Published: December 27, 2008 11:47 pm      

HILTS: Reflecting on the good and bad times of 2008

As we wind down the remainder of 2008, it’s a good time to reflect on where we’ve been — and maybe take some time to forecast on where we may go.

It’s definitely a time of uncertainty as we move into a new year; primarily on a state and national level. We’ve already started to see the direction the state and country seem to be headed as it pertains to natural resources and our second-amendment rights — and it’s not good. But like the saying goes, where it will stop, nobody knows.

The year 2008 started out with some bone-chilling temperatures as an Arctic blast made its way through the Northeast. Between goose hunting in the Finger Lakes and deer hunting in Ohio, it was difficult to brave the cold for any length of time last January. We still managed to take limits of geese from our blinds, but we had to work for them. Deer, on the other hand, limited their movements and very few were seen. The funny thing was that we ended the year on a similar note as several storms arrived to interrupt travel plans around the holidays. Cold temperatures allowed for some early ice fishing action in some of the inland lakes around Western New York.

The big news on the hunting front was a positive one as 14 and 15 year olds were granted permission to hunt big game with firearms as of Oct. 1. This was a huge piece of legislation, spearheaded by Francine DelMonte in the state assembly and George Maziarz and Dale Volker in the state senate. New York had the most restrictive regulations in the country when it came to minimum age for big game and that one piece of the puzzle should help with the recruitment aspect of big-game hunting in the Empire State. From there, though, everything else seems to be going downhill.

With the average age of deer hunters in New York around 49, it’s not getting much better for our recruitment issues. For every 100 hunters we lose, we make up roughly 57 new recruits. While the lessening of the age restrictions should help, the core group isn’t getting any younger.

Just this month, the governor’s office announced it would close the Reynolds Game Farm in Ithaca, the last remaining game farm operated by the state. There was no discussion — it was just closed. The spin put on it was that it would save the state $750,000 and it would help food pantries in the Southern Tier — 7,000 pheasants were donated to hungry people during a tough economic time. Of course, they’re not going to tell you that they really won’t be saving that much money because all the personnel were reassigned to other areas of the Department of Environmental Conservation. The big dilemma will be how it will affect hunting license sales in the future. With 60,000 pheasant hunters in the state, will many of these sportsmen hang their boots up?

You also have some people in the know proclaiming some type of conspiracy theory that this is just the start of the dismantling of DEC as we know it. When you look at the big picture, the state is now being run at nearly every upper-level position by a New York City bureaucrat. They now control the governor’s office and both houses of state government. Let’s face it, New York City doesn’t care what happens in upstate New York in the least. The closing of the game farm could very well be a first step to many other closures and cutbacks as it pertains to our natural resources. Animal rights views and anti-gun philosophies are beginning to push through in their upper-level agendas behind the scenes and we will start to lose our outdoor heritage one small piece at a time.

Speaking of outdoor heritage, the inside word is that the Reynolds Game Farm is history. So is the state’s pheasant program. There are no plans to do any more stocking as far as DEC is concerned. They are not planning on raising any more birds for the 4-H Pheasant program. An important part of our outdoor heritage is now history. And it will be difficult to go back to it should there be a change of leadership in the future.

On the fishing front, we had numerous highlights this past year. The size of the salmon was back up again, with a 36-pound king from the Niagara Bar winning the Fall Lake Ontario Counties Derby, caught be Gary Ramming Jr. of Appleton. The spring derby was a total domination by Niagara as about 60 percent of all the winners came from the shores of Niagara. Despite more east wind than we would have liked, we still had decent fishing out of Wilson and Olcott for salmon and trout. Part of that success has to go to projects like the pen programs in Olcott, Wilson and the Niagara River— although the latter failed to hold fish in 2008. Overall, we had fewer salmon to stock around the lake because of the water flow problems in 2007. We did have a few more salmon in the pens, with the hope it would help to maximize stockings by improving survival rates.

And before the year was out, the state announced it would like to institute a salmon and trout stamp for anyone fishing for those species. At a cost of $10, it’s just another way to raise the license costs without really doing that. The new fee wouldn’t go into effect until Oct. 1 if approved. Some felt the state would be better off getting the license-issuing system working more effectively before anything is done. There was some concern over the operation of the state’s 12 hatcheries and whether they would be affected by the current fiscal crisis. Our main concern for Lake Ontario is the Salmon River Fish Hatchery and several million dollars in improvements that were supposed to be made through the Occidental Chemical settlement that was approved and finalized this past year. DEC also purchased a state-of-the-art tagging trailer to help them better manage the fishery, but even that seems to be mired in controversy with no input from the average fisherman. Anglers are getting upset.

In the warm-water fish department, the Lake Erie smallmouth bass fishery was in the spotlight once again when the Bass Anglers Sportsman’s Society brought their Elite Series into Buffalo. It proved to the rest of the country, if not the world, that this is one of the top smallmouth bass fisheries on the planet. A four-day total of better than 93 pounds won the event— a great showing for the area. The walleye fishing was pretty darn good this year, too, as far as Lake Erie was concerned. It should be just as good, if not better, in 2009.

It was also a time for sadness. Two close friends, both my age, lost battles with cancer this past year. It helps bring us down to Earth in the humility department, putting the daily grind with its trivial trials and tribulations into perspective. We won’t live forever and it’s important to live life to its fullest, enjoying each day as if it’s our last. Remember that even if you think you have it bad or life doesn’t seem fair, there are always people out there that have it much worse. If you can help to make a difference to someone who’s hurting, do it — without question.

With that in mind, we’ll move forward into the year 2009. On a national front, prospects do not look good for the outdoorsman, the hunter and the gun enthusiast. Nearly every appointee to Obama’s team has a track record of being anti-gun, anti-Second Amendment and a proponent to animal rights. It will be a time when we’ll need to be pro-active and get involved if we want to protect our heritage in the future. Here’s wishing you a happy new year in 2009 and let’s hope it’s not as bad as everyone seems to be projecting. Hang in there!



Wednesday, Dec. 31

- Final day, Province of Ontario sporting license year.

- Final day, pheasant hunting season in the Southern Tier and eastern New York.



Thursday, Jan. 1

- Lake trout season opens on the lower Niagara River and in Lake Ontario for New York.

- New sporting license year begins in the Province of Ontario. Also beginning in 2009, an outdoors card will be required for all non-resident hunters and fishermen, with the exception of those purchasing one-day fishing licenses.

- Seventh annual New Year’s Day Kick-off Shoot, 10 a.m., Tonawanda Sportsmen’s Club, 5657 Killian Road, Pendleton. Cost will vary depending on number of rounds shot and what pools you enter. For more information, contact 694-7375.

- Varying hare season opens in the Southern Tier. Consult your regulations guide for details on boundaries. Bag limit is two, with the season closing Jan. 31.



Saturday, Jan. 3

- Ice Fishing at its Best Seminar, 10 a.m., Gander Mountain, Tonawanda, with Scott Brauer, Arctic Armour pro staff and Maki Plastics founder. For more information, call 743-2300.

- Running Coyotes, Foxes and Coons with Hounds seminar with houndsman and varmint hunting authority Judd Myers, noon, Gander Mountain, Tonawanda. For more information, call 743-2300.

- Running Rabbits and hares with Beagles Seminar with John Jarzynski of the Enchanted Mountain Beagle Club, 2 p.m., Gander Mountain, Tonawanda. For more information, call 743-2300.