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Modern bait-casting tackle is a joy to use

Like most kids in the 1960s, I started my fishing career with spinning tackle. There were plenty of inexpensive spinning reels available back then that made learning to cast a quick and easy process for a young angler. Gaining competence with spinning gear soon led to my buying my first fly rod. The learning curve for fly-fishing was considerably steeper, but one I readily navigated. It would be almost thirty years later that I decided to embrace bait-casting tackle as a significant part of my fishing arsenal. Because trout fishing tended to be my primary focus in those younger days, ...

Recalling childhood memories of the river

Last weekend my brother and I spent a relaxing time fishing on the Juniata River. The weather wasn’t the best for fishing, mostly hot and bright, but a frequent breeze kept things mostly pleasant, and enough river smallmouths attacked our lures to keep the day interesting. We didn’t land any monsters on that trip, but those hard-fighting Juniata bass of any size never disappoint. That’s why I have long considered the Juniata River as one of my favorite places to fish. And that river has provided a lifetime of wonderful memories for me. In fact, the oldest childhood memory I ...

Beating the heat for summertime fishing

After a couple of weeks of day after day with temperatures well into the 90s, a few days of 80-degree temperatures feels like a relief. I certainly don’t need to remind fellow anglers that the recent brutal heat wave made fishing an ineffective ordeal on many days. And even with a return to more “normal” summertime weather, that situation probably won’t get a lot better for awhile. Trout fishing can be the most problematic now. The ample water levels in most area streams that we enjoyed throughout the spring are just a memory now. I drove by a small freestone stream last week ...

Volunteers needed to report turkey sightings, count others

The Annual Pennsylvania Wild Turkey Sighting Survey is currently underway and runs through Aug. 31. This project is important for managing wild turkey populations throughout Pennsylvania, and the Pennsylvania Game Commission is looking for reports of turkey sightings this summer from the public. “The turkey survey enhances our agency’s internal survey, which serves as a long-term index of turkey reproduction and is used in our turkey population model,” Game Commission Turkey Biologist Mary Jo Casalena said. “Participants should report all turkeys seen, whether gobblers, hens ...

Licenses go on sale next week

Because the “hunting license year” begins on July 1 and ends on June 30 of the following year in Pennsylvania, new hunting licenses have gone on sale during mid-to-late June for the upcoming fall hunting seasons. Then a few weeks later, the cumbersome process of mailing antlerless deer (doe) license applications in special pink envelopes to county treasurer offices began. That process was changed last year, and for the first time, hunters could purchase their antlerless deer licenses directly, either in person or online, through the electronic licensing system. This was a much ...

There’s finally some time to talk about dry fly fishing

By Walt Young For the Mirror Tying flies has long been one of my favorite winter activities. I derive much pleasure from crafting a supply of the many fly patterns needed to restock my fly boxes for the upcoming trout season. It’s also an opportunity to experiment with new materials and fly designs in the hope of creating a new and effective fly pattern. Last winter, much of my time at the fly-tying vise was spent making dry flies. Having very little snow accumulation during the winter seemed to indicate the streams of our region would likely be relatively low during the ...