WITH A BANG!  We’re celebrating independence and a great summer stretch in today’s Outdoors Roundup from more on the Big Buck Book, the Buck Moon and some hot temperatures, things are looking great! Featured Photo:  Watch the skies tonight for not only fireworks, but for the ghostly buck moon. Simonson Photo. WEATHER (Bismarck Forecast): Today: Sat…

By Nick Simonson   For many, the Independence Day holiday weekend represents a great time to get on the water.  Whether it’s cruising in the warmth of the afternoon or anchoring up and watching the fireworks display reflecting off the surface of a favorite lake in the evening, the water goes hand-in-hand with the mid-summer…

OBSERVED.  Welcome to your three day weekend (hopefully) and a warm one is setting up at that!  We’ve got news on non-fireworks sky shows, a boat conversion and the drought as it stood before this week’s rains. Featured Photo:  GLASSY. The sun rises over calm southern shore waters on Big Detroit Lake in Minnesota. Simonson…

By Nick Simonson   Growing up in the upper Midwest taught me to relish the warmth of summer.  Sometimes those stretches of 90-degree days spanned just a week or two in August.  Other summers, the warmth seemed to highlight the entire 12 weeks we were out of school. In between backyard kickball games, neighborhood-wide all-day…

By Doug Leier,  NDG&F Dept. Pretty much everyone who hunts and fishes in North Dakota knows they have to buy a license first, and most of those people understand that license dollars go to the North Dakota Game and Fish Department.   What is less understood, despite decades of promotion by state and federal agencies…

THREE DAY EVE.  We’re just a few short hours away from a three day weekend and the air will be charged with warm, unsettled conditions along with fireworks.  We eye up where we’re sitting for your best fishing hours along with Featured Photo:  SUMMER KING. A pumpkinseed takes a prince nymph. Simonson Photo. WEATHER (Bismarck…

OVER THE HUMP.  In your holiday-shortened week, we’ve made it to the middle after a stormy and rainy Tuesday which may have broken the drought which was settling into the western half of the state.  While the impact of some gully-washing storms is yet to be seen on young pheasants, deer and other wildlife, the…

NDG&F Dept. Release North Dakota’s spring pheasant population index is up 15% from the same time last year, according to the state Game and Fish Department’s 2020 spring crowing count survey. R.J. Gross, upland game management biologist, said the number of roosters heard crowing this spring was up statewide, with increases ranging from 1% to…

GOOD NEWS TUES!  Pheasant crowing counts are up, starting your week off with some great outdoor news.  In addition to that, we’ve got more on Operation Dry Water for a safe and enjoyable Fourth of July on area lakes and rivers, a local start to a national TV program and a good looking forecast headed…

WHAT’S HATCHING?  As summer hits full swing, we’re eying up what fish are eating.  From insects, to minnows to young-of-the-year panfish, it’s important to know forage for lure and bait selection. More on how big hatches – like mayflies – impact angling in our Outdoors Roundup below along with habitat news and ANS awareness. Featured…

DOG DAYS.  The warmth of summer settles in early as temperatures spike into the mid-to-upper 90s the next couple of days.  We celebrate the new-found season and catch up on events and information for pheasants, deer and camping across America in today’s Outdoors Roundup. Featured Photo:  On the Move.  A hen leads her brood of…

By Nick Simonson   Gaudy.  Ugly.  Fish-Catching.  These terms for one of the foremost smallmouth flies may seem divergent, but they all hit the spot for the Tequeely, a combination of kindergarten art project and scrapped experimental woolly bugger borne from a night of drunk tying along with a little bit of rubber thrown in…