Preparing for Hunting Season

By Massad Ayoob Issue #119 • September/October, 2009 For a great many rural folk, big game hunting season is a high point—often the annual high point—of their involvement with firearms. In some locales, the big game...

Snapping Turtles

By Jason Akers Issue #136 • July/August, 2012 When the first of the snapping turtles roamed the lands during the Oligocene epoch in the Tertiary period of the Cenozoic era some 40 million years ago, they...

Getting Ready for Deer Season … Now

By Massad Ayoob Issue #155 • September/October, 2015 As summer blends into fall, "deer season" is on the horizon. In the United States, the deer is by far the most popular big game. When I was...

Breaking Ice on Hard Water Fishing — A Cool Introduction to a Fun Sport

By Linda Gabris Issue #91 • January/February, 2005 Only thing hard about hard water fishing is the ice. Once you've broken through that obstacle, the rest is easy gliding. Ice fishing is great sport for the...

Marlin 336 — The Other Classic Backwoods Home Deer Rifle

By Massad Ayoob Issue #95 • September/October, 2005 In the March/April 2005 issue of Backwoods Home Magazine, this space was devoted to the "Winchester '94: the Classic Backwoods Home Deer Rifle." And you know, even when...

Make a Sure-Fire Live Trap

By Charles Sanders Issue #64 • July/August, 2000 Every now and then, wild critters wear out their welcome around the homeplace. Gardens are raided, garbage cans ransacked, pet food filched, and other shenanigans are performed by...

Build a Groundhog Snare

By Allen Easterly Issue #98 • March/April, 2006 In just a few minutes your completed snare is ready to put an end to your groundhog woes. A snare set vertically is very effective catching groundhogs with...

Venison — From the Field to the Fork

By Linda Gabris Issue #149 • September/October, 2014 Moose steaks marinating in my special marinade I shudder whenever I hear a fellow hunter complaining about his meat tasting gamey, high, or, worse yet, ripe (which is a...