HUMP DAY.  Make it through today and things start to warm up toward the weekend.  Don’t get too comfortable as another cold bump comes on Saturday.  We check out the ice today and reports from a North Dakota insider with the US FWS in today’s Outdoors Roundup. Featured Photo:  First Dog.  DEO celebrates the life…

SKYTALKER.  Following Thanksgiving’s cool display of the crescent moon, Venus and Jupiter aligning in the sky we’ve got another light show planned for this week with the Geminids meteors peaking.  We cover that and more on what’s influencing our night skies in today’s Outdoors Roundup. Featured Photo:  Aligned.  The crescent moon and Venus shine in…

COVER UP.  Surprisingly significant snow has fallen as part of a fast-moving system.  With it, wildlife will be entering winter survival mode, relying on heavy cover across the region to get through the chilly stretch to come.  We cover those options and more in today’s Outdoors Roundup. Featured Photo:  CAT CALL.  Cattails provide excellent upland…

CLIPPED.  An Alberta Clipper gains steam and targets a smile-shaped swath of the upper Midwest with snow today and tomorrow.  We’ve got a look at next week’s conditions, tips for those signing up for CRP and a quick rust check in today’s Outdoors Roundup. Featured Photo:  FLAG!  Make sure tip-ups are ready to go! Simonson…

By Nick Simonson   Of note on crappies of both stripes, or specks as it were, are their large eyes.  Both white and black crappies have enormous peepers mounted at the front of their heads, and they use them to target their prey in both summer and winter.  Capitalizing on this dominant sense is an…

A DANDY!  A super Saturday is on tap for all your outdoor activities as light southerly winds will set up great upland hunts and warm temperatures will facilitate on-ice movement.  We go around the region with news on our state’s ice and updates on hunting and fishing in neighboring jurisdictions as part of our Outdoors…

By Nick Simonson   Known as the Habitat Organization, Pheasants Forever (PF) has played a major role in acquiring and opening land to the public in the form of Wildlife Management Areas and Waterfowl Production Areas throughout the upper Midwest.  However, in light of an ever-changing commodities market, increasing acre caps under the Conservation Reserve…

AT WEEK’S END!  Congrats – you made it to Friday!  A nice pair of days is setting up for hunters, ice anglers and anyone in the outdoors, with mild temps, moderate winds and good conditions. We cover what’s ahead, more ice fishing news and the big word on CRP signup in our Outdoors Roundup. Featured…

CHILL AHEAD.  While the weekend will be nice, next week’s dip into the deep freeze will be another story.  On the bright side, when we come out of it, ice should be thicker, sloughs should be frozen and we’ll be well set up for the start of winter!  We cover that and more in today’s…

By Doug Leier, NDG&F Dept. I’m often amazed at the raw pure connection to the outdoors enjoyed by many of my friends and co-workers. When the temperature drops and the ice begins to form, it doesn’t signal the end to spending time hunting and fishing. It’s just a transition. One of those transitions taking place…

TALKING BOOTS.  The late season can provide a challenge for upland walkers, and those lace-up boots can take a beating in the snow, ice and super wet areas we’re seeing around the region this time of year.  In today’s Outdoors Roundup, we give you some guidelines to help make them last through this chilly stretch…

LOOKING WAY AHEAD.  While things are nice in the near term for some late season hunting or early ice fishing, we look a ways down the road at next year’s openers along with some concerning upland news to the east and catch a glimpse of a creepy carp in today’s Outdoors Roundup. Featured Photo:  Big…

MILD MONDAY.  Things warm up as best they can under a blanket of snow as temps fight their way up into the thirties.  We cover hunting and fishing developments from around the region as part of today’s Outdoors Roundup. Featured Photo:  Snow flakes fall on the fibers of a rooster pheasant’s tail. Simonson Photo.  …

CAN YOU DIG IT?  With snow covering the southern half of the state, we’re digging out into a new month as the calendar turns to December.  We’ve got more on storm totals and what’s to come for the winter in today’s Outdoors Roundup. Featured Photo:  Snow fills a set of pine tree rows. Simonson Photo….

By Nick Simonson   With the onset of the early ice season, anglers are venturing out on the frozen surfaces of many lakes across the upper Midwest.  With those first steps comes a great deal of caution until ice gets thicker and even then, no frozen surface can ever be considered totally safe.  In preparation…

LAST DAY!  November goes out like a lion as snow and wind whip up dangerous conditions for your Saturday.  Hunker down inside with a few cool projects to get ready for your ice season, which we cover in today’s Outdoors Roundup. Featured Photo: BOB.  The time will come to watch bobbers disappear, probably not today….

BLACK & WHITE.  Things may be slippery for your Black Friday adventures in the field or at the store.  We cover that and the whiteout to come along with all the news for your snowbound weekend in today’s Outdoors Roundup. Featured Photo: BLACK CRAPPIE.  A black crappie comes up the ice hole. Simonson Photo.  …

By Nick Simonson   The spike buck sat in the crosshairs of my scope for a few seconds after he had arched back and forth in front of my hillside position for five minutes, nervously eyeing my outline broken only by the small bushes that conveniently grew between us before finally giving up on his…

By Doug Leier, NDG&F Dept.   You don’t have to be a meteorologist, hydrologist, agronomist or even biologist to realize North Dakota’s weather in 2019 is going to go down in history for mostly the wrong reasons.   Winter lasted too long and then the summer wasn’t hot enough and ended to soon. Fall was…

BATTEN DOWN.  Loosen up your belt and batten down the hatches as we await Thanksgiving and the threat of a snowstorm for the weekend. In the meantime we have much to be thankful for.  Of note is the approval of the Land and Water Conservation Fund by an important Senate Committee.  We have that news…

TAP INTO IT!  A nice day is ready ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday and will facilitate any outdoor activity. With calmer conditions and moderate temperatures at hand, enjoy that late season hunting opening up – before the snow comes!   We’ve got news on the salmon spawn, a key piece of legislation and an eye on…

BINGE WORTHY. With the tying season underway, we talk tips for getting the best out of your streamers for next spring’s assault on your favorite pike, bass and trout waters. Featured Photo:  Flashy Flies. Large Streamers sit ready for deployment in a fly box. Simonson Photo.   WEATHER (Bismarck Forecast): Today:  Mon 11/25 – Windy…

SUNDAY SURGE.  Here on this final day of firearms deer season, things make their way into the low 50s with stronger west winds moving things around, and with the warm-up and a tag-out may come a longing for ice fishing. We focus on that and the future forecast in today’s Outdoors Roundup. Featured Photo:  From…

By Nick Simonson   On the north side of the walk, my dog was birdy as soon as the northwest breeze curled around the middle of the hillside on which we walked and carried scent to his nose that didn’t stop until we reached the end of the grass.  We flushed singles and pairs of…

SIMMERING SATURDAY.  Things warm up and westerly breezes settle in for your Saturday and the weekend with highs in the mid-40s straight through Sunday before a bit of a cold front chills things into Thanksgiving.  We’ve got a look at that and more in our Outdoors Roundup for today. Featured Photo:  The November sun sinks…

By John Bradley, NDWF Executive Director It started as a light-hearted joke from my neighbor as I was unpacking my car from a hunting trip.  “You seem to be spending a lot of gas money just to come home empty handed, you know the grocery store is only a couple blocks away, right?”  Not having…

A fine Friday is setting up and you’re about to have more land to explore in your upland adventures next week.  We cover those refuges opening up again to late-season hunts along with some great Thanksgiving runs and what to watch for next week on Black Friday. Featured Photo:  The Rock.  Ole the lab sits…

By Nick Simonson   “How did this happen,” my panicked brain thought as I sat speared to the ground by the deep-welled eyes staring back at me from 20 yards away, their blackness lightened only by the twinkle of the last rays of the late afternoon sun shining down from over the bluff behind me….

AW SNAP!  Today’s cooler temperatures along with yesterday’s wintry mix will help set hunters up for an exciting finish to the 2019 firearms deer season this weekend as the cool snap should make for more deer movement. We cover that, some ND charity tag news, and great photos from the Feds in today’s Outdoors Roundup….