Innholdsfortegnelse for May 2016 i Field & Stream

ONE OF THE FEW things we love more than our trucks in this great country is our guns. So if you’ve got the one, it’s borderline un-American not to have the other hanging in the back window. Plus, if you spend any amount of time riding around on hunting property or a ranch, it won’t be long before you come across something that needs shooting. For some people, a good truck gun is just the cheapest, handiest one you can get your hands on—maybe a used H&R single-shot that gets stashed in the truck box or behind the seat until a coon or coyote scurries across the two-track. Real cowboys like a short lever-action .30/30 that can trade from truck to scabbard and put down an injured mount if called…

OUT THE CORNER of my eye, I catch the flick of a tail. There it is again. I move the scope and strain to find a critter in the tangle of branches and leaves. I follow a jagged line from the tail up to the back to the head. I make out an eye and, just behind it, a small dark spot, which serves as an aiming point leading directly to the brain. It’s still early in the day, but already everyone has retreated into the shade. We don’t get much relief, as the canopy holds in the heat and humidity, but at least the sun isn’t beating on our necks. I hear my friends nearby, chattering in a mix of English and broken Spanish as they point out…

PACK IT IN Rubbermaid’s 24-gallon ActionPacker is sturdy enough to stand on, with lockable latches and a nearly watertight lid. 1. An on-the-fly truck repair kit should include replacement parts and enough stuff to MacGyver your way home. Hit the auto-parts store for JB Weld for fixing broken metal braces and patching an oil pan and hose-repair tape (a), two wire hangers and a tire reamer-plugger (b), duct tape (c), parachute cord (d), Fix-a-Flat (e), and jumper cables (f). 2. Venison jerky and some freeze-dried meals can keep you nourished while you wait for the rescue crew. 3. A gallon of drinking water to quench your thirst will make a major breakdown more bearable. 4. A 7x9-foot blue tarp will shed rain while you repair a punctured tire, provide shade…

[1] BEST OF THE TEST SHIMANO CALCUTTA CONQUEST 400 It isn’t cheap at $580, but this reel is a work of art. Every moving part is rigid and smooth, and 13 total bearings serve up a flawless drag and retrieve. The Conquest is incredibly lightweight and compact; even the 400 model we tested nestles into the palm of your hand. We did have a few backlashes, but the 20-point cast-control should take care of that with some fine-tuning. There are four models, so everyone from bass guys to hardcore muskie and striper nuts will be drooling, lefthanders included. [2] BEST OF THE TEST, TIE 13 FISHING INCEPTION 8.1:1 Another huge surprise: This relatively new small company has been impressing us in recent years, but the Inception still caught us off…

All topwater strikes are special, and yet few eruptions compare with that of a Goliath largemouth inhaling a hollow- body frog in the lily pads. Not only does frogging over pads give you a great shot at a topwater trophy, but this vegetation also tends to hold large numbers of fish. Fishing this heavy cover effectively, however, requires proper gear and an understanding of how to bring a frog to life. Here’s what you need to know to raise a giant. Bad to the (Back) Bone Leave the medium-action spinning outfit with the 8-pound line in the rod locker. Getting a toad out of the pads requires a lot more winching power. Opt for a heavyaction baitcasting rod measuring 7 or 8 feet. It needs to be able to handle…

Peacock bass are one species I believe every fly angler should chase at some point in his or her life. They’re aggressive, they eat through out the water column, and when they strike, you’d better hold on tight. I’ve chased these fish in South America as well as South Florida, and the action was just as amazing in both locations. Whether you have the opportunity to hop a quick flight to Miami, or take a long journey to the heart of the Amazon, here are a few tricks I’ve learned that’ll help you connect with more and bigger peacocks on the fly. 1 DON’T STOP THE POP When a peacock takes a shot at a popper on the surface, it’ll stop your heart. Froth goes flying, and the smack rings…

• THE SEASON • SHOTGUNS • ASK PETZAL • THE WILD CHEF • SPORTSMAN’S NOTEBOOK • RIFLES • FISHING • THE TOTAL OUTDOORSMAN • ESCAPES LEGENDARY trout guru Terry Gunn and I stood on the Colorado River’s famous Prop Bar near Lees Ferry, Ariz. It was a blissful May morning, with shirtsleeve temps, a cobalt sky, and the sun barely peeking over the massive Marble Canyon walls—the type of late-spring day when the water just looks right and feels right washing around your waders. The cliff swallows had begun darting over the water, a sure signal that midges were gathering in thick clouds. Suddenly, Gunn’s wristwatch started beeping. “Fish alarm,” he said. “At 9:15 A.M.?” I asked. “Are these rainbows late risers?” “No, they’re wide awake, and we have…

FIVE YEARS AGO, carp were flyfishing’s in-thing. Today that craze is simmering, while pike and muskies are boiling over. Almost every time I scroll through my Facebook feed, I see a picture of someone’s new muskie pattern, or a friend mugging it up with a pike that has a mouthful of feathers. I guess I’m trendy, too, because I’ve fallen head over heels for toothers on the fly, particularly northerns. It’s not that I’m anti-muskie, but pike, well, they eat a lot more often. My addiction has taken me from dirty local backwaters to pristine lakes in Saskatchewan, and the more I profess my love, the more gear questions I get about pike on the fly. So let’s set the record straight. Here’s a breakdown of what you need—and what…

PLUS: 11 KILLER SKILLS FOR THE ULTIMATE SURVIVAL KNIFE…

PACK IT IN Watershed designed its small Survival Equipment Bag with input from the U.S. Coast Guard (drybags.com). It is completely water proof and has reflective tape and a mouth valve so you can inflate it for emergency flotation. 1. Stow multiple modes of putting out an SOS. Orion’s Emergency Marine kit (a) includes both handheld and pistol-fired flares (orion signals.com). A polished glass signal mirror (b) is good for 30-plus miles (best glide.com). The floating ACR ResQLink+ (c) beams your precise location to the international Cospas-Sarsat search-and-rescue tracking system (acrartex.com). 2. Whether you need to cling to the hull or work on a stubborn outboard, a multitool and some basic supplies will boost your chances. Toss in a spare fuel bulb (a), fuel connectors, and hose clamps (b). Add…

A High -Tech Materials State-of-the-art composites and carbon strains, like the Hagane used in select Shimano reels and Zaion in some Daiwa models, are lightweight, rigid, and practically indestructible. In short, you get a tough reel that’s easier to fish with. B Faster Cranking Speed is hot right now, and more and more high-gear- ratio reels are hitting the scene. Some bass reels are pushing into the upper 30s in inches retrieved per turn. The lightningfast Inception 8.1:1 by 13 Fishing takes in 34 inches with each crank, which is ideal for aggressive retrieves and getting fish in the boat fast. C Better Bargains Although the cost of top-end reels has increased, the quality of low- to mid-priced reels has also soared. Okuma has been leading the charge here;…

River fishing can be daunting for a catfish angler. Anchoring and setting baits in heavy current is tricky, and posting up in just one or two spots throughout the day may not put you in the prime holes. Enter catfish “bumping.” While not a new concept, this method of trolling a river with chunk baits is making a big comeback. It definitely takes some practice, but the payoff is huge. B’n’M Poles pro staffer Jason Aycock is a true master of the bump, and his knowledge will get you on more big blue cats than you ever thought possible. 1 Heavy Kit Aycock stresses the need for a light, sensitive rod with a fast tip and lots of backbone. A lighter rod will be less taxing to hold all day…

Just because the sun goes down doesn’t mean the species you love to catch go to bed. In fact, sometimes the biggest fish in the pond, lake, or river don’t eat at all until nightfall. Catching them past sunset requires some minor tweaks to your daytime tactics. These three will get you started night stalking. BASS Both largemouths and smallmouths stay active all night, especially when there’s a full moon to shed some light. Aside from planning an attack around the lunar calendar, fishing after dark is a prime time to bust a heavy bucket mouth or bronze back on the surface. Opt for lures like the Jitterbug, which makes a lot of noise as it’s slowly retrieved. The slower the retrieve, the more time a bass has to track…

PHOTOGRAPHER: TOM MARTINEAU LOCATION: ST. PAUL, KAN. On a cloudy and calm April morning, Jim Rosckes of Chaska, Minn., took a two-bird limit of Easterns on private land during Kansas’s archeryonly season and carried them out across Flat Rock Creek. After roosting the birds the night before, he set up in a wheatfield 150 yards away. “The turkeys were already gobbling, and I gobbled right back. Then eight hens flew down,” Rosckes says. “Soon, two toms followed. Three hens ran off, but five came toward me, and then the toms came a-running.” He shot one tom as it eyed his strutter decoy. The other started beating on the dead turkey, and although Rosckes’s next shot hit the bird, it ran and lay down 25 yards away. So he grabbed another…

GRAB HOLD To reduce snags, rig your drop-shot hook in line, not on a trailing leader. Keep adding lead-free split shot to the bottom of the rig until it’s heavy enough to stay in place during the drift, moving only when you make it advance by popping the rod. Crimp the split shot loosely to help it slide off if it gets hung up. A LITTLE JIGGLE As you slowly work the dropshot through the pool, impart action to the plastic by gently— but rapidly—shaking the tip of the rod. It doesn’t take much movement to get the bait dancing and quivering in place. HOLE SHOT Drop-shot rigs are just as effective for trout as they are for bass, particularly in those deep, dark holes with bottom-dwelling monsters. Those…

THE RIVER POURS between the boulders, each scarred with red and green paint left by canoes that didn’t thread this needle quite neatly enough. Standing in the boat, I twist to the right to plant the iron tip of a 12-foot-long spruce pole into the riverbottom, snubbing the canoe to a stop. The next move is the tricky one. I shift hand positions, grasp the pole tightly, and twist from the balls of my feet all the way to my shoulders. The bow torques to port, catches the current, and ferries across stream to send a V of clear water over the lip of the ledge. “Nice save,” says Bob Thompson, watching from the bow. The grizzled former Maine game warden and longtime Maine guide has been schooling me…

PACK IT IN The 6.10 Vertical Pouch from 5.11 Tactical is as straightforward as it is 1000-denier tough. Molded zipper pulls make for fast opening, and it’s MOLLEcompatible— which makes it easy to connect the firstaid kit to the outside for quick access (511 tactical.com). 1. Purifying water doesn’t get any simpler than a LifeStraw: Insert into a cesspool. Drink. The filter removes waterborne viruses and protozoa including giardia and cryptosporidium (lifestraw.com). 2. Pack a 3x5-inch glass mirror for maximum flash (best glide.com). 3. Lash the Kinetic Gig Spear stainless-steel twotine spearhead to a shaft, and the wild is your grocery store (buckknives.com). 4. Leave a note with a Sharpie pen, and the permanent ink won’t run in the rain. While you’re waiting for aid, use the pen to turn…

PACK IT IN Solkoa’s SUMA Container is strong enough to double as a digging trowel, and you can boil water and fry grubs in it (fast-fire.com). 1. Mountain lion got your tongue? Holler like hell with the pealess Fox 40 Micro whistle (fox40world.com). 2. Tenacious Tape is strong enough to splint a broken rod (mcnett.com). 3. You want two ways to turn on the heat: Titan Stormproof Matches (a) burn for 25 seconds and relight after a dunking (ucogear.com). The Spark-Force Fire Starter (b) is compact. Pair it with a WetFire tinder cube (c) for a 10-minute burn (ustbrands.com). 4. Power-Up Tip Double the battery life of your iPhone with an EnerPlex Surfr solar battery pack (go enerplex.com). 5. Pack a nonlubricated condom to carry water. 6. Your emergency fishing…

Retrieve fast or work slow? Hunt shallow or drop deep? Few fisheries are fraught with as much misinformation and as many misconceptions and opposing views as bass during the prespawn. Getting fishermen to agree on how to fish this period is difficult, but most will concur that the prespawn can be downright maddening. Largemouths and smallmouths should have their feedbags on in preparation for breeding but often seem to get a case of lockjaw or are nowhere to be found. Have no fear. We tracked down five of the country’s best bass guides, and their insider strategies for the prespawn will ensure that your local fish have no place to hide—and that you won’t throw a bait they’ll refuse. THE CRAWFISH HUNTER PRO DREW MONTGOMERY HOME WATER Lake Norman, North…

[1] BEST OF THE TEST SHIMANO STRADIC 2500FK The new incarnation of Shimano’s hugely popular Stradic is a gem. Our test reel was smooth and powerful, packing 20 pounds of stopping power with a silkiness that almost guarantees against ripping lips. Constructed with Shimano’s new bulletproof Hagane composite body and gears, the Stradic is loaded with cutting-edge technologies, such as X-Ship, which increases gear efficiency and power, and Dyna-Balance, which elimi nates wobble during the retrieve. The $200 price tag may put the Stradic FK out of some anglers’ reach, but that’s its only drawback. [2] BEST CASTER DAIWA EXIST 3012H The Exist thumped all comers in the casting contest, launching the 1∕-ounce weight over 150 feet, thanks to an oversize ABS long-cast spool. It won the retrieve test and…

A serious smallmouth fisherman often has a deck full of rods and lure compartments filled to the brim when he leaves the boat ramp in spring. This time of year, it’s easy to overthink things and get caught up in bait choices. It’s true that a wide array of lures can produce now, but if you want to do more catching than thinking, never leave home without these three baits. JERK BAITS Jerkbaits are fun to fish and highly effective. They’re also the perfect tools for locating fish, as they’ll draw active feeders in from a distance. In the early season, I prefer suspending jerkbaits, which stay in the zone when paused. Crushing blows that come on a fast jerk are exciting, but don’t be afraid to pause for more…