Barbs and Backlashes

I made it to both of our large “Carp-O-Rama” events this year; time to show you some pictures and tell some stories. We have had Carp-O-Rama at Pawnee Reservoir northwest of Lincoln for several years now.  It seems like it gets bigger every year. Boats too! This is a family event!  Grandma helps take the fish off the hook! And dad holds ’em for photos. There were some fish caught. And carefully carried up to the tents. Stan will clean …

Cue the theme music. . . . She Blinded Me with Science by Thomas Dolby It has been almost three years ago that I went into some detail about the fisheries renovation that was done on the west lake at our Mormon Island State Recreation Area,( http://www.outdoornebraska.ne.gov/parks/guides/parksearch/showpark.asp?Area_No=123 ), http://magazine.outdoornebraska.gov/2010/08/rotenone-renovation/ .  What I want to share with you here is a paper that documents the fisheries science behind a rotenone renovation, http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/tnas/418/ .  If you wish you can download the entire paper, …

I often joke that my best Nebraska fishing spots are guarded by mosquitoes, ticks, itch mites, owls, wild hogs, sasquatch, mountain loins and rattlesnakes (have shown a couple pictures of the rattlesnakes this year,  http://magazine.outdoornebraska.gov/2013/06/adventure-report-june-5-2013/ ,  http://magazine.outdoornebraska.gov/2013/07/adventure-report-july-17-2013/ ).  My pets that guard my favorite spots are raised in a top-secret facility deep in the Nebraska sandhills, Area 52.  The boys in research and development have been working on a new critter to keep the swimmers and fellow float tubers away from …

The past couple of weeks have been busy and I have traveled to several corners of our great state.  Time to give you a report on what I have been doing, mostly show some pictures, and oh yes, tell you about some fishing. . . . Most years I end up spending the 4th of July holiday with my family in Valentine.  That has been a tradition for about as long as I can remember.  This year was no exception …

I hate to mention these things, because they are bad news and I do not want to highlight that.  But it is our current reality and it is “news” that some folks will want to know.  Here is a news release that went out last Friday: Fish Salvage Underway in Portion of Platte River LINCOLN, Neb. – Fish salvage has been authorized on the Platte River from Odessa bridge in Buffalo County downstream to its confluence with the Loup River …

I stumbled across this somewhere on the internet. I like it. I know it is getting hot, but a person can still find a time of day when it is a little more pleasant and do some fishing.  The fish will be more likely to be feeding then too. GO FISH!

We are half way through 2013 already.  I have a few state record applications that have accumulated on my desk, time to tell you about them. Let me start with a couple of European rudd caught from Box Butte Reservoir.  Rudd are an exotic species that are closely related to our native golden shiners.  Rudd were spread across the country a few years back as many bait shops sold them.  We have a healthy population of those baitfish in Box …

There are a bunch of “reality” shows on TV now that feature outdoors-folks doing a variety of wild and crazy things.  Some of those shows are, well, a little too much for me and I question their authenticity (I know it is TV, it is not necessarily “reality”).  Others have what seem to me to be plain ole folks, just like most Nebraskans I know, and I like them a lot better.  Although I will always tell you to get …

Before I walk out the door for a long Independence Day “weekend” let me share some thoughts with you.  Actually, I have shared these same thoughts for the 4th of July holiday for the past several years.  So, forgive me for the “re-runs”, but holidays come around on an annual basis; they are meant to be annual commemorations of special days, special events, and I believe it is good to be reminded of that each year. We are truly blessed …

I will be the first one to tell you that no baits or lures are magic, nothing catches fish all the time.  And, I will tell you that every bait or lure every made will catch fish if used at the right place and the right time.  The challenge is knowing the right bait for the right place and right time.  Presentation theory and selecting the right baits for the right time and place is a whole topic worthy of …