Sidebars Archives - Page 158 of 194

June 18, 2026

Putting beagles on rabbits at a relatively young age allows them to develop their hunting instincts.

Start young to train beagles

As in the training of any hunting dog, nothing helps a beagle become an effective chaser of rabbits more than opportunities to chase rabbits alongside veteran hunting dogs. […]

This Lefty’s Deceiver is a large, 3/0 fly, with white feathers and both white and chartreuse buck tail deer fibers. It’s an excellent mud minnow imitation and will draw strikes from winter redfish.

Flies that work in winter

John Gribb

Most redfish flies intended to mimic mud minnows, their primary winter forage, are either tied with weighted eyes — Clouser-style flies — or tied un-weighted, Deceiver-style flies. […]

Maynard Edwards’ tandem bucktail rig for stripers uses two barrel swivels instead of a standard 3-way swivel.

The tandem rig stripers can’t defeat

Craig Holt

Anglers who troll for striped bass use specialized tackle and equipment to get as many lures in the water as possible. […]

Many game lands across North Carolina provide excellent habitat for rabbits, with little hunting competition, once deer season ends.

Many game lands offer rabbit hunting

Craig Holt

A major problem for North Carolina rabbit hunters is gaining access to suitable private land, although interfering with deer hunters usually isn’t a concern with deer season ending Jan. 1. […]

Squeaky Smith caught this trophy rainbow in Wilson Creek, but fishermen are more likely to run into good numbers of smaller fish.

Big fish — or lots of them?

Tim Mead

For most fishermen, Wilson Creek is a numbers stream, with plenty of fish available. If you’re targeting bigger trout, you just need to change tactics slightly, according to angler Squeaky Smith. […]

Deer Hunting

Pond Management: Develop schedule for the year

Jeff Burleson

January is the dormant season for most pond activity. While the past few months have provided time for bank and shallow region reconstruction, a year of pond-management tasks will begin in shortly. […]

After a period of several warm days during the winter, don’t be afraid to fish shallow marsh flats in tributaries of the Pamlico Sound, as specks will move up to feed if bait is available.

Follow warming trends straight to ramp

Jeff Burleson

Winter features cold weather, near-freezing water and an occasional snowfall, but North Carolina anglers are fortunate in January and February where the temperature may rise to the 70-degree level for several days. […]

Marine worms make up a large part of a redfish’s diet, especially in the winter.

Wormz!

Jeff Burleson

Inshore redfish must scavenge through the winter, hoping to find mud minnows or mullet, but they also find happiness noodling in the pluff mud, which provides perfect habitat for healthy colonies of tasty marine worms. […]

The author caught this nice striped bass on a wintertime trip for speckled trout in the Pamlico Sound watershed.

Welcome bycatch: stripers

Jeff Burleson

Fishermen crawling grubs through deep holes in Pamlico Sound and its tributaries during the winer should expect a familiar by-catch: striped bass. […]

Fly fishermen need to keep their rod tip low and set the hook with a strip of the line.

Strip sets only

Jeff Burleson

Fly fishing for redfish can be exciting and rewarding, but the territory is rough and quite challenging for all levels of fly anglers. […]