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IDNR Report
All shooting ranges operated by the DNR Division of Fish & Wildlife will adjust their hours of operation during the months of January and February.
The ranges at the following fish & wildlife areas will be open Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET or 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. CT, depending on their location: Crosley, Deer Creek, J.E. Roush Lake, Jasper-Pulaski, Kingsbury, Pigeon River, Sugar Ridge, Tri-County, Wilbur Wright, and Winamac.
This will not affect the hours of operation for archery ranges, which are open daily, sunrise to sunset at these properties.
Regular range hours will resume March 1 (9 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET or 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. CT depending on location, Wednesday through Sunday.)
The Division of Fish & Wildlife strives to provide clean, safe ranges. The ranges are staffed by trained range safety officers and most charge no free. These ranges are great places to shoot the new gun you may have received over the holidays or to sight in your firearm for your next hunting outing.
For more information on shooting range hours, visit www.wildlife.IN.gov/3648.htm.
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Mark your calendar for Jan. 24-26 – dates of the 2020 Michiana Boat and Sport Show.
The show is held at the South Bend Century Center.
Promoter Dale Brindley says several exhibitors have signed on but there are still some booth spaces available, especially for small vendors. Small table displays are available to any club or small tackle manufacturer looking for more public exposure.
For prices and details, email dalebrindley@comcast.net.
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Columnist’s Book Chronicles Life as a Hoosier Outdoorsman
Moscow, Ind. native Jack Spaulding has just released his first full length book showcasing the best, funniest and most heartwarming stories spanning his lengthy career as an outdoor journalist.
Follow Jack into the field and experience firsthand his trials and tribulations as he hunts for wild game and faces down (and sometimes gets bested by) any number of woodland and domestic creatures such as drunken doves, skunks, snakes, cows, bats and bears, to name just a few. Join Jack on the water where he shares tips and tricks for angling success as well as some humbling (and often comical) lessons learned from his fishing, canoeing and boating adventures. Throughout the book Jack also shares his tried-and-true recipes for fish and game, guaranteed to be a hit at your next family gathering or camp cookout. And the culinary adventurous will find harvesting and cooking tips for a wide variety of Indiana’s wild edibles, including ones you can find right in your backyard.
Jack wraps the book up with a series of fictional accounts of his childhood growing up on the banks of the Flatrock River in southeastern Indiana. The “Life on the South Side of the County” collection is a whimsical blend of Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry Fin, and the movie Stand By Me. Get to know young Jack (also known as “Mooch” by his friends in his early years) and his wild and rambunctious pals – Huckster, Lemecee, Feltie, and Stom; and get a glimpse of some of the local sages such as Uncle Nard and old “Toad”, often found whittling and waxing philosophically on the “Liar’s Bench” at the general store. Find yourself transported back to a simpler time as you tag along with the gang on their imaginative and ambitious boyhood quests and exploits in the small river town of Moscow, Indiana, in the late 1950’s.
The book is available in paperback ($14.95) and as an e-book ($3.99) at amazon.com.
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Plans to dredge a channel from the new public access in the backwaters of Hudson to the main lake have been put on hold.
Hudson Lake is located west of South Bend near New Carlisle, Ind. and east of LaPorte, Ind.
The initial plan called for a deeper channel through the lily pads to be cut this fall, but there was no contractor available to do it.
That means the project will have to wait until next season. Boaters can still use the access but are reminded to idle carefully to reach the deeper water.
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IDNR Report
The Winona Lake Preservation Association has received a grant from DNRís Lake and River Enhancement (LARE) program for a project on Winona Lake in Kosciusko County.
The project will include a temporary closure of the public access site and ramp on the northwest side of the lake for about four weeks starting on Sept. 11.
The project involves the removal of sediment that has accumulated over time at sites on Winona Lake. The sediment will be removed by hydraulic methods, and affected areas will be restored to historical depths.†Three areas will be dredged using State and association funds. Extreme caution should be exercised when boating on Winona Lake during the dredging.
During this project, a hydraulic dredge and pump line will be present.†Due to the location of the dewatering basin, pump lines will be located at or near the surface of the lake and may stretch completely across the lake.†The lines should be marked with buoys. Orange buoys mark the only location where lines can be safely crossed by watercraft.†A portion of funding for this project comes from annual LARE fees paid by registered motorboat owners and from the Winona Lake Preservation Association.