Where there’s grass, there’s bass
Rodney Faulkenberry of Talihina with the new Sardis Lake record largemouth bass
The latest lake record, although it was caught in July, is an 8.3-pound largemouth bass from Sardis Lake near McAlester.
Rodney Faulkenberry of Talihina caught the lunker on soft plastics in the Anderson Creek Areas.
The lake record was certified Monday by state wildlife officials.
“My wife Marcy and I were on Sardis Lake camping. I had a tournament coming up so we were out pre-fishing a little just having a good time,” Faulkenberry said.
“ It was the first time this summer time that we caught several fish from 4 to 6 pounds. I just could not believe it. I told her I had one more place to go check so we went over to it and, yes, it was a grass bed and I threw into it.
“She said something to me and I looked back at her and when I turned back around my line was leaving so I set the hook and it was on. I fought the fish and I kept telling her, ‘I think this is a good one.’
“When she came up, oh man, she was nice. My wife got up and dug out the net and we got her in and weighed her. I said ‘Let’ss take her to Clayton and see if she will make a new lake record.
“Well, didn’t do very good in the tournament, but I wouldn’t trade that day for anything and my wife and I had a great time.”
How many licenses do I need?
Lawmakers are looking for ways to consolidate Oklahoma's hunting and fishing licenses
When it comes to Oklahoma’s licensing issues, I can’t figure out whether I’m legal or not half the time.
Sometimes I think I need a file cabinet with me in the field to make sure I have all the necessary paperwork.
Getting ready for the dove season, I know I need a state hunting license, HIP permit and Legacy Permit. But I had to go look it up because I can never remember from year to year.
Now I’ve learned that if you bought a hunting license after July 1, the Legacy Permit was included in the price.
(So don’t buy hunting and fishing licenses separately or you will be paying for two Legacy permits.)
Before July 1, the $5 Legacy Permit was sold separately.
Including it in the price of the license is a good idea. That makes sense and there needs to be some more common sense applied when it comes to Oklahoma hunting and fishing licenses.
On Wednesday, the first meeting of a 10-member legislative task force was held to discuss ways to simplify the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation’s licensing procedures.
My colleague at the Capitol Bureau, Julie Bisbee, was there and reported that the following ideas were floated around: Combining all lifetime licenses, creating a resident deer license by season and creating a “sportsman license” which would combine all licenses for all seasons.
“Some proposals would increase the price of licenses, but add seasons like holiday hunts,” said Melinda Streich, assistant director of administration and finance for the state Wildlife Conservation Department.
The department gets about $16.6 million in revenue for hunting and fishing licenses each year.
State wildlife officials are in favor of simplifying the licensing procedures as long as they don’t lose any money.
For residents in Oklahoma there are at least 46 different types of hunting, fishing and trapping licenses.
Proposed changes call for streamlining all seven resident deer licenses down to three.
This proposal could mean an increase in fees. Currently, an adult hunter pays $20 per deer during archery, muzzleloader or gun season.
Under the new proposal, a hunter would get a single season permit for $35 and be allowed to harvest the maximum number of deer during a specific season.
The fee for youth permits would change from $10 per deer during a specific season to $20 for the entire season. Streich said while the fee could increase, it would also allow hunters to take more deer under one license and encourage the hunting of anterless deer.
The proposed optional sportsman license would combine all the hunting licenses into one license that would have to be renewed annually.
The package would include fishing and hunting licenses, deer and turkey licenses, state waterfowl stamps and other permits.
The package is valued at $354, but would be sold for $150, Streich said.
“Right now, you can’t just buy one license to cover any hunting or fishing you might undertake – you often need a special permit for a specific animal or method,” said Phil Richardson, R-Minco, one of members of the task force.
“Lawmakers have also added a number of exemptions over the years, which further complicates the process. It is just common sense to simplify these licenses any way we can.”
Stay tuned. Changes are coming.
More on the former glory days of Purcell City Lake
Jon Matlock of Oklahoma City with the new lake record largemouth bass from the Purcell City Lake
Last Sunday’s column about the bass fishing at Purcell City Lake brought back some memories for Kenneth Harris of Wayne.
Harris called to let me know that the Purcell City Lake once was rated the No. 1 small lake in the state for bass fishing.
So I checked The Oklahoman archives and sure enough, in 1989, Purcell topped the list of best small bass lakes based on the state Wildlife Department’s electrofishing surveys.
“It was a super little hot hole,” Harris said.
Harris concurred with Gene Gilliland, fisheries biologist for the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation, who said the bass fishing was ruined at the lake when the city added thousands of grass carp to control the thick vegetation.
“Where there’s grass, there’s bass,” said Harris, repeating a famous bass fisherman’s adage.
Harris said he used to take a half-ounce Rat-L-Trap and rip through that moss, fishing for bass.
The city put more grass carp than what state wildlife officials recommended, then when they did not see immediate success, added a bunch more, Gilliland said.
All the vegetation eventually was destroyed. State wildlife officials have been trying to grow aquatic plants in the lake in an attempt to bring back the bass fishing.
“At one time it was a great lake,” Harris said. “When they came in and killed all of that grass, it just ruined that.”
Years ago, Harris used to fish with the Heart of Oklahoma Bass Club at Purcell, and recalled the time a fellow angler lost an 8-pound bass in a tournament when the fish opened the hook on a metal stringer.
“I’ve had three on the scales well over 5 pounds (from Purcell),” he said.
Harris said he was shocked when he saw the photo in Sunday’s newspaper of Jon Matlock’s 6-pound, 14-ounce largemouth caught in April at the Purcell City Lake.
Now, he is thinking about giving the bass fishing at Purcell another try.
“It excited me to see that article,” he said.
If Harris does go bass fishing at Purcell, I hope he catches some.
If not, he may never read another one of my columns.
Trading one school (of fish that is) for another
Pat and Grant Proctor of Norman with a 10-pound striper caught Aug. 18 on Lake Texoma.
With school starting last week, Pat Proctor of Norman wanted to take his son for one last fishing trip of the summer before he started first grade.
So Pat, his 6-year-old son Grant, and his father, Bobby, former University of Oklahoma football coach, went to Texoma last week and slayed the stripers.
“We left Soldier Creek about 6:30 a.m. (on Aug. 18) and found some nice topwater action at 6:45 a.m.,” Pat said. “We caught about 25 fish which averaged 5 pounds.”
The big catch of the morning was Grant’s 10-pounder.
“Grant has a broken arm which made it a little difficult to get this big fish in,” his father said. “What a great way to end summer and send Grant to first grade.” The striper action generally slows on Texoma in September before picking back up again in October.
Summer trout fishing on the Lower Mountain Fork
A rainbow trout caught at Spillway Creek on the Lower Mountain Fork River in McCurtain County
Donny Carter of Stratford, who has become my Lower Mountain Fork correspondent since I rarely make the 4-hour drive from Oklahoma City to Broken Bow anymore, took a trip to Oklahoma’s best trout stream last week and reports the fishing was good.
Carter reported a banner day on Friday. He didn’t’ catch anything very large, but the dry fly fishing was excellent, he said.
“If you don’t mind fishing ‘til dark, the famous “Hex” (hexagina mayfly) hatch was going full force in the late evening into the dark at the Evening Hole,” Carter said.
“These large mayflies look like tiny sailboats on the water and the trout were just slaying them. I don’t think it really mattered what kind of dry fly you had on as long as it was big and bushy.
“I was using the stimulator. I started out in Zone II that morning, but the water was rather warm (72 degrees) and I didn’t do any good there. Evening Hole and Spillway Creek though, were really good. Very cold water (58 degrees at the dam) and the trout were very active.”
Carter said he caught trout all up and down the refurbished Evening Hole.
“I like it better than before the flood,” he said. “They (state wildlife officials) made some really nice runs-pools at the top end of the Evening Hole. Great dryfly water.”
During the heat of the day on Friday, Carter caught a very fat, healthy 14-inch brown on Spillway Creek, also using the stimulator. He said he missed several other nice browns there, also.
“Summertime fishing on the Lower Mountain Fork can be, and most of the time, is great,” Carter said. “It’s my favorite time of the year to fish down there.”
Oklahoma’s new antelope season
Kelly Free of Edmond with a pronghorn antelope taken in New Mexico
New Mexico’s antelope season opened Saturday.
Kelly Free of Edmond harvested her first antelope ever on opening day near Clayton, N.M.
Free is one of many Oklahoma hunters who travel to New Mexico to stalk antelope each year, but Oklahoma also offers limited antelope hunting in the Panhandle counties of Texas and Cimarron.
And this year, for the first time, Oklahoma will have an archery season for antelope.
The archery season opens Sept. 14 and will run through Sept. 27.
Unlike gun hunting for antelope which is only allowed under the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation’s controlled hunts program or landowner permit drawing, the archery season is open to anyone who buys an antelope license and has written permission from the landowner.
The open areas for antelope hunting are Cimarron County and the portion of Texas County west of SH 136.
The antelope herd is growing in the Panhandle and state wildlife officials think the population can easily withstand the extra hunting pressure from bowhunters.
Gun hunting for Oklahoma antelope through the state’s controlled hunts program – a drawing – takes place on selected dates in September, October, December and January.
Antelope must be checked in at the Boise City or Guymon check stations.
The season limit is two antelope and only one buck.
Dove season nears; Free hunting days in September.
Dove season opens Sept. 1
The first of the fall hunting seasons is rapidly approaching.
Dove season opens Sept. 1 and hopefully we can get back to some normal August weather before then – hot and dry – the kind of weather conducive for a good opening day dove shoot.
If you can find a dove food source — like native sunflowers or wheat — you should be in for a good dove shoot.
Scout hunting places for what dove like, which is open ground, food and a nearby watering hole.
If those components are there, certainly the table is laid for a good shoot. The problem is, when food and water are plentiful, the birds will be scattered and not concentrated in one place, which makes scouting even more important.
“Hunters who have an old standby hot-spot may want to check it out some before season to see if it is actually holding birds this year,” said Josh Richardson, migratory bird biologist for the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation.
Richardson said reports and activitity observed from recent dove banding projects show very good bird numbers and successful reproduction in eastern Oklahoma.
Unusually cool and wet weather has made it more difficult to consistently band doves in the central and western portions of the state,
In central and western Oklahoma, doves appear to be “here today and gone tomorrow and then back a few days later,” Richardson said.
Dove season runs through Nov. 9 statewide this year except in the designated Southwest Dove Zone, which is open for hunting Sept. 1 through Oct. 31 and Dec. 26 through Jan. 3. The southwest zone starts on U.S. 62 from the Texas border west of Hollis,, east to Interstate 44, Interstate 44 south to SH 7, SH 7 east to U.S. 62 and U.S. 81 south to the Texas border at the Red River. See map below.
The daily limit for doves is 15, which can include any combination of mourning, white-winged and Eurasian collared doves. A new rule change this season eliminates the bag limit on Eurasian collared doves provided that the head or one fully feathered wing remain naturally attached to the dove.
And if you have a friend who has never been on a dove shoot, Sept. 5 and 6 would be a good time to introduce him or her to the sport.
Those days have been designated as free hunting days in the state this year. No person living in Oklahoma will need a state hunting license or HIP permits on those days.
Hunters from out of state, however, still need hunting licenses and permits.
If you don’t want to go dove hunting, there are always squirrels. Dove and squirrel are the only hunting seasons open on Sept. 5 and 6.
Disabled anglers find place on PVA Tour
Eddie Camara of Shawnee is a past Paralyzed Veterans of America bass fishing champion. The PVA has a six-stop bass fishing tournament trail and next month will be making its last stop for a tourney on Keystone Lake.
Eddie Camara grew up hopping from pond to pond to wet a line. That ended when the Shawnee resident was diagnosed with muscular dystrophy in 1991.
“I couldn’t walk around the ponds anymore,” Camara told me four years ago for a feature I wrote in The Oklahoman.
Camara became so discouraged by his disability that he stopped fishing. There were days when he wondered, “Why go on?”
“I didn’t do nothing for a while,” he said. “ I laid around and felt sorry for myself.”
Then one day a buddy persuaded him to enter a team bass tournament at Shawnee Lake.
“I won $750 that first night,” he said. “I thought, shoot, I can do that all of the time. It wasn’t quite that easy.”
But Camara’s spirits were lifted, and he caught the fishing bug again. In other words, he started living again.
In 2005, he was the champion of the Paralyzed Veterans of America Bass Tour and qualified to fish in the B.A.S.S. Federation Championship.
I saw Camara Sunday at the Red River Hunting & Fishing Expo in Oklahoma City. He told me that fishing in the B.A.S.S. Federation Championship was an unforgettable experience. ESPN did a story about him and he was treated like a king.
Camara is still fishing the PVA trail and is in contention for the championship this year. The winner of the BASS Federation Championship also qualifies for the Bassmaster Classic.
“I want to be the first guy in a wheelchair that makes the Classic,” Camara said.
He reminded me Sunday about the PVA tournament coming up at Keystone Lake next month and asked me to inform readers that able-bodied anglers are needed to help assist the disabled fishermen.
The PVA has a six-stop bass tournament trail and next month the Oklahoma based Mid-America Chapter of the Paralyzed Veterans (MAPVA) will be hosting the final event - the MAPVA Okie Open Bass Tournament – on Keystone Lake Sept. 25-27.
The event is open to any angler with a proven physical disability and attracts anglers from all across the United States.
Deadline to enter is Aug. 25 for disabled anglers.
However, able-bodied anglers are needed to partner with disabled anglers. They can register now until a welcome reception Sept. 25 at Camp Victory, just north of the town of Mannford.
Fishing at Keystone will be in two divisions: an “open” division where each angler will be paired with an able-bodied angler and fish from a boat.
Anglers in the “bank” division will fish from a boat house at Pier 51 Landing. Anglers are paired with volunteers to assist them while fishing.
MAPVA has been hosting these fishing events for the disabled since the 1980s. The PVA Bass Tour started in 1991.
The tournament at Keystone will determine who will win the PVA’s “Angler of the Year” award and earn a spot in the B.A.S.S. Federation Championship.
Winning the open division at Keystone will earn an angler a 450 Yamaha Rhino 4×4. Entry fees are $135 for disabled anglers and $50 for boat partners.
For more information, call Bill Kokendoffer at (405) 721-7168 or 1-800-321-5041.
Or visit the Web site, www.pva.org and hit the sports and recreation link, then the boating and fishing link.
Grand Canyon is incomparable, readers say
The Grand Canyon from the south rim
Readers are in agreement. The Grand Canyon is a national treasure that really needs to be explored, not just seem from the rim.
Here are few e-mails I received from others who took trips to the Grand Canyon but spent more than just a day there.
“Ed, my husband and I could not agree with you more about the Grand Canyon. But, If you only see it from the rim, you are missing out on the experience of a lifetime.
Chuck and I, senior citizens of 65 snd 64 years old, have hiked the canyon, four times in the last five years. I would encourage you and your family to consider doing this adventure. Is it easy? Hell no, but is it worth the pain and agony, oh, yes!!!!
“We hike in the South Kaibab Trail (about seven miles), spend the night at the Phantom Ranch, and hike out the Bright Angel Trail (about 10 miles).
“The first time we did this we were not prepared for the stenuousness of the hike, but the beauty of the canyon —well, needless to say, it gets in your blood. Even though, I say that we won’t do it again – the canyon keeps calling us back.
“There is just no other place on this earth that compares to it.
“We made our fourth hike last October, and I said that I would not do it again. But, I find myself thinking about it and wanting to go.
So if your family loves adventure, is willing to spend time hiking and preparing, do it. – Sue Hawkins
“I read your article in this morning’s paper and agree that you must go back and spend more time at the Grand Canyon. My husband and I spent three nights there in 2006. We had a room on the south rim.
“Each morning I would go out and watch the sun up and it was amazing. Also, the sunset was wonderful. I hope you can go back and spend a night to see the sunset and sunrise. It is something you cannot explain. – Barbara King, Norman
“Ed, if you want to see the Grand Canyon you need to see it from the back of a mule. You can’t believe the beauty that is down there.
“The mules are great, the overnight stay at Phantom Ranch is delightful. BEST TRIP EVER!!!!!!
“Hope you get to go again —– make it a point. – Alice Niemeyer
Three Oklahomans qualify for Bassmaster Classic; Biffle advances to post-season
Jeff Kriet of Ardmore finished second in the Bassmaster Elite Series tournament on Oneida Lake, N.Y., and is one of three Oklahomans who have qualified for the 2010 Bassmaster Classic
With the conclusion of the 2009 regular season after Sunday’s tournament on Oneida Lake, N.Y., the brunt of the qualifying spots for the 2010 Bassmaster Classic have been determined.
The top 37 anglers in the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year standings make the field.
Only three Oklahomans are in: Tommy Biffle of Wagoner (8th in the AOY standings), Jeff Kriet of Ardmore (14th) and Terry Butcher of Talala (35th).
Among the notable Oklahoma anglers missing the cut was Butcher’s brother-in-law, Edwin Evers of Talala.
The 2010 Bassmaster Classic is set for Feb. 19-21 on Lay Lake out of Birmingham, Ala.
Kriet finished second in the Elite Series event at Oneida Lake: 2 pounds, 4 ounces behind Texas angler Chad Griffin.
Kriet won $25,000.
Biffle finished eighth at Oneida, winning $12,500.
Biffle’s eighth-place finish in the AOY standings also advances him to fish in Bassmaster’s post-season tournaments next month in Alabama. The top 12 anglers in the AOY standings qualified.
Butcher made it into the Bassmaster Classic for the first time in his career based on his 10th place finish at Oneida, a pay day of $11,500.
Butcher said he was relieved at finally making his first Bassmaster Classic.
“It’s been a very stressful week,” said the 38-year-old former bull rider. “On the water today I caught them pretty quickly, so I was pretty confident. But then I was still a little nervous because I thought the door was still open for the other guys.
“The Classic has been my ultimate goal since I’ve been fishing. I’m not the kind of guy who shows a lot of emotion, but I’m very excited.”
Butcher said when he arrived at Oneida this past week he believed he had no chance to qualify for the Classic, even if he won the tournament.
“I’ve always felt left out,” he said. “And now I’ve made it. Plus I get to fish for $500,000, that’s the part I’m really excited about. I’ll probably take a week or two off then start doing some homework.”
