Every other fall semester, SUNY Plattsburgh English lecturer Jack Downs teaches an outdoor writing class. I have been speaking to these classes as a professional member of the outdoor media since 2012. Prior to joining the Outdoor News team, I…
The date was Saturday, Nov. 7, 1998. My brother, Tim, and I had made a few short pushes that morning before deciding to still-hunt one of the bigger mountains in our hunting area. This was well before our FRS/GPS radio…
Opening morning of the Northern Zone crossbow season found me sitting in the same spot where I had brought Joey, age 14, on the first two mornings of New York’s Columbus Day weekend youth big game hunt. Having only three…
This Halloween is going to be different, even for those of us who spend time outdoors. It falls on a Saturday this year, which is always fun, and it’s also the second weekend of the Northern Zone rifle season. The…
Labor Day weekend found Adrienne and I camping at Lake Eaton (near Long Lake) in the Central Adirondacks. Although we had camped here many times over the years, for one reason or another I had never taken the time to…
In the June 26 issue of New York Outdoor News, I wrote in my column about last summer’s consuming project of building an Adirondack lean-to in my yard. Adrienne and I have been enjoying it a great deal as of late,…
The August 21 issue of New York Outdoor News has news story by Jane Anderson in which she reports on the amount of traffic and congestion at popular hiking trailheads. I took the accompanying photo with that article this past…
Anyone who is willing to tie up tens of thousands of dollars in a boat simply to fish bass tournaments is obviously quite serious about bass fishing. For the average evening or weekend angler, a canoe, kayak, johnboat or even…
Is it me, or are there more woodchucks around than normal this year? It seems like I’m hearing quite a few people complain about ‘chucks attacking their gardens and I’m also seeing several along the side of the road; both…
My wife Adrienne and I are not exactly summer people. Neither of us like hot weather and the steamy heat wave we’ve been enduring in New York in recent days has us borderline grumpy. We always say that we’d retire…
Water temperatures mean everything to the trout angler, or at least those who care enough about the species they covet so much that they’ll back off when conditions are not favorable for optimal fish survival. That is especially the case…
What has been and up-and-down turkey season continues to be just that. Following the snow and cold of the second weekend in May, as well as that of the season, things warmed up and turkey season entered yet another phase.…
When I saw the weather forecast for the approaching weekend calling for snow, I actually got excited. I don’t mind it a little on cool side when I’m turkey hunting. In fact what I dislike the most about the late…
As New York’s youth turkey hunting weekend fast approaches, I have almost a sick feeling in my gut over it. For the first time in I don’t know how many years, I'll have to sit this one out. Mentoring new…
Trout season is here and turkey season is on the way. Eventually the writer will wet a line, but the chores are coming first. Come May, however, he plans on being in the turkey woods.
It didn’t happen this year, but it sure has in the past. While out checking my tapped maple trees I’ve returned with ticks crawling on me. Sometimes they were deer ticks, which happen to carry the Lyme agent, while others…
Not only might you have some happy wildlife, you’ll have some nice apple wood to use in a food smoker, and the satisfaction of doing something yourself.
Whether it’s taps, traps or just a walk in the winter woods, snowshoeing is great exercise and a viable cure for cabin fever.
We’re now in mid-February and instead going ice fishing I've been getting my maple syrup-making gear together. Why? Because other than a snowstorm the weather forecast for the days ahead calls for daytime temperatures to climb into the 40s and…
More than any other type of ice fishing, this angler would much rather spend a day on the hard water either running and gunning or setting out tip-ups in hopes of landing a pair of keeper lake trout.
I’m not one of those people who is obsessed with the vehicle I drive. But when the time came to say goodbye to the Jeep Wrangler I’ve had for the past 14 years, I did so begrudgingly. This, despite the…
Don’t tell my sister who lives in Georgia, but once again she’s getting venison jerky from me as a Christmas present. Same for my brother who lives in Arizona. But for him, it’s not actually a gift as he earned…
As I write this, the end of deer season across New York is fast approaching. This year the Northern Zone and Southern Zone rifle seasons end on the same day, Dec. 8, with the late muzzleloading seasons following. They end…
I’ve always considered myself lucky to be raised in an extended family of Adirondack deer hunters. While that’s the primary reason I’ve likely become an avid whitetail hunter myself, the fact that I was born in mid-November may have also…
For the second year in a row a significant weather event put a dent in the plans of deer hunters, especially those in and around the southern and eastern Adirondacks and beyond – this writer included.
Opening day in New York’s Northern Zone is just as big as it is in the Southern Tier. In fact, we have two of them! A week prior to the regular big game season opener, there is a week-long early…
This year I know of at least 10 new hunters who will be experiencing their first deer hunts come November. Likely more. They are part of the Field to Fork program, which in New York is a collaborative effort between…
This year saw a record 185 anglers take part. That’s nearly triple the number that participated in the first derby in 2015.
Early bear season is getting under way in parts of New York. This includes a season that runs from Sept. 7-22 in parts of Regions 3 and 4 in southeastern New York, as well as the traditional early season in…
It’s been several years ago now since there was a sporting license fee increase in New York. And just before that last increase I forked over a nice chunk of change to purchase my lifetime licenses, pretty much across the…
Although the author didn’t boat the big fish, he can finally say he got to tangle with one.
It’s not hard to figure out why competitive kayak bass angling is catching on. First, anyone with a kayak and fishing rods can join in.
Earlier this spring we talked about simple worm fishing for trout as a time-honored tactic. Quite often, I take the same approach to summer bass fishing. Only this time the worm is fake. Just like real worms have landed so…
In the weeks ahead trout action will likely start to dwindle as the weather warms and trout anglers back off pursuing their favorite fish. At the same time, bass fishing will intensify. But for now, at least in this part of New York, an angler can have the best of both worlds.
Keeping the non-hunting public informed and in support of hunting and trapping is they key to halting such legislation.
As a native to New York’s Adirondacks, I often find myself being a stout promoter of the region. Therefore I was happy to play a role in bringing a bunch of outdoor media types to the Schroon Lake region for…
Using these levels of twilight is not only fun, but if you happen to be a weather and/or astronomy buff, they can serve as guidelines for setting the alarm clock and getting you where you need to be at the right time to bag that gobbler.
Last year, I attended for the first time the New York State Outdoorsman Hall of Fame induction banquet, typically held in late April. My reason for going was to be there for the induction of a friend and colleague. I…
Yes, there are other baits and other fishing methods. But a simple hook and a worm has always gotten the job done, and always will.
For the year-round outdoorsman, there are two times of the year that can be the toughest to get through: the holiday season, and the first few weeks of spring. At year’s end, once deer season is over, it’s often hurry…
As the March sun gets higher in the sky and the days get longer, ice anglers anywhere there’s still ice will be trying to get that one last outing in. But they should approach these outings with caution. Late-season ice…
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) recently issued a press release announcing that mid-winter aerial surveys of the Adirondack moose population had been completed. But there was still some work to be done as DEC biologists wanted…
It will be interesting to hear what our wildlife biologists will have to say about the condition of the deer herd after this winter. And, what impact it could have on the 2019 fall hunting seasons.
I consider myself very fortunate to be a property owner. Twenty-two acres might not seem like much to some, but it is a world of its own to others. For me, it is a place I’ve trampled nearly my entire…
Small-game hunting might not be the big ticket it once was, but at least you can say it’s still hunting season and perhaps re-live your own memories. Get out there while the seasons are still open.
Some hunters are ready for deer season to end, but I’m seldom one of them. Especially this year, when the weather interrupted numerous hunting plans. It was a crazy deer season where the weather was concerned, starting from the beginning.…
Recruiting, retaining, reactivating on full display this deer hunting season.
Hard hunting was worth it for the author during a Thanksgiving Day hunt a few years ago, and he couldn’t have been more thankful.
And put in the time to help ensure your success.
If writer had to make a choice, it would be to cut some time off the end, at least in years when the late season carries into mid-December.
Dan Ladd is an outdoor writer based in the southeastern Adirondacks. He is the web author of ADKHunter.com and has authored two books, including Deer Hunting in the Adirondacks. Dan writes a weekly column for The Chronicle in Glens Falls, N.Y., and is a frequent contributor to New York Outdoor News.
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