Alabama’s fishermen will be able to resume fishing on state-owned lakes beginning February 1, 2020, the Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries division announced on Friday. The state of Alabama owns 23 lakes that it stocks with fish like bream, largemouth bass, channel catfish and crappie. For nominal fees, any interested angler can cast a line and […]

BIRMINGHAM — Grayson Morris and Tucker Smith, who have won back to back B.A.S.S. high school national championships, will be the first high school duo allowed to fish at the Bassmaster Classic. The announcement was made in front of a raucous crowd in Briarwood Christian School’s (BCS) auditorium on Thursday morning. Smith recently graduated from […]

Jeff Carter didn’t have a plan in 2011 when he started Pine Hills and Oak Hollars Child Classic, an organization that takes sick kids on a weekend hunting trip in northwest Alabama. “At that time I really didn’t know what it looked like,” Carter said. “The Lord put it on my heart and he called […]

Appearing like a miniature version of a mockingbird, the loggerhead shrike looks like any other songbird until you find evidence of the shrike’s lethal side. “Some people call them butcher birds or French mockingbirds,” said Eric Soehren, biologist and manager of the Alabama State Lands’ Wehle Land Conservation Center in southeast Alabama. “They may look […]

Work has started on a new public-use weigh-in pavilion at Smith Lake, which is part of a partnership between B.A.S.S. and Alabama Power. Union Sportsmen’s Alliance volunteers recently broke ground on the project at Lewis Smith Lake Dam Boat Ramp in Walker County. The pavilion will feature holding tanks for fish, which reduce stress and increase survival rates. The […]

Depending on where they pursue white-tailed deer, hunters in Alabama may be experiencing a wide range of deer breeding activity from pre-rut, and peak rut to post-rut. Studies by wildlife professionals indicate that rutting activity is most closely associated with the heritage of the deer in a particular area. The diversity of breeding activity, known […]

During this season of giving, one group of young adults donated their time, energy and work ethic to the Alabama State Parks System to help with improvements at Lakepoint State Park north of Eufaula. As part of the AmeriCorps NCCC (National Civilian Community Corps) program, a team of young adults ages 18-25 made improvements to […]

The Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (ADCNR) is upping the amount of deer to be checked for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD), especially in northwest Alabama, after deer in Mississippi and Tennessee have recently tested positive for the deadly disease. Chuck Sykes, director of the ACNR’s Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries Division, told the MGM […]

Of all the outdoor experiences my mother, now 86, enjoyed the most, it was watching a cork disappear as a slab crappie grabbed the minnow at the end of the line. As is normal procedure, I check in on her every few days, and she wanted to know what I’d been doing. “Catching crappie,” I […]

Lake Lurleen State Park in Coker officially opened its newest trail on Thursday, named the J.W. “Bill” McFarland Sr. Memorial Trail to honor the late Tuscaloosa businessman, public servant and philanthropist. McFarland’s family donated funds to the Alabama State Parks Foundation for the construction of the half-mile trail, which connects to the 9-mile Tashka Trail, the park’s longest. […]

Imagine elves filling baskets with goodies to load on Santa’s sleigh and you get a snapshot of what it looked like last week when Academy Sports + Outdoors provided Christmas cheer for numerous youngsters who needed that encouragement the most. At Academy stores across Alabama, youngsters were chosen to go on shopping sprees with a […]

Thanksgiving began as a celebration of nature’s bounty. Nature’s bounty includes natural resources. Despite reports to the contrary, Cato Institute research demonstrates that we still have plenty of natural resources. Human ingenuity and nature’s generosity explain why. That we must run out of oil, natural gas, and other resources seems obvious. Since we cannot manufacture […]

The Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources recently received special recognition by the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation with the presentation of the State Agency of the Year Award at the 16th Annual National Assembly of Sportsmen’s Caucuses (NASC) Sportsman-Legislator Summit in Greensboro, Georgia. “The Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF) is honored to recognize the Alabama Department […]

With other areas of Alabama enjoying an economic boon in manufacturing and industry, one well-known area of the state has discovered its treasure lies in its fertile soil and natural resources. The Alabama Black Belt’s treasure is found in its abundant wildlife and fisheries with the multi-species hunting and angling opportunities and the significant economic […]

Hunting and fishing in Alabama during 2018 had a $3.2 billion economic impact on the state, according to a new report. The Alabama Black Belt Adventures Association (ABBAA) shared that number and others during a news conference Wednesday in Montgomery. Pam Swanner, director of ABBAA, said the report underscores the economic importance hunting and fishing has on […]

Now that the weather has finally cooled, the outdoors takes on a whole new appeal for many in Alabama. Hunting and camping are likely on the agenda, and being able to feed a delicious meal to a group of hunters or campers can often hinge on your upbringing. If you’re like J. Wayne Fears, who […]

Alabama Whitetail Records on Wednesday announced that it has launched a website and phone app allowing hunters to view where each submitted deer ranks across all 67 Yellowhammer State counties. AWR functions as a state record book for measuring and scoring antlers in Alabama. Previously, these rankings only included deer with large antlers and were […]

Renew Our Rivers volunteers removed more than 316,000 pounds of trash and debris from Alabama lakes and rivers in 2019. More than 4,500 volunteers participated in a cleanup this year, which was Renew Our Rivers’ 20th anniversary. The 2019 campaign went out with a bang and ended with some of the largest cleanups of the year. One […]

A marine scientist at Alabama’s Dauphin Island Sea Lab (DISL) has figured out how to help oysters grow heavier and stronger shells, a discovery he says will help oysters rebuild their habitats across the Gulf Coast. Dr. Lee Smee is a senior marine scientist and chair of University Programs at DISL. His team has discovered an oyster builds […]

Active duty military and military veterans will have two extra days to pursue waterfowl in Alabama this season under new federal guidelines. Those military personnel and veterans will be able to hunt waterfowl on November 23, 2019, and February 8, 2020, the same dates as the Alabama Special Youth Waterfowl Hunts. Military active duty and […]

Hundreds of fish have been added to an Alabama creek as part of an ongoing effort to boost tourism. Black Creek was restocked Tuesday with about 1,100 pounds of trout above Noccalula Falls by the Rainbow Fly Fishing Club, The Gadsden Times reported.

Unlike last year when almost perfect weather during snapper season led to a faster-than-expected harvest of the quota, the 2019 snapper season reverted to normal weather conditions, leading to a longer season than initially announced. Snapper anglers enjoyed a 38-day season in 2019 after the 2018 season had to be ended after 27 days to […]

With archery season underway and the opening day of the gun deer season on the horizon, the Alabama Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries (WFF) Division is traveling the state to give hunters and the general public updates on chronic wasting disease (CWD) that affects members of the deer family. First, CWD has NOT been detected in […]

Flounder fishing in state waters will be halted in November to protect migrating fish. The Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources is reminding anglers that commercial and recreational fishing for flounder is prohibited from Nov. 1 through Nov. 30.