Introduction

A newly released scientific study highlights the importance of collaborative work to prevent the introduction of aquatic invasive species at Lake Tahoe, and confirms what many public and private stakeholders have feared: That the invasive quagga mussel, if introduced, could establish in our mountain lake’s clear, iconic waters.

As the deadline for introduction of bills nears, the Nevada Legislature gives itself an extra day to come up with proposed laws. But some of the ideas to amend the Constitution should be cause for concern....

Here is this week's fishing report for rivers, lakes and streams in Nevada and Northern California. This report is for the week of March 11, 2015 and beyond.


The Nevada Department of Wildlife Fisheries Division has released a proposed plan to restore the sport fisheries in Comins and Bassett Lakes near Ely in White Pine County by removing northern pike. The plan is available for public comment for 30 days beginning March 5, 2015.

Until the mid-2000s Comins Lake was a premier sport fishery for rainbow and brown trout, supporting up to 35,000 angler days per year. The illegal introduction of northern pike in the early 2000s decimated the trout fishery and angler use is now less than 2,000 days per year.

It’s easy to get a new soccer stadium that Las Vegas taxpayers may not want. Just call it something else. Stadium subsidy opponents fear that’s the reasoning behind a bill set for introduction at City Hall next week, when Councilman and longtime stadium supporter Ricki Barlow will pitch his peer...

Some of Northern Nevada's finest traditional, folk and contemporary artists will appear at the 2015 Nevada State Legislature in “The Work of Artists,” a series of interactive talks and demonstrations that bring a personal side to exhibited pieces. Designed to create an opportunity for artists to engage with community members and people working in or visiting the Nevada State Legislative Building, the presentations are at 3:30 p.m. Feb. 18 and 24, March 19 and 30, April 17 and May 7. All are free and open to the public in Room 3100.

Curbing Internet pornography, allowing guns on school campuses and raising the tax on sheep are but three of than 190 bills ready for introduction on the opening day of ......

Top experts will converge at Lake Tahoe in September for the annual meeting of the Western Regional Panel on Aquatic Nuisance Species, hosted by the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency.

Taking place Sept. 2-4, the annual meeting brings together officials from across the country in the fight against western expansion of aquatic invasive species. Participants will learn from informative lectures and discussions to foster coordination of aquatic invasive species management among western states. This event is open to the public.

The Mile High Jazz Band presents a half-day Jazz Workshop for Carson City middle school and high school instrumental students on Saturday, Jan. 24, 2015, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Carson Middle School, 1140 West King Street, Carson City.

The workshop will give students an introduction to jazz technique and an opportunity for hands-on experience playing with professional musicians. Sessions include Jazz Rhythm with drummer Lee Warner, Scales and Chords with saxophonist Nat Kline, and Improvisation with trumpeter Jef Derderian. Admission to the workshop is free.

What began last year with a desire by five local women to bring international films to Carson City will this year be a multi-venue, free three-day event, Thursday through Saturday, Feb. 5-7. Last year’s event was a rousing success, paving the way for this year’s larger festival.

The Carson City Community Center and Western Nevada College will be venues for viewing three foreign feature-length films, three independently produced films, and several Brewery Arts Center contest-winning short films.

As the incoming Chair of the 15-member Tahoe Regional Planning Agency Governing Board, this promises to be a hopeful and exciting year. 2015 will be full of opportunities, but also challenges, for the continued protection of Lake Tahoe.

The number one priority among our challenges is funding shortfalls. Federal and state funding that has paid for environmental restoration and protection efforts at Lake Tahoe for years is drying up and new approaches need to be pursued.

According to Webster’s Dictionary, “Ice is water frozen solid by cold.” Well, with the arrival of winter weather in this area, we certainly have plenty of water frozen on our creeks, streams, rivers, ponds, lakes and reservoirs.

A word of warning, however: None of the ice in Western Nevada is considered safe at any time in winter. If you want to ice fish, you're going to have to head into the Sierra or areas of Eastern Nevada where some lakes freeze over and are thick enough to hold people.

Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval will host the Inaugural Celebration of the Governor and Constitutional Officers on Monday, Jan. 5. The program will begin at noon on the capitol steps in Carson City and the official ceremony starts at 12:30 p.m.

Mason Valley Beekeepers of Yerington, Nevada, will be hosting a one-day Introduction to Bees and Beekeeping workshop for individuals with little or no experience who want to learn more about the possibility of beekeeping as a hobby.

The workshop will be held at the Jeanne Dini Center in Yerington from 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM and will include lunch and snacks. Written materials will also be provided to participants.

Editor: I have been in the antiques business in Downtown Carson City for more than 15 years. The last six years have been extremely difficult, but perhaps our state may have reached a turning point.

In the last 15 years I have been involved in dozens of community meetings and planning sessions that were generally boring and filled with doomsayers and negativism. I've spent hundreds of hours gnashing my teeth listening to every malcontent in town who says that saving our Downtown is a waste of time and money. They have said it's by-the-way impossible.

The pure love of music is inspiring and motivating and, for many, life changing. This is especially true for youth involved with orchestral programs. The Reno Philharmonic Association’s Free Family Concert and Youth Orchestra Fall Showcase puts the organization’s music education program center stage Nov. 15 at the Pioneer Center for the Performing Arts, Reno, Nev. The concerts are part of the Reno Philharmonics’ education and outreach initiatives, providing music education, enrichment and exposure to thousands of Washoe County and greater Truckee Meadows school children.

The Nevada Department of Wildlife is sponsoring an introduction to fly fishing clinic Friday, Oct. 10, from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. This clinic is designed for entry level fly anglers and is free to all participants. The class will cover basic gear, knot tying, and casting. We will not be on the water. The class is limited to the first 20 persons who sign up.

WHAT: Class is geared for entry level fly anglers. We will cover equipment, knot tying, and demonstrate techniques for fly fishing moving water and still water.

WHEN: Friday, Oct. 10, 5:30 p.m. - 8 p.m.

Tahoe Resource Conservation District watercraft inspectors stopped a boat with quagga mussels and an unidentified snail species hiding in the anchor locker, the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency announced Thursday.

The boat, coming from Lake Mead, a known quagga-infested water body, was inspected Wednesday at the Spooner Summit inspection station on Highway 50 in Nevada.

The Carson City Symphony's "Strings in the Summer" orchestra and beginning fiddle class, directed by Sue Jesch, will present its Summer String Concert of traditional American fiddle tunes on Thursday, July 31, at 10 a.m. at Sierra Place Senior Living, 1111 West College Parkway, Carson City. The concert is free and is open to the public.

The Karson Kruzers' 30th Annual Run-What-Cha-Brung car show is this weekend, June 27-28, and you can become a part of this fun event without entering a vehicle.

The Kruzers need people to judge the event,and no experience is necessary. Just answer yes to the following and you might be just the right person:
Are you a classic car, truck or motorcycle enthusiast? Do you want to meet others with the same interest? Would you like to have a chance to get a closer look at the beauties most only see in a magazine? Are you 18 years old or older?

Many college students seek to enroll in summer classes to stay on track for graduation, or learn a new skill. At Western Nevada College students can choose from a variety of classes in the upcoming eight-week summer term. Classes begin June 9 and continue through August 2, unless otherwise noted.

More than 40 courses are scheduled for the summer, including writing, communications, art, music, theater, accounting math, and more. Over a dozen online classes are also available, providing students the flexibility of earning college credit while enjoying their summer activities.

Invasive aquatic species watercraft inspection and decontamination stations have opened at Lahontan Reservoir and other waterways in time for Memorial Day weekend, according to the Nevada Division of State Parks.

The last of the Lake Tahoe area inspection stations, on State Route 267 at Northstar Drive south of Truckee in California, opened Thursday.

The Carson City Symphony Association presents an intimate evening of Music, Conversation, Champagne, and Dessert on Friday, April 25, 7:30 p.m., at a private home in Jacks Valley, south of Carson City.

General admission is $25; Symphony Assoc. members $20; and youth age 16 and under free. Tickets are available at Play Your Own Music in the Carson Mall, online at CCSymphony.com, or reserve by calling 775-883-4154. Address and directions will be provided with tickets.

The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency Governing Board approved a $10 fee hike Thursday for its watercraft inspection, invasive species decontamination program, reduced marina funding for the programs and agreed to close an inspection facility at Homewood, officials said.

The fee hike was one of the changes to the watercraft inspection program recommended by the multi-agency Lake Tahoe Aquatic Invasive Species Coordinating Committee following a reduction in the federal funding that has helped support the program since it began in 2009, according to a news release.

No offense, but if you don’t put in for a Silver State Tag when the big game application period opens on Monday, you must not like hunting very much.

The Silver State Tag already allows hunters the chance to hunt one of four premier big game species (mule deer, Rocky Mountain elk, Nelson (desert) bighorn sheep and pronghorn antelope) anywhere in the state, but now you also have the chance to win thousands of dollars of hunting gear as well.

An innovation in aquatic invasive species protection was unveiled last week at the Water Sports Industry Association’s 2014 Summit that could make Lake Tahoe and recreational water bodies around the nation safer from the spread of invasive species, the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency said Friday.

South Lake Tahoe, the tight-knit ski community big on Olympic athletes will honor its three USA team members in a city-wide celebration, Saturday, March 15.

Jamie Anderson, Maddie Bowman, who won gold for snowboarding slopestyle and freeskiing halfpipe respectively, and Hannah Teter who placed fourth in snowboarding halfpipe, will be lauded at Sierra-at-Tahoe Resort.

The Lucky Horse Grille at the HorseShoe Club in Carson City will feature a special steak night with olive oil tasting featuring Chef Don Pepe, also known as "The Paella King" on Wednesday, Feb. 26 from 5 to 7 p.m.

Presented by Carpa Nevada LLC, the event will also feature tastings of fine, aged balsamic vinegars.

RENO, Nev. – University of Nevada Cooperative Extension and the Nevada Department of Agriculture will offer an Introduction to Food Safety in Horticultural Operations training, focusing on risk management and good agricultural practices March 11. The training will provide an introduction to on-farm food-safety practices related to fruit and vegetable production. Participants will learn principles of good agricultural and handling practices.

If you're not into traditional winter sports such as ice fishing, ice skating, downhill skiing, snowboarding, cross country skiing, snowshoeing or snowmobiling, there is not a lot to do in late winter...for most people.

Some choose to stare out the window, complain about the snow, ice, frost and darkness of wintertime and stay glued to their TV sets. However, there are plenty of activities to take your mind off our cold weather, dark mornings and evenings, if you would like to do so.