was all about 2-year-old gobblers and high success rates. Mayfield is retired now, and for fun, he likes to duel with older turkeys. “If there’s a bird bad enough to earn a nickname,” he says, “I’m all over him.” The key to killing a bad old bird like this is to learn everything you can about his strut zone— and then don’t crowd it, says Mayfield. “An old gobbler isn’t coming to a call so much as he’s coming to a spot where a hen can see him putting on a show. Many hunters mess up by finding a strut zone and then setting up right in it.” Mayfield likes to get agobblergoingfrom the…

IT IS ALWAYS a privilege to be in a deer camp and to witness the old rituals that never get old: a boy too excited to sleep the night before opening day; a father who remembers that feeling and so loves his son that he’d forgo a pay raise to help him succeed. Such moments are bittersweet, because I doubt I’ll ever have them with my own children. Despite—maybe because of— my best efforts, none has any real interest in the outdoors. Emma has deliberately turned 16 and, now that she can legally wreck an automobile, has centered her life around a band, 5 Seconds of Summer. If one of its members suffers so much as a hangnail, Emma telepathically senses which boy, which finger, and who should be sent…

It’s a long, cold, lean winter for steelhead in the tributaries of the Great Lakes. After feasting on salmon eggs all fall, steelhead survive on their body fat and slim pickings of nymphs and pupae until it’s time to spawn in spring. So as these “drop-backs”return to the lake postspawn, they’re hungry. Here’s how to catch them on their way back to big water. 1 Tailout to Get In Not all steelhead spawn at the same time, so on any given day you can run into a mix of spawning, prespawn, and drop-back fish. To find the more aggressive drop-backs, target the faster water at the tailouts of pools. They will also linger in the gravel spawning areas, below the spawning fish, eating wayward eggs that are swept downstream. 2…

Hunters Specialties pro staffer Rick White says his best hunt ever was the one in which his son, Daniel, shot his first tom. It took a weekend that had plenty of learning experiences and oh-so-close birds, but at the end, Daniel had his turkey. Daniel was successful because his father kept a few key pointers in mind. 1 GET A GROUND BLIND No setup beats a ground blind for a youth hunt, largely because it conceals a kid’s inevitable fidgeting. Get a model with plenty of room for child and mentor. 2 HAVE A PLAN B Even though the first morning setup felt like a slam dunk, White knew to have a backup spot in mind. Plan on using the whole weekend and have multiple roosts mapped out, so it’s…

ONE OF THE great things about hunting and fishing is you can spend a lifetime participating in these sports and never fully master them. Whether it’s something as simple as tying a stronger fishing knot or as challenging as nailing a 500-yard shot, sportsmen are always hungry to know more, because the more skills you know, the better the experience you’ll have in the wild. And because this is one case in which the learning itself is a lot of fun. That’s why we think you’re going to enjoy our new series of online courses dedicated to helping you become a better hunter, shooter, and angler. Called Outdoor Life University (outdoorlifeu.com), this project is a team effort among FIELD & STREAM and our sister titles Outdoor Life, Sport Fishing,…

THE KID WAS 8 years old, a Cajun boy from the Louisiana big woods, and he was killing me at blackjack. It was past 10 P.M., and we had been hard at it since well before dawn, chasing squirrels so far back in the swamps that we had to be on the ATVs an hour before sunrise. I was deep into my cash and ready to fold for good, but my concerns did not amount to a puddle of tears. An hour earlier my hosts had capped a 12-quart black pot with its battered iron lid and slid a half dozen squirrels into the oven. “This is what we call puttin’ it on drink, Mr. Eddie,” they said. Beer tabs popped like somebody was two-stepping on Bubble Wrap. “Ain’t no…

Albright Knot An extremely secure connection for splicing lines of different diameters— or with different coatings— the Albright works best when the thinner line is being connected to a thicker line that allows for some “bite.” For example, thinner, harder mono leader material will bite into softer fly line when an Albright is cinched down. Likewise, thin, slick braid or coated wire leader will bite into softer, thicker mono. The trick to a secure Albright, however, is keeping the coils tight as you form it, and cinching it down very hard until all the wraps lock firmly. An Albright that isn’t properly cinched will fail in a flash. Blood Knot Best for connecting two pieces of line of similar diameters, the Blood is most commonly used in flyfishing to attach…

Make the Swap Modern chemically or surgically sharpened hooks have needlelike points and fine cutting edges like a broadhead. These hooks tend to be more expensive, as they’re also made of high-quality materials such as carbon steel. Because they’re so tough, it’s very hard to dull them in the first place. If they do lose their edge or point, a hook file will never restore the original sharpness; it’s more likely to chip the edges and make them worse. Just replace them. Triple Bypass Stainless and bronze hooks dull easily but sharpen well. In fact, you can often put a better point on these hooks than they’ll have out of the package. I make three quick passes with a hook file down each edge, moving from the bend toward the…

Not long ago, a good cooler kept ice for a weekend, maybe. Today’s premium rotomolded coolers have quadrupled that period, but at the cost of a new truck payment. With so many dollars on the line, you need to know exactly what you’re getting. To that end, we started with a dozen high-end chests, and after 10 days of measuring ice melt, tossing the coolers off a pickup at 45 mph, and carefully weighing the pros and cons of every latch, hinge, handle, and foot, the best ones of the bunch emerged. Here are the top six coolers on the market today, ranked and reviewed. [4] IGLOO SPORTSMAN • $250; IGLOOSPORTSMAN.COM SPECS 54 qt. • 30.4 lb. • 5-year warranty, made in the U.S.A. TOTAL SCORE 84.6 The Sportsman was…

Stalking redfish in shallow marshes is a thrill, and when the water’s clear, you can spot them from a mile away. So what happens when the water is murky or stained? If you know the telltale signs of a red, it’s easier than you think to decipher what kind of fish are swimming in casting range. WHAT TO LOOK FOR Broad V-Wakes A guide I fished with once likened a redfish to a fire extinguisher being pulled underwater. There will be a distinct bulge in the surface made by the fish’s broad, blunt head, followed by a long, trailing V-shaped wake. Reds often swim very straight and deliberately, so if the wake is moving erratically, there’s a good chance it’s something else. Tails There’s no surer sign of a redfish…

Carp may plod along very slowly, but these bigshouldered fish have serious speed and power once you swing that fly rod and set that hook. And they fight dirty. These four tricks will improve your chances of getting a bruiser suckermouth into the landing net. 1 GO EASY TO SCORE BIG Since carp eat small flies and can be very line shy, light tippets are generally required for scoring a take. When you first set the hook, the fish will often not move, which is like pulling against a cinder block, or it will take off like a jet fighter the second it feels the sting. In either case, if you swing with all your might, you’re going to break the tippet. A gentle lift is all it takes to…

RAMEN HAS TAKEN the culinary world by storm in recent years, bearing no resemblance to the gloppy flavor-pack versions that many of us have slurped during lean camping trips. The recipe here is a countrified riff on a ramen bowl, inspired by the cookbook writer Cree Lefavour, in which largemouth bass meets pulled pork in a deeply satisfying broth. This is a great use for leftovers from a barbecued pork shoulder, but you can also use the precooked pulled pork that’s sold in supermarkets; simply rinse off all of the barbecue sauce from the pork first. Crappie, bream, catfish, walleye, or just about any other white-fleshed fish will stand in for the largemouth bass fillets. INGREDIENTS 2 largemouth bass fillets, cut into 4 pieces (about 2 oz. per serving) 2…

You can spend hundreds on a tsunami-proof rain jacket. But when all you want is something to keep in the truck or stuff in a pack to keep you from getting soaked before the end of your hunt or your day on the river, you can get away with spending a lot less. How much less? I found four breathable rain jackets—two medium-weight and two featherweights—that are well suited for hunting, fishing, or both and go for under $70 each. Here’s how they stacked up. MARMOT PRECIP • $100; MARMOT.COM OUTLET PRICE: STARTING AT $60; REI.COM BARGAIN RATING Excellent • Waterproofness: Good • Breathability: Excellent • Construction: Excellent • Features: Excellent SPECS Nylon ripstop shell with NanoPro 2.5-layer coating • 11.9 oz. (for size XL) • Multiple colors, no camo…

It’s no secret that streamers score big trout, but a fish’s willingness to chase one down has a lot to do with water temperature. In early spring—or any time the water is below 45 degrees—a big brown isn’t as likely to bolt 10 feet after your pattern; that doesn’t mean it won’t take a shot. The trick is picking the right streamer for chilly water, and then altering your presentation to get frosty trout to chew. Here’s the routine. 1 DROP AND WIGGLE Streamers like the Zonker that have rabbit-strip tails are my go-tos in the early season. That’s because it takes very little movement to get that fur dancing. In fact, the current alone is usually enough to create some sexy wiggle. I also opt for streamers with weighted…

As has been the case since I killed my first longbeard in 1990, March sees my United Parcel and FedEx drivers delivering little brown boxes filled with the latest and (sometimes) greatest turkey calls of the year to the front door. These six are the best new calls for 2016. 1 Quaker Boy has given me incentive to pack a push-button in my vest this year with the Trigger Finger, which eliminates the push rod outside the call frame. That means there’s almost no chance of emitting unintentional yelps and squawks while you’re walking. It’s made of mahogany, so sounds are soft, smooth, and natural, with just a hint of high-end for volume. Clucks, purrs, and yelps come easy. Today’s hard-hunted gobblers don’t hear a push-button often, and that distinctive…