NEBRASKAland Magazine is dedicated to outstanding photography and informative writing with an engaging mix of articles and photos highlighting Nebraska’s outdoor activities, parklands, wildlife, history and people.
Issue link: http://mag.outdoornebraska.gov/i/831879
JUNE 2017 • NEBRASKAland 73 W hile this might sound self-serving, nothing influences my outdoor decisions more than the work of my colleagues at NEBRASKAland Magazine. The first time I read Jenny Nguyen's "Sleeping Outside" article in this month's issue, I immediately began preparing my first family tent camping expedition of the year. Last year, I had a similar response following Nguyen's "Species Contest at Gavins" article in our June issue, which featured a group of friends who participated in an annual contest each year at Gavins Point Dam that focused on how many different species of fish they could catch. My dad and I then took this idea in a slightly different direction. We started our own species contest, but ours focused on fish that we had caught on the fly. Very quickly we picked up the same species – largemouth bass, bluegill, black and white crappie, and rainbow trout – and had to show proof through a photograph if we happened to be fishing apart. But then it became interesting. Dad caught a grass carp and a channel catfish, both major hurdles during the summer fishing season to land with a fly rod. In turn, a trip to the Pine Ridge offered me a brown trout, and a summer excursion to Battle Lake, Minnesota, saw me catch a smallmouth bass. Then came the day that the longnose gar was feeding at the surface. I worked this fish for nearly 30 minutes trying to get him to hit, finally talking the fish into striking a red popping bug. I couldn't have been more thrilled to catch a fish that I had rarely, if ever, thought about before. While I ended up losing the first annual family fishing contest 11 to 9, it forced my dad and me to start learning about the various fish species that Nebraska has to offer outside of what we've been catching on the fly for years – largemouth bass and bluegill. Even a small fish became a huge accomplishment, as seen when I increased my lead early this spring with my first ever brook trout – an eight-inch beauty. But dad quickly countered that with the season's first channel catfish, with ideas for where he can catch a redear sunfish and bullhead. I have my work cut out for me, even though I've now hired a team of fisheries biologists to help me counter dad's old-school trickery. I hope it's enough. If not, I definitely know a creek that will give me a chance to catch a longnose gar, if I can just talk him into hitting again this year. ■ Our Family Species Contest The term "On the Fly" has taken on even greater meaning in my home. By Jeff Kurrus A longnose gar caught on the fly at a creek fed by the Platte River in Sarpy County. Out and About