Freshwater Fishing
Flooded Fantasy
Mike Heard handed his dad a jig and cork rig attached to a crappie pole, and quickly began fishing for the succulent white perch. […]
Articles by Michael O. Giles
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First-Day Feathers
Mark McPhail set up quickly beside a large tree under the cover of darkness in the spring woods. As the night sky slowly melted into day with an orange glow rising on the horizon to the east, he sent a few soft tree yelps in the direction of an old gobbler that he had roosted the night before. McPhail was met by a lusty gobble that indicated the old monarch was game and meant business.
A few minutes later, the gobbler pitched out of the tree and landed a mere 7 to 8 yards away. Before the gobbler had a chance to make another move, McPhail’s shotgun roared and another Eastern gobbler met its maker. […]
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Mark McPhail on safety
Safety in the woods is paramount during the turkey season when hunters are fully camouflaged. […]
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Mark’s ideal hunt
1. Roost a bird: Locate a gobbler on the roost the night before the hunt. […]
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Mark McPhail guide to becoming a good turkey hunter
1. Patience: You’ve got to have patience to turkey hunt. […]
Bass Fishing
A Day on Lake Ferguson
Roaring up Lake Ferguson in his Ranger boat wide open and on full plane, Terry Bates suddenly backed off the throttle and made a quick left turn up into “the chute.” […]
Deer of the Year
Flora high-schooler kills two Madison County trophy bucks
Clara Grace Bozeman has been deer hunting with her dad Harvey for a few years now, and she harvested her first buck at the young age of 10.
“Clara Grace told me she wanted to go hunting and use her own gun as well,” Harvey Bozeman said. “So I bought her a 7mm-08 Browning A-Bolt, and we went hunting the next year and she killed her first deer with it. And she’s never missed since!”
She continued that streak with two huge bucks killed during the Christmas holiday while hunting on the Madison County family farm. […]
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The Right Time
Randy Pope climbed into his elevated tree stand well before dawn on a recent hunt and prepared for the morning. Pope has hunted big-game animals all over the world and is an expert at finding, hunting and harvesting trophy whitetail bucks. […]
Deer of the Year
Clarke County trophy buck begins hunter’s retirement in style
Edward Ray Vaughan loves to hunt, but he laid off the sport for about 10 years after having to move to Tennessee for work. However, he retired in September and his son-in-law convinced him to join a Clarke County hunting lease.
Vaughan began his retirement in style Nov. 21 by killing a buck that eventually green scored at 196 inches on the Buckmasters system. […]
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Range Shifters
Rick Dillard eased through the woods in full stealth mode with his rifle ready for action as he worked his way toward his afternoon stand on a late December hunt last year. With a heightened sense of anticipation, Dillard scanned his surroundings quickly as a doe ran by. […]
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Young Guns
Madison County cousins Trey and Swayze Bozeman are like a lot of youngsters in our state, as both love to deer hunt. But that’s where the comparison ends, as these youngsters have already become accomplished trophy hunters in their own right. […]
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Little Sure Shot
Chesnee Wallace stalked silently yet deliberately on her way to a tree stand in a secluded area of Newton County in search of a nice buck. Wallace had joined a group of friends on the hunt, but preferred hunting alone on her stand. […]