Fishing the Sandhills • NEBRASKAland Magazine
of the shallow nature of the lakes, they are quick to freeze,
providing ample opportunity. On many lakes, the heaviest
pressure and harvest of fish comes in the winter.
Many anglers are drawn to the Sandhills by the obscurity
and isolated nature of the lakes. While only 40 are open to
public fishing, they see far less boat traffic than you will
find on most Nebraska reservoirs. There are no marinas, no
shorelines ringed by cabins, and only a handful of lakes even
have campgrounds. Roads are sparse and often rough, and
you will see far more cattle than cars and people. All but two
lakes have a 5 mph speed limit, and some allow only electric
motors, so you won't find yourself listening to the drone of
Jet Skis and speed boats all day. Wildlife is abundant. Spend
the night and you will swear you've never seen so many
stars. And while the broad vistas and absence of trees bother
some Easterners, many people find the view from the top of
a ridge, where you can seemingly see forever, exhilarating.
Even if you don't have a lake to yourself, which you
sometimes do, the peace, quiet and solitude breeds a sense
of having your own private fishing hole in the middle of the
wilderness.
Between that and excellent fishing, you now have two
reasons to visit.
Pockets of open water behind the cattails that ring most Sandhills lakes
are almost always worth a cast with a topwater lure or spinnerbait,
including this one Steve Frederick of Scottsbluff is fi shing at Hackberry
Lake on the Valentine National Wildlife Refuge. Extremely fertile by their
nature, Sandhills lakes produce panfi sh, including bluegills (below), in
quantity and quality, making them popular among ice anglers.
PHOTO
BY
ERIC
FOWLER
