Vermont Fish & Wildlife Dept Expands Southern Vt Wildlife Management Area

The Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department recently expanded a wildlife management area (WMA) in Windham County. An 80-acre land donation has been added to Atherton Meadows Wildlife Management Area in the town of Whitingham, bringing the total area to nearly 900 acres.

http://www.backwoodssportsman.com/VT_News.html

CT DEEP Selects Winning Photo for Cover of Annual Angler’s Guide

Connecticut’s Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) has selected a photo of Immanuel “Manny” Smyrnow, age 10, of Ashford for the cover of the 2015 Connecticut Angler’s Guide.  In the photo, Smyrnow is shown holding an Atlantic Salmon which he caught and released on October 30, 2014 from the Shetucket River.  The Broodstock Atlantic Salmon weighed about 5-6 pounds and was approximately 26” in length.

http://www.backwoodssportsman.com/CT_News.html

Fishing Report February 7 2015 New Hampshire

Conditions: Partly cloudy skies, air temperatures low 20's, light winds

With all of the snow that we have been receiving in Massachusetts creating slush conditions on the ice, we headed north in search of less snow and no slush. We were able to find no slush but still had snow to deal with but at least with the snowshoes we are able to get around as some of the snow is easily knee deep.

This particular lake has a good population of both largemouth and smallmouth bass as well as large perch. The lake has no crappie population and haven’t been easily able to crack the sunfish population. The area that we generally fish is a small underwater point that has rock on top and is laden with gravel.

http://www.backwoodssportsman.com/Ice_Fish_Blog_14_15.html

CT Seventh Annual Trophy Fish Award Ceremony

Connecticut’s Department of Energy & Environmental Protection (DEEP) will host its Annual Trophy Fish Award Ceremony at the Northeast Fishing and Hunting Show in the Connecticut Convention Center in Hartford at 10:00 am on Saturday, February 14. Sixty-five anglers will be presented certificates recognizing their achievement of having caught or landed the largest fish in one of several species categories during 2014. The winner of DEEP’s “2015 Angler’s Guide” Photo contest will also be announced at the ceremony.

http://www.backwoodssportsman.com/CT_News.html

Time to Sign Up for New Hampshire Hunter Education

Hunter Education courses are underway around the state, so get set for the 2015 spring gobbler season and more by visiting the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department website to sign up for a class. The Hunter Education course now covers both hunting and bowhunting.

http://www.backwoodssportsman.com/NH_News.html

VT TU's Annual Fly Fishing Summer Camp for Teens

Vermont Trout Unlimited announces year five of their “Fly Fishing Camp for Vermont Teens,” ages 13 to 16. 
 

Teens interested in learning the art of fly-fishing or improving their basic skill level alongside some of Vermont’s most accomplished fly anglers, are invited to apply. The 2015 camp is scheduled for Sunday June 21st through Thursday June 25th at Quimby Country Lodge & Cottages, in Averill, Vermont.

 

http://www.backwoodssportsman.com/VT_News.html

Fishing Report February 1 2015 New Hampshire

Conditions: Sunny skies, air temperatures mid teen's, high winds, bait of the day - traps with shiners

Today's trip found us back in New Hampshire as the snow depths are less and little to no slush to have to deal with like Massachusetts. Was hoping that the snowmobiles had ran the lake compacted the snow that is there but no such luck and snowshoes were a necessity.

We had found an underwater island that larger fish were using last fall and wanted to pepper that location with traps and see if they are using it in the winter months. It didn't take long and the first flag was flying and upon setting the hook, could tell that it was a large fish. didn't take long and it came off and for that location, it never went back up the rest of the day.

http://www.backwoodssportsman.com/Ice_Fish_Blog_14_15.html

Fishing Report January 25 2015 Massachusetts

Conditions: Sunny skies, air temperatures mid 20's, little wind, bait of the day – Clam Pro Tackle Duckbill Drop jig with the Maki Plastics Mino bait and Clam Drop Jig tipped with spikes

We took a day off as a winter snow storm had come through and after fishing for 5 of the last 6 days, need a bit of time to let everything relax and defrost. We didn't have a lot of time and wanted to stay close to home and with that we went to our favorite crappie pond and the quality is some of the best that we have around this area.

So glad that I had spent some time out here before the waters froze up and located the better crappies that swim in this pond. As we are working the same general area and it doesn't produce huge numbers of fish but the fish that we are catching are of a much nicer size which is a lot of fun on the short rods.

http://www.backwoodssportsman.com/Ice_Fish_Blog_14_15.html

KIDS OutDoors page updated

We have updated our KIDS Outdoors page at BackWoods Sportsman OutDoors for the upcoming outdoor education classes offered across New England for Feb 16 – Feb 25

http://www.backwoodssportsman.com/Kids_OutDoors.html

Happy 150th, N.H. Fish and Game!

This is a big year for the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department, as the state's wildlife agency celebrates 150 years of fish and wildlife conservation in the Granite State. A growing collection of stories and photos celebrating Fish and Game's fascinating history is being gathered on the Department's website at wildnh.com/150. Visit often!

http://www.backwoodssportsman.com/NH_News.html

Maine's MDIF&W Holding Free Fishing Weekend

The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife is reminding everyone to take advantage of the upcoming free fishing weekend.

http://www.backwoodssportsman.com/ME_News.html

Fishing Report January 23 2015 Massachusetts

Conditions: Sunny skies, air temperatures upper 20's, little wind, bait of the day – Clam Pro Tackle Duckbill Drop jig with the Maki Plastics Mino bait and Clam Drop Jig tipped with spikes

Our trips close to home continue on as well as a new body of water that we fish regularly on the open water but have never been on the ice. There are two main structures in the lake and one of them was occupied by a couple of anglers already, but we didn't want to fish that one as it isn't that big of an area.

The structure we fished was an underwater hump that had a variety of depths from 6 feet deep to 15 feet on the outer edges. Also, off to the side there is a underwater point that comes out so we also setup in the saddle area between these two structures.

http://www.backwoodssportsman.com/Ice_Fish_Blog_14_15.html

Apply now for the 2015 Maine Moose Permit Lottery

Hunters who dream about the hunt of a lifetime will be happy to know that Maine moose permit online application process is now open, as the 2015 Moose Permit Lottery is accepting applications.

ME Outdoor News at BWS OutDoors

KIDS OutDoors page updated

We have updated our KIDS Outdoors page at BackWoods Sportsman OutDoors for the upcoming outdoor education classes offered across New England for Feb 9 – Feb 18.

http://www.backwoodssportsman.com/Kids_OutDoors.html

Fishing Report January 22 2015 Massachusetts

Conditions: Sunny skies, air temperatures upper 30's, little winds, bait of the day – Clam Pro Tackle Duckbill Drop jig with the Maki Plastics Mino bait

Today is another day of exploring a lake that we fish frequently on the open waters but have never fished on the ice. There was a new mid lake structure that we had found during the summer months and wanted to explore that on the ice as this lake doesn’t have a lot of structure areas so feel that it may concentrate the fish.

As we walked to the area, first thing we noticed was that there were two large areas of open water. Not sure why this was occurring as the rest of the lake, had up to 10 inches of ice and was solid at that. Wasn’t anyone else out there to ask what was going on, but our guess was either shallow water on top of these structures or there is a good flow of springs from underneath?

http://www.backwoodssportsman.com/Ice_Fish_Blog_14_15.html

Belgrade Lakes Hosts Major League Fishing Championship; Airs On CBS This Weekend

With the Patriots once again champions and your Sundays suddenly football-free, this Sunday, tune in to another championship, with this one playing out on the lakes of central Maine.

http://www.backwoodssportsman.com/ME_News.html

Educators: Schedule a Free Spring Classroom Wildlife Program

Teachers who want to introduce their students in grades 3-6 to New Hampshire's wildlife resources – or reinforce wildlife-related lessons they have learned – have until February 27 to request spring Wonders of Wildlife (WOW) presentations by trained New Hampshire Fish and Game Department volunteer docents.

http://www.backwoodssportsman.com/NH_News.html

Fishing Report January 21 2015 Massachusetts

Conditions: Sunny skies, air temperatures low 20's, little winds, bait of the day – Clam Pro Tackle Drop Jig tipped with a red/white spikes and also Clam’s Duckbill Drop jig with the Maki Plastics Mino bait

This particular week my son has a number of half days so we want to explore a different lake each day as well as some new waters to see what we can put together. We only had a couple of hours to fish today so stayed very close to home and this lake typically will produce numbers of fish so that was the plan for the shortened time.

There were already a few anglers out and scattered around and were mainly fishing traps and after talking with them, they were having a slow day. Our area that I had fished previously was open and started drilling holes around looking for active fish.

http://www.backwoodssportsman.com/Ice_Fish_Blog_14_15.html

Connecticut Conservation Education/Firearms Safety Program Wild Turkey Hunting Safety Seminars

It is never too early to plan ahead for the spring turkey hunting season, which begins April 29 and runs through May 30, 2015. The Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) today announced two upcoming Wild Turkey Hunting Safety Seminars scheduled for Saturday, March 21, 2015, and Saturday, April 4, 2015. These annual events are coordinated by the DEEP Wildlife Division’s Conservation Education/Firearms Safety (CE/FS) Program and the public is invited to attend. Both seminars are offered free of charge.

http://www.backwoodssportsman.com/CT_News.html

Nearly two-thirds of Maine's moose hunters successful in 2014

Despite brief warm spells during both the September and October moose seasons, 65% of all moose hunters harvested a moose last season.

http://www.backwoodssportsman.com/ME_News.html

Hearings on Bills affecting Fish and Game Department's Future Set for February 5, 2015

Hearings on two bills relative to funding and status of the N.H. Fish and Game Department will take place on Thursday, February 5, 2015, before the House Fish, Game and Marine Resources Committee. They are open to the public for comment upon these proposals

http://www.backwoodssportsman.com/NH_News.html

Sportshow Dates page updated at BWS OutDoors

We have updated our 2015 Sport Shows page to reflect the dates for the 2015 New England Sports Shows for boating, camping, fishing and hunting

http://www.backwoodssportsman.com/Sport_Shows.html

BWS OutDoors and Kevin Dahlke added to HSM Outdoors Field Staff

From HSM Outdoors

***Announcement***

We would like to welcome Kevin Dahlke to HSM Outdoors Field Staff. Welcome!

Kevin Dahlke:

Hails from Rowley Mass. Kevin is an accomplished multi species angler who owns and operates Backwoods Outdoors Guide Service. Kevin spends a significant amount of time on the ice. An outdoor ambassador, Kevin loves to teach his craft to up and coming anglers. HSM Outdoors is proud to add this East Coast Ice Angling Dynamo to the team.

Ice Fishing Derbies page updated at BWS OutDoors

We have updated our Ice Fishing Derby page to reflect the upcoming ice fishing derbies across New England and keep checking back as we add more as they become available

Ice Derbies at BWS OutDoors

2014 banner year for Lake Champlain salmon restoration

Officials from the Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation today announced that 2014 assessment results show continued gains in the Lake Champlain landlocked Atlantic salmon fishery restoration program.

VT Outdoor News at BWS OutDoors

Fishing Report January 19 2015 New Hampshire

Conditions: Cloudy skies, air temperatures low 40's, moderate winds, bait of the day - Clam Pro Tackle Psycho Shad

Was time to head back to New Hampshire and fish our favorite lake and see what can be caught as we generally do well for large and smallmouth bass and last winter we were finding the large perch and bluegill as well. Since it had rained the day before, the ice was a bit of a mess as there was standing water in most places and wasn't the best conditions for keeping your feet dry.

Last summer I had found some new structure in this lake that I wanted to try during the winter months. It is an underwater hump kind of shaped like a banana and the outside edges were around 16 feet deep and the top went up to 6 feet deep. My son likes running tip-ups on this lake a lot so we surrounded the hump and also placed a couple on top for covering all areas around it.

Report at BWS OutDoors

Vermont Fish & Wildlife Dept Holds Free Trapping Seminar

The Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department will hold a free seminar entitled “Trapping Through the Ice” at the Edward Kehoe Education Center in Castleton, on Saturday, February 7.

VT Outdoor News at BWS OutDoors

New Hampshire Free Ice Fishing Classes!

The New Hampshire Fish and Game Department’s Let’s Go Fishing Program, in partnership with other groups, is offering ice fishing classes open to the public this winter. Several are still available and coming up. Classes are free unless otherwise noted.

NH Outdoor News at BWS OutDOORS

Free Maine Snowmobile Weekend Slated for January 30-February 1

Snowmobilers will have the opportunity to enjoy the trails in neighboring states for free during a special weekend shared by Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont. This annual three-day event will take place January 30-February 1, 2015 and allows all legally registered Maine snowmobiles to be operated in New Hampshire and Vermont without being registered in those states.

ME Outdoor News at BWS OutDoors

Fishing Report January 18 2015 Massachusetts

Conditions: Cloudy skies with light rain, air temperatures low 40's, moderate winds, bait of the day - Clam Pro Tackle Duckbill Drop tipped with a Maki Plastic Mino in shiner color and also the Clam Pro TackleThe Drop tipped with spikes

Was planning a trip to New Hampshire but the weather was predicting rain in the early afternoon and a much better chance up north. So decided to stay local and fish a small crappie pond and see how we do as we have not been there yet this season. The access area is usually the last to freeze in the area and the first to open so you really need to take advantage of it while you can.

Wanted to try a different area than we usually fish as last fall before freeze up I had been in the kayak and located some nicer crappies there. My son did his usual running his tip-ups with shiner minnows and was getting a lot of flags at the beginning but the fish just were dropping the bait on a consistent pattern.

Continue Report at BWS OutDoors

KIDS OutDoors page updated

We have updated our KIDS Outdoors page at BackWoods Sportsman OutDoors for the upcoming outdoor education classes offered across New England for Jan 20 – Jan 28.

Kids OutDoors at BWS OutDoors

Fishing Report January 15 2015 Massachusetts

Conditions: Cloudy skies with rain/sleet/snow falling, air temperatures low 20's, moderate winds, bait of the day - Clam Pro Tackle Psycho Shad tipped with a Maki Plastic Mino Head in fathead color

The bigger bodies of water here on the North Shore of Massachusetts are freezing over nicely and this is allowing us to venture to more variety of lakes. This particular lake has an abundance of large perch but what I want to fish here is the elusive crappie that we have caught up to 17 inches in length and also the fantastic smallmouth fishery that it has to offer.

The navionics software that I have on my cell phone is getting much better all the time and this is showing us more places of where to fish. Can't totally rely on this feature all the time and by exploring the waters in the summer months and recording the data with good electronics pay's off huge when using that in the winter months.
Continue Report at BWS OutDoors

Fishing Report January 12 2015 Massachusetts

Conditions: Cloudy skies with rain/sleet/snow falling, air temperatures low 30's, moderate winds, bait of the day - Clam Pro Tackle Duckbill Drop tipped with a Maki Plastic Maki in white color

There was a lake that I was fishing last fall that was producing a great 12 inch crappie bite and wanted to give it a try this ice season. The lakes ice is setup very nicely with a solid 8 inches of clear ice and this part of the lake has a lot of structure contours that range for 6 feet in areas out to 20 feet in the deeper parts.

Started marking fish right away but was soon to see that all they wanted to do was look at the bait and refused to commit to biting. Typically when we run into this scenario, we just keep drilling holes and search out the more aggressively biting fish as changing baits didn't seem to make much difference anyway. Was fishing all of the depth variations and finally worked out into the deepest waters and had one quick school of crappies move through at 6 feet below the ice.

Continue Report at BWS OutDoors

Trout stocked for New Hampshire winter anglers

Winter anglers in New Hampshire had some trout stocked especially for them this fall. The New HampshireFish and Game Department stocks trout every year during the fall months, mostly to bolster the winter ice fishery. This should translate into some exciting action for winter anglers, according to Inland Fisheries Division Chief Jason Smith.

NH Outdoor News at BWS OutDoors

Maine IFW To Resume Capture and Radio-Collaring of Moose

Starting next week, The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife will take to the air in year two of an intensive five-year moose study that will provide a greater understanding of the health of Maine’s moose population, particularly factors that impact their survival and reproductive rates.

ME Outdoor News at BWS OutDoors

Fishing Report January 10 2015 Massachusetts

Conditions: Sunny skies, air temperatures low teen's, moderate winds, bait of the day - running traps with shiners as bait

The ice in Northern Massachusetts has finally come around so that we have safe travels and now we can stay closer to home instead of driving to northern New Hampshire. Today was going to be my son's choice of fishing day as to where he wanted to fish.

He picked a lake that has no depth contours as the majority of this lake is only 6 feet deep and he likes running traps and on a typical day here there is generally a lot of action. There were already a number of groups on the ice and fortunate the area that we wanted to work there weren't any anglers there.

Report At BWS OutDoors

Ninth annual No Child Left Inside Winter Festival

Grab your warm weather gear, bundle up your children and join us for the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection’s (DEEP) No Child Left Inside® ninth annual Winter Festival at Burr Pond State Park, 384 Burr Mountain Road, Torrington.  A full range of fun, outdoor winter activities for the entire family will be happening on Saturday, February 7, 2015, 10 AM to 3 PM.

CT Outdoor News at BWS OutDoors

Deer hunting season on Black Rock Parcel on Block Island will be open Tuesday - Friday from January 20 to February 13

The Department of Environmental Management's Division of Fish and Wildlife is preparing for the annual deer hunting season at the Black Rock/Rodman Hollow parcel on Block Island. The Black Rock hunt will open on January 20 and run through February 13. Hunting on the parcel will take place weekdays from Tuesday through Friday, and there will be no weekend hunting on the property. Hunters taking part in this year's hunt were selected by a lottery application process.

RI Outdoor News at BWS OutDoors

Visit VT Fish and Wildlife at the Yankee Show this weekend

The Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department is urging visitors to the Yankee Sportsman’s Classic show this weekend, January 16-18, in Essex Junction to stop by their exhibits and attend their seminars. 

VT Outdoor News at BWS OutDoors

Fishing Report January 6 2015 New Hampshire

Conditions: Cloudy skies, air temperatures low teen's, moderate winds with snow falling, bait of the day - Clam Pro Tackle Dingle Drop XL tipped with a spike and Maki Plastic Mino in shiner color

Still no ice security here in Northern Massachusetts so hopefully today is the last have to drive north to find ice day. Went back to central NH and stopped at a lake that once again, have wanted to fish but today was finally the first time able to get out onto it.

The weather wasn't really the best as the temperatures have finally started dropping into the ice making mode and on top of that the winds and snow were blowing quite a bit as well. Noticing throughout the day that the wind direction was constantly changing and that is never a good thing when you are fishing as it can change the attitude of the fish upon every direction change.

Continue report at BWS OutDoors

Fishing Report January 2 2015 New Hampshire

Conditions: Sunny skies, air temperatures mid 20's, moderate winds, bait of the day - Clam Pro Tackle Maggot Drop tipped with spikes, Blade Spoon tipped with Maki Plastic Maki in white color

The ice here in Northern Massachusetts is taking its sweet time in forming and getting thick enough for allowing us anglers to finally get our ice season underway. So we made the drive to the lakes region of New Hampshire and fished a lake north of lake Winnipesaukee. After dealing with a surprise snow storm we arrived at the lake and glad to see little snow and 7 inches of good ice.

This season so far we have been fishing lakes that we have never been to at all and always enjoy fishing new lakes and trying to figure them out. A lot of work goes into this before we even leave the house as we will research a particular lake on the computer as to get an idea to what the lake offers for fish species as well as to see how it has been fishing.

Continue report at BWS OutDoors

Fishing Report December 27 2014 Massachusetts

Conditions: Sunny skies, air temperatures low 50's, moderate winds calming later in the day, bait of the day -Clam Outdoors Pro Tackle Psycho Shad

The ice here in Southern New England just is having a tough time forming this winter with the warm weather and rain every so many days. So with that there is no need to put the kayak's away yet as we are still able to fish the open waters.

Headed to a small local pond that has a good population of crappie in it. I have a number of new tackle lure items this winter season and lately I will generally pick one of them and fish that the whole trip to allow myself to get comfortable with it and see what and how the fish like and react to that chosen bait.

Continue report at BWS OutDoors

Fishing Report December 19 2014 New Hampshire

Conditions: Cloudy skies, air temperatures low 30's, strong winds, bait of the day - Clam Pro Tackle Dingle Drop XL tipped with a Maki Plastic Mino in watermelon color

At this time of year you really don't have a lot of choices to pick from for the lakes that you can ice fish on. Anything that has any size to it, will still be in the open water state and will be for some time to come. Also, we are all about trying new lakes that we haven't seen before and adds to the excitement of trying to locate fish on a body of water that you have no knowledge about.

So looking at the map and trying to guess as to where the ice will be thick enough to get out onto, the area that we ended up in is a river/swamp/open lake area that is suppose to be holding some nice fish. Upon arriving there, the gate to the boat landing was locked and we had to take a decent walk through the woods to get to the waters edge.

Continue report at BWS OutDoors

Fishing Report December 8 2014 New Hampshire

Conditions: Sunny skies, air temperatures mid 20's, moderate winds, bait of the day - Clam Pro Tackle Blade Spoon tipped with a Maki Plastic Maki in white

The ice has finally found its way to New England but to find safe ice to walk on you have to drive and find it. We finally found some in the lakes region of New Hampshire and the conditions that we had were 2 inches of clear black ice on the bottom with 2-3 inches of cloudy white ice on top.

Continue report at BWS OutDoors

Register in January for "Becoming an Outdoors-Woman" winter workshop

Registration will open the first week of January for the 2015 Becoming an Outdoors-Woman (BOW) Winter Workshop, a one-day program where women can learn outdoor skills to enjoy during the winter months. The workshop will be held on Saturday, February 14, 2015, at the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department’s Owl Brook Hunter Education Center in Holderness, N.H.  A fee of $55 covers the workshop, lunch and most equipment use.  New this year, a discounted registration fee of $25 applies to participants age 18-25. You must be at least 18 years old to take part in BOW programs.

NH Outdoor News at BWS OutDoors

Registration open for women's fly tying course

Women who enjoy fly-fishing and are interested in a new winter hobby can sign up for a fly-tying course with master fly tiers Jim and Kris Riccardi. The N.H. Becoming an Outdoors Woman (BOW) Program and the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department’s Let’s Go Fishing Program are teaming up to offer the course, which will be held from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. on Wednesday evenings from January 28 through February 25, 2015, at N.H. Fish and Game headquarters, 11 Hazen Drive, Concord, N.H.  Participants must attend all five sessions.

NH Outdoor News at BWS OutDoors

Snowshoe Hare Hunting Workshop

Learn about the exciting sport of snowshoe hare hunting at a free workshop being offered at theNew Hampshire Fish and Game Department’s Owl Brook Hunter Education Center in Holderness, N.H.  The workshop will take place from 9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, January 10, 2015.  Space is limited and pre-registration is required.  To register, call the Owl Brook Hunter education center at 603-536-3954.

NH outdoor News at BWS OutDoors

Add One More to your Gift Giving List: Private Landowners

New Hampshire people sure do love being outside.  There’s so much to do: hiking, biking, hunting, fishing, camping, snowmobiling, bird watching and the list goes on.  Where do you like to do your favorite outdoor activity?  With over 70% of New Hampshire land in private ownership, it is likely that you recreate on someone else’s land.

NH Outdoor News at BWS OutDoors

Ice fishing safety tips from Vermont F & W

The Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department has some ice safety tips for those of you who will be going ice fishing this winter.

Vermont Outdoor News at BWS OutDoors

Vermont birders encouraged to join annual Christmas bird count

This holiday season marks the 115th annual Christmas Bird Count, a favorite tradition among Vermont’s birding community. Birders in Vermont are encouraged to participate in the count, which begins on December 14 and runs through January 5.

VT Outdoor News at BWS OutDoors