Stray Mutts and Sunfish: Exploring the Skinny Water of the East Fork of the San Jacinto River

August 12, 2016 by Robert McConnell in Fins

...My eyes caught something moving high on the bank and I watched as two more stray dogs emerged from the tree line. The two dogs plodded into the shallow water to join their companion. There they all stood for a brief minute, looking upstream at us, then they trotted out of the water and climbed the opposite bank. We were relieved that the strays had little interest in us and we climbed back into the boat and shoved off. We had drifted downstream about 10 yards when a fourth stray dog, this one being much larger and wilder looking, came running down the bank into the water. Its yellow fur was matted with mud in several places. The dog paused for a brief moment as it caught sight of us...

Minister Creek: A Synopsis of a Brief Fishing Excursion on Summer Solstice Weekend

August 07, 2014 by Robert McConnell in Fins

One of the streams that I managed to fish this summer was Minister Creek. Ellen and I were camping with some friends over the weekend of Summer Solstice. Our campsite was positioned close to the confluence of Minister Creek and the much larger, Tionesta Creek. The weather was perfect. Early one morning, I headed out to fish the lower portion of Minister Creek.

Little Arnot Run: A Recap of a Brief Native Brook Trout Fishing Excursion

June 09, 2014 by Robert McConnell in Fins

As soon as I realized that the first weekend in June was free from any prior obligations, I immediately called up my two buddies from college. My hope was that they’d have an interest in backpacking into a small freestone stream to fish for native brook trout. As I suspected, both were more than happy to make the drive to northwest PA from the Cleveland area.

Muskrat Recipe: Muskrat Wings

March 05, 2014 by Robert McConnell in Game

Muskrats make a great meal. The meat is soft and dark. The taste is very mild. There isn’t really a gamey taste to the meat. The muskrat rear-legs resemble that of buffalo chicken wings and can be prepared to resemble such. The following quick recipe is the way that Ellen and I have prepared our Muskrat Wings.

Cleaning and Preserving a Skull

March 01, 2014 by Robert McConnell in Game

Game animals not only provide pelts and meat, but they can also provide great home decoration. Recently I decided to clean and preserve a beaver skull from a 51 pounder that was caught this year. Cleaning skulls for presentation is really pretty easy. You just need to set aside some time to do it. The next time you have a memorable catch or hunt, consider preserving the animal’s skull for a great looking decorative piece.

Big Water Muskrats: Island Trapping the Allegheny River

February 25, 2014 by Robert McConnell in Game

When I was about 12 years old I had the opportunity to talk to an old-timer who everyone called Rabbit. Rabbit and I started talking one afternoon because I brought in a couple of muskrats that I was going to sell to my local fur buyer. Rabbit told me, in his raspy voice, “Use your boot and make a shelf for your trap on the side of the bank. Take an apple and pin it to the bank just above the trap. An apple’s like candy to dem muskrats.”