Beckie Gaskill

Recent Stories

Navigating first ice

With winter setting in across the Northwoods, anglers’ thoughts are turning to ice fishing. But the allure of early ice comes with its dangers as well, as some anglers have had the misfortune to find out.

DNR numbers show license sales, harvest numbers down slightly through gun deer season

On Dec. 2, the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) put out their preliminary nine-day gun deer season numbers. According to the DNR, numbers were slightly off of last years numbers. DNR deer program specialist Jeff Pritzl said that while license sales were down slightly, they were about average for the last four years, as last year’s numbers were up slightly from the previous year.

2025 preliminary opening weekend gun deer hunt numbers in

The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) released their preliminary opening gun deer season numbers on Tuesday, Nov. 25. As of 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 23, total license purchases, including gun, archery, crossbow, conservation patron and sports licenses, numbered 777,843, which was down only 0.03 percent from last year at the same time.

While he is in the stand, she is out on the land Widow’s Weekend

Every November, as the blaze orange army heads to the woods for Wisconsin’s nine-day gun-deer season, women across the state celebrate something a little different: Widow’s Weekend. This weekend is that glorious kickoff to girl time where the only hunting is for good deals, good laughs, and good cocktails.

Hunters will find new boundaries, good bucks in Northern Forest Zone

In the Northern Forest Zone (NFZ), after years of hunters asking for unit boundary changes, 2025 marks the year they will get their wish. In 2014, the state moved to using county boundaries as Deer Management Unit (DMU) after the deer report stated there were too many DMUs that were too small to facilitate proper management. However, in the NFZ, there has been a push for several years to return to more of a habitat-based unit system.

Rhinelander youth bags second wall hanger

Oct. 8, 2025 will be a day youth hunter Claire Laddusire remembers for a long time. She will remember it every time she looks up at the wall. That is the day she arrowed a 10-point buck in Oneida County. The buck had a 16-inch inside spread and received a Northwoods Youth Deer Hunt Challenge score of 26.

Wisconsin Bass Team Trail anglers fight wind and weather at championship on Minocqua Chain

The weekend of Oct 4-5 was one of the windier weekends anglers of the Wisconsin Bass Trail could remember fishing their championship tournament. Spot-Lock ® or shallow water anchors, it was difficult at best to control boats and fish efficiently, many anglers reported. Others said it was impossible to fish docks and other structures in certain areas due to the wind.

Hunter Nation urges sportsmen and women to get out and vote

Hunter Nation held a town hall meeting with Congressman Tom Tiffany, also a 2026 gubernatorial candidate, in Green Bay on Nov. 14. The main topic of conversation with sportsmen, who came from across northern and central Wisconsin, was the progress made, or lack thereof, on wolf delisting.

Oneida County forestry, land and recreation committee stays course on snowmobile trail openings

The county’s snowmobile trail opening policy came before the forestry, land and recreation committee at their regularly scheduled monthly meeting this week. Committee chair Bob Almekinder said he had been asked to put the matter on the agenda for the committee, and said there was also some question as to who should be the representative for the county on the committee.

Wisconsin Headwaters Invasives Partnership steering committee looks at funding concerns, projects, communications plan

The Wisconsin Headwaters Invasives Partnership (WHIP) is one of several Cooperative Invasive Species Management Areas (CISMAs) in Wisconsin. The organization is headquartered in Rhinelander in the Lumberjack RC&D office.