Dale Bowman

The North American Decoys & Sporting Collectibles Show opens Tuesday and runs through April 27 while the One Earth Film Festival is going at varied sites through Tuesday, April 23.

My dad, Leroy Bowman, whom I credit with much of my love of the outdoors, led a full life filled with anomalies: deer hunting, ordained Mennonite deacon, quarryman, trout fishing, raising six kids. He died at 95 over the solar-eclipse weekend and the memories bubble up.

Truly spring-like weather over the weekend showed the variety of fishing options available around Chicago and leads this sprawling raw-file Midwest Fishing Report.

Kirby McDaniel’s walleye, 29-inches-plus long, was caught with a jig and minnow.

Sandhill cranes on a visit to the Platte River area of Nebraska, the first Morel of the Week this year and an early sighting of a monarch butterfly are among the notes from around Chicago outdoors and beyond.

I traveled around southern Illinois at some new sites as an offshoot of covering the total solar eclipse. It brought a sharp reminder of just how much that region brings to our outdoors world.

The show includes fishing seminars and product demos.

Here are some more nuggets related to the nature world from the total solar eclipse on Monday.

Jose Sanchez caught a big smallmouth bass while powerlining at 63rd Street on the Chicago lakefront (Jackson Park), which is a rare feat when powerlining.