Owls are cool. My son has a bunch near his house in midtown Atlanta. I suppose they have lots of mice and rats there, because that’s what owls like to eat. Most of my dealings with owls have come at first light while on spring gobbler hunts. Gobblers will often answer to an owl’s hoot, which gives the hunter an idea as to the whereabouts of the turkey. I have seen only 2 or 3 owls in … [Read more...]

  They are out and about, turtles that is, and all they ask is a little privacy and maybe a lift across a busy road or highway. Below are some of the ways the DWR suggests helping conserve and protect our turtles.   Don’t take them home. Leave wild turtles in the wild. Don’t relocate turtles. If safe, move it off the road in the direction it’s moving. Discard fishing … [Read more...]

I had never eaten a morel until my old friend Carl Oakes asked if I wanted a few. Not wanting to offend, I said, “Sure,” but I had no idea what they were or what to do with the strange looking spores. Later I found out that morels, wild mushrooms, were mountain delicacies and highly desirable. On several occasions since then, I have taken to the hills and picked them myself. Morels, though, can … [Read more...]

By Emily Strother   In 2019, I contracted a red meat allergy–known as alpha-gal syndrome (AGS) or allergy—from a tick bite I got while hunting turkeys that spring. As a gal who enjoys hunting and experimenting with wild game in the kitchen, realizing that I could no longer consume venison or other mammal meat was a hard pill to swallow. Besides a fried piece of deer tenderloin over the … [Read more...]

Looks like we’ll have a pair of Red-bellied Woodpeckers nesting in a cavity of an old white maple in the back of our yard. I saw them swoop that way this morning and there are lots of hollow places in that old tree from which to choose a nesting site. Many people confuse the Red-bellied Woodpecker with the less common Red-headed Woodpeckers. Red-bellied Woodpeckers do have red heads, but not … [Read more...]

  On Feb. 1 our Lenten Rose patch was in bloom. What a beautiful, wonderful plant. Several years ago, Nancy was trying to figure out what to do with the root-studded and mostly shady space beneath our old maple tree in the back yard. She planted a few hostas and they did well, but she wanted some color and could find few colorful plants that could bloom without a lot of sun. My son, … [Read more...]

It’s hard to drive 5 miles without seeing a crumpled up, dead deer along the side of the road. That’s because we are in peak season - the deer are in rut. Bucks are chasing does and they run across roads after the enticing females and worry about cars and trucks later. Some say to watch out for deer in the headlights, but I say just watch out. Recent studies say that Virginia is now the 11th … [Read more...]

  My daughter, Laura, has a big-time case of fly-fishing fever. My oldest daughter, Angelin, loves to dunk squid in saltwater and my son, Jimmie, enjoys tormenting largemouth bass with a buzz bait, but Laura is drawn to the gurgling creeks and the trout lurking within. Creeks like Mossy Creek in Augusta County. Mossy Creek is hallowed ground for Virginia fly fishermen. It was here that I landed … [Read more...]