We're approaching that time of the year when, like it or not, folks in our part of the country start thinking about spring's arrival. Many of the traditional wintertime activities are starting to wind down; most hunting seasons will end at the end of the month, ice fishing conditions will begin to deteriorate, as will those for cross-country skiing and snowmobiling. But we still have a ways to go before those spring crocuses appear, and if you don't have an alternative activities plan, March can seem like an endless month - kind of our local untropical version of "Survivors."

Yes, there are lots of appropriate indoor activities that have a connection with outdoor interests, but it often takes a major mindset change to motivate us into taking advantage of them – fishing gear, for example. Probably that gear was set aside last fall, before colder weather, and has been gathering dust ever since. Unfortunately, just getting it out and inspecting it often spawns daydreams of when you'll be able to use it again. So maybe it's wise to wait on that until a couple weeks before the trout opener on April First to do that.