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The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission has completed the second year of an annual mule deer survey in portions of the Pine Ridge management unit in northwestern Nebraska. On Feb. 6-9, Commission employees used a contracted helicopter to repeat the 2014 mule deer survey. Commission staff counted 758 deer in 429 square miles of the unit compared to 862 in the same areas in 2014. The data will be compared to mule deer numbers in other areas of the state …

I know the spring trout stocking schedule went out in a news release last Friday, but my phone continues to ring, the weather is nice, and folks are ready to go fishing!  We have a lot of fish out there already, you do NOT have to wait for the stocking truck before going fishing, but the put & take trout stocking is very popular especially for young anglers and beginners, so look this list over and then GO FISH!  Stocking …

To get young people ‘outdoors’ these days, you have to be flexible and take advantage of any windows of opportunity that are there. Such was the case this past week when my 17 year-old Son Noah, a junior at Omaha’s Creighton Prep High School, had spring break. Noah had been bugging me to take him hunting in some fashion over his break from school. As adult sportsmen and women we all need to make time in our own busy schedules to take kids to the …

Sport show/seminar/banquet season is drawing to a close for me.  It is time to “shut up and fish!”  I have one last boat show I am working this weekend: I will be at Waconda Boats in Rep. City on Saturday; giving seminars on the 2015 Fishing Forecast for all of Nebraska at 10:00 and 2:00.  If you are in the area, stop by, check things out, tell me a fish story!

Nebraska Conservation Officer Rich Berggren of Waterloo, NE takes your outdoor law and regulation questions on my Great Outdoor Radio Show this Saturday (tomorrow) morning, March 14th, from 9-10 a.m. CST on Omaha’s KOZN Radio/1620 AM “The Zone.” Rich and I will be covering the gamut of Nebraska’s outdoor scene offering pertinent information on hunting, fishing, boating, state parks, wildlife and much, much more. We’ll also offer regulation reminders for fishing, spring wild turkey hunting, plus other outdoor activities. Rich enjoys coming to the studio …

I’ll be encouraging you and your family to take advantage of this great spring-like weather we’re having and go for a hike  in a state recreation area near Omaha on this week’s edition my Weekly Outdoor Report on Omaha’s WOWT 6 News. The outdoor report airs Thursdays on the station’s 6 p.m. (CST) newscast during the sports segment with Ross Jernstrom. Can you guess where we’re going from the photo below? Here’s another quick hint from the area’s scenic overlook. …

We have had an “on again, off again” ice fishing season this year.  As the calendar rolled into February I was seeking treatment for depression after an unusually warm January had brought my ice fishing season to a premature end.  Then as it usually happens in Nebraska, the weather, the climate, changed and it got cold again and my ice season was re-born.  I was thrilled to have a second season.  Actually, with the freeze/thaw cycle that we had repeated …

The weather has broke and I know we all are chomping at the bit to be outdoors, but I still have a seminar or two scheduled.  Here is the next one: Walleye Fishing Workshop Set for March 12 at Ak-Sar-Ben Aquarium LINCOLN – The public is invited to a free walleye fishing workshop March 12 at Ak-Sar-Ben Aquarium near Gretna. Nebraska Game and Parks Commission fisheries outreach program manager Daryl Bauer will present the 7 p.m. workshop, which will include …

I have not recommended to anyone in the past several weeks that the ice is completely, entirely safe.  However, I am fully aware that there are folks still ice-fishing in Nebraska and I have been taking advantage of “late ice” myself as much as possible.  Even this late in the ice-fishing season you can be safe and the fishing can be terrific, but you better know what you are doing ( Safety First ).  I cannot talk to anyone on …

Many of us are counting down the days until the start of spring turkey season. So it is with great delight we announce the 2015 round of Nebraska Game and Parks – Spring Turkey Hunting Workshops. These 2-hr, learn-to-hunt events are designed for those with little to no experience chasing gobblers, but even seasoned hunters will learn a new tactic or two as Specialists discuss equipment, calling strategies and turkey tips.  First one kicks off this Saturday. If you like …