Outdoors: Junior deer hunter bucks advice of veterans

By BILL BURTON For The Capital

Published 11/20/08

Sometimes I think we get new generations of fishermen and hunters not so much to insure the continuation of our outdoor pursuits as to teach old codgers such as this writer a lesson or two.

Courtesy photo
Lauran Spiegel, 17, with a 12-point buck she bagged not far from her Stevensville home in a heavy downpour.

Experience is a great lesson, but not the only lesson.

Never say never when hunting or fishing; soon as the word comes from the mouth it's contradicted, which 17-year-old Lauran Spiegel of Stevensville proved in most convincing fashion this past Saturday.

I've taken a few deer in my lifetime in heavy rain and only because I happened to be afield when the drops started falling and had no way to reach shelter pronto, but most whitetail chasers of my generation insist both hunters and game aren't on the move when the drops fall.

Lauran hasn't been around that long, she hasn't learned that deer hunting in the wet is like chasing rainbows. She's young and hardy, what's rain if there's a chance of going hunting? One can always get dry.

Last Saturday, Junior Hunting Day in Maryland, it rained steadily and at times in torrents, much to the disappointment of the budding deer stalkers 16 and under. Their one day a year and not many had the required adult supervision willing to endure the weather.

Lauran is a year beyond the junior hunter set and had already taken two deer via muzzleloader this fall, others in previous years, and wasn't about to cancel the chance for bowhunting. She'd go it alone.

But, she did need help though. No way can a teen-age girl drag a 12-point buck of about 165 pounds from the field. Such a trophy should have known better than wandering around in the rain, but as with Lauran who should also have known better, they combined to prove one never says never.

FISHING FORECAST: One piece of advice you can count on is don't head to Deep Creek Like for some comfortable fishing. Walleyes, smallmouths, big yellow perch, pickerel and northern pike are obliging, but it's cold out there and with 8 to 10 inches of snow shoreside.

Closer to home where the weather is more reasonable, the catching continues though the fish are continually on the move. One is almost guaranteed stripers and perch. Every day there are more reports of big sea-run rockfish that continue to get closer - and obviously some that are already here.

Light tackle buffs enjoy breaking fish from Hart and Miller Islands south - and many are from 20 to 26 inches. Use metal or feathered jigs, be alert for gulls maybe even a gannet or two to lead you to the, and as for convenience you need night arise with the first crow of the rooster, Department Natural Resource's Keith Lockwood tells us some of the best catching comes in the evening.

Trolling remains the favorite among most and they're taking fish of from 18 to 30 inches or better on bucktails, spoons, parachutes and soft plastic shads often trolled behind umbrella rigs. I prefer double rigs with white baits; there are many options but one isn't where to troll. Channel edges are the key - and it's along the edges wherever one fishes the better chance of an early sea-run striper.

Josh Baker of Bowie took a 45-incher on a big white bucktail off the mouth of the Chester River while George Jackson of Glen Burnie took one an inch longer on a small white bucktail behind an umbrella near Baltimore Light. Lenny Herd Jr. took his 45-incher trolling the Dumping Grounds which is always worth a try in late season.

Pick a spot and work it, stay with the channel edge and closely monitor the electronic fish-finder, fish are schooled up. I'd suggest the Bay Bridge (where eels and jigging still produces), the mouth of the Chester, Patapsco, Love Point, the bridge and mouth of the Magothy, also Hacketts; your guess is a good as mine. White perch are 'most everywhere.

Further down the bay big fish action improves and among the catches was Brandon Hayden's 48-incher in 80 feet of water in the shipping channel. Chances are good for a limit of keepers though you might need a bit of luck to hook up with a trophy. Based on reports further south the best is still to come.

In the lower bay tackle shops are busy filling out citations for stripers 40 inches or better, among them a 481/2-incher taken by Wayne Vlands. These big fish are packed with menhaden so choose a bait that matches the hatch.

At the ocean, striper fishing continues to improve, surf fishermen enjoy huge bluefish and sometimes a keeper striper, tautog are inside the inlet and headboaters take more sea bass.

OUTDOORS CALENDAR

Nov. 28: Close of the early phases of the early migratory and resident Canada goose, snow goose, brant, duck and dove seasons which will reopen in December.

Nov. 29: Opening of the modern firearms deer season, closes Dec. 13.

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Send outdoors news to Bill Burton, PO Box 430, Pasadena, MD 21123-0430; fax to 410-360-2427, or e-mail burtonoutdoors@yahoo.com.

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Organic farming - November 24, 2008

Ms. Spiegel is the ultimate organic farmer. She helps regulate the number of deer so they all remain healthy. Her hunt produced organic food devoid of any unnatural sources. She is a very talented hunter and protector of our natural resources. Great job!