Want a last minute summer getaway?
Indiana State Park Inns has a weekday special.
Stay two consecutive nights Sunday – Thursday before Sept. 3, 2020, and your second night is half price. Certain restrictions may apply.
New online portal for buying licenses and more from the state
Signing in to buy hunting, fishing, and trapping licenses will look different the next time you do so because of a new state online portal called Access Indiana.
The new portal is a safe, secure and easy to use way for you to interact with all facets of state government through a single login instead of many. Presently, there are 18 services that users can enter from Access Indiana – a full list is available online.
 Photo courtesy of Discover Boating
Learn to hunt and fish from experts
DNR hosts workshops tailored to those new to hunting and fishing through the Learn to Fish and the Learn to Hunt, Shoot, & Trap programs. Find more upcoming educational events.
Aug. 7 – Learn to Hunt: Frogs, Martinsville
Sept. 12 – Learn to Stream Fish, Atterbury Fish & Wildlife Area
Sept. 26 – Family Learn to Fish, Cicero
State park deer management draw hunt application period is open
Hunters can apply online for state park deer management draw hunts at on.IN.gov/reservedhunt. This is the only way to apply.
Applicants must possess any valid license to take a deer in Indiana at the time of the application, not including apprentice licenses.
Applicants must be Indiana residents (or possess a valid lifetime license to take deer in Indiana) and be 18 years of age by the date of the first hunt. Once an application has been submitted online, information cannot be changed. Applications must be completed by the application deadline, Aug. 17.
 Become a fishing instructor
Learn how to run a basic Learn to Fish workshop at instructor training on Aug. 13 in Noblesville.
New instructors will gain access to loaner tackle and materials after completing the training and volunteering at a DNR sponsored fishing event.
NRC expands two new nature preserves
The Natural Resources Commission (NRC), approved additions to the Laura Hare Nature Preserve at Blossom Hollow in Johnson County, and the Mossy Point Nature Preserve in Parke County.
The nature preserve addition in Johnson County protects 40 acres of forest interior habitat. The extensive upland forest consists primarily of an oak-hickory community. Red-shouldered hawks, Eastern box turtles, and bald eagles also can be found in this preserve.
The Parke County nature preserve addition protects 25.73 acres along Sugar Creek and offers a trail and a parking area. This is breeding area for several species of thrush and warblers, and is a winter roost for bald eagles.
 Discover nature with biologists
Fascinated with the natural world? Tag along with an Indiana DNR biologist on one of their upcoming excursions to learn more about wildlife and their habitats. Hone your identification skills while enjoying the outdoors.
Aug. 1 – Wildflower Walk, Goose Pond Fish & Wildlife Area
Aug. 8 – Bike with a Biologist, Amo
 Otter Bend Picnic Area dedicated at Tippecanoe River SP
The picnic area is located along the Tippecanoe River at the site of the Hilgemeier property, which was a 40-acre inholding in the park until it was purchased through the Indiana Heritage Trust, now called the President Benjamin Harrison Conservation Trust, in 2007.
Dan Bortner named Director of the DNR
Gov. Eric J. Holcomb has selected Dan Bortner to serve as the director of the Department of Natural Resources.
Bortner has served as DNR’s director of Indiana State Parks since 2005 and is currently the third longest serving state parks director in the nation.
As director of state parks, Bortner took the division from preparing to close facilities to consistently operating in the black with 98% saying they would recommend Indiana state parks to others. Infrastructure updated under Bortner’s leadership has led to improved campgrounds that are typically full each weekend, and our state park inns have the highest occupancy rate of any state park inn system in the country.
Former director Cam Clark retired in July. Bortner will begin his new position on Aug. 3.
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 Stay & Play at the Fort Golf Course
The Fort Golf Course is proud to offer a variety of beautiful and unique lodging options right on our property at the Fort Harrison State Park Inn. In fact, we are the only public golf course in Indianapolis with on-site lodging. Find discounted golf rates for our guests.
Call us at 317-638-6000 for additional information on our variety of room types, availability, and to make your lodging reservations. Please call the pro shop at 317-543-9597 to book your tee times.
Miami Corn Husk Doll Making at Mississinewa Lake
Spend the afternoon with Miami artist and Tradition Bearer, Catherine Nagy Mowry making a doll in the Myaamia way, Aug. 8 or 29. The workshop runs noon to 4 p.m.
Children under 12 should be accompanied by an adult. All materials will be provided. Advance registration is required by calling 260-468-2127 or emailing trody@dnr.IN.gov.
 Remember to report turkey hens and their young
DNR needs your help collecting observations of turkey broods (hens and young) to calculate the annual wild turkey Production Index (number of young per adult hens).
So far, we have collected 500 reports of more than 3,000 turkeys, but we need 2,500 more observations to meet our goal of 3,000 observations. If you’ve seen a turkey brood or a hen alone since July 1, please register as a participant in the turkey brood survey and report your sighting. Any observations until Aug. 31 are welcome.
DNR Response to COVID-19
The DNR is committed to ensuring that our guests and staff continue to have safe and memorable outdoor experiences at our state parks, state forests, fish and wildlife areas, nature preserves and state recreation areas in light of the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19.) We are following the lead of the Indiana State Department of Health and many local county health departments as we monitor the virus and its potential impacts on DNR properties.
VIEW WHAT IS OPEN, CLOSED AND CANCELED >>
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The Foundation celebrates and preserves Indiana’s natural legacy by raising funds to support the Indiana Department of Natural Resources and its programs.
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