Fishing

Got another news item today.  You may have seen the news release already.  If you have, ignore me.  If not, well, that is exactly why I am spreading this around: Hackberry Lake to be chemically renovated Aug. 9 LINCOLN, Neb. – Hackberry Lake on the Valentine National Wildlife Refuge will be chemically renovated the week of Aug. 9 as part of the ongoing Aquatic Habitat Project on the refuge. The rotenone treatment is aimed to eliminate common carp, an undesirable …

In the past couple of years we have seen water levels in the sandhills unlike anything any of us remember.  Roads have been closed, valleys have been flooded, water has been everywhere.  I would not say water levels are low now, it is all relative.  Certainly they are lower. So, I want to spread the word on this: Blue Lake reopens after long closure ALLIANCE, Neb. — A Sandhills fishing destination has reopened after a 28-month closure. The Nebraska Game …

ALLIANCE, Neb. — A Sandhills fishing destination has reopened after a 28-month closure. The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission has reopened the access road to Blue Lake in the Sandhills of Garden County. The 2.7-mile two-track trail through private property has been closed since March 2019 because of flooding. Joe Rydell, a fisheries biologist for Game and Parks, said the water level has subsided enough that the trail can be navigated, with caution. This week, he mowed the trail and …

LINCOLN, Neb. – Adult-size channel catfish have been stocked in Omaha’s Cunningham Lake just in time for its Aug. 5 reopening. The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission on July 28 stocked 255 “bonus” catfish ranging from 1 to 13 pounds, averaging 7. While the lake had been stocked previously in preparation for the reopening, this stocking will provide anglers an opportunity to catch larger fish from the still-developing fishery. Since 2020, catfish, white bass, bluegill, largemouth bass and crappie have …

It’s hot. I will always tell you that you cannot catch anything sitting at home on the couch.  However, when it gets this hot, I have to admit my motivation to go fishing wanes a bit.  I might still “wet a line”, but I will be selective about the times and places to do it.  On the other hand, getting into the water sound like a great idea right now. Let’s go there. . . into the water.  I can …

This news release went out late last week.  Once again, I am just trying to spread the word. . . . Grove Trout Rearing Station closing temporarily to visitors July 22, 2021 LINCOLN, Neb. – The Grove Trout Rearing Station near Royal, Nebraska, will be closed to visitors until further notice due to upcoming expected high air temperatures in the area. Trout have been experiencing some health issues as the water to the facility has been warming. Warm water holds …

LINCOLN, Neb. – Hackberry Lake on the Valentine National Wildlife Refuge will be chemically renovated the week of Aug. 9 as part of the ongoing Aquatic Habitat Project on the refuge. The rotenone treatment is aimed to eliminate common carp, an undesirable species detrimental to aquatic habitat, water quality and sport fish populations. Restocking will occur later this fall. Liberalized fishing regulations have been in effect the past two years on Hackberry, where length limits were rescinded but daily bag …

I try to “lighten up” with my Friday blog posts.  There were a couple of things I had in mind for today, but I changed my mind. . . . I love fish pictures, never get tired of fish pictures.  So what could be better than looking over a bunch of fish pictures? We are in our third year of our Take ‘Em Fishing challenge.  Right now there are 24 pages of fish pictures that have been entered for Take …

There have not been a lot of Trout Slam entries coming in, but there have been a few.  Time to give an update and get certificates mailed out. . . . In case you forgot, the Trout Slam is an angler recognition program we initiated a couple of years ago.  We started it to highlight our cold-water fisheries around the state.  Those are some beautiful places, and there are beautiful trout in those waters.  All a person has to do …

I want to point out some fisheries research work currently being done on the Missouri River in northeast Nebraska.  The easiest way for me to do that is to “copy and paste” a page from our July 2021 Nebraskaland Magazine: As the article says, if you happen to catch one of these tagged fish, we would like to know about it.  If you do not have any other contact information, you can always let me know about it, daryl.bauer@nebraska.gov. The …