Hunting

I closed the Canada goose hunting season in Nebraska’s East Management Unit yesterday afternoon.  And, a fine afternoon hunting session it was despite the frigid temperatures! I was invited to hunt with top Canada goose calling ‘young guns’ Nick Bilava, Casey Eikmeier and Weston Cooper along with their highly-trained hunting dogs. It was an incredible experience hunting with the seasoned young fellas on their beautiful spread! Whenever you have the chance, hunt with the younger crowd, do it! Share what you know! …

With all of the Canada geese that us waterfowlers have harvested this year here in Nebraska, and with St. Patrick’s Day coming up, I thought I’d take this opportunity to pass along what I’m told is among the best recipes for Canada goose — corned Canada goose! This corned goose recipe that we need to try comes from my good friend and fellow waterfowl hunter Kyle Simpson of Elkhorn, NE who owns Lost Island along the Platte River in Butler …

I know there is a lot more season to go still in the hunting woods but I had to  spend a few minutes the other day reflecting on 2013 and all the memories made.  From outdoor workshops to hunts with family and friends, 2013 was just plain awesome!  I thought I would just share some of my 2013 memories with you. I started the spring with outdoor expos and turkey hunting and ended 2013 in the goose blind.  Everything in …

 A quick note to let you know that The Great Outdoor Radio Show I host heads to the Nebraska Buck N Bird Classic at the CenturyLink Center in downtown Omaha tomorrow (Saturday) morning. I’ll be LIVE there from 9-10 a.m. CST to visit with the classic organizers and various outdoor experts. The broadcast airs on Omaha radio station KOZN/1620 AM “The Zone” and I promise, it’ll be fun and informative! Stop and catch the action, and then enjoy the event! Also, my fellow compatriots at the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission …

January 31.  It’s here, arriving with little fanfare, if any at all.  Dreaded by some, ignored by most, it is the last day of the upland bird season. And like the many that have come before it, I will be hunting. I am drawn to the final day of chasing birds for reasons I can explain and a few I cannot.  But, the simple fact is this is my last chance to hunt them for 7 months – 9 for pheasant and …

We asked and you responded.  Sportsmen and Outdoor-women heard the call for blaze-orange and camouflage clothes as well as hunting gear to help get new hunters into the field comfortably, safely and back again.  You showed up with bags, boxes and sacks full of it at the drop-off locations in North Platte, Kearney and Lincoln.  Thank you! The latest donation inventory shows over 600 items including: 89 shirts, 76 pair of pants, 77 coats, 44 vests, 26 overalls, 112 hats, …

I’ve been awfully busy on a number of different outdoor fronts as of late, but I wanted to share some quick highlights of Sunday’s Canada goose hunting adventure on Lost Island along the Platte River in Butler County, NE. Special thanks to landowner, conservationist, expert waterfowler and good friend Kyle Simpson who arranged the hunt with youth on his property which has outstanding waterfowl habitat! Thanks again, Kyle!  By the way, Kyle hates to have his picture taken, HA, gotcha anyway, Simpson! Here …

This morning I had the fortune of spending time afield with my good friend Dr. Scott  Hygnstrom, Animal Damage Control Professor at UNL.  We had a blast chasing late season pheasant and quail!  I am one of those goofballs that actually prefers late season bird hunting.  This last week of January could prove to be the best.  I have often heard hunters complain about late season birds being so jumpy and hard to hunt but more often I have found …

I recently received the email message (and photos) below from Colorado and wanted to share it with all of you. Jane Gustafson, who heads our Game and Parks Marketing Section, says that the focus of agency advertising efforts is to get kids in the field hunting and to make Nebraska the place where they do this. She also says that many Nebraskans have family out-of-state and what a better way to encourage these folks to come back, visit and spend …

In deer hunting years I am 24 seasons old, as another came to an end just recently. It was a good year that brought with it some challenges, some successes and a whole bunch of memories. Thanks to our partners at the Crane Trust, Inc. near Wood River, I got to end it in the best way imaginable – at the Last Chance Youth Deer Camp. This was the second year for this event, which takes place on the final …