A Cast-N-Blast Expedition 

By Rory K. Aikens

Arizona Game and Fish

 The morning sun had barely illuminated the sheer sandstone cliffs at Apache Lake when we heard bass busting shad at the surface. Then came a chorus of high-pitched quail calls. It was a tough decision: grab the shotguns or the fishing poles?

  This time of the year in Arizona, you can have some tough hook-and-bullet choices to make. Waterfowl or trout? Quail or bass? Doves or crappie?

    "There aren't many places where winter sportsmen are faced with such tough decisions," says Joe Janisch (aka Jumpin' Joe), the Arizona Game and Fish Department's information branch chief. "If you are looking to maximize your recreational dollar and time afield, try what we call a 'cast-n-blast' expedition."

   There is also another payoff - a culinary one.

   On a recent cast-n-blast foray at Apache Lake, everyone was treated to some of Jumpin' Joe's Cajun rabbit and fried bass fingers while waiting for the main course - tender quail and rabbit stew cooked in a Dutch oven by Jim Warnecke (aka JW).

  Warnecke, the Mesa regional fisheries program manager, is also a renowned game cook. According to JW, stew is actually simple to prepare in camp using a Dutch oven and it only takes about an hour. Just toss in whatever vegetables and critters you have available and scoop some hot coals in, around, and over the Dutch oven. JW's real secret, though, is using a package stew seasoning mix. "That way, you don't have to worry about it being too salty," he contends.

   And if you want a lip-smacking batter for deep-frying bass or other fish, JW has a secret -corn chips and crackers. He likes grinding up corn chips, such as Fritos and Doritos, and mixes them with an equal amount of crushed saltine or Ritz crackers for his dry fish batter. Be sure to soak the fillets first in salted water for about 20 minutes before coating and cooking them.

   But you can't cook what don't get.

  Both JW and Jumpin' Joe pointed out that Arizona has some of the best winter fishing anywhere in the nation to compliment the plentiful small game opportunities.

   Trout fishing opportunities abound from the urban lakes to the mid-elevation waters. Even Saguaro and Canyon lakes along the Salt River are being stocked with rainbows. Trout are also stocked at Willow Beach (Upper Lake Mohave) and in the Bullhead area (Casino Row) along the Colorado River. Winter crappie fishing at places like Roosevelt, Bartlett, and Alamo can fill your creel with sweet tasting fish to eat.

   Bass opportunities abound, from smallmouth at places like Roosevelt, Apache, Canyon and Saguaro to largemouth bass at Pleasant, Alamo, Havasu and Bartlett. Don't forget the yellow bass (also called "stripies" in the Midwest) at Apache, Canyon and Saguaro. Then there are hard-fighting white bass, and even some striped bass, at Lake Pleasant.

   This year, there is also an added opportunity - some of the best quail hunting opportunities in the nation. Gambel's and scaled quail seasons have been underway since October. The Mearns' quail season opened Nov. 23. The late dove season also opened Nov. 23.

   "The small game hunting opportunities in this state are fantastic. There is no reason why someone can't hunt some kind of small game every weekend from now through mid-February, and never visit the same place twice unless they want to," said Randy Babb, the Mesa regional information and education program manager for Game and Fish.