Hello and welcome to Kentucky Afield.

I'm your host, Chad Miles.

Join us as we journey the Commonwealth in search of outdoor adventure.

This week, we're taking advantage of early spring and headed out to a farm pond in search of trophy bass.

Then we're headed out to western Kentucky to learn a little more about fur trading.

But first, we're heading out at night in search of a coyote.

Well I'm super excited to be out here tonight.

I'm gonna try my luck with a little bit of nighttime coyote hunting.

There's so much dedicated gear to be out here, and this is a perfect time of year to do it.

It's February.

It's cold out.

It█s right before the breeding season for coyotes.

And hopefully they're already out and about because coyotes are nighttime scavengers and hunters.

Now, coyote hunting here in the state of Kentucky can be done day or night, year round.

But if you're going to use any type of means to illuminate a field or to help make any wildlife visible in a field like what I'm using tonight, which is an infrared scope or a thermal scope or any other type of light, it has to be done during a limited season.

Hopefully I can get out here and get set up, use some coyote vocalizations, get a coyote interested, get them in range and hopefully get a shot.

Looky there.

Now, I don't know if a coyote is responsible for killing this deer, but it's obvious that a coyote has drug this leg of this deer out here.

I'll tell you what I deer hunt this place quite a bit.

So, I have no love for the coyote.

All right.

Let's start out with a female invitation.

Chad right there.

There's one in the field at 1:00.

All right, here we go.

I don't know.

It came in to the right.

I tried to get on it.

I got down right where I thought it was at.

And when I finally saw the coyote I shot.

I don't know what happened.

It may have been a clean miss.

Oh, man.

Well I looked all over for that coyote and I guess it missed.

The good news is it's early.

And I got time for another set.

This is a spot that I like.

It's mainly because of the way the field is crowned where I can see all the way across the field.

So I█m going to get the call set up, tuck back in these woods, get set up on the bipod, give it a try.

All right.

We█re going to start out here with a couple of female howls.

Try to see if we got anything in the area.

All right, now I'm going to move to the yipping coyotes.

Oh, that was a bark, that was a coyote bark and it sounded like it's... There it is again.

I should be able to see this coyote.

There he is.

I got him.

I got him.

I got him.

He's barking.

The coyote█s moving to the left.

But I think I█ll still get a shot.

Oh, man, I don't see the coyote.

That's a that's a little further than I was wanting to shoot tonight, but it barked soon as I made a call.

I wasn't expecting it to be so fast.

I hope I got a coyote down.

Lets go take a look.

There he is right there.

Sure enough.

Oh, my gosh.

Well, I can tell you, this is not how I expected this to go down.

You know, you might see a coyote one every three or four times you set up.

This time I came out and put the call out, put a female howl out there and literally waited a minute.

And before I even got to put my next call out, I heard a bark.

This coyote was right on me.

It was literally 200 yards away.

And when that happened, I got an opportunity to see that thing actually barking on camera.

I see it carrying on.

It gave me enough time to get down, try to get a really good shot.

Thank God I was on my bipod and my shooting sticks.

I got down, I was on a knee and was able to put this coyote down.

And I'll be honest with you, until I walked through this field and saw this coyote, I wasn't sure I'd hit it.

My first nighttime coyote with the new rifle season here in Kentucky now it█s been in for a couple of years.

What a cool experience.

One more coyote off this piece of property.

Hopefully this is good for my deer, my turkey, my rabbits and everything else.

I'm going to get my gear and this coyote and get it picked up and get it out of the field.

And I'm going to be looking at my calendar and trying to look and see when I can get back out here and do this again.

Are you looking to catch a trophy bass this year?

Well, if I were you, I would start out early spring in a farm pond.

Well, March is finally here and that gets me super excited about hitting the water.

You know, I love to wintertime fish on the big lakes all winter long.

But when it comes to pond fishing, you know these waters cool down much faster in the winter and warm up much quicker in the spring.

So we've had some pretty nice days.

We had a couple- yesterday, was sunny and in the 60s today and it is super windy.

Not sunny, but it's also gonna be in the 60s, so this is the perfect time after a day or two of warm weather to get out and chase a big fish.

Now type of tackle that I like to use this time of year is slow moving tackle.

As much as I love to throw a swim bait or something like that.

This is going to be more worm senko style fishing or maybe a chatter bait.

If I want something that is going to be moving.

So I'm going to go with, a weightless, really slow sinking senko.

This here is a 5 or 6 inch.

I've also got a smaller version and a different color on the spinning rod.

These senko style stick baits are very salt impregnated and they█re heavy enough that I can make a cast without any weight.

That will make them sink at a really slow rate.

It takes more patience.

It takes more time.

But this particular presentation here is the way that I've had more bites in really cold weather.

So I'm really excited.

Some of the biggest fish I've caught have been in ponds and they've been in February and March.

So this February was a little colder than normal.

But today, after a couple of warm days, is a great opportunity to catch a big fish.

So I'm going to walk the edge of this pond and try to find out where the warmest water is and fish in some structure, so let's go after it.

Oh my gosh.

Oh, look what greeted me.

Look at the size of that snapper sitting right there on the bank.

Is he alive?

Oh, yeah.

See his head moving?

I that's an old snapping turtle right there now.

All moss covered up.

Spent the winter laying down there on the bottom.

He knew that sun and that warmer weather was here today.

He came out to get a little bit of sunshine.

Man, that's a big turtle right there now.

Now, after just two days of nice, warm weather, I like to start off on the shallow sides of the ponds.

Now, as much wind as we've got today.

You see this wind kind of blowing this water.

And as it goes on throughout the day, you may end up in a situation where the water temperature is about the same because of the wind.

And, but I always like to start out on the shallow side because it will warm the fastest.

You almost can't move this lure or too slow in these type of conditions.

I don't know what the water temperature is, but I'm going to guess it's in the 40s.

So it's cold.

That's why that snapping turtle is out of that water, because the air temperature is a lot warmer.

So we're going to move this bait really, really, really slow today.

Hopefully if I can get in around some structure, find a big 5 or 6 pounder or who knows, maybe even bigger laying down there so we can entice a bite.

Here you go.

Fish on First fish of the day and it's not a bad start.

This is on that.

Oh, man.

I don't know what we've got here, but this is a good start to the day.

If this is a bass.

Oh, man, I hope I don't have that big snapping turtle.

What do we got?

Oh, it's a bass.

And a good one.

This right here is why you get out and fish early.

It's not about numbers.

It's about catching some good sized bass.

And look at this: irst one of the day is about a 6 pound fish.

You may have to make me get in.

I got him on 8 pound test.

Got him.

Look at that.

What a beautiful, beautiful bass.

My very first bass on my new fishing license.

Early March.

First time out.

First fish of the day.

Cold.

This fish is so cold.

Big.

Beautiful bass.

Healthy.

This will be a spawner here in about 3 or 4 weeks from now.

This fish here will be a beautiful spawning bass.

What a nice, nice fish.

Again, as slow as I can move that little senko.

I felt the smallest little tap and then my line started to move and I'm glad it did.

Well, about my fifth or sixth casts.

And that was a good fish.

That's exactly why I came out here today.

I don't know that I'll get more than six, eight, ten bites, but that fish right there was well worth it.

Now, interestingly enough, this pond kind of goes out and has a little bit of a drop about ten, 12ft out there.

And that fish was in the deeper water.

It was really, really, really cold.

It was into deeper water.

And there's some structure out there.

So, you know, I started off in the really shallow areas, but that just told me that, in the structure on the deeper end might be where I even catch a bigger one.

I about fell in.

This motion, what it is you see with the Senko is a lot of just picking it up.

Just.

I mean, just a few inches off the bottom, shaking it and letting it sink back down.

And then reeling up the slack.

And when I say slow, it's painstakingly slow.

But in this 40 degree water temperature, these fish are not going to be willing to chase this bait across the bottom.

It's going to be an opportunistic feed where it just so happens to be right there in front of their face.

Oh, just got a bite.

I don't know that he got it, but 100% just got a bite.

There's a school of smaller fish right there that- see ‘em hitting it?

See that?

Yeah.

The way these are hitting, they're hitting way more aggressive.

Way more aggressive than that bigger fish.

It's just pop pop pop snap.

And, that just tells me that these are smaller fish.

And quite a few of them out there.

A little different than the last.

But you know what?

A good, healthy pond it takes all sizes.

That one there needs about four years.

There's a bunch of them out there, though, because that's about the third bite in a row I've had.

You know, the interesting thing about this is that this time of year, I actually fish in exactly reverse of the way that I would be fishing this pond in say a, a month, month and a half from now, and that I would come in here and fish a fast moving bait first and try to pick up the real aggressive fish and then go back in with the slower moving bait and really go back after the structure and try to pick up some big fish that, that maybe aren't willing to chase a bait down in cold water conditions.

Like, now, you know, we're in the very first few days of March.

I'm going to go in reverse.

And what I want to do is I'm going to go and try to pick up, especially fishing in the morning I'm going to try to pick up the slow moving fish on these slow moving baits.

And then as the day progresses and we hit warmer temperatures, hopefully 60 degrees today and more wind, I will then come back and try to present a moving presentation just to make sure I don't miss anything that is willing to be more aggressive.

So it's almost an exact opposite.

If I was fishing here in April, it would be pick off the aggressive, fast moving fish and then come back and go with the slow moving presentation today.

Slow moving presentation until you get later in the day.

Sun's up a lot of wind.

I'll go to a little quicker moving presentation.

Still not fast.

It'll be a chatter bait.

About as slow as I can move it and get it to move.

Get it to vibrate.

Oh, it█s another small fish.

Oh, a little better.

Not exactly what we're looking for, but a little better than the last couple.

He hit it hard.

Man, that fish smoked it.

Just a little bit bigger, but still really small bass.

Well, that's about a perfect early March day.

You come out, spend a couple hours, walk around the pond, was able to get what I expected, probably somewhere in that neighborhood of 8 to 10 bites.

And I got a one really good bite.

And you know what?

Over the next few weeks, the fishing should just get even better.

What I like to do this time of year is limit my tackle.

Literally put some things in my pocket.

I call it all but one fish on that little purple and blue Senko right there.

Keep it simple.

Couple hooks, a couple pieces of soft plastic.

Something you can move to the water really slow.

Have some patience and hold on.

Because this time of year the big fish are feeding and getting ready for spawn.

I was lucky enough today to hook into one of them.

Here in Kentucky, trapping is a hobby that is beneficial to landowners.

And it also can help generate a few dollars for the trappers.

We're here today in Beechmont, Kentucky for the annual fur sales, the fur auction.

And we have trappers from all over the state of Kentucky.

Plus we've got some trappers from Tennessee, Indiana, I think one from Arkansas and one from Alabama.

So we've got trappers from all over that have come.

And this is an opportunity for them to market their furs.

The fur market right now is a little bit down, but we have some strong points in the fur market right now.

The bobcat, the beaver, otters and that are pretty strong.

Skunks are strong, believe it or not.

This fur market, it's starting to gradually improve.

We lost a lot of the fur market during COVID because of supply chains and the inability of buyers to travel internationally and that's starting to improve.

It's starting to get better.

As far as the fur market goes.

This particular sale this auction that we have today, the trappers bring in their furs.

They're assigned lot numbers and their furs are graded according to species and size and color and quality and so forth.

You'll see a lot of very, very well handled fur here.

Some of our Kentucky trappers and our members are some of the best fur handlers any place.

So our fur is in strong demand as raw fur goes.

I'm certainly happy to be here again and happy for the United Trappers to sponsor this fur sale.

This is the third or fourth annual event here.

by Brandon Baize and his group of supporters.

So it's been a tremendous sale so far and certainly a much needed thing to have in support of the trappers.

And I'm so glad that beaver prices have gone up from what they were at the first sale, considerably more money per fur, and it's definitely needed to pay for the expenses and get some benefit for the trappers that love this sport.

Once the furs are graded and they go down the line, they hit the auction blocks, the auctioneer auctions off each lot of fur.

And then each trapper picks up part of a triplicate sheet to cash in with the buyer.

And They go to the trapper, and then they go also to the association for record keeping.

And then we charge a modest 5% commission, which most often covers our expenses on putting the sale on.

We put the sale on not to make money but to provide a market for our trappers.

As I've told many people, these trappers are just modern day Daniel Boone's because they do a remarkable job of trapping and serves a tremendous service for the farmers, the property owners to save their timber.

As we've mentioned numerous times, there are just hundreds and thousands of acres of crops and timberland that gets ruined every year due to the beavers.

And we're not wanting to exterminate the beavers by any stretch of the imagination.

But just like all methodical hunting and proper planning, it's just a control mechanism for the beavers.

We'll have well over 1000 beaver here and umpteen other fur.

So it's going to be one of the biggest sales in the eastern United States.

It may be the biggest by the time this thing all runs through.

So we're really excited about that.

The beaver market right now pretty strong compared to what it was.

Couple of years ago, there was probably a $9-10 average and now they're they're up to a $35-40 average with some highs going into the fifties.

One reason for that actually happens to be the Yellowstone TV program.

Everybody is buying these Western hats, And that's what they're made from, is from Beaver.

The pelt is ground up and made into like fiber of sorts.

And it's mixed with an adhesive and coloring and that sort of thing.

And they're made into these hats.

Buyers have different interests in different furs.

Some of them specialize just in raccoons.

Some of them specialize just in beaver, but most of them will buy just about any fur as long as they can develop a decent market for it.

Some of the buyers have brokers which buy in bulk and they in turn sell to manufacturers for garment making.

Garments are a big thing.

Vests, coats, gloves, hats, muffs, mittens, things like that.

And also the novelty part of the fur business is pretty big too.

And another thing.

our association tries to do, the United Trappers of Kentucky.

We like to bring new people into the activity.

What I like about trapping is that it can help manage wildlife.

You can put it up and sell it.

It█s a very enjoyable experience and it helps keep wildlife maintained.

Whether they're youngsters or adults, just get new people in.

We want to sustain this activity.

It's something that we really love.

It's a heritage.

It's a great activity.

It's a great outdoor form of recreation at a time of the year when there isn't a whole lot else.

As a trappers association, we also stress that every one of these critters we catch is a blessing of sorts.

And these critters were put here for us to have dominion over and to use responsibly.

And so we consider ourselves a conservation organization.

We teach the wise use the best use possible all these species.

So we teach our trappers that fur handling and creating the best quality pelt is actually a way of honoring each animal that we're able to harvest.

It enhances our activity in the public eye.

They know that we're not wasting this critter.

We█re doing it to use that critter a good way.

Now let's check in and see who else has been out having fun in this week's ones that didn't get away.

Here we have Doctor Powell, who got out in the late season to do a little waterfowl hunting at Barlow Bottoms.

Congratulations.

Here we have Jordan Knotts, who was crappie fishing on Nolin Lake when he caught this 5 pound bass.

Nice surprise.

Check out Trigger Williams here with his first Canada goose.

This goose was also banded.

Nice job.

Here we have nine year old Bennett Meeko with a nice largemouth bass that he caught while farm pond fishing in Anderson County.

Here we have 78 year old Charles Whitley, who headed out to Barron County to do a little sandhill crane running.

This bird was his 15th since the season opened years ago.

Nice job.

The weather is warming up, providing more and more fishing opportunities.

Make your plans now to get outdoors.

And remember, hunting and fishing on private property is a privilege.

Always ask permission and thank the landowner.

Until next week, I'm your host, Chad Miles, and I hope to see you in the woods or on the water.