Outdoors Rambler   

PREFACE:  My interest in sunglasses, related to both style and performance, began in the mid-1990s, spurred by innovations created for military operations such as Desert Storm. Companies like Wiley X were developing glasses and goggles for harsh conditions -- combat scenarios loaded with dust and blinding light. They designed frames with removable gaskets that largely conformed to your facial structure, keeping dust and debris out.   Wiley X had lenses that were Mil Spec ball

This is a quick review of a weekday visit to the Georgia Aquarium and includes a video compilation of the informative exhibits and the entertaining sea lion and bottlenose dolphin shows.

There is something special about the rapid bump-bump-bump-bump of your truck's wheels rolling over the steel beams of a cattle guard at the gate of a sprawling Texas ranch. It is a transition point, the spot where your anticipation really starts peaking, especially when the gate is at a place like the Lowrance Ranch near Truscott, Texas, a well-managed haven for big white-tailed deer. The ranch is located east of Lubbock and about 100 miles due north of Abilene. Arriving ther

Note: This weblog is loaded with photos (including an extensive gallery of food we enjoyed) and a few videos covering this seven-day cruise to the western Caribbean aboard the Margaritaville at Sea Islander. Even with my youthful exposure to the popular television comedy series “The Love Boat,” I never felt an itch to say, “I need to take a cruise.” Traveling on land, with my own car or a rental in a foreign country, was always the norm. I shy away from bus tours, with the ga

Sitka Hudson Jacket - Author setting decoy - photo by Clayton Chase Waterfowlers across North America are gearing up for the 2025-2026...

Myth 1: Chiggers & Nail Polish   The welts were just their loving reminders – sort of like Google 5-Star reviews, saying, “Thanks for a...

The scent of salt and seaweed permeated the breeze off Casco Bay as we rolled into Henry Allen’s Seafood on Lookout Point Road in Harpswell, Maine. The place is nestled into a tiny cove off Middle Bay, the nearby rocky ledges and protruding points at falling tide revealing golden brown swaths of sugar kelp, patches of Irish moss, and rockweed. “This is why I wanted to come here,” I told Maria. “The views, the smells, the seafood.” Indeed, the little seafood retail barn and w

Discover fabulous fishing, gourmet dining and "Old Florida" living at the beautiful Tarpon Lodge in Pine Island in Lee County.

I’ll let you in on a secret. I love to visit St. Augustine, Florida. For one, it’s a fairly easy day’s drive from my home in Virginia...

An expedition out of Hampton, New Hampshire, with Al Gauron Fishing Charters last year yielded a bunch of tasty cold water fish. The main...

The late Paul Harvey used to conclude some of his famous radio broadcasts, “And now you know the rest of the story.” Here's the rest of...

The author outlines some of the many reasons to be grateful at Thanksgiving

I like music, whether indoors on my old stereo rack system or outdoors with speakers featuring portable Bluetooth technology. I even have...

Annual trips, pilgrimages really, to upstate New York to fish in two of the Great Lakes (Erie and Ontario) and their incredible,...

Anglers losing catches, equipment and money to shark depredation - task force looking at the problem and possible solutions.

Children have fun and learn conservation lessons at community fishing events.

Rapid Fishing Solutions. Why didn’t I invent that? A question I’ve asked myself many times over the years when fishing, hunting, doing...

WARNING! This article may trigger certain anglers who despise catfish, especially blue cats and flatheads. Yes, they are non-native,...

Fishing for king (Chinook) salmon on Lake Ontario in late April 2024

Prologue - Busted! Three hours of comfortable sitting in a low-profile “strutter” chair at daybreak had the jumbo-sized coffee I quaffed...

Note: a version of this article reprinted (below) ran in the Feb. 2, 2024 online edition of The Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star. This has...

Fishing gear manufacturers often wait until late spring or summer to debut new lures, rods and reels or other accessories, usually timing...

Historic Delta Marsh delivers incredible hunting mixed bag, lessons in conservation and wildfowl cooking mastery courtesy of Chef Amanda.

Islamorada, Florida -- the place where the Upper Keys begin their rustic resplendence and any hint of cosmopolitan transitions to quirky....

The Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation presented the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources with its State Fish and Wildlife Agency...

Here's a wild game adaption of a classic Italian-style recipe. It's an Elk Parmesan. We were fortunate to have Brooks Hansen of Camp Chef...

Preface: Over the years, when I’d make a social media posting about some piece of gear or an outdoors tool that had proven reliable,...

Individually crafted calls, signed by the maker, offer hand-tuned performance Buying turkey or waterfowl calls can be daunting for novice...

Book Review: 'Call Me Hunter' an 'abstract thriller that like cubism, distorts reality.' Shockey shares insights into the book's...

I had one state left to check off my list of states I had yet to visit – Idaho. Figures I’d save one of the very best for last. But...