LINCOLN, Neb. – Eugene T. Mahoney State Park near Ashland will host Splash ’n’ Bash, a belly flop contest, Aug. 10 at the Family Aquatic Center. Prizes will be awarded for the top splashes. Participants may register by calling 402-944-2523, extension 7327 or register at 11:30 a.m. the day of the event, which begins at noon. A park entry permit and pool entrance fee of $8 for adults and $7 for children ages 3-12 are required. The afternoon will include …

LINCOLN, Neb. – Visitors to Ak-Sar-Ben Aquarium will no longer be required to pay the $1 admission fee to tour the facility. Game and Parks made the decision to drop the admission fee to expand their conservation education and outreach efforts and to accommodate more visitors. The Aquarium is the only facility of its type in the Great Plains. The grand opening of the aquarium coincided with the 100th anniversary of the Game and Parks Commission in 1979. Its 12,000 …

LINCOLN, Neb. – Eric Soe and Payne Ahrens of Gretna won the 2013 Nebraska State High School Fishing Tournament on July 27 at Harlan County Reservoir. The Gretna Dragon team, with coach/boat driver Cory Roll, weighed in a five-fish limit totaling 15 pounds. Soe also caught the tournament’s biggest largemouth bass at 5 pounds, 8 ounces. Soe and Ahrens advance to the regional tournament Oct. 5 at Lake Texoma, on the Oklahoma-Texas border. The regional champion advances to nationals next …

LINCOLN, Neb. – The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission will train apprentice firearm hunter education instructors Aug. 29 at Bridgeport. The workshop will be from 6-9 p.m. at the Prairie Winds Community Center, 428, Main St. Register by Aug. 27. Contact Mike Streeter at 402-471-6134 or mike.streeter@nebraska.gov or visit huntsafenebraska.org.

LINCOLN, Neb. – Nebraska’s inaugural mountain lion hunting season will take place in 2014. The Nebraska Game and Parks Board of Commissioners approved regulations for the season at their meeting July 26 in Lincoln. Up to four mountain lions may be harvested next year in the Pine Ridge, the only area of the state known to have a reproducing population of the big cats. Areas open to mountain lion hunting in the remainder of the state will have an unlimited …

LINCOLN, Neb. – Fish salvage has been authorized on the Platte River from Odessa bridge in Buffalo County downstream to its confluence with the Loup River in Platte County. Localized fish die-offs are occurring due to low water flows and high water temperatures. The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission will allow the harvest of stranded fish of all species – except pallid sturgeon – in that stretch of the Platte River beginning at Interstate 80 Exit 263 from July 13 …

LINCOLN, Neb. – The Nebraska Game and Parks Board of Commissioners will consider creating the state’s inaugural mountain lion hunting season when they meet July 26 in Lincoln. The meeting will begin at 8 a.m. in the third-floor conference room of Game and Parks headquarters, 2200 N. 33rd St. The commissioners also will consider staff recommendations for 2013 waterfowl, crow and falconry seasons. In addition, they will consider: — a recommendation to allow restricted hunting in several state park areas. …

LINCOLN, Neb. – Try your hand at sand sculpting and visit Lake McConaughy State Recreation Area (SRA) on July 27 for the 24th annual Kites and Castles event. This sculpting contest will take place on the white sands of Sandy Beach. Participants may register at kitesandcastles.com or on the beach at 11 a.m. on July 27. Sculpting begins at noon, judging at 4 p.m. and the awards dinner and dance at 5 p.m. at Admiral’s Cove. Trophies and prizes will …

LINCOLN, Neb. – All hunter education graduates who are at least 11 years old and have not graduated from high school are invited to compete in the annual Nebraska High School Small Bore Rifle Silhouette Championships. The event will be held Sept. 28 at Pressey Wildlife Management Area (WMA) south of Broken Bow. There is no entry fee, but each participant must show proof of hunter education certification. Trophies and medals will be awarded to winners of each class, and …

LINCOLN, Neb. – July 15 is the final day meat processors may apply for participation in the 2013 Hunters Helping the Hungry program, according to the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. This program provides ground venison to Nebraskans in need. The application form and program guidelines are available at OutdoorNebraska.com/HHH under Processors and Charitable Organizations. Following the application deadline, Game and Parks will contract with eligible processors. This year, contracted processors may accept deer donated by hunters beginning on Sept. …