Fishing

I have blogged about fishing topwater baits several times (e.g. Top Edge , Topwater Bait Selection).  Safe to say that catching fish on topwater baits is one of everyone’s favorite ways to catch fish.  Also safe to say that right now, summer, is peak time for using topwaters. However, if you have spent any time on the water, you know you better have a plan B, plan C, and a whole lot of other plans.  Some days the fish, for …

Work Improves a Unique Fishery in the Sandhills Story and photos by Eric Fowler Joel Klammer repeatedly casts a woolly bugger fly toward rock structures in Long Pine Creek and lets it drift through the deep holes below them. He thinks he sees a fish attempting to bite on one drift, but after 20 minutes, he decides his first choice of flies wasn’t going to cut it on this section of the creek on Pine Glen Wildlife Management Area. So, …

The July 2023 issue of Nebraskaland has a excellent story on Long Pine Creek.  That story highlights some of the aquatic habitat and angler access work done there.  Of course it also highlights the fishing.  Follow the link and turn to page 48 to check it out! Nebraskaland July 2023

Last Friday I had some fun with some of the jargon we use as anglers, especially muskie anglers (Now You Can Speak Muskie Too!). This week it is the fly anglers turn, especially fly fishing guides: Now, I know there is some risk in posting this.  Especially with the hot weather, some folks do not seem to have much of a sense of humor. Lighten up!  It is the weekend!  Get on the water, or maybe with this heat wave, …

A wise fishing buddy of mine once said that “fishing is mostly about understanding fish.”  That makes a lot of sense and most anglers would agree with that statement.  However, there are a lot of things out there that we think we know that may not be exactly as they seem. The more you know about the biology, habits, characteristics, and dare I even say, personalities, of the fish, the more often you will figure them out and hook up.  …

One Man’s Lifetime of Fishing By Gerry Steinauer, Botanist Paul Allen’s rugged, weather-worn appearance has been earned from decades of running cattle on the Niobrara River breaks of Boyd County. In line with his cowboy persona, his manner is down-home and friendly, his laugh is hearty, and he slides easily into storytelling. Yet, there are contradictions to the cowboy stereotype: His past includes stints as an elementary school teacher and Peace Corps volunteer; in a land of beer and whiskey …

I know this news release previously went out.  There has been some discussion about this already and some questions answered.  However, I have also learned that just the time you think everyone has heard the news about something, well, they have not.  So, I am going to send this around again: Wildwood WMA east entrance, ramp to close temporarily for boat access project Wildwood Wildlife Management Area’s boat ramp and east parking area will close temporarily for a boat launch …

Why do some people get perplexed when they see someone release a massive, master angler-sized catfish? After all, catfish, even the larger ones, sure taste good, don’t they? Consider the belly meat on a flathead catfish. So why is it every time we see an angler report or a social media post mention or show a picture of a large catfish they have put back in the water, a spirited discussion most likely ensues over what should or should have …

I laugh sometimes at all the jargon that applies to fishing.  Listen to yourself sometime! Lure names alone are stimulating.  You have your Hula Poppers and Rat-L-Snakies, Lazy Ikes, Royal Coachmen, and Whopper Ploppers.  Jerkbaits refer to how an artificial lure is properly fished, and not necessarily the guy on the end of the rod. What in the world is “bottom bouncing”?????  And, “walking the dog” ain’t what you think it is and has nothing to do with canines. Shockingly, …

We are in the middle of summer, but that does not mean I have quit fishing!  In fact, I have been out and about the state a couple of times over the past two, three weeks.  As always the fishing gear went with me, and I grabbed some time on the water when I could! Spent one afternoon wading and casting for some bass in the sandhills.  No, all sandhills lakes did not winterkill last winter. I purposely had my …