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Jeremiah Haas

An experience for the books: joys of youth hunt

Featured, Hunting, Illinois, National Hunting /

My alarm went off at 4 a.m., but my body was having none of it. It was a Saturday – Oct. 7 to be exact – the first day of Illinois’ youth firearm deer season and it was 39 degrees.
My wife and daughter were out of town for volleyball, so it was just us boys. A quick hit of the snooze button and I was back to sleep. But before I got back into that deep REM sleep, my ears heard the squeak of the door handle, and it was a 12-year-old boy peeking in to see if I was getting dressed yet. Even though my body was wanting sleep, his excitement for the day could not be contained. I think we all remember those days.

An experience for the books: joys of youth hunt Read More »

Make phone apps while hunting solo a part of your safety process

Featured, Features, Home Page News, Hunting, Illinois, National Hunting /

As bowhunting season begins, many of us will be heading to the woods by ourselves to enjoy a quiet morning or afternoon in the stand. While certain hunts tend to be more social in nature, bowhunting tends to be an individual endeavor. Since it is, safety is something that every solo hunter needs to think about.
There are some simple things that bowhunters can passively do. For starters, make sure that your phone tracking system is shared with loved ones or other hunters. For the iPhone, the “find my phone” app works easily in the background.

Make phone apps while hunting solo a part of your safety process Read More »

Fall means fantastic fishing on Illinois waters of the Mississippi River

Featured, Features, Fishing, Home Page News, Illinois, National Fishing /

While Oct. 1 tends to bring a lot of excitement for deer hunters, it is usually about the time the Mississippi River temperatures reach the low 60s or high 50s in Illinois. While you may feel the need to get into the treestand, a better use of your time may be to get out on the river and enjoy some of the best fishing of the year.
With river flows at near-historical lows most of this summer, fish have been concentrating closer to the main channel structures, especially since the low water has brought significant weed growth along the channel borders.

Fall means fantastic fishing on Illinois waters of the Mississippi River Read More »

Illinois’ archery deer opener: Some dos and don’ts for early season

Featured, Features, Hunting, Illinois, National Hunting, Opinion /

After an 8½-month wait, bow season is almost back! All the food plot preparation, hours of shooting, treestand maintenance and trimming, as well as saving all that vacation time up for a magic week in November, are now coming to fruition. It is finally “go time.”
So, after spending all the time, energy and money, how silly would it be to ruin your best spots early in the season? Unfortunately, that happens all too often.

Illinois’ archery deer opener: Some dos and don’ts for early season Read More »

Here’s how to maximize your trail cameras this deer season

Featured, Features, Hunting, Illinois, National Hunting /

The Illinois deer season starts in just about a month, so if you have not surveyed your deer herd yet, you still have some time.
Bucks will be in the process of shedding their velvet in the next two weeks, so any information about size, age, and summer feeding patterns are valuable as you determine who is on the annual harvest list and who should be let go for further maturation. Trail cameras will help you gather this information and help you be a more efficient hunter.

Here’s how to maximize your trail cameras this deer season Read More »

What are the impacts of low water on the Mississippi River?

Featured, Features, Fishing, Illinois, National Fishing /

Locally, after a bounty of resources were swept into the river during the spring floods, the low water brings a bounty for all the predators in the river, including fishermen. As fish are pulled from the backwater due to a lack of water, the main and side channels increase in fish density. This can allow for better spawning for fish such as gizzard shad, and provide increased feeding opportunities for the gamefish.
Walleye, catfish, and bass fishermen have all benefited as fish are being caught with full bellies.

What are the impacts of low water on the Mississippi River? Read More »

Numbers show fishing demographics are changing

Featured, Features, Fishing, Fishing, Fishing, Fishing, Fishing, Fishing, Fishing, Fishing, Fishing, Home Page News, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, National Fishing, National News, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin /

The Recreational Boating and Fishing Foundation recently put out a special report for 2022 angling statistics, and the results were a little surprising. Since COVID restrictions kept everyone away from each other and preferably outside, 2020 was a record-breaking growth year for fishing as people had more time on their hands.
In 2022, it was still an improving year as 54.5 million Americans went fishing, an increase of 2.1 million from 2021. In that group, there were 4.1 million first-time participants, with 40% of them being women.

Numbers show fishing demographics are changing Read More »

Make sure to study your game camera warranties

Features, Gear & Gadgets, Hunting, Illinois, National Hunting /

You purchased that new trail camera you have been wanting and it is finally sitting on your table. You tear open the box, insert a SD card and batteries. The camera comes alive, and you head to the woods to get it out as soon as you can. The 12-pointer you have been pursuing does not have a chance now.
This is a common scenario for many hunters this time of year as we think about the fall. However, taking the time to read the manual and get those warranties registered is vitally important to the longterm use of your camera, and maybe your success in the fall.

Make sure to study your game camera warranties Read More »

There are giant bighead carp in the Illinois River

Featured, Features, Fishing, Illinois, National Fishing, News /

Recently, social media was buzzing with pictures of a bighead carp weighing 109 pounds – a fish that was caught during the Invasive Carp Control Program near Morris, Ill.
That was after a 90-pound fish was caught the day before. As part of this program, hundreds of thousands of pounds of bighead and silver carp are harvested from the Illinois and Mississippi rivers each year to minimize their impact on native waters.

There are giant bighead carp in the Illinois River Read More »

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