SPRING SHIFT.  Conditions shift to calmer and cooler as our two-day taste of spring fades away for awhile.  In today’s Outdoor update we check your fishing conditions and look back at a wrap on the session with the NDG&F Dept. Featured Photo: Play the Field.  Canada geese stroll through a cut field. Simonson Photo.  …

NDG&F Dept. Release North Dakota’s 2019 deer season is set, with 65,500 licenses available to hunters this fall, 10,350 more than last year. In total, antlered mule deer licenses increased by 450 from last year, antlerless mule deer by 700, antlered whitetail by 700, antlerless whitetail by 1,250, “any antlered” by 3,150 and “any antlerless”…

FRIDAY FUN! Warmer conditions should spur more folks outside as the week’s most stable day comes to be.  Speaking of bees, we talk in our Outdoors Update about pollinator efforts in the roughest of spaces, along with boating safety and what to watch for in local pheasant populations. Featured Photo: Going…going… Expect hen pheasants to…

By Nick Simonson   It had been five years since I had been on the Rainy River in northern Minnesota and flung the weight-swivel-circle hook combination full of crawlers in that overhead style of a surf angler, made all the less graceful by the rocking of the current and the wakes of the passing boats…

SWEET STROLL. We’re looking at some good things today, as skies clear and southerly breezes bring warmer temps to the region.  We check out mule deer numbers, ND’s bass league and a fun video of fightin’ turkeys in today’s Three Things.   Featured Photo: Young Buck.  Mule deer numbers are off slightly over last year….

CRUSH LIFE! In the outdoors, it’s a matter of mind.  Staying focused, staying positive and staying in form results in more fish, more game and more targets taken.  We talk about ways to mentally up your outdoors efforts in today’s Three Things. Featured Photo: Take Aim at Success. Whether it’s the pattern of mounting a…

THIRTY! Today’s starting temp will match the date as we close out a memorable April where records fell and numbers jumped.  We talk about the month that was, the near-term forecast and the Big Muddy Classic in today’s Three Things. Featured Photo: A pair of wet roosters navigate the spring grass just north of Bismarck….

GLOOM (No Doom).  Chilly overcast conditions persist with a spit of snow in the early morning hours and some rain later in the day.  We look to bring some brightness from these April showers in today’s Three Things. Featured Photo: Brighter Day.  Boats anchor up on Minnesota’s Rainy River for sturgeon fishing under clear skies…

AWASH.  Rain (and snow?) sweeps through the area today as we brace for a cold, damp spring week. We talk sturgeon in ND and MN in today’s Three Things. Featured Photo: Rainy River Sunrise.  Dawn breaks along the US-Canada border. Simonson Photo.   WEATHER (Bismarck Forecast): Today: Sun 4/28 – Ish – Hi 45, Lo 32,…

WEEKEND WIPEOUT.  Any spring gains we might have made in psyche, will be set back by a cold slap this weekend.  Brave the elements for a continued hot walleye bite, or gear up for warmer days ahead as we make the turn to May next week. We go around the horn in today’s Three Things….

By Nick Simonson There’s that moment of anticipation in early spring which transcends time.  It occurs after the grill has been fired up in the first warm evening and is preceded by the sizzle which triggers some primordial salivatory response as red becomes pink becomes that ideal singed-brown-and-black-striped.  Just before a perfect medium-rare chunk of…

ENJOY! Today begins our downward temperature trend, though conditions will still be good into Thursday night before a noticeable shift for your weekend fishing trip takes hold.  We address the unpleasant long-term forecast, scholarship opportunities for wildlife enforcement and the crowing of rooster pheasants in today’s Three Things Featured Photo: The spring sun sets over…

ALL DOWNHILL.  After today things will slip and slide into the weekend as temperatures drop, precip picks up and a chance at a four-letter word comes back into Sunday.  We talk about that, the final stretch for SB 2315 and deer hunting numbers in today’s Three Things. Featured Photo: A tom turkey struts on top…

WALLEYE MADNESS.  Spring walleye fever peaks in North Dakota as last year’s state record fish falls to a 16-9 behemoth caught over the weekend. We cover that and highlights of the “Big Three” walleye fisheries in today’s Three Things. Featured Photo:  Wary Walleye.  Is the next state record out there?  We guess “yes” and that…

LET’S ROCK! It’s a marvelous Monday for any outdoor activity, so if you’re headed to work – call in sick! Light winds, sunny skies and moderate temperatures make today ideal, despite its position in the week. We talk habitat, harems and specialized hooks in today’s Three Things. Featured Photo:  Cock of the Rock.  A rooster…

HAPPY EASTER! Crack open an egg and see what’s inside, while outside it’ll be a mix of clouds and wind but should remain dry for much of the state for those egg hunts today. We talk tourneys, waters and the week ahead in today’s Three Things. Featured Photo:  Not Candy. Jigs await a lucky angler…

By Nick Simonson Crappies are notorious for their color preferences, and the marabou crappie jig can provide any amount of one, or up to three contrasting shades on a single hookshank.  While specks can be taken by any offering on a given day, there’s always one color pattern that outperforms the rest making for a…

REPEAT!  Another nice day is setting up for the region with some clouds but lessened winds from Friday’s gusty conditions.  Take advantage at one of the many boat ramps in the state, and check out this year’s winning Junior Duck Stamp along with some youth shooting sports news in today’s Three Things. Featured Photo:  A…

By Nick Simosnon   In the light winds, the boat drifted easily toward shore as I missed yet another hookset on the paper-mouthed crappies staging on the edge of the shallows in preparation for the spawn. Slowly, I felt the back of the boat catch on something and turn with the slight breeze.  I looked…

FULL MOON FRIDAY!  It’s an angler’s dream today as the full moon aligns with the holiday weekend, warm temperatures and a little bit of chop to start off the walleye run on just about any water that’s open in ND.  We talk about that, big game lotteries and some help in the backcountry in today’s…

By Nick Simonson   A year ago, the pike ran so thick at the end of the late spring it almost seemed likely that one could walk on their backs across the surface of the water below the small rock dam.  This year, under the warm white light of the mid-April sun against a pure…

POTPOURRI.  We get a mix of everything today in terms of fishing, while the day starts cool, calm and foggy and ends warm, windy and clear.  We cover eyes on walleyes, skirts on muskie baits and the top bass circuit in today’s Three Things. Featured Photo:  Taste the Rainbow.  A hank of rainbow marabou flash…

SOAKER.  A wet Wednesday will help green things up and erase the last few remaining drifts along the countryside. We talk bighorn sheep and bad fish transactions in today’s Three Things. Featured Photo:  Spawnin’ Slab.  A white crappie dons darker stripes and speckles for the spawn. Simonson Photo.   WEATHER (Bismarck Forecast): Today: Wed 4/17 –…

MIDWEEK WONDER. A warm, sunny and calm day today will be the highlight of the week as clouds build in over the evening and rain falls overnight. We track the forecast and upcoming seasons, along with an outdoors access bill that won’t die in today’s Three Things. Featured Photo:  Hide & Seek.  A rooster pheasant…

GO LARGE.  As temperatures stabilize, we dig into some largemouth bass history at home and abroad in today’s installment of Three Things. Featured Photo: Lip Lock.  A largemouth bass comes to hand. Simonson Photo.   WEATHER (Bismarck Forecast): Today: Mon 4/15 – Nice – Hi 52, Lo 35, Wind W@13, G20 Tomorrow:  Tue 4/16 – Calm…

WARMING.  We’re looking forward to a relatively warm and windy week where the remainder of last week’s snow should say sayonara. We’ve got that glimpse ahead in today’s Three Things, along with a look at paddlefish recovery programs and hitting the spring pavement in today’s Three Things. Featured Photo: A meadowlark hangs out on a…

By Nick Simonson Fishing great Al Lindner once said, “Ninety percent of the fish occupy ten percent of the water.” As spring river walleye angling goes, that is often the truth.   Isolating productive areas of moving water is what turns spring fishing into catching.  Reading the water and focusing on prime spots puts more fish…

HOOKED.  Saturday will be the nicest day of the weekend with generally calm conditions turning into light south winds by evening, use it to get outdoors and catch those first runs of fish, but don’t get hooked, things get breezy again tomorrow. As you get set for the season, we have some suggestions and guidelines…

By Nick Simonson Anywhere big fish eat little fish, you’ll find room for the Clouser minnow.  Kept simple and sparse, it moves freely in the water and is dynamite on bass, panfish, trout, pike and other piscivorous species. Customize to confidence colors or the hues of baitfish in your waters and you’ll have a selection…

A BOATLOAD.  While SD and MN got socked with heavy snow, ND was mostly spared, though the accumulations and wind were enough to shut down the eastern edge of the state.  The system wraps up today, and the melt will be on (again) next week – and then boating season will be here.  We get…