CAT TALES

My dog's trainer down at Bent Creek Preserve in Allentown said a bobcat was treed on the propery not long ago, and up on the Pennsy farm I hunt I saw my first wild cat, a large critter stalking along one of those old stone walls farmer's built around their fields 100 or so years ago to keep livestock in, or out.
A recent report says New Jersey's bobcat population may be rising, although spotting same is a rare treat.
Bobcats from New England were released here back in the 1970s by the Division of Fish and Wildlife (Fish & Game) back then before the outfit went politically correct.

COYOTE ROUNDUP

Coyotes are becoming a bit pesky in New Jersey, but in Pennsy they're a damn nuisance killing fawns, rabbits, birds, etc.
The recent Northeast Regional Coyote Hunt, in its 13 year, bagged 58 of the wild dogs.
Some 841 hunters took part, which means about one in 14 was successful, or less than seven percent.
Given the wary and wily nature of the coyote that's actually not a bad ratio.
Hunters could use dogs, calls or good old fashioned tracking in the snow.
A $2,000 grand prize was awarded for the heaviest coyote which was a 46.95 pound critter from Susquehanna County, which also recorded the most of the 58 taken with 16.
That's where my camp is and I hear coyotes howling at night, never seen one though...and now there are 16 fewer in the hills.

THINK SPRING - AND TURKEY

My brother in Vermont says guys are already thinking ahead to maple sugaring time and that means spring.
It's still a long way from snow and ice, but the New Jersey turkey application period opened Jan. 25 and the booklet on regs is on the division website and should be available now at license agent outlets.
Turkey seasons opens April 23. Youth turkey hunting day is April 21.

SHORE SHOW

The Atlantic City Outdoor Show is set for March 7-10. I don't have the specifics in front of me so Google it and you should find the info.

BACK IN BUSINESS

March 2-3 are the dates for the revamped Lehigh Valley Sportsman Show at the Allentown Agri-Plex Expo Center with about 75 vendors already lined up according to promoters. It's the first time in a decade the show has been held at the Ag Center.
It follows the mega Eastern Sports and Outdoors Show in Harrisburg, Feb. 2-10.

ANOTHER SHOW

Shadman John Punola has brought back his Sportsman's Expo with will run at the PAL Athletic Center in Parsippany Feb. 9-10 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day.
This is a more modest show than the extravaganazas going on this time of year, only two rooms of exhibitors, but they the admission fee is just $5 instead of the usual double-digit costs of the much larger events. For info call 973-822-2395.

SHOT DOWN

Two New York gun shows have been canceled, presumably as backlash due to the Connecticut school shootings.
Big Al's Silver Bullet Premier Gun Shows in Poughkeepsie and Suffern, NY will not happen according to our colleague Dick Nelson, outdoor writer for the Hudson Valley newspapers.
No reason given for the former, but an officer for the company that owns the Crowne Plaza in Suffern, said his organization no longer wishes to be associated with gun shows.
I believe the Crown Plaza, just off the NY Thruway, was formerly a Holiday Inn and a watering hole and sometimes stayover spot for us when we attended the annual Suffern Outdoor Show, which is still on next month.