ice fishing derby - January 30, 2011

CANCELLED
heavy snow | lack of lake access | uncertain ice conditions underneath

MSC's Annual Tri-Lakes
Ice Fishing Tournament
Sunday, January 22, 2012 :
6 am – 1 pm - New Date!!!!

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Weather/Ice decision: 4:00 pm Saturday 1/21, please call 860-873-3381 to confirm || Rain / no ice date: February 6th

Tournament Sponsor Moodus Sportsman’s Club

Tournament Fee: $20.00 per adult || $5.00 per child under 16 years old

ALL ADULT PARTICIPANTS
MUST HAVE VALID CT FISHING LICENSE

LICENSE MUST BE PRESENTED TO RECEIVE AWARDS

Prize Fish Types: Bass – Largemouth/Smallmouth, Chain Pickerel or Yellow Perch

Prizes: Adult Division $1000.00 total purse; First Prize $600.00 for heaviest fish of the three species || $200.00 each to the largest fish in the two other species listed
       Children Division Trophies to be awarded in all three categories

Registration Forms:
• Available at the Moodus Package Store

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• Click on the image to your right to enlarge, then you can print it, fill it out and mail it ||   Snail Mail applications must be postmarked by Monday, January 24, 2010

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• Send an e-mail to MSC Webmaster who will e-mail an MS-Word [2003] document back to you ||   Email applications must be received by Thursday, January 27, 2010
• or at the Moodus Sportsman’s Club Jan 29th 4-6pm
NO REGISTRATIONS ACCEPTED AFTER 6 PM Saturday, January 29th

Locations:
      • Lake Hayward || East Haddam
      • Bashan Lake || East Haddam
      • Moodus Reservoir || Moodus
        [You can still fish there, but see note below]

Verification: The official weigh-in will be held at the Moodus Sportsman’s Club at 1:10 pm sharp!

Party Festivities: The Moodus Sportsman’s Club will host one of it's famous lunches after the weigh-in [1:15 pm] with prizes and our usual activities to follow.

Tournament Finish: Please return to the Club by 1:00 pm for final tally, lunch and awards.

Regulations: Fish must conform to Connecticut fishing regulations for the area being fished
         • Click here for the CT DEP lakes regulations

CAUTION!!!!!!!!!!: The Moodus Sportsman’s Club does not represent that the ice is safe in all places on these lakes. All participants are responsible for their own personal safety.

NOTICE: Pay attention to the channel in the Moodus Reservoir.
With the lowering of the water level, certain areas may not be safe!.

about hunter safety courses at MSC

We've been getting a number of questions from folks about being in the Connecticut Conservation Education/Firearms Safety courses that are offered and held on the MSC grounds every Spring and Autumn.
     In part, people are asking to sign up, but you ought to know that the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection [DEP] wants all sign ups be done through the local DEP office, not through the site where classes are held, like those held at our club. The closest offices to MSC are in Marlborough or Franklin. You could also sign up online once that option on the DEP site is opened again.
     The DEP provides - in advance - the names and contact information to the certified instructors holding the classes. At the MSC, all those certified to teach are MSC members.
     This "restriction" is really to help our instructors know how many are expected to attend. Good training works best when classes are a certain size; besides, we need to know how many copies of training manuals, targets, [and other handouts] will be needed. It's an important consideration.
     We try to figure some folks might just show up on the class day; but we cannot guarantee if you do this there will be room for you to attend. Folks signing up in advance, not walk-ins, will be given first priority.
     The DEP Hunter Safety Course Spring 2011 series dates to be held at the club for the Spring 2011 series are:

FEBRUARY: Wednesday 23rd, Thursday 24th, Friday 25th
MARCH: Thursday 3rd, Friday 4th and Sunday 6th

     Our class series is usually filled. Be considerate and sign up in advance, and don't assume that we have kept a separate list; we don't. All of us do this because we are interested in helping others become knowledgeable, responsible hunters. And part of good hunting practice is planning ahead.
     As of December 26, 2010] sign-up for classes is not yet available. Keep checking the CT-DEP website for when the classes will be posted. However, Pre-Registration for all classes is Mandatory. All firearms hunting courses are 16 hours or longer. You must attend all scheduled class times.

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IMAGE SOURCE: Connecticut Department of Environmental Preservation

wildlife management ~ "Growing Deer"

We recently stumbled upon a new website, Growing Deer TV. Describing it is perhaps best done by quoting the words of the site's principal speaker, Dr Grant Woods:

     GrowingDeer.tv’s mission is to provide current, useful information about hunting and growing white-tailed deer throughout the year. Each episode will show what we are focusing on that week as we manage properties for growing and hunting whitetail deer. GrowingDeer.tv episodes will include action packed hunts, proven hunting tactics, food plot and trail camera techniques, and the gear it takes to get it all done.
     GrowingDeer.tv is a creation of Dr. Grant Woods, a lifelong hunter with 20+ years of experience in managing whitetails throughout their range. Grant’s goal is to use this web site to provide real time information for men and women that are passionate about deer, deer hunting, and management programs. Grant loves to hunt turkeys also — so expect a few turkey episodes during the spring!
     Episodes are designed to help you resolve the common problems that are encountered while hunting or the daily tasks associated with improving your hunting property — real time — week to week with no repeats.
     You can keep updated between episodes by reading Grant’s blog, “Thoughts from the Field.” He will share some insights into his thoughts of the daily events that are of interest to folks that are passionate about hunting and wildlife management — everything from hunting, trapping, frustrations and blessings from weather patterns, all the way to how a change in legislation may affect hunter interests.
     All the content on the site is free of charge, paid for by the sponsors. So please support them as best you can. The GrowingDeer.tv Team looks forward to sharing current hunts and information with you!

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IMAGE + TEXT CREDIT: Copyright © 2009-2010 GrowingDeer.tv. GrowingDeer.tv is a Trademark of Woods & Associates, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

hunting books for kids

It may be too late to order these books and have them by Christmas, but it's never too soon to get youngsters interested in hunting and the outdoors. I'm also glad to see that books like this are available.

My First Deer Hunt by Curtis and Michael Waguespack. A photo book where a boy goes out hunting with Dad, learns how not to scare off the deer and gets to see what it's like. Available through Amazon.com, Charting Nature and other booksellers.

Shawn Meyers' Hunt with a Kid website offers two titles, Conner's Big Hunt and Conner's Spring Gobbler. The illustration artwork, by Reed Sprunger, in both these books is superb! Also available through Amazon.com.

Also available at Amazon.com is Will's First Hunt by Kerri Busteed with illustrations by Leon Byers. It's been said that this book "...is a fabulous introduction to the world of Hunter's Safety and all that it entails...[and] that it opens the door to speak to our own children about the importance of guns, gun safety and hunting. This story is easily relatable to hunting and non-hunting families alike".

Even if you aren't certain your kids [or grandchildren, or nephews and nieces] are interested in hunting, getting them to learn about outdoor sports when they are young, is worth the effort.

basic trapping video

This video appears to be made to show a youngster how to make a snare trap for small game. It is also useful to show a youngster [...or another interested adult, for that matter] things to be aware of when placing a trap, and other tips as well.

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VIDEO CREDIT: Ryan J. Cus. Ryan produces other interesting videos as well, including basic knot techniques. Of his efforts, he says: "You can watch as many videos as you want about survival skills, but I can't stress enough the importance of practicing those skills."