NEBRASKAland Articles

Preparing a dog for hunting season can be a good way to keep yourself engaged during the long off-season, but it can also be time consuming. With the overall shutdown we are experiencing due to COVID-19, it seems most of us have a lot more time on our hands. So now may be the perfect time to start getting your dog prepared for when game day hits in the fall or to help condition him or her to the rigors …

Servings: about 20 poppers Ingredients: • 1 pound of boneless and skinless white-fleshed fish fillets • 2 cloves of garlic, coarsely chopped • Half a large shallot, coarsely chopped • Freshly cracked pepper, to taste • ½ teaspoon of kosher salt • ½ teaspoon of sugar • 1½ tablespoons of fish sauce • 1 tablespoon of cornstarch, plus extra • 2 heaping teaspoons of freshly chopped dill • 10 medium to large jalapeños • Oil for shallow frying • Mae …

Servings: 8 Prep Time: 20 minutes Cooking Time: 2 hours and 30 minutes Ingredients: Rabbit Stock – 2 carrots, halved – 2 ribs of celery, halved – 1 bunch of thyme – 1 onion, halved – Cooking oil – 2 pounds of whole rabbit – About 8 cups of water Stew and Dumplings – 1 small onion, chopped – 2 carrots, chopped – 2 ribs of celery, chopped – Cooking oil – 1 bay leaf – 4 sprigs of fresh …

I never feel overwhelmed at Platte River State Park. Whether there are thousands of kids attending an Outdoor Discovery day or just a few vehicles, I can always take a deep, relaxing breath whenever I pull into the park. Located three miles from Louisville – between Omaha and Lincoln – the park is a welcomed break from city life. It offers both family-friendly attractions and solace in its 450 acres, even on the busiest of weekends. I love playing with …

Morel mushroom hunters will know this plant: Garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata), a biennial, is one of the first signs of green-up in Missouri River woodlands. This low-lying plant prefers moist soils, shade and limited sun, and while its heart-shaped leaves might look inviting during the bareness of early spring, garlic mustard is highly invasive. It outcompetes native plants and threatens the biodiversity of our woodland ecosystems. Distribution The story of how garlic mustard arrived to the New World is similar …

At 2.3 miles, the Kearney Water Trail is undoubtedly one of the shortest in Nebraska. Despite that fact, it might also be one of the busiest. On any given day from April through October, you’re apt to see kayakers paddling down the trail, which utilizes the Kearney Canal and Turkey Creek on the southwestern corner of this central Nebraska city of 38,000. Its location certainly plays into its popularity. The trail opened in 2016, a joint effort between the city, …

Have you ever left a deer mount outside for too long and now the antlers are chalky and bleached? All you need to restore them is dish soap, a paintbrush, wood stain and fine steel wool. If the antlers are chalky and porous you will also need two-part molding compound and fine sandpaper. Start by cleaning the antlers with soap and water and allow them to dry. Wrap the skull in paper to protect it during restoration. When the skull …

In the summer, cooking with a Dutch oven outside prevents me from having to heat up the house, and while camping, it allows me to cook a homemade meal. Here are my tips on using and maintaining cast iron cookware for outdoor use. Dutch ovens come in many sizes. I recommend an 8-inch oven to feed two or three people, a 10-inch oven for four and a 12-inch oven for six. For outdoor cooking, buy an oven with three 1-inch …

Merritt Reservoir has long been one of Nebraska’s top fishing destinations. Merritt is an irrigation reservoir, but unlike some others, it fills every year because of the ample flow of the Snake River. It consistently has great water quality and abundant prey fish. And with this year’s adoption of a 50-inch minimum for what many consider to be Nebraska’s greatest fish, the muskellunge, Merritt has entered rarefied air as a trophy fishery. “Merritt has alewives, white suckers and various panfish,” …

I’ve paddled many of the state’s rivers, mostly during the past 20 years creating stories on the state’s water trails in this magazine. But until 2018, I hadn’t floated the Platte, despite living a mere 30 miles from its course. By then, my wife, Theresa, and I had owned kayaks for five years, but we mostly paddled lakes around our home in Lincoln. On this day, it wasn’t long before we asked ourselves why we’d waited so long to float …