Outdoor Journal

Mark Freeman

It's definitely no longer kid's play

Even as a 12-year-old bass-fishing prodigy, Jacob Wall knew all those practice casts on his family's Jacksonville driveway would one day turn into cash.

Previous Columns

This formula for hunting tags adds up - 5/3/2013
In late May of 2000, Beaverton hunter Ron Wold thought he had his checklist covered for a coveted deer hunt in Central Oregon that coming fall.
Happy at Hyatt - 4/19/2013
ASHLAND — For more than 30 years, Bob Isaacs hasn't missed the opening day of the trout-fishing season at his favorite haunt — Hyatt Lake.
Nike Rocks - 4/12/2013
Nike bolts out of his dog box and instantly bounces around like a 4-year-old on a sugar high of diabetic proportions.
Free Beauty - 4/5/2013
JACKSONVILLE — Botanist Kristi Mergenthaler strolls the paths of the Jacksonville Woodlands with an eye that's well-trained for picking out the rare flower from among its imposters.
Father-daughter team works for an elusive shot of OR-7 - 4/5/2013
BUTTE FALLS — Mark and Jennifer Vargas trudge through snow in the Cascade Mountains following a string of big, fresh cougar tracks, but it is an even larger and more famous apex predator...
Great Outdoor$ - 3/22/2013
From behind the counter of his family's Grants Pass gun-and-tackle shop, Dave Bradbury sells access to the outdoors one jar of PowerBait or one pair of boots at a time.
An early springer gets juices flowing - 3/15/2013
SHADY COVE — For the first six days of March, Mark Randolph pulled himself out of his Shady Cove bed and trudged up to Cole Rivers Hatchery intent upon ushering in this year's spring chinook...
Whale of a tale - 3/8/2013
After a fruitless day of marlin fishing off the central Mexican coast on Feb.
As simple as a stick and a string - 2/15/2013
When Portland fly-fisher Dave Hughes heads to Eastern Oregon's Chewaucan River for a day of trout fishing, his arsenal is noticeable as much for what's in it as for what's not.
Go get those hogs - 2/8/2013
ASHLAND — With one turn of a lever Thursday, Cole Rivers Hatchery technician Colby Gonzalez turned 351 summer steelhead into rainbow trout and instantly made Emigrant Lake the next big-fish hot...
Swimming across Alaska - 2/1/2013
Deep in the bowels of Alaska's Brooks Range, Dave Metz found himself performing a dry-land version of the breast stroke as he "swam" through miles and miles of thick brush.
'Freeway Birding' - 1/25/2013
Ashland birder Harry Fuller steps out of his car with binoculars in hand, ready to scope a field near the Medford airport for one of the Rogue Valley's more unusual winter visitors.
It's a season of big fish on the Chetco - 1/11/2013
BROOKINGS — Orie Winter's plan Saturday on the upper Chetco River was simple — make sure his 20-year-old daughter, Emma, got at least a chance to land her first steelhead.
On Ice - 1/4/2013
Paul Heberling ventured onto the ice at Diamond Lake Tuesday ready to break in a new era — but he was certainly not willing to die trying.
It's a heart-pumping time on the coast - 12/21/2012
After spending several hours in the cold Oregon Coast rain staring at the ocean and watching for migrating gray whales to spout, David Bone can have a what-the-hell-were-you-thinking moment.
Crater on Patrol - 11/30/2012
The work can be long, the baggage heavy and sometimes his nose gets cold but, oh, what an office Dan Rubenson finds himself in three weekends each winter.
Marine Board rookie was made for the job - 11/23/2012
As a youngster in the early 1970s, Val Early vividly recalls her front-row seat watching her father, Cal Wade, navigate through tense boating-safety arguments as a member of the Oregon State Marine...
Take Aim - 11/16/2012
WHITE CITY — A little-used corner of the Denman Wildlife Area that sports little more than blackberries and starthistle will soon become a field of dreams for local archers.
Top dog - 11/9/2012
Elaine Goodner watched Gem swim into a stiff Alabama wind, worried that her black Labrador would drift off her course and end her quest at becoming a hunting dog champion.
Earning the summit - 11/2/2012
As she neared the top of Union Peak, Cher Rydberg's up-close view of the 7,698-foot peak was decidedly different than the one from her Butte Falls kitchen window thousands of feet below.