Columns Archives - Page 95 of 130 - Mississippi Sportsman

July 22, 2026

Mike McMurtrey and Paul Johnson show off some Barnett crappie. No State or World Records here, but there is a box full of slab white crappie.

State and world records

October 1, 2012 Paul Johnson

When checking out at the Academy Sports & Outdoors store in Ridgeland recently, the cashier put a free copy of “Mississippi Outdoor Digest” magazine in my sack full of crankbaits. This magazine is produced by the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks once a year. […]

Canadians Eric Halfnights (holding head) and Dave Novak, both of British Columbia, enjoyed a Mississippi trophy gator hunt, helping catch this 12-foot, 600-pound-plus gator in the lower Pearl River near Pearlington. Novak called it the only hunt that matches the adrenalin rush of chasing grizzly bears.

Mississippi’s giant gators match adrenalin rush of ‘Griz’

September 27, 2012 Bobby Cleveland

A conversation over drinks aboard an 80-foot luxury fishing boat off British Columbia led to a Mississippi adventure that landed a Canadian big game hunter one of his most exciting trophies — a 12-foot alligator that weighed over 600 pounds. […]

The guns might look dainty, but the North American Arms .22 Magnum revolver can serve as a great backup weapon.

Hideout guns

September 24, 2012 Gordon Hutchinson

A group of firearms instructors for the sheriff’s office was standing around, waiting for a meeting to begin. One of the guys, the best pistol shooter among that relatively talented group, pulled a little North American Arms .22 Magnum revolver out of his pocket, and began showing it around. […]

Minn Kota’s i-Pilot can hold a boat at a set distance from the bank or automatically hold the boat in one spot while the angler focuses on catching fish.

What the heck is trolling motor navigation?

September 24, 2012 Allan Tarvid

A July press release from Johnson Outdoors Marine Electronics begins, “Continuing the evolution of GPS trolling-motor navigation, Minn Kota’s i-Pilot Link utilizes GPS technology and ethernet connectivity to achieve new levels of boat control.”

Having attended a webinar on this new system, I was already thinking about how much that opening sentence is going to mean to fishermen. […]

Hunting and fishing in Mississippi generated more than $2.6 billion in 2011, which reflects a nearly 300-percent increase over 206.

Survey says outdoor spending is on the rise

September 20, 2012 Bobby Cleveland

The cost of hunting and fishing, and wildlife viewing, has gone up in Mississippi, according to an every-five-year survey conducted by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. […]

Careful placement of trail cams in planed hunting areas can help with preseason scouting.

Deer camera techniques

September 17, 2012 Bill Garbo

My excitement level is now building to a fever pitch as I plot and plan strategies for the soon-to-begin deer season. […]

Tim Taylor of Ridgeland steadies his bow for a shot on a 10-foot alligator in this unique photo taken by Conservation Officer Rob Heflin of Isola, who happened up on the hunters Saturday night on the Sunflower River. The shot was needed after the original hook and line had fallen out of the gator, and only the snare around its tail, held by Woodie Reaves (stooping) of Jackson, remained.

Luck of the draw

September 13, 2012 Bobby Cleveland

Tim Taylor didn’t get drawn for the Mississippi public lands alligator hunt, but he ended up with a trophy that will soon be hanging on his wall just the same. “Great photo isn’t it?” said Taylor, who works for the City of Ridgeland Parks Department […]

Focus on 5- to 6-foot water to find some great trout fishing this month.

Mississippi’s Gulf Coast

September 10, 2012 John E. Phillips

Red minnows will be in this month, as well as bull tarpon, redfish, cobia, king mackerel and Spanish mackerel. […]

September is a great time to be on Ross Barnett because fish will move shallow again to feed.

Get shallow in September for Ross Barnett bass

September 10, 2012 Paul Elias

The bass are moving out of their deepwater summer patterns and into shallow water in September. Two patterns — fishing the riprap and the lily pads — will work all month, but they’ll probably produce better in the middle and at the end of the month. […]

Despite the heat, doves seem to prefer eating in the afternoon hours.

Beat the heat, but get beaten by doves

September 7, 2012 Bobby Cleveland

The way I figured it, I had two choices on the opening day of dove season last weekend, either an afternoon hunt when a heat advisory had been issued, or a cooler morning hunt leaving plenty of time for football. I wimped out, and accepted one of my invitations to a morning hunt. I chose poorly. […]

Magnolia crappie

September 1, 2012 Hal Schramm

Mississippi’s large reservoirs provide great crappie fishing opportunities. […]

Author Paul Johnson’s trick to catching crappie for much of the year is to slow-troll crankbaits from six rods positioned off the back of his boat.

Finally looking forward to fall fishing

September 1, 2012 Paul Johnson

The summer of 2012 has been well chronicled as one of the hottest on record. Thank goodness it’s coming to an end, finally. Having been born and raised in Mississippi, I know that September can be fiercely hot, too. But, at least we can actually begin to see the days getting shorter and the nights a little cooler. […]