By Nick Simonson With spring on hold for the next week or so (depending on this weekend’s storm track) there’s likely some time to think about what comes when that snow melts.  Of course, the fishing will be fast and furious once we flip the calendar into April, but after the solid spring bite and…

From NDG&F Dept. Releases A total of 45,927 North Dakota deer hunters took approximately 25,146 deer during the 2023 deer gun hunting season, according to a post-season survey conducted by the state Game and Fish Department.  Numbers were similar to the 47,590 hunters and 25,093 deer harvested in 2022. Game and Fish made available 53,400…

NDG&F Dept. Release North Dakota’s 2024-26 fishing proclamation is set, with regulations effective April 1, 2024, through March 31, 2026. New fishing licenses are required April 1. Anglers can find the North Dakota 2024-26 Fishing Guide online at the state Game and Fish Department website, gf.nd.gov, or at Game and Fish Department offices and license vendors throughout…

By Nick Simonson Drag is that mechanism by which anglers tire big fish out and prevent their lines from being broken in the process.  Few things excite in the outdoors as much as a big muskie, pike or channel catfish charging off into the depths with the resulting whir, whine or pinging of a drag…

By Mike Peluso As I’m writing this very last report from the ice on Devils Lake, I can honestly say this has been the most challenging ice fishing season in my lifetime, but it has also been very rewarding at times, too. There were lots of ups and downs and highs and lows. I’d say…

By Nick Simonson The tip of the flock came over our house on the north end of town as my wife and I looked up from the deck to the high-pitched cacophony riding the northwest wind over our neighborhood.  A blur of blue and white in a pair of overlapping vees of light geese organized…

NDG&F Release Elk, moose and bighorn sheep applications are available online at the North Dakota Game and Fish Department’s website, gf.nd.gov. The deadline for applying is March 27. A total of 833 elk licenses are available to hunters this fall, an increase of 230 from last year. Licenses in units E1E, E1W and E3 increased due to…

By Emily Spolyar In North Dakota, Pheasants Forever (PF) chapter members are putting their money where their boots and birddogs want to be most: in high-quality, accessible habitat. Recognizing the significant loss of habitat in their area and the implications of these lost acres, the Pheasants Forever MonDak Chapter 619 hatched a plan to bolster…

By Doug Leier Growing up, living or even moving to North Dakota you understand the connection to the outdoors and how important fishing is to “quality of life.” While each individual has their own unique factors which contribute to why we live here, the outdoors is part of it for some and more for others….

By Nick Simonson When it comes to tiny tackle, no piece is more overlooked than the split ring.  Whether it’s used as a tie-in point on spoon to provide a little bit more wiggle or utilized in securing a pair of treble hooks to a favorite crankbait, the split ring is a small part of…

By Mike Peluso I’m on the 18th tee box for the ice fishing season, I just need to keep it in the fairway and get up and down to close it out. It is hard to believe it’s coming to an end already, but it goes fast and I’m already getting excited for the open…

By Nick Simonson As it sits now, I’d call it wonderfully uncomfortable because the soreness in my quadriceps on both legs – a bit higher on the right, more towards the knee on my left – is no less a sign of spring than the things I saw while running the tap for the lactic…

NDG&F Dept. Release Harvest statistics released by the North Dakota Game and Fish Department show overall hunter success during the 2023 season for bighorn sheep was 100%, 89% for moose and 71% for elk. The department issued five bighorn sheep licenses and auctioned one. All six hunters harvested a bighorn ram. The department issued 253…

By Doug Leier Winterkill of fish in lakes, reservoirs, ponds and sloughs is nothing new in North Dakota. In any given year there’s a potential for winterkill. Just like for pheasants and deer in North Dakota, long, cold, snowy winters exact a toll. Dead deer and pheasants are easier to spot with a white blanket…

By Nick Simonson I can recall the first instance of a smallmouth smashing a rusted-up firetiger Husky Jerk I weaseled out of my dad’s gold flip-sider tacklebox for a trip upriver one spring night after work.  After the rings from the lure’s splashdown along the shoreline at the spot where a small feeder creek met…

By Mike Peluso It seems crazy to think, but I have only two weeks left up here on Devils Lake for the winter. Time flies when you stay busy. The winter season has been an absolute roller coaster. We have had some great days and we have had sone tough days. There are lots of…

By Nick Simonson There’s an old terabyte drive I bought a decade ago to back up the hard drive on my old computer as things were getting a bit glitchy and the blue screen wake-ups of the machine suggested the loss of most of my information was highly inevitable.  Before synchronized back-ups through cloud storage…

By Nick Simonson The National Archery in the Schools Program (NASP) will be hosting its annual State Tournament on Mar. 15 and 16 at the Minot State Fair Center, bringing hundreds of top shooters from schools around the state to compete in four events to determine North Dakota’s top archers, according to Jeff Long, the…

By Doug Leier Around here we hope and pray March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb. I’m not sure where this saying originated from, but last year it may have been more accurate to say March came in like a lion, stuck around until April and left a mess of…

By Seth Owens This winter has graced North Dakota with unusual kindness. The weather has been remarkably pleasant, boasting warmer temperatures than average and the snowfall has remained quite limited thus far. Such conditions bode well for our upland bird populations as they enjoy an abundance of cover and forage that harsh winter conditions of…

By Mike Peluso Are we on borrowed time up here on Devils Lake? It’s hard to say what this warm up will do. My guess is we will get about a week or so into March things will get dicey. As far as the bite goes, it comes down to one word: ratty. The past…

By Nick Simonson I’m a fan of old things and a fan of new things in the outdoors, as the former tells the non-fiction tale of what we’ve experienced, and the latter paints a science-fiction story of where we’ll go, all with a few good fisherman’s lies mixed in between them. I can recall vividly…

NDG&F Dept. Release While the deadline for removing permanent fish houses from North Dakota lakes is March 15, the state Game and Fish Department is urging anglers to consider removing their houses early in areas of the state where ice conditions are deteriorating. Given the current long-range weather forecast predicting temperatures well above normal, coupled…

By Nick Simonson There is no fish in the waters of the upper Midwest more voracious than the northern pike and when the ice begins to give way and meltwater begins to flow down gullies, creeks, and small rivers, catching them is a sure sign that spring is starting up.  Sometimes the weather is cold,…

By Doug Leier There’s a big difference between doing it and doing it well. I can take outdoor photographs but it’s more the equivalent of beating a drum than “playing” the drums. Everyone has a camera on their mobile device but taking a picture and true photography are not one in the same. Trust me….

By Nick Simonson Whether spring comes late like last year, or is looking to arrive a bit early like this year, targeting some key areas for walleyes whenever things open up on a favorite river will help increase your odds of success at the chilly start to the openwater season.  Utilizing dams and other obstructions,…

By Mike Peluso Things have gotten a little better up here on Devils Lake. We got some cold weather and firmed the ice back up. Now the big question is this next warm spell. With the forecasted sun, what will it do to our current ice conditions? I’m hoping it holds out until at least…

By Nick Simonson As a fan of science fiction, and more accurately now, science fact, my RSS feeds and inboxes are often inundated with technology stories I can barely wrap my brain around.  From quantum physics and computing, to teleportation of sub-atomic particles to nano-technology, the blur of updates provides entertaining and amazing reading which…

NDG&F Release The 2024 spring wild turkey lottery has been held and more than 1,000 licenses remain in 11 units. Remaining licenses are issued on a first-come, first-served basis beginning at 8 a.m. Central time on Feb. 21. Hunters are allowed two licenses for the spring season. Licenses remain in unit 03, Benson and Ramsey counties and…

By Doug Leier Dean Hildebrand, former Game and Fish director, had a flair for telling stories. Dr. Seuss could’ve taken notes. “When I lived in Kulm, it was so dry the ducks carried canteens … I played cops and robbers with a young girl that always won. Turns out, it was Angie Dickinson.” (If you…