Family-Outdoors

U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt (left) and nature preservationist John MuirPhoto credit: Wikipedia) It has been 100 years since the death of John Muir. A century ago this past Christmas Eve, one of the nation’s most beloved naturalists died from pneumonia in a Los Angeles hospital. Raised on a farm between Montello and Portage, Muir pioneered efforts to create the National Park Service, co-founded the Sierra Club, and authored hundreds of publications. His work inspired a fountain of namesakes on Earth and beyond. Yes, even a main-belt asteroid bears his moniker—128523 Johnmuir. In the decades following his death, Wisconsin served Muir’s legacy proud, rising to become a national leader in environmental protection and natural resource stewardship, delicately balancing these two aims through commonsense, evidence-based solutions. Leaders not only fiercely strove to protect the state’s natural areas but also harness its resource endowments in a measured and sustainable way. Read...

Input sought on what considerations to use in stocking strategy WOODRUFF, Wis. - Public meetings are set for mid-October in Hayward, Rhinelander and Oconomowoc to discuss Wisconsin’s walleye fisheries and get people’s opinions on what considerations the state should use in coming years to decide how to allocate the increased number of large walleye for stocking made possible under the  Wisconsin Walleye Initiative . The Wisconsin Walleye Initiative is boosting production of larger walleye fingerlings, like this one stocked out last week from the Gov. Tommy G. Thompson Fish Hatchery in Spooner. WDNR Photo “There are a lot of lakes that can really benefit from the Wisconsin Walleye Initiative,” says Steve Avelallemant, longtime lead fish supervisor in northern Wisconsin for the Department of Natural Resources. “We want to know what considerations we should use to decide where to stock these larger walleye.” The public meetings are among the initial efforts by DNR’s fisheri...

ADISON – Get Outdoors and Play! Wisconsin State Parks will offer a number of activities at locations around the state as they launch their Family Play Days program in 2011. The play days offerings are part of the ongoing “ Get Outdoors! Wisconsin " promotion designed to provide a wide range of state park-based outdoor activities for families and individuals, all intended to encourage healthy outdoor activity. In all, 17 state parks will offer nature-based recreational programs on either June 5, which is also Free Admission Day for all state parks, or throughout the summer on scheduled weekends. Family Fun Day events are listed under the  Parks, Forest, Trail and Nature Center Events  calendar on the DNR website. Programs include nature art, eco-scavenger hunts, fishing, animal tracks, nature building, wildcard games (wildcards are business-card sized information keys to Wisconsin flora and fauna) and geocaching. Participating parks will have materials available and events wil...