The Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and Camp Atterbury Joint Maneuver Training Center are offering a Holiday Hunt for deer hunters on Dec. 27-28 on the military base.
Prospective hunt-ers were notified of the hunt drawing through the DNR’s Wild Bulletin E-news in September.
Interested hunters then applied through mid-October on the DNR website.
Hunters may now check online to see if their applications were among those drawn for the hunt.
Camp Atterbury Holiday Deer Hunt drawing results and special hunt instructions have been posted at www.wildlife.IN.gov
Wild edibles workshop Consummate outdoorsmen are considered to be hunters and fishermen, but there is another area of expertise for the man or woman in the woods: Gatherer.
Learning from someone who is an expert on edible plant life is a life lesson to recognize the salad bar Mother Nature offers us constantly. Knowing how to safely take advantage of wild edibles is a valuable skill and really enhances the outdoor experience.
For individuals willing to broaden their horizons in the outdoors, two sessions of a fall season wild edibles workshop will be offered at Harmonie State Park on Nov. 16. The program, designed for adults and children older than 12 in the company of an adult, teaches participants how to safely identify, harvest and prepare some of Indiana’s wild edible plants.
Accompanied by an interpretive naturalist, participants will hike to an area where they can identify and collect edible plants.
After collection, participants will return to a family cabin and use the kitchen to prepare and eat their wild bounty.
Two separate sessions will be held, the first running from 9 a.m.-noon and the second, from 2-5 p.m.
Space is limited to 15 people for each session. Registrants should be sure to state session preference on the registration form.
No gate fee will be charged. Cost for the workshop is a $5 donation per person (regardless of age) for supplies. Interested individuals may obtain a registration form in person at the gate, Nature Center or park office, call 812-682-4821 or 812-682-3658 to have one mailed to them or e-mail a request to awildeman@dnr.IN.gov
The completed form, with payment, should be sent to: Harmonie State Park, 3451 Harmonie State Park Rd., New Harmony, IN 47631.
Workshop participants and other park visitors will have to leave the park shortly after the second session ends. A deer reduction hunt is being held on the property Nov. 17-18, so the park will be closed from Sunday night, Nov. 16, until the morning of Wednesday, Nov. 19.
Hunter chili supper at Raccoon
State Recreation Area On Nov. 14 from 6-8 p.m., Raccoon State Recreation Area property staff will be hosting the annual Hunter Chili Supper at the Raccoon property office.
Come out and eat a bowl of chili, share some stories and play cards on the eve of opening day for firearms deer season; cost is $2 per person for chili, hot chocolate and coffee, and a pop machine is available.
The standard weekend entrance fees of $5 for in-state vehicles and $7 for out-of-state vehicles will be charged. For more information about the event, please call 765-344-1412.
DNR to conduct annual prairie
burn at Hoosier Prairie The DNR plans to complete this fall’s routine controlled burn of Hoosier Prairie Nature Preserve anytime between now and when snow accumulates. The Division of Nature Preserves will set a date for controlled burning when weather conditions are suitable and will notify area news media of the activity the morning of the event.
Because smoke from the controlled burning can create a visual hazard for motorists, local officials will close Main Street between Wiggs Street and Kennedy Avenue during parts of the operation.
The Hoosier Prairie is a large tract maintained by the nature preserves division. It contains prairie, oak savanna and marsh habitats on both sides of Main Street in Griffith, Schereville and Highland.
The DNR conducts the controlled burn each spring and fall in order to preserve the area’s rare prairie/savanna habitat, which requires sunny, open conditions.
Without the fires, trees and plants common to other areas eventually would crowd out and eliminate rare prairie and savanna plants.
Big Long Lake enhancement
project scheduled this fall he Big Long Lake Property Owners Assoc., receiving a grant from the Indiana DNR Division of Fish and Wildlife Lake and River Enhancement (LARE) Section, will begin a lake enhancement project on Big Long Lake in LaGrange County.
The project is scheduled to begin the first week of November and will continue through the end of December.
All project sites will include the removal of sediment accumulated over time. The sediment will be removed by hydraulic methods and areas affected restored back to the historical depths.
There are currently four areas to be dredged using state and association funds.
Beginning on Nov. 3, the DNR public boat ramp on Big Long Lake will be closed for approximately three weeks. The four project areas are:
•From the DNR public access site on Big Long Lake, lake ward until the lake naturally deepens to allow for safe boating
•The two inlets in the Turtle Cove/Marina area in the northwestern corner of the lake
•Small inlet on the west side of the lake
•Timberhurst addition area
During the project, a hydraulic dredge and associated pump line will be present. Due to the location of the dewatering basin, pump lines will be located at or near the surface of the lake, and may stretch completely across the lake.
The lines may or may not be marked. Extreme caution should be exercised when boating on Big Long Lake during the dredging.
Funding for the project comes from a portion of the annual lake and river enhancement fee registered motorboat owner’s pay, and also from the Big Long Lake Property Owners Assoc. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of Farm World.
Readers with questions or comments may contact Jack Spaulding by e-mail at jackspaulding@hughes.net or by writing to him in care of this publication. |
