The short answer to the question—what should you plant for early season food plots is—white or ladino clover. But how this type of clover came to be widely recognized as the best early deer season food plot seed of all is an interesting story. It traces all the way back to the 1980’s.

Virginia is famous for its largemouth bass fishing and river smallmouth angling. It’s pretty well known for its trout fishing and striper action as well. But some people don’t realize the Old Dominion also offers great panfishing. (Panfish is a general angler’s term for fish such as crappies…

Few anglers would pick late winter as a favorite season for trout fishing, with its bleak gray landscape and chilly temperatures. But actually fishing in the Shenandoah Valley in March can be quite good, even though winter often still holds a tight grip on the land.

Few sportsmen just hunt one species. Most enjoy the varied experiences that come from pursuing a number of different quarries, from whitetails to woodcock, squirrels to elk.

Few gamefish can equal the voracious feeding habits of northern pike. For readers planning a trip to a northern U.S. or Canadian fishing lodge, or those who want to take advantage of local waters that hold pike populations, here’s a guide for how to get started on catching this hard-fighting…

You won’t catch as many fish as you do on spring and summer outings, but no time of year offers a better chance for trophy bass than late winter. You could well latch onto the fish of a lifetime now, with February and March being two of the top months of the year for citation-sized (8 pound)…

As hunting seasons wind to a close, it’s a good time to think about new gear that might be useful for next year’s outings here in the Shenandoah Valley or adventures out of state or even out of the country. Here’s a rundown on some of the latest new hunting equipment companies have unveiled …

​​​People who manage their land for deer and other wildlife know the importance of food plots. But there are many other projects you can do to attract whitetails, turkeys, rabbits and other wild animals to your property. Putting in a variety of shrubs provides high quality food and also cove…

Most sportsmen scout for deer in the summer or early fall, shortly before seasons open. Some of the best hunters, however, do the bulk of their scouting from late winter through early spring.

Award-winning outdoors writer Gerald Almy is a Maurertown resident.

Award-winning outdoors writer Gerald Almy is a Maurertown resident.

In the T.S. Elliott poem “The Wasteland,” April is called the cruelest month. For outdoorsmen, though, January may well be the hardest one to endure. Deer hunting seasons have ended. Spring gobbler season is months away and waterfowl have become wary from long months of hunting pressure.

​So far in this off-and-on series, we’ve looked at stripers and walleyes as gamefish that offer great fishing during winter. No fish, however, can top the chain pickerel for January and February outings. I’ve enjoyed excellent pickerel fishing on the ponds on A.P. Hill Military Reservation. …

No other form of angling has captured the hearts of newcomers to the sport more than fly fishing. Young and old, women and men, all people with an interest in the outdoors are being drawn in to this graceful, absorbing pastime.

Hunting scrapes was a productive tactic for whitetails before peak rut came in during mid-November. But during the actual major breeding period, watching these pawed out areas on the ground in most cases proved to be a waste of time.

After a few successful goes at it, I was pretty much done with the most arduous of Eastern upland hunts: ruffed grouse and American woodcock. But like a sailor to a Siren’s song, it keeps luring me back in.

While hunting seasons are still going strong, many sportsmen look forward to the fishing shows that take place in mid-winter. Two of the major events anglers may want to attend in early January are the Richmond Fishing Expo and the Virginia Fly Fishing & Wine Festival.

Virginia is famous for its smallmouth bass, largemouth, trout, bluegill, catfish and crappie angling opportunities. But not as many realize there is high-quality fishing available for a fish affectionately called “marble eyes” by its admirers, otherwise known as the walleye.

Many hunters love the idea of still hunting--slowly sneaking along looking for a legal deer. When the weather’s cold it’s nice to be up and moving around getting the blood flowing in extremities. This is particularly the case if the season is winding down and you haven’t been seeing much fro…

Most sportsmen consider winter a time for hunting or attending outdoor shows. Certainly that’s the case now with deer season in full swing. If the thought of fishing comes up, it’s about cleaning and organizing gear or perhaps tying flies.

The rut is here. The question is, is that good or bad for deer hunting?

Most hunters devote the early season to stand hunting. It’s almost always the best tactic to harvest a whitetail.

Maybe you don’t need any new gear for this fall and winter’s hunting seasons. But it’s still fun to follow what’s being offered by top manufacturers in the hunting and outdoor fields. Here’s a look at some of the newest and best offerings.

A popular legend has it that a wise fishing philosopher once warned the uninitiated angler: The first time you fish for musky it’s for fun; the next time you fish for musky it’s for revenge.

As a change of pace from our usual column focusing on a single subject, here’s a collection of tips for a wide variety of species that might help your hunting success during upcoming seasons. Just about every species hunted in Virginia is either in season now or will be soon.

The playoff system is the best thing NASCAR ever did.

Talk to three different deer hunters about the present quality of deer hunting in the Shenandoah Valley and you’ll likely get three different opinions. The fact is, hunting quality can vary widely from property to property. It can vary dramatically from day to day. And it can be different fr…

Dale Earnhardt Jr. always says he loves grassroots racing, and that’s one reason he puts so much money into his JR Motorsports Late Model Stock Car program.

When the subject of wild turkeys comes up, most hunters picture scenes of spring hunting and the challenge of calling in a cautious gobbler into shotgun or bow range when the redbuds are in bloom. If you want some exciting hunting before spring, though, try going after turkeys this fall and winter.

Briar Bauman scored the American Flat Track championship Sept. 21 with a gutsy performance on the mile track in Shakopee.

Lots of sportsmen and women are devoting their free time now to preparing for bow hunting or sighting in rifles and checking out muzzleloaders for upcoming deer gun seasons. But this is also a wonderful time to learn more about the sport of fly fishing. And one of the best places to do that …

I love fishing for brook trout in Virginia’s mountain streams as much as any other angling addict in the Old Dominion. Brookies don’t get very big around here but they’re a plucky group – and give us hours of outdoor pleasure.

Young racers often dream of making it big in NASCAR, but before they can, they’d better be able to make the transition to heavier cars.

By now most avid sportsmen and readers of this column are making their final preparations to get ready for upcoming hunting seasons. Tree stands are firmly positioned. Trail cameras are checked one last time. Gear is organized and cleaned. The weather forecast is studied intensely for wind d…

There is plenty of local racing still ahead for those who haven’t had enough.