Michigan: fuelwood permits available Friday with new online purchase option

Want to cut firewood for personal use in a Michigan state forest? Fuelwood permits will be available from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources beginning Friday, April 1, with a new online purchase option.

Permits will cost $20 this year after a two-year fee suspension due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Here’s how to get one:

“We’re encouraging the online option to save everybody time and energy going forward,” said Jeff Stampfly, chief of the DNR’s Forest Resources Division. “It’s a new service for these permits, but many people will be familiar with it if they have bought hunting and fishing licenses in the past.” Read more

General

Meet the Arnold Palmer of Duck Habitats

As commodity prices go, few have been tracking mallard dividends as closely as Steve Farris. After a stellar career as a Grammy-nominated guitarist and one of the cofounders of the 80’s band Mr. Mister, Farris has turned his creative energies and life-long passion for duck and goose hunting into another art form—buying, transforming, and selling some of the best waterfowling properties west of the Mississippi. The fact that Mr. Mister’s two Grammy nominations came for hits, Broken Wings and Healing Waters, might have foreshadowed his calling to the world of duck hunting real estate.

For those who follow the recreational real estate market and the extensive habitat improvements that Farris has made to some of them, he could be known as the Arnold Palmer of duck hunting courses. “Every blind is a different hole,” muses Farris. Like any great artist, he sees land the way a painter sees canvas—an opportunity to manifest a vision of something perfect. In his case, it’s land and water that is irresistible to ducks and geese and, ultimately, to those who love to hunt them. That’s a unique talent and skill set that Alex Maher recognized shortly after meeting Farris a few years ago. Maher is the founder of Live Water Properties, a Jackson, Wyoming-based ranch and recreational real estate brokerage firm specializing in some of the best hunting and angling properties across the country.

To read the rest of the column, click here

Hunting, Wildlife

Kimber Donates Handguns and RIfles to Ukraine

TROY, AL, March 30, 2022 — Kimber Mfg., Inc. donated 200 handguns and 20 rifles to the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces of Ukraine, to bolster their capabilities in this time of conflict.

Throughout this conflict, the Ukrainian people have inspired the world with their courage and determination, which inspired the Kimber team to find a way to help. Kimber answered by providing 200 R7 Mako 9mm subcompact pistols with 800 extra 13-round magazines, 10 Advanced Tactical rifles in .308 Win., and 10 bolt-action rifles in .308 Win. Each rifle contains 2 magazines and a matched replacement firing pin assembly.

Mission First Tactical (MFT) donated holsters for the R7 Mako pistols and Tactical Rifle Cases. In addition, MFT also donated 3,300 AR-15 magazines and 1,000 AR-10 magazines.

Leupold & Stevens, Inc. (Leupold) donated 20 Mark 4 LR/T 3.5-10×40 rifle scopes, which were paired and installed on each of the 20 Kimber rifles.

“The people of Ukraine are enduring tremendous hardships and are in need of support from around the world,” said Leslie Edelman, Kimber owner and CEO. “Kimber is honored to play a part in providing this much-needed assistance with the donation of these firearms and accessories. Our hearts and prayers go out to the courageous people who will be using them to defend their freedom and nation.” Read more

Firearms

Michigan DNR asks anglers to report tagged walleye

Starting Wednesday, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources will jaw tag 3,000 walleye across multiple Saginaw Bay tributary rivers. As the DNR adds more tagged walleye to Michigan waters, anglers are asked to report tagged fish to assist data collection efforts.

Anyone catching a tagged fish is asked to report the following information using the tag return form at Michigan.gov/EyesInTheField:

  • Species.
  • Length.
  • Weight (if known).
  • Tag location (where tag was attached).
  • Identification number (the larger of the two sets of numbers).
  • Tag return address (for example MICH DNR MM-1).
  • Capture date and location. Read more
Fishing

CZ-USA’s Top Turkey Shotgun Picks for Tagging Spring Gobblers

Kansas City, KS (March 30, 2022) – Spring gobbler season is firing up, and CZ is making sure hunters are well gunned as they hit the turkey woods. Three hard-hitting 12-gauge shotgun options will allow hunters to carry more longbeards over their shoulders and enjoy more turkey breasts on the smoker.

CZ Reaper Magnum is CZ-USA’s over/under designed for max flexibility in those common situations where gobblers either strut into hunters lap or hang up at the outer margins of range. Clad in Mossy Oak Obsession Camo the Reaper is built to slay turkeys with the same 3 ½” chambers of the Swamp Magnum.

The beauty of hunting with an Over/Under is that each barrel can be equipped with a different choke. Putting an open choke in the bottom barrel for the optimum effectiveness at close range and an extra full choke in the top barrel, to deliver lethal pellets at longer distances, a simple flip of the selector switch lets hunters pick which barrel to fire. Read more

Firearms, Hunting

Warrantless Search and Surveillance Practice Overruled in Tennessee

A warrantless search and surveillance practice used by wildlife agencies to investigate hunting and fishing violations was ruled unconstitutional last week by a Tennessee circuit court; paving the way for property owners in several other states to challenge criminal charges resulting from such techniques.

The case has garnered the attention of private property rights advocates, poachers, wildlife law enforcement officials and outdoor enthusiasts who support the investigative methods for wildlife protection.

In 2018 Benton County landowners Terry Rainwaters and Hunter Hollingsworth sued the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) after they discovered a video camera with a 24/7 live feed installed on a tree on Hollingsworth’s property, which was marked with no trespassing signs. Rainwaters claims the agency also engaged in warrantless searches on his property. Read more

Wildlife

Michigan: plan now for spring treatment of hemlock woolly adelgid

If hemlock trees on your property show signs of hemlock woolly adelgid infestation, now is a good time to plan for spring treatment of this invasive species. Hemlock woolly adelgid, native to Asia, is known to be present in areas of Allegan, Mason, Muskegon, Oceana and Ottawa counties in Michigan. These small insects suck sap from hemlock needles and ultimately can cause tree death.

Insecticides are available to control the insect, and in many cases, landowners easily can apply them by carefully following label instructions and application rate guidance. In Michigan, the label is the law. Due to certain restrictions on the use of these insecticides, you may need the services of a licensed pesticide application business. Read more

Wildlife

Michigan: updated state forest road maps available online Friday

Thrilling ORV rides, outdoor exploring and forest adventures are waiting down one of Michigan’s thousands of miles of state forest roads. Every year, the DNR updates maps of these roads to improve accuracy and protect the environment, and then notifies the public of any changes. New maps go up at Michigan.gov/ForestRoads Friday, April 1, in an interactive web format and as printable PDF maps.

Map changes are based on considerations that include changing road conditions, data cleanup and input received from residents around the state. Maps show where state forest roads are open or closed to off-road vehicle use and which roads are only open to conventional vehicles. It’s important to stay on these roads when using motor vehicles to reduce erosion and damage to wildlife habitat.

The following mileages will be open to ORVs starting April 1: Read more

Wildlife

Mossy Oak Doubles-Down on Conservation Commitment with Inaugural Wild Turkey Stamp

WEST POINT, MS – Mossy Oak, The Official Camo of Conservation and the Official Camo of the NWTF, is taking its focus and efforts to a new level with a brand new Wild Turkey Conservation Stamp project that will donate 100% of all money raised (including expenses incurred) directly to wild turkey conservation efforts. Mossy Oak is honored to unveil its inaugural wild turkey stamp as part of what will be an annual limited edition offering to support the wild turkey; the species that led to the “fistful of dirt”, and the conception of the outdoor lifestyle brand.

Mossy Oak’s Limited Edition 2022 Wild Turkey Conservation Stamp will be a 1.5” x 2” stamp titled “A Mossy Oak Moment”, created by artist Dan Moreton, originally painted for Mossy Oak in 1996. The stamp is available now at store.mossyoak.com. Every last penny raised in the sales of the Mossy Oak Wild Turkey Stamp will be entirely invested into wild turkey research projects reviewed and approved by an advisory board including the likes of Dr. Mike Chamberlain and Dr. Marcus Lashley, among other devout GameKeepers.

Mossy Oak’s founder and CEO, Toxey Haas wrote the following letter that will be sent with each stamp order:

My dad taught me a lot of things growing up in the woods with him. Two of the ones he instilled from an early age that lasted a lifetime were to always leave my piece of dirt better than I found it, and to love and respect all critters we hunted, but especially wild turkeys. Later in life we started calling that being a gamekeeper.

The wild turkey hasn’t always been here. In West Point where I was born and where Mossy Oak remains, we didn’t even have wild turkeys when I was born. I had to drive down to Choctaw Bluff in south Alabama to hunt them. I can’t imagine a spring morning spent without the chance to hear one of the sweetest sounds in all of nature – a wild turkey gobble. And we dang sure want to do everything we can to ensure our kids and grandkids don’t have to wonder what that sounds like. No disrespect to so many other animals we love, but the wild turkey is the grandest of birds.

Without wild turkeys there would be no Mossy Oak. And it’s our responsibility to do everything we can with the time we have on earth to ensure the turkey hunting community leaves the wild turkey better off than we found them. Turkeys are a precious resource. And they’re more vulnerable than most of the animals we hunt.

We’ve always helped look after them, but we’re really proud to create our first wild turkey conservation stamp. Every cent we raise from this stamp will go directly toward conservation research and projects with nothing left over. If we can do what we can with the dirt we’ve been given and everyone reading this does the same, we’ll have left it better than we’ve found it. And we look forward to helping fund some of the projects being pursued right now by some great gamekeepers around the country. Read more

Hunting, Wildlife
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