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SJCP Report
St. Joseph County Parks will implement a deer management program at Spicer Lake Nature Preserve in New Carlisle, Indiana this November.
The deer management hunts will take place November 15 and 16, November 22 and 23 and December 6 and 7. Spicer Lake Nature Preserve will be closed to the public on those dates. To emphasize deer population reduction, the management program will be an antlerless hunt.
Five hunters (including one alternate) will be selected by lottery for the following above dates to participate. Hunters must possess a valid multi-season antlerless license. Applications for the lottery will be available on the St. Joseph County Parks web site. The deadline for applications is October 11. Participants must attend a mandatory meeting with IDNR Conservation Officer and park staff. The meeting is scheduled for Wednesday October 29 at 6pm at the Spicer Lake Nature Center.
In addition to being a county park, Spicer Lake is also a state dedicated nature preserve, a classification given to high quality ecosystems. Review and approval for the deer management program was required by the Division of Nature Preserves of the IDNR.
More information and Hunter Application Forms are available at www.sjcparks.org.
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IDNR Report
Indiana’s final Free Fishing Day of 2025 is Saturday, Sept. 27, so mark your calendars!
While there are no licenses or stamps required on Free Fishing Days, all regulations, such as seasons, bag limits, and size limits, still apply.
These special days offer Indiana residents only the opportunity to try fishing for the first time without having to purchase a fishing license or trout/salmon stamps.
If you already have your annual fishing license, this is a perfect opportunity to take friends and family fishing who haven’t gone before. Additionally, you can plan a fishing trip with the click of a button using DNR’s new Fishing Trip Planner. After answering a few questions about your trip preferences, the planner charts your course and does the work for you.
Not sure where to go fishing? Check out the Where To Fish map and find your new favorite fishing spot.
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IDNR Report
A swamp chestnut oak tree in Jennings County has been recognized as the largest of the species in the country by the National Champion Tree program, with a height of 95 feet, a circumference of 318 inches, and a canopy spread of 118 feet.
The record swamp chestnut oak is on the family farm owned by Richard and Kris Schepman outside of Crothersville. Today, Governor Mike Braun and Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR) leaders presented the Schepmans with a certificate recognizing their family’s stewardship of this impressive tree.
“Over the last century, Indiana’s forested land has substantially grown as a result of Hoosiers’ conservation work and responsible stewardship,” said Governor Braun. “The Schepman family and private landowners across the state deserve high praise for their commitment to growing healthy trees like this giant in Jennings County, which I hope continues to stand tall for generations of future Hoosiers to enjoy.”
The DNR Division of Forestry, which maintains a list of Indiana’s largest known tree of each of the state’s native species, notified the national program of the tree, and its record score of 442.5, which is the tree’s height (feet), circumference (inches), and canopy spread (feet, multiplied by 0.25) added together.
According to the U.S. Forest Service, the swamp chestnut oak is native to “the Atlantic Coastal Plain from New Jersey and extreme eastern Pennsylvania, south to north Florida, and west to east Texas; it is found north in the Mississippi River Valley to extreme southeast Oklahoma, Arkansas, southeastern Missouri, southern Illinois, southern Indiana, and locally to southeast Kentucky and eastern Tennessee.”
The tree is on private property, so it is not available for public viewing.
Indiana’s current state champion trees, which are updated when a notification of a larger tree is received, are posted at on.IN.gov/big-tree, where you can also learn how to measure trees and enter those you think may qualify.
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IDNR Report
The Indiana DNR announced that organizations in 12 Indiana counties will receive $1,324,000 in grants to fund 18 lake, river, and watershed land treatment projects through DNR’s Lake and River Enhancement (LARE) program. Funded projects are in LaGrange, Montgomery, Kosciusko, Owen, Marion, Elkhart, Starke, Dekalb, Randolph, Fountain, Jennings, and Gibson counties.
For a list of lakes in northern Indiana to be funded for treatments, click here.
The grants are funded through the LARE fee paid annually by boat owners when they register their craft with the Bureau of Motor Vehicles. This user-funded program benefits boaters all over the state. The grants allow for the completion of projects that would be difficult for local organizations to fund on their own. Grants are awarded on a competitive basis, and local sponsors share at least 20% of the cost.
This round of grant-funded projects will benefit eight lakes and 11 rivers and streams, with some projects benefiting more than one lake. In addition, two land-based projects associated with watershed land treatment practices have been funded in coordination with local Soil and Water Conservation Districts.
Many of the projects aim to improve water quality by reducing sediment and nutrient inputs. Improved water quality helps fish and wildlife populations and improves recreational opportunities.
The projects, listed by body of water, county, project type, and grant award, can be found at lare.dnr.IN.gov.
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IDNR Report
Public access to Hudson Lake has been restored after completion of the dredging of a navigation channel from the boat ramp to the lake. The ramp had been closed since mid-July.
The project, funded by the Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Lake and River Enhancement (LARE) program and Hudson Lake Conservation Association, hydraulically pumped sediment from the access channel to an upland area on the northwest end of the lake.
For more information on the LARE program and its current projects, please see lare.dnr.IN.gov. Find more information on public access sites at on.IN.gov/adopt-a-ramp.