NEBRASKAland Magazine's • A YEAR OUTDOORS
Late April or early May
•
Fish for white bass as this open-
water predator starts spawning at
reservoirs around the state. Fish
instinctively swim upriver to spawn,
making any place where water
flows into a reservoir the best bets
to cast jigs on light line. Locations
includes Lonergan and Otter
Creek inlets at Lake McConaughy
and the North Platte River above
it when water is high; Gracie
Creek inlet and the Calamus River
above Calamus Reservoir; canal
inlets at Sherman, Davis Creek
and Sutherland reservoirs and
Lake Minatare, Lake Maloney and
Johnson Lake.
Late April
•
Begin catching largemouth
bass along areas with emerging
vegetation, along drop-offs and
rip-rap areas of lakes and ponds.
I-80 Lakes give ample opportunity
for bass anglers. Camp at Windmill
SRA near Gibbon, which has six
lakes to fish, or at Mormon Island
SRA near Grand Island, which has
perfect spring camping and bass
fishing.
•
Look for morel mushrooms after
early spring rains or snow followed
by warm, sunny conditions with
night temperatures above 50
degrees. Sunny, south-facing
slopes can produce mushrooms
early in the season. Moist wooded
areas near dying or dead elm or
ash trees, old apple orchards and
timbered areas along rivers and
streams are good places to find
morels. Recently burned woods
have been cited as good producing
areas as well.
•
Plant pollinator gardens that
have blooming flowers from June
until the frost to support monarch
butterflies and other pollinators.
•
View shorebirds, including
ibises, at Buffalo Bill Ranch SRA,
sandhill lakes and playas and the
Valentine Wildlife Refuge. Pelicans
can be found at Calamus Reservoir
SRA, Lake Ogallala SRA, Sutherland
Reservoir SRA, Lake Maloney SRA
and Harlan County Reservoir.
•
Turkey hunt or fish on an Open
Fields and Waters area.
•
Pick up nightcrawlers after a
spring rain to use for fishing.
