Fishing

Last Friday I blogged about it being time to walk on water.  I have been trying to practice that as much as possible.  Who knows how long our ice season is going to last? So far I have been able to practice a little heavy lifting too.  Oh sure, I have caught the customary complement of panfish, bluegills and crappies, even a redear, but have also showed a number of predator fish the top side of the ice. None of …

I hesitate to post this on my blog because I do not have any new information.  On the other hand, I continue to hear lots of questions and a lot of misinformation about our sandhill lakes. . . . Yes, the winter of 2022-2023 was a hard one and we saw widespread winterkill on sandhill lakes.  We saw winterkill on lakes that have not had an event like that in a long, long time.  So, yes, there are some lakes …

You’re not into ice fishing, are you? I though so. I bet you wish there were some open-water fishing options? Guess what? You’re in luck, there are! Open-water fishing options exist in Nebraska during this – the coldest part of the year. These involve trout, coolwater streams and even an opportunity to work on completing your Trout Slam challenge. So, check conditions, pack the snacks and drinks, grab the neoprene waders and gloves, rig the rod and put gas in …

Been a while since I posted any fishing commercials for my Friday blog post.  Got one today: Do not care if it is a Scheel’s commercial or not.  “It’s time to walk on water”! YES! Hope you get to do some walking this weekend!  And maybe even a little heavy lifting!

Got a different blog post today.  One of the things I do in my position as Fisheries Outreach Program Manager for the Nebraska Game & Parks Commission is take care of a number of media requests concerning fish and fishing in Nebraska. With the cold weather and finally some safe ice this winter, I have had a few inquiries from TV reporters recently.  I thought this story went very well: Safety as Priority as Ice Fishing Begins There is a …

We have long had a searchable fish stocking database on our Nebraska Game & Parks Commission webpage.  I know this is not news to many of you.  That database is one of the most used features on our commission webpage. Then, why bring it up now? Well, there have been some changes to better incorporate the stocking database into the rest of our webpages.  Searching the database is fairly straightforward and simple.  Follow the link above, or below, take a …

It’s winter. The daylight is short. The nights are long and dreary. Air temperatures outside are cold, downright frigid at times. Most likely, there’s some snow cover. We are all spending more a lot of time indoors this season, aren’t we? It is that time of year when we get that cooped-up, restless, nothing-to-do feeling that is referred to as “cabin fever.” Stuck inside, too many of us get weary and lethargic and spend long, endless hours watching TV re-runs, …

I have been ice fishing for a long time.  In fact, I have been on the ice so long that I can tell you of times when we had no battery-powered augers, no depth finders, no ice suits, no flip over shelters.  In addition, back in the day, the selection of ice tackle was very limited.  For panfish, everyone fished with a “teardrop”.  That teardrop-shaped jig was tipped with some kind of bait, usually a wax worm, but maybe a …

Not a big topic to post on today, but I have had several little things come to mind. . . . Happy New Year! Yes!  Finally!  I celebrated New Years 2024 on January 11!  Yes, that means I have been on the ice!  However, the conditions were brutal, windy, cold, snowing.  I did not fish long and everything was a little more difficult when conditions were like that.  However, you bet I caught fish!  Dried off several small bass, largemouth …

Frigid winter weather has descended on Nebraska, and ice fishing is taking center stage in the outdoor community. In casual conversations, whenever the topic of ice fishing is brought up, and I’m visiting with folks who don’t ice fish, predictably many questions arise. The most common one: “Why do you even go ice fishing, it’s not safe, is it? Then, there are these:  “It looks so cold, why on earth would any reasonable person consider going fishing sitting on a big ice cube?” …