Illinois’ Outdoor Calendar
A look at upcoming outdoor-related events from across Illinois published in the Sept. 8, 2023 edition of Illinois Outdoor News.
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September 6, 2023
Illinois Cuffs & Collars: A confession for unlawful dumping in Hancock County
Field reports from Illinois Conservation Police CPOs published in the Sept. 8, 2023 edition of Illinois Outdoor News.
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Histories Forgotten: The 1890s and discovering the wonders of nature
During the 1890s, there was a surge in writings addressing the outdoors and nature. The nation’s conscience had awakened to the idea that more needed to be done to preserve and protect our natural jewels. Four new and powerful voices joined the discourse: John Muir, George Oliver Shields, Charles Sprague Sargent, and Ernest Seton Thompson.
Muir was a driving force behind the establishment of Yosemite National Park and a founding member of the Sierra Club (1892).
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Illinois Mixed Bag: Chippewa campground reopens after 7 years
Kankakee River State Park’s popular Chippewa campground reopened to visitors on Aug. 28 after being closed since 2015.
“Reopening this campground has been a long time coming, and I am thrilled that we’ve reached this moment,” said DNR Director Natalie Phelps Finnie. “Campers who enjoy the Chippewa campground have been waiting patiently for it to reopen, and our staff is excited to welcome them there in time for fall foliage season.”
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Teal hunt provides Illinois duck hunters an early start to the new season
The state’s teal hunters will get their chance when the September teal season opens Sept. 9, with a daily bag limit of six for all teal species combined, with a possession limit of 18.
The season runs through Sept. 24. No major changes are in play for the 2023-24 waterfowl season, which is the third year of a five-year waterfowl season plan that was developed in 2020. The state’s waterfowl zone structure remains in place for now, with potential changes in store for the next five-year season plan.
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Wisconsin State Roundup: Creator of citizen wolf count page on Facebook hopes photos, videos will help DNR track and count wolves
Bear hunters who haven’t heard about a new Facebook page that tracks wolf presence on bear baits might want to search for Wisconsin Citizen Wolf Count. The page was started by Corky Meyer, of Washington County, past president and longtime member of the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation.
By the time this issue appears in your mailbox, the page will have been active about two weeks, but it’s already full of photos and videos of wolves visiting bear baits. Meyer is asking hunters to post the township and county of the bait sites with the idea being that he can then do some sorting and comparing of wolves in the photos and maybe offer the DNR an accounting of wolves.
Commentary: Are Wisconsin gun show privacy protections needed?
Recently a letter mailed from the Wisconsin Department of Revenue (DOR) to gun show organizers around the state has left some show promoters and vendors wondering if strengthened privacy protections for small-table vendors are needed.
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Wisconsin Letters to the Editor: Ah, missing geese mystery in northwest Wisconsin cleared up
Thank you for clearing up the mystery of fewer geese in northwest Wisconsin these days. I had feared that most of the local Canada geese had contracted avian influenza, but recently learned from Wisconsin Outdoor News that they had been killed by the Minnesota DNR, Wisconsin DNR and Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission to grow wild rice in the St. Louis River.
Illegally-introduced walleyes threaten salmon, trout fishery in New York’s Skaneateles Lake
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s war on walleyes in Skaneateles Lake had its start in 2016 when anglers first began reporting catches of the tasty and popular game fish in the Finger Lake.
DEC verified their presence in the lake the following year with a fisheries survey using gill nets, said Emily Zollweg-Horan, senior aquatic biologist at the DEC’s Region 7 office in Cortland.
“It is still unknown who illegally introduced walleye and DEC never authorized a stocking permit,” she said.
Skaneateles Lake, a deep, cold-water lake, has historically been one of the best rainbow trout and Atlantic salmon fisheries in the Finger Lakes.
