Barbs and Backlashes

Got a blog post for some of you most hardcore fish heads.  I know some of you are out there! One of my co-workers found this and called it to my attention. . . . The U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service has a weekly podcast on fish!  Yes, this is a podcast by pointy-headed fisheries biologists, so yes, it can be “deep”.  However, I know some of you love the information.  They have done a bunch of podcasts on …

You might have deduced from my previous blog post that I made a quick trip “out west” a week or so ago.  There is something else that happened on that little adventure that I have had on my mind since then. . . . I had some car problems on the trip home.  There is more to that story, but let’s just say I ended up having to pull off the highway because my vehicle was over-heating.  It was on …

I had something happen on the ice last week that I want to tell you about. . . . You better believe I religiously ice-fish with a depth-finder in my hole just like every other hard-core ice angler these days.  No, I have not jumped into the forward-facing sonar pool yet, but the Vexilar gets turned on before I drop the first bait down the first hole and it gets turned off just before I walk off the ice.  That …

I have something I want to spread the word about for my blog post again today.  You may have seen news releases on this already, but in case you have not: Help stop wildlife crime with new reporting tool Helping law enforcement eliminate poaching in Nebraska just got a little easier, thanks to a new program by Nebraska Game and Parks. The new online reporting tool allows people to anonymously report suspected wildlife violations through a form at OutdoorNebraska.gov/WildlifeCrimestoppers. People …

We just had the classroom ice fishing clinic in Kearney last Saturday.  At that clinic every year we spend at least some time talking about staying warm.  You will never enjoy ice-fishing if you are cold.  Of course layering is the key and there is a lot of excellent clothing on the market these days made just for layering, just for ice fishing! Another critical part of staying warm is good boots!  Good boots are especially important because, well, while …

If you are a muskie angler or even if you just have a curiosity about Nebraska muskies, then I know where you should be next Thursday evening! I am NOT telling you this because I am going to be there.  I AM telling you because the HUSKERland Muskie Hunters is the Nebraska Chapter of Muskies Inc. and you should check ’em out.  They have been a great partner in fisheries conservation, and Nebraska’s muskie fisheries, and they need your support! …

I watch a lot of guys on the ice every winter.  Often I wonder what they are doing.  The other day I watched one unload, walk to his favorite spot, drill three holes, set up his pull-over, fish for an hour, pack up his stuff, walk back to shore and leave.  I am sure he caught his limit: For the record, I retired the tipups that I had since 1995. But you gotta laugh, tipup guys all do the same …

Quick blog post today; just want to give a little report on what I have been seeing on the ice.  Yes, ice fishing 2023 has been good, have been on the ice quite a bit so far this season.  Mostly I have been fishing small waters, pits and ponds.  There is no real reason for that, no real strategy.  It has just worked out that those are the waters I have fished the most.  Actually, my new year did start …

We have a full slate of ice-fishing clinics scheduled for this month.  The first of those is coming up this weekend: Space is limited for the classroom clinic, and we usually have a full house.  If you want to be there, I would highly recommend you register ASAP.  We will start simple, basic, for the classroom session, but then we can go as deep as you want to go (pun intended).  There will be folks there who know, bring your …

The calendar says this is the first week of a new year.  I guess some folks like to commemorate the occasion by making resolutions.  I have always thought that whole practice was kind of silly.  If you want to do something different with your life, why wait until the calendar says January?  Just “Get-R-Done”! However, if you take your fishing as seriously as I do, you may want to set some goals.  The best part about setting goals for your …