How To

Many times I have shared how catch & release can make fishing better, for everyone.  The fact is catch & release is an important part of sportfishing today.  In some cases that catch & release will be required by regulation, in other cases more and more anglers are choosing to voluntarily release fish, big fish especially. I have noted how big fish can be released and “recycled”, caught again, Fish Recycling.  Here is another example that caught my eye this …

LINCOLN, Neb. – Women are invited to experience all the recreation opportunities Platte River State Park has to offer in a Beyond Becoming an Outdoors-Woman (BOW) event April 29-30. Activities include Dutch oven cooking, hiking, lodging in cabins, horseback riding, and rifle, shotgun and archery shooting. Women must be at least 18 years of age. BOW gives beginners the opportunity to learn outdoor skills in a comfortable environment. Beyond BOW provides the next step on the path in becoming confident …

LINCOLN, Neb. – Platte River State Park will host a Project Appleseed .22 rifle clinic April 15. This intensive program will feature shooting from three positions at 25 meters, with targets that are scaled to simulate shooting at 100, 200, 300 and 400 yards. Participants will learn the six steps to firing a shot, natural point of aim, steady hold factors, and much more. Participants must be at least 8 years of age. Project Appleseed is a program of the …

Spring has come alive these last few days.  April is upon us and we have all know that April showers bring May flowers. I don’t mind the cool, cloudy days. Those are the days when I do the most thinking and therefore my best planning. All of the outdoor adventures I could discover this camping season have been dancing around in my mind. This time of year is when I do most of my camping preparations. My method usually goes …

For the fun of it, I have shared a video or two here on my blog with drones being used to catch fish.  Well, you ain’t seen nothing yet. . . . If you want, here is some more information and publicity on the product, Engadget:  The PowerRay underwater drone finds fish and films them in 4K. I believe the product was supposed to be available February 2017, maybe you can get one now?  Here’s the website, PowerRay Underwater Drone. …

There are three things that I take as telltale signs that spring is here: the chirping of the Boreal Chorus Frog, budding trees, and the sound of gobbling turkeys. The latter of these signs is what excites me the most about spring’s slow arrival. Until recently, I’ve spent much of turkey season sitting behind the barrel of a 20 gauge shotgun. This season will be spent looking through the sites of my Matthews bow. I’ve had great luck hunting for …

LINCOLN, Neb. – Learn the art of turkey calling from Nebraska Game and Parks Commission experts during the Turkey Calling 101 class at Lincoln’s Nebraska Game and Parks Outdoor Education Center. Set for April 11 at 6 p.m., the workshop will teach participants how to communicate with the wild turkey, increasing their chances of calling in this exciting game animal. Topics will include various calls made by the wild turkey; communicating using basic sounds; using the slate, box, mouth and …

We are three months into 2017 and yes, I have some new state record fish to tell you about. . . . I have three new state records to report on, all of them taken by rod & reel.  The first was caught back on the third day of the new year, and the angler who caught it surely believes I have forgotten about getting his state record certificate to him. . . . Redear Sunfish On Jan. 3, Kelly …

Seems as though I heard something about 2017 being the 150th anniversary of Nebraska statehood.  Along those lines our TV, radio and video guy here at Game & Parks, Ralph Wall, has been putting together some short videos looking back at the history of the Nebraska Game & Parks Commission. Did you know we used to have a fish hatchery at Crawford? Let me put a personal spin on this again here in my blog. . . . I started my …

This little video is something else that I saw floating around FaceBook recently: https://www.facebook.com/smartrcandfishing/videos/664826067054566/ Actually, I had a cousin who “tagged” me and called my attention to that video.  I replied to him, that upon seeing it, I immediately thought of my Grandma Bauer! Andy said that is exactly what he thought too! I do not know how young I might have been, but I can remember sitting on the shores of Lake McConaughy, fishing, we were always fishing, and …