Heartland Fishing Blog

Nebraska Free Fishing and Park Entry Day - May 21

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 20 May 2011 15:13:00 +0000

Each year most states set aside a "free fishing" day. Nebraska is no exception, but in Nebraska it is also a free park entry day. What a great opportunity to get out and have some fun with the family at a state park or recreation area and maybe do a little fishing.

NGPC also has several event for families around the state that day. They will even have fishing gear on hand for those that don't have their own. So get out and fish! No excuses.

From the NGPC website: [Click the link below the excerpt for more information.]

LINCOLN, Neb. – Free Fishing and Park Entry Day, Saturday, May 21, is an opportunity for everyone to enjoy fishing or a state park area in Nebraska without being required to have a permit.

Although no fishing or park entry permits will be required on the free day, which is celebrated annually on the Saturday before Memorial Day weekend, all other fee requirements, laws and regulations will be in effect. Anglers at Two Rivers State Recreation Area (SRA) trout lake will be required to purchase a daily trout tag.

As part of the Free Fishing and Park Entry Day activities, the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission will host Family Fishing Day events at several locations across the state.

via outdoornebraska.ne.gov

Trout Stocking Schedule in Nebraska Lakes - Spring 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 16:33:00 +0000

For all those in Nebraska looking for some fun early spring fishing be sure to check out the spring 2011 trout stocking schedule from the Nebraska Game and Parks. This would be an awesome time to take the kiddos. The trout ought to be pretty easy to catch. Here are the announced dates (below).

Jason

Heartland Fishing

LINCOLN, Neb. – The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission will stock rainbow trout in several city ponds and lakes across the state in March.
The schedule, subject to change depending on conditions, including date, location, quantity, and approximate time of stocking is as follows:
March 16 – Niobrara State Park (SP) Ponds – 1,000, 11:30 a.m.
March 17 – Qwest Lake, Eugene T. Mahoney SP – 2,500; Windmill State Recreation Area (SRA), Gibbon – 1,200; Holdrege City Lake – 1,500; Auble Pond, Ord – 750.
March 18 – Auburn Rotary Club Lake – 1,400; Fremont SRA No. 2 – 4,200.
March 19 – Lake Halleck, Papillion – 1,200, 11 a.m.; Steinhart Park Ponds, Nebraska City – 1,200, 12:45 p.m.; Holmes Lake, Lincoln – 3,000, 11:15 a.m.; Such’s Lake, Grand Island – 650, 10:15 a.m.; Heartwell Park Lake, Hastings – 450, 11:15 a.m.; TaHaZouka Park Lake, Norfolk – 1,500, 9:30 a.m.; Pawnee Park West, Columbus – 1,500, 11 a.m.; Barnett Park Pond, McCook – 1,000, 11 a.m.; Lexington City Lake – 750, 12:30 p.m.; Elm Creek – 1,000, 2 p.m.
Trout fishing is an excellent activity for children. It requires only a basic rod and reel, hook, worm, and bobber. Small spinners and prepared baits also work well.
All anglers fishing in Nebraska, except residents under age 16, must have a fishing license.

It's On Right Now - Spring Fishing Classic 2011 - Bass Pro Shops

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 01:49:00 +0000

I know it's already part way through this event, but it's not too late to take a trip over to Bass Pro and take in some of the events and seminars while you shop for some early deals on fishing gear. With locations across the nation, and several in the heartland (Altoona, IA; Council Bluffs, IA; and Denver, CO) there ought to be one within driving distance.

via basspro.com

Bald eagles abound as the ice retreats

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 01:04:00 +0000

NOW is the time to see Bald Eagles at large lakes in the east. The ice is going out and the birds are coming in and Bald Eagles love sitting on the remnant ice. I tallied 66 Bald Eagles at Branched Oake Lake near Lincoln this afternoon. - Joel Jorgensen, Nongame Bird Program.

University of Walleye is coming March 12, Pre-Reg by March 5 (via NEBRASKAland Magazine)

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 17:34:00 +0000

Ran across this today - looks like a great opportunity for you Walleye fanatics out there. Hurry though. You must be pre-registered by March 5th.

Omaha Boat, Sports, & Travel Show

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 16:55:00 +0000

It's that time of year again in the eastern Nebraska, western Iowa region - the Omaha Boat, Sports, and Travel Show.

There are lots of exhibitors ranging from RV and boat sales, to travel destinations, to fishing and hunting equipment, to exhibitors like the NGPC.

I don't know the prices, but you can look those up. :)

It's calling for snow this weekend, so you might as well go to the Qwest Center and enjoy the outdoors, indoors.

Jason

Heartland Fishing

Bluegills and more at Wehrspann - Chalco Hills

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 08 Aug 2010 14:23:00 +0000

Finally got the chance to get out on the lake again, but this time with my 6 year old boy and his friend.

We went to Wehrspann (in west Omaha) and brought along night crawlers and bobbers.

TIP: When bobber fishing for gills with worms, try this setup. Use a small bobber. Big bobbers may be necessary for visibility, especially if the water is rough or you are casting a long way. But, if you are fishing close and a fairly calm day, keep the bobber as small as possible.

TIP: Another suggestion is to use a small jig head instead of just a hook. I picked up some tiny jigs at Wal-Mart and took off the grub bodies. You can then tip the jig with a piece of worm a little bigger than the hook. I have had better luck hooking blue gills with this setup than with a standard hook/bobber combo. I think the brightly colored jig head helps get attention and the horizontal presentation may be more easier for gills to get into their mouths...

We fished the point just southeast of the boat ramp first and my boy hooked this 9.5 inch crappie right off the bat.

We caught a few more fish there and then headed south down the west shoreline. We caught a few more, but nothing spectacular. We then went down and under the pedestrian bridge and tried our luck in the shallow south end of the lake. Nothing.

On our way back under the bridge, the boys wanted to stop and fish. Good thing we did, because we caught a bunch of nice gills along the south end of the bridge. Most were bigger gills, between 8-9 inches long. Here are a few shots.

Happy Fishing!

You having any luck recently? Email me at Heartlandfishing@gmail.com with pics and I will share your report.

Jason

See and download the full gallery on posterous

Invasive Crayfish - Important info for Nebraska Fisherman (via @NEGameandParks)

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 14:33:00 +0000

Ran across this post on barbsandbacklashes.wordpress.com about an invasive crayfish species that has been found in NE waters. Good info for you NE fisherman. If you ever catch one of these in NE waters, or buy them at a bait shop, please take the time to report it to Nebraska Game and Parks. Help protect our native waters and native species.

Jason
@heartlandfishin
heartlandfishing.blogspot.com

[excerpt]...Unfortunately, there are exotic species of crayfish that can cause problems in waters where they are not native. One of those crayfish species that has caused problems in some parts of the United States is the rusty crayfish, Orconectes rusticus. Rusty crayfish are native to the Ohio River basin in Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, Kentucky, and Tennessee but have been introduced to many other “Midwestern” states. Once introduced into waters outside their native range, rusty crayfish have caused some major problems. Rusty crayfish have literally elminated aquatic vegetation from some waters and thus dramatically altered the aquatic habitat and food chain. They also out-compete native crayfish and may have significant impacts on other aquatic macroinvertebrates (e.g. aquatic insects). In some cases it is suspected that rusty crayfish prey on fish eggs. So, once again this is another example of an exotic species that we would like to keep out of our waters. [read the entire article]

via barbsandbacklashes.wordpress.com

http://outdoornebraska.ne.gov/

Nebraska Game & Parks website gets a makeover - thank goodness!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 19:54:00 +0000

Was doing some checking on NE regulations and stopped by the NGPC website to find out that it got a makeover! Looks a lot better than it did. Haven't spent much time snooping to see if it is easier to use, but at least happy to see this change happen.

Take a peak for yourself...

Jason

Heartland Fishing

Iowa Free Fishing Weekend - June 4 - 6, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 26 May 2010 19:21:00 +0000

Iowa's free fishing weekend for 2010 is June 4 - 6th.

Unlike Nebraska's, it is for residents only. Sorry!

Jason

Heartland Fishing

Fishing Report: Northern Pike fishing near Valentine, NE - May 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 21 May 2010 21:42:00 +0000

For the fifth year in a row, I fished the Valentine National Wildlife Refuge lakes near Valentine, NE, for northern pike during the middle of May (13th - 15th to be exact). The fishing was pretty good this year.

On the refuge we fished mostly on Dewey, though we tried Clear Lake as well. We didn't catch anything on Clear - the lake was a good foot or foot and a half higher than previous years, but it was extremely murky.

Dewey, on the other hand, was pretty good fishing. The lake was full, and the water was the clearest I remember. Past years found us fishing mostly the east end along the reeds, and the middle of the lake. This year, we fished mostly the west end of the lake. We put in on the western most ramp (there are now 4 ramps on Dewey). We caught a lot of fish, northern and a couple perch, about 50-100 yards straight south of the ramp. We repeatedly passed through that general area and caught fish nearly every time.

We threw mostly brightly colored spoons (I am a fan of Little Cleo's) and retrieved pretty slowly to get them nearer the bottom (it's only about 6 foot deep there).

Most of the northern we caught were in the 21 - 26 inch range, with one 30 incher in the 2.5 days of fishing.

The refuge boasts some of the best northern fishing in Nebraska, but due to these lakes be shallow, sandy bottom lakes, they get pretty mossy and weedy come mid-summer which makes them hard to fish.

Now is a great time to get to Valentine NWR and catch some northern! My 6 year old had a blast catching this 25.5 inch northern all by himself!

Jason

Heartland Fishing

Nebraska Free Fishing & Park Entry Day - May 22, 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 19 May 2010 13:30:00 +0000

Nebraska holds a free fishing and park entry day each year in May on the Saturday prior to Memorial Day weekend. This year that day falls on Saturday, May 22nd.

This Saturday, residents and non-residents, can fish without a license and enter state parks for free. This is a great opportunity to either give fishing a try, get back into fishing, or for checking out a state park for free. Also a great, cheap, family outing option. (We can all use those!)

In addition, several state parks have "family fishing clinics" - click here to download the poster with the full list.

Jason

Heartland Fishing

No Crappie length minimums in April on Zorinsky & Wehrspann

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 19:57:00 +0000

If you love crappie fishing and you fish in the Omaha metro area, you need to know that the 10 inch minimum length on crappie is lifted for the month of April on both Zorinsky & Wehrspann.

This is perfect for those that love to eat crappie but seem to only catch 9 inchers.

The best part is that the crappie usually spawn in April so they are a lot more likely to bite as they store up energy for the spawn and vigorously defend their eggs and fry.

Here is the proof from the 2010 Nebraska Fishing Guide:

Jason

Heartland Fishing