Posts by John Trussell
Solid Gold Crappie A Rarity
A golden crappie was recently caught in Missouri in a private pond, and the rare fish made national news. Holly Haddan’s once-in-a-lifetime catch was identified by officials as a golden crappie, which is born with a genetic condition that makes its scales a shiny, vibrant yellow color. Xanthochroism causes yellow pigmentation in animals, similar to…
Read MoreBond Swamp Adds Acreage, Plans For Ocmulgee River Boat Ramp
Bond Swamp National Wildlife Refuge recently added more land that is open to hunters this fall and will soon be the home of a brand-new boat ramp on the Ocmulgee River. Bond Swamp was established in 1989 to protect wetlands along the Ocmulgee River and is located just a few miles south of Macon.…
Read More2022-23 Georgia Duck Forecast
Every Georgia duck hunter knows that duck hunting can be boom or bust. You can scout out a location, set up your decoys and at the crack of dawn be covered up with ducks and have a limit in a few minutes. But unfortunately, there are days when you do everything right and the ducks…
Read MoreDeer Down! Now What?
Dragging a deer out of the woods used to be a fairly easy process for me, but when you get older than 40, you might notice that you get winded quicker than you did as a young man. Last fall I was hunting on Piedmont NWR in central Georgia when a nice 8-point buck walked…
Read More2021 Georgia DNR Big Deer Contest Winners
The Georgia Department of Natural Resources, in conjunction with the Georgia Outdoor Writers Association and sponsors The Southern Company and Glock, announced the winners of the 2021 Georgia Big Deer Contest. The competition is the oldest continuous deer contest in the state, with the first awards being handed out in 1967. The contest is managed…
Read MoreWriter J. Wayne Fears Inducted Into GOWA Fishing And Hunting Hall Of Fame
J. Wayne Fears is somebody special in the outdoor field. He has lived a life full of outdoor adventure, and I see him as an outdoor writer’s outdoor writer. Basically, he’s a cut above the average outdoor writer who just writes occasionally and has to really work hard to put the bones on a good…
Read More54-Pound Grass Carp Sets Georgia Bowfishing Record
Sometimes when you are shooting fish with a bow from the front of the boat, things are moving fast. The action can happen in a flash. That was the case the evening of June 30 for a group of bowfishermen at Bartletts Ferry, also known as Lake Harding. J. D. Bond, of McDonough, saw a…
Read MoreJuliette Stripers & Hybrids Go Deep In Summertime
With a hint of excitement in his voice, Lake Juliette fishing guide Jeff Mooney said, “Watch that pole, it’s going down!” He pointed at the rod next to Bob Turner and, as Jeff predicted, a slight bend in the rod became a deep arc toward the water as the striper pulled out line and the…
Read MorePine Log WMA Land For Sale
Outdoorsmen are reacting with concern and alarm as news broke that Pine Log WMA is part of a large land holding near White that is now up for sale. The Aubrey Corporation has put 19,500 acres on the market, which includes Pine Log WMA. It is among the largest contiguous, private, single-entity holdings between Atlanta…
Read MoreDid Hard Freeze Impact Acorns?
When picking a deer stand to hunt this fall, you may be concerned about whether acorns will be falling to the ground due to a recent hard freeze that occurred across much of Georgia. On the weekend of March 12-13, 2022, the temperature got down to the mid to low 20s across much of Georgia,…
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