Articles

Lead bullets poison wildlife and people

Lead poisoning destroys brain tissue, diminishing motor and cognitive function

by Ted Williams - Friday, Feb 16th, 2024

Photos of standard copper jacketed lead core bullets and solid monolithic copper bullets before and after firing. All fragments recovered were lead (photo: North American Non-Lead Partnership).

“Until they reach the gizzard where the wildfowl grinds his food, these [lead] pellets do no harm, but, when reduced to powder…they become a violent poison.” That timely warning issued from Forest and Stream editor George Bird Grinnell 129 years ago.

28 million acres of Alaska public lands at risk of losing protections

Some of Alaska's wildest and most remote lands are at risk of being opened to fossil fuel and other extractive development

by Hatch Magazine - Tuesday, Feb 13th, 2024

Photo: Fredrik Norsell.

In Alaska, 28 million acres encompassing some of the state’s wildest and most remote swaths of public lands are at risk of losing protections which have kept them safe from extractive development for over half a century.

New fly fishing 'Essential Skills' class announced

The School of Trout announces a brand new offering

by Hatch Magazine - Friday, Feb 9th, 2024

Photo: Todd Tanner

The School of Trout is known for providing in-depth and immersive fly fishing instruction — including its Basic Trout, Spring Creek, Dry Fly, and comprehensive Tao of Trout class — taught by some of the world’s finest and most accomplished fly fishing instructors. These classes, each offered over the course of a week, offer students a healthy mix of classroom and hands-on learning.

Orvis intros 4th generation Helios fly rods

The Vermont-based legacy rod maker is billing their new offerings as the most accurate fly rods ever created

by Chris Hunt - Wednesday, Feb 7th, 2024

Photo: Nate Simmons.

Orvis is backing the launch of its next-generation Helios fly rod with some confident claims. But, judging by the initial information the Vermont-based rodmaker is sharing with the launch of its latest U.S.-made flagship rod series, along with our initial impressions of the new Helios’ performance on the water, those claims may not be mere marketing bluster.

Automakers keep glorifying bad behavior

Kia is the latest in a long line of auto brands celebrating "creek riding"

by Chris Hunt - Monday, Feb 5th, 2024

Scene from a TV commercial for Kia's EV9 featuring the new SUV driving straight down the bed of a creek. Image credit: Kia Motors.

Over the years, I’ve prepared myself for the inevitable. It happens almost every year around this time, and it’s a bad look for automakers who, despite certainly knowing better, continue to glorify a driving practice that should make every fly fisher cringe.

Be prepared for the next round of kitschy television advertisements that show just how capable new SUVs are of trashing perfectly good trout water. The latest culprit? Kia America and its ad for its EV9 GT-Line e-AWD crossover.