(Part 3) Best hunting & fishing books according to redditors

A reply to /u/Dereliction

Great question!

Maltese falcons were already very famous, in part due to the treatise on falconry written by Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, among which titles is King of Sicily, at a time when Malta was a fief of the Kingdom of Sicily. So, Maltese falcons had long been very desirable, and given the popularity of falconry among the royals of Europe at the time, to be gifted a Maltese falcon is a sign of honor.

Even today you can order a copy of this book, "The Art of Falconry", although you may have to spell out the author's name as "Frederick Second of Hohenstaufen."

Finally, Charles V didn't "give" Malta to the Knights, he rented it to them, under feudal contract in his capacity as ruler of Sicily. This is why the text of the grant specified what should happen in case of succession of the grand master, who should assign the bishop of Malta (the viceroy of Sicily, not the knights), how Malta should not engage in activities against Sicily, etc.

Perhaps most telling is that there are conditions for returning Malta to Sicily if/when the Knights were able to re-conquer Rhodes their original home, or if it decides itself to relocate elsewhere. So Charles expected the situation to improve such that the knights could relocate to a more advanced position, instead it ended up being a long-term home for them.

Read more about falconry before going into this.

Seriously, becoming a falconer is more work than people think. You can't just buy a falcon and wing it, nor can you take one training class and expect to be ready to fly one let alone own one.

Here are some things you need to know about falcons:

• they are the fastest flying bird in the world, with a top recorded speed of 242miles/hr.
  
• they are extremely sensitive to temperature, stress. Say you have a bird, and he overheats in the summer. He will become very sick, so you try everything you can to cool him down. You are successful, and his core temperature is back to normal. Your bird dies anyway, because despite everything you do to help, it's the stress of the whole experience that will kill him. Because of this danger, taking care of a Falcon is a crucial responsibility that is nothing like having a pet dog or cat.
  
• they can easily contract a deadly foot fungus called bumblefoot. You must clean their feet once a day to avoid this. Believe me, cleaning a falcon's foot is not a walk in the park. Expect to have puncture wounds on your hands all the time. If you find a tiny red spot on their feet and confirm that it is the start of bumblefoot? You need to isolate the bird immediately. Clean everything in its cage, throw out its perch, throw out the bedding, gravel, their food. You basically need to start over from scratch. It is very expensive. If your bird's bumblefoot gets as extreme as the picture in the wikipedia article I linked to, prepare for losing your bird. The guinea pig in the photo might not die from it, but a falcon most certainly will.
  
  Falcons are not pets like other birds (parrots, budgies, etc). They will not warm up to you easily. It takes weeks of perseverance and trust-training to even get to the point where they will perch comfortably on your arm. They are birds of prey and you need to respect that. They will hunt, they will kill, and this is the purpose of falconry. You will learn from the falcon how to hunt, not the other way around. Small animals are at risk, and if your falcon attacks one, it will be your responsibility.
  
  Though this book is about 800 years old, it is one of the most complete and best books out there on the subject. http://www.amazon.ca/Art-Falconry-Frederick-II-Hohenstaufen/dp/0804703744
  
  
  
  

Dynamic Nymphing by George Daniels. Highly recommended to me, and I have to agree/pay it forward! Also have (only read about half) Prospecting for Trout.

Fishing For Dummies

Very well written, funny, and most of all incredibly informative about all things fishing. It was kind of a gag gift but I learned a lot, and it's fifteen bucks.

You could go to a pay to hunt place and they could maybe set you up, but I don't think someone will be able to take you out and teach you to still hunt, which is what it's actually called. You gotta be stupid quiet when doing something like that. Deer can hear for a long, long distance. Your best bet is to just go out in the woods and try it. It's hard and it'll probably take years of practice, but that's what the hobby is all about really. Honestly, you don't even need any gear off the bat. Just find a place you want to hunt and go for a walk and look for deer. Hunting is like 80% scouting unless you have private property or something. Here's a good book I recommend on the topic. It's very, very detailed and will at least get your mind in the right place to try it out for the first time:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00DUGSQMU/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?ie=UTF8&btkr=1

Just did my first build with a Palmetto State Armory Rifle kit and an Aero Percision lower from local gunshop. I bought a bunch of tools since I had no idea what I was doing and I like tools, but only needed a couple things.

1. Armorer wrench (Got the NcStar off eBay)
   
2. Hammer and roll punch set (Real Avid Set, seems nice I have no complaints)
   
3. 4" Vise with magnetic soft jaws
   
4. Magazine block
   
5. Bench Block (did the Real Avid AR15 block, its nice but $30 vs $12 for a basic one)
   
6. Hex Keys
   
7. Gun lube, high temp thread sealent, red loctite
   
8. How to Build an AR15 book, https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01CFD3EYI?ref=dbs_p2d_P_R_popup_yes_pony_T1
   
   Only thing I forgot to get that would of been a huge help is a roll pin starter set. Took me about 4-5 hours to put together. The book was awesome, highly recommend. It's not hard just requires patience.

I don't know if you are a reader or have time to consume a book before season, but I'm gonna recommend a couple of books. The first is Ray Eye's Turkey Hunting Bible I read his beginner turkey hunting book and it is replete with years of knowledge and written in a good ol' boy way that I love. This includes most of the information in that plus a bit more. Cannot recommend this enough for first hunting.

The second is Hunting Pressured Turkeys by Brian Lovett This contains a bit more advanced stuff once you get the basics.

I'm an Irish falconer, so I'm not sure how many of the practices cross over for the test. But these have always been my reference books:

Emma Ford - Falconry: Art & Practice

Jemima Parry-Jones - Falconry

Jemima Parry-Jones - Training Birds of Prey

Best of luck with it!

You bet! If you've got a Kindle, check out Reading Trout Water and then Dynamic Nymphing

Rod handles are actually pretty easy to install, provided you have a 4 piece rod with no guides on the tip end of the piece.

The typical process to install a grip would be to epoxy on the reel seat, then slide a pre-formed cork grip (available from REC) down to mate with it. You build up tape arbors underneath the grip with masking tape to get a nice snug fit, and you epoxy it in place. Then you simply add a winding check and typically do a cosmetic thread wrap ahead of that.

Art Scheck's book "Fly Rod Building Made Easy" is the definitive guide to this kind of process, and is a great read as well. https://www.amazon.com/Building-Made-Easy-Step-Step-ebook/dp/B0058JNLWC

You can get the hardware here:

https://reelseats.com/shop/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=26_144_146&zenid=cc6605ba335d32f86b5cffce9ec01f8b

This may not be as cost-effective as buying a new budget rod (depending on what kind of rod you're talking about here), but it's a great set of skills to know and you'll have something you can take pride in when you're done. All you need to do is remove the original cork carefully with whatever seems best to you (I'd use a box cutter to carve and break the cork off then I'd carefully sand the cork core and original tape arbor down to close to the original blank with 60 grit sandpaper, leaving a little bit of the original tape arbor for insurance since you don't want to scratch the graphite and weaken it). Then you build up from there.

Man has been hunting without 'baiting' deer for a millennia.

Tried and true tactics for those who don't throw out a pile of bait for young stupid deer to feast on:

• Heavy producing Beech and Oak ridges
  
  
• Most fruit woods, but especially apple trees
  
  
• The edge of AG fields, especially corn and soybean
  
  
• Primary Scrape Areas - anywhere you find multiple scrapes within a relatively short distance. It can be as few as 2-3 scrapes within 10-15 yards, or 5-6 in a 60 yards stretch.
  
  
• Licking branches with accompanying scrapes
  
  
• Rub lines
  
  
• Bedding Areas
  
  
• Well worn game trails
  
  
  In my experience you will never see mature deer at a bait pile during regular hunting hours. Especially in pressured states like MI. The mature deer will scent you and will simply visit your bait pile during the midnight hours.
  
  Also, if you are really wanting to challenge yourself I suggest reading a few of John and Chris Eberhardt's books. They are a father and son team of hunters from Michigan who only hunt public land and permission-given private land. They rarely bait, and instead rely on heavy scouting and a scent control regime to pattern and profile their deer. They also offer plenty of practical advice for hunting on a budget and in situations where you can't or wont use bait, or are hunting property adjacent to a hunter who does bait. I highly recommend reading them if you live in a heavy hunting pressure state like Michigan.
  
  Bowhunting Pressured Whitetails
  
  Bowhunting Whitetails the Eberhart Way
  
  Precision Bowhunting - A year Round Approach to Taking Mature Whitetails
  
  While these books focus heavily on bowhunting the tactics and advice can be applied to any season.
  

If you really want to dive into tenkara, head over to https://www.discovertenkara.com/ They are by far the best English language source of tenkara information. They have a ridiculous amount of free information including history, flies, techniques, and more. They also have a YouTube series called Tenkara in Focus with a ton of free info.


If you are of the mind of paying for some content I HIGHLY recommend:
How to fool fish with simple flies (either print or e-book, the e-book is cheaper)
Manipulations Volume 1


Seriously, if you are new to tenkara, those two purchases will have you well on your way. If you could only buy one, buy the book (the e-book is like $7).

“Fishing for Dummies”

It seems silly, but it’s a great basic overview with good illustrations and diagrams. Used copies are pretty cheap online. I started fishing in a vacuum and this book got me started.

there's an ebook version for $26, if that helps: https://www.amazon.ca/Hornady-10th-Handbook-Cartridge-Reloading-ebook/dp/B01MZ9FI53/ref=sr_1_2

This pattern came from this book

https://www.amazon.com/Atlantic-Salmon-Mouches-atlantique-English/dp/0864929730

This is another good book for hair wing patterns.

https://www.amazon.com/Tying-Fishing-Bucktails-Other-Wings-ebook/dp/B01M4JDTI6/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1539171375&sr=1-4&keywords=mike+valla

To add to this - I highly recommend this book to all hunters (bow and rifle alike):

https://www.amazon.com/Tracking-Wounded-Deer-3rd-Find-ebook/dp/B07D3ZBQ4N/ref=sr_1_6?keywords=tracking+wounded+deer&qid=1574664284&sr=8-6

https://www.amazon.com/Finding-Wounded-Deer-Comprehensive-Tracking/dp/1616088362/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=tracking+wounded+deer&qid=1574664319&sr=8-2

https://www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca/books/tracking-wounded-dear-how-to/9780961740771-item.html?ikwid=tracking+wounded+deer&ikwsec=Home&ikwidx=1

At some point - you might not make the perfect shot; why not arm your self with some knowledge and some of the experience of others in tracking game.

Make her read Blood On The Leaves . It’s written by a former wildlife officer and full of stories where someone was injured or killed while hunting because they fucked up.

It is terrifyingly easy to accidentally kill someone with a shotgun when you think it couldn’t possibly hit someone

Might be useful:
https://www.amazon.com/Writing-Violence-1-Getting-shot-ebook/dp/B00O1DGQZU

If you like to fish alpine lakes there are some lakes just outside Salt Lake and Provo that are alot of fun to hike to. About 2 months ago, I posted about my new book "Fishing the Wasatch" it will give you good information on these lakes. In fact, you can save $5.00 until August 23, 2014. This price is only good for the Kindle edition. The Kindle edition is the same as the paperback edition except the pictures are in color if you have the Kindle Fire.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00LUX9P4S

THIS and THIS

It's not specifically on dry flies, but the book Theodore Gordon on Trout covers the birth of American dry fly fishing by one its pioneers, albeit briefly. This series is meant to be an introduction to classic fly fisherman and authors. The more seminal work is more expensive: Complete Fly Fisherman Notes and Letters.

There are two books I highly recommend to you. The first being The Little Red Book of Fly Fishing by Kirk Deeter and Charlie Myers. I keep it in my tackle box. This book was invaluable to my self development as a fly thrower.

Next I recommend Colorado's Best Fly Fishing. This book gives you need to know information on the most popular places to catch fish. It might not have the hidden and secret spots but it has gotten me to places with some great trout.

With that said, the only time I ever caught fish on Clear Creek was when I was 12 using a gold blue fox lure in September along I-70 just south of Idaho Springs. That doesn't mean they aren't there, I just haven't tried on a fly.

It's all a process, and we cant answer everything for you.

Try a free class on the basics. Bring your rod and reel to the class, ask them questions about it. They'll help you out.
http://www.orvis.com/flyfishing101

Try watching some videos to shed some light on how best to approach things. http://howtoflyfish.orvis.com/video-lessons

Try asking a flyshop near that river what to throw. They'll know whats working so you can stop asking yourself if the flies are correct. They'll be able to answer a lot of things.

Try a book or two about everything else.

Easy reading: https://amzn.com/0936608064

Detailed reading: https://amzn.com/0385308167