Hunting

LINCOLN – The target range on Pressey Wildlife Management Area in Custer County will be temporarily closed Oct. 22-23 for the youth upland bird hunting season and Oct. 29-30 for the opening weekend of the statewide upland bird season. The closure is a safety measure being implemented because of the increased number of hunters expected on the area during those weekends. Pressey is located 17 miles south of Broken Bow.

One of the most common questions I answer is who to call when some fish or game violation is observed while on the water or in the field.  I tell folks that those fish & wildlife belong to them, belong to me, and the poachers are stealing from all of us!  When we see something we should be upset about it.  However, it is not for us to do something directly, and the best thing we can do is observe as …

I have blogged several times about how every human being is a hunter, it is in our blood, in our DNA.  We all have eyes in the front of our heads, that gives us binocular vision which is a huge asset for predators.  Prey have eyes in the side of their heads, a huge asset for avoiding predators.  Hunting, fishing, trapping, it is all the same DNA, the same instincts.  It is who we are.  It is who I am. …

LINCOLN – Several waterfowl hunting seasons open in Nebraska on Oct. 8, and the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission offers the following reminders and resources to make the seasons memorable, successful and safe. Duck seasons open in zones 2 and 4, and dark goose season opens in the North Central Unit. The statewide light goose and white-fronted goose seasons also open. According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s 2016 waterfowl population status report, the total duck population estimate is …

LINCOLN – The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission is offering special antlerless deer hunting opportunities within Eugene T. Mahoney and Platte River state parks (SP), as well as Schramm Park State Recreation Area (SRA). Successful applicants will be issued a special access permit that allows them to hunt antlerless deer in designated areas of a park on certain dates, using specific equipment. Successful applicants and interested alternates must attend an orientation session in order to receive the access permit. Applications, …

LINCOLN – This year marks the 20th anniversary of Nebraska’s mentored youth hunting program, which has grown to be one of the largest in the nation. Nebraska’s mentored youth hunting program began with six Pheasants Forever chapters – Cornhusker, Elkhorn Valley, Great Plains, Loup/Platte Ringnecks, Otoe County, and Republican Valley – in 1996. These chapters sought a solution to declining hunter numbers and wanted to provide youth the opportunity to hunt in Nebraska. In the first year, 207 volunteer mentors …

LINCOLN – Youth ages 15 and younger are encouraged to participate in special youth pheasant hunts during the Oct. 22-23 statewide youth pheasant, quail and partridge season. Rooster pheasants will be released at 14 wildlife management areas before the special youth hunt season. The special hunts are open to the public, and the number of participants is not limited. No registration or special permit is required. Special regulations posted at each of the 14 WMAs will apply to all portions …

LINCOLN – The following is a listing of Nebraska Game and Parks Commission (NGPC) events and important dates in October. Get more details at Calendar.OutdoorNebraska.gov. Visit OutdoorNebraska.org for a list of hunter education classes and boating safety classes. Sept. 30-Oct. 2 – Autumn Harvest Art Show, Eugene T. Mahoney State Park (SP), Ashland Oct. 1 – Advance tickets sales begin for Haunted Hollow, Indian Cave SP, Shubert, 8 a.m. Oct. 1 – Archery Fun Shoot, Nebraska Game and Parks Outdoor …

I know the ‘grass is greener‘ syndrome can be very prevalent in outdoor pursuits and it can be easy to overlook what blessings we have around us.   Even in Nebraska, the mixed bag capital of the nation, we sometimes forget just how good we have it. I’m often reminded of just how much of the outdoor lifestyle makes up ‘the Good Life‘ when talking to hunters that live outside our borders.  Almost invariably, when they find out I live in …

LINCOLN – Nebraska is among the nation’s top eight pheasant hunting states, according Pheasants Forever (PF). “The Cornhusker State is a bird hunting cornucopia,” writes PF blogger Ron Spomer. “You’re liable to bump into not just ringnecks, but bobwhites, sharp-tailed grouse and prairie chickens. And you can look for them on 800,000 public access acres on 300 state and federal land areas. That’s only 2 percent of the state’s total land, so if you can talk yourself onto private lands, …