Ross Bielema 10 May 2022

Saving today’s youth from Nature-Deficit Disorder

I once took a birding class when I was an English major at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale. On the first day, my jaw sank when the professor explained that this class would not be a field course as I had hoped. Instead, we would study the skins of dead birds for a semester. You’ll never see a Cassin’s auklet or an Antarctic petrel in Shawano County, but I held their preserved skins in my hand.
Ross Bielema 22 April 2022
Turkey hunter now mentors kids and veterans
Terry Dorschner isn’t exactly sure how many turkeys he’s shot over the years, but he hasn’t shot any since 2015. It’s not that his luck has run out. Quite the contrary. He just gets more fun out of helping others bag a big tom. He’s shot plenty of big gobblers, including one that weighed 30 pounds.
Ross Bielema 7 April 2022
Battery-powered bikes boost mileage, fun
I sat on the comfy padded seat of the UBCO Adventure 2x2 electric motorcycle and listened to Valley Snowmobile and Powersports owner Lon Tesch explain how to ride it. Once a button on the handlebar is pushed, it’s “in gear,” even though it doesn’t have gears.
Ross Bielema 31 July 2019
Accept efficiency of crossbows and stop infighting
Have you been shooting your bow or crossbow yet? July slipped away amid a series of rock concerts and a major windstorm. Like Dorothy, I awoke from my dream and discovered I had landed at home, although it was now August. The archery opener is now about six weeks away. I’m a sucker for outdoors magazines, and when picking up a few groceries at Festival Foods, I had to stop at the magazine stand.
Ross Bielema 30 May 2019
Fish, hike and ride ATV trails for free this weekend
Why is something free so much better than the same things for a small cost? If you are having a yard sale, people might ignore your dime and quarter items, but they’ll flock to the free table or box. At my workplace, we have a large table near the employee entrance that is called the Free Table.
Ross Bielema 30 November 2018
State sets record for three fatality-free firearms deer seasons
Wisconsin’s 576,000 gun-deer hunters participated in one of the safest seasons on record, with just three minor hunting-related injuries reported statewide. This was the third season in a row with no fatalities, a record in the state’s long deer hunting legacy. Hunters bagged 211,430 deer during the nine-day season, up 7 percent from last season, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources reported.
Ross Bielema 14 November 2018
Be mindful of CWD this season
You can do your part to stop the spread of Chronic Wasting Disease this season by having your deer tested, particularly if it has shown signs of the disease. Use this link to find a registration station in your hunting area: dnr.wi.gov/wmcwd/RegStation/Search All the testing stations in Shawano, Oconto and Waupaca counties are self-service kiosks.
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