Barbs and Backlashes

At the end of each year I like to look back at the state record fish that were certified; kind of a “state record annual report”.  It is time to do that again. . . . Surface Spearfishing Let me start with the surface spearfishing state record category.  We typically do not see a lot of surface spearfishing record fish in a year and 2015 was no exception.  There was one fish certified as a surface spear-fishing record last year, …

I do not know a lot about this, but I saw a news release just today and there are a bunch of Nebraskans, especially Nebraska anglers, who should be aware of potential dam repairs at Box Butte Reservoir: Bureau seeking comment for possible dam repairs at Box Butte Reservoir The Bureau of Reclamation is seeking comment regarding an environmental assessment document for the dam at Box Butte State Recreation Area north of Hemingford. Engineers have identified problems with sedimentation through …

I am heading out of the office here in the next few minutes, but I have a couple of news items to get out before I leave.  Do you want the good news first or the bad news?  Let’s do the bad news first. Discover Ice Fishing On-Ice Clinic in Kearney Canceled LINCOLN – The Discover Ice Fishing on-ice clinic scheduled for Jan. 16 at Kearney’s Yanney Lake has been canceled because of a lack of safe ice. The Nebraska …

I will admit to you that my desks are not neat.  I subscribe to the theory that a clean desk is evidence of a warped mind.  Come to think of it, I have messy desks, AND a warped mind.  Anywho, I digress. . . . There are a couple of piles of books you will always find on my main desk, sitting to my left.  Forward left is a big pile of In-Fisherman magazines; I read them religiously.  Off to my far left …

I do not own a snowmobile or ATV, have ridden on a few on the ice, but not a lot.  I do know this, a person needs to be even more careful when running an ATV or snowmobile on a frozen lake.  Four inches of clear, new ice is enough to walk on, but if you want to run some kind of ATV or snowmobile, you better have a lot more than that, preferably at least twice that much.  Unfortunately, …

Do not know if any of you got any new toys for Christmas, maybe you got a drone, maybe you want to go ice-fishing with it! Or maybe this is more your speed. . . . I do not dare post that last video without all the disclaimers:  I do not drink nor do I condone drinking while on the ice.  I have seen some ice-anglers do some very stupid and very unsafe things while getting hammered on the ice, …

Some of you may remember from previous years that my calendar is organized a bit differently than other’s.  New Year’s Day for me falls on whatever day I am on the ice for the first time each ice fishing season.  That first day on the ice is the beginning of my new fishing season, my new year.  With the mild fall and early winter this year, New Year’s Day fell only a couple days before I needed to hang my new In-Fisherman …

First blog post after getting back in the office for the new year.  I want to make quick mention of a couple of things anglers need to know about, new for 2016. . . . First of all, the annual fishing forecast is available on-line, 2016 Fishing Forecast.  Start studying it and planning your fishing trips accordingly RIGHT NOW! Secondly, a new year means a new fishing guide as well, 2016 Fishing Guide. Every angler should take at least a …

It is the holidays and I mostly have been “out” of the office this past few days and for the next several.  Never fear, I will be in the outdoors hunting, fishing, trapping, doing something while I am gone, and you likely will read about it and see some photos here when I get back “in”.  So this is going to be a relatively short blog post. End of one year, start of a new year is a time many …

I have not played with underwater cameras a lot, some, but not a lot.  Most Nebraska waters are productive enough that even under the best of conditions visibility is limited.  However, visibility is best during the winter, under the ice, and all ice anglers like to play around with new gear.  There is no doubt that underwater camera technology also has advanced by leaps and bounds in recent years, New Generation Underwater Cameras.  If water clarity allows, and on the …