Contest targets big bass
The Holiday Island Big Bass Tournament, hosted by the Holiday Island Chamber of Commerce, is Saturday at Table Rock Lake.
Entry fee is $70 per angler. Anglers may start fishing anywhere on the lake at 7 a.m. Weigh-ins are held every two hours starting at 9 a.m. Hourly weigh-in prizes are $500, $200 and $100 from first through third. The angler catching the largest bass of the tournament wins $3,000, with $1,000 for second place. Trailering a boat to weight fish is allowed.
Register at www.hichamber.com or call Barb Talbot, (318) 344-4099 or Brad Handley, (870) 654-4887 for details. Registration on tournament morning starts at 5 a.m. at Holiday Island Marina.
Usrey tops Elite field
Wes Usrey won the Beaver Lake Elite Series bass tournament held May 7 at Beaver Lake. His five-fish tournament limit weighed 17.3 pounds. He also had big bass at 5.85 pounds.
Steven Meador placed second with five bass at 16.18 pounds. Travis Fox was third with five bass at 13.34 pounds.
Fourth through 10th, all with five bass, were: fourth, Brad Netherton, 12.71; fifth, Shelby Hutchens, 12.48; sixth, Jay Nyce, 12.38; seventh, Jacob Newton, 12.09; eighth, David Frank, 11.97; ninth, Daniel Nesbitt, 10.8; 10th, Hunter Hanby, 10.61.
Learn river camping
A free program on river camping is set for 6 p.m. May 24 upstairs at Ozark Beer Co. in downtown Rogers. The area Mappy Hour group will host the program. Mappy Hour is a nationwide community of outdoor enthusiasts who organize hikes, float trips and other outdoor activities.
Hike visits Wildcat Glades
Hill ‘N Dale Hiking Club will hike a 4-mile loop May 26th at Wildcat Glades Conservation Area near Joplin, Mo.
Meet at 9 a.m. at the Audubon Center, 201 W. Riviera Drive in Joplin. Interested hikers should contact Bev Munstermann, (479) 721-2193 or munster@olemac.net. For club information go to bvhikingclub.com.
Tournament benefits youth
The sixth annual NWA Young Life benefit bass tournament is set for Saturday at Beaver Lake out of Prairie Creek park. Entry fee is $50 per team with an optional $10 for the big bass prize. Fishing is from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m.
First prize is $1,000. A silent auction will be held along with the tournament. Register at Hook, Line and Sinker in Rogers, Southtown Sporting Goods in Fayetteville or at Prairie Creek park on tournament morning. Profits fund youth programs of NWA Young Life. For details call James Whittle, (479) 466-4659.
Plants focus of hike
A hike to learn about native plants and trees is set for May 28 at Pea Ridge National Military Park. All activities start at the visitor center. Botany experts will lead two easy to moderate hikes.
A driving and walking tour of habitat restoration at the Civil War battlefield park will be from 9 to 12:15 p.m. A potluck picnic is from 12:30 to 1:45 p.m. A black maple tree tour is from 2 to 5 p.m. to visit sites of the rare black maple tree in a scenic, narrow valley in the park with several rock outcrops.
For more information contact Jennifer Ogle, joggle@uark.edu or call (479) 957-6859.
Catch a channel ‘cat
Arkansas Game and Fish Commission stocks channel catfish in several small lakes around the state April through October as part of the Family and Community Fishing Program.
Area lakes that have been stocked include Murphy Park pond in Springdale, Lake Springdale, Lake Bentonville, Lake Atalanta in Rogers, Torraine Lake in Fort Smith, Carol Ann Cross Pond in Fort Smith and Van Buren Municipal Pond. The daily limit is three channel catfish. Anglers 16 and older need an Arkansas fishing license.
Buffalo River film online
The Ozark Society has released the documentary film “First River: How Arkansas Saved a National Treasure” to mark the 50th anniversary of the Buffalo National River’s official designation as America’s first national river.
It is available for free public streaming on the Ozark Society website, www.ozarksociety.net.
The 53-minute film highlights activities in the 1960s to protect the Buffalo from plans by the Army Corps of Engineers to build two dams on the waterway.
