Booo! … It’s the month when Halloween festivities and candy are aplenty. It’s the month when combines dot the rural landscape for the crop harvest. It is the month when the smell of wood smoke from fireplaces and backyard fire pits permeates the air. And, it’s the month when leaves turn color here in the Cornhusker State. Eastern cottonwood tree leaves beginning to turn their pretty yellow color along the Platte River near Gretna, NE. Photo by Greg Wagner/Nebraska Game …

Nature’s fantastic color show is emerging in the west and north. To me, that means the forest floor will soon be saturated with autumn leaf matter as well as something else — nuts! Freshly fallen black walnuts on the forest floor along a creek bottom in southeastern Nebraska woodlands. Photo by Greg Wagner/Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. One of the reasons to take a long walk in the woods during autumn is to gather some delicious, nutritious, wild or homegrown …

National Hunting and Fishing Day is this Saturday, Sept. 23. This is a significant day. No, this is not just another one of those celebratory days, not by a long shot. I grew up hunting and fishing in rural Nebraska. My hunting heritage began 54 years ago this fall as a “quail dog” for my dad and his friend, Jim on our family farm in southeast Nebraska. I am eternally grateful to my dad for taking me hunting! Below a …

Double, double toil and trouble … It’s the Halloween season and a witch’s brew is not complete without a moist, edible fall mushroom or two, right? Just kidding. But, guess what? We have an array of fall fungi in Nebraska perfect for your dinner plate. The greatest variety of mushrooms is usually found from about mid September through mid November, depending on weather and conditions. I realize it has been dry in places around the state, but any welcome rains …

The calendar indicates that it is not fall yet. The meteorological fall has begun though. And I believe that after Labor Day, the fall season starts. What do you think? For me, unquestionably, fall in Nebraska is one of the best times of the year to spend outdoors. Truth be known, it is my favorite season! The days are definitely getting shorter, the air is getting a bit crisper, the crop harvest will soon start, and before long the leaves …

Fall is quickly approaching and there is nothing more satisfying than sitting by a campfire and enjoying a hearty meal from a Dutch oven. Simple one pot meals that will give your taste buds a treat and a full stomach. These tried-and-true pieces of American history haven’t change much over the years and a quality oven can last a century. Many new campers and outdoor enthusiasts alike are anxious to learn how to cook in them. I have been around …

As the popular hunting seasons in Nebraska draw nearer, I thought you might like to read my perspectives about why I hunt.  I am a hunter. I write and speak about hunting. I take images and record videos of hunting. I interact with hunters. Hunting is a major part of both my personal and professional lives. With my occupation (as a longtime communications and marketing specialist at the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission) and through my personal social media accounts, …

It is a season that is open here in eastern Nebraska. It is an unusual season, but one that just flat out reeks of adventure, challenge and tremendous entertainment value. It is a season tailor-made for kids. And, trust me, this is the season that will create memories and stories like no other! No, it is not a hunting season. “It” is Nebraska’s bullfrog season. “Bullfrog season,” you say, “really?” Yep. Look at the size of this adult North American …

A classic case of misrepresentation keeps occurring. Folks, especially those new to the Cornhusker State, continue to express their disbelief to me that a crystal clear, cold, spring-fed trout fishing stream exists in northeast Nebraska. “No way,” they’ll say. “Impossible in farm country,” they’ll say. “You’re drinking, can’t be,” they’ll say.  “I’ve driven through there and never seen it,” they’ll say. These are just some of the phrases people have uttered to me about the East Branch of the Verdigre …

Maybe it’s because I am a lifelong Nebraskan with deep farm roots and help my brother manage his farm. Maybe it’s because I am a person with an outgoing, assertive, talkative personality who thoroughly enjoys interacting with people. Maybe it’s because of what I do for living and my employer. Maybe it’s because I pride myself on being a legal hunter and an ethical one at that. Maybe it’s because I really work at it. I don’t know for sure. …