Fall Hunting Classic Sale at Basspro.com
Fishing, Hunting, Ohio Comments turned off

100 Days of Summer: Day 38- Picnic at Ohio’s Newest State Park

By Lou Yuhasz on August 14th, 2010

COLUMBUS, OH – As of August 27, families and groups can enjoy the spacious picnic shelters at Wingfoot Lake State Park near Akron, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR).  Reservations for the shelters will be taken beginning August 18 at 7 a.m.

Wingfoot Lake, Ohio’s newest state park, will be open to the public on Friday, August 27, following a public dedication ceremony scheduled for Thursday, August 26. The park is ideally suited to family outings, reunions and outdoor receptions, church and civic club gatherings, scout functions, and other outdoor events.

“Our staff and volunteers have been working hard to get the park ready to welcome visitors,” said John Hunter, Ohio State Parks acting chief. “There has been a great deal of public interest in Wingfoot Lake, and excitement about the shelter houses, in particular.”

Six shelter houses are available by reservation. Each offers picnic tables, grills and electrical hookups, with restrooms and parking nearby. Some also offer fireplaces and have doors that may be closed in inclement weather. Capacities vary from about 50 people to groups of more than 400.

Reservations for the shelter houses can be made through the Ohio State Parks reservation call center at 866-644-6727, or on-line through the Ohio State Parks website at www.ohiostateparks.org. Click on the reservations button on the Wingfoot Lake page for information on fees and features, and to make reservations. Reservations may be made up to one year in advance.

In addition to the picnic shelters, the park will also offer paved walking paths, playgrounds, mini golf and disc golf courses, cornhole, horseshoes, paved basketball and tennis courts, sand volleyball courts, grass courts for badminton and bocce ball, and baseball diamonds.  Shoreline fishing will be permitted on the 444-acre lake, and small boats, including pontoon boats and paddle craft, may be rented.

There are no overnight facilities or camping available. A state wildlife area, which offers fishing and hunting opportunities, is adjacent to the state park.

Wingfoot Lake State Park is located off Waterloo Road at 993 Goodyear Park Boulevard near the community of Suffield in Portage County.

Since the 1940s, Wingfoot Lake park served as a corporate retreat for Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company employees and their families. The State of Ohio acquired the property from Goodyear in 2009 and transferred the recreational facilities to the Ohio State Park system.

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources ensures a balance between wise use and protection of our natural resources for the benefit of all. Visit the ODNR Web site at www.ohiodnr.com.

Enhanced by Zemanta

Did You Know That Our Outdoor Equipment Store provides a safe,convenient way to browse top gear from all the top suppliers from Amazon, right on our own page? Click the link above to see if we have what you're looking for, and support Steel Valley Outdoors!

Allegheny, Fishing, Pennsylvania 1 comment

100 Days of Summer: Day 37- Trout Fishing Western PA

By Lou Yuhasz on August 13th, 2010

Ohiopyle Falls on the Youghiogheny River
Image via Wikipedia

Harrisburg, PA – Anglers fishing the Kinzua and Youghiogheny tailraces should find plenty of trout to keep them busy this fall.  The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) recently released yearling trout (6-9 inches) in the tailraces from their Pleasant Gap State Fish Hatchery. These fish are intermediate in size compared to a typical fingerling, which are stocked at less than the statewide minimum legal size of 7 inches, and to a typical adult trout, which are stocked at approximately 10-11 inches.

“These fish were surplus to the production goals of the Pleasant Gap facility and have been stocked in these tailraces to grow and become available to the anglers fishing these waters,” said Brian Wisner, chief of the PFBC’s Division of Fish Production. “The stockings offer a great opportunity for families to get outside this fall and enjoy the fishing at two very popular waters.”

In Warren County, the PFBC stocked rainbow trout in section 7 of the Allegheny River from the Kinzua Dam downstream to the confluence of Conewango Creek.

In Fayette County, the PFBC stocked brown and rainbow trout in sections 2 and 3 of the Youghiogheny River from the mouth of Casselman River downstream to the mouth of Ramcat Run and from the mouth of Ramcat Run downstream to State Route 0381.

To locate these stream sections and other great fishing destinations, click on the “County Guides” section of the PFBC website at www.fishandboat.com. Each year, trout fingerlings are stocked throughout the Commonwealth as part of the Put-Grow-Take program.  Information on all PFBC fingerling trout stockings is available at the following link: http://fishandboat.com/stock_fingerling.htm

The mission of the Fish and Boat Commission is to protect, conserve, and enhance the Commonwealth’s aquatic resources and provide fishing and boating opportunities. For more information about fishing and boating in Pennsylvania, please visit our website atwww.fishandboat.com.

Enhanced by Zemanta

Hunting, Ohio Comments turned off

Ohio Waterfowl Hunting Seasons 2010-2011 and Bag Limits

By Lou Yuhasz on August 12th, 2010

Waterfowl hunters
Image via Wikipedia

COLUMBUS, OH – The 2010-2011 waterfowl hunting season dates have been approved by the Ohio Wildlife Council and are the most liberal regulations allowed by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife.
The waterfowl hunting seasons are set to open October 16 in both Ohio’s north and south zones. Hunters 15 years of age and younger will have the opportunity to enjoy a special statewide season October 2-3.
The duck hunting season in the North Zone is October 16 through November 14, followed by a late portion that opens November 20 through December 19. In the South Zone, duck season is open October 16 – 31, followed by a late portion that opens December 11 and runs throughJanuary 23, 2011.
The daily bag limit for ducks is six, which may not include more than four mallards (no more than one may be female), three wood ducks, one black duck, two redheads, two scaup, one canvasback, two pintail, and one mottled duck. The daily bag limit for mergansers is five, of which no more than two may be hooded. The daily bag limit for coots is 15. Possession limits after the first day are twice the daily bag limit.
In the Lake Erie Canada Goose Zone, the goose season is October 16 through November 14 followed by a second segment that opens November 20 and runs through January 2, 2011.  The goose season for the remainder of the North Zone is October 16 through November 28, with a second segment that runs from December 18 through January 16, 2011. In the South Zone, goose season is October 16 through November 7 followed by a second segment that opens December 11 and runs through January 30, 2011.
The daily bag limit for Canada geese is two. Light geese (snows, blues, Ross’) have a daily bag limit of 10, and white-fronted geese and brant have a daily bag limit of one.  The possession limit for brant and geese is twice the daily bag limit after the first day.

Licensed falconers may hunt in the north, south and Lake Erie Canada Goose zones whenever these zones are open to waterfowl hunting; in addition properly licensed falconers may hunt ducks and coots statewide from February 5, 2011 through March 4, 2011 and geese from February 5 – 18, 2011.
People planning to hunt waterfowl are required to answer several questions for the Harvest Information Program (HIP) survey when purchasing their hunting licenses.  A state wetland habitat stamp endorsement and a valid and signed federal duck stamp are required when hunting waterfowl, in addition to an Ohio hunting license.  The 2010-11 hunting licenses and wetland stamps are on sale now and remain valid through February 28, 2011.

Copies of this season’s waterfowl hunting regulations, which include maps of the zones (Publication 295, Waterfowl Hunting Seasons), will be available online at wildohio.com or by late September to hunters at all license agent outlets.

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources ensures a balance between wise use and protection of our natural resources for the benefit of all. Visit the ODNR Web site at www.ohiodnr.com.

Enhanced by Zemanta

Hiking, Ohio, Youngstown Comments turned off

100 Days of Summer: Day 36- Run for your Life!

By Lou Yuhasz on August 10th, 2010

SANY0064
Image by lcthulou via Flickr

I Don’t give enough props to Trail Runners- Maybe because it’s just not a well known sport around here. But there’s lots of available organizations and events.

Like NEO Trail Club, Western Reserve Trail Runners, the NorthEast Runners Club, the Youngstown Ultra Trail 50K race and these Ohio Running Trails.

Enhanced by Zemanta

Boating, Camping Comments turned off

100 Days of Summer: Day 35- Run for Your Lives!

By Lou Yuhasz on August 10th, 2010

This video of a storm front approaching a beach ( Either the UK or Sweden, but not, obviously, both) has been making the rounds on teh internet. Enjoy the awesome majesty of mother nature and gaze in awe at the people who just, umm, stand there and watch it. REalize not everyone is familiar with the concept of tornado watches: