CHADRON, Neb. — Among the highlights of Chadron State Park’s centennial celebration June 11-12 will be the opening of its new indoor archery and pellet gun range. The grand opening and ribbon cutting is set for 10 a.m. Saturday, June 12.

Situated between the park’s office and Trading Post activities center, the 3,100-square-foot building will include both 3-D and bulls-eye archery targets, and a five-station pellet gun range with an automated interactive shooting gallery. The facility has a hunting theme with many of the targets simulating game animals of northwestern Nebraska. It is designed to entertain and challenge a wide range of ages and skill levels.

The range has a collection of new compound bows for use, or visitors may bring their own. Usage of the pellet range is limited to the park’s guns, which are powered to match the gallery’s targets.

A fee-based system, which charges visitors to use the shooting complex, will help fund its operation. Range safety officers will be on site to assist visitors. It will be open between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. throughout the summer.

In recent years, the park also has developed an outdoor archery range with two moveable sight-in targets, and a range of nine other stations with an assortment of 3-D targets and bullseyes at various distances. That course, which is located in the southwestern portion of the park, is open during daylight and is free to users.

Nebraska Park Entry permits, which are required for vehicles entering the premises, may be purchased by visiting outdoornebraska.org, the park’s office or other vendors statewide.

Public input sought on proposed Fort Kearny master plan

LINCOLN, Neb. – A master plan is being developed for the Fort Kearny State Recreation Area and State Historical Park; and the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission is seeking public input.

The proposed plan strikes a balance between historic preservation and recreation opportunities for current and future visitors. The public is invited to an in-person open house from 5:30-7 p.m. June 22 in the Event Room at the Archway in Kearney.

The open house will have several stations where the public can provide input on future development of these two park areas. A welcome packet, with information and supplies to participate, will be provided.

Game and Parks follows CDC guidelines that recommend masks for indoor events. Masks will be available.

Located 6 miles south of Kearney, abutted by the Platte River and Interstate 80 corridor, these two sites offer many recreational opportunities. The 243-acre state recreation area offers swimming, fishing, biking, hiking, camping, non-powered boating, Frisbee golf, and Sandhill crane viewing along the hike-bike trail bridges. The 40-acre state historical park educates visitors about the Sandhill crane migration and history of Fort Kearny through living history programs, reconstructions, exhibits and displays.

Learn more about the open house and how to provide input on this plan by visiting outdoornebraska.gov/fortkearny or outdoornebraska.gov/fortkearnysra.

Landowners have until June 23 to enroll in Open Fields and Waters

LINCOLN, Neb. – Private landowners have until June 23 to enroll their land in Open Fields and Waters, a voluntary program in which they can earn additional income for allowing walk-in hunting, trapping and/or fishing access on their properties.

Landowners earn annual, per-acre payments of up to $15, depending on habitat type and location. Additional financial incentives may be available for habitat improvements on enrolled acres.

Game and Parks is seeking to add Conservation Reserve Program, or CRP, fields; Wetland Reserve Program easements; grasslands; woodlands; and fishing access. All properties offering high-quality hunting or fishing opportunities will be considered.

Participating landowners are afforded liability protection through the Nebraska Recreational Liability Act. Game and Parks regularly patrols properties and marks boundaries with Open Fields and Waters signs.

Private landowners interested in enrolling should contact a biologist at their nearest Game and Parks district office or service center; find contact information at OutdoorNebraska.org/Locations.

Enrolled properties appear in the Nebraska Public Access Atlas, available at OutdoorNebraska.org/PublicAccessAtlas. For more information about the program, visit OutdoorNebraska.org/OFW.

Since 2016, more than 138,000 acres have been added to Open Fields and Waters, and current statewide enrollment is at an all-time high. More than 850 private landowners participated in the program in 2020-21, and provided walk-in hunting and fishing opportunities across 372,000-plus land acres, more than 500 acres of ponds and lakes and more than 45 stream miles.

In 2020, Game and Parks received a three-year, Voluntary Public Access – Habitat Improvement Program grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. This grant provides $1 million per year and will allow for the continued expansion of this program over the next few years.

Game and Parks developed Open Fields and Waters in 2009 in an effort to increase public access opportunities on private lands. Nebraska is more than 97 percent privately owned, and obtaining access to private lands continues to be one of the major challenges facing hunters, anglers, and outdoor users.

$6.4M Helmsley Charitable Trust Grant funds life-saving tech for Game and Parks

LINCOLN, Neb. — Every Nebraska Game and Parks Commission conservation officer, as well as its parks facilities, is now equipped with the next generation of automated external defibrillators thanks to The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust.

In an ongoing effort to improve the cardiac system of care in the Upper Midwest, the Trust awarded a grant of $6.4 million to equip every law enforcement agency with the equipment; Game and Parks received 119 of the new AEDs. The grant, facilitated through the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services Division of Public health, also provided training.

“Seconds count during a cardiac arrest,” said Walter Panzirer, a Helmsley trustee. “We know in Nebraska first responders often have great distances to cover. This funding will ensure those who get to the scene before EMS arrives give patients a better shot at survival.”

Studies conducted by the American Heart Association demonstrate a dramatically higher survival rate for cardiac patients shocked by law enforcement, who are generally first on the scene, especially in rural areas. The AEDs selected feature technology conducive to the highly mobile and challenging environment of a patrol vehicle.

For example, the AEDs help ensure rescuers provide the fastest first shock when defibrillation is needed. The devices feature industry-leading analysis technology that reduces pauses during CPR, allowing for improved blood circulation and better odds of survival.

Using Wi-Fi connectivity, these self-monitoring devices also can send near real-time event data, including a patient’s heart rhythm and delivered shocks, to incoming emergency services or receiving hospitals, thus allowing for post-event evaluation to improve care delivery.

“Nebraska conservation officers routinely patrol rural areas and are often the first to respond to medical emergencies in their communities and on state park facilities,” said Travis Shepler, Game and Parks Assistant Administrator for law enforcement. “Thanks to the generosity of the Helmsley Charitable Trust, our officers are now better equipped to respond to cardiac events and potentially save lives.”

Game and Parks conservation officers and parks staff were trained on the new devices in late May, and vehicles and parks’ facilities have been outfitted with the new devices.
AEDs previously used by some agencies will be relocated throughout communities, increasing the number of AEDs accessible to the public.

To date, the Helmsley Charitable Trust has invested more than $500 million to improve access to quality healthcare in rural America, $72 million of that in Nebraska.

About the Helmsley Charitable Trust
The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust aspires to improve lives by supporting exceptional efforts in the U.S. and around the world in health and select place-based initiatives. Since beginning active grantmaking in 2008, Helmsley has committed nearly $3 billion for a wide range of charitable purposes. Helmsley’s Rural Healthcare Program funds innovative projects that use information technologies to connect rural patients to emergency medical care, bring the latest medical therapies to patients in remote areas, and provide state-of-the-art training for rural hospitals and EMS personnel. To date, this program has awarded more than $500 million to organizations and initiatives in the upper Midwest states of North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Wyoming, Minnesota, Iowa, and Montana. For more information, visit www.helmsleytrust.org.

National Marina Day set for July 19 at Lewis and Clark SRA

LINCOLN, Neb. — Lewis and Clark State Recreation Area will be hosting National Marina Day on June 19 at the park near Crofton.

Event highlights include a campsite or cabin marina-themed decorating contest, sandcastle building competition, lure making, fishing, hayrack rides, outdoor games and a fish fry.

The fish fry will be from 6 to 7 p.m. Dinner will cost $12 for ages 13 and up; $6 for ages 4 to 12; and free for those 3 and under.

The campsite or cabin decorating contest, new to the event this year, will be judged Saturday night with prizes going to the best decorated marina-themed space.

Those interested in the friendly sandcastle building contest will compete from 1 to 4 p.m. at the beach. Some tools will be provided, but participants are encouraged to bring tools of their own to build their masterpieces. Prizes will be awarded for first, second and third place in each category. Categories are: 7 and under, 8 to 12, 13 and up, or family.

Other events will include yoga on the beach; fish cleaning demonstrations; a fish touch tank; Yankton Search and Rescue dive demonstration; boat tours; archery; kayaking; sidewalk art chalk; and Crofton Fire and Rescue Department meet and greet.

Find the complete schedule of events in the National Marina Day listing at calendar.outdoornebraska.gov, or pick up a park map and event schedule at the park office on June 19.

June offers ways to celebrate state park system centennial

LINCOLN, Neb. — The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission parks system centennial is in full swing, and June still offers plenty of opportunities to celebrate at state parks across the state.

So hop in the car and hit the road for one of the following opportunities for adventure.

 

Rock Creek Station hosts Ranch Life Saturdays

LINCOLN, Neb. — Travel back in time to the mid-1800s during living history Saturdays at Rock Creek Station State Historical Park in southeast Nebraska.

From 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. June 19, reenactors will bring history to life with period dress, interpretations and demonstrations.

The historical park — one of the Pony Express stations — is on 350 acres of prairie, its creek bottom timber-studded. Deep ruts carved into the earth by wagons traveling the Oregon and California trails remain plainly visible.

The historical park also contains the reconstructed Pony Express barn, bunk house and several cabins, viewable from the 6 miles of hiking and nature trails.

Learn more about the park at outdoornebraska.gov/rockcreekstation. Learn more about the event in the listing at calendar.outdoornebraska.gov.

 

Ponca State Park to host second annual International Mud Day

LINCOLN, Neb. — Get ready to get downright dirty at the second annual International Mud Day from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. June 26 at Ponca State Park in northeast Nebraska.
Participate in the mud obstacle course, mud slide and mud play area; paint with mud; make pollinator mud balls — and, of course, make a mud pie.

Temporary wash stations will be setup for quick cleanup before heading home or back to a campsite.

International Mud Day is celebrated around the world each year in June in an effort celebrate nature, get outside — and get really muddy.

The theme for the Ponca event is “The Mud Washes Off, but the Memories Remain”.
For more information, visit calendar.outdoornebraska.gov.

 

Fort Rob celebrates 100 years of Nebraska parks

LINCOLN, Neb. — Catch equestrian jumpers, reenactors, local crafters and live music at Fort Robinson State Park’s 100 Years of Nebraska Parks celebration June 26.

The event will feature the Fort Market with local crafters from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Buffalo Barracks; equestrian jumping at 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. on the new parade ground; and The Great Plains Garrison reenactors of the Indian Wars era doing a living history demonstration from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on the old parade ground.

An old-fashioned barbecue will be at 6 p.m. on the lawn at the lodge, with hamburgers, baked beans, potato salad, chips and a drink for $9.

Entertainment will include Nashville recording artist Shane Keane of Hemingford and Melvin Leroy Jr. singing country rock and Christian music. Times are yet to be determined and will be posted to the event listing at calendar.outdoornebraska.gov.

Show and Shine Car Show at Indian Cave State Park

LINCOLN, Neb. — The Show and Shine Car Show will return to Indian Cave State Park from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. June 26.

Registration for cars, trucks, tractors and motorcycles will be 9 to 10 a.m.; there is no entrance fee. Awards will be given at 1 p.m.

The event also will feature Hot Wheel Races for little ones at 11 a.m. Participants are invited to bring their own or purchase one at the event for $2.

For more information, visit calendar.outdoornebraska.gov.

Find 100 birds during Nebraska parks centennial year

LINCOLN, Neb. — In honor of 100 years of state parks, the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission is calling on birders to find and identify 100 bird species in its park areas by the end of 2021.

Birders of all experience levels are invited to visit Game and Parks’ state parks, state recreation areas, state historical parks or wildlife management areas to spot birds and log them using eBird or iNaturalist. Both are available online or via mobile app.

Once completed, participants should email their bird list from iNaturalist or ebird to [email protected]. Birds already recorded during May’s Nebraska Bird Month will count toward the Centennial Bird Challenge.

Every participant who submits a qualifying checklist will receive a participation packet and be entered into a raffle drawing for prizes.

To find a list of parks perfect for wildlife watching opportunities, visit OutdoorNebraska.org/BirdingByParkAreas. Find bird identification resources at BirdsOfNebraska.org.