4-19-26 - Unusual Weather Conditions and its effect on Fish and the impact on Turkey Season

On tonight's show, Jim and Scott talk about the unusual weather conditions and its effect on fish and the impact on turkey season.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:02):
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(01:25):
Jim Straighter Outdoors right here on News Radio eight forty.

Speaker 2 (01:29):
Whas good evening, everybody, Jim Straighter here and spring and
his burst forth. However, it feels more like summer and
Scott and I've got a great program lined up for
you tonight. We're gonna talk about how this weather has
been so unusual, what it partends for the wildlife and fish.

Speaker 3 (01:54):
Uh.

Speaker 2 (01:54):
We're gonna give you water reports. We're gonna talk about
the spawning activity with the fish and how unusual that's been.
We're gonna talk at length about turkey season. We got
some great reports. Scott's already harvested birds and as usual,
and he's gonna tell you about what he's been seeing.

(02:16):
He's been scouting extensively and as usual. We both network
with a variety of people, and in that regard, we're
gonna have some guests on with fresh field reports from
the last two days, and we're also going to give
some real in depth fishing reports. So it's gonna be
a real good program with a lot of detailed information

(02:40):
and I think you'll enjoy some of the insight that
Scott and dalill be able to provide for you. So
that's kind of what we got going on tonight, and
again we're gonna talk hunting, fishing, and a lot of
field reports that pertain the farming practices, the trees budding, etc.
It's a very unusual set of circumstances and we're gonna

(03:03):
do our best to feel you in on what we've
been seeing. So I'm gonna go ahead and go to
break here coming back from break, Scott, and now we're
gonna chat about turkey hunting in these unusual field conditions.
This break is presented by S and My Marine. Go
see them. They'll take great care of your boat, and
there experts of troubleshooting problems you may have. And remember

(03:25):
you never get soaked by my friends at S and
My Marine. All right, Scott, we're gonna open the problem
here with how crazy, and I do mean crazy the
weather's been. And when I stay crazy, I mean historically crazy,
because there's things going on that I've never seen before.

(03:47):
And you've got, I know, a lot of observations as well,
but I want to lead off with one that's gonna
kind of trickle into what we're gonna talk about on
the fishing side of things, and that is how we
went from winter into almost summer like conditions, and what

(04:08):
it caused was all these trees and things budding early.
That's number one. And number two, I don't know anybody,
and everyone that listens to the program knows. I've been
around for decades. I'm getting close to fifty years on
the air now, and I have never seen a red

(04:32):
buds but as early as they did in March, which
that's not entirely unusual, but I guarantee you I've never
seen dogwood bloom in March before, and not in a
big way. And the odd thing was about the time
the red buds hit here came the dogwoods three or
four days later. And I know you're going to speak

(04:53):
to the soal temperature side of that equation and how
those roots systems respond. But my goodness, that was weird.
And and uh, I am grateful to the Lord that
we didn't have a frost here in this little cool
down stage we've got going on now, because these oaks

(05:14):
are in full pollination right now. Red oaks, white oaks,
black oaks started a bit back and they got burnt
pretty bad. So it's uh, I'm seeing a lot of
things I've never seen, and and folks older than I
am have never seen. And I know you want to
speak to it because you're a real student of forestry

(05:36):
and what it portends, and it's just been crazy, dude.

Speaker 3 (05:41):
Well, one of the major things is our climate has changed,
and because of that climate change, it's prevented that frosts
that you were speaking of. And what that comes from
is our our wind.

Speaker 4 (05:57):
Speed has been up.

Speaker 3 (05:58):
We've talked about this on PAS programs over the last
several years. All of your folks that are in agricultural
type practices where sprays have to be used can even
speak to this because you have so much drift. We've
had really dry conditions which has impacted the hunting and fishing.
We're going to speak of your sole temperature up, your

(06:20):
water temperaures are up, but our wind speed is up,
and that has created a lot of havoc, not just
with trying to prep and prepare with how to get
out on the lake or the water, or how well
you can hear out scouting turkeys or actually hunting turkeys.
It's becoming to where it's actually leeching, depleting the amount

(06:44):
of moisture that's in our plant life. It's drying out
our soil surfaces. We're in a significant drought in most
of the state, even though we're coming off with some
fresh precipitation. But everything that you speak of is a
once in a lifetime thing. For you've been on the
air for fifty years. I've been living for almost fifty years,

(07:04):
and I would say that somewhere around that age of ten,
if you just move forward, if you're around up to
forty years of living and paying attention to Mother Nature,
there's some things that are just not making a whole
lot of sense.

Speaker 4 (07:20):
On what is normal anymore.

Speaker 3 (07:23):
And this has been a spring that has put all
of us in question of our tactics and strategies of
what to do.

Speaker 4 (07:32):
We went into straight summer.

Speaker 3 (07:34):
We did not get to enjoy much spring color because
everything was.

Speaker 4 (07:39):
Just on overdrive.

Speaker 3 (07:40):
It was a rapid hit with air temperatures, sunshine and
drought and coming through winter and into what should have
been a traditional normal spring. That moisture was there in
the soil, and of course the plants were ready to
take off and go, and take off and go is
what they did. And the fish, the turkeys and everything

(08:01):
else is well ahead of schedule. And we're not talking
about ten days. We're talking about upwards the thirty days.
I had a schedule thirty days a month. I had
a schedule on spawning turkey, you know, reproduction, and even
just comments from friends being out and about this weekend
with the opener of the Kentucky turkey season and the

(08:23):
Youth Indiana turkey season. I've got my guys and gals
that I communicate with telling me and talking to me
about is it normal for deer to have this much
antler you know, development already? And my response back was
is it normal?

Speaker 4 (08:36):
No? Is it normal for this year? Yes?

Speaker 2 (08:40):
Yeah, that's the thing. I'll put it this way in
a succinct fashion. You can forget all the things that
you normally expect by calendar date, as far as everything
ever since we came out of winter. I mean, throw
it out to window. I don't care if you're talking
about white bassbawn, you know, fish behavior, what the turkeys

(09:04):
are doing. To your point about the deer, I'm glad
you brought the deer up, because I've got guys sending
me trail camera pictures. Were huge bases already established and
they're up about I don't know four inches, which is tremendous.
And thank goodness, with the ice and snow and what

(09:25):
we had. It's probably good in a way that things
got green quick because deer were pretty stressed out after
that ice and stuff held on for so long and
they really needed it. But good grief for so far ahead.
The part about dogwoods coming into full bloom no more

(09:47):
than four or five days after the red butts went
into bloom, it's crazy. I mean, you know that's normally
two to three week gap.

Speaker 3 (09:56):
And there's you right now that could stand to be cut,
but there's hay fields that could stand to be cut.
You can't because of the heavy morning dews, which have
been a blessing. And when you talk about the amount
of brows, just the clover alfalfa fields natural brows, the
amount of plants that are already seeding out what's going

(10:20):
on is definitely different.

Speaker 4 (10:23):
Now.

Speaker 3 (10:24):
One thing not that we're going to get carried away
on deer with this program tonight, but one thing that
I want everybody to realize is one of the things
that you taught me about coming on and joining you
as a partner on the radio is to make sure
that when we give people advice, that we don't ever
put ourselves in a position where we guarantee or promise anything.

(10:46):
And I've respected that since day one of partnering with you,
But I will tell you.

Speaker 4 (10:51):
That my knowledge does have me heavily concerned. And here's why.

Speaker 3 (10:58):
Early season droughts have the history of having some of
the worst EHD outbreaks in history, and the amount of
drought activity that is in western Kentucky right now is
significant to what we see in sometimes late August and

(11:18):
early September. So unfortunately for those that manage Deer, we're
not promising anything. And this isn't Scott Crohnen saying We're
going to have a huge EHD outbreak. But I do
want folks to remember, especially those that go back and
listen to the recordings that we could be on stage

(11:38):
of setting up all the conditions for what could be
the worst ever pre season conditions before going in the
summer for us to have the amount of exposed bare
dirt and soil that could be an optimum position for
EHD to raise its ugly head. So it's important that

(12:00):
we as stewards of the land pay attention to our
deer herds. We pay attention to what we can do
and offset prevent those things. And folks that have the
ability to apply application of seed in and around ponds
or areas in which baar dirt is exposed right now,
I highly encourage you to do that to help prevent

(12:23):
the onset of EHD.

Speaker 4 (12:24):
You're not going to stop at all.

Speaker 3 (12:25):
We can't go out there and do everything, but any
areas that you know in and around water resources that
deer have on your property, please utilize and make use
of your cereal grains and some of your grasses that
can establish quickly and not give you management problems with
the rest of the vegetation on your farm. But we
need to try to work as best as we can

(12:47):
to make sure as many of those cases of EHD
can be reduced as possible and be very careful as
you mow.

Speaker 4 (12:56):
Because we're going to talk about a lot tonight.

Speaker 3 (12:59):
There's no doubt that a lot of turkeys and fawns
are probably going to be more heavily impacted in a
negative way with hay cutting and bush hogging this year,
because a lot of folks are gonna want to get
out there and clean stuff up and try to salvage
and get the best quality hay they can before it
seeds out. But if you can do as much as

(13:22):
you can to prevent from this basic bush hogging, and
when it does come time to cut that hay, and
it's not far off, please take the time to ride
that four wheel or side by side or to the
tractor through the field to try to flush those turkeys
off the nest or get those fawns up so they're
not called in our balers and cutters.

Speaker 2 (13:43):
Yeah, the turkeys, especially because we're gonna talk at length
about the turkey nesting activity because it's ahead a schedule,
we're gonna dive down. But excellent point about those insects.
I'll tell you chick anders who's a mutual friend are
somewhere we dearly love is going to be on with

(14:03):
us and talk about a boogie of fishing situation that
we encountered this past week. But man, were we eaten
alive by those biting midges. I mean they ate us alive.
As a matter of fact, He's got whelps all over
him from it. And so your point there is very
well taken. The insect activity again, it's really weird, and

(14:26):
there's some weird insects stuff I'm going to relate too
later in the program and in concert with what we're
going to talk about turkeys. But it's just well mushrooms.
Talk a little bit about that you're a big mushroom hunter,
and a lot of people were really disappointed.

Speaker 3 (14:44):
I was until the year of twenty twenty six. Then
I had to admit that I was a mushroom searcher.
The mushroom hunting has kind of gone to the wayside
because of the heat that we've had.

Speaker 4 (14:58):
This is not fact, you know.

Speaker 3 (15:00):
I mean, there's things we could have charts in front
of us and data, but I would just about venture
to say that we had more days with a average
temperature in the sixties in the month of March and
probably any on record.

Speaker 2 (15:16):
Now.

Speaker 3 (15:17):
I don't know that for fact, but there was a
lot of eighty degree days, eighty two degree days, eighty
four that got up to eighty seven one day, and
that wind, it goes back to that wind.

Speaker 4 (15:28):
It's stripping that moisture.

Speaker 3 (15:29):
So while the moreles, hickory chickens, dry land fish, whatever
you want to call them.

Speaker 4 (15:37):
Are definitely part of so many people's.

Speaker 3 (15:40):
Diet this time of year, and such a joy to
get out and hunt and go after it's been slim pickings.
I mean, you're getting a cat full of a time.
There's not many sacks being filled. And to be strayed
about it, there's not There's not a whole lot of
people that are calling their buddy or they're neable to
go help them pick either, because it's just there's not

(16:00):
a lot to forage on there. And that's because of
a few things in that moisture content being part of it.
So yes, there's been a few runs by a few
people that have found a little stash here and there,
but overall it's been a really difficult year. I talked
with one of my really good friends in southern Indiana

(16:21):
last week about this as well. They're just not in
their up and flourishing in their normal spots. And I'm
not saying they're not going to because we're dealing with
some great weather and some precipitation ahead. But it's it's
been a little heartbreaking for those of us that like
to get the Kentucky.

Speaker 4 (16:40):
Colonel out and little little butter and.

Speaker 3 (16:44):
Fry those jokers up. We've got the turkey breast and
the fish. That's what we're going to talk about. We've
got fresh meat, but we don't have a whole lot
of fresh mushrooms.

Speaker 4 (16:52):
You know.

Speaker 2 (16:53):
Oh, let me round out about something that and this
is good news, I think overall, least I hope that
it is. I'm going to return to what I mentioned
earlier with the oaks being right now just loaded with pollen,
and thank goodness, thank the Lord, we have skated through

(17:14):
this because it was really early. You know, you normally
see those great, big pods of pollend on on the
water in early May. But buddy, it's it's game on.
I mean, I traveled across the state and across southern
Indiana here this past week and and it's it's game on,

(17:35):
you know, in terms of that pollination, and that's so
important for the deer, turkey, squirrels. You know, raccoons, everything
to these sacreds. I'm just and the.

Speaker 3 (17:48):
I'll forget about amount of willow flies and that you
know people, some people know almost will applies may flies.

Speaker 2 (17:55):
The water is.

Speaker 3 (17:56):
Full of pollen, you know, the the hatch of the
wheel flies here, you know, ten days ago. It's just
it's crazy. I mean, it's what's on the waters. It's
not ponen, it's it's also these these mayflies.

Speaker 4 (18:11):
They're everywhere. A really good hatch for the most part,
a little early.

Speaker 2 (18:17):
Uh.

Speaker 3 (18:17):
And the fish of capitalize on it. Our fish are
foraging just like we are, Jim. We've got fresh fish,
We've got fresh turkey and uh and uh. The critters
have got a lot to eat too, from the deer
to the to the bluegill in the bass. And we'll
get back to it. But it's gonna be a it's
gonna be an interesting early summer since it's been a
really warm spring.

Speaker 2 (18:39):
Yeah, we'll speak to that as well. Again, folks, if
you do things by the calendar, which most of us do,
you've had a big reset. We're gonna talk about that
at length, all right, Gonna go to this break. It's
presented by SMI Marine Go see them. They got all
kinds of boats for sale. They got some really good
to use boats for sale right now, and they'll be

(19:01):
glad to show you some of the twenty twenty five
boats that they still got where they've got dealer incentives.
And remember you never get soaked by my friends at
SMI Marine. God, we're gonna talk a lot of turkey
in the second hour of the show, But I want
to lead into this segment because you've been out scouting

(19:22):
a lot. I mean, I don't know anybody that scouts
more efficiently and more diligently th do, and it's paid
good results. Tell us about your hunts and what you saw,
and we'll you know, got some other folks chiming later
in the show, but you're on top of things in
a big way. Tell us what you've been seeing and

(19:44):
a little bit about your hunts.

Speaker 3 (19:46):
Well, we definitely had an a above average activity session
in the fields with agriculture folks getting now doing just
general work because of the warmer, dry weather, and birds
started seeing a lot of vegetation change and had to

(20:07):
adapt to the human agricultural and this natural process of
what was going on. And it does seem that we
had an uptick in our turkey numbers for the state
of Kentucky in most areas.

Speaker 5 (20:21):
So that was good.

Speaker 3 (20:22):
So the pecking order and all that was going through
the normal process, and we had a situation where our
youth season come in typically there the first Saturday in April,
but the way that the dates fell on the calendar,
we had a two week session that allowed for a

(20:42):
lot of gobbler activity. Breeding turkeys to be left alone,
not coming right off the uth season, and birds had
a chance to settle back down, even in the areas
where they were given some pressure and then lo and behold.

Speaker 4 (20:57):
Just like we talked with the weather patterns.

Speaker 3 (20:59):
Wouldn't you know that the day that everybody's been looking
forward to the opener of the twenty twenty six Kentucky
turkey season on four eighteen, most of us were looking
at the radar trying to figure out when we could
catch a break or how long we could hunt before
we got wet, And a lot of folks that capitalize

(21:21):
on birds going to the fields during the rain started
changing their strategies, and I did the same. I scouted
and prepped for rain on Saturday morning, only to come
to find out that on my walk in where it
was supposed to be raining before the sun come up,
it was dry, and it was dry long enough for
me to get a turkey back to the truck and

(21:43):
not get a feather wet on it.

Speaker 4 (21:45):
But the birds are fighting. The mails are, you know,
through the process.

Speaker 3 (21:50):
Of doing some breeding, and they're switching things up a
little bit. The activity, like we said, put them in
different locations a lot of time. When we look at
how we hunt turkeys for the opener, we don't have
these conditions. We don't have this type of heat, we
don't have this type of vegetation on the ground and
in our canopy of the trees. And what's happened is

(22:13):
the birds have gotten pretty far advanced because of the
later opener this year and the change in the weather pattern,
and it left a lot of us having to utilize
strategies for the opening weekend that traditionally, Jim, we would
have used into the second third and possibly the last
week of the season. It was very interesting to see

(22:35):
how that went, and a lot of your hunters that
come from quite a bit of experience and several years
of hunting, you could tell that they were adapting those
late season techniques for the Kentucky opener. And I can
get into as little as much detail as you want
to about my two hunts as far as filling my
tags and what I seen, but basically to sum up

(23:00):
what happened for the opening weekend, scouting played a huge
row because weather conditions did impact where birds were at,
how vocal birds were, and what birds were doing amongst
themselves to calls and to decoys.

Speaker 2 (23:20):
Well everything again back to this acceleration. Almost everyone I've
talked to, and of course what you observed and what
I've seen, birds are definitely heavily into laying eggs and
in many cases there are already incubating eggs. And so

(23:44):
back to your comment about the foliage, I mean, this
is late mainfoliage. You know that if you like to
run a good buddy, you sneak up on a bird
right now better than never, because we are looking at
normal late May foliage right now.

Speaker 3 (24:02):
I was sitting in Tennessee on a ridge last Saturday,
and I was seen foliage in April early April. That
was more on set than when I squirrel hunt the
spring turkey season, or when I squirrel hunt in the

(24:23):
spring seasons.

Speaker 4 (24:23):
Right after turkey season.

Speaker 3 (24:25):
Not a lot of people get out and hunt that
spring season for squirrel It's one of my favorite times
to hunt because of I just I love young squirrels
in a cast iron skillet. Don't hold it against me,
but it's a it's a time of the year that's
very enjoyable to get out and to get some small
game hunting in.

Speaker 4 (24:46):
But I'm telling you, the.

Speaker 3 (24:47):
Foliage was already past the level of what I'm used
to in that May squirrel season of Kentucky. So it's yes, sir,
it's it's tough, and it's It's the thing too though,
is hunters are able to hide really well. Hunters are
able to really hide well. Birds have been capitalizing on shade.

(25:11):
Besides just the normal weather patterns that we're talking about
being different those hotter days, birds have had some shade
to get into. It has really allowed hunters to learn
from this season, and I'm proud of the hunters and
the feedback and things that they have. When you travel
in other states.

Speaker 4 (25:32):
And you hunt a lot in May.

Speaker 3 (25:36):
Or go into certain parts of the country, it's very
common for areas that we're holding birdsus stop holding birds
and the birds start going to shorter vegetation.

Speaker 4 (25:46):
For example, maybe.

Speaker 3 (25:47):
There's some agricultural work that's been done to prep a field,
or maybe some hay has been harvested. The heavy dews,
even though if we don't get rain a lot of
times that higher vegetation, the turkeys don't like to get
into it because it's so wet and they won't adapt
to it until later in the day. But also those
turkeys like to get in there and they like to

(26:10):
capitalize on the invertebrate population. What I'm getting at there,
when we have the heavy dews in the ground's been
worked up, there's a lot of earthworms, there's a lot
of snails, there's a lot of slugs, there's a lot.

Speaker 4 (26:21):
Of insect activity.

Speaker 3 (26:23):
Later on, when some of this higher vegetation starts to
it starts to heat up and it dries out, bugs will,
you know, kind of hide.

Speaker 4 (26:29):
A little bit.

Speaker 3 (26:30):
But turkey's real good at getting in there and foraging
on the insects and then vertebrates. And then two it's
amazing how differently sound travels through the canopy of the
trees and how you set up it can work for
you and it can work against you. You can really
slip in on a turkey whenever you have a situation where.

Speaker 4 (26:53):
You've got a little bit more cover.

Speaker 3 (26:55):
And we were blessed with that that rain, if you
want to consider it a blessing as far as just
the sneak approach to get in or to move around,
and even this morning it was phenomenal. I could get
right in on the turkeys, and that was to my advantage.
The foliage was to my advantage. The agricultural work in
the field is to my advantage, the amount of understory

(27:18):
leaf production is to my advantage, to a lot of
people's advantages. But it's been a tricky spring so far
with how birds are reacting the decoys and how they're
reacting to calls. It seems that, like I said, the
male birds have gone through a second round of a
pecking order and fighting from the peak gobbling that they

(27:38):
did have. We had some weather set back with how
well they gobbled on the roosts. And of course you've
got some hens that are starting to be bred, and
some are going off to begin to sit or at
least search out a nessing location. And let's face it,
right before we went on air, we are already up
to around a loud I think it's eleven thousand birds

(27:59):
have been harvested in the state of Kentucky so far
this year. That's the use season in the regular season,
and when you have eleven thousand birds harvested, that means
that there's probably going to be at least eleven thousand
different changes in the social behavior of the turkey flock
across the state of Kentucky, because let's not forget every

(28:21):
time one of those gobblers is taken out, there's going
to be somebody else to cover his trail, and it
will happen, and you will see where hunting pressure will
move birds from point A to point B. And you're
also going to see where the weather temperature swinging backwards
and the lower temps and having some precipitation is going
to be a positive reset on how these birds act

(28:43):
and how active they do get. Turkeys are kind of
puning when it comes to heat. If folks haven't had
that experience yet, they probably notice that in their preseason
scouting before the opener.

Speaker 2 (28:55):
Well, you made an excellent point there, and I'm glad
you brought it up about that shuffling that happens after
a bird's harvested, because in many cases, it'll be the
dominant bird and there is that pecking order. Well, the
way by the nature works is that secondary bird's gonna
come in and it's gonna take, you know, a little

(29:18):
bit of time for that re establishment. You know, Doctor
Chamberlain talked a lot about that when we hit him
on the air in previous programs. I'd encourage people to
go back and listen to that because he dove into
that in a big way, or dived in I guess
I should say, and it's it changes things and they'll

(29:39):
be probably I'll put it this way, people that have
grown the past about they wish the season had opened
earlier are probably gonna get a taste of how good
it can be. In my estimation, because I tend to
hunt more in late season than early and more success

(30:01):
because they're not as end up and they're looking for
love and all the wrong places as a love today
and I'm getting reports of guys with birds are goblin
on the ground a little more than they have been,
you know, the last two weeks. And you know, you
and I both know what that means. The baby doll

(30:21):
is not as available and they're starting to break out
and move a lot, and we're gonna again talk about
that a good bit here the second hour. So I'm
gonna go to break here coming back, we're gonna get
a little fishing and uh, I think people are gonna
be really surprised about what we're gonna reveal. And I'm
doing that as a tease on purpose, because it's weird.

(30:44):
All right, folks, This break is presented by Semi Marine.
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(31:08):
You know, Scott, You and I've been talking about these
weird conditions and what it does. And I encountered something
this week. Was one of my all time favorite fishing
partners who's been sold for decades. That's Chick Andrews. A
lot of our listenership have been into the shop over

(31:29):
at Chick's Archery and Honting and fishing supplies over in Clarksville, Indiana.
And I'm still blowing away with what Chicken I encountered
this week. Now, folks, were mid April. Okay, we had
found bluegill on the bed. And when I say on

(31:50):
the bed, I'm talking about hard on the bed. And
I've never seen that this early in the year. And
when I say they were hard on the bed, you
couldn't hardly run them off. And Chick's gonna fill in
the gaps here. But Scott, I know you probably want
to give a shout out to Chick. You used to
shop there as a kid. He's one of our favorite people,

(32:13):
no doubt.

Speaker 3 (32:14):
Well, first of all, I knew that y'all had a
good day of fishing because we had that famous Chick
laugh in the background during our phone conversation. That will
do the body good at all. You know, being around
Chick is an honor.

Speaker 4 (32:33):
Chick.

Speaker 3 (32:33):
It was an individual when I was a young person
who knew where I was going to be with you
and in this radio program. But my money was saved
in a coffee. Can you know the ones that actually
come with the plastic lid, And they were metal back
in time.

Speaker 4 (32:50):
Now most of them are all plastic.

Speaker 3 (32:51):
But Chick was my Santa Claus from PSC to easton
Arrows and buying broadheads and getting everything done just right.
From my autumn aluminum arrows to my camouflage hunting arrows.
You know, back in that era, if your arrows weren't camouflage,
you weren't a real bowl hunter.

Speaker 4 (33:12):
You know, you could only practice with those golden green ones.

Speaker 3 (33:16):
But old Chick has no idea how many game getters
and XX seventy eights and XX seventy five and joys
that I had with another person who was very important
in my life, and that was my father. And what
chicks served to the outdoor community, and his role in
leadership with trapping and the way in which he brought

(33:40):
customer service and retail business to the consumer does not
need to go without recognition. So Chick's a great friend
of yours and it's been an honor to get to
share some conversations with him. But the world in America
needs more chicks in the world.

Speaker 2 (33:59):
Demonstrator, amen on that, amen on that, Chick. Is your
hat still fit your head? Yeah?

Speaker 6 (34:08):
After that, it does.

Speaker 2 (34:10):
Yeah, I can't understand, but you deserve every bit of it. Listen,
you and I fished together for decades. Yeah, we set
out the other day to fish. As people would expect,
I turned on the you know, the electronics. When the

(34:31):
waterer red seventy five degrees, I was like, you know what,
I don't care what the calendar says. This ought to
be croppy spawned. But surely with this dark moon approaching,
some bluego thinking about spawning. And I'm gonna let you
take it from there, because it blew both of us away.

Speaker 6 (34:54):
It did it, really, it really blew us away. And
but said we initially was going to crappie fish, and
what he just said about the moon phase and that
movie of being on a nest, we just decided to try.

(35:17):
And we pulled up to this one bed area that
we knew and it was just dead on slaughter. I mean,
there was so many there. I mean, it was just
hard that Jim said, it was hard not to realize
that that many fish could be in one spot. And

(35:41):
we fished there for a while and Jim said, well,
let's move to another place. So we went there and
darned if it wasn't the same thing, and we ended
up fishing three different places and every one of them
was bedded hard. I mean, you couldn't imagine old you're
lying in there. You I caught I don't know how

(36:03):
many that I caught just soon as a bug hit
the water, and what was it?

Speaker 2 (36:11):
Stick to your point about it being hard on the bed,
I wanted. I'm not mean to interrupt, but at one
time it was so windy, I was having trouble controlling
the boat. You know, I'm an anchor guy. I don't
like spot lock for that kind of fishing because it
tends to prop wash the bed. However, there's downside of

(36:32):
the anchor, and that is the boat. It went directly
over the front end of the bed. The fish blew out,
and I'm gonna make a strong point of here about that.
I knew no sooner got it straightened and reposition that
they were right back on that bed. And what that
means is and that means there's eggs there, and and

(36:54):
you and I cleaning these fish. The females that we
kept were plumb full of eggs and several well, actually
I'd say twenty five percent of the females that I
cleaned had already dropped eggs. So I've never seen this

(37:14):
in mid April. Never.

Speaker 6 (37:17):
No, no, I've been fishing, for gosh for seventy over
seventy years, and I've never seen this happen. This early,
and I mean it's amazing really the way this weather's
doing and this wind is wronged. I think the wind
and these high temperatures has warned this water up something terrible.

(37:40):
I mean, like Jim said, it was seventy five degrees.
I've never seen that happen early.

Speaker 2 (37:46):
In the year. No, No, it was crazy. And Scott's
got some reports that are going to mirror this, and
one of them is and we're gonna talk at length
about it. The shell cracker ready or whatever you want
to call them. They've already been hard on the bed
well before this. But my goodness, I've never in my
lifetime seen bluegill this hearty and betting activity in mid April.

(38:11):
This is crappie type. And coming back from this break,
we're going to talk to Croppy Bob coach Bob Ridman
about how weird the croppie season has been and what's
going on with it. This break is presented by SMI Marine.
Gonna see them. They'll take great care of your boat.
You're great friends. You'll never walk away from there without

(38:32):
feeling like you make good friends. Remember you never get
soaked at SMI. All right, folks, we're going to talk
about croppie season and how weird it it has been
with none other than Croppy Bob. And he's a gentleman
that I have fished with for many, many years. And

(38:54):
it's actually coach Bob Redman. Folks that know about football
state he's won a bunch of state championships in high
school football, but he is a crappie catching machine and
coach weird year buddy. I mean, just it's off the charts.

(39:17):
You know, we're here in mid April when it on
to be peaking, and it's already in terms of the
spawn winding down. And I want you to speak to
how weird this is. Because we're the same age. We've
been through many many seasons together and it's crazy. It's
been a different years, I mean, but you know the

(39:37):
last few have been different. You know, last year we
couldn't even get on a lake in Kentucky. They were
thirty and forty feet above summer pool. You couldn't even
find a ramp to get in at no land or
rough or whatever. At least this year we've had a
chance to get on the water. But it has been different.

Speaker 7 (39:59):
I think think it's we had some extremely warm weather
in March, we had some age set records and they
were prolonged periods four or five six days of eighty
degree weather and water temperatures jumped, plant life jumped your
dog who had started blooming.

Speaker 6 (40:22):
Things were way ahead.

Speaker 7 (40:24):
Now we've had a couple of subsequent cold fronts that
slowed it down. We're kind of in the middle of
one now, but overall, I think things were really way
ahead this year of where I've seen them in the past.
So I think it's been an usually warm spring, and
water temperatures got.

Speaker 2 (40:42):
Up there and hey, things started happening. Well, Bob, the
things that stood out to me, and I'm saying this
in you know, in a long time overview. Again, you
and I both save age. We're in our mid seventies here,
and I don't ever remember. I'll give an example where

(41:08):
mid April, you know, where just a shade pass. But
this is normally when crop you're peaking, and white bass
were done almost done the first week April, and you
know that's usually a harboringer or what the crop you're
going to do. But my goodness, it's been just accelerated

(41:31):
in a huge way. And you have years and years
of experience with your place down there in Berkley, Kentucky,
and it kicked it off early. And this year you
fished rough and no land. But let's revert back to
what you mentioned last year. The croppie really had very

(41:51):
minimal pressure. Last year's situation where they able to spawn
up in really good cover. Unfortunately couldn't get to them,
but fortunately for the long term good I think they
had the opportunity to get off. Probably what's gonna reveal
itself next year in a record number of fish that

(42:16):
are in that you know, adult category. Uh, talk about
what you what you've seen this year and how it
came early, and where you think we are now, and
talk about the black and white cropping. You're on target.
You're right on target.

Speaker 7 (42:36):
The floods last year, fishing pressure was almost zero, and
so this year you're you're seeing a lot, a lot
of you know, pound pound and a half pound and
three quarter cropping coming out of no land and rough,
which is unusual. It's they've always been you know, good

(42:57):
bodies of water to catch numbers and so forth, but
not real big fish. A lot of big fish.

Speaker 2 (43:04):
This spring and the class behind them. Next year's class
is it's going to be unbelievable. I'll bet you that
during the course of the day, we're having to measure
a lot of fish. Now it's a ten inch limit
on both both lakes, and the number of nine nine
and three quarters nine and a half real healthy, good

(43:28):
looking fish next year are going to be extremely good.
I think the future looks absolutely great for both of
those local lakes. I'm sure the same is is kind
of with Barkley and Kentucky.

Speaker 7 (43:43):
Both lakes have produced well this spring, and I think
we're in for a couple of just phenomenal croppy years
and this one has been really good.

Speaker 2 (43:52):
While it's been early, I mean we were catching fish
in you know, two and a half feet up real
shallow shallow in mid March, and it happened early, and
it's it's been different, but uh, the whole spring has
been that way. I mean, I had people encouraging me
to put my tomato plants out. I'm glad I did it.

Speaker 7 (44:14):
Now because we've got a twenty percent frost for since then,
the frost tonight.

Speaker 2 (44:18):
But it has been it has been unusual and been
very different. But in the long run, I'll be honest
with you.

Speaker 7 (44:26):
I think we're going to reap a real benefit in
the coming years here, especially locally, because of the the
numbers and the size of the of the next class
of fish.

Speaker 2 (44:39):
It really is going to be phenomenal. Well, I want
to plaud Fish Wildlife for putting that tennis limit on
Rough River. Uh for a variety of reasons, but I'll
give the main one. I'm delighted to hear about your
numbers of fish between nine and ten inches, because those
are spawners. You know, they're mature enough to spawn. Crappie

(45:02):
on average will spawn after eight inches. You know they're
mature enough to start. And when you've got that many
fish staying in the lake as a result of again
that that situation last year which led to the big
fish this year, and now this season we had this

(45:23):
early spawn and we've got these fish in that the
year class ye're talking about able to spawn return to
the water. Things look really really good for the future. Now,
coachs wind us up. Where do you think we are
on croppy spawn?

Speaker 7 (45:40):
I think it's on the way down. I caught fish
with eggs, some partially spawned out, but some that hadn't
as late as last Thursday. That's the last day that
I fished, and we fished about almost three weeks straight,
and but I caught fish with eggs as late, and

(46:02):
most of them were the white crappy. The black croppy
had already pretty much spawned, had a couple that had
as but most of those are already spawned out. The
white crappie were kind of still still going, but it
was starting to wind down.

Speaker 2 (46:18):
And again, my last time on the water was was
last Thursday, and uh so that's that's kind of where
it is.

Speaker 7 (46:25):
So I think I think we're at at the end
of it. And you know, normally, you know, you really were,
like you say, we're normally right in the middle of
the spawn and really Readier, you know, should be really starting.
And they've been going for two weeks at Barkley and Kentucky.
I have seen great strings of fish coming out of

(46:46):
Barkley and Kentucky.

Speaker 2 (46:47):
The readier a.

Speaker 7 (46:48):
Lot of the fish for those things, and so their
way early this year. So I think everything is just
simply moved up this spring. And it was due to
we had some you know, we had some summer light
temperatures in March on several occasions that it's just pushed
everything forward in my mind.

Speaker 2 (47:09):
Yeah, it started rolling. I'm glad you brought up the
red air shell cracker deal because Scotch gonna give us
some really good report on that. And uh, I put
it this way, Bob, I want to wind up with this.
Throw the calendar out the window. This year, boss, you
better pay attention to what mother nature did, because it

(47:29):
was it was weird. I mean, like you said, Bobby
went normally in mid April, tapered off a white pass.
You know they're ending about a week right there. You know,
in that period and by now mid April the croppier peaking.
You know, this dark moon should have been the peak

(47:50):
of the croppy spawn. But it's about over. I mean,
in honesty, I can't get my head around it. But
it is what it is. That's right, brother, absolutely, brother,
That's why he used to have been here instead of Georgia.
You would have cast the most big croppy and you
came back from a little big yellow though. I'm proudly

(48:12):
well you all tore him up down there. Well, you know,
I love fishing rivers and that cousa river white bass
and yellow bass runners. It's crazy. I mean, I won't
go into great details. But when you're catching a hundred
sun fish a day, it's hard for me to pull off.
And I thought it would come back and maul the croppie,

(48:33):
but it's not worked out that way. But hey, Bob,
really appreciate the report. Little kick here. Tell folks about
what your son Chris is doing. He's, you know, UFL
quarterback and into this pro football deal. Give a little
kick on it. He is having the time of his life.

(48:55):
And I never thought I would say this. I didn't
really think he.

Speaker 7 (48:58):
Would get into the coaching end of it because he grew.

Speaker 2 (49:01):
Up in a coach's house. But he knows the downside
of coaching. There's a lot of work and a lot
of issues that go with it. And but he is
loving it.

Speaker 7 (49:12):
And they've they've started out one in three when his
first game last Thursday, and uh.

Speaker 2 (49:19):
He's really excited about what he's got going on with
the Louisville Kings. Got they've got some great talent.

Speaker 7 (49:27):
They've had kind of a little little bad luck. They
lost an overtime game that really nobody nobody's scored a
point in overtime, and they lost. And now they's subsequently
changed the.

Speaker 2 (49:40):
Rule to outlaw, whatever the whatever we did to lose
the game.

Speaker 7 (49:44):
So, but he's excited about the rest of the season.

Speaker 2 (49:49):
There are four teams that are tied right now.

Speaker 7 (49:52):
One or probably two of those teams will emerge and
make it to the playoffs.

Speaker 2 (49:57):
Last year, DC was zero and.

Speaker 7 (50:01):
Five to start the season, won the last five went
to the playoffs, won the whole league. Chris really feels
like that this Kings team is going to be a
threat down the stretch. Uh, they've kind of got their
ball club now. The ones that they really know that
want to be there and want to play knows who
his team is, and they're really.

Speaker 2 (50:21):
Excited about the rest of the season. I just got
off the phone with him before I talked to you,
and he's excited. And I'm that's amazing the turnout for
the way the community here in the Louisville is supporting
the team. It's it's super.

Speaker 7 (50:36):
And I think, Uh, we've got a game coming up
here in two weeks with Saint Louis that's uh that's
here in town, and uh it could be a it
could be a really big game. It could be a
game that would decide uh our playoff potential.

Speaker 2 (50:51):
Actually, so looking forward to the rest of the season,
and I'm sure having fun watching Chris coach. He's uh,
he's loving it. I think he's gonna have to job.
I'm sure he's got some little pointers here and there
from one of the bests. So I really appreciate your
fishing reports, Bobby. We'll get on the water soon, buddy boy.

(51:13):
Alright there, get after him, yes, sir, all right, folks,
gotta go to break. It's presented by asking my marine
go see him and take great care of you. Hey, Scott,
we got one of my favorite hunting partners and a
gentleman that I know. You think a lot of Larry
the Lions from Webster County, Kentucky, and Larry a very

(51:36):
very serious hunter on about any regard you want. But
he is turkey crazy. And Larry, you've been in the field,
You've been scouting and prepping, and you you manage for
turkeys extensively. Welcome on board, buddy.

Speaker 5 (51:52):
Boy, thanks so much for having me on. Jim Scott, Yeah,
I believe I like.

Speaker 3 (51:59):
That our often brag on Larry calls through our conversations. Jim,
the amount of habitat work that he puts in to
his area and the results that he sees are I
think are going to be part of this story and

(52:20):
part of his experience of this weekend. And being a
steward of the land doesn't come with too many hallmark
cards showing up at your door, certificates being given to
you to put on your wall, but it does come
with a lot of smiles and rips and grins from
not only the hunter, but something else Larry does very

(52:41):
well is he mentors people, and he mentors adults, and
he takes the time to put other people first and
allow them the experience. He is not selfish with what
he does, and he shares what he has. And to me,
that's not just an all round outdoors man. That's the
steward of the land. And those are those are fewer

(53:02):
and farther apart than what they used to be, I
think from from my travels and work in the field, and.

Speaker 2 (53:09):
I want to add predator control to that because it's
a big part of his story. But Larry, what have
you been seeing? Tell us about what's.

Speaker 5 (53:17):
Going on well the last couple of years in my area,
speaking only from a aria, which I cover quite a
bit of ground here in our county, uh, not particularly hunting,
but just kind of kind of taking the tour as
you as you would say. We've had some pretty good

(53:37):
hatches the last couple of maybe maybe even three years,
and you know, I think there's a whole lot of
things that contributed that weather, the cicada hatch here what
three years ago we had here. Now with the warm weather,
the warm spring, I think I'm hoping, you know, we'll
have a good hatch this year. Lots of birds here

(54:00):
in my area of Western County, as many as I've
seen and heard in the last I'm gonna say ten
years at least, that's incredible. I'm trying not to get
over excited about that, because you know, that's an up
and down issue that we fight all the time as well.

(54:22):
But presently speaking, just this for instance, and I shot
one yesterday morning and then came and picked my wife up.
We got out in the rain, made it to the
blind and a couple hours later called her one in
which was a banded bird, and one of which we

(54:43):
were hunting my farm which I had helped fishing while
afe the last four years band birds, and we banded
fourteen birds on my property. So I did to the
check in on that I'm waiting to see. But I'm
quite sure that's a bird that we banded. You know,

(55:04):
in the last this bird was probably a two year
old bird, so I'd say that was a bird we
got last year. We banded eight of five Jake's and
three times last year there. And we have an excellent
fellow here in our community that manages Higginson Henry. His
name is Kurt Devine and I'd like to mention his name.

(55:27):
He banded one hundred and twenty two male birds last
year in three counties that he works in here. That's
fantastic works. It's amazing. I helped him broker two or
three farms in which I had him on mine as well.
But he just him and his staff. He's dedicated to

(55:51):
to He's the real deal in other words. So yeah,
but yeah, I like I think management and it's not
just a year are yearly saying it's a long term.
That's the way I treat it.

Speaker 2 (56:08):
Larry, if you could, can you hang on with us
because I got some additional questions about what you've been
seeing and you know what your take on where we're at,
on what the birds are doing. If you don't mind
absolutely all right, buddy, got to go to break here
present SI Marine. They got all kinds of new boats

(56:29):
and use boats for sale. Help troubleshoot any problems you
got with your boat. And if you want to get
into electronics and work with folks that will show you
how to use them and get you up to speed.
SMS the place to go. Remember you never get soaked
by my friends at ask to my marine Larry.

Speaker 5 (56:51):
Uh.

Speaker 2 (56:53):
A lot of things to talk about here, but basically
I want to know about your thoughts about where we
are with the birds and what they're doing it.

Speaker 5 (57:01):
Right right as we spoke yesterday probably you know you
asked me that question and I had to kind of
back up and think a little harder on that. And
so speaking, we would network with a lot of hunters
around here. I do to my son and and you
know when Turkey seasons coming in, that's all we can
think about. I can't I can't focus on anything else.
I don't think you ask my wife that.

Speaker 2 (57:23):
Hey, hey, but I want to. I'm going to interrupt you.
I tell you why Harold Knight said years ago, it
ain't a sport, it's a disease. Once you're infected, you've
got it baby.

Speaker 5 (57:37):
Oh hey, I'm telling you why. You know, if somebody
would ask me do I need to get into turkey hunting,
I'm gonna say you got if you got a couple
of three hours, you know, let me tell you this.
But my life experience throughout has been a blessing. I
think you if you've met and getting back to manage
the property, If you don't appreciate what the bird is

(58:00):
and you try to manage just to shoot a birth,
then you're doing it for the wrong reasons and you
won't be successful at either. It's my opinion. But as
far as what's on the landscape now, you know, we
have about probably working cameras. We have about eighteen cameras
out on three different tracks of ground. Four tracks of
ground actually covers a lot of acreage this past week.

(58:27):
If dried up is a word, that's drying up with
the hens. Very few hens on cameras, and I understand
the cameras don't catch everything, but we're catching Tom's on there,
so that kind of dictates what's going on. I'm watching
about eight or nine different hens on different fields and
roadways that I see every day, and now I see

(58:51):
shoot maybe three hens on a daily basis. The rest
have gone there. In my opinion, they're on the net.
I think we're at I feel like we're at a
sixty to seventy percent solid nesting right now.

Speaker 2 (59:09):
That's what way ahead the schedule correct.

Speaker 5 (59:15):
Absolutely absolutely, And you know, I think it does go on.
I know it's it's the period of you know, the
the light factor amount.

Speaker 2 (59:25):
Period, yeah, like period. Yeah.

Speaker 5 (59:28):
But it's also this this warm weathers exception was you know,
you're fish and you're catching fish and doing things that
you know, dog woods that bloomed and they're gone, and
it's just ahead of things, and I think the nature
has told it to kick it in gear and do
it to the turkeys.

Speaker 2 (59:48):
Well, turkeys tend to start the legs when the soul
temperatures are above fifty five degrees were good greet, Yeah,
way beyond that, buddy.

Speaker 5 (01:00:02):
Yeah. We got corn here popping out of the ground
everywhere they're playing car.

Speaker 2 (01:00:10):
Verry. Uh. Something I want to question you about because
I think it's a big deal. You and your neighbors
down there in Webster County in a big way have
really pitched in and got serious about predator control, couchs
and raccoons, and I personally feel, in addition to all

(01:00:32):
the stuff y'all do for habitat that has shown tremendous results,
what would you tell our listenership about that. You know
you hear this stuff about well, if you knock them
back one year, they'll just come back blah blah blah.
In my estimation, and you refute me if you need to.

(01:00:53):
I think it's so important to control predators in today's
environment for turkeys that it cannot be overestimated.

Speaker 5 (01:01:04):
I'd like to have thought absolutely. You can you can
plan anything you want for turkeys, that's the best. You
can have the best cover, everything, water, But if you
don't control those predators, there is nothing that it's more
important than that. In myes, you can have a little
less of food, you can have a little less of cover,

(01:01:26):
but the turkey's not gonna make it if you don't.
If the eggs don't hatch and they don't grow to
be pops, that's just bottom line. These guys around here
now with these thermals are doing tremendous work on these codies. Also,
we have some guys and my son actually also do

(01:01:47):
the thermals at night. The coons you know, trapping. My
cousin has been onto my farm numerous times trapping coties coons.
He has to trap the coons before he gets the kis.
That's how many coons we've got, you know. But on
cameras now where I would see actually during deer season

(01:02:10):
over the corn piles, the coons are. The coons are
way down, way down, and like you said, their year
is it's a new year. You know, you just got
to get stay after Yeah.

Speaker 2 (01:02:23):
Yeah, yes, sir, Well, uh, Larry and the banding, what
are you seeing there? Are you know, you're right in afficenter,
you're participating. What do you think that's gonna reveal? I
know it's a broad range question, but harvest is a
big part of what's going on with Turkey mortality.

Speaker 5 (01:02:42):
Correct, Yeah, yeah, uh, you know, uh that it's it's
generally uh, there's probably a couple of domino dynamics to
that is. One is, uh so where do you ban
and where was it shot? Gives them some good information
on traveling there, but also it gives them a survey
of if you've banded x amount and and in that

(01:03:05):
four year study x amount of been killed, it gives
them a good survey on the harvest rate more accurately
than probably maybe even you know what's checked in that
that gives you a true value of what is what's
happening there in that year. In those years, Uh, it
was a four year study. Our our fellow here that

(01:03:26):
I just spoke of, extended that this year and has
trapped more. He had extra bands. He called me, he said,
I'm gonna trap. He said, I've got extra bands to
use them as well, use them and away he went.
And just a Jason to me. Trapped fifteen birds back
in February on one farm and these guys are fighting

(01:03:47):
them there, killing them. Two guys called me. Uh, one
guy called me this morning, and I got another guy
called me last night. He'd killed at vanded birds and
wondering what how to you know how to proceed? Of
course that website is on that band that you will
take you right straight to that website and check that
bird in. We also had one ran over two days
ago on the highway.

Speaker 2 (01:04:10):
Now Larry up up my way. We talked about this
last year. The wet weather kept the hey guys out
of the fields. And I don't I don't begrudge them.
I mean, you know, I don't know how to equate
all that other than I tend to be wildlife oriented,
and I'm darned sure I'm not gonna h criticize a

(01:04:35):
farmer for taking advantage of his monetary obligations and or opportunities. However,
having said that man will way ahead on everything from
over to alfalfa, I'm a little concerned because how early
these fields are going to be mowed with this early nesty.

(01:04:58):
Do you every thoughts about that?

Speaker 5 (01:05:00):
I do, And I think in my area we have
a lot more crop ground versus hay fields. And I
think you're right on spot on what what you're talking
about there up up there where you're at, you do
have a lot of uh we have a lot of
cattle farmers, but uh but uh we most of our

(01:05:23):
area is is crop ground and it's not involved in
in the nesting. And that's uh you know. I I
do think I see your point, and that your your
spot on. It's early there, I know. Uh No, a
farmer now it is getting You can see his equipment
getting pulled out in the field. He's he's just waiting
on a forecast where no rains coming, which is another

(01:05:45):
issue to talk about it. We're in a drought, immense
drought right now here.

Speaker 2 (01:05:48):
So oh it's bad drought, isn't it?

Speaker 5 (01:05:51):
Yeah? It is. We had about three cord inch of
rain here, this last little one we had here just
there or two ago, and we're five point something inches
down for the year. Here.

Speaker 2 (01:06:03):
I'm gonna close with something that you told me. I'm
gonna close with something you told me that's so out
of sync and so weird I can't get my head
around it. Talk about grasshoppers. I can't even imagine what
you told me. To go ahead.

Speaker 5 (01:06:17):
It was so cool because as you know, and we
have this conversation a lot, we talked about grasshoppers. That's
kind of strange, but we do, and insects and how
important it is to you know, a lot of populations,
but particularly in turkeys, and this time of year is great.
So I'm in a what's called three n r cs.

(01:06:40):
I enrolled in a conservation sturdship program where I have
to plant pollinators. And I had a little feel that
I had to bush hog, and I wasn't clearly of
anything nesting there because the vegetation wasn't very tall. But
I had to do a burn down and then I
had to mow it. Well, I was mowing, I got

(01:07:03):
to notice in something and it was just thousands of grasshoppers.
And I got off the track and I started walking.
They were just everywhere and I and I'm like, I
think I know I sent you a picture of a
grasshopper and me holding the grasshopper in my hand, I said,
And it was just, you know, wonderful to see. And

(01:07:25):
got out yesterday in the rain, let my wife out
to go into the blind and it was grasshoppers there
in my clover field. And I'm like, look here, have you.

Speaker 2 (01:07:34):
Ever seen that? You know, you're ten years younger, and
I am, when have you ever seen that before? In April?

Speaker 5 (01:07:42):
I'm wont tell you what nowadays, to see that anytime
through the summer as many as I saw would be
wonderful because the grasshoppers is yeah, summer, but yeah, right right, yes.

Speaker 2 (01:07:57):
In April. When have you ever seen that?

Speaker 3 (01:08:00):
Not?

Speaker 5 (01:08:00):
No? Not yeah, yeah, yeah yeah.

Speaker 2 (01:08:08):
Crazy crazy all right? But some things up, yeah, I'm sorry,
go ahead, I'm sorry to some things up for turkey
owners out there, quick tips or tell them where you
think we're at in the breeding cycle. And again you're
Western Tunney.

Speaker 5 (01:08:28):
I think we're we are ahead. Uh, the nests, nesting
hands are are a lot of them are locked down.
There's some that's going back and forth. I've seen that's
diminishing in this next week. I think our hens here
will be hard to find. And that's again sharing through intel,

(01:08:53):
through a lot of people that I'm speaking with.

Speaker 2 (01:08:56):
Oh yes, and you got a big network like we
do now to round that out. A lot of good
hunting a head because these gobblers looking for love and
the whole the wrong places, right had I had a
group of three come in this morning and.

Speaker 5 (01:09:14):
They left with two.

Speaker 2 (01:09:16):
So will you and your wife and your son and
his wife have already been the dig doll. So that's
and indicase of how things are going right.

Speaker 5 (01:09:28):
Yes, it is, Yes it is.

Speaker 2 (01:09:29):
Yeah. Yeah, Well I have to really appreciate you being
all with buddy.

Speaker 5 (01:09:35):
Yes, sir, I appreciate your show. And what's what all
you do for the sportsman?

Speaker 2 (01:09:39):
Well, we do what we can. That's all we can do.
All right, folks, got to go to break care is
presented by its my marine. Go see them to take
great care of you. Remember you never get soaked bass
myt that's a big round up on things going around
the region. And one thing we've left out of this
is the bass have readier situation. I'm gonna let you

(01:10:04):
run with it because it's weird, like everything else ready
or already bedding, and that's going to increase, and Boogiler
will be on fire on the on the moon, which
is made first. But they're already spawning now and uh
bass are preparing bed have already bed I mean, it's

(01:10:25):
all over the map on that weird deal. And then
we'll close out with turkeys. Take it big boy, all right, Scott,
can you hear me? All right? Folks, Well, what we're

(01:10:48):
looking at here is a very unusual situation with the
rider or shell crackers spawned. It is already upon it.
It came on a big way almost a week ago
and escalated towards this dark moon that we had on
Friday of this week. It's way ahead of schedule. You

(01:11:10):
love to catch shelf crackers, which I do, and I
love to eat them. It's time to get on with that.
And the bluegill spawn again came on and it's going
to escalate. Scott to you back with us, yeah, can
you hear me? Yes, sir? Sorry about the glitch.

Speaker 4 (01:11:30):
It's good.

Speaker 3 (01:11:31):
The insect perspective that Larry was talking about with the
turkeys is no different with the fish too. You're going
to see tadpole, you're going to see invertebrates, You're going
to see a lot of just activity in These fish
are feeding on everything and anything.

Speaker 4 (01:11:50):
That is in their diet.

Speaker 3 (01:11:52):
It's kind of a seafood diet, not necessarily on the
shell fish side. Just if they're seeing it, they're eating
it because that water temperature in the spawn and they're
aggressive and those bass post spawn.

Speaker 4 (01:12:05):
Some fish are going to spawn.

Speaker 3 (01:12:06):
There's going to be a multitude of ways in what
you can catch a multitude of species and put them
in the boat, but use patterns to put fish not
only in your live well to win tournaments. But don't
forget about how good the table fair is when it
comes to all of these different species that we're fortunate

(01:12:28):
enough to have. I know, Kevin Murphy got into a great,
big catch of blue catfish the other day, you know,
the blue deal.

Speaker 4 (01:12:34):
Like you're talking about going on bad.

Speaker 3 (01:12:36):
That full moon is going to be super important with
the water conditions and temperatures, and really concentrate too with
the vegetation where fish are going to be holding to
structure that is vegetation that has foliage and leaf cover
that provides shade, which provides a way.

Speaker 4 (01:12:56):
For them to be a predator and attack things.

Speaker 3 (01:12:58):
It also provides a really good area of some cooler water,
and fish don't like to necessarily have that sun above
them all the time. Of course, when the water's heating up,
it's good bass fishing. Give folks a little pointer. It
has been a very enjoyable time to own an aluminum boat,

(01:13:18):
which both you and I do to get up in
the brush on Barkley and Kentucky Lake. Baby brush hog
is kind of an old bait now I remember when
it first come out, But any type of three to
five inch plastic and as many fingers and ticklers or
whatever features it can have, whether it's a creature bait

(01:13:39):
or something like a smaller salamander or crawfish, whatever is,
try to pitch those up and around those bushes without
a weight so you're not disturbing things. You would be
amazed at how many of these bass will come off
of their spawning to just strictly move right back up

(01:14:00):
in there to feed on other smaller gamefish and shad
that will utilize that structure for their spawn. So it's
a lot of technique there. But when you start catching
these big bass in and around these areas where you think, well,
we thought the spawn was over, it is. They're feeding,

(01:14:21):
They're doing what they're supposed to do. They're being the
dominant predator and they're keeping our lines tight. Just remember
to wear your life fest when you get out on
the lake. Please try to run at a speed that
is safe for everybody, no matter if you're looking at
the front of the boat or looking at the electronics.

Speaker 4 (01:14:39):
That are in your boat. We want to keep all
of our sportsmen and women safe. And remember they don't
pull out bodies from the lake with a life vest on.

Speaker 2 (01:14:48):
Yes, sir, and folks, everything's ahead, you better pay attention,
and I tell you vegetation and the growth is going
to be big on the turkeys, all right, folks, that's
a wrap. God bless ever Boddy