Balancing the interests of the state’s lakes and rivers users is a never-ending challenge, but the state’s wake boat users hit an unseen obstacle earlier this month when the public weighed in on these specialized watercraft. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources held its usual spring hearings on a variety of conservation-related topics, with more than 11,000 residents and non-residents voting online April 10-13 on 76 questions.

Turkey season is just around the corner, but you might not notice with all these lingering spring snowstorms. Conversation in my circle of friends has moved to talk of hunting gobblers in the snow. I try to avoid this in Zone 3 (which includes portions of Shawano County and all of Waupaca County) by applying for the second season (this year, that’s April 26 through May 2).

To the editor: Six minutes.

The results of the COVID-19 pandemic continue to be felt around the world, including here in Wisconsin, where April’s combined Conservation Congress and Department of Natural Resources spring hearings will be held virtually. These hearings give hunters, anglers and other wildlife lovers in all 72 counties the chance to voice their opinions on a number of state fish and wildlife proposed rule changes as well as proposals by America’s only grassroo

Marc Drewek, a weekly outdoors radio show host for more than a dozen years, has an enviable number of big bucks under his belt and still enjoys chasing them with bow, muzzleloader and rifle. Today, he’d rather teach newcomers about hunting through the state’s Learn to Hunt program or on his own. “I was deer hunting when stands were little wooden planks in the trees,” said Drewek, 63, as he spoke to members of the Clintonville Bow Hunters Club on

Chris Lee had a plan, but there was a ticking time bomb of sorts that was putting added pressure on him and thousands of other sturgeon spearers this season. While the rest of us were enjoying record warm temperatures, those spearers on Lake Winnebago and the upriver lakes were sweating for a different reason: The ice their cherished sport depended on was quickly deteriorating. While most spearers want a big fish, especially one in the elite 100-