By Nick Simonson Once in a while on a couple small lakes and ponds I frequent with the fly rod where the panfish are huge and the pressure is light, particularly before the calendar flips over to May, there’s a midge hatch of epic proportions, and the bugs themselves are disproportionately large as well.  Normally,…

By Nick Simonson The angling on Devils Lake will likely provide anglers with consistent action this spring as the ice recedes and the first runs of pike and walleyes make their way up into the shallows of the massive water.  Throughout the season anglers can expect to find increased numbers of eater-sized walleyes, along with…

By Mike Peluso Lots of changes are happening out here with the walleyes on the Missouri River near Bismarck. The biggest of those has been water temperatures due to the changes in weather. In the early part of last week things were good with slowly climbing water temperatures. In fact, I kept hearing of a…

By Nick Simonson Spring is a time of growth, not only in the natural world as tightly wrapped buds unfurl and create the green canopy and carpet around us, expanding their branches and their bound but also in the opportunities provided to expand our reach to others in the outdoors.  With the warming days, generally…

By Nick Simonson From all indications, the Missouri River is set for an epic spring of angling with relatively steady weather conditions and limited fluctuation in water levels allowing anglers to get out and experience great fishing for the water’s walleyes.  According to fishing guide Mike Peluso, the fish and the flow are in good…

By Doug Leier  In a perfect world everyone would get a buck tag and a stringer full of walleyes. But as much as we nod and smile we acknowledge not everyone wants a buck tag and there are some anglers who would take a few nice crappie, perch or (gasp) pike.  There is no one…

By Nick Simonson Water temperature is the driving force for many fish species in spring.  Not only as an impetus for  their annual spawning efforts but also impacting their activity levels being cold blooded creatures, as waters warm in the spring, fish become more active.  Considering water temperatures and the factors that influence their increase…

By Mike Peluso It’s crazy to see this many fish in the river already at this time of year.  Somehow, they decided to show up early and in really good numbers!  Now catching those walleyes – especially during the busy times – can cause a little frustration.  These fish are slowly getting conditioned to motor…

By Nick Simonson In my early days of fishing, when I had started to make the jump from hook and bobber to other techniques, such as jigs and plastics for walleyes, tubes for bass, and even venturing into using the fly rod for panfish and trout, it was the latter species that seemed so mysterious…

By Nick Simonson Many walleye rigs add the complexity of a snell knot to the mix when hooks, line, beads and blades are all assembled.  While that rolling of fishing line over the hook shank can become second nature with enough spinners and crawler harnesses assembled, there is one hot option that requires far less…

NDG&F Release The North Dakota Game and Fish Department’s 2024 bighorn sheep survey, completed by recounting lambs in March, revealed a minimum of 350 bighorn sheep in the grasslands of western North Dakota, down 4% from 2023 and 6% above the five-year average. Despite a slight decrease from the record count in 2023, the 2024…

By Nick Simonson A strong forage base is the foundation of a great fishery. Having a dynamic food web ensures little fish become big fish, and there’s one protein-packed element in many midwestern lakes and rivers that powers everything from perch to bass to walleyes and that is the scud.  Better known as freshwater shrimp,…

NDG&F Release A total of 42,416 North Dakota deer hunters took approximately 23,300 deer during the 2024 deer gun hunting season, according to a post-season survey conducted by the state Game and Fish Department. Game and Fish made available 50,100 deer gun licenses last year. Overall hunter success was 55%, with each hunter spending an…

By Doug Leier  If you haven’t purchased your new fishing license, it was due April 1. I’d encourage you to give it a try on the Game and Fish app. Last year I did it for the first time exclusively on the app. I did the same this year and it was even quicker than…

By Nick Simonson After a mild winter with little concern for winterkill due to good ice conditions and limited snow cover, lakes in the southeastern portion of North Dakota are set for a solid spring and summer of openwater fishing.  Those four major waters in the region – Lake Ashtabula, Jamestown Reservoir, Pipestem Reservoir and…

By Mike Peluso So normally this time of year my reports on walleye fishing activity on the Missouri River in and around Bismark consists of water clarity, ice conditions, boat ramps and so on, but not this spring! Things are in full swing already on the Missouri River, and I couldn’t be happier.  There are…

By Nick Simonson The season for big fish has arrived.  Whether it’s huge prespawn crappies on a Minnesota backwater, or those walleyes and pike making their migratory runs up a river in North Dakota or the channels of Devils Lake, spring presents the best chance to catch the fish of a lifetime. It also provides…

By Nick Simonson Caddisflies provide a spring and summer target for all species from trout to panfish, and there are tons of great imitators out there.  When these insects are flitting about the surface and getting ready to deposit their eggs in a given water, hungry fish are on the lookout for an easy meal….

By Nick Simonson Online angling research has a way of spurring on preparations that have been back-burnered for some time. Well behind the curve in my annual fly-tying efforts, I found the motivation I required to catch up on the usual off-season work at the vise over the past week following a storm which cooped…

By Doug Leier I’ve always enjoyed my own little mental debates. Would I rather have a fast-food double cheeseburger that’s a little less expensive than a sit-down burger and fries? For me, the answer depends on a combination of how hungry I am and if I’m going to just simply chow down and get back…

By Nick Simonson From the attention paid by my dogs as we walk the last paved road on the edge of town in the pre-dawn darkness of winter’s coldest nights, I know they’re there.  Usually in a pair or a trio, but sometimes in a group of five, the resident jackrabbits hold steady until we’ve…

By Mike Peluso The past week has been a roller coaster for ice fishing up here on Devils Lake.  This weather we have been experiencing has been absolutely insane. If it’s not extreme cold, it’s extreme wind with major ups and downs with the pressure changes putting the lake’s perch and walleyes in lockdown mode…

By Nick Simonson “Big fish don’t get big by being dumb,” is a favorite outdoor saying of mine, but perhaps it only exists to provide those trophy fish with a bit of anthropomorphized intellect justifying my difficulty in catching them. Whether that’s a walleye heading up to the 30-inch mark, a smallmouth bass eclipsing 20…

NDG&F Dept. Release North Dakota’s spring light goose conservation order opens Feb. 15 and continues through May 11. Residents must have a 2024-25 (valid through March 31) or 2025-26 (required April 1) combination license; or a small game, and general game and habitat license. Resident youth under age 16 only need the general game and habitat license….

By Nick Simonson The H5N1 strain of avian influenza, commonly called bird flu, has grabbed headlines as it impacts poultry and egg production across the United States.  With each operation showing signs of infection often resulting in the euthanization of thousands of chickens or turkeys in its barns, concern mounts that the virus – or…

By Doug Leier As winter tightens its grip on North Dakota, the landscape transforms into a vast, frozen tundra. Snow blankets the plains, rivers freeze solid, and the air becomes crisp with a bite that chills the bones. For many of us, it can be easy to view the season as a time to retreat…

By Mike Peluso This winter is starting to feel like the movie “Groundhog Day” with brutal weather day in and day out making ice fishing and getting around on Devils Lake extremely difficult.   The one thing I absolutely hate during the winter – especially on Devils Lake – is when we get just a…

By Nick Simonson Even in the depths of winter, unique signs of life abound.  From the corner of the concrete bridge that spans my home water of Lake Ashtabula north of Valley City, I watched amazed through the lens of my brother’s camera phone in my text feed as a river otter tended to its…

NDG&F Dept. Release If you were born after 1961, are 12 years or older, you must take a home study or traditional classroom certified hunter education course before you can get a firearm or bowhunting license in North Dakota. The home study, or hybrid course, requires 7-10 hours of online and six hours of in-person classroom time….

By Nick Simonson The physics of line twist can impact the quality of a presentation under the ice, at a time when everything needs to come together to convert fish in midwinter, the toughest of angling seasons. Knowing what causes line twist and the resulting spin of a lure, and the solutions to the problem,…