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By Mike RocheLast week was my first ever turkey hunt in Missouri. After over a decade of flying out to Kansas and hunting turkeys in that state, things changed. In response to significant declines in turkey numbers in the Sunflower State, the Kansas...

By Mike RocheEach April for many years, this writer has traveled to Kansas to “visit my sister.” The annual trip began when she offered to buy my hunting license if I went to visit and that visit became an annual rite of spring.Over the years, contact...

By CARLA CHARTER

ORANGE-For his many years of advocacy of sportsmen’s issues, Mike Roche has received the Words of Wisdom Award from the Worcester County League of Sportsmen’s Clubs.Roche received the award at the club’s annual banquet on March 23, held at the...

By Mike RocheThis spring, people have been buzzing about how early things are happening in the natural world. Ice out on local lakes and ponds happened earlier than anyone can remember. Some ponds went from 5-6 inches of ice to ice out in less than a...

By Mike RocheLast Saturday my brother Chris joined me and a bunch of other folks fishing on White Pond in South Athol, where my wife and I own property. The pond community is close and one of the pond residents has undertaken to put together a day of...

By Mike RocheLast week, this writer finally got to do some ice fishing. Granted, it was an hour or two at a time, but it was quite enjoyable.After visiting Crack of Dawn Bait for some lively shiners, meal worms and spikes (AKA maggots) local ice was...

By Mike RocheThe recent run of colder nights has produced some ice, and fishermen and women have begun doing some ‘hard water’ fishing locally. This writer first ventured out last Friday and found about four inches of ice. That is OK for ice fishing...

By Mike RocheOne of the really unique hunting experiences in Massachusetts is hunting for sea ducks. It is special because it is not something which can be undertaken without considerable investment in specialized equipment, and it involves a...

By MIKE ROCHE

Every deer hunter has listened to and told deer stories because that is a big part of the culture that appreciates every aspect of the pursuit of the whitetail deer. The more years one has spent trying to outsmart big bucks the more stories...

By Mike RocheThe shotgun deer hunting season in Massachusetts opens Monday. Last year, shotgun hunters during the two-week season took 5,823 deer. That compares to the archery total of 6,543 and the primitive arms total of 3,366. The bow season...

By Alison Kuznitz

BOSTON — A new State Police unit will work with other law enforcement agencies and community partners as Gov. Maura Healey’s administration looks to bolster strategies for addressing hate-based incidents tied to race, ethnicity and religion, among...

By Mike RocheBack in the 60s, during my impressionable youth, the second week of November was a very special time. It was not only special to me, but to many other young men at Mahar Regional who knew that this was the start of deer hunting season in...

By Mike RocheRecent conversations with fellow sportsmen convinced me that we all have at least one thing in common. That is the fact that we all have at least one “dead” Maglite. We also prefer the Maglite flashlights, from the Mini Maglite that takes...

By Mike RocheThis past weekend found me once again traveling up Interstate 91, this time to New Hampshire.My destination was the Haverhill/Woodsville area. It had been over 50 years since my boots tramped about in that part of New Hampshire. During my...

By Mike RocheEarlier this week the dogs joined me in the Silverado on a long trek up through New Hampshire and ultimately to Jay, Vermont. The plan was to check out a couple of covers in New Hampshire and then spend the night in Jay at the home of a...

By Mike RocheThis past Tuesday was a day of firsts experienced by this writer while woodcock hunting in Massachusetts. The season for woodcock, a webless migratory bird, opened Monday. Upland bird season—pheasant and ruffed grouse—will start in the...

By Mike RocheFinally, after what seemed like an eternity, the upland hunting season this writer lives for has arrived! Vermont grouse and woodcock open tomorrow, New Hampshire grouse, woodcock and pheasant open Sunday, Maine also opens Sept. 30, New...

By Mike RocheFor several years, my guiding experiences in New York have put me in contact with bird hunters using GPS tracking devices on their dogs. The first account came from my good friend who guided a hunter whose dog had a GPS collar with a long...

By Mike RocheEarlier this week an email from MassWildlife Director Mark Tisa shared with me a thoughtful article from the Boone and Crockett Club which put into focus some realities of today relating to conservation. For my entire life, this writer...

By Mike RocheMassachusetts has a number of youth hunting opportunities that are in place to provide supervised mentoring conditions for young people interested in getting involved in hunting. On Sept. 23 and Oct. 7, the Massachusetts Youth Waterfowl...

By Mike RocheThis writer and his wife spent this week in Maine on a long-awaited vacation. We house-swapped with Sue and Jim Richardson.Sue and I go back a long way. We were classmates in the legendary Mahar Regional Class of 1969 and neighbors for...