Hunters could apply for reserved hunts online beginning Aug. 19 at on.IN.gov/reservedhunt, the one-stop information spot for the hunts. The online method is the only way to apply for the hunts listed below. No late entries will be accepted. Applicants must possess a hunting license valid for the hunt for which they apply.

Applications must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. ET on Sept. 15. More specific hunt information for individual properties is available on the website.

Hunters will be selected through a random computerized drawing. An email will be sent to all applicants when draws have been completed. Applicants will be able to view draw results online within two weeks after the application period closes.

Waterfowl hunts on Fish & Wildlife areas (FWAs): Hovey Lake FWA, Kankakee FWA, Kingsbury FWA, LaSalle FWA, Province Pond Wetland Conservation Area and Goose Pond FWA.

Deer hunts on FWAs: Deer Creek FWA and Fairbanks Landing FWA.

November Gamebird Area (GA) Hunts: Reserved hunts on GAs in Northern Indiana (Benton, Jasper, Newton, Warren and White counties). Hunters may choose from a variety of hunt dates in November. Youth hunts will be offered. The hunts are not put/take pheasant hunts.

Indiana Private Land Access (IPLA) deer firearms hunts in the following counties: LaPorte, Cass, Sullivan, Scott, Harrison and Bartholomew.

IPLA waterfowl hunts in the following counties: DeKalb, Sullivan and Bartholomew.

IPLA gamebird hunts in the following counties: Scott, Sullivan, DeKalb, Steuben, Greene and Pike.

State park deer reduction hunts:

Updates on reserved hunts at Indiana State Parks will be posted on the website sometime this fall, pending regulatory approval. Please check the website for updates.

Please note only one application per hunt is allowed. No changes may be made once an application is submitted.

The application process is now consolidated into the online services website along with licenses, CheckIN Game, and HIP registration. An online account is not required to apply, but a Customer ID number is needed.

In the system, hunts without a registration fee will follow the same process as those with a fee. Applicants must add a hunt to their cart and place an order to submit their application. If the transaction total is $0, the applicant will not be asked to enter credit card information.

To view draw results, applicants can log into their online services account or click “View hunt draw results” on the website.  

Falls Of The Ohio State Park hosts Digging The Past

Falls of the Ohio State Park will host its annual Digging the Past event on Aug. 24 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Guests can explore fossils, minerals, and archaeology with a variety of free programs and games behind the park’s Interpretive Center. Admission to the museum gallery is $7 for all during the event.

The programs are offered at specific times during the day:

*Explore the outer fossil bed on a guided hike from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. The hike is for guests ages 12 and older.

*Trek the park’s other fossil beds with a guide. Hikes will leave on the hour from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

*Make a free fossil collection from 11 a.m. to noon.

 *See what you can knock down at geode bowling from noon to 1 p.m. and 3 to 4 p.m. Prizes will be offered.

 *Discover interesting facts about geodes and crystals during a program and giveaway from 1 to 2 p.m.

 *Learn about dinosaurs during the Dinosaurs with Dale program from 2 to 3 p.m.

Programs offered all day include:

*Visit refreshed Silurian fossil piles, courtesy of Irving Materials, Inc. (IMI) and Sellersburg Stone Quarry.

*Create an egg carton collection with fossils and minerals for a $1 donation.

*Create crafts like weather rocks, pet rocks, and bead stringing.

*See displays and information from the Falls of the Ohio Archaeological Society.

*Take part in hands-on archaeology activities from the Indiana State Museum.

 *Create a make-and-take concrete fossil, courtesy of IMI.

 *Browse fossil displays and get your fossil identified, courtesy of the Kentucky Paleontological Society.

*Learn about Ordovician fossil collecting from the Spencer County (Kentucky) Tourism bureau.

*Watch demonstrations of lapidary work (including rock polishing).

*Get your unknown artifacts, rocks and fossils identified.

*Dig “artifacts” in an archaeological mini-mock dig station.

Falls of the Ohio State Park (on.IN.gov/fallsoftheohio) is at 201 W. Riverside Dr. in Clarksville, 47129.

Open house on state’s water resources

The public is invited to join the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Division of Water staff in a discussion about Indiana’s vital water resources and their impact on all Hoosiers on Sept. 4 in Alexandria. It will be the first in a series of similar open houses to be held throughout the state.

Representatives from the DNR Division of Water will be available to share information about their work in floodplain management, floodplain mapping, water resource assessment and availability, water rights and use, dam and levee safety, watershed stewardship, floodway and lake permits, and compliance.

The free event, which will offer open public question-and-answer opportunities, will be at the Emery Lee Building from 5-7 p.m., a span during which attendees are encouraged to arrive at any time, as there will be no formal presentation.

Readers can contact the author by writing to this publication or e-mail Jack at jackspaulding1971@outlook.com 

Spaulding’s books, “The Best Of Spaulding Outdoors” and “The Coon Hunter And The Kid,” are available from Amazon.com as a paperback or Kindle download.