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My name is Richard Simms, an Outdoor Columnist from Chattanooga, Tennessee.
Southeast Tennessee is a paradise for outdoor enthusiasts. You'll find hunting, fishing, hiking, canoeing, rafting, hangliding, and a variety of other outdoor pursuits. On this page, I'd like to share some of that information -- concentrating on hunting, fishing, and camping. If you need other information, send me E-Mail and I'll try to TRACK IT DOWN!
 
E-Mail:rsimms@newschannel9.com 
WHAT'S HERE
MISCELLANEOUS
This Week's Chattanooga Outdoors Column
Chattanooga Outdoors Archive Index
Great Topo Map of Southeast TN
TN Wildlife Commissioners (Names, Addresses, and Phone Numbers)
HUNTING INFO
TN Small Game & Early Waterfowl Seasons (1998-99) 
TN Deer Hunting Seasons (1998-99)
TN Hunting License Costs (1998-99)
TN Waterfowl & Turkey Seasons
Hunter Education Class Schedules
Local DUCKS UNLIMITED Event Schedule
FISHING INFO
Fishing Report....(Updated 9/10/98)
TN Fishing License Costs 
THREE YEARS of Chickamauga Fishing Data
TN Fish Size & Creel Limits & State Records
Water Release Schedules for TVA Lakes & Rivers
CAMPING INFO
Camping Places Near Chattanooga
PHOTOS
RICHARD'S PICTURES 
Chattanooga Outdoors Photo Album (Pictures from other folks) 
WHALE PHOTOS
  Special Lightning Feature Page w/Photo 
MY FAVORITE LINKS
Cool Links To Other Outdoor Resources
Chattanooga Area Fishing Report
(Updated 9/10/98)
COURTESY OF TENNESSEE WILDLIFE RESOURCES AGENCY
CHICKAMAUGA - Fishing is slow. A few fishermen are catching only a few fish.  Most
fish are being caught very early or late. Topwater lures are the best bet for catching some
low light active fish.  A few catfish are being caught while drifting.
NICKAJACK - Catfish are being caught on chicken livers during generation hours.  A few
bass are being caught around the grass while flipping.  Also topwater lures are being used
around the grass early and late.
NICKAJACK TAILWATERS - Several catfish are being caught while drifting with
nightcrawlers.  Some white bass are being taken on topwater.
WATTS BAR  - Fishing is slow due to the warm water. Only a few bass are being caught.  Most activity is occurring early and late.  A few catfish are being caught while drifting.
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Chattanooga Times Column
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OUTDOORS
SEPTEMBER 24, 1998
RICHARD H. SIMMS
 Some of his friends call him “T. Howard.” Most people just call him, “the game
warden.” Only now it’s past tense.
 Don’t worry. Hamilton County Wildlife Officer T. Howard White is alive and
well, but now he’s a former game warden, retired after more than 32 years of dedicated
service. “A lot of folks will be tickled to death,” said Howard.
  He and two other area wildlife officers, Gordon Moore and Bill Holladay, retired
about 3 months ago. There was no fanfare, no flag-waving, and no long-winded speeches.
As Howard put it, “I got a pocketknife and a picnic.”
 But there should be some fanfare and flag-waving for a man who gave 32 years of
his life to wildlife conservation _ 30 of those years were right here in Hamilton County,
the other two in Meigs County.
 “Howard is without question the most dedicated man to the job I've ever known,”
said Reid Tatum, TWRA’s Region III Manager. “Howard's a little obstinate at times. He
always called a spade a spade. But there’s never been anyone more fair.”
 Or more interested in protecting wildlife. Anyone who’s hunted or fished in
Hamilton County very long probably has a Howard White story. Here’s mine:
 September 1971 _ I’d knocked a dove down in the woods by a field on Highway
58. Howard White topped a nearby hill just as I topped the fence headed into the woods
after my dove.  He broke into a run, bypassing my friends and scrambling across the
fence right behind me. Maybe it’s my memory making more of the story than it warrants,
but I swear I can still see the disappointment in his eyes when he found I had a hunting
license.
 Howard liked to catch the bad guys. And we’ve got more wildlife _ and fewer bad
guys _ as a result. But that’s not all. “Howard was one of the first officers really
interested in the non-game side of our program,” said Tatum.
 Howard White started thinking about bluebirds before it got popular. Over the
past 15 years he’s built and maintained several bluebird nest box routes throughout
Hamilton County. Ask him about bluebirds and be prepared to sit back and listen a while.
 For Howard, however, law enforcement always came first _ fair and impartial law
enforcement. He tells of a time long ago when he cited a well-known politician from
another county to court. As the man tried to use his political clout to protest the citation
in court, Howard saays then-Judge Buck Dietzen exclaimed, “one thing you don't
understand. These guys don't cull nobody."
 But Howard says courts aren’t the same as they used to be. “Courts started really
going down in the mid-1970's. That’s when all the old judges retired _ Schoolfield and
that bunch.  We haven’t had a court worth a hill of beans since then.”
 He’s retired now. He can say that.
 Howard says there’s two classes of violators and they’re treated very differently in
today’s courts. “The guy in the suit and tie will have his case dismissed. The poor guy in
dirty coveralls trying to feed his family is going to have to pay.”
 But it didn’t make any difference to Howard when it came to writing tickets.
“That's not my job,” he says. “I took them to court. It was up to the judge or jury after
that.”
 It’s also gotten tougher over the years he says. “Law enforcement in general is
harder,” said Howard. “There’s less respect for people who wear a uniform, wildlife or
otherwise. No matter what they’ve done, it's always your fault. People don’t accept
personal responsibility anymore.”
 What other differences are there between 1966 and today?
 “Officers have better equipment now than they used to,” said Howard. “In 1966 I
got a gun, a badge and binoculars. I worked for ten years before I got a pair of boots.”
 In 1966 Howard was paid $370 a month. “When I retired I was making $3066 a
month,” he said.
 Thirty-two years of service _ $36,792 per year _ Howard White didn’t do what he
did for the money. He did it to make a difference. “When you're young you think you can
make a difference,” he said. “When you’re old you realize you don't make any
difference.”
 You are wrong Howard. You have made a difference.
 Instead of flag-waving and fanfare, however, we have the deer, the squirrels, the
turkeys, and the bluebirds to prove it. Thank you.
#
CHATTANOOGA OUTDOORS ARCHIVE INDEX
READ EARLIER OUTDOOR COLUMNS
(Comments or suggestions on this column can be sent to the Chattanooga Times, Box 951, Chattanooga, TN 37401 -- or send E-Mail to rsimms@newschannel9.com )
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 Chattanooga's Warner Park Zoo 
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Tennessee Conservation League 
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Alabama Dept. of Conservation & Natural Resources 
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 Bowhunter On-Line 
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 Tennessee Dept. of Environment & Conservation 
 Tennessee Dept. of Tourism  
 Tennessee Trout Unlimited  
 NRA  I don't belong, often don't agree with their policies... but go there if you want. 
 Ducks Unlimited  
 Quail Unlimited 
 Rick's Antique Duck Calls  A Great Page.... especially if you collect duck calls 
 Delta Waterfowl Association  
 DuckDecoys.Com  FYI, I don't necessarily endorse the commercial pages I link to. 
  Will Duck Hunt For Food.... Good Page based from Nashville, TN 
 Rarebirds.com  Great Pictures of Waterfowl and Other Birds 
 UTC Scuba Divers Club 
 Foothills Conservancy Do It For the Bears 
 The Virtual Birder  GREAT Place for Birders or Hunters 
 Interactive Weather... (Sunrise/Sunset Info)  
1Duckhunter (Another TN Duckhunter)  
 Alabama Waterfowl Association  
 Mississippi Ducks Unlimited 
 North Alabama Outdoors   
 Hoosier Jim's Duck Hunting Page 
 Waterfowl.Com  
 National Catfishing Association 
 Other Outdoor Links: 
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