Fishing

My son caught and released a relatively big, 45-inch, Nebraska muskie over a year ago.  It was a trophy fish by anyone’s definition and Daniel wanted a mount of her.  Just recently the graphite reproduction of that fish was completed and delivered.  Here is what the fish looked like when he caught her: And here is what the mount looks like: I am pretty sure Daniel is really happy with the mount.  I know I think it looks great! Let me …

A couple of weeks ago I blogged about the Lake Yankton Renovation.  That fisheries management project went off on schedule last week in spite of cool and rainy conditions.   Right now I want to show you a few pictures of dead fish because it demonstrates exactly why we do rotenone renovations, why we eliminate all fish in a body of water, and then re-stock. It is somewhat ironic that fisheries biologists would purposely, intentionally kill fish, but that is …

I know we have had a lot of rain recently.  In fact we have had so much rain in some places that our fishing waters are running a little high right now.  Anytime the water is high, fish are likely to move right up into newly flooded areas, right to the water’s edge. . . . In some cases right up into the parking lot. One of the best times of year is upon us, you can hunt or fish right …

I won’t lie; the fishing has been real hit-and-miss as of late. There are lots and lots of shad everywhere you look, which naturally makes things difficult to begin with. Add in the cool weather and several inches of rain we’ve gotten, and conditions have gotten a bit tougher. Traditional patterns like live-baiting shad and trolling crankbaits are not producing the fish we are used to this time of year, and success has been spotty. The nice thing about this …

It may destroy my reputation, but I will admit to you that I have not been on the water a lot in recent weeks.  Yes, it has been the “summer doldrums” and frankly, there have been some other issues in life that have taken priority.  But, I have been able to spend a couple evenings on an interstate lake lately and I want to give you a quick report. I have mentioned this a couple of times this summer, but …

I will tell you that I wish that Nebraska had more water for fishing and outdoor recreation.  Since we do not, I believe it is extremely important that we maximize every opportunity, every resource we have.  In some cases we have water bodies that are not large, do not support tens of thousands of anglers, and may not produce boat loads of trophy fish.  But, I learned a long time ago that even those small water bodies, many of them community …

I have been to a lot of Nebraska Walleye Association (NWA) meetings over the years.  In fact, I was at a number of their meetings years ago when they started as the “Eastern Nebraska Walleye Association”.  However, I have not been to a NWA meeting for awhile; I intend to remedy that this coming Sunday. The NWA is having a meeting at 1:00 at the LaVista Cabela’s and I will be there to talk Nebraska walleyes.  If you can make it, …

With high expectations Commissioner Burke and I spent a few hours on the water at Johnson Lake to kick off the holiday weekend. Trolling is the method we prefer, however after two-plus hours we drew the big goose egg! Saturday morning I left Johnson early to meet the Forney brothers and son Shane at Lake McConaughy. The walleye bite has been strong all summer and I always enjoy outings with a new group. Trolling nine hours produced four good catfish and, finally, the last …

Many of you have probably notices that our current Fishing Guide is valid until the end of this year.  In 2015 we will have a new Fishing Guide for the next couple of years.  That means we have been kicking around some regulation ideas: On October 23, 2014, the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission will hold a public hearing and take testimony on proposed changes in Fisheries Regulations for 2015-2016.  Before we finalize our ideas into recommended changes in regulations, …

There was a news release on the Lake Yankton rotenone renovation a couple of weeks ago: Lake Yankton Fishery Renovation Set to Begin Posted by: Jerry Kane August 12, 2014 in NGPC News LINCOLN – A renovation of the existing fish population in Lake Yankton, located below Gavins Point Dam, is set to occur on Sept. 10. The project includes drawing Lake Yankton’s water level down four feet and applying the chemical rotenone to eliminate the fish population. Record Missouri River flooding in 2011 allowed …