by Hal Herring

Over the past fifteen years, more and more of my bird and antelope hunting has been done on Bureau of Land Management public lands. Every year, I buy a pass to Glacier National Park, and our family hikes and rambles there are some of the finest experiences of my life so far. For me, and for millions of other American outdoorspeople, no public agency has as much potential or actual effect on hunting, fishing and just the plain freedom to roam and camp and shoot as does the US Department of Interior.

On February 7th at 1 pm EDT, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar will be taking questions and discussing conservation and the economy in a live webchat that should be both interesting and informative. The sportsmen and women of the US need to have their voices heard on issues that range from wolves and energy development to the restoration of the Mississippi Delta- this is a chance to make that happen. Please don’t miss it. Click here to watch it on the Department of Interior site.

Here’s a quick list of agencies under the Department of the Interior, which should inspire participation--because every one of us has a stake in here somewhere:

-Bureau of Indian Affairs
-Bureau of Land Management
-Bureau of Ocean Energy Management
-Bureau of Reclamation
-Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement
-National Park Service
-Office of Surface Mining, Reclamation and Enforcement
-U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
-U.S. Geological Survey

by Chad Love

This past weekend marked the 75th anniversary of that most venerable (and venerated) of sportsman-based conservation groups, Ducks Unlimited. What began as a small group of Depression-era hunters trying desperately to save our dwindling waterfowl populations in the depths of the Dust Bowl has grown into one the largest, most recognizable and respected conservation brands in North America.

From a DU press release:

"DU's 75th anniversary is a monumental moment in conservation history," said Dale Hall, CEO of Ducks Unlimited. "This anniversary˜and the last 75 years of science-based, on-the-ground conservation work across North America˜would not be possible without the dedication of our volunteers and supporters, as well as the partners who time and time again helped us succeed in our mission. This celebration is as much theirs as it is ours."

by Hal Herring

(Editor’s Note: The Debutante Hunters won the Shorts Audience Award at the Sundance Film Festival after this post was written.)

Sometimes it seems to me that conservation in the American West is like a Rocky Mountain river, wild with snowmelt, tumultuous and dramatic, with some new, obvious, challenge every second. But Southern hunting and fishing, and the conservationist ethic they spawn, seem more like a southern river, broad and slow and deep, shadowed with history and tradition.

by Hal Herring

I’ve been a conservation writer and reporter for almost 15 years, and there’s one thing I know for sure: you better have a sense of humor if you are going to stay in this game.

"Oh no!" I thought, when I first read the accounts of The River of Blood, also known as Cedar Creek, a tributary of the Trinity River--a big creek, filled with blood, flowing into a major, already much-abused river that is the source of drinking water for around 10 million Texans.