Chronic Wasting Disease is a serious outdoors issue

June 28, 2023

Recently, I began wondering if Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) was still a serious issue in our West Virginia deer population. I contacted the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources and was put in touch with Ethan Barton, who is the Wildlife Disease specialist for our state. Here are a few questions and some very detailed answers on the subject. Is CWD still an issue in West Virginia? “Yes, CWD is still present in West Virginia and is well-established within several counties and in our best estimation prevalence of the disease continues to increase over time. Further, it’s ...

Turkey hunting trip brings back old memories

May 22, 2023

I’m sure you have heard someone refer to their misspent youth. Probably most of us have thought about things, however so slightly, we might have regretted doing. On a recent turkey hunting trip, in an area that I had not set foot in for many years, I came to realize that I had a “not so” misspent youth. The turkey hunting was slow, so I had plenty of time to think about the experiences that took place in that area in my 10-15 age years. A couple friends of mine and I had treated this area as if we were members of the Lewis & Clark expedition and we were forging into an ...

Gathering nature’s bounty an option in the spring as well

April 28, 2023

Although late summer and early fall are usually associated with the gathering of nature’s bounty such as apples, berries, nuts and most things out of the garden, there are things that are harvested in spring and early summer. Of course, in our area, one of the most popular of these would be the wild leek, or more commonly known as the ramp. Ramps are a sure sign that spring is here. They grow mainly in the eastern mountain states of West Virginia, Kentucky and Tennessee. I know when I was growing up ramps were seen as a “Spring Tonic” and were “Good for what ails ...

Gold Rush and spring turkey season upon us

April 13, 2023

Happy spring to one and all. I took a longer break from this column than I had expected. It always amazes me how time flies, but I’m going to try to get back to and stay on track! As I write this, trout stocking is in full swing and the Gold Rush is happening. According to the DNR website there will be 50,000 golden rainbow trout stocked during their 68 stockings. I believe there is a special tagged trout that could net some lucky angler a lifetime fishing license. I hope some fisherman catches the “Golden Ticket.” I have only made it to the river with my grandsons and a ...

Valiant WVU effort falls short

October 31, 2022

MORGANTOWN — Midway through the fourth quarter, fans at Mountaineer Field began batting a large, inflated beach ball through the air, only to discover after a short while that the air was slowly escaping. If you believed in symbolism, so it was down on the sunbathed field below. The game had been a lot of fun as West Virginia and the seventh-ranked Horned Frogs batted each other around, neither team taking control of the game. But in the end, the air began escaping out of the game and West Virginia’s season as TCU, armed with a barrage of big plays, including an incomprehensible ...

Football normalcy returns

August 23, 2022

After two years of shuffling through the pandemic and limited media opportunities, a sense of normalcy returned the past couple of weeks in collecting pictures and interviewing area football coaches for The Inter-Mountain Football Preview and Fall Sports insert, which will be included in Thursday’s edition. Like past years, the coaches are always very cooperative and excited to get the season underway. Second-year Elkins High School coach Jimmy Hankins was pleased with his roster numbers being up in 2022, along with the ongoing turf installment on the school’s field. The Tigers ...