Wyoming
That Time Wyoming’s Game And Fish Director Was Caught Fishing Without A License
It’s been nearly 30 years, but many in Wyoming still remember the time when the state Game and Fish Department director was caught fishing without a license.
In June 1995, a young game warden was checking fishing licenses on a stream near Rawlins and asked then-director John Talbott for his license.
Talbott, then 42, didn’t have one, according to reports from the time. Then he reportedly tried to cover up his gaffe, allegedly using a forged license.
That touched off a scandal that led to him resigning in early 1996, ending a 17-year career with Game and Fish.
Talbott, contacted by Cowboy State Daily, declined to comment about getting caught without a license and accusations of trying to cover it up.
Incident Mirrored In ‘Joe Pickett’ Novels
The incident inspired famed Wyoming author C.J. Box to mirror it in his highly successful “Joe Pickett” series of novels, describing the adventures of a fictional Game and Fish warden.
In the series’ first installment “Open Season,” Pickett gives a ticket to the Wyoming governor for fishing without a license. That incident is mentioned in subsequent novels in the popular series.
Box told Cowboy State Daily that Mark Nelson was the real-life warden who ticketed Talbott. Nelson still works for Game and Fish, at the agency’s headquarters in Cheyenne.
Nelson did not return a request for comment.
Talbott went on to work at Oregon State University in Corvallis. The University’s website lists him as a member of the College of Agricultural Sciences staff.
However, staff at the OSU College of Agricultural Sciences told Cowboy State Daily that Talbott had retired from that position.
Moreover, John Talbott is not to be confused with another former Wyoming Game and Fish Director, Scott Talbott, who retired honorably in 2019 and has no connection with the fishing license fiasco.
Forged License?
Former Wyoming Gov. Jim Geringer took office in January 1995, and told Cowboy State Daily that he remembers the incident involving John Talbott.
It seemed out of character, because Talbott had been with Game and Fish for a long time and had a stellar reputation, Geringer said.
“It really struck me that John somehow slipped into that, fishing without a license, because of his integrity and professionalism,” Geringer said.
He thinks that initially it was just a simple mistake on Talbott’s part to head out fishing without first making sure that he had a license.
To avoid such a slip-up himself, Geringer said he bought lifetime fishing and upland bird hunting licenses.
He’s not sure if those lifetime licenses were available at the time when Talbott was ticketed.
The alleged breach of integrity came later, according to reports from the Casper Star-Tribune at the time.
Talbott allegedly went through fishing license receipts at the Game and Fish office, found one bought by somebody matching his weight, and tried to pass that license off as his own, the Star-Tribue reported.
He was later fined $400 in Carbon County Court and had his fishing privileges revoked for a year.
Geringer said the Game and Fish Department is highly autonomous, so the call for Talbott to resign likely came from the Game and Fish Commission and not his office.
“I didn’t have direct authority” over Talbott, he said.
Even so, Geringer said he “had a high standard for professionalism in my terms as governor” and supported the decision.
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The Jan. 27, 1996, issue of the Casper Star-Tribune follows the investigation into the alleged cover up of Game and Fish Director John Talbott’s fishing without a license. (Newspapers.com) -
The Feb. 7, 1996, issue of the Jackson Hole News and Guide, left, reports on the John Talbott investigation and that charges won’t be pursued for an alleged cover-up. At right, the Jan. 26, 1996, issue of the Casper Star-Tribune reports on Talbott’s plea to fishing without a license. (Newspapers.com)
‘The Initial Error Was Very Human’
Mary Kay Hill was Geringer’s director of policy at the time.
She, too, remembers the incident involving Talbott causing shock and disappointment.
“He was well-respected. He’d come up through the ranks as a well-respected manager of wildlife,” she said.
Most people at the time didn’t fault Talbott for fishing without a license, she said. The real fallout came from trying to cover it up later.
“The initial error was very human,” Hill said. “I think many people could have put themselves in his shoes.”
She added that as far as she can recall, the warden who ticketed Talbott didn’t know who Talbott was at that time.
“It wasn’t somebody who was trying to nail his boss,” Hill said. “It was just an unfortunate human interaction.”
Recently retired Game and Fish director Brian Nesvik told Cowboy State Daily that the incident with Talbott happened just as Nesvik was starting his career with the agency.
Nesvik said he wasn’t directly involved, but was proud of how his colleagues handled the matter in not giving special treatment to Talbott because he was the director of the agency.
“It demonstrated real integrity on the part of Game and Fish, because it showed we are willing to enforce the laws, regardless of who was involved,” he said.
Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.
A pair of bills signed into law last week aim to build out a more comprehensive system of literacy education across Wyoming’s public schools.
One mandates evidence-based practices and requires regular screenings for dyslexia, while the other enables the Wyoming Department of Education (WDE) to hire a dedicated literacy professional to oversee statewide compliance.
Gov. Mark Gordon’s signing of both bills on Friday was the latest accomplishment of an ongoing push for improved literacy standards. That push has been spearheaded by State Superintendent of Public Instruction Megan Degenfelder.
“Wyoming is not going to let a single child fall through the cracks,” Degenfelder said during a public bill signing last week. “We are not going to fall behind when it comes to ensuring that our children can read at grade level.”
The primary bill, Senate File 59, establishes a statewide K-12 program for teaching students to read that is built on “evidence based language and literacy instruction, assessment, intervention and professional development that supports educators, engages families and promotes literacy proficiency for all Wyoming students.”
The bill defines evidence-based strategies as those that conform to the science of reading, a term that will be defined and updated by Degenfelder’s office. Nationwide, it generally means putting academic research into practice in classrooms. SF 59 specifically prohibits the exclusive use of “three-cueing” — a strategy once widely employed to teach reading but which education experts now say is outdated and less effective than other strategies.
It also requires annual dyslexia screeners for students below the third grade, and testing for reading difficulties for all students.
The screeners are used to identify the severity of reading difficulties in order to direct “tiered” support that offers the most intensive interventions to the students most in need, while still providing “evidence based” language instruction to all students.
Each school district must formulate an individualized reading plan “for each student identified as having reading difficulties or at risk for poor reading outcomes.”
Districts must now report to the state annually regarding their literacy-related work. Any district where 60% or more of the students are struggling will be required to implement “summer literacy camps or extended supports, including after school support and tutoring.”
The bill also requires literacy related professional development for teachers and specialists “appropriate to their role and level of responsibility” related to literacy education.
SF 59 was backed by dyslexia advocates and literacy specialists.
Senate File 14, the other literacy bill signed into law Friday, appropriates $120,000 annually for the next two years for a full-time position at WDE “to assist school districts in implementing a reading assessment and intervention program and language and literacy programs.”
Both bills go into effect July 1.
LARAMIE — The University of Wyoming and the Mountain West Conference announced the Cowboys’ 2026 football schedule Monday, a slate that opens with the Border War and concludes with back-to-back home games in Laramie.
Wyoming opens the season Sept. 5 on the road against Colorado State in the 118th edition of the Border War. The Cowboys then host Northern Colorado on Sept. 12 in the home opener before traveling to Central Michigan on Sept. 19.
The Cowboys begin Mountain West play Sept. 26 at home against Hawaii in a matchup for the Paniolo Trophy. Wyoming then faces back-to-back road games at North Dakota State on Oct. 3 and San Jose State on Oct. 10.
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Wyoming returns to War Memorial Stadium on Oct. 17 to host conference newcomer Northern Illinois before facing Air Force at home on Oct. 24. The Cowboys will have an open week on Oct. 31.
The Cowboys open November with road games at UNLV on Nov. 7 and at UTEP on Nov. 14, marking Wyoming’s first meeting with the Miners as members of the Mountain West. Wyoming closes conference play by hosting New Mexico on Nov. 21 and wraps up the regular season with a nonconference game against UConn on Nov. 28 in Laramie.
Each Mountain West team will play four home and four road conference games during the 13-week season, which will conclude with the Mountain West Football Championship Game featuring the two teams with the highest conference winning percentages. The championship game date will be announced later.
With the conference schedule set, Mountain West television partners CBS Sports, FOX Sports, and The CW will begin selecting broadcast games, which could include moving some contests to non-Saturday dates. Network assignments and kickoff times will be announced at a later date.
Season ticket renewals for the 2026 Wyoming football season are now available. Fans can renew their tickets online by visiting gowyo.com/tickets and logging into their account.
The 2026 Wyoming prep girls’ basketball season is nearly done. Two state champions were crowned in Classes 1A and 2A last Saturday. Southeast won the 1A title for the third consecutive season, and Sundance won the 2A title for the first time in eight years. Class 3A and 4A held their regional tournaments, which qualified teams for the state tournament later this week in Casper.
WYOPREPS WEEK 12 GIRLS BASKETBALL STANDINGS 2026
These are the girls’ basketball team records for all games played through March 7, 2026. For all but 16 teams, this is the final record of the season. Those squads will play in the 3A-4A state tournament starting on Thursday in Casper.
1A Northwest: (Overall Record, followed by Conference Record)
Burlington 24-5, 8-0
Riverside 14-10, 6-2
Dubois 11-10, 4-4
St. Stephens 3-16, 1-7
Meeteetse 1-20, 1-7
1A Southwest: (Overall Record, followed by Conference Record)
Cokeville 23-4, 10-0
Little Snake River 23-4, 8-2
Farson-Eden 16-12, 5-5
Saratoga 13-11, 5-5
Ft. Washakie 8-13, 2-8
Encampment 3-19, 0-10
1A Northeast: (Overall Record, followed by Conference Record)
Upton 16-7, 10-0
Kaycee 13-12, 7-3
Hulett 12-13, 7-3
Arvada-Clearmont 9-12, 4-6
Casper Christian 4-13, 2-8
Midwest 1-16, 0-10
1A Southeast: (Overall Record, followed by Reg. Season Points)
Southeast 24-5, 40 points
Lingle-Ft. Laramie 17-11, 31 points
Lusk 15-13, 26 points
H.E.M. 13-11, 24 points
Rock River 6-14, 12 points
Guernsey-Sunrise 2-18, 4 points
2A Northwest: (Overall Record, followed by Conference Record)
Thermopolis 16-13, 5-1
Greybull 16-15, 4-2
Rocky Mountain 9-17, 2-4
Shoshoni 11-18, 1-5
2A Southwest: (Overall Record, followed by Conference Record)
Wyoming Indian 23-7, 6-0
Big Piney 8-16, 4-2
Kemmerer 2-21, 1-5
Wind River 2-23, 1-5
2A East: (Overall Record, followed by Conference Record)
Sundance 23-4, 5-0
Big Horn 21-6, 4-1
Tongue River 18-11, 3-2
Pine Bluffs 17-12, 2-3
Moorcroft 7-18, 1-4
Wright 3-23, 0-5
Read More Girls Basketball News from WyoPreps
WyoPreps 1A-2A Girls State Basketball Scoreboard 2026
WyoPreps 3A-4A Girls Regional Basketball Scoreboard 2026
WyoPreps Coaches and Media Final Basketball Poll 2026
WyoPreps 1A-2A Girls Regional Basketball Scoreboard 2026
WyoPreps Coaches and Media Basketball Poll 2-25-26
WyoPreps Girls Basketball Week 10 Scores 2026
WyoPreps Coaches and Media Basketball Poll 2-18-26
WyoPreps Girls Basketball Week 9 Scores 2026
WyoPreps Coaches and Media Basketball Polls 2-11-26
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3A West: (Overall Record, followed by Conference Record)
Cody 24-0, 10-0
Lander 21-4, 9-1
Pinedale 20-5, 7-3
Powell 16-9, 6-4
Lovell 16-10, 4-6
Worland 9-16, 2-8
Lyman 10-11, 2-8
Mountain View 4-19, 0-10
3A East: (Overall Record, followed by Conference Record)
Wheatland 22-4, 10-0
Buffalo 13-11, 8-2
Douglas 14-11, 6-4
Burns 16-13, 5-5
Torrington 10-11, 5-5
Glenrock 12-13, 3-7
Newcastle 1-22, 1-9
Rawlins 2-21, 0-10
4A Northwest: (Overall Record, followed by Conference Record)
Green River 23-2, 6-0
Natrona County 9-16, 4-2
Kelly Walsh 8-15, 2-4
Rock Springs 5-20, 0-6
4A Southwest: (Overall Record, followed by Conference Record)
Star Valley 16-7, 5-1
Evanston 16-10, 5-1
Riverton 7-19, 1-5
Jackson 3-19, 1-5
4A East: (Overall Record, followed by Conference Record)
Cheyenne East 21-3, 11-1
Cheyenne Central 16-9, 10-2
Sheridan 14-10, 7-5
Thunder Basin 14-10, 6-6
Laramie 12-11, 6-6
Campbell County 1-19, 1-10
Cheyenne South 1-21, 0-11
*The second Campbell County-Cheyenne South girls’ game was canceled.
Wyoming 3A Boys Swimming & Diving State Championships 2026
Photos from the 3A Boys State Swim Meet
Gallery Credit: Courtesy: Marcello Monterastelli Photography & Jared Newland, WHSAA
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