The 22nd annual Becoming an Outdoors Woman (BOW) workshop was held last weekend at the 4-H camp near Halsey, NE. I write about this event every year after the workshop, not because writing is part of what I do, but because I am passionate about every aspect of the weekend and empowering women to get outdoors and experience all the wonderful activities and beautiful things in nature – all in hopes that they will pass their new knowledge on to …

This call of the male cicada is unmistakable this time of year, when cicadas or more commonly called locusts emerge from their underground homes to breed. Starting in mid-summer and continuing for a couple months the songs of the cicadas’ can be heard for miles. There are several species of cicadas in Nebraska, but the most common cicada near my home town of North Platte is the Dog Day or Annual Cicada. These cicadas make their appearance during the “Dog …

Wow July was a busy month – I put on some serious miles traveling across southwest Nebraska, but I experienced some pretty cool stuff along the way. Nebraska Game and Parks Commission hosted the first annual Carp-O-Rama at Lake Maloney, south of North Platte, which was a huge hit and gave people in attendance a new perspective on carp, carp fishing, and eating carp. Catching carp was only part of the day – once a carp was caught anglers learned …

I have lived in Nebraska my entire life – and am amazed at the places I come across that I never knew existed. Gallagher Canyon is one of those remote, beautiful places that is tucked away, yet unbelievably easy to find. Located south of Cozad, Nebraska, the drive is south on Highway 21 to the Gallagher Canyon State Recreation Area (SRA) sign, this is where your trip will get interesting – you may feel like you are headed in the …

This week in North Platte the Miss Nebraska Scholarship Pageant is under way. What does that have to do with the outdoors one might ask? I was fortunate enough to find the answer to that question myself. Three of the contestants in the pageant wanted to further their knowledge and skills about the outdoors as part of an award they can earn for the pageant. Miss Nebraska Pageant, contestants not only showcase their knowledge, education, talent, beauty and a platform, …

What a great weekend it was – the weather held out so the public could come enjoy all the different outdoor learning events at the Kearney Outdoor Discovery Family Day. The well attended event was held at the Fort Kearney State Recreation Area. I haven’t seen this many people excited and enjoying an event like this for well… I can’t even remember how long it’s been! This event made me remember why I love my job with NGPC so much …

American White Pelicans made their presence known – it was a pelican invasion if you will. Pelicans are one of the world’s largest birds and the past week or two there were hundreds – maybe even thousands of them in west central Nebraska utilizing our rivers, interstate lakes and reservoirs. Every spring migration I look forward to seeing the pelicans. I’m not sure what it is that intrigues me about the pelican, but I sure love to watch this giant …

With spring comes the spawning season for many species of fish in Nebraska – it is also a busy time for the hatcheries in our state that hatch fish eggs and transplant them in our waterways. I have always been curious about how the biologists catch the fish and collect the milt and eggs and how the entire process works from start to finish. During the Northern pike spawn on Pelican lake at the Valentine refuge, I got to find …

What a great day of turkey hunting – although I chose to leave my bow at home and just shoot with my camera, it was an awesome day in the blind. I almost like to shoot things with my camera just as much as I do with a bow, gun or what have you. I guess it doesn’t really matter – when you have hunted game for 30-plus years it’s a nice change to view wildlife through the lens of …

Thanks to Aric Riggins, Superintendent at Buffalo Bill’s Ranch and State Recreation Area in North Platte and some local North Platte businesses, anyone can view the migrating sandhill cranes from their computer, smart phone or other devices. With advances in video cameras and wireless internet that can stream live footage anyone can enjoy the beauty of the sandhill cranes and learn more about the behavior of this intriguing, long-legged bird. Buffalo Bill’s Ranch in North Platte now has a sandhill …