Recipes
Chuck Buckley’s Duck (Coot) Gumbo
According to Martin Close, Chuck Buckley loved coots (poule d’eaus).[…]
December 2012
Deer Hunting
The QDM-DMAP Connection
The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries recognizes QDM as a valuable component to its Deer Management Assistance Program (DMAP). The following statement appears on the LDWF website regarding QDM practices regarding DMAP:[…]
Fishing
Mojo Sportswear
The Weather Buster is a sleek new soft shell jacket from Mojo Sportswear Company that traps body heat while venting extra moisture.[…]
Inshore Fishing
Sweet tea-looking water up north still salty
Anglers used to fishing the near Baffin Bay-looking water of Calcasieu Lake might be surprised to find Breton Sound-looking water the father they venture into the city limits of Lake Charles.[…]
Contents
Thistlethwaite Theorem — This WMA is the focus of a successful QDM experiment
Gerald Ducote of Melville had reason to be optimistic on Dec. 26.[…]
Contents
Using Common Scents — The ins and outs of deer scents
As the story goes, Jake Spangler’s grandfather owned a meat market back during the depression years of the last century. Each Saturday the butcher would take an old man he knew a piece of meat just to help him out.[…]
General
FireStarters
FireStarter packets burn hot and clean at 1500 degrees for 10 minutes without releasing harmful toxins.[…]
Contents
Jump Around
I always wondered while fishing during the winter if all those ducks I kept jumping in the river lakes just off the Ouachita River between Monroe and West Monroe would eventually return to that same spot.[…]
Deer Hunting
Thistlethwaite WMA – the 10-year quality deer management experiment
Thistlethwaite WMA’s 11,000 acres of palmetto-laced hardwoods, located six miles north of Washington on state Highway 10 will be entering year eight of a 10-year experiment designed to deliver quality whitetail bucks such as Ducote’s.[…]
Deer Hunting
Not all scents created equally
It’s important to match a particular scent, be it an attractant or cover, to the area. In the Midwest and New England states, apple-scented lures may work well, but not so much in the marsh and woods of Louisiana.[…]
Hunting
Bore-tips
Swab-its has developed a variety of bore cleaning swabs that can clean firearms in 2-inch, 3-inch, 4-inch, 5-inch, 6-inch and 9-inch handle lengths.[…]
Sidebars
Hen dekes bring in more ducks
Although he’s had times when he’s killed nothing but greenheads, D’Arbonne Refuge and Upper Ouachita Refuge duck hunter Chance Havard said he has learned a little decoy trick he believes helps him get more ducks within shooting range.[…]
Contents
Tadpole’s Tensas — Tactics for Tensas NWR deer hunting
It was Jan. 7 of this year and Alton “Tadpole” McLeod was hunting an area of Tensas National Wildlife Refuge he had not previously hunted. He found a deer trail and a suitable tree for his climbing stand overlooking the trail and got set up.
Around 4 p.m. buzzards (of all things) began to congregate at a roost tree nearby.
“They were making a lot of noise, landing, flapping wings and breaking branches,” McLeod said. “There must have been 30 or 40 of them.”
Tadpole was discouraged and did not expect any deer movement due to all the noise. He considered moving, but since it was so late in the day he decided to sit it out till dark.
Around 5 p.m. he heard something moving in the palmettos, coming from the direction of the buzzard roost. He suspected either a deer or bear.[…]
Deer Hunting
Best time for using mock scrape lures
“Scents are kind of like fishing tackle,” Wildlife Research Center’s Ron Bice said. “You’ve got your Rapalas, Daredevils and different lures in your tackle box, and sometimes some work better than others. Just because you make 10 casts and you don’t catch anything doesn’t mean you throw out a proven lure.[…]
NEW PRODUCTS
Rig’Em Right Decoy Anchors
Hunters looking for an easy and super-fast way to retrieve their duck decoys without worrying about tangles will love Rig’Em Right Decoy Anchors.[…]
Sidebars
Top picks for North Louisiana public duck hunting
The Ouachita River itself offers some good duck hunting in many of its backwaters, but there is a collection of publicly managed federal refuges and state wildlife management areas within a short drive of Monroe that would make any hunter green with envy.[…]