CASPER, Wyo. — The Wyoming Game and Fish Commission approved 2024 hunting seasons during its April meeting, according to a Monday, April 22 announcement. Wyoming Game and Fish provides an online “Wyoming Hunt Planner” to help both residents and non-residents plan hunts for species such as antelope, elk, deer, moose and bison. It will be updated with […]
Outdoors
Posted inWyoming Game and Fish Department
Game and Fish collaborates with Women’s Correctional Center to stock community fisheries with catfish
By Breanna Ball, Wyoming Game and Fish CHEYENNE, Wyo. — The Wyoming Game and Fish Department partnered with the State of Wyoming Women’s Correctional Center in Lusk in mid-April to stock large channel catfish raised at the Center’s aquaculture facility. The aquaculture facility was created in 2007 and has reared catfish for stocking around the […]
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BLM conservation rule likely to survive challenges, advocates say
by Angus M. Thuermer Jr., WyoFile A federal rule to put conservation on par with extractive industries will not be subject to the Congressional Review Act that could allow it to be easily overturned, a U.S. representative from New Mexico said Monday. The Bureau of Land Management has drawn criticism from Wyoming’s governor, its D.C. delegation, […]
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Using insect repellent among state health dept. tips to avoid ticks this year
CASPER, Wyo. — The season of the tick is almost upon Wyoming, and the state’s health department is offering tips to help avoid bites and the diseases that come with them. Courtney Tillman, an epidemiologist with the Wyoming Department of Health, said past records show people typically start seeking medical help due to tick bites […]
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Carefree in a car-free Yellowstone: Cyclists tour park without dodging vehicles
By Angus M. Thuermer Jr. Each spring, cyclists watch Yellowstone weather closely hoping for clear skies that might allow a 46-mile ride through nature without worrying about noisy, charging motor vehicles. Park crews plow snow from the road between the West Yellowstone and Mammoth entrances, then before the route opens to vehicles, hundreds of cyclists swarm […]
Posted inWyoming
Major road construction coming to Yellowstone this summer
MAMMOTH HOT SPRINGS, Wyo. — Multiple road works projects are slated for Yellowstone National Park this summer, the park announced in a press release on Thursday. Two bridges within the park — the Lewis River Bridge and the Yellowstone River Bridge — will be replaced. Along with new bridge structures, both areas will get other […]
Posted inCommunity
Company behind controversial gravel mine pledges to curtail impacts, replace water
By Dustin Bleizeffer The much-maligned company exploring a potential gravel mining operation at the base of Casper Mountain is moving forward with its highly controversial plans that nearby residents and recreationalists say would spoil the area, while offering a long list of commitments in hopes to assuage public concerns. Prism Logistics LLC will consider drilling deep […]
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Hooking injuries taking toll on North Platte fishing
by Christine Peterson, WyoFile The results from a recent study surprised even Matt Hahn, a biologist who has been monitoring fish in the North Platte River for nearly two decades. Almost a quarter of the river’s trout are seriously injured from fishing hooks, the Wyoming Game and Fish Department found after years studying fish in popular […]
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Steep penalties prove ineffective at deterring elk antler heists in Jackson Hole
by Mike Koshmrl, WyoFile It was the evening before the opener of the 2021 shed antler hunting season, and two U.S. Forest Service law enforcement officers could see the flames from a campfire flicker in a closed zone a quarter mile away. At just after 9 p.m., they approached the illegal firestarter, who was setting up […]
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Federal outdoor rec bill that protects wilderness climbing advances
by Katie Klingsporn, WyoFile Federal legislation that would preserve the practice of installing permanent climbing anchors in the wilderness — an activity that has long divided recreation advocates and conservationists — passed the U.S. House of Representatives last week. The Expanding Public Lands Outdoor Recreation Experiences Act, known as the EXPLORE Act, is a package of more than […]
Posted inAnimals
Environmental groups sue over feds’ decision not to restore protections for Northern Rockies wolves
Plaintiffs argue wildlife officials relied on ‘unfounded assumptions’ and ‘flawed’ population models in a February 2023 finding that wolves in the Northern Rockies are not facing an extinction threat.
Posted inLatest News
Sublette County Sheriff investigates wolf incident amid public outcry
CHEYENNE, Wyo. — The Sublette County Sheriff’s Office confirmed it is investigating a wolf-related incident that took place on Feb. 29. The case, initially managed by the Wyoming Game and Fish Department due to its wildlife nature, gained significant attention after going viral last week, according to a press release by the Sublette County Sheriff’s […]
Posted inCity
Casper Mountain slash pile burn planned for April 13
CASPER, Wyo. — The Casper Mountain Fire District’s annual slash pile burning is slated for 8:30 a.m. Saturday, April 13. The annual burn will be on Tower Hill, northeast of Bear Trap Meadow, a district announcement states. “This annual event assists in the training of Casper Mountain Fire Fighters, checks equipment, as well as mitigates […]
Posted inOutdoors
Hunting bighorn sheep ewes to save the herd
Few hunting experiences are as rugged, challenging and elusive as stalking a bighorn sheep. Interested Wyoming residents typically wait decades, if not even a lifetime, before drawing a ram license in their home state. Sheep herds are relatively small, scattered and found in remote, challenging terrain compared to pronghorn, deer or even elk. And the […]
Posted inAnimals
Wyoming cites law to justify secrecy about wolf’s alleged torture, but it may not apply
Wyoming wildlife officials on Thursday released their first public statement about a wolf that was illegally taken captive and then subjected to alleged abuses that have generated outrage around the world. The statement from the Wyoming Game and Fish Department stretched for only six sentences and included no names, dates or locations. The brevity and […]
Posted inCommunity
State wants Casper Mountain gravel mine developer to ‘relinquish’ rights in light of opposition
The Wyoming Board of Land Commissioners on Thursday voted unanimously to explore how the state might negotiate with a gravel mining company to voluntarily “relinquish” leases that allow it to pursue a mining project at the base of Casper Mountain and possibly compensate the developer for fees already paid to the state. How much the […]
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Wyoming officials set to decide fate of contentious Dayton land swap
by Angus M. Thuermer Jr., WyoFile Armed with an updated appraisal, Wyoming officials are set to decide the fate of a contentious 1,188-acre land exchange near Dayton that the public overwhelmingly opposes and calls unfair and even contrary to state law. The Columbus Peak Ranch land exchange would see the state swap its wildlife- and scenery-rich […]
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Highway crossing threatens unique pronghorn herd
In the rolling sagebrush flats east of Cody roams one of the most unusual pronghorn herds in the world, but rarity doesn’t spare its members from a familiar threat of the modern world. Most antelope — sinewy creatures able to run faster than any North American land mammal — spend winters and summers in the […]
Posted inLatest News
Casper City Council accepts $700K grant for urban forest
CASPER, Wyo. — On Tuesday, the Casper City Council accepted a sub-grant from the National Arbor Day Foundation of $699,900 to be spent over four years to improve Casper’s urban forest. The grant acceptance was among the 10 items on the consent resolutions list. One year ago, the city learned the U.S. Forest Service in […]
Posted inWyoming
Public invited to Game and Fish Commission meeting on 2024 hunting season
CHEYENNE, Wyo. — The Wyoming Game and Fish Commission’s next meeting is April 16–17 in Riverton. The meeting will be at the Holiday Inn, 900 E. Sunset Drive. The public is invited to attend in person or online via Zoom and will have a chance to speak to the commission on any matter. The commission’s […]
Posted inOutdoors
Shed hunting season arrives for some parts of state
CHEYENNE, Wyo. — It’s springtime, and shed and horn hunting has officially kicked off for antler enthusiasts. Before venturing out, though, people should be sure to know which lands are open. Many sections of public lands, state lands and wildlife habitat management areas in western and southern Wyoming remain closed to shed antler and horn […]
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Wyoming Game and Fish Information and Education Specialist Mark Gocke retires after 33 years
JACKSON, Wyo. — After 33 years with the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, Jackson-Pinedale Regional Information and Education Specialist Mark Gocke recently retired. Gocke began his Game and Fish career as a habitat extension biologist on April 1, 1991. He was one of two biologists hired to launch the new Habitat Extension Program, a partnership […]
Posted inCommunity
Volunteers needed to help pull off growing Visit Casper Marathon
CASPER, Wyo. — The Casper Marathon, rebranded with a Visit Casper partnership two years ago, returns for its 21st year on June 2, 2024. Organizers are still in need of well over a hundred volunteers to help pull it off. There is a new route this year with the construction on the F Street Bridge. […]