Stories from Wednesday, August 2, 2017

As recent as this week, Iowa is suffering from a moderate to severe drought. Almost two-thirds of the state is affected by the lack of rain. One report shows a 4-foot ruler lowered into a crack in a farmer’s field with all but a foot below ground level...

Editor’s note: Each summer, Pheasants Forever does a summer report of pheasant conditions and numbers throughout the country. Here is a look at the Iowa report. As summer reaches its midpoint, every pheasant hunter’s thoughts start turning to autumn’s prospects. The sun hangs just a titch lower in the sky. Dog work intensifies a smidge. Shooting takes on a notch more significance...

The 2017 Okoboji Blue Water Festival is a celebration of clean water and a chance to learn about how we can all make our waters even better. The festival, which runs Friday, Aug. 11 through Saturday, Aug. 12 at Preservation Plaza in Arnolds Park, is designed for both young and old alike and for families...

If you go fishing, our goal is to have a good time, and catching some fish greatly increases our odds of having a good time. Yes, it’s fun to be outside with friends or family and enjoying wildlife and being around the water, but when you go fishing, you really want to catch something. In the summer months, rivers can provide consistent fishing action...

Although the 2017 Okoboji Blue Water Festival, which will run Friday, Aug. 11 through Saturday, Aug. 12 is meant to be a fun weekend, it is also meant to challenge those in attendance to learn more about clean water and how we all can go about making our waters cleaner...

Registration for the 18th Annual Run for the Cob event is now open. The annual Sweet Corn Days event will be held Saturday, Aug 5. The one-mile Fun Run starts at 7:45 a.m.; the 10K begins at 8:15 a.m.; and the 5K starts at 8:30 a.m.  All races start from North 6th Street, north of the library in Estherville. The full route can be seen at www.ZapEvent.com...

The Lakes Area Hockey Association had its first ever 12U girls hockey team in 2016, consisting of 15 girls, ages 8-12, who bravely stepped on the ice, played over 20 games and gained the recognition as the team that never gave up. These girls are excited to return to the ice again this season and welcome new teammates...

Big Sky Conference coaches and media members each picked Montana State to finish eighth in the league this season in polls released by the league Tuesday. That would be a slight improvement over 2016, when the Bobcats finished tied for ninth. The team returns 14 starters, including eight on offense. ...

Editor's Note: The following is an Op-Ed piece from Sean Welsh, a senior offensive lineman for the Iowa Hawkeyes from Springboro, Ohio. He has 35 career starts and has been recognized nationally for his efforts as a player and a student. The 2017 season will mark Welsh's fourth year as a member of the Iowa Football Leadership Group...

Dickinson County softball stars shined this summer. Area squads combined to go 67-55 overall, winning one conference title and netting a total of 19 athletes named to postseason teams. Spirit Lake netted a fourth consecutive conference crown in 2017 and finished with a total of eight players on all-conference teams...

Max Bower earns top-10 finish at AAU Junior Olympic Games Sport Stacking Championships