Fishing

I have still been on the ice every chance I get and again have had a chance to roam the state a bit. . . . Yes, ice conditions are variable.  With the stinkin’ mid-winter rains we have had, ice conditions in southeast Nebraska especially have not been nearly as good as many of us would like.  The run-off has softened the ice around shorelines and in some cases other parts of several waters.  In addition, our pits and interstate …

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. . . . We had 13 different fish certified as state records in 2016. Surface Spear-fishing No fish taken by surface spear-fishing were submitted for state records in 2016. Bow-Fishing The bow-fishing state record category was busy in 2016; six bow-fishing records were awarded.  In chronological order, …

At our ice-fishing clinic in Kearney last Saturday, during the classroom session, someone asked a question about the size of ice holes allowed in Nebraska, and what size ice auger a person should have.  Mostly for safety reasons, the largest diameter ice hole allowed on Nebraska public waters is 10 inches. While answering the question about what size of auger an ice angler should invest in, I started with one of my favorite answers, “It depends”.  There are more ice …

Just want to post up a few pictures from our ice-fishing clinic at Yanney Park in Kearney last Saturday.  We had a great time! The Kearney ice clinic is a little bit different in that we do a classroom session in the morning.  The Environmental Resource Center Building there right beside the pit makes a great setting for the classroom session and we had 60-some people packed in there.  Don Cox, Andrew Svoboda, Rob Greer and myself rambled about a …

I want to call to your attention to another fishing article in NEBRASKAland magazine.  The January-February 2017 issue is available on-line right now, and in it you will find an excellent article by Ryan Sparks on learning to fly-fish.  The title is Wading In, check it out! Unfortunately, many people equate fly-fishing with trout fishing.  The first thing I always say about fly-fishing is that it ain’t just for trout!  In fact, if you wish, and some fly-anglers do, you …

You would think as long as I have been ice-fishing, some lessons would have been learned a long time ago.  Yes, that should be true, but sometimes I am a little dense.  How many fish have you lost at the hole?  If you have been on the ice for awhile, I am betting more than one. It happened to me already this ice season; hooked a nice largemouth bass, I am guessing 18-inches plus, spent some time playing it, finally got …

Had a great ice fishing clinic at Lake Wanahoo this past Saturday.  If you were not there, you missed a beautiful day on the ice, and you missed catching fish! “Hey, what’s that banner doing out on the ice?” Bring your baby doll if you wish! Class in session! FLAAAAGGGGGGG!!!!!!  (No, not the big event banner, the tip-up!!!!!) “I know you’re down there, BITE!” We had a lot of folks come out, I have not heard the official count, but …

It is Friday and we have ice!  Whatcha doing this weekend? If you don’t understand that memey thing I stole from the interwebs, you need to come out to our Ice Fishing Workshop at Lake Wanahoo tomorrow and I will explain it to you! “Hellllloooooo!”

We are nearing the middle of January, and I just realized I have not blogged about any of my ice-fishing adventures, yet. . . . Hmm, let me think, I have been on the ice nearing a dozen times now, have been on waters from the central and west-central parts of the state to the southeast.  I will not tell you that my partners and I have dried off any exceptional fish so far, and perhaps that is why I …

Just this morning I had a gentleman ask me questions about getting started ice-fishing.  I had an easy answer for him!  Attend one of our Discover Ice Fishing Clinics! The first of those for this winter is scheduled for this coming Saturday, Jan. 14, at Lake Wanahoo just north of the town of Wahoo.  We will “set up shop” there at the main boat ramp on the west side of the reservoir and will be there from 1:00 p.m. to …