Tag Archives: outdoor recreation

I know it sounds cliché, but I’ll be the first to admit it. As a hardcore outdoor enthusiast, finding a holiday gift for me is a difficult task. In fact, whether you hunt, trap, fish, boat, kayak, camp, backpack, hike, bike or watch wildlife, I bet you are also in the hard-to-buy-for category. Am I right? We are a picky lot, aren’t we? We are a detailed bunch. We know what we need and desire to have. And what the …

The season for gratitude and reflection is upon us. Thanksgiving week is when we remind our families, friends and close associates how much they mean to us and express our sincere appreciation for what positive things we have been given in life. While you are considering what you are thankful for, don’t forget about Nebraska’s outdoor scene. During the nine days of the recent firearm deer hunting season here in Cornhusker State, I selected thirteen key elements to be very  …

Nature’s fantastic color show is emerging in the west and north. To me, that means the forest floor will soon be saturated with autumn leaf matter as well as something else — nuts! Freshly fallen black walnuts on the forest floor along a creek bottom in southeastern Nebraska woodlands. Photo by Greg Wagner/Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. One of the reasons to take a long walk in the woods during autumn is to gather some delicious, nutritious, wild or homegrown …

National Hunting and Fishing Day is this Saturday, Sept. 23. This is a significant day. No, this is not just another one of those celebratory days, not by a long shot. I grew up hunting and fishing in rural Nebraska. My hunting heritage began 54 years ago this fall as a “quail dog” for my dad and his friend, Jim on our family farm in southeast Nebraska. I am eternally grateful to my dad for taking me hunting! Below a …

It is a season that is open here in eastern Nebraska. It is an unusual season, but one that just flat out reeks of adventure, challenge and tremendous entertainment value. It is a season tailor-made for kids. And, trust me, this is the season that will create memories and stories like no other! No, it is not a hunting season. “It” is Nebraska’s bullfrog season. “Bullfrog season,” you say, “really?” Yep. Look at the size of this adult North American …

I always get rather impatient this time of year. Is it because of the weather being so hot, humid and hazy? No. Is it that the hunting seasons are just around the bend? No. Then, why? Well, I am a gatherer, a prairie wanderer, and I am anxiously waiting to harvest elderberries during these dog days of summer. However, it’s not quite time yet. Here I am checking out wild elderberries for ripeness on a Saunders County, NE farm in …

Ahhh … Leisurely floating on one of Nebraska’s many scenic rivers or streams in an inflated inner tube is a cool, refreshing, relaxing, way to enjoy a hot summer day with family and friends, isn’t it? A small group of tubers take a rest break on their float trip amid the beautiful scenery of the Calamus River near Burwell in the Nebraska Sandhills. Photo courtesy of NEBRASKAland Magazine/Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. Oh, yeah! Tubing on a Nebraska river or …

It’s camping season and my neighbors told me the other day they were thinking of heading out on a Friday night to camp at a popular state recreation area in order to “get away from it all” on a nice weekend. Hmmm … I wanted to tell them that most likely, they were heading to an area to where it all will be happening with quite a few people there. Admittedly, I don’t want to be around big crowds when …

With the assistance of an adult relative, a youth greatly anticipates catching another bluegill from a boat in a Midwestern lake on a summer day. Photo by Rich Wynne. It bothers me to no end that people have such cavalier excuses regarding why they don’t want to wear life jackets on the water in a boat. In my 44 years at the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, I have seen my share of boating tragedies. I have seen the victims …

You just read the title of this blog and I know what you’re thinking (or voicing aloud): “Come on, Greg, really? Us hunters and anglers need to be physically fit?” After all, aren’t we just sitting in blinds and boats or on the bank? Au contraire. Think about those long walks early in the morning or later in the afternoon getting to where you want to go. You’re tromping through muddy fields, taller grass, mucky marshland or dense woods … …