Conservation

You all know that we had some crazy flooding around the state a couple of years ago.  I am sure you are also aware that it has taken some time to repair and recover from the damage.  Some of that work has not been finished yet. Disaster funding is great, but it can take a while to come through.  Seems like everything takes longer right now.  However, I recently drove by a couple of places where we have been able …

I guess it is “Elf on a Shelf” season.  Somehow I missed out on that Christmas tradition in my upbringing.  I do not know where I went wrong. . . . I thought it was all about clever rhymes.  Like this one from northern Nebraska today: Or, maybe a little bit farther north: Now before one of you complains that my blog today is nothing but a bunch of stupid memes, it is about fish!  Seriously.  Big toothies, what else? …

You all know that we have a whole list of urban and parks waters where we stock “catchable”, 10-inch rainbow trout in the fall.  There are a handful of those waters where we follow-up with some additional put & take trout stocking in December.  Now, there is NOT a whole list of waters that get stocked in December, so there is not going to be as much publicity.  Here is what I have been told has happened in the past …

Life in the Great Plains is one of extremes.  In recent years we have seen water levels on rivers like the Missouri higher than anything any of us have seen before. Now, they are the opposite of that.  Water levels are low. This may affect waterfowl hunters more than anyone right now, but there may still be some fishing happening out there.  Either way, you need to know this: Missouri River boat ramps affected upstream of Lewis and Clark Lake …

Like many of you this time of year, I am counting the days. . . . No, silly, I am not counting the days until Christmas.  I am counting the days until the “New Year”.  But, remember, my “New Year” starts the minute I step on the ice for another season! Right now it ain’t looking good.  I have seen nothing to lead me to believe we are going to be on the ice anytime soon.  WARNING:  I will get …

I know some of you are thinking about it already!  I am!  Yep, cannot wait for ice! I am old enough to have ice-fished in a time when there was not a plethora of ice fishing products on the market.  Believe it or not, there was a time when if you wanted an ice-fishing shack, you made your own.  There were some ingenious designs and creativity.  Everyone tried to make shacks that could haul as much as possible and yet …

I got drawn into an on-line discussion the other day about the variable colorations of rainbow trout.  The discussion got me thinking about the different colored rainbows I have caught from a variety of Nebraska waters.  I put together a little “collage” of some of them: Rainbow trout are a species that has been “domesticated”.  They have been selectively bred to be easy to raise in a hatchery.  As a result, there are a variety of different “strains” of rainbow …

Heading out the door for grandma’s house.  I will post a short blog here, and will get back to blogging when I get the chance after the holiday. We will celebrate Thanksgiving very much the same as most of you–family, feasting, football.  In addition, we will work in some time in the field and on the water when we can. Once again, we have a lot for which to be thankful.  I know that sometimes gets lost in all the …

Just spreading the news again in this blog post: Bartunek family receives grand prize boat in Take ’em Fishing program LINCOLN, Neb. – When the opportunity arose, Mitch and Heather Bartunek decided to introduce their 2-year-old daughter, Tinley, to fishing. And now, after winning the grand prize in the 2021 Take ’em Fishing program, they’re looking forward to enjoying future fishing trips with their growing family from a new Bass Tracker Classic XL fishing boat. “This gives us new opportunities …

I spend a lot of time on shorelines. The trash makes me sick.  Pretty much anytime, anywhere, all I have to do is glance around.  It is everywhere. I have to apologize. . . . I used to think the “litterbugs” were worse than pigs.  However, that is offensive to both bugs and pigs. I do not have a solution.  Yes, you can take a garbage bag and spend some of your time picking up after the slobs.  If you …