Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
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Mother Nature has created a bonus “season” for Devils Lake open-water walleye fishermen. The thick ice cover that attracts thousands of visitors every winter disappeared weeks earlier than normal. Instead of driving trucks on the lake in late April, walleye chasers were in their boats. And, the walleyes were cooperating. Of course, Mother Nature played her part with very little snow (strange for this region of North Dakota), which means minimal to no run-off. Walleyes mostly spawned in the main lake instead of their traditional migrations to...
Outdoor notes: *June 2: Deer gun and muzzleloader applications due. *June 5: National Trails Day. *June 5 & 6: Free fishing weekend. Tournaments: *June 5: Devils Lake, East Bay; Missouri River tailrace. *June 12: Devils Lake, Spirit Lake Casino; Devils Lake, Woodland Resort. *June 12 & 13; Lake Ashtabula, Ashtabula Crossing. Fishing: *Devils Lake elevation, May 25: 1,448.29 feet above mean sea level (MSL). *Stump Lake elevation: 1,448.2 MSL. *Lake Sakakawea elevation: 1,834.69 MSL; 22,000 cubic...
With spring turkey season wrapped up, our thoughts and anticipation await the next opening day, mine do at least. There is a lot of time between now and then, but now is the time of year that those wildlife species we enjoy pursuing so much each fall get down to business. Any upland hunter knows a successful nesting season and good chick recruitment will mean more points and flushes come October. So, what does it take to get there? We all like to think we can control most things, but weather events are not something we can control, so harsh...
This is the time of year when North Dakota Game and Fish Department game wardens, biologists and other staff across the state handle an influx of calls about young animals. From seemingly abandoned deer fawns, to birds that fell from a nest, to a mother duck trying to lead her brood across a crowded city parking lot, people care about North Dakota wildlife and want to do what they can to help when these situations arise. However, the best thing to do in almost all such cases is to simply leave...
North Dakota Game and Fish Department fisheries biologists tagged hundreds of walleyes in two popular North Dakota fisheries earlier this spring to determine exploitation and harvest. Walleyes were fitted with jaw tags at both Rice Lake in Emmons County, and Antelope Lake in Pierce County, as part of one-year studies. Tagging fish for study purposes in North Dakota is not uncommon. For example, department fisheries biologists are in the third year of a four-year walleye tagging study on Lake Sakakawea to look at such things as natural mortality...
The 2021 state legislature passed a bill to allow electronic posting of private land, giving landowners another option for posting private property. This online database system is available to enroll land, with the law going into effect Aug. 1, 2021. In addition to current posting laws allowing landowners to post lands with physical signs, electronic posting adds the option to digitally post land. The digital posting system is linked to land descriptions based on county tax parcel information. Landowners interested in posting electronically...
I'll be the first to tell you that I'm a homebody when it comes to the outdoors. It doesn't take much for me to get lost chasing walleyes along the river winding through town; casting after trout in the nearby lakes; or picking off a few hungry largemouth or smallmouth bass, as summer progresses on nearby waters. In the fall, I don't travel far for hunting, heading a few minutes northeast for a readily available shot at sharpies in September, and southwest about a tumbler's worth of coffee, to...
The evolution of the fishing net in the past few decades has leapt from the one-size-fits-all model of an aluminum hoop with a nylon basket of one-inch squares into the branches of an evolutionary tree reaching out across the horizon of angling options. From ergonomic grips for more stable solo landings, to extendable handles allowing for greater reach from shore or high floating boats, to oversized baskets to cradle today's growing trophy-sized fish such as muskies and sturgeon, there's a...
Pulling the pheasant dummy down from the rafters from under the deck in the backyard, I whipped it twice in a circle before launching it across the greening grass, and it bounced with a clank against the metal fence. On the rebound, my lab jumped up and snared the foam-and-plastic bird and returned it to my hand for the second of four dozen throws. By the time we were done, I could feel the delayed onset muscle soreness from the previous day's arm workout and realized as my dog sat panting at...
Outdoor notes: *Check local fire restrictions for campfires when camping. *Deer gun and muzzleloader applications now available. Go to the N.D. Game and Fish Department website, (gf.nd.gov) to apply. *June 2: Deer gun and muzzleloader applications due. *June 5 & 6: Free fishing weekend. Tournaments: *June 5: Devils Lake, East Bay; Missouri River tailrace. Fishing: *Devils Lake elevation, May 18: 1,448.21 feet above mean sea level (MSL). *Stump Lake elevation: 1,448.2 MSL. *Lake Sakakawea...
A shellacking. A beatdown. A butt-whooping. All these terms paled in my young mind when describing a drubbing on the baseball field, when compared to the term "getting creamed." That descriptor suggests that the opposing team had swung their bats so mightily, so frequently and with such success, that they converted our pasty-white, pre-summer milky makeup into slow-moving whipped cream on the diamond. While disappointing to be on the end of such a creaming, it made the idea of a slice of apple...
The 2021 Legislature was a busy one for issues affecting wildlife, habitat and access for hunters, anglers, and outdoor enthusiasts. As we have in years past, the North Dakota Wildlife Federation (NDWF) played a crucial role at the Capitol, monitoring key issues and speaking up for those issues and our outdoor heritage. NDWF worked closely with lawmakers of both parties to ensure that the North Dakota Game & Fish Department (NDG&F) budget saw an increase and that key conservation and access prio...
North Dakota's upland bird populations came out of the mild winter relatively well. With above average temperatures from December to March, and below average snowfall, sharptailed grouse and ring-necked pheasants made it to spring with no significant mortality, according to RJ Gross, Upland Game Biologist with the North Dakota Game & Fish Department (NDG&F). However, the lack of meltwater, limited spring rains and lingering drought conditions from the summer and fall of 2020 may pose a major...
Outdoor notes: *Deer gun and muzzleloader applications now available on the N.D. Game & Fish Dept. website, (gf.nd.gov). Applications are due June 2. *Paddlefish snagging season now closed. Tournaments: *May 22: Spiritwood Lake. *May 23: Lake Ashtabula, Ashtabula Crossing; Lake Audubon, Totten Trail. Fishing: *Devils Lake elevation, May 11: 1,448.29 feet above mean sea level (MSL). *Stump Lake elevation: 1,224.24 MSL. *Lake Sakakawea elevation: 1,834.75 MSL; 21,600 cubic feet per second average...
We buzzed along the inside of the breakline, my buddy Kevin and I, watching the rhythmic ticking of the tips of the trolling rods strung out alongside his Alumacraft, with a second eye toward the graph behind the console he was manning, watching for the blips and arcs, which symbolized the post-spawn walleyes lurking below. In the blue-green waters of the Missouri River, our firetiger crankbaits bumped and scraped along the beige bottom as things got shallower, and then swung back to their...
There's an encounter each spring that reminds me of how lucky we are to have ugly fish. They don't glisten in gold like walleyes, sparkle with silver like a white bass, or even bring up the base of the podium like a smallmouth bass bedecked in bronze. Instead, they fight hard, provide fast action, and often remind us of the basics of angling and where many of us got our start. These not so pretty fish also reinforce the idea that beauty is truly in the eye of the beholder. Whether it's a carp...
Stocked trout don't take long to acclimate to their surroundings. Within a week or two of the recent dumps of rainbows and browns across the state, these fish spread out and stalk the water column for just about anything edible. Whether that's the first rising midge populations of the year, small nymphs on the bottom, or other prey items, trout find most of what they need below the surface. On those still evenings early on as they pick off rising insects, my all means, have a few dry flies at...
Amidst all the discussion of global warming, climate change, and pollution on a level so great that a second landmass made of plastic floating in the Pacific Ocean can be seen from outer space, it’s the smaller areas where I encounter garbage that stick with me each spring. After a winter under ice, and snow-covered shorelines opening up to spring anglers, the water is where our impact – hopefully not so much as fishermen, as I like to think we have a special connection with the water, but as...
Outdoor notes: *Deer gun lottery license applications now available on the N.D. Game & Fish Dept. website, (gf.nd.gov). *May 10: Spring light goose conservation order closes. *May 16: Spring turkey season closes. Tournaments: *May 15: Devils Lake. *May 22: Spiritwood Lake. *May 23: Lake Ashtabula, Ashtabula Crossing; Lake Audubon, Totten Trail. Fishing: *Devils Lake elevation, May 4: 1,448.41 feet above mean sea level (MSL). *Stump Lake elevation: 1,448.32 MSL. *Lake Sakakawea elevation:...
North Dakota’s 2021 deer season is set, with 72,200 licenses available to hunters, 3,150 more than last year. In total, any-antlered licenses increased by 1,500 from last year, any-antlerless by 1,250, antlered whitetail by 100, antlerless whitetail by 100, antlerless mule deer by 200 and antlered mule deer licenses remained the same. In addition, muzzleloader licenses increased by 60 and restricted youth antlered mule deer licenses remained the same. As stated in the 2021-22 chronic wasting disease proclamation, hunters harvesting a deer in un...
When fish are active in the warming waters of spring, triggering a reaction strike can be one of the most exciting ways to explore new areas, locate fish quickly and create some memorable outings. A classic lure that can be customized for all species from trout, to smallmouth bass, to pike and muskies is the inline spinner. From options with blades as big as a fingernail to those that would cover the palm of a hand, the pulse of a turning blade, and a hook that can be dressed in flash, fur, feat...
Outdoor notes: *Paddlefish season now open. Go to the N.D. Game & Fish Dept. website for open areas, license, and other information. Tournaments: *May 15: Devils Lake Fishing: *Devils Lake elevation, April 27: 1,448.41 feet above mean sea level (MSL). *Stump Lake elevation: 1,448.35 MSL. *Lake Sakakawea elevation: 1,835.57 MSL; 22,000 cubic feet per second average (CFS) Garrison Dam daily releases. *N.D. Game & Fish Dept. Dist. game wardens: East end of Lake Sakakawea fair for walleye but...
I can recall my first smallmouth bass as clearly as the blue skies of the late spring day on which it came to my jig. Sitting on the shoreline casting the eighth-ounce ballhead out over the small muddy point on the Sheyenne River just a few days after school had let out for the summer, an endless supply of slime-covered bullheads came to the nightcrawler-tipped offering I dragged up the break. In the middle of the two dozen or so spiny creatures was the odd sensation of a non-circular dash by...
The warming waters of spring herald a movement for largemouth bass into the shallows of the lakes and reservoirs in which they reside. Often, those dark bottoms releasing the first green-and-red curls of lily pads or sandy stretches with verdant spikes of emergent reeds and those locations' elevated temperatures are the first sites that largemouth stake out as the spawning season sets up in the coming weeks. While getting in casting range without spooking these fish can sometimes be a...
A 16-pound, 6-ounce walleye caught March 13 by Dickinson angler, Jared Shypkoski, is the new state record, according to North Dakota Game and Fish Department personnel. Shypkoski reeled in the 33-inch fish in the Eckroth Bottoms area of upper Lake Oahe. The previous record of 15 pounds, 13 ounces was taken in 2018 by Neal Leier of Bismarck, approximately 30 miles upstream on the Missouri River, near the Fox Island boat ramp. Men Convicted in Poaching Case A several month-long investigation into...
