Bob Frye stories

They’re a toothy, often aggressive and sometimes large exception to the rule. Saugeyes are a cross between a female walleye and a male sauger. Generally, fish culturists produce them in hatcheries. They’re different than most such man-made creations in one way, though. Whereas most hybrids are sterile, saugeyes at least...

Pennsylvania hunters killed more deer in 2019-20 than at any other time in the last 15 years. So says the Pennsylvania Game Commission, which released deer harvest estimates March 19. The total take was 374,690. That was up by 4 percent over the year before, and the biggest kill since...

Pennsylvania waterfowl hunters have had it pretty good for a long, long time, at least in one sense. Whether that continues remains to be seen. For at least the last 20 years, the state has enjoyed “liberal” duck and goose seasons, which are marked by the maximum 60 days of...

It’s the difference between going on a week-long vacation and going on an afternoon picnic at the local park. You put a lot of time and effort into prepping for the former, given commitments of time, money and labor involved. The latter is often more spur of the moment, or...

There’s no secret formula for catching fish, nothing that guarantees a finny foe on the end of the line every outing, let alone every cast. Yet fishing is not all luck, either. Indeed, the folks behind teachinfishin.com swear by an eight-step method for putting more fish in the boat. It’s...

Take a quick look around the outdoors world with a tip, a fishing lure and more: Tip of the week It’s time to take inventory. Camping season is here, or soon will be for most folks, and some prepping is in order. Namely, it’s time to go through your gear...

There’s an old riddle that says: “The more there is of me, the less you see. What am I?” The answer is darkness. But Joe Zaffuto isn’t buying it. Not totally, anyway. He hunts predators and has for 40 years. He’s done it during the day, after dark, using dogs,...

Take a quick look around the outdoors world with a tip, a new piece of gear and more: Tip of the week Must there be ice before one can talk about ice-out fishing? That’s a riddle mild winters like this one make you ponder. But by whatever name, the fishing...

Mentoring programs are supposed to make it easy for people to try hunting. This one is sometimes doing just the opposite, and that might lead to changes. The Pennsylvania Game Commission offers mentored youth and adult hunting programs. They work, to a point. “We know, based on the surveys we’ve...

This isn’t necessarily what you would call run and gun fishing. But it is increasingly a game built on mobility. Catching yellow perch on Lake Erie — or on any of the Great Lakes, really — used to mean going out, finding a school, anchoring over it and having at...

Sasquatches. The Loch Ness Monster. Chupacabras. And crappies outside of the spawn. What do they all have in common? They’re often sought, much talked about, but rarely seen. But that’s not how things have to be, at least when it comes to crappies. It’s possible to catch them — consistently,...

The legend of the Lone Ranger is the stuff of “those thrilling days of yesteryear.” So, too, is the notion of camping without your pet. More and more public campgrounds around the country are open to camping with dogs and sometimes other animal friends. Take Pennsylvania, for example. That state’s...

It’s a celebration of one man’s life. But it’s more than that, too. The Pennsylvania Fly Fishing Museum Association is inducting Chauncy Lively into its hall of fame in a special ceremony Feb. 29 in Mars. That recognition is really just the centerpiece for a celebration of all things Western...

Take a quick look around the outdoors world with a tip, a new piece of gear and more: Tip of the week Pack light. That’s the mantra of the backpacker. But what does that mean? Do you really have to cut off the last three inches off your toothbrush’s handle,...

This isn’t good news by any means. The Pennsylvania Game Commission found more deer with chronic wasting disease in 2019 than the year before. And that’s with some counting still left to do. Hunters will know soon how the agency plans to deal with that. The commission unveiled a draft...

Take a quick look around the outdoors world with a tip, a fishing lure and more: Tip of the week Interest in recreational shooting is on the increase across America, with many of the newcomers, younger ones in particular, focused on handguns. But which one to buy? Walk into any...

If you enjoy channeling your inner coal miner when roaming woods and trails in the dark, move along. This isn’t the headlamp for you. But if seeing well enough to cook dinner, set up your tent or walk to your treestand without tripping over rocks and roots are priorities, well,...

It’s not exactly going out on a limb to say Al Morris is a passionate predator hunter. Make that visibly passionate. The three-time world coyote calling champion is one of the hosts of FOXPRO Furtakers on the Outdoor Channel. He travels all over the country for the show. Watch the...

Get two hunters together anywhere, anytime, and one question is more likely to come up than any other. Did you get your buck? In South Carolina, the answer is likely yes, at least lately. In 2018, the most recent year for which data is available, 79% of licensed Palmetto State...

The clock is ticking for bobcats in North America. Not in the sense that they’re in trouble. Far from it. Bobcats were scarce as recently as the 1970s. Deforestation, development, changes in agricultural practices and even bounties hammered the population. But things are dramatically different. A decade ago, researchers with...

This worked out about as well as could have been expected. And maybe better. Late in 2018, Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission officials created four voluntary permits meant to raise funds for fish habitat work, research, angler surveys and more. They started marketing them earnestly early in 2019. One permit,...

Take a quick look around the outdoors world with a tip, a new piece of gear and more: Tip of the week Compared to the cost of a rifle and optics you mount on it, scope rings are fairly inexpensive. But to get the most from your firearm, you still...

Imagine the movie “Wild Hogs,” but with four kayaks and a single canoe replacing the motorcycles. That’s what our trip was like. Well, sort of. We’re a half-dozen middle-aged guys — trending hard and fast toward old — and last summer’s float was an attempt to add a little adventure...