NGPC News

CHADRON, Neb. – Chadron State Park, which became Nebraska’s first state park in 1921, will commemorate its 97th anniversary with its annual celebration Saturday, June 9. New to the event this year are trail running races of 1-mile, 5k and 10k and a 110-mile bicycle race, both part of the Pine Ridge Trails Race Series. The Panhandle Pedal Grinder bicycle race, which leads participants through forest and county roads of the scenic Pine Ridge landscape, will begin at the junction …

CRAWFORD, Neb. – Arts, crafts and music are on tap for the fourth annual Fort’s Market at Fort Robinson State Park on Saturday, June 9.  The activities and vendor displays will be based at the park’s centrally located Buffalo Barrack’s from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. In addition to live musical entertainment, a bouncy house will be on-site for children. More information about the event may be found on a Facebook page titled “Fort Robinson Vendor Blender.” The event is …

GERING, Neb. – The Wildcat Hills Nature Center at Wildcat Hills State Recreation Area will celebrate National Wildflower Week with a guided hike through the park’s flora. The Wildflower Walk, an installment of the Wildcat Weekends series of events, will be Friday, June 8, at 7 p.m. at the nature center. Participants will learn keys to identifying flowering plant species during the mile-long journey. Amanda Filipi, the Commission outdoor education specialist who is leading the hike, said the unusually wet …

LINCOLN, Neb. – Spring fish die-offs in Nebraska are not unusual. Reports of these fish kills – which have been due to natural causes – have come from a variety of water bodies across the state in recent weeks. “Winter is a hard time for fish, and they can experience stress coming out of the winter,” said Daryl Bauer, fisheries outreach program manager for the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. “Our relatively cold spring coupled with wild temperature swings and …

LINCOLN, Neb. – Enjoy an outdoor adventure with family or friends and experience Nebraska parks by joining The Great Park Pursuit (GPP) for a chance to win prizes. The goal of GPP, a partnership between the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission and the Nebraska Recreation and Park Association, is to promote active lifestyles while increasing awareness of the state’s nature-rich outdoor recreation opportunities. This is done by encouraging participants to visit up to 20 GPP sites located across Nebraska between …

LINCOLN, Neb. – Join the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission for a Becoming an Outdoors-Family Camp at Ponca State Park Aug. 3-5. The camp is designed for families that are new and novice campers who are looking to get started camping but need a bit of encouragement. Families will enjoy the outdoors while fishing, hiking, horseback riding, cooking outdoors, camping, archery shooting, kayaking and much more. For more information and to register, visit outdoornebraska.org/BOF. -30-

LINCOLN, Neb. – Everyone can help keep the beaches and landscapes free of litter at Lake McConaughy and Lake Ogallala state recreation areas through a new Adopt-a-Beach program. Lake McConaughy State Recreation Area staff created this volunteer program, in part, as a response to public concerns regarding litter in those areas. Game and Parks has taken several steps to combat this issue, including new signage relating to litter prevention, increases in garbage collection points and servicing, as well as partnerships …

LINCOLN, Neb. – Bring a lawn chair and enjoy an afternoon of music and history June 17 for “How Western Music Won the West” at Fort Hartsuff State Historical Park. Bob and Sheila Everhart, recording artists for the Smithsonian Institution and historians of America’s Western music, will begin the program at 3 p.m. The Everharts are members of the National Traditional Country Music Association and have performed in Europe and Asia. The program is free, but a park entry permit …

LINCOLN, Neb. – An estimated 1,000 to 3,000 fish have died in a fish kill that was reported May 26 at Lake Maloney. Those fish were primarily white bass and wipers. Nebraska Game and Parks Commission biologists suspect a disease caused the die-off. The white bass were in spawning condition, and the high temperatures likely added stress to the fish, which would have made them more susceptible to disease. Samples of dead fish have been collected and will be analyzed …

LINCOLN, Neb. – The War of 1812 and its connection to Fort Atkinson State Historical Park will be the theme of a living history event June 2-3. Two displays will be available at the Harold W. Andersen Visitor Center. “The War of 1812” display from the Archives of Ontario in Toronto is on loan to Fort Atkinson until October. Also on display will be “War on the Sea: The Naval War of 1812,” from the Naval Museum in Washington D.C. …