natural

By the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation
This is a final reminder that amateur and professional elk callers from across the United States will converge on Reno for the RMEF/Leupold World Elk Calling Championships, March 4-5, 2011.


Preliminary rounds begin March 4 at 9:00 a.m., and championship rounds begin March 5 at 9:00 a.m., at the Reno/Sparks Convention Center.
The championships are a centerpiece of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation’s annual Elk Camp & Hunting, Fishing and Outdoor Expo.

The U.S. Forest Service Region 5 has named Nancy Gibson as the new Forest Supervisor for the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit.

Gibson has been the Deputy Forest Supervisor on the Six Rivers National Forest for nearly three years. Previously, she served as the Administrative Officer on the Klamath National Forest. She also served as Acting Forest Supervisor on the Mendocino National Forest in 2009. Gibson holds a bachelor's degree in Business Administration from Southern Oregon University.

Zeb Hogan swims with the fishes and lives to write about it. In the March 2011 issue of National Geographic, the University of Nevada, Reno researcher and assistant professor is pictured swimming with a man-eating catfish and describes swimming underwater with a 400-pound Mekong giant catfish in one of his many adventures in the rivers of a dozen countries around the world.

Courtesy of GrandViewOutdoors.com
A small herd of elk roaming southern Allamakee County in Iowa is causing an uproar.

Jim Jansen with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources told the Cedar Rapids Gazette that the state has shot some of the elk and there are plans to take down the rest.

But several residents think the state should consider allowing the elk to roam free and re-establishing Iowa's wild elk population.

Tim Mason of rural McGregor says the animals should be nurtured, not shot.

By the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation
This is a reminder that amateur and professional elk callers from across the United States will converge on Reno for the RMEF/Leupold World Elk Calling Championships, March 4-5, 2011.
Preliminary rounds begin March 4 at 9:00 a.m., and championship rounds begin March 5 at 9:00 a.m., at the Reno/Sparks Convention Center.
The championships are a centerpiece of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation’s annual Elk Camp & Hunting, Fishing and Outdoor Expo.

RENO, Nev. –The 2011 edition of Who's Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges will include the names of 15 students from the University of Nevada, Reno, who have been selected as national outstanding campus leaders.

Students were selected on their academic achievement, service to community, leadership in extracurricular activities and potential for continued success.

They join an elite group of students from more than 2,300 institutions of higher learning in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and several foreign nations.

The students selected from Nevada are:

By Sean Whaley / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – Freshman Republican state Sen. Michael Roberson got a lot of people’s attention last week when he engaged in a brief but spirited line of questioning at a Judiciary Committee hearing with mining industry lobbyists.

Here is the Fishing Report for the week of Feb. 16-23:

ALMANOR LAKE, CALIF:
Shasta Cascade Wonderland Association (530) 365-7500 www.shastacascade.com reported:
Current water surface temperatures are at 35.5 degrees with water clarity at 7.5 feet. It has been sunny all week as forecasted. With the afternoon highs moving into mid to low 50s, and more sunshine is on the way, with the next possibility of some rain near mid week.

By the California Department of Fish and Game
The public is invited to testify at an upcoming public meeting about salmon populations and the 2011 ocean and river salmon fisheries.

The 2011 Salmon Information Meeting, sponsored by the California Department of Fish and Game (DFG), will be held March 1 from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the Sonoma County Water Agency Building located at 404 Aviation Boulevard in Santa Rosa.

By GrandViewOutdoors.com
A federal agency has announced $23 million to protect grasslands in Wyoming, Colorado and Montana for sage grouse, a chicken-sized bird whose males are known for flashy mating displays.

It would be offered as matching funds, with state, local and tribal governments or non-government agencies providing the other $23 million.

By The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation
Amateur and professional elk callers from across the United States will converge on Reno for the RMEF/Leupold World Elk Calling Championships, March 4-5, 2011.


Preliminary rounds begin March 4 at 9:00 a.m., and championship rounds begin March 5 at 9:00 a.m., at the Reno/Sparks Convention Center.
The championships are a centerpiece of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation’s annual Elk Camp & Hunting, Fishing and Outdoor Expo.

By the California Department of Fish and Game
Southern sea otters recently passed two grim milestones, report wildlife officials, demonstrating that the threatened marine mammal is not faring well in California waters.

According to a preliminary summary, 2010 broke the record for the number of southern sea otter carcasses recovered in one year, with a total of 304.

Here is the greater Northern Nevada, Lake Tahoe, Cascade and Northern California fishing report through Feb. 16, 2011.

BLUE LAKES AREA, CALIF:
Dave Kirby of the Woodfords Station (866) 694-2930 www.woodfordsstation.com reported: The road is closed for the winter.

CAPLES LAKE, CALIF:
John Voss of the Caples Lake Resort (209) 258-8888

This Saturday, Feb. 12, is the opening day of the 2011 fishing seasons for the following waters in Lyon County:

— The Fort Churchill Cooling Ponds, near Wabuska.
— Applicable open waters (Bass Pond, Beaver Slough, Crappie Pond, Hinkson Slough, North Pond and the Walker River), all on the Mason Valley Wildlife Management Area (MVWMA), near Yerington.

All of the waters listed above will close on Sept. 30. If you are interested in fishing at any of those waters on Opening Day, here is some miscellaneous information:

Fort Churchill Cooling Ponds:

About 3.5 miles of frontage that amounts to 419 acres along the Carson River corridor was sealed into protection thanks to the voter-approved Question 1 initiative and Carson City's own Question 18 Quality of Life Initiative.

A partnership for the purchase, appraised at $3.1 million, was created between Carson City, the Nevada Land Conservancy, the Commission for the Reconstruction of the V&T Railway and private landowner John Serpa.

Businessman and radio host Herman Cain stopped in Las Vegas last week as part of his preparation for a possible presidential run in 2012. The Republican is the first potential candidate so far to have created an exploratory committee, often the first step for those who hope to win their party’s nomination.
Cain has been traveling the country and testing the waters, generally eschewing large events with significant media coverage in favor of intimate settings with the conservative activists and Tea Party groups that constitute much of the GOP base.

Steve Robinson, a deputy chief of staff and legislative director for former Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons and previously the state's top forestry and fire official, has been appointed to the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency governing board.

“As a former at-large board member myself, I know Steve Robinson’s experience as a natural resource consultant will be invaluable to the TRPA,” said Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval. “Lake Tahoe is one of our most precious state and national treasures, so it is important to me that Nevada has a strong voice on the TRPA.”

Carl Kuhl, a state Parole and Probation employee of six years, has created a plan that he claims will eliminate Nevada's budget deficit within two years.

In a news release issued on Tuesday, Kuhl said his plan not only will reduce the budget deficit but also help repair Nevada's economy at the same time. It is a pretty big claim, he admits, coming from an Accounting Assistant I, an entry level position.

CARSON CITY – In the wake of a legislative audit critical of state agency contracting practices with current and former employees, the Nevada Department of Conservation and Natural Resources has posted its information online.
Bob Conrad, public information officer for the department, said the contract information was placed on the agency’s website on Dec. 29.

While newly sworn-in Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval hasn't yet named his appointee to the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, before he left office, appointed Ronald Slaven to the governing board.

Ronald Slaven, 47, of Carmichael, Calif., has been appointed to the TRPA, where he previously served as a member from 2001 to 2004.

Good news for Carson City NV Energy customers. The Public Utilities Commission of Nevada has approved an overall decrease in electric rates for NV Energy’s Northern Nevada electric customers effective Saturday, Jan. 1.

For the typical residential customer using 745 kilowatt hours of electricity per month, it means a decrease of approximately 1.8 percent or $1.57 per month from $87.97 to $86.40.

A new group has formed to propose innovative strategies to create a healthy State with well-supported public systems and services and an improved fiscal system.

Members of the Nevada Values Coalition have met twice for “big tent”, nonpartisan meetings to discuss the complex issues, and members then further examined ideas through subcommittees.

The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency Governing Board has agreed to appeal to the 9th Circuit District Court a September federal district court ruling that struck down updated ordinances for the shorezone of Lake Tahoe, according to its website.

On Friday, Dec. 17th Fox and Hound will host Moment Skis and Life More Natural for the premiere of Level 1’s Eye Trip, a worldwide documentation of ski action as you’ve never seen it presented before. Skiing’s counterculture continues to buck the trends of what’s come before them. In addition, the night serves as a benefit for LMN’s Tahoe to Tanzania solar project for Reno/Tahoe youth. Time to get hyped for the season in South Lake Tahoe!

RENO, Nev. — Gary Blomquist, a professor at the University of Nevada, Reno, has won the Entomological Society of America’s prestigious Recognition Award in Insect Physiology, Biochemistry and Toxicology. He was honored at the Society’s annual meeting in San Diego Sunday.

By Sean Whaley / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – Gov.-elect Brian Sandoval today announced two more appointments to his administration, naming Stacey Crowley as director of the Nevada State Office of Energy.
Sandoval also named Leo Drozdoff as director of Conservation and Natural Resources.
Sandoval will take office in January.

By Sean Whaley / Nevada News Bureau

photo © 2010 Rick Cooper | more info (via: Wylio)

So now it seems we will be able to shoot bears for sport in Nevada.

And as usual, both sides in this debate trotted out rationale that makes no sense.

A year-round supply of fresh leafy greens and other nutritious foods has been the wish of Penny Reynolds, culinary arts director for Carson High School. And now those hopes will soon come to be as The Greenhouse Project, a community-based greenhouse and garden, takes root in Carson City.

A ground-breaking ceremony held on Friday marks the beginning of a project that many believe will be a model for Carson City, the state of Nevada and the nation. Construction will begin next week.

A handful of Lake Tahoe ski resorts prepare to open for the season this weekend thanks to an early snowfall, snowmaking guns and a fairly large storm set to punch the Sierra.

Around a foot or more of natural snow across the Sierra earlier this month certainly helped get things moving. With this weekend's anticipated storm, which may bring anywhere from 2-4 feet of snow to the Sierra, resorts should get a nice healthy boost just in time for the holiday season.

Here's what we know: