Steve Merlo
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Steve Merlo: Impressive variety of birds can be viewed here in Kern County
Home to a huge variety of feathered beauty, Kern County's fields, marshes, parks and other habitat hold hundreds of different species of birds. These avian friends can be seen by not only the professional birdwatcher, but the casual observer as well. All one needs to get started are a set of binoculars, pad and pen and a relatively new birding book. Even if it means viewing them from your own back yard, it's still fun!
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Steve Merlo: Drive to Buttonwillow brings back memories
Driving out to Buttonwillow the other day to visit some relatives, I decided to take a look at some of my old hometown haunts. Fifty years ago, the small agricultural community only had 1,600 or 1,700 residents (or so the sign said) and not all that many businesses. I think we had only a handful of streets --Main, 1st through 4th, Milo, Buttonwillow Drive, Dunford and a couple others whose names escape me.
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Steve Merlo: NRA dinner, auction set for Feb. 3
Once again, it's time for all gun aficionados to pay the fiddler for all the tireless work the National Rifle Association does during the year for our country's gun owners.
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Steve Merlo: Some technical tips for weekend trout derby
Despite the rain expected to wet the San Joaquin Valley this weekend, the 3rd Annual Buena Vista Trout Derby will still be the best local spot to catch a limit of lunker trout Saturday and Sunday. Planted with nearly two tons of fighting rainbow trout, plus the holdover fish from other recent plants, the event promises outstanding fishing for all entrants.
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Steve Merlo: Practice at range makes for perfect first-time pig hunt
Watching a small herd of wild pigs materialize from a thicket 80 yards away, 13-year-old Ethan Dotson of Bakersfield nervously placed the sights of his .280 Remington on the nearest animal. Using a fencepost for a rest, he patiently waited for the hog to turn broadside, and when it did, steadied the crosshairs on the animal's shoulder and slowly pressed the trigger.
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Steve Merlo: Like it not, 'A-Rig' is effective fishing lure
When well-known pro-bass tournament fisherman Paul Elias weighed in over 100 pounds of largemouth for his four-day total of 20 fish in a recent tourney, the bass fishing world went nuts over the "new" lure he used to weigh in his almost unheard of 5-pound average.
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Steve Merlo: Coyote population is out of control
Each time I wander down to the L.A. area, I'm astounded by the number of wild coyotes living in extremely close proximity to housing developments. After some casual on-line research, I found that the animals not only live among humans, but are largely responsible for the disappearance of thousands of dogs and cats.
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Steve Merlo: This duck hunt is like an early Christmas
The 4:30 a.m. alarm announces another duck day on tap and one cannot imagine how much time is wasted getting into warm hunting clothes. Finally, truck engine warming, defroster defrosting, friends greet, shaking hands in a time-honored ritual before loading guns, decoys and gear into the vehicle's bed. Coffee never tastes quite as good as that sipped during the hour-long drive to the marsh, and the excitement of the coming hunt plucks at our senses. Even the dogs shiver, not necessarily from the cold, but from happily fulfilling their own destinies of training and instinct.
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Steve Merlo: Bass Club to host New Year's tourney
Outdoors columnist
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Steve Merlo: Where to find winter crappie
During the springtime when water temperatures rise into the high 50s or low 60s, huge schools of both black and white crappie flood the warming shallow flats and submerged rock piles of our lakes to spawn. Most fishermen targeting the fantastic-eating, easy-to-catch game fish have a ball and many a family member can remember fun days catching lots of the paper-mouthed gamesters for the fish fry sure to occur later that evening.
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Steve Merlo: Thanksgiving weekend brings back special memories
From a hunter's or fisherman's perspective, Black Friday isn't so bad. Most of the local lakes have been heavily stocked with rainbow trout and this year's bumper crop of quail and dove opens the doors for some outstanding gunning. While the shoppers are bumping heads, credit cards and purses at a thousand different stores preparing for the holidays, the hunters in the family can load up the SUV and head off to wilderness pastures a whole lot greener than the linoleum floors the better half of the family is already pounding into submission.
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Steve Merlo: Two tasty recipes from Merlo's game kitchen
With all the big game meat brought back from either local or out-of-state hunts, one must figure that tons and tons of ready-to-cook elk and deer venison are on everyone's menus. While a goodly portion of the harvest does get prepared in succulent meals, a lot of it ends up wasted or freezer burnt simply because some people do not know how to prepare it.
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Steve Merlo: It's time for bird hunting's grand slam
My favorite hunting time of the entire year begins with the second Saturday in November when almost all of our game birds are in season. Despite the possibility of Valley rains this weekend, hunters should still find excellent shooting available for most species.
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Steve Merlo: Some special memories of those who served our country
Veterans Day has a sobering effect on me, carrying memories of bygone youth and special friends.
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Steve Merlo: Sweepstakes winner reaps big prizes, massive bull elk
Remember all the sweepstakes you thought about entering, thinking you'd never win? Local hunter Curt Tobias took a chance, renewing his subscriptions to both Eastman's Hunting and Bowhunting journals, which earned him an entry into the magazines' huge sweepstakes prize package.
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Steve Merlo: Plenty of deer, plenty of fun hunting in Texas
Texas big game hunters live in the land of giant. Ask a Texan and they'll give you an earful of just how huge the Lone Star State can be for gun owners and hunters. Give them half a chance and they'll brag about managing their exotic animal herds, some endangered in their native countries, but now far outnumbering the ones barely eking out a living in their former homes.
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Steve Merlo: Sportsman's Night to honor 2 locals
This year, the "Sportsman's Night" Committee has selected two individuals to receive their coveted "Man of the Year Award" (or in this case, Men of the Year) for their work in promoting outdoor shooting sports. The two local recipients, Daryl Amble and Jay Busby, have spent 22-years working together as team hunter-safety instructors in the popular Kern Shooting Sports organization.
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Steve Merlo: Upland bird season has tremendous potential
Like most other wildlife lovers, I enjoy watching animals and birds whether I hunt them or not. I am especially fond of viewing the beautiful, top-knotted, bicycling valley quail in our area that are so prolific when conditions are right.
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Steve Merlo: Busby, Amble to be honored as Sportsmen of the Year
Each year the "Sportsman's Night Committee" honors a "Sportsman of the Year" with an award dedicated to one or more deserving individuals they feel has promoted related growth, spread of information, diligence and hard work in the outdoor world. When this year's honorees take to the stage on Oct. 25 at the Kern fairgrounds, they'll look out at the audience and see plenty of people they know or have instructed in the past.
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Steve Merlo: Old Kern River channel now a wasteland because of water greed
A long time ago, my father used to take my brother and me hunting and fishing along the old Kern River running south of, and then turning north, just west of Buttonwillow. Continually snaking its way nearly to Tulare Lake, the old slough north of Highway 46 always had water standing along its length, and wildlife of all sorts called the old riverbed home.
