KIDS FISHING DERBY on Saturday, June 25th was a big hit, again, for the 150 attendees plus dedicated volunteers. The weather was perfect, no rain like last year. The fish cooperated. Kids caught lots of bullheads of all sizes and brought them to the official scale tent for weight. And the results were: In the girls division … largest bullhead was 14 ounces caught by Taylor Doser. The smallest fish was a little finny critter barely registering on the scale at 0.4 ounces.

In the boys division … largest fish was 13.4 ounces by Drew Gartin. However, to determine his place, a fish-off was held due to a tie. Two fish at 13.4 ounces were submitted. Skylar Edwards also reeled in a 13.4 ouncer. To break the tie, the fish-off contest was determined by the largest the boys could bring in for a tie break. Drew caught a 5.45 ouncer, and Skylar’s fish was 2.85 ounces. Drew was declared the winner.

Boys smallest fish was from Dejan Milic at 0.5 ounces. Everyone in any winner category got a prize. And in addition, random ticket draws during the derby announced winners for fishing related tackle. Those prizes were obtained by Bob Johnson, Dorie Tammen, Chuck and Pam Strobbe, Ed Morre and others. The Bait Shop and Theisens were contributors. Additional thanks go out to the staff of Riverside Cemetery Dorie Tammen, Larry Messer, Davey Messer, Sam Brenneck, Jay Carollo and Mel Pitzen. Izaak Walton volunteers were the Strobbe’s, Ed Morre, Ed Morrison, Bruce Vopava, Clay Jensen, Larry Runneals, Rick Dolash, Jerry Roakowicz, Garry Brandenburg and Nancy Hookie.

If you want to see more kid fishing derby related images, go the Riverside Cemetery’s Facebook page. It proves how an easy access pond close to people can and did draw lots of people out to enjoy fishing. Now that these kids have a taste for what fishing is like, hopefully they will be able to persuade parents or grandparents to “please take me fishing.” Outdoor activities in a sizzling summer can be fun. And kids like to have fun.

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Tomorrow is the holiday July 4. So this weekend is a long one for many people who do not have to go to work on Monday. There will be memorial services at numerous places. There will be picnics with family and friends. And there will be fireworks displays come evening time. For whichever choice of activities suits your fancy, have fun. Statewide in Iowa State parks, and County Parks, thousands of visitors and campers have filled cabins, tent sites and shelter houses for gatherings of friends. And the weather was pretty good for all who ventured out.

If one totals up all of Iowa’s 19 state parks, you will find more than 90 family cabins, multi-family cabins, camping cabins or yurts alternatives. In addition, traditional RV sites or tent sites fill lots of spaces. Many camping sites have been reserved through the DNR’s system for doing so. But there always are sites left for a first-come, first-served basis. There are even some hike into sites, or paddle to sites (Lake Red Rock for example), with no traditional road access. And if the river flow is low enough, and forecast to stay low, sandbar tent camping will work also.

Camping sites as far out as Labor Day are now being reserved where reservations are taken. It is not too early to plan ahead. By the time camping season is over at or near Labor Day, the DNR will have been host to 15 million day visits this year alone. IF crowds of people is not your thing, just wait for non holiday weekends to plan an excursion to a state or local county park. The destination of any park opens opportunities to go hiking, have a picnic, spend time with family and friends, go fishing, do nature photography, and at the end of the day, just relax.

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A DNR TRAIL CREW is dedicated just to roving the state to undertake trail refurbishing and construction jobs. It is a lot like the TV reality show DIRTY JOBS. The work is hard, hot, sweaty, and filled with satisfaction for jobs well done. Pete Englund is the trail crew foreman. He looks back at the work they have completed and gets a big smile. The crew has been assisted by National Civilian Community Corps workers based at Vinton for some tasks. That task focused on a 1.5 mile single track hiking trail near Bellevue. After the 4th of July break, the crews will reassemble at Union Grove State Park in Tama County. This trail assignment is to make an ADA-accessible trail connection to an ADA fishing pier and to a future bridge made from black locust timbers. If time allows, Hardin County is next at Pine Lake State Park, where repairs and replacement of retaining walls on heavily used lakeside trails will be the focus of their work. Iowa’s state parks have more than 500 miles of trails. Take time to explore them.

At the Marshall County Conservation Board’s public lands, many properties have trails for hiking, some for horses, and others just for casual walks. A guide to all the MCCB areas is available at the Nature Center located at the Grimes Farm. Talk to the staff about neat places to go where nature is at your fingertips every step of the way. Call 641-752-5490 on Tuesday of this week to learn more about trails of many types close to home. Enjoy.

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A visit to a BALD EAGLE nest took place for this author about two weeks ago. The landowner invited me for a journey onto his property. Earlier this year he had known that the eagle nest was active. Later he determined that two eaglets had successfully hatched. Well, as the end of spring came and early summer began, so did a wind storm. A portion of the tree limbs supporting the nest were wind damaged. A large portion of the nest structure is still hanging high in the tree crevice. What we saw was one adult eagle and one juvenile bird. Of course at this time of year, juvenile birds are all dark brown but with adult sized bodies. Yes, the young are flying quite well.

The eagle pair at this location have been in this vicinity for many years. Nest sites have varied for many reasons. And the adult eagles always seem to find a new suitable tree for nest construction. Only time will tell if 2017’s nesting season will be a rebuild of the 2016 nest or a new site entirely. What is known however is that Marshall County has at least seven active bald eagle nest sites. If there are more, fine. If people do not know about some of these secret location, that is fine also. A little eagle privacy will go a long way to help this large raptor repopulate. Not too many decades ago, just the though of having one bald eagle nest was big news. Now the news is that what we do know is nice, and what we don’t know about eagle nests is nice also. Once the trees drop their leaves late this fall, it may be surprising how many “new” eagle nests are discovered. If you do think an eagle nest is on your lucky to find it list, call the MCCB at 752-5490 to let the staff know of the possibility. Thanks for watching. It is citizen science in action.

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The latest issue of IOWA NATURAL HERITAGE magazine has a special article about the Marietta Sand Prairie, page 18 and 19. If you already subscribe and are a member of the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation, great. Then you get this publication. If not, I urge you to join. My reasons for doing so is their history of support for natural resources as a private organization outside of government. Yet they work with many conservation organizations both public and private to carry out the mission of resource protection.

The story about the Marietta Sand Prairie Preserve, and its later addition of over 200 acres additional, is a success story of how dedicated people came together to make a dream come true. That vision was for a larger area than just the original 17 acre preserve. By supplementing and using local seed bank sources, former fields were methodically converted over time into a larger complex of reconstructed prairie by the help of mankind’s hand.

In the long run, nature will sculpt the entire Sand Prairie complex with her give and take, winners and losers, in the equivalent of botanical survival of the fittest. Yes, there will be mankind’s hand in the equation in terms of selective controlled fires, removal of shrubby tree growths by either fire or mechanical removal, and winter time management plans to allow the next year’s native plant growth to prosper come spring. All of this management allows ring-necked pheasants to prosper, wild turkeys to nest and gobble each spring, and for deer who find places to hide, survive and raise their fawns. Numerous grassland bird species use the Sand Prairie. Insects of all descriptions make their living in those native grasses.

The history of how the Marietta Sand Prairie was conserved and expanded is a true success story. Conservation takes many forms and basic to that cause is how land with high value natural resources can motivate people to action. The winners in these cases is the land itself, the botanically rich diverse plant communities, and people who benefit by learning, studying and just enjoying one of the most unique prairies in Iowa. And we have it right in our backyard. The Marietta Sand Prairie is another great-get-away close to home. It is a sizzling summer fun spot to explore.

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“The most difficult thing is the decision to act. The rest is merely tenacity.”

– Amelia Earhart, aviator

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Garry Brandenburg is a graduate of Iowa State University with BS degree in Fish & Wildlife Biology. He is the retired director of the Marshall County Conservation Board. Contact him at PO Box 96, Albion, IA 50005.