drought

Here is this week's fishing report for rivers, lakes and streams in Nevada and Northern California. This report is for the week of Aug. 13-20, 2014.

With a hoped-for El Niño "sputtering," scientists Thursday said it's looking less likely that one strong enough to potentially produce a heavy winter and pull the West out of a protracted drought will really occur.

The U.S. Climate Prediction Center released its monthly outlook Thursday, with the forecast lowering the likelihood that an El Niño will establish to about 65 percent, down from an 80 percent chance cited just a month ago.

The month of July ended with the Nevada Department of Wildlife dealing with 20 black bears in the 31 days.

“That is a faster than normal pace,” says NDOW biologist Carl Lackey, “but it is really the calm before the storm with potential nuisance bear activity in western Nevada. This is the time of year that the bears expand their search for food and during that search bears and the activities of people often come in to conflict. August, September and October should be very busy with our bears.”

Fruit trees throughout western Nevada blossom in the spring and will produce ripened fruit in mid-summer. As the fruit develops, the black bears in western Nevada are sure to take notice.

Armed with a sense of smell that is 2,100 times better than a human’s, black bears can tell when it is time to venture down the hill into places like west Reno, Washoe and Pleasant Valleys, Carson City and the western edges of the Carson Valley including Minden, Gardnerville and Genoa.

Here is this week's fishing report for rivers, lakes and streams in Nevada, Northern California and the Sierra. This report is for the week of June 30 through Aug. 5, 2014.

Here is this week's fishing report for rivers, lakes and streams in Nevada and Northern California. This report is for the week of July 23, 2014.

An ancient forest of mature pine trees, standing upright under 100 feet of water in a small lake in the Lake Tahoe Basin, helps scientists as they study how changing climate can affect mountain environments and the communities in them. The trees, discovered and studied by a University of Nevada, Reno, researcher, are remnants of a 200-year-long medieval drought.

The site is a stop on one of the field trips of a four-day international conference on mountain observatories held at the University of Nevada, Reno July 16-19.

Here is this week's fishing report for rivers, lakes and streams in Nevada and Northern California. This report is for the week of July 16, 2014.

July is BEAR Logic Month, a time to teach residents and visitors how to live and recreate in bear county. As many of you already know, securing trash is the best way to prevent human-bear conflicts.

What many people don’t know is that they may be living or recreating in bear habitat. As drought conditions persist, bears continue to move into more urban environments.

Now that we are at that time of the year that I hate (daytime temperatures near, at or over 100 degrees), my thoughts drift off to hiking and fishing for trout at higher altitudes where it is cooler than here in Carson City.
When our local summer temperatures are over 80 degrees, it is miserably hot – hot – hot for this poor, sweltering soul.

Here is this week's fishing report for rivers, lakes and streams in Nevada, northern California and the Sierra. This report is for the week of July 9-15, 2014.

Two female black bears, captured in Incline Village Tuesday, were safely released into the Lake Tahoe backcountry Wednesday by the Nevada Department of Wildlife.

UPDATE: Carson City Supervisors agreed Thursday to opt in on Nevada's medical marijuana law regarding establishments of dispensaries and facilities. The board voted 4 to 1 in favor of zoning changes that allow for medical marijuana establishments in zoned areas. Go here for the full story.

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The second reading of a proposed zoning ordinance allowing for marijuana dispensaries and facilities for cultivation, production and testing will go before the Carson City Board of Supervisors on Thursday during an evening session.

Here is the fishing report for rivers, lakes and streams in Nevada, northern California and the Sierra for the July 4 holiday weekend. Saturday, July 5 is free fishing day in California, which means anyone can fish without a license.

Today, July 1 marked the beginning of Bear Logic Month in Nevada and the bears quickly illustrated the reason why the special month to promote bear awareness in Nevada is needed.

Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval has declared July BEAR Logic Month. BEAR stands for Bear Education, Aversion and Research, and BEAR Logic Month is an opportunity to help educate the public about living in bear country.

Fire restrictions go into effect in the Lake Tahoe Basin beginning today, Thursday, June 26. Campfires and charcoal barbecues will be restricted to designated recreation sites, and other fire-related activities will be prohibited until the end of fire season.

“With record drought conditions in the West, agencies in both California and Nevada are anticipating increased fire activity,” said Fire Management Officer, Kit Bailey. “Fire restrictions help reduce the possibility of accidental human caused fires.”

On National Forest System land fire restrictions mean:

RENO — Lingering drought is taking a toll on wildlife across Northern Nevada, shrinking deer herds on the high desert, drying up fisheries in the valleys and starting to push everything from bears to snakes into urban areas they normally don’t frequent.

Last week, I wrote about the strong possibility of poor fishing this summer due to our prolonged drought period.
In addition to the possibility of poor fishing, be aware of the ever-increasing, serious fire danger surrounding us because of our current long daylight hours, hot weather, gusty afternoon winds, low humidity, bone-dry vegetation and dumb acts by humans. Not a good combination.

Here is the latest fishing report for rivers, lakes and streams in Nevada, Northern California and the Sierra. This report is for the week of June 18-24, 2014.

With July just around the corner, unless something dramatic and unforeseen happens in the future, 2014 has all the earmarks of being a very poor fishing summer because of our ongoing drought.

Our sparse Sierra Nevada snowpack from last winter is gone, the spring run-off was almost non-existent, and that is bad news for fishing this summer in our streams, creeks, rivers, ponds, lakes and reservoirs.

Here is the latest fishing report for rivers, lakes and streams in Nevada, Northern California and the Sierra. This report is for the week of June 4-10, 2014.

A group of horseback riders who left from Elko on Memorial Day arrived Friday in Carson City to present Gov. Sandoval with a petition regarding the BLM and its position on grazing reductions on federal lands and the closure of an allotment in Lander County.

Sandoval met with about 40 ranchers and told them he would make sure their concerns were heard by top brass at the BLM. Many said they were concerned about ongoing allotment reductions throughout Nevada, including those in the Battle Mountain District.

RENO — The U.S. Bureau of Land Management has agreed to let ranchers continue grazing cattle and sheep on more than 300 square miles of Northern Nevada rangeland as long as lingering drought conditions don’t worsen.

Fire restrictions will begin Friday on public land throughout western Nevada, eastern California and the Sierra, according to the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management.

Below-average precipitation this winter and spring and a third consecutive year of drought have led to abnormally low soil-and-fuel moistures, increasing the potential for large and potentially devastating wildfires, the agencies announced.

With record drought conditions in the West, the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency Governing Board underscored its commitment to improving forest health and protecting Lake Tahoe communities from wildfire Wednesday by adopting a resolution supporting the 2014 Lake Tahoe Wildfire Awareness Month and giving special recognition to two departing Lake Tahoe fire chiefs at its meeting in Kings Beach, Calif.

Here is this week's fishing report for rivers, lakes and streams in Nevada, Northern California and the Sierra. This report is for the week of May 28, 2014.

Here is this week's fishing report for rivers, lakes and streams in Nevada, Northern California and the Sierra. This Memorial Day weekend report is for the week of May 21-27, 2014.

It was the opening round of playoff action Tuesday for the Carson High Senators up against the Reno Huskies. Reno came in as the heavy favorite with an impressive 21-1 record versus Carson’s 10-12 record.

Things took a slow start for the Carson City offense going one, two, and three to start the game. Reno, however, took no time warming up after scoring two runs in the bottom of the first after a couple of base hits, a wild pitch and an error by Carson’s center fielder TJ Thomson.

Western Nevada College pulled off a rare triple play and executed three double plays, but it wasn’t enough to prevent College of Southern Idaho from ending its hopes of hosting the Region 18 Tournament next week.

Kolton Brost became the first pitcher to shut out the Wildcats this season, blanking the Wildcats on four hits and striking out 11 as the Golden Eagles carved out a 5-0 Scenic West Athletic Conference baseball victory on Friday in Twin Falls, Idaho.