I'm going to be in Ottawa on business for several weeks and I was curious if there are any hunting opportunities that I might partake of while I'm in the neighborhood. I checked the MNR website and all of the seasons look to be closed but I wanted to make sure that I didn't miss anything. If there isn't any hunting, what about skeet/trap ranges within a reasonable distance? Last but not least, I could always do fishing, just thought I'd see if there was anything to hunt up there this time of year.

Dear Kingfisher,

I am somewhat dated because I have not lived in Ontario for 20 years. You will have to use the MNR regulations as your guiding light and they will have changed much since my day. But in my part of Ontario which was southwestern Ontario the crows used to return in large numbers in March and so if you had an owl decoy, call and shotgun or a varmint rifle you could get some action.

The other thing I used to do alot in March was to shoot carp with a bow and arrow in the Thames River. They are not spawning yet but if you float down a small stream that has carp in it in a canoe you can jump shoot them. Lots of fun. It would work in the Thames but that river is a long way from Ottawa.

The best thing to do would be to look up the Ottawa newspapers on the web. Call and get the phone number of the local Outdoor writer (if there still is one) and ask him. He will know.


VBR,


Ted Gorsline

Ted, I drive through Woodstock daily, and see literally thousands of crows some days. The sky is BLACK!

It seems they don't migrate any more. A few years ago, they started hanging around Chatham, but for 3 or 4 years now they've been residing in Woodstock all winter. They roost in town overnight and seem to put up a helluva squawk! I don't understand how the residents haven't declared all out war on them!

Some day I'll get the time to stop in and try to get permission from a few farmers to snipe a few hundred. I think you could wear out a barrel, there are so many.

When I was a boy we used to whack crows all the time with 220 Swifts and 22-250's but after the petty tresspass act came into being it all but stopped. At one time they were very wary but now with the lack of hunting pressure they seem to have gotten quite dumb. I was in Ontario for a visit last year and I noticed the crows were no longer spooky and I guess with the increasingly mild winters they no longer leave. I also noticed there are very large numbers of big snapping turtles in the Thames River. Turtle trappers from Ohio used to catch truck loads in the Thames. I would not want to be a mallard duck in the Thames river these days. I have pulled dead mallards up off the bottom of the Thames only to find a snapper attached to their foot.

What Ontario really needs is a seagull season.


VBR,

Focus gentlemen, focus! Hunting opportunities... in April... in Ottawa. Some crow blasting would be nice, but I need something that I can plan for, and hopefully borrow/rent a gun. I can pack one if necessary but since this is a business trip, it could get weird.

Dear Kingfisher,

Exactly the wrong time of the year for a hunting trip. Better to keep your nose to the grindstone and save you pennies for autumn.

VBR,


Ted Gorsline

Groundhogs

I was wondering if they had groundhogs or chucks up here. I'll check around. I came semi-prepared for fishing as well, but it's still pretty well frozen solid up here.

Turkey season opens April 25 and runs for about 5 weeks, however, I don't know what the regulations and requirements are regarding non-residents.