You likely have heard my philosophy about when to fish:  The best time is whenever you have time, every time you have time.  In practice that means I have a lot of fishing trips that last a couple, three hours, I fit them in whenever I can. Ideally, those short trips are made at prime times.  I would rather spend a few hours fishing during the right time than lots of hours at the wrong time, but sometimes you just …

Some of you may have noticed a subtle difference in our Family Fishing program this summer.  We have had a full list of events again this summer, actually starting to wind down now, but you may have noticed we have been calling them “Community Fishing Nights” instead of “Family Fishing Nights”.  It is a minor name change made because we did not want folks to think that they could not come out if they did not have family to come …

This may come as a shock to you, but I know very little about current fashion trends.  I have been hearing something about some shoes called “Yeezy’s” and apparently they are the bomb.  All I know is when I went to the Adidas web page I discovered that the “Yeezy’s” were all sold out. So, I might have to get a pair of these instead! I gotta have a pair! If you want some, I believe you can get them …

I hung out around the high school bass championships at Merritt Reservoir this past weekend.  Let me give you a few details: Once again this year, the two bass organizations in Nebraska teamed up to hold their high school championship on the same waterbody, two days in a row.  This year the TBF Nebraska Student Angler Federation anglers fished first, on Friday, while the Nebraska B.A.S.S. Federation fished on Saturday.  Many of the anglers fish both days, both organizations, so …

Our great state has experienced some more flooding this past week.  It is a cliche, but again we have seen flooding like we have never seen before.  Most of you are probably aware that parts of central Nebraska had up to 10 inches of rain in one night last week, and well, when there is that much rain, that fast, there is going to be flooding in places where we have never seen it before. No doubt, flooding impacts fisheries; …

We live in a world that is way too uptight.  How uptight?  So uptight that even our crayfish are anxious.  Don’t believe me?  Well, there are some pointy-headed crayfish biologists that say otherwise:  Anxious Crayfish. Actually, if you read the article, it does make some sense, at least it does to a pointy-headed biologist.  Molting, or more correctly ecdysis, is a stressful time for crayfish and for good reason. . . . Ecdysial crayfish have “soft shells”, and it takes …

I have often said that one of the things I like most about trout fishing is the beauty of the fish.  Even a 6-inch brook trout can be a prized catch because they are such pretty fish.  I am convinced that is part of the glamour of trout fishing, that and fly-rods, and the fact that cold-water habitats where trout reside typically are also really purdy places. Likewise, I am awed by the diversity and beauty of fish on a …

I know the big Independence Day holiday is now past us and I know that there have been news releases on these items already.  I am not trying to “break” the news here so much as just trying to spread it: Goose Lake Of course high water and flooding have made access to Goose Lake in Holt County nearly impossible this year.  That has improved and the road is open again now; the boat dock is in place.  Now all …

Like many of you, I am finishing up a few things and heading out of the office for a long Independence Day weekend!  The “4th of July” has always been one of my family’s favorite holidays, and this year will be no exception.  Yes, we LOVE setting off fireworks, but there will also be parades, feasting, maybe some time in the water cooling off, and in between all the family activities we usually put in a little time on the …

I usually post a water/boat safety reminder in the early spring when the water is cold.  I did not this spring, but with the heat of summer and peak activity on the water, this is a good time to mention it again.  Unfortunately, it seems like there has been a story about some tragedy on the water someplace in Nebraska nearly every weekend this summer. My buddy Greg blogged last week about The Worst Excuses for Not Wearing a Life …