Skip to main content

The Drift

Father and son with fish they caught

Unsuccessful

Feeling like a kid again in the North Dakota Outdoors. Read this month's The Drift.

People planting a field

Planting Season

It’s go-time here on the prairie. Read more in this month’s The Drift. 

Recording a podcast

Pulling a Bendel

A habit I haven’t outgrown. Read more in this month’s The Drift.

Cayla hunting

March Madness

Bonus points instead of brackets. Read more in this month’s The Drift. 

Rhett

Rhett

Each dog is different. Read more in this month’s The Drift. 

Person drilling hole in lake ice at sunrise

2026 Is the New 2016

We could all use a little flashback. Read more in this month’s The Drift. 

Cayla, Fischer, Scott posing with fish they caught

Holiday Traditions

No matter the circumstances, traditions are traditions. Read more in this month’s The Drift. 

Sandy on top of hill while out hunding in the badlands.

One for Everyone

Back then, every hunter had a freezer full of venison. Read more in this month’s The Drift.

Cayla with dogs and harvested birds

The Unthinkable

A solo prairie walkabout. Read more in this month’s The Drift.

Cayla with dog and son after successful grouse hunt

Nothing to Do

Dance parties on the prairie. Read more in this month’s The Drift.

Person in badlands hunting at sunrise

It Smells Like Fall

Sometimes it just takes one whiff. Read more in this month’s The Drift.

Group of women with canoes by river

Feeling Wild

It sure is a luxury to feel wild these days. Read more in this month’s The Drift.

Tent at sunset

Ode to June

If only the calendar had a few more Junes. 

Cayla holding a 110lb paddlefish

Paddlefish Tagging

It’s all hands on deck during field season, literally. Read more in this month’s The Drift.

Hunters on a prairie hill looking for deer

Baking Pie

It's time to start baking a bigger pie. Read this month's The Drift.

Author and husband with turkey after a hunt

April

You never know what you’ll be doing in April. Read more in this month’s The Drift. 

Fischer and Finley

Muddy Pawprints

Dogs have it all figured out. Read more in this month’s The Drift.

Kid with fish he caught ice fishing

Parenting on Ice

Making the most of our fool’s spring. Read more in this month’s The Drift. 

Finley

By the Numbers

Sometimes the numbers tell a story. Read more in this month’s The Drift. 

Cayla posing with her harvested mule deer buck

Muley Hunting

A long-awaited hunt unfolds. Read more in this month’s The Drift.

Son waving from a truck tailgate with three harvested pheasants beside him

Retro Rocket

Unseasonable October weather has its advantages. Read more in this month’s The Drift.

Hunter glassing on prairie

September Skies

The pursuits may have changed over the years, but the feelings haven’t. Read more in this month’s The Drift. 

Fisch and dinosaur statue

Dinosaurs and Beaches are Important Too

Just when you think you have things figured out as a parent, everything changes. Read more in this month’s The Drift. 

Walleye

Savor It

If you’re not eating local in July, you’re not trying. Read more in this month’s The Drift. 

Loon with chicks

Cabin 9

A memoir of cabin vacations in the land of 10,000 lakes. Read more in this month’s The Drift. 

Fisch in the boat watching the water go by

Just Trying to Stay Afloat

Just trying to stay afloat literally and figuratively. Read more in this month’s The Drift.

Jackie and Cayla with harvested turkey

The Coolest Thing Ever

The unpredictability of turkey hunting never gets old. Read more in this month’s The Drift.

Fischer sitting on the ice

First Sunburn of the Year

Nothing says North Dakota spring like tip-ups and sunburn. Read more in this month’s The Drift. 

Cayla Bendel ice fishing Cayla Bendel dove-hunting

CAYLA BENDEL

NORTH DAKOTA GAME AND FISH DEPARTMENT
R3 COORDINATOR

I hope you choose to come along with me and celebrate how North Dakota is an incredible place for outdoor enthusiasts to call home.

SUBSCRIBE TO THE DRIFT

I hope you choose to come along with me and celebrate how North Dakota is an incredible place for outdoor enthusiasts to call home.

SUBSCRIBE TO THE DRIFT