Wisconsin Mixed Bag: Bowhunters Assoc. 84th annual convention hitting Stevens Point March 1 – Outdoor News
Clintonville, Wis. — The Wisconsin Bowhunters Association (WBH) 84h annual convention will take place Saturday, March 1, at the Holiday Inn Hotel and Convention Center in Stevens Point.
The convention kicks off at 8 a.m. with a business meeting, which members are invited to attend. The convention also includes a vendor display hall (9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m), seminars, raffles and games. The public is welcome to attend ($5 admission fee). Scorers will be on hand from Pope and Young and the Wisconsin Buck and Bear Club; the public may bring heads in for scoring.
The convention concludes with the annual awards banquet. Wisconsin bowhunter Dan Evenson is the keynote speaker.
WBH also will be sponsoring a National Archery in the Schools (NASP) tournament during the convention.
“WBH is excited for our 84th annual convention. This is a great opportunity for members to meet and share stories, as we work together to preserve, promote and protect bowhunting for years to come,” WBH President Rich Kirchmeyer said.
WBH is the oldest state bowhunting group in the United States. The WBH office is in Clintonville. For more information, call (715) 823-4670 or visit the website.
MORE COVERAGE FROM WISCONSIN OUTDOOR NEWS:
Wisconsin’s Tom Tiffany authors wolf delisting bill under a new name
Wisconsin Wildlife Federation files appeal on greater prairie chickens’ behalf
Value of Fishing in the Great Lakes Described as ‘Overvalued’ by $2 Billion
Chicago — Recreational fishing in Lake Michigan and the other Great Lakes is worth billions of dollars, but apparently fewer billions than the amount cited for many years.
According to a recent study, recreational fishing in the Great Lakes is worth $5.1 billion. The Great Lakes Fishery Commission hired Southwick Associates to calculate the economic output. The area studied includes sportfishing in the eight Great Lakes states and Ontario. The previous number, compiled by the same firm nearly two decades ago for the American Sportfishing Association, was $7 billion. The Great Lakes Fishery Commission says the number is different primarily because of more robust methodology in the most recent study.
Lester Graham, of the program Great Lakes Now, was critical of the over-valuing of the lakes. On Jan. 22, he wrote in a commentary, “Ever since the $7 billion economic benefit estimate was released, politicians, government agencies, and news outlets have been using that amount without question, or very seldom questioning it even though the number was being used many years after the study was first released – although a reporter with the Great Lakes Echo questioned how the $7 billion figure was being used back in 2010.”
Eau Pleine Reservoir Aerator Starting Up Warrants Unsafe Ice, Open Water Warning
Wausau, Wis. — DNR and Wisconsin Valley Improvement Company (WVIC) personnel began operation of the aerator system in the Eau Pleine Reservoir on Monday, Feb. 10, according to WVIC. The Eau Pleine is a 7,000-acre storage reservoir located in southwest Marathon County. The aerator is located in a narrow stretch of the reservoir adjacent to the Big Eau Pleine County Park.
With the start of the aerator comes public notice to fishermen, snowmobilers, and others traveling on the ice that aerator operation creates unsafe ice conditions and open water. DNR personnel have installed rope barriers set off with flags and reflective signs across the entrances to the area to warn of the danger. Warning signs also have been posted at the boat landings.
The aerator is put into operation to help maintain adequate oxygen levels in the water for the fishery. The start of aerator operation is timed to take advantage of favorable dissolved oxygen (DO) levels and to help maintain those levels for the rest of the winter.
DNR Seeking Volunteer Hunting Mentors
Madison — The DNR is looking for volunteers to help novices of all ages enjoy safe and ethical hunts by sharing knowledge, hunting expertise, enthusiasm, and stories.
Mentors may lead a learn-to-hunt outing or hold a workshop to teach new hunters how to cook meat from harvested game. Mentors often work in a one-on-one setting. Learn about the mentored hunting law on the DNR’s website. This program allows novice hunters to hunt within arm’s reach of a qualified mentor without first completing a hunter education course.
Volunteers may become a classroom instructor or assistant. Local groups usually host a program. Volunteers can ask to lead an educational hunt outside of the regular hunting season, or become a hunter education instructor or assistant. Outdoor skills workshops offer deer-processing skills, safe firearm handling techniques, shooting basics, tips for cooking wild game, and more.
For information, contact Emily Iehl at [email protected] or Logan Planer at [email protected].
DNR has 2-Year-Old Oak Seedlings for Sale
Madison — The DNR has 2-year-old oak seedlings available for purchase from the Wilson State Nursery. The seedlings are available because of a high-quality acorn crop and harvest in 2022. While many 1-year-old seedlings were purchased last year, others were grown for another year, resulting in a bumper crop of 2-year-old seedlings. Four species of native oak trees are available for sale at the nursery: swamp white oak, bur oak, white oak, and red oak.
Wilson State Nursery produces seedlings for reforestation, operating under Wisconsin State Statutes that require DNR seedlings to be produced and used for reforestation purposes – future forest products, wildlife habitat, erosion control and wind mitigation. The minimum order is 300 seedlings.
To buy seedlings, visit the DNR website or contact Carey Skerven at [email protected], or call (715) 424-3700.
