CRAWFORD, Neb. – There will be more happy campers at Fort Robinson State Park. Or, at least there will be room for them. The park is adding 42 new pads to the Red Cloud Campground, which serves visitors seeking full hookups for their recreational vehicles and campers. Each pad will have connections for 50-amp electricity, water and sewage. The expansion will more than double the size of the campground, which has 32 pads. Mike Morava, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission …

CHADRON, Neb. — A big year calls for big improvements for Nebraska’s first state park. Chadron State Park, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2021, has been the subject of sizable upgrades and new construction at points throughout its 977 acres. “This is a special year for us, and I’m thankful for those who have worked to make sure the park is in tip-top shape come summer,” said Gregg Galbraith, park superintendent. Perhaps the most noticeable project is the …

ALLIANCE, Neb. – Many anglers have been enjoying the popular pastime of ice-fishing in recent weeks, even though mild temperatures have caused conditions to vary greatly throughout ponds and reservoirs in the Nebraska Panhandle. Locations that have drawn anglers include Box Butte State Recreation Area, Smith Lake Wildlife Management Area, Frye Lake WMA, Walgren SRA, Island Lake on the Crescent Lake National Wildlife Refuge and the Chadron City Reservoirs. Sean McKeehan, a Nebraska Game and Parks Commission conservation officer, said …

LINCOLN, Neb. – The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission is offering additional incentives to landowners who sign-up for the Conservation Reserve Program, commonly known as CRP. Agricultural producers and private landowners can enroll in the CRP general sign-up through Feb. 12, or continuous CRP practices until Oct. 1. The program administered by the USDA’s Farm Service Agency provides annual rental payments for land devoted to conservation. Through CRP, farmers and ranchers establish a perennial cover, such as a stand of …

The Cheyenne Buttes provide one of the most scenic vantage points in the Pine Ridge. They also are forever tied to an event from Fort Robinson State Park’s history as a U.S. Cavalry post and got their name from a notorious event. Historians rate the happenings of Jan. 9, 1879, among the most significant events of the Indian Wars. While that day is certainly important, it is just one day among a period of more than three months. The previous …

CRAWFORD, Neb. – Nebraska’s bighorn sheep hunting season ended Friday afternoon, Dec. 4, as the state’s only permit holder found success at Fort Robinson State Park in the Pine Ridge. Matt Odgen of Grand Island, who won his permit by a drawing open to Nebraska residents, harvested a 10-year-old Rocky Mountain bighorn ram from the herd that roams the northwest Nebraska tourist attraction. Todd Nordeen, the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission big game and disease research manager who supervises the …

ALLIANCE, Neb. – The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission credits the outstanding work of volunteer fire departments and other responders in limiting damage from two Panhandle wildfires in late August. The Hubbard’s Gap Fire in the Wildcat Hills south of McGrew burned about 4,000 acres, including more than 60 percent of the land at the 1,829-acre William’s Gap Wildlife Management Area. During the same period, the Aristocrat Fire burned about 400 acres in the Pine Ridge 3 miles south of …

McGREW, Neb. – Wildlife managers in the Nebraska Panhandle say the full effects of the region’s wildfires during the final days of August largely will be determined by what Mother Nature does in coming weeks and months. The public land most affected was Williams Gap Wildlife Management Area in Banner County. Along with 2,900 acres of adjacent private land, the fire burned about 1,100 acres on the 1,829-acre wildlife area. During the same period, some U.S. Forest Service property 3 …

ALLIANCE, Neb. – Visitors to public lands and other recreational sites in the Nebraska Panhandle are being advised of wildfires in the region, and are being asked to be especially cautious because the heightened risk for fires brought on by hot and dry weather. The Hubbard Gap Fire in the Wildcat Hills in Banner County south of McGrew had burned about 4,000 acres as of Friday afternoon. In addition to threatening and affecting private agricultural lands, early estimates indicate the …

Hike for any length of time on Nebraska’s wild places and you will surely encounter the three-leaved nemesis known as poison ivy (Toxicodendron radicans). Shelley Steffl, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission private lands wildlife biologist of Chadron, often encounters poison ivy while consulting landowners on habitat projects. “Normally it’s found around more wooded areas and in places that have a little more sunshine present,” Steffl said. “Uplands, woodlands, maybe a little moister soil. It can be found in any kind …