Fishin' with Dave

The Word is Out

2012-02-09T21:56:00.006-06:00

Saturday was my birthday and at the last minute decided what better way to spend it than on Lake Mille Lacs fishing the hot walleye bite. Because my friend Mark had already spent the night in his fish house the night before, he thought it would be a good idea to tag along and try the flats for a change of pace and agreed to meet me at Lundeen's at noon. My plan was the same game as last week, drive on the ice at Dewey's till the bridge across the heave, unload the ATV, pack everything in the sled and head out. I could not go by the first set of deep gravel humps without trying them. It was as dead as the week before so off to 7 mile flat. Word was that a couple of the east side resorts had roads open to the flats and Holy Moses, half the world must have gotten the word. As we approached the center of the lake every flat in front of us had cars and trucks lining the entire edge circumference of the flat. I'll bet from the air it looked like a high level Lakemaster Bottom Contour Map! Arriving on 7 mile there must have been 75 guys set up including 1 guy in our exact spot of last weeks massacre. Stopping to see how his luck had been he confirmed it was slow and if fact about 25% of the people had left already.   Amazing as I cannot believe that many people would be driving out as the ice conditions were not that great just a week ago and it hasn't been that cold. If fact the word was 2 trucks went in on the south side earlier that morning. As Ron White would say......You can't fix stupid. Mark and I fished a few open holes left by the previous guys with nothing showing up on our screens. Deciding to move we loaded up and headed west to a near shore flat called Sherman's that had few anglers and is quite large assuring we could find our own quiet area.    Using our maps we found that "special" looking area and drilled our holes along the top and bottom of the edge.

Almost immediately we began marking fish. Within 10 minutes Mark had had a nice walleye through the hole, a good sign. It was about 2:00 in the afternoon and the prime time was about 1 1/2 hour away. Well, it took its merry old time and arrived about 30 minutes late. The fact that we marked fish with regularity helped keep our interest knowing eventually they would turn on. About 4:00 the action started as we put a couple of keepers on the ice. At about 4:30 the fish really became aggressive. Although hard to believe, they were almost too aggressive as they would hit so hard the the hook would almost be ripped out or hooked lightly. I fish braided line and often the lack of stretch will make this problem even worse. Between Mark and I we must have lost 9 fish after hooking them for less than 10 seconds, many of them coming off just before we got them into the hole. By the time the bite stopped we had 3 nice keepers, a respectable perch, had let at least 3 more over 20 inches back into our holes, and lost another 9 fish we never saw. Of course you should have seen the ones that got away! Over all it was a great day on Mille Lacs as again we proved how important it is to get away from the crowds and noise, look for that "fishy" spot, and drill a lot of holes to move around looking for active fish. On this trip both Mark and I caught all of our fish on the deep side of the drop and really never moved much as we settled into the couple of holes that stayed consistent.   Our hot baits were Mark's Swedish Pimple and my Rattlin' Flyer although I did catch one on a Jigging Rap. With the fish as aggressive as they were, the Rap is a great bait however this time the fish were a little more fussy wanting something more subtle yet they still hit with vengeance. With the season winding down I can't complain much about the last 2 weeks on the pond.

It has been an interesting week as I spent Monday thru Wednesday in Orlando flying back Wednesday night. Having been upgraded to first class I was looking forward to a nice relaxing ride home as I wrote this weeks post on the plane. As luck would have it the on board WiFi was broken so I given a choice of playing solitaire for 3 hours or watch the Steve Martin movie, The Big Year. It wasn't too bad. This week might find me fishing some of my old stomping grounds on the back waters of the Mississippi River somewhere between LaCrosse and Alma. My friend Kevin has been doing well as he nailed a 15 inch perch a few days ago. That's a nice perch anywhere. I continue to get the boat ready as everything indicates an early spring. With the low water the walleye fishing this spring could be interesting.   We'll see!

The Bite is On

2012-02-02T16:09:00.001-06:00

After last weeks attempt to get to the offshore areas I like to fish, Lory and I decided to try it again. Another week of colder weather coupled with the additional time the resorters had to figure out their roads, we headed up much earlier in the day to take advantage of having more time to adjust our strategy if needed. When arriving mid afternoon for the most part you are stuck staying in one place as it's important to be settled in during that peak time from 4:00 to dark. I have a "secret" spot near Indian Point that is often very good when few have fished it. With no roads beyond the heave and the threat of 8 inch ice you are restricted to ATV travel but once across those newly frozen areas there is substantial ice. Driving up to Dewey's access we dropped $10 in the pay box and headed out to the known heave. As always we stopped at Bill's and his thought was Dewey would have a bridge over the bad area to drive the ATV over and continue from there. Parking the truck about 1/4 mile from our intended crossing point we unloaded the ATV to check everything out. Well the bridge was laying on the ice and no practical way to cross the heave. Looking across the barrier, contemplating plan B another truck came out with the intent on following our plan of getting to the other side. As we talked Dewey shows up, gives a short assessment of the situation then offers to head back, get the plow, and push the bridge over the suspect area. 15 minutes later he was back and with some help from us spectators we had the bridge safely in place. This was our cue to pack'em up and get going, destination 3 miles away. The ice was very rough to the north of us so we followed the edge east till an opening presented itself then turned north towards the magic spot. Lory was somewhat nervous as we maneuvered around large chunks of ice protruding from the surface, a result of the previous winds pushing the ice around and smashing it into itself. Arriving at our spot it was great news, only one other set of holes were drilled and whoever was there had left. On the other hand maybe that was an sign. Setting up our house and drilling around 10 holes we fished for almost 2 hours and never marked a fish. I had put the camera down and it sure looked like a great spot with gravel and small rocks scattered on the bottom. Unfortunately we were not there to fish rocks. After 2 hours I looked at Lory and stated we are leaving. get packed up as I had my eyes on 7 mile Flat, a good 6 miles north of our location. I had rigged my HDS5 with a 12 volt plug and a RAM mount for inside the ATV cab, it was just like being in the boat as we worked our way further north.

Arriving at 7 Mile I had an idea of where I wanted to fish however the area had a number of portables parked in my spot. Looking at the GPS and the Lakemaster bottom contour map I located a spot that indicated an inside turn with a gradual slope from 36 to 24 feet. As stated before these structures often rise from the lake floor to the top of the flat within 20 - 30 feet. I fish this area quite a bit in the summer and am pretty familar with where the fish tend to be and this was one of those spots. The changed strategy was to set up on the bottom side of the flat in 36 feet while drilling holes at the top edge then paralleling along both edges to provide a stretch of structure to work along. The ice was a good 18 inches thick, in great shape, and once set up we started working the area. It wasn't too bad out but the wind was cold, never the less we worked the outside hole structures with little protection from the cols. By this time it was about 3:00 in the afternoon and almost immediately we started marking fish. They were not very aggressive and would often just come up to the bait, check it out and quickly disappear off the Vexilar screen, at least there were fish in the area. It took about another hour before the fish started hitting our lures and by 4:00 we had enough to know the best was yet to come. With a few walleyes on the ice and a few bonus jumbo perch, at 5:00 the switch really turned on. I had caught a nice fish earlier but didn't get a chance to snap a picture. The first picture is a nice 23 inch fish that helped redeem myself of letting the first on go without getting an official picture of the blog. Within minutes Lory nailed this nice 22 inch walleye. We were still hole hopping when Lory landed a keeper out of a hole exclaiming there was another one down there. Quickly baiting up he dropped the line and a second fish slammed the lure, another keeper. He said there is a third one, again dropped the lure and wouldn't you know picked up a third fish in less than 3 minutes. We ended the day with over 20 walleyes caught, 8 nice keepers 16 - 17.5 inches, and over 6 released that were 20+ inches. My real prize was a 4 inch walleye that hit my minnow head, pretty comical. The hot baits were the Rattlin' Flyer with a minnow head, a Hawger spoon with a whole minnow, a shiner on a dead stick, and my trusty old Jigging Rap. With 3 nice perch we left the flats for the 10 mile trek back to the truck hoping the ice hadn't shifted while we were gone. The bridge was still in place, we loaded the truck and left satisfied with one of the best ice fishing day's we've had on Mille Lacs in a while. It is a testament to being able to adjust your strategy, understand your location, and work for your fish. Sometimes it all comes together, just like on TV!

Today is my Dad's birthday, he would have been 82 years old. His birthday is on Ground Hogs Day and I will always remember his comments regarding the predictions for winter as he always felt a connection to the folklore of the day. Today he would have said we will have 6 more weeks of winter, something that we haven't had much of lately. Happy Birthday Dad, love your son Dave.

Heave Ho

2012-01-26T23:51:00.001-06:00

Last weeks sub zero weather was just what the doctor ordered to heal up those open area's on Mille Lacs, some that were over 1/2 mile wide. With the new ice pushing 8 inches, although not safe enough for cars and trucks, an ATV would be the perfect mode of transportation for our Sunday excursion to the lake. With little snow on the ice it was critical to put the chains on the rear wheels which really stabilizes the ATV when traveling over clear ice. Loading up my tow behind portable in the back of the truck, we put the ATV in my ramp trailer, Lory and I headed up US Highway 169. With every aspect of that road memorized as I am exactly 68 miles from Bill's bait shop, 1 hour and 10 minutes if I hit the stop lights in Elk River just right. With the conditions stabilizing we figured Bill would have the latest hot spot for us to try. My friend Mark Applen had called as we drove up telling of a nice limit of jumbo perch he had gotten yesterday on the east side. My original plan was to fish one of the deep offshore gravel bars, one that has been very productive at first ice. Being almost February its far from first ice yet ice conditions have resulted in little fishing pressure on anything out further than 2 miles. Well Bill had bad news, the ice has healed nicely however the rising temperatures have caused the ice to expand and heave, causing a major obstacle for getting out very far. The crack extended from the southwest end of the lake following the shore for 5 miles before cutting across Indian Point then dipping into the bay between there and Sherman's Point. Bill suggested that some houses are now stuck on the lake side of the crack and bridges were already being dragged out to provide a safe crossing. We decided to try an area I call Roland's Flat, just NW of Indian Point. Mark and I fished there the previous week and had some action. The backup plan was to fish the deeper rock humps south of Sherman's however in both cases this heave pictured stopped us in our tracks. This heave line was about a mile out from the landing and if you look closely at the middle you can see it extends as far as you could see. The high point shown is over 5 feet and the darker areas at the base is water that has flowed through the crack onto the ice. The previous week this was open water. With the ice at 8 inches it didn't pay to try and find away around so we fished the south edge of the flat with the top being right about where the water starts. Not the ideal spot on the flat but we really had no choice.

The plan had changed but we were in a fairly good area, there were few people around us and no one venturing close to the heave which marked the top edge of the flat at 15 feet. Like most flats the edge is a fairly steep drop and within 30 feet was the bottom edge at 22 feet. My GPS showed a slight inside curve which usually indicates a prime spot. The nice thing about this flat is that the top is covered with weeds and provides excellent cover for perch and walleyes. Unfortunately the fish did not share my enthusiasm for this great spot! Being rather pleasant out hole hopping wasn't much of an issue. Lory did find a hole that did have a fish in it as shown here, a fat and plump 25 inch walleye that went back down the hole. 10 minutes later he had a smaller fish on, surely a keeper but it got off just as he brought it to the hole. A couple more hits and that was about it, the flurry lasting a whole 30 minutes. As for me.........well someone has to assure his friends catch fish, take the pictures, make sure they are on safe ice, and have a nice ride back to the truck, yep that's me! I missed one fish and that's all she wrote. Oh well, still nice to get out. Lory was using a plain jig head and minnow while my bait of choice was a Jigging Rapala. Admittedly the Jigging Rap is a more aggressive bait and the jig with minnow is a more finesse presentation. Obviously the fish wanted finesse rather than attack a faster moving lure what few there were of them. The weather this week is back in the mid 30's to 40 and it should be interesting to see the new developments. The websites are telling of marked roads to the middle of the lake for snowmobile and ATV traffic only. This might be the weekend I can get out to some of those past productive offshore areas as I have not had a good report since my Lake of the Woods trip. Maybe it's time to start planning another trip to the border.

The warm weather is tugging at my soft water ambitions. I am starting to reconfigure some of the things on my boat for more convenience. With March a month away and no significant snow anywhere in the Mississippi River drainage area, it could be an early start for the Ranger this year. With ice fishing going the way it has, maybe it's a good thing.

Back To Reality

2012-01-18T23:23:00.001-06:00

Last weekend was spent repainting my family room. It was about time as it's been the same color for 19 years and provided the incentive to look at replacing the carpet as well. This and the fact that my Green Bay Packers were playing on Sunday afternoon gave me cause to finish up a few things around the house and relax during the game. I can report that the room turned out great and is ready for a new carpet. I cannot say that the game on Sunday turned out as well. Although my beloved Packers finished the season at 15-1, they looked like a team that hadn't played in a few weeks. Between the miss tackles and passes it was almost embarrassing. Oh well, the good news is that it will free up the next 2 Sunday's to hit the ice hard. With the below zero temperatures of this week it will be makin' ice like crazy. I am really looking forward to those open water areas on Mille Lacs to heal up so we can fish the deeper offshore areas. The fishing reports have been spotty with some guys doing well while others struggling. Of course a number of my friends have been getting out and the first picture is of my deer hunting partner, Jack Taylor. Jack has a cabin on Platte Lake, just west of Mille Lacs, a shallow lake full of small northerns, and occasional walleye, and some really nice crappies. Here Jack is posing with a couple of crappies over 11 inches that he caught a few weeks ago. Platte Lake is shallow enough to be in danger of freezing out every few years so the lake association has put in a few aerators when the oxygen levels get low. Nice crappies like this are the result of successfully preventing the lake from having depleted oxygen levels when the snow blocks the light to the natural weed growth. With the total lack of snow this year, they might not even need to install the aerators this year.

This next picture is my friend Pete, back from Alaska for a month. Pete is good friends with Dave Genz of ice fishing fame and they wasted no time getting in some great ice fishing before Pete heads back to Fairbanks to start work this week. Having drove to Alaska last March, he got assigned to the oil fields in Prudhoe Bay where it is now dark 24 hours a day. Working 6 weeks on and 2 weeks off, there is little time to spend money and his intent is to work another year then come back and retire. He is the master of the Mississippi River and I look forward to fishing with him in the future. Here Pete is holding 2 bull bluegills that measure right at 11 inches. Those are huge bluegills for anywhere in the country. Of course fishing with Dave doesn't hurt as he is one of the best pan-fisherman on ice around and has all those great secret spots to nail fish like this. Dave also has the latest and greatest equipment as he is sponsored by Vexilar, Clam Corp, Strikemaster, and a number of other ice fishing specialty companies. Pete is driving back via the Alaskan Highway and I wish him safe travels, he'll need it this time of year.

The warm weather has made this years ice fishing season some what odd as I am already seeing some stores start closing out their inventory in preparation for open water fishing. This will take a month or so but the change is happening. The warm weather has given me an opportunity to work on my boat, cleaning up a few of the wiring items, and rethink how my electronics are mounted. Certainly it's better than staring at my snowmobiles that just sit there and complain of no snow. We are truly in a drought as there has been no significant rain or snowfall since August, almost 6 months now. I knew when I bought that new snow blower we'd skip a year of snow. You are welcome! As stated, the Pack is out, Mille Lacs is in and I will make sure I have a ready camera next time.

Technical Difficulties

2012-01-13T15:00:00.001-06:00

One of the things I like about technology is the amazing amount of it out there for everyone to use. For me, I really like digital camera's and try to keep one available where ever I go. My go to point and shoot camera is a Canon S95, a very feature loaded device that is very fast for a camera that fits in the palm of your hand. Fast is a term used to describe how wide the aperture can get to let as much light in as possible. For the S95 that reference is f2.0. What this really means is that it will shoot excellent pictures in low light conditions, most represented on my blog by the beautiful sunset pictures I have posted. After being frustrated by "forgetting my camera", I bought a cheap Nikon refurbished point and shoot digital to simple always keep in the boat or car. Well, that camera is not very good, probably worth what I paid. It has served me OK in a pinch but had a tendency to overexpose light areas and over saturate the colors. At first ice I told the story of laying down on the ice to take a picture only to see the camera didn't work. Well, I sent it in under warranty and they will fix it but it's now been over a month. In the meantime I am more frustrated with my Nikon than ever as you see last weeks picture of Mark makes him look like he has a neon shirt on! I decided to order a new Canon 300 ELPH300HS to replace the Nikon, received it last week and took it fishing with me last Saturday. Meeting Mark on the ice, we fished an inshore structure called Roland's Flat. Unfortunately there was open water on the far side of the flat so we were confined to the west end. Still, there is a nice drop. Having my new camera ready for it's inaugural debut I took a couple of pictures of the nearby open water (January 7, open water on Mille Lacs yet?!?!?) which looked interesting. I noticed 3 beeps after each picture, checked it out and the message on the screen said "no card". Just my luck, new digital camera and no memory card. Oh well. Towards evening Mark asked me to hit the hole he was in as there was a fish down there and wasn't biting on his lure. I dropped my neon perch colored #5 jigging rap and within seconds a nice walleye had fully inhaled it. Pulling the transducer first I landed the fish, a respectable 24 inch fish beautiful in color, fat and sassy. Again without a camera I turned to Mark to take one with his phone...too dark. I fumbled for my phone however my ice armor has way too many pockets and couldn't hold the fish and dig so I simply let the fish go without an ounce of proof. Really, it was a nice fish. This was the only fish I caught but it was still nice to get out and check out my new XTR ice grippers. Pretty nice. So, my first picture is of Keith Holtan and his fish from his Lake of the Woods last week. Instead of writing my blog last night both Lory and I went to the St. Paul Sportsman Show to meet Keith and his wife Jane, along with their friend and my cousin Greg's friend Al. We ended the night at The Liffy, across the street from the Excel Center were we enjoyed a few Guinness's together. I got some interesting stuff at the show, a new motor trailering support for my 115 Suzuki, a couple of interesting jigs, and a BoomB(())X, a device that can be powered off of a standard USB port and audio output jack found on a laptop. It literally turns any box, Styrofoam minnow bucket, cup, into a speaker. It's pretty cool!

So my next picture is of my cousin Greg's son-in-law, Joe Thomas. Joe plays for the Cleveland Browns and is the top Offensive Left Tackle in the business today. Personally I think he would look a lot better in a Green Bay Packer uniform, but I suppose it would not leave him much time to ice fish this time of the year. I am sure he'd rather be practicing but that's a different story. If the speculation is true Aaron Rodgers back up, Matt Flynn is a free agent this year and with his spectacular performance 2 weeks ago, might look good in a Cleveland uniform. It would be nice to see him get a Super Bowl ring. Joe caught this nice musky last weekend at Greg's lake, east of Chetek, Wisconsin. I haven't received the details of the fish but everything points to at least a 45 inch length and I suppose around 25 pounds, maybe Greg will comment. Having just hoisted a 51 inch sturgeon through the ice, I understand the excitement a fish like this brings. Funny, I never seem to catch anything like this when I fish Greg's lake! Either way that fish makes Joe look small, something I know he isn't.

The middle picture is the latest from the satellite on January 10th. As you see there is still a lot of open water around Mille Lacs yet. With the below zero temperatures of the last couple of nights, here's hoping it will get somewhat back to normal soon. It might be hard to get out this weekend as I have a room in the house tore apart and am painting. It wouldn't be so bad however we haven't had much luck matching colors. Maybe a run to Pelican Lake will be in order, and of course the Packers play on Sunday afternoon, that will be a must watch!!!

Wonders of the WigWam

2012-01-04T22:40:00.003-06:00

Well, enough complaining already! I am sure that you will all check out my first picture and rightfully so, what a story. As I wrote in last weeks post, a last minute scramble solidified Mark and my decision to fish at the Wigwam Resort. Our plan was to pull his wheelhouse to Lake of the Woods and us it as our sleeping quarters staying at the Wigwam. On my way to his location, The Fisherman's Wharf, Mark called and suggested we see if there had been any cancellations at the resort or in Baudette. Agreeing that pulling the wheelhouse would be an extra burden, Mark found a room at the Walleye Inn, a motel in town. Although 15 miles from the resort, it would free us from the hassle of reduced mileage, setup and tear down.   Picking Mark up at 11:30 AM we were enjoying a beer with Wigwam's owner Tom by 3:30. Although staying in town also had it's issues, it made our arrangements less complicated.  Our schedule was to pick up a ride to a large, heated ice house we rented from the resort at 7:30 Thursday morning. Showing up at 6:00 we had a nice breakfast then got in line. The ice was 14 inches thick and the resorts were only allowing light vehicles like ATV's or the proverbial 4 wheel drive, fully chained Geo Trackers pulling a dual axle people hauler.   The ice would support heavier trucks but the volume of traffic would have severely cracked the ice causing bigger issues. So 6 of us loaded into the dark trailer and headed out 3 miles as though we were on a secret mission, hidden from any knowledge of our route. Dropped off at house Number 35, the holes were drilled, our bait was transferred and we were set.    The fish limit consists of 8 in possession which only 4 could be walleyes or all 8 being saugers. A nice sauger is 15 inches and we started catching them right away. At the rate they were biting we were concerned about keeping too many fish too fast so we let a lot of nice fish go all about the time the bite slowed down. At 2:00 the walleye bite turned hot and I caught 4 nice 17 - 18 inch fish, perfect keepers. The nicer saugers were more difficult to get and after talking to a friend the suggestion of having the resort fry up your fish sounded pretty dang good.   We managed to get 5 more saugers, enough for dinner at the lodge. Between my 4 walleyes and our ride back Mark caught this beautiful 24.5" walleye. Like the walleye from last week's post, this thing was a pig as I estimated it was over 6 pounds. Most walleyes this size will weigh in at around 4.5 pounds.   Day one was pretty exciting, the bite was great, we ended up with 9 fish in the bucket, a nice trophy walleye and enough fish for supper.  I will admit the the resort did a great job deep frying the fish and with a side of beans and a salad it doesn't get any better.

Friday morning brought us on the first flight of fisherman on the lake. This time we got house Number 36, about 50 yards north of yesterday's house. The same game, we started fishing by 7:30 and immediately started catching saugers. Our strategy was a little different this day, keep the nicer fish right away as we needed 12 to fill our limit. About 9:30 Mark decided to put a whole minnow on his lure, dropped it to 26 feet when a huge red mark on the depth finder came up to meet his lure. One gulp and the fish was hooked. Not understanding what exactly Mark had at the end of the line, it was obviously a large fish. The first thing Mark asked if I would remove his 2nd line and the depth finder from the hole he was fishing in.   This was a good move, something I soon discovered would have been a good idea if I would have done the same. Almost immediately the fish came up to the top. Because the water is stained, it's visibility is about 3 feet.  At about the 5 minute mark I caught a quick glimpse of the bottom part of the tail and announce to Mark that the 10# walleye on his bucket list was at the end of his line.   The fish went back to the bottom and essentially had it's way with everything including my 2 lines that were still down.   As I watched Mark trying to reel in the fish with his 3 foot St. Croix Ice rod and reel loaded with 6# Crystal Fireline the drag keep going. At one point I began to doubt whether Mark knew what he was doing as he reeled against a drag that was clicking as though the pressure nut was loose. Little did I understand as this was starting to get ridiculous, I wanted to get back fishing! 10 minutes, 20 minutes, 30 minutes, almost 40 minutes had pasted before the tangled mess of my line appeared above the hole.  Carefully cutting the lines, I freed Mark's line of the tangles, just in time to see this monster fish swim past the hole. Sturgeon!!! Another 5 minutes Mark had it's head in the hole as I grabbed it and pulled and pulled and pulled it through.  51 inches and an estimated 50+ pounds, Mark had successfully landed the biggest fish of his life. It was pretty amazing as I got to witness the capture of this beautiful prehistoric beast. Although not on his bucket list it quickly was added and immediately crossed off! As for me, here is a picture of my super sized tullibee, proof I actually can catch fish as well. And Mark, it took all of my posturing to get him to head up with me and it turned out to be one of those lifetime memories for both of us. By 7:00 we were heading south, a take out container of our fillets deep fried for the way home, and somewhat exhausted. We are already talking about next year.

As a parting note I was really impressed with our time at the Wigwam Resort. We were treated like as though we had been coming up for years. It probably helped to drop my friend Keith Holtan's name as he grew up with the owner, but something tells me that was just a bonus. Both Mark and I will definitely be back.   You can check out their weekly fishing video at IDO Lake of the Woods Fishing Forum as it's pretty good. Make sure to have them fry your fish at night, it's great and only costs $5.00. Fishing was reasonable at $100 per person you got a ride out to a huge heated house, bait for the day (rods, reels, and lures if you need), a ride back at night, and your fish cleaned, packed and frozen. Quite a deal if you ask me. Mille Lacs is still exhibiting issues but the south side seems stable. The weather is still warmer than normal and there was no snow between Minneapolis and the Canadian Border, very unusual. It's only a matter of time before the big freeze moves in. Jeff King made it to Mexico and next week is our time to spend with Keith at the St. Paul Sportsman show sharing a Guinness at the Liffy. Fishing should definitely get back to normal this weekend, whatever that is.

Last Minute Scramble

2011-12-27T23:17:00.002-06:00

With the ice conditions on Mille Lacs continuing to deteriorate my friend Mark Applen and I have been contemplating a trip further north, say the Canadian Border. After talking to my friend Pete, checking out the video fishing reports from the Wigwam Resort on Lake of the Woods, it seemed like the place to be. Putting something together this quickly and between Christmas and New Years would be challenging. Calling almost every place I knew it would be difficult to find last minute accommodations for this week and as predicted, not a room available anywhere. The guy at Wigwam was very helpful however there were a lot of options available we never explored. First of all the lodging. Calling back and asking about driving on the ice with Mark's wheel house (we can stay in there), they cannot guarantee however the guy said the resort will let us stay in the house as long as it's parked in the camp area on the resort. $10 a night, including electricity seems reasonable. If they were going to let us drive out on the ice all of our problems would have been solved. Unfortunately they are only allowing specially equip ice transport vehicles and or snowmobiles and ATV's at this time. Because of our last minute hair it would be dumb for only 2 of us to drive 2 trucks, one for the house and the other for the ATV's. Yes, we could have put it in the truck but where do we put our portables, it just presented 1 too many issues. I had just about given up on the notion of being able to put a trip together. This morning a light bulb went off, maybe the resort has ice shacks for rent, we could pull the wheelhouse up then use the resort services for the fishing. Being somewhat restrictive as to where we fish, never the less it could be a good option for just the 2 of us. A quick call this morning and voila, I have a house rented for 2 days which includes transportation to and from the heated shack, bait, and free fish cleaning! We are heading up Wednesday afternoon, a 6 hour drive, with the hopes that the bite is still going strong. It sure beats hanging around the house. In the meantime my friend Pete sent me this picture of his friends 11 pound walleye they caught and released on Lake of the Woods a few weeks ago. Pete is a friend of ice fishing legend Dave Genz and they were up for a few days and figured the total number of walleyes and saugers caught was well over 350 fish for 3 days. Here's hoping my report will be as good as theirs and the fish are as big. I did stop at Fleet Farm tonight and found a few potentially deadly lures to try out (of course I do that every week!). Stay tuned

A quick word on Christmas, it was great, no snow yet but Santa found his way. It was nice to see all of brothers and sisters at Mom's; Steve, Beth, Jon, and Blake as well as a few of my nephews and nieces. It feels that we are all at some crossroads in life, never thinking too hard on any one issue yet understand none of us are getting any younger. Maybe a few days away will clear the old noggin and a better reflection will pop out of my fingers. On the other hand sometimes there just isn't much to say.

Happy New Year, stay safe and look for a a potentially amazing report in a few days!

Second Ice?!?!

2011-12-21T22:28:00.000-06:00

It's been and interesting week to the start of our ice fishing season. Last week was my first adventure onto Mille Lacs and it was an encouraging experience. 6-12 inches of ice had cover the first mile or so and the lake was completely frozen over. The first 10 days of December saw nighttime temperatures near zero, perfect for making ice. A thin but effective snowcover kept the temperatures ideal for freezing up the lake hard. Last week everything changed as we had a significant rain, melting all the snow, causing the average temperature to increase. The show stopper came last Thursday as the low pressure front moved east and brought gale force winds from the north. I am not sure how it all happens but the wind created large areas of open water while piling the ice over 15 feet high on the south shore. I snapped a picture as we drove by the pile of 12 inch thick ice chunks that were a flat surface last weekend. It's pretty amazing what Mother Nature can do. The fact is that all week it's been high winds, one day from the west, the next from the south, the next day from the north. This has caused something that hasn't been seen at Mille Lacs in all the years I've ice fished, almost a complete island of ice has formed around the lake isolating most of the lake from normal travel. It's effect can best be seen at this MODIS website, a site that displays pictures of daily satellite photos of North America by region. You can chose the day you would like to see and if it's clear can get a excellent idea of ice cover, useful both at the beginning of the season and towards ice out. Here is a screen shot from December 20th, 2011 showing the view from space and the large open areas that travel completely around Lake Mille Lacs. For reference the lake is about 18 mile north to south and 14 miles east to west. As you can see the ice island encompasses 80% of the surface area. We are going to need the wind to stop blowing and some below zero temperatures to really heal up those open areas for safe travel. Pretty interesting for sure. A picture is worth a thousand words and if you know anything about the current conditions on the lake, this picture says it all. Be careful out there!

Although we knew there was open water on the lake, the area I fished last week should be safe to walk out to. Meeting my friend Mark Applen Saturday afternoon we assessed the situation as reports suggested that we stay off the main lake. They were right! Walking out to the spot in Vineland Bay the ice was solid and appeared to be firmly attached to the shoreline. There were a number of wheel house that had been pulled to the area using ATVs, something I suppose I could have used however I do need the exercise. With more activity at the spot I fished last week we moved down the break to an area we could have by ourselves. I set up in 22 feet while Mark punched his holes in 15 feet. The break is very abrupt as he was only about 12 feet from me. As always I drill a number of holes around the area which allows me to move around, finding the right depth. Mark pretty well planted himself on his first 2 holes. The perch were thick in my spot. I threw my camera down and at any given time there were at least 10 on the screen, all 6 inches and smaller. I caught numerous 6 inch perch while Mark, just 12 feet away was hauling in 10 inch perch. Well the old saying is where there is perch there is walleyes so I just decided to wait them out. In the meantime Mark was accumulating a nice pile of fish including a couple of nice walleyes like the 21+ he is holding here. I did see a few walleyes on the camera, some of them very respectable yet the 7 foot differential must have been the depth where the fish, done with feeding, settled in for the night. My stubbornness sort of took over and I stayed till dark with only 1 fish to show for the day. Mark, on the other hand had 10 perch and 1 walleye on the ice, and had released 3 other walleyes outside the slot limit. Oh well, at least somebody got some fish. My only solstice is the fact that it was my idea to fish where we did yet reality it was probably the only place to fish that was safe. While out on the ice we got a call from Bill, the Mille Lacs County Ice Rescue Squad was busy that day. 4 guys had walked out to Sloppy Joe's and got stranded on an ice chunk that broke off of the shore anchored ice shelf. After resolving that issue another call came in as a couple of anglers were floating away out of St. Albans Bay. I like ice fishing but have no desire to use trolling as a viable technique.

This weekend is a special one as I wish everybody a very Merry Christmas. It will be different without my dad but I know he would be sad if we did not celebrate with our hearts in the season so we will not let him down. At this time last year we had 18 inches of snow on the ground, today it is as brown as can be. The winter solstice happens tonight and I am looking forward to the days starting to get longer (more fishing time!). I doubt there will be time to fish until after Sunday and I have a couple of nice pictures that can be used for fill. Be good and make sure to leave Santa something special, he definitely deserves it.

First Ice 2011

2011-12-14T23:43:00.003-06:00

FINALLY!!! With the stretch of near zero weather last week I was primed to get out and drill a few holes. Decisions, decisions..............go local for some panfish action or head to Mille Lacs where I had some good report on the walleye bite.   That invitation from Bill was too much so I loaded my new Eskimo Ice Fishing Combo into the truck and headed up north. Last spring while in Cabela's they had a closeout on an Eskimo setup, a Quickfish 3 pop up shelter, an 8" hand auger, an ice fishing seat, all in a narrow sled that included a cover. I believe I paid less than $160 for the entire setup. I was really looking for something that was light and portable, would easily fit in the back of the truck, and easy to pull. My insulated Clam house checks in at well over 100 pounds, coupled with my Strike Master auger, heater, flasher, camera, and bait we are talking about a couple hundred pounds of gear. When I can simply drive to my spot via the truck or ATV it's not a big deal but if I'm walking, that's a lot of weight to tug around. The Eskimo setup is simply perfect for these early ice outings as well, something light for those short trips when it's nice out. My destination was an area they call the "Trough" located in Vineland Bay. After stopping at Bill's to load up on bait I headed up the shoreline and pick a spot where it would be easy to walk out. About 1/2 mile or so offshore, the Trough is an area with a steep drop off in the middle of 12 feet of water. It stretches for a good 1/3 of a mile and bottoms out at 24 feet. The drop off is steep going from 12 to 24 in less than 10 feet. Normally I have a GPS with the lake contour loaded into the map software but when I pulled it out the batteries were completely dead. Knowing the drop was straight north and seeing another shack about where I was going, I headed off.

It's interesting walking first ice. The ultimate dilemma is what do you trust more, yourself or the ice! The reports had the ice thickness at about 6 inches, more than enough to support a guy walking. With no snow on the ice I made sure to put on a pair of ice cleats on my boots, a must for first ice. I do not want to repeat the same fate my friend Leon Lambert suffered during a trek across 11 Mile Reservoir in Colorado on clear ice, he slipped an shattered his wrist. The first 1/4 mile was pretty rough. As the ice freezes on Mille Lacs it works it's way towards the middle of the lake. Often a wind will push the newly frozen sheets of water into the bays, piling it in many layers. This ice is white in color and layered provides a very secure base for walking. As I approached the edge of the chunk ice there were more areas of clear ice, frozen between the chunks. Eventually I passed the edge and started crossing substantial patches of ice that was sometimes difficult to judge the depth. Relying on cracks in the clear ice to give the confidence of it's thickness, I worked my way out to where those guys were. About half way out those guys had packed up and headed in. The first thing I noticed was they were staying on the white frozen ice chunks, the same as what was near shore. It makes you think if one was doing the right thing. Fortunately the ice was strong, safe and realistically I probably could have rode my ATV............naw.   Having developed the confidence my next task was to find the drop off. Using my Vexilar and water from the minnow bucket I shot transducer readings through the ice every 50 feet.  12 feet, 12 feet, 12 feet, 12 feet, 24 feet, alright! Backtracking to the top of the break I found where the bottom started leveling out and setup there. Drilling a couple of holes in 22 feet, a few holes up the drop, a few beyond the drop, and a few in line with my depth, I was ready to fish.  The ice was a good 6 inches and all fear disappeared for the time being. I fished outside testing each hole to determine the best place to set up my base. My original strategy of 22 feet paid off immediately as the Vex lit up like a Christmas Tree in that bottom 6 foot range. Bang, a small perch, bang, a nice perch, bang, a 14 inch walleye........Wow. I drilled another hole, set up the Eskimo and settled in. It was about 12:30 and my plan was to fish till 4:00 as I had a turkey in the smoker for my neighbors annual Christmas Party.

Between 12:30 and 4 the action was steady. I ended up with a 14 inch keeper walleye, an 18 1/4" (pictured on top) and a bonus 24 inch walleye pictured above. Along with about 25 perch (keep 8) I am not complaining for the first time out. the hot lure was an orange #5 Jigging Rap in a Brown Trout pattern, with a minnow head on the bottom treble hook. Fishing the clear ice is intersting as you can see the fish underneath the ice as you reel them in.  This time of the year sitting on the ice can be nerve racking to say the least. As the ice freezes it is constantly moving and cracking. As it cracks the ice sounds like you are hitting a large metal tank with a hammer, a sound that reverberates across the surface. As I sat in my shelter the ice let out a huge rumble as I heard the crack coming towards me. Fishing the hole in front of me, the crack actually split my hole in half and continued between my 2 legs.......time for a heart check! Although in no danger, it is still somewhat nerve racking to watch the ice crack in front of you. I took a picture of the crack as it entered my Eskimo, I guess you just had to be there. On my way back I entered the area near shore where the ice was rough. Ice sheets piled up makes for an interesting scene, one I decided to take a picture of. Trying to get a fish eyes view I laid on the ice and pulled out the camera. Well it stopped working. Laying there for about 5 minutes working on fixing it with no luck I got back up and continued my walk back to the truck. Being about 200 yard from shore I noticed someone walking towards me..............a game warden maybe? Here it was guy who's wife noticed me laying on the ice and was concerned. Getting closer he asked if I was alright. Assuring him of my failed photography event, I expressed my appreciation for his kindness and concern with one of my Ron Schara Outdoor Calendars. We were both satisfied, I met a very nice man concerned about his fellow fisherman, he got a nice calendar and the fact that his efforts did not go unnoticed.   I am sure that if I could have stayed till sundown the walleye count would have increased nicely. With that I am looking forward to getting back up this weekend. My friend Mark Applen is heading north to grind some venison and with a little luck I can tag along and help then find time to close out the evening on his "secret" spot. We'll see!

By the way, I have been meaning to comment on my friend Dewey's last post. If you check out the left side (called a sidebar) you will see a category of Blogs I Follow. One of my favorites is What's Dewey Doin'? Sometimes other people have this knack of saying what you are thinking and Dewey is the expert at this. His last post is a simple letter to his dad. Although I never knew his father, and I know he has long since passed, it takes courage, insight and a huge heart to write what he did. This will be my first Christmas in 56 years without my dad and I am not sure I could have expressed myself any better. Thanks Dew, missing somebody hurts but wow, I wouldn't trade that ride for nothing. You are the man!

Back in Eleva

2011-12-08T16:19:00.002-06:00

Hopefully my traveling for the year is done as I am writing this while on a flight from San Jose, California back to Minneapolis. San Jose is an interesting town where you have a mix of palm trees, evergreens, and trees that have started to lose their leaves. Although nice, I prefer the diversity of our weather back home and last weekend was no exception. While my wife attended a cookie baking event my brother Steve picked me up in Fountain City, Wisconsin with the intent on heading to Eleva and help my mom. Our first stop was the Seven Hawks Winery, downtown Fountain City. Wisconsin is known more for their cheese than it's ability to grow good wine grapes however there is an increasing interest in new hardy wine grape varieties suited for our climate. An example of this is in Pepin, WI where one could not miss the large castle like building being constructed to house a new winery along the river. Fountain City's Seven Hawks Vineyard has been there for a number of years now and is located just upriver from town, nestled into the hillside, it kind of looks like those pictures of vineyards in Italy. Steve and I stopped to taste their wares and admittedly it was pretty good. One of the nicer wines was a drier white apple wine. Being near many commercial apple orchards it only makes sense. Unlike many fruit wines made in the Midwest this was not post sweetened. It provides a benchmark for the apple wine Lory and I are making and hopefully it will turn out as good. Here's a link to their website to learn more about the wines they offer: http://www.sevenhawksvineyards.com/?page_id=8

While in Eleva it had snowed a good 4 inches. It was one of those times where the snow was sticky enough to stick to everything it landed on. With no wind the effect was stunning. As I passed over the Buffalo Bridge, just out of town, I could not help but stop and take a picture of the Buffalo River as it passed under the gorgeous winter scene. Standing there on the bridge brought back many good memories of my time growing up in Eleva. The bridge was our favorite stop to try our luck at catfishing using the chicken livers we had gathered earlier from the chicken plant. The hot, humid part of August was the best time as catfish would move up river to spawn and were very active. Sometimes you could even stand on the bridge and see their ghost like forms crossing the shallow areas to the next deep hole. Armed with a coffee can of livers and a generous coating of Off repellent, you could always count of seeing Vic Wenaas or Art Kelly fishing on the bank with the pole set in a forked branch harvested from a nearby alder tree. The bite was always the best right at dusk and on a good night you could get 2 or 3 nice fish. Unfortunately there are no longer any well used paths from the bridge to the river as I suspect people have better things to do these days (that's debatable!).

The other nice surprise was running into an old friend, Tommy Austin and his wife Kathy. Steve and I took my mother down to the bar where my brother Blake's wife Jo was having a little birthday celebration and there he was. Tom is still running Austin's Body Shop in the same building he's been since I can remember. That building was actually the old blacksmith shop that my grandpa Roy owned and Tom had bought it from him. The shop was a great hangout for my friends and I when we were teenagers. Tom would often put us to work wet sanding cars that needed to be painted, running errands, and probably the most exciting aspect, riding on his homemade hard tail chopped motorcycles to Eau Claire picking up paint at Sam's Auto(someone had to hold it). At the age of 15 I am not sure my dad would have appreciated me riding on the back of these contraptions so I never told him. Eau Claire was a good 18 miles away remembering getting off the bike and my back muscles would just be parted by the vibrating sissy bar one leaned back on. Either way it was quite an adventure. Tom is still into the motorcycles and has many articles attributed to his custom designed Harley's and association with Klock Werks out of South Dakota. Word is he may be working on a Victory, something I can't wait to see. Tom worked with his dad, Herman Austin. Herman's story is tragic when in 1955 a drunk driver crossed into his wife's lane hitting the car head on and killing her and 3 of their children. For a small town like Eleva and the Austin family, this was a horrific event. When I worked at the gas station Herman would always stop by on his way home and fill up a 5 gallon can of fuel oil to heat the house for the next day. I still remember it as if it was yesterday, Herman would give me a dollar as the price per gallon was $0.20. It was fun to run into them for sure.

I am pretty sure I will be walking on some ice this weekend, trying my luck on the early crappie and sunfish bite. It's been around 10 each night with highs less than freezing. Here's hoping something doesn't screw that up.

Enjoying Florida

2011-12-01T23:24:00.000-06:00

The week after Thanksgiving is traditionally the time for our annual fall meeting of The Transformer Association, an trade organization that specializes in the transformer industries of North America. This years meeting is at the Marco Island Marriott Resort on Marco Island, Florida. Sometimes I like to mix business with pleasure and would have tried to schedule a fishing trip however it did not work out this year. Located on the southwest tip of the Florida peninsula, I have to admit I love the area this time of year. Although it has been somewhat cold for this time of the year (something that has plagued us the last 3 times we have been to Florida), it certainly beats Minnesota! Tonight it is about 61 degrees, back home it's headed for 10 above. The next 5 days here shows a forecast in the 80's while Minnesota should be making ice like crazy with temps not getting above freezing. As stated earlier, I think there will be walkable ice by December 10th, not a bad start. The resort here is beautiful as the white sand beach comes right up to the hotel grounds. Last night was a perfect time to take a picture of the sun as it sets over the Gulf of Mexico. I am surprised the number of shells littered along the beach. I would like to come back here and try my luck at offshore fishing. The popular fish here is grouper. I went to a restaurant last night and had their special, broiled grouper as well our banquet tonight also featured almond crusted grouper. I love saltwater fish as it has a better texture and flavor than freshwater fish, and fresh grouper is no exception. I fly home tomorrow and have been upgraded to first class so I am looking forward to a relaxing flight.

On Monday before I left for Florida my wife and I joined my good friend Bill Hogle and his wife Cheryl to see Leo Kottke, somebody I had quite honestly never hear of. A little research indicated that he is probably the best acoustical guitar picker alive today. Playing at the Guthrie Theater in downtown Minneapolis, I felt it would be a good opportunity to see a couple of things I had not experienced before, the Guthrie and Leo. I was not disappointed. Watching Leo play the 12 string guitar sounded like there were 2 other guys playing behind him. I am fascinated by the ability of this man to control this 12 string with the precision of a surgeon. Now I would have to also admit that I had never hear any of his music prior and only recognized the last encore song, a take on a 60's pop song. Never the less it was extremely exciting to experience a new artist and I will probably seek out more of his music. He did kind of remind me of my good friend Jeff King, a noted picker who's work is legendary in both Soldotna, Alaska and Mazatlan, Mexico. Speaking of Jeff, I did stop at Everglades City and could not resist the need to stop at a local bait shop. They had something I have been meaning to buy, a 12 inch cimeter knife to replace the knife that I had sold Rich. It's a great knife as it makes the perfect instrument for cleaning salmon caught in Alaska as well as steaking out a large piece of venision. I can't wait to get it home and try it out.

Happy Thanksgiving

2011-11-23T16:16:00.003-06:00

Thanksgiving seems to have crept up on me in record fashion this year. With dad gone my mother hasn't the energy or desire to have a house load of people, even her favorite sons, so Thanksgiving will be at my sisters. I do understand my mothers thoughts on this as living in Minneapolis, it's a full 2 - 3 hours away for any of our family to share the feast in Dayton, so we get out of having to do much of anything other than drive to Wisconsin and bring a dish. If you have been a fan of "Fishin' With Dave" for a while you know that I am an avid Green Bay Packer Fan. You would have to be living in a cave not to know they have not missed a beat since entering the playoffs and winning the Superbowl last year. Knock on wood the Packers are 10-0, the only undefeated team left in the NFL. It is really interesting how complete the transformation from Brett (who?) Favre to Aaron Rodgers has been. Of course as the 2008 NFL season began almost everyone in Sconnie was upset with Ted Thompson, the Green Bay general manager who let Favre go in favor of Rodgers. By the same token most were sick of his retirement antics however one could argue that he still was one of the best despite his game ending interception against the Giants in the NFC Championship game. You know the old saying, a bird in the hand is worth 2 in the bush! Well, when Favre retired again from the Jets then unretired to play for the Vikings all bet's were off. In 2009 the Vikes went 13-3 for the season, including 2 wins against the Pack and Aaron Rodgers. Well, the Vikings went down in typical Favre style as he threw an interception in overtime to allow the New Orleans Saints to go to the Superbowl. Deja Vu! In the meantime the Packers continued their development and have won the last 4 games against the Vikings who continue to struggle finding an identity. As beloved as Brett Favre was to the Packer fans, his attempt to stick it to us by signing with the Vikings and the success of Aaron, most of us have really discounted his decisions. After his first retirement, the Packers were going to retire his number at the first game in 2008. I suspect that they will eventually put his number up in Lambeau but I think it's going to be a while! The Packers play the Detroit Lions on their historic Thanksgiving Day game in Detroit. It's a little too early to get cocky about it and certainly the Lions are capable of beating the Pack. Never the less the Packers make the down time between soft and hard water a lot more interesting and fun. GO PACK!!!

Amongst other things like putting the boats away and settled for their long sleep and breaking out the ice fishing gear is the development of the fruits of our labor, slowly fermenting in Lory Brasel's basement. Lory decided to get into making wine this year and together we bought some equipment to perfect this age old craft. With an abundance of fruit this season, there was no shortage of varieties to make. Here is a nice and colorful picture of our wines sitting in carboys, finishing off their fermentation. From left to right they include raspberry, pear, wild grape, plum, and chokecherry. The raspberries, pear, and wild grapes come from my property and the plum and chokecherry is from Lory's. Not shown is 5 gallons of apple wine that we pressed a few months ago. This picture was taken about 6 weeks ago, you can see the foam on the top of the wild grape wine as it continues to ferment. Lory has since re-racked the wine into smaller carboys and will be ready to bottle next week. These wines tend to be very dry and will require us to sample each one to determine just the right amount of sweetener if needed, a tough job but someone has to do it. The picture does little justice as the wine is very colorful ranging from a deep Cabernet color to a rose to a pleasant chardonnay hue. Obvious these wines are not as sophisticated as one would buy in a store but it's like anything you do yourself, it always has that special aura about it and I can't wait to open our first bottle.

The weather doesn't look like it will start to make ice until next week where the highs will be in the low 30's with the lows in the teens. With the Ice Fishing Show starting on December 2 I would bet there will be walkable ice somewhere by next weekend, a great start to the season. I still have a lot of work getting my gear ready and luckily it's fairly organized. New line, re organizing the tackle box, charging the camera and Vexilar, it's a whole new season! Have a Great Thanksgiving and do give thanks for all that we are fortunate for. I have added 2 Thanksgiving songs for the holiday, enjoy.

Deer 1, Dave 0

2011-11-17T23:51:00.002-06:00

Well the Minnesota Deer Hunting season ended on Sunday with the result......no venison in the freezer. The last few years my success while deer hunting has been better than the state average of around 40% of hunters filling their tag. Bagging a deer has it's plus and minuses. On plus side there is nothing better than fresh venison tenderloin chops, fried in butter, with onions and garlic, it doesn't get any better. The minus side it quite frankly it's a lot of work! Field dressing, dragging out of the woods, hauling it home and hanging it in the pole barn is only the beginning. The fun really starts when the butchering begins as I am one of those guys that are leery of dropping it off to have it processed. Besides being to cheap to pay someone to do what I am pretty good at, if it isn't too cold out and one can convince a neighbor to help me it isn't too bad of a job. Oh well, maybe next year. One of the things I would really like to do is harvest a trophy deer, something I could hang on the wall. Having deer hunted for 40 years now I can only remember once when I saw a respectable rack on a deer and then I could not get a good shot off. Being a responsible hunter means you don't take the chance to wound an animal if you can help it. Oh well, other than that time the largest buck I ever shot was a small 6 point buck (3 x 3 for you western hunters) with about a 10 inch spread, nothing to write home about, that's for sure. On the other hand I have friends that seem to have experienced a number of trophy bucks in their lives. My Uncle Jerry is one of them as I have a couple mule deer rack mounts of his earlier years hunting out west. They are impressive to say the least. Leon Lambert, my good friend from Pueblo, Colorado is another guy that seems to have no shortage of large buck mounts, a Boone and Crockett elk mount, and a number of trophy pronghorn mounts. His house looks like a museum of natural history! Another is my good friend and fishing partner Lory Brasel. He hunts near his home town of New York Mills, MN on his step father's land. Although it is a small piece of property, it is a natural funnel for deer coming out of the river bottoms into the fields above. Here he is pictured with a beautiful 10 pointer (6 on one side and 4 on the other), a nice addition to the 2 he already has hanging on the wall. It's ironic that the biggest deer I have ever seen in the wild was about 15 years ago. Back then I would often fish the fall trolling bite on Mille Lacs till midnight or 1:00 in the morning. One night arriving home around 2:00AM I turned on my big halogen lights in the back of my house only to see a huge 10 point buck with an even larger 12 pointer right behind it. Oh well.

I shoot a Remington Model 6, 30-06 pump action rifle. My first deer hunting rifle was a sporterized 30-06 military gun with a simple 4X scope, it must have weighed at least 10 pounds. I bought it from my boss at the time for a whooping $75. Although extremely accurate, it was a bear to carry around and I needed to look for something more practical. Lee's Taxidermy in Prescott Wisconsin was probably the best place at that time to buy a gun, something I soon found out. Having only $350, I was determined to get a simple Remington 760 pump, a sling with hardware, some shells and a case. The owner suggested I get the Model 6 instead, it was a fancier, nicer gun with a Monti Carlo stock, special checkering, and a unique cartridge end mounted in the receiver. Stating I didn't have enough money for the gun but he must have either felt sorry for me or really wanted to get rid of that gun. The price was $340 for the rifle, $15 for the sling, $10 for the mounting hardware, $365 + another $17 for tax. Having only $350, he told me to take the gun and pay me later if I could. As I left a pretty happy new gun owner he yelled out "Hey, you better sight that gun in" and handed me a box of shells to boot. I ended up buying a scope from my good friend, the late Pat Holmes. His company was the rep for the company that made all of the 1 inch aluminum scope tubes for Burris. He got a super deal and I was in business. 4 years ago I was sighting my gun in and the first shot was 6 inches high, 4 to the left. After adjusting and shooting another round it was now 6 inches low and 4 inches to the right! I adjusted it back to where it was and the third and fourth shot was a bulls eye. The next year a deer came by my stand, one that Jack had hit in the leg. It took me 6 rounds to finally I finally put the deer down. Knowing something was amiss and because the scope had a lifetime warranty I sent it back to Burris. A couple weeks later they called stating the springs were weak causing the scope to be off, they could not fix it, the model was obsolete, and they would offer me 75% off any scope in their lineup. Because most of my shots are under 50 yards I took their 1.5x - 6x model, quite a bargain at $200. After carefully mounting the scope I bought some Federal Premium 165 grain Sierra Boat Tail bullets to sight it in. Man, I had trouble as they were all over the target. 10 years earlier a worker at our plant loaded me a bunch of shells that were dead one, 2 inch patterns. Talking to my in house gun expert Brett Jelkin, he believed that the factory loads were not ideal and he would load me up some shells to try. He set the bullets a little further out so there wasn't as much "jump" when the bullet hits the beginning of the barrel and did it ever make a difference. My first 3 rounds yielded a group at 1 1/2 inches, pretty impressive. Brett does an excellent job as his shooting knowledge is second to none. He even sent me this ballistics chart with the solid bold line being my loads while the dotted lower line is a standard factory load. Although I was definitely ready, I never did get a chance to put it too the real test. The good news is that everything will be ready to go next year.

This morning it was 10 degrees and the small potholes and swamps were froze over. My guess is the surface temperature on Mille Lacs has to be in the high 30's. Hard water can't be far behind. My friend Keith is back from his summer in Alaska and I am determined to meet up with him a couple of times out on the ice. In the meantime my neighbors boy, Ryan Przymus stopped by with a couple beautiful pictures of a 17.5 and a 15.5 inch crappies he got in Nonyhoa Lake. When I asked him where that was he said.........Non yhoa business! He promised he'd take me there and I am looking forward to it. He also promised to send pictures however I am still waiting and will post them when they show up. Those were impressive to say the least.

Deer Hunting Family Style

2011-11-10T23:32:00.004-06:00

The 2011 Deer Hunting season so far has been just that, hunting. Having strategically located my stand in a “can’t lose” spot, Saturday morning Jack and I were greeted with nothing less than gale force winds, sometimes gusting to 35 miles per hour. The swamp I was in did not have the big 16 to 20 inch diameter poplar trees of Rich’s place so I had to settle for something less sturdy and as I found out, more susceptible to the whims of the near hurricane. The fact that my stand is 20 feet tall to the chair added another aspect of excitement to a rather unsuccessful opener. There were times that I swear the only thing holding that tree up was the ladder portion of my stand. I always wear my harness just in case the unfortunate event would see me falling out of the stand, I’d be saved. As the wind increased my thoughts ventured to whether or not it was a good idea as if the tree went down I would be securely tethered like a flag to a flag pole. Apparently I survived. The greatest thing about deer hunting with Jack is all the great people we meet. What impresses me the most is how they have involved their entire families into this great tradition. Friday night was spent at Rich’s place, having our traditional steak feed and reacquainting ourselves with those we spent the hunt with last year. There was no shortage of young hunters as Brett’s son (featured last year), his friend Brennen, Chris with his 3 super smart boys, Kevin, his dad Eugene and his boy Austin long with Ken. I love to engage the kids on the ways of the world as we shot a few rounds out of my pistol and spent the night arguing which gun was the best for deer. Unfortunately I did not get a picture of our group this time, something I regret. I did however snap this picture of our hunting host for this year, Loren Tolama and his fine bunch of children and grandchildren. Sunday’s wind was an exact repeat of Saturday’s weather and during the afternoon the Tomala's called and said were coming over to see how we were doing………….. 3 truck loads! Loren is the guy on the right side of the picture and is the big kahuna of this bunch of dedicated deer hunters. On the far right is Nathan Tomala, a senior at Pierz High School who is playing this week for a chance to go to the Minnesota State Football Tournament. In between is his parents, uncles, and 4 of the most interesting young hunters I have ever met. They spent an hour with Jack, Ben and I discussing everything that is important in life like deer hunting, football, and whatever makes the kids smile. A couple of weeks ago Loren took Ben in the John Deere combine to pick corn while letting me get on the old Farmall M and pull the gravity box over to the edge of the corn. I think I could have stayed there all day. If you measured wealth not by money but by family, the Tomala's are definitely one the "richest" families I know.

So what does deer camp look like? Well, Loren suggested we pull Jack's wheel house (pictured above) onto the property to make sure we have an official headquarters to base ourselves out of. It was kind of nice to have a place to get our hunting clothes on, cut up some lunch, and have a place to unwind for a few minutes before heading back to Jack's cabin. It worked out really well as we cooked some locally made wild rice sausage for lunch on Sunday, pretty good if you ask me. When I first started deer hunting in Minnesota, it was with my friend Mark Taylor, Jack Taylor, Mark's brother-in-law Tim Guzek, and myself. We would leave Minneapolis right after work on the Thursday before opening day and drive to Roseau, MN to hunt with Dale Larsen, a guy that I worked with who was from that area. Roseau is home to Polaris Industries and is located 10 miles from the Canadian border. We probably started going in 1980 and would take "Old Blue", an older powder blue van that Jack and Mark's dad Earl had. We would throw a love seat and chair in the back then loaded her with our favorite refreshments as it was about a 6 hour drive. Arriving around midnight at the Evergreen Motel, they'd leave the room door open for us so we would not have to wake them. Back them we had little money so 4 of us crammed in a single room with 2 queen size beds. At about $20 a night, if we split it our cost per guy was $20, a bargain! Those were the days for sure. Well, Mark hasn't hunted with us in a number of years so we thought we'd send him a picture that might convince him to come and spend the weekend with us. The last picture is our proposition, a couple of chairs, a bottle of "Easy Jesus" (E & J Brandy) and a plastic red cup already mixed for him. I did e-mail it to Mark but like a lot of us, sometimes as we get older we simply have more excuses why we don't try to enjoy life as much as we once did. Maybe next year. I am planning to go up for a day this weekend and see if I can still bag a deer if possible. The weather is suppose to be nice as last weekend the deer simply would not move with that wind. Wish me luck!

Deer Hunting Weekend

2011-11-03T11:37:00.000-05:00

This weekend is the start of Minnesota's deer hunting season. My friend Jack and I have been hunting the last 8 years just south of Jack's cabin, 12 miles west of Onamia, MN. Now that our friend Rich has passed away and the land is up for sale, we have scouted out a few areas however Jack's neighbor at the lake was kind enough to give us permission to hunt his 80 acres. Last weekend Jack and I set up our stands on the new property. I am back in the middle of a small swamp but luckily it is pretty dry and should not present any issues like my old stand at Rich's. The weather this week should be nice but windy. Unfortunately the deer tend to sit tight when the wind blows so we'll have to see. A few years back I bought a new ladder stand and is what I use today. At my age it's considerably easier to climb the ladder and sort of set myself into the seat rather than having to strap a stick ladder, hang a stand by a T-nut and ratchet strap, get it all aligned so I don't slip getting into it, then hope like heck I didn't fall asleep! We are still getting together with our hunting group for our Friday night steak feed, something Rich always enjoyed. Another interesting aspect of hunting the new land, the neighbor has trail cam pictures of a couple of cougars walking around the area. You can be assured my gun will be loaded when I walk in.

I am way behind in posting pictures my friends have sent me so I will include one of my friend Matt Taylor and his girlfriend Christina. Matt called me earlier this year and asked for advise on planning a trip to Alaska. Having been there a number of times I was able to help Matt put together a nice experience. They took my advise and did a combo out of Seward. I am pretty sure they headed to Montague Island, a popular halibut spot, got their limit then went for silvers on the way back. Matt said they had a blast and caught tons of fish including these two beautiful silver salmon. If you look close, the silver Christina is holding has some pretty big marks on the side, more than likely cause by a salmon shark that prey on these fish. I really enjoy sharing my experiences and advise with my friends, especially when things turn out well.

Off to deer camp, hopefully da thurty pointer will be in my sights on Saturday morning!

Indian Summer

2011-10-27T22:47:00.002-05:00

Here in the Upper Midwest we often experience a nice warm spell after we have had a killing frost. This fabulous weather is known as Indian Summer and can be some of the nicest of the year. This is also the last push for the fish to fatten up for the long winter ahead, with the spawning season just after ice out. Some of the walleyes I have been catching have already started developing eggs. Although I have tons of stuff to do before the snow files, the temptation to take advantage of the Indian Summer day that last Saturday turned out to be was too much. I decided to meet my friend Jack at his cabin on Platte Lake and check out our new deer hunting land for this year. Just south of our old spot on Rich's land, the 80 acres proved to be significantly less wet as it was getting tough tromping through a 1/4 mile of swamp in the dark, with your hip boots, never sure that the next step wasn't going to fill those boots. The new land is about 70% fields with the rest a mixture of popple, oak, and some minor muskegs. It looks pretty good as we scouted the best spots, met the neighbors, and walked the parameter. Once that was done our plan was to head to Mille Lacs to take advantage of the late afternoon perch bite mixed with some shallow water reef trolling just as the sun would disappear from view. Jack's 7 year old son Ben wanted to go with and figuring I wasn't going to stay out late, it would be fun. We picked up a bag of crappie minnows at the bait shop before heading to the lake and took off. Once on the lake we headed for a relatively shallow bay to fish perch in 4 feet of water. This time of year you can often catch your limit quite quickly with the bonus aspect of seeing the fish hit your lure, something I thought Ben would enjoy. It was very surprising to watch Ben work his spinning rod and reel. Most children start out with a spin cast outfit, something that is easier to handle and somewhat cheaper to replace if it happens to go overboard. Not Ben! From casting to setting the hook on the first perch of the day I was pretty impressed by this young man's fishing demeanor. I remember catching sight of his bobber sailing out 60 feet or more thinking it was nice of Jack to help his son. Looking back towards them, Jack was still baiting his hook while Ben was setting the bail on his reel. He can only get better.

Just as the sun set on the horizon we headed to Indian Point to troll shad raps for an hour or so. Ben was a little chilled so just Jack and I put out rods. About 15 minutes into the run something slammed my shad rap hard. It felt like a very nice fish yet when I got it close to the boat it seemed to have shrunk by 8 inches or so and lost 4 pounds. Ben wanted to net the fish so we gave him the net and he scooped up the walleye better than a lot of guys I have had in the boat. Jack took a picture of me holding the "monster" 19 3/4" walleye and another of Ben working his net magic. The return trip down the long reef produced another walleye for Jack. With the temperature dropping, Ben was getting cold so we called it a day. All told we had 8 nice perch and kept both walleyes. It looks like this might be my last soft water trip for the old Ranger for the year. This weekend will see Jack and I setting up our tree stands and doing some more scouting of the land we are hunting on. Deer season opens on Saturday, November 5th, hopefully the new location brings us luck. Indian Summer is suppose to return next week, probably the last 60 degree day we will see until next March.

Dallas'd Out

2011-10-21T15:22:00.000-05:00

Having spent the last 5 days at the Solar Show in Dallas, I am pretty whipped. Although it may sound like fun, standing in a booth for 8 hours answering the same questions, heading back to the hotel, meeting your business contacts before going to dinner, finding a good place to eat, then having a nightcap with them before retiring to your hotel room, answering e-mails till 1:00, then getting up at 6:00 to do the same thing the next day wears a guy out. Dallas is an interesting town and about 30 degrees warmer than here in Minnesota. When we arrived on Monday my good friend Joe Stanfield picked up Lyle, Welly and myself from DFW. Driving us back into downtown Dallas Joe and I dropped off Lyle and Welly to set up the booth and we went back out to to airport to pick up a couple more colleagues. Between airline flights we were able to sneak into Bass Pro Shop and look around. Not having a lot of time I did find something interesting, Dynamite Redneck Fishing Lure, a red tube meant to look like a stick of dynamite with deep fried pork rinds and Tabasco Sauce inside. My friend Jeff King has a bundle of dynamite in his guide boat using it as a prop against the possibility that if they didn't catch fish, he always had a backup plan! These reminded of me of Jeff so I bought 3 of them to use for the same purpose. I am curious what the pork rinds taste like.

The Dallas Convention Center was located about 5 blocks from our downtown hotel. On the way is one of the first cemeteries in Dallas with some of it's occupants being born in the late 1700's. Many of the stones are tipped over, missing, or unreadable however the intact ones tell an interesting story. There are early government officials, civil war casualties, but the most striking are the family plots where many of the young children were laid to rest. Born 1839, Died 1841 there are so many that only lived a few years of their life. Obviously living in Texas in the middle of the 1800's was not easy. At the cemetery location is a sculpture monument(s) dedicated to the old Longhorn Cattle Drives of the time. There must be at least 50 true to life bronze sculptures of what it must have been like to drive these animals across the plains. Each sculpture was unique, complete with it's own Brand, tattered ears and skin flaps caused by their horns hitting each other. The Longhorns were depicted as lean, probably signifying their ability to exist in the driest conditions. It is an amazing piece of work and if you are ever in downtown Dallas, it's worth a stop. Although we did not go through the Book Depository Building were Lee Harvey Oswald fired the fatal shot, killing President Kennedy in 1963, my friend Joe stated that at that time they were acquaintances with the owner of the building. Joe said that the owner removed the original window that was used, denied that he knew anything about it, and when he died his son returned it to the now museum. Pretty cool.

Last weekend was too windy to fish! Bill called me on Saturday and said that I should stay home, the lake was just a churning with 35 mph winds. I took the opportunity to pick the rest of my apples, made some more cider, and tried getting more stuff done before deer hunting. I am hoping to be able to use the predicted warm weather to get the boat prepped for winter. A few bottles of Sea Foam in the gas and get it through the engine, I can always change oil and the lower unit grease later. I have some nice pictures of the the wine my neighbor Lory is making that I will publish later, the work never ends!

Grousing at Club 10

2011-10-13T11:18:00.000-05:00

Last weekend I was invited to the annual grouse hunting tournament at my cousin Don Schmidt's hunting cabin in Alvin, Wisconsin. Cousin Don is my mothers sister Pat's son and mom hadn't seen her in a while. Pat and my dad always had a nice friendly rivalry on game day, arguing about Brett Favre's ability and who would win. It's something that made their Sunday's much more interesting. Pat lives in Antigo, Wisconsin about 40 miles northwest of Wausau and my brother Steve and I decided to kill 2 birds with one stone, drop mom off at her only surviving sister's place while we continue another 90 miles to the Michigan border and spend the weekend with Don at Club 10. Club 10 is an interesting place to say the least. Don's Grandfather on his dad's side had an opportunity to buy 40 acres of hunting land located about a 1/2 mile south of the Upper Michigan border, just north of Alvin, Wisconsin. The year was 1944, the war was still going on when the land came up for sale, one could buy it for the back taxes totaling $76. Well, in 1944 $76 was still a lot of money and Don's grandfather could not afford to buy it himself. Many of the men in the area were farmers and spent most of their spring, summer, and fall working the land. As soon as the ground froze it was not that uncommon for these men to head for the north woods and work in the logging camps, cutting wood all winter. It was here that his Grandpa found 9 other guys to chip in about $8 each to obtain the property, hence the official name...Club 10. It took another year to build the cabin that still is in use today. Although today the cabin is about an hour from Don's house (he lives in his grandfather's old homestead) back in the 40's it took the entire day to drive their model A's up the dirt roads to the cabin. Today the original galvanize siding still covers the cabin, salvaged from an old barn. There is no water or electricity as it is 2 miles from the latest power line, but a generator gives some comforts of home. Situated in the middle of the Nicolet National Forest, it definitely is isolated. Today Club 10 is owned by the descendants of the original owners, has a legal set of bylaws and has become a fixture in the area. My first picture in my cousin Don standing on the steps of the cabin and the local bar owner Dennis sitting on the Green Bay Packer Chair. Don, thanks for the great time.

After arriving Friday night Steve and I were introduced to the gang. Don has a Ruffed Grouse hunting tournament on the second weekend of October which usually attracts 30 or so guys. The guys are mixture of local farmers, construction workers, business owners, all who have hunting cabins in the region. Don offers prizes for the most grouse shot, prepares a fabulous prime rib dinner after dark, and provides a perfect setting to share all of the stories associated with Club 10. This is the big woods, full of large maple, hemlock, aspen, and white pine which stretches for miles. Steve and I decided to walk into the woods as it appeared to be prime grouse country yet were somewhat hesitant as we forgot to bring a GPS. Luckily Don had one for use to use, which came in useful a few hours later. It was pretty windy and it became obvious that walking the wood for grouse was probably not the best strategy. The winner had his limit of 5 grouse and they were all bagged while cruising the thousands of miles of logging roads in the area. Towards the end of the day Don gave us a tour of the area in his Polaris Ranger and we did get to shoot at an actual grouse, but that was about it. It was a good excuse for some exercise, seeing cousin Don, spending time with my brother Steve, and getting my mom up to see her sister Pat. This picture proved interesting to Don as he arrived on Thursday night. Apparently a bear had visited the cabin and had decided to chew up the post that held up the entrance light. I was hoping I didn't run into him while walking the woods with my 12 gauge loaded with light grouse loads. If so the score would have probably been Bear 1 Dave 0!

This week has also been the peak of our apple cider making operation. With the help of my neighbor Lory, his wife Lyn, and my wife, we have pressed almost 18 gallons of fresh apple cider during the last 4 days. We are getting pretty good at it as our team work can slice up and grind 10 gallons of apples and press out 6+ gallons in about 2 1/2 hours. My press can really put the pressure on and we have an excellent yield, about 60% of the ground apples turns into cider. I have been feeding the pomace (squeezed out apples) to the bees and it doesn't last long. I have picked about 20 bushels of apples so far and estimate at least another 6 - 8 bushel need to be harvested. I am amazed at how clean the apples are and for sure it has been my best year ever. Here is a picture of my neighbor Lory and Lynn putting the pressure on the cider press as the juice runs into the pail. It a gift from heaven for sure. Autumn is moving fast as the leaves are now off the trees and the weather is finally cooling down. Losing a number of trees to wind storms, I need to get out an buy a replacement this weekend and get it planted before it freezes. The perch haven't inhabited the shallows on Mille Lacs yet however the walleyes have been going strong. There are few weekends left for open water fishing yet I have so many things to do, so little time! Oh well!

Report From North Pole Alaska

2011-10-05T23:35:00.002-05:00

This week I received a call from my friend Pete Mlinar, a fellow fisherman and electrician who is working in the oil fields of Prudhoe Bay, Alaska. Pete is a proficient fisherman and is solely responsible for my Mississippi River smallmouth knowledge. Having been laid off in Minneapolis he decided to sign the book in Fairbanks Alaska with the hopes of landing a job at the top of the world. This March he loaded his River-pro Jet Boat and drove to Fairbanks. His quest was successful as he started a regiment of 6 weeks working, 2 weeks off. The money is good and within a short time Pete hopes to make enough to retire. Working through the summer, winter has began to set in at his camp with snow covering the ground. Throughout the summer he has sent me pictures of caribou and musk ox seen around the camp. On his 2 weeks off the company flies him back to Fairbanks where he has befriended a fellow sportsman which assures him a place to stay and store his boat. Word was out that the silvers were in thick near Delta Junction, Alaska which was an hour from where he stays. Pete's River-Pro boat is quite the rig sporting a 200 hp Merc Jet Drive. Having been to Alaska many times I can assure you that this is the Cadillac of the boats running the rivers. Pete reports that his tip stated the fish were 8 miles down from the landing but with the water gin clear, 60 seconds heading down river he found the mother load of silvers. The first picture is an absolutely gorgeous silver salmon. This fish has made it way up the Yukon River to the Tanana River, a trip that has to be over 1500 miles. If you assume this fish entered the Yukon in late July it has taken it over 60 days to make the journey, almost 30 miles a day. When we fish the Kenai River for Silvers the fish are fresh out of the ocean and are a bright silver color. Although I have caught fish that are just starting to turn color, we have caught nothing as beautiful as this fish. Pete is planning on getting a graphite reproduction of this fish as it will make a great addition to his trophy room. His work will shut down for 3 weeks over Christmas and I hope we can touch base then. Here is another picture of his ride home, following the now snow covered Alaska Range on his right. Man does that give me the itch, thanks Pete!

Saturday we were fortunate to attend the wedding of my cousin Linda Barneson's youngest son, Brad. It's been 2 months since my father passed away and it was great to get together with my friends and family from Eleva for a better occasion. Linda's husband Dennis Barneson, along with his brother Gary were instrumental in getting me started fishing Mille Lacs. Gary had been going there for a number of years for the Minnesota Fishing Opener with a some of guys from home and they finally invited me. Over the years they had stopped going but it had a lasting impression, one that is still with me today. Both have made the trip to my Uncle Jerry's in Idaho to hunt elk, something I should have really done but you can only do so much in life! Jerry has a cabin in the mountains of Idaho, a perfect place to hunt these magnificent animals. Hunting in the rut, the bulls are open to bugle calls and the hope is to call one close enough to decent shot. Over the years they've accumulated a ton of stories and a few elk along the way. This year was no exception. Jerry sent me a picture of Brad's best man, Dave Frank with a huge bull taken with his bow. It's a real team effort with guys scouting, bugling, and if they get one, skinning, quartering, and hauling the meat out. Congrats guys on a successful hunt, one that will undoubtedly offer a lifetime of stories. Someday.

I did make it to Mille Lacs on Sunday afternoon to see if the bite was still going. The mild weather had warmed the water temp at least 3 degrees from last weekend. Trying the same pattern as before my neighbor Tom Olson and I started at the 4 Mile Gravel with lead lines. Earlier that day my friend Mark Applen had called with the hot tip......redtails in 30 feet, the walleyes couldn't leave them alone. The wind had created a nice walleye chop in the morning but by the time we launched the lake had laid right down. Although the fish appeared to be up off the bottom not a minnow, Shad Rap, Husky Jerk, Rouge could entice a walleye. After 3 hours of trolling we headed back to the reef to cast for walleyes and muskies. I got a couple of 10 inch walleyes before we started my new favorite trolling run. On a #5 crawfish Shad Rap produced our first keeper, a 16 incher. Within an hour I had 3 nice walleye slam my bait but they never made it to the boat. I use Excalibur Rotating Hooks for an unbelievable hook up success but the fish must have been hitting light as I seldom lose fish like this. Oh well, it was still fun. This weekend I am taking my Mother to Antigo Wisconsin to see her sister while my brother Steve and I continue to Elvoy Township on the Wisconsin/Michigan border to hunt grouse with my cousin Don. He has invited me every year and this year we figured it would be a good chance to get mom out of the house and verify if Cousin Don actually is telling the truth about his annual fall hunt. Either way the leaves should be in their peak form and I should have a good report for next week.

Pig Roast and Lead Lining, a Great Combination

2011-09-29T23:46:00.000-05:00

This weekend proved to be a full court press. My neighbor Tim Kuntz hosted his annual September Pig Roast at the "Men's Crisis Center" (his detached 2nd garage). Tim is one of those guys that never does anything without doing it big and last Saturday was no exception. When he first moved into the neighborhood you could tell he had some substantial talent but it was wasted at his job, working in IT for a local hardware/software company. Tim and I hit it off right from the start as we both hail from small town America and share the same values. One of the things I got Tim interested is smoking meats. After making some venison sausage with my smoker he built his own smokehouse that rivals most BBQ pits. Needing a pig roaster, he welded up one using an old large tank, mounting it on a trailer, most of the bugs have been worked out. Out neighbor down the street was holding a fund raiser on Friday night for his school and asked Tim to cook a hundred pounds of pull pork butts. He obliged and we went over to check out the party. Plenty of beer and great pulled pork, the party had a cowboy theme, with all the guys dressed up in hats and boots. Sticking with my own kind I remarked to Tim if he knew the difference between a real cowboy and a fake one. Nope.........so I told him, real cowboys have the crap on the outside of their boots. I think there were plenty of guys there that weren't real cowboys! Because our plan was to start the pig at 1:30 Saturday morning, we decided to hang around the party till the end. The pig went on as we finished around 2:00. The next morning I brought my propane deep fryer and my Karaoke setup for the entertainment. It was a busy Saturday as we helped with the final preparations. That afternoon I pressed 3 gallons of fresh apple cider which we put in a large coffee server for anyone needing to warm up. Serving at 5:00, there were over 120 neighbors and friends that showed up. The highlight of the night was Welly Chou, the guy I work with and who I took fishing last week. Welly is a championship Karaoke singer and was the hit of the party. Singing like a pro, everyone stuck around till after midnight. We finished the second keg of beer before closing it up at 2:00 for the second night in a row. No rest for the wicked!

Because Welly stayed with Lory Saturday night and the lead line bite was still on, three of us left on Sunday noon for Mille Lacs. We were in surprisingly good shape by the time we left and got to Bill's by 1:15 with 2 main goals, to drop off apples and to get Welly a duplicate fishing license. Someone had broke into his car on Friday night taking his laptop and wallet. The strategy was to repeat the same drill we did 2 weeks ago, lead line till just before sunset then head to the reef and troll the shallow 5 - 8 feet of water. The prior trip was very successful on the line line side of the strategy but the reef trolling didn't go so good. It's still worth a try (in my mind)! My first stop was at 3 Mile Reef to check the water clarity. When we arrived a couple of weeks ago I could not see the bottom rocks in 4 feet of water. Although that can be a good thing, I wanted to recheck it during the a period when the sun was higher in the sky. A quick run over the reef and I never saw the rocks, something that should be pretty easy as in past years. After discussing it with Bill we speculated that the reef, which is known to be covered with Zebra Mussels is no longer as visible for the mussel shells are quite dark and may just be enough to make it look like the clarity is less. From there we headed to the deep gravel. With 3 in the boat and 2 lead line rigs we had to set up a side planer board with a #11 Rapala Tail Dancer in a Rainbow Trout color. We trolled for over an hour before the first fish hit, on the Tail Dancer. It was a nice 18 inch walleye, perfect for the live well. We had #5 shads on the lead line as Lory got a nice walleye and I nailed a small one. Another 100 yards and the flag went down on the planer board and you could tell it was a nice one. Giving the rod to Welly he reeled in his largest walleye ever, a gargantuan 26 inch fish, as fat as I have seen them. In the meantime I switched to a blue/chrome Rattlin' Rouge as the larger Tail Dancer seemed to suggest the fish were looking for a larger bait. A few minutes later that lead line pole doubled over as Lory reeled in a nice 23 inch walleye. The lead line total was 4 walleyes in the box ranging from 16 inches to 19.875 inches, some good eating for later, and at least 4 more released. At 7:00 we reeled them up and headed to the reef. Connecting Welly and Lory with the #5 shads, I did a shallow running Rouge. Our casting strategy didn't pay off again but the trolling strategy put another 18 inch walleye in the box as those 2 caught and released a total of 6 fish. I changed to the Shad Rap but alas, it was too late. With 5 walleyes in the box, a nice perch, some great fish released, it was a very successful outing. Cleaning the fish I noticed how much fat was in their bellies. It must have been a great July and August for feeding on the young of the year tullibees. Splitting them up we all got a nice meal as I cooked mine up on Monday night.

This week I have a wedding in Eleva, however I do want to get out again on Sunday. With everything going on it might be my last one or two trips for the year. Looking back I am wondering if I am running out of time or simply running out of energy!

Let The Harvest Begin

2011-09-22T17:30:00.002-05:00

Because of Adam's wedding (more on that) and visiting my brother in the hospital over the weekend, I thought my current project might prove interesting. September 15 usually marks the time to start harvesting fruit from my mini orchard. I am starting with the watermelons that succumb to our early frost. A wagon full of melons is a colorful way to start the post. Last year we had a very late and hard frost which essentially eliminated 99% of all the apple and pear blossoms available on the fruit trees. This year has been quite the opposite as my crop will be the best I have ever experienced. Both my dad and my Uncle Jerry had an important influence on raising a few apple trees and had successfully harvested from their trees so I decided to follow suit. Living on 5 acres gave me the room to plant a few trees and plant I did! Today I really have a nice little orchard that has rewarded me with more work than I know what to do with. My inventory of trees includes the following: 1 Parker Pear, 1 Patton Pear, 1 Summer Crisp Pear, 1 McIntosh Apple, 1 Wolf River Apple, 3 Honey Gold Apples, 2 Fireside apples, 2 Honeycrisp Apples, and 1 Haralson Apple. I have 3 new apple trees going, another Fireside, Haralson, and lord knows what the last one is. Apples tend to bear heavy one year then light the next however last years frost put all of my trees in high production mode. Normally you should spray them with a Sevin insecticide when the apples are about dime size to chemically thin them out. This tends to make the remaining apples larger and better evens out the boom/bust cycles of the tree production. We'll, I didn't get to that this year. One thing I did do was buy an auger for drilling holes around the tree's drip line for fertilizer. Each apple tree got 4 holes full of a straight 10-10-10 fertilizer and I would say that it really helped the trees. With not thinning them, fertilizing, and being a high production year I am literally swimming in apples. I am sure that having honeybees on the property didn't hurt either. Not only are they numerous and large but with only minimal spraying, the apples are for the most part absolutely beautiful and worm free. Maybe the wet June and July along with spraying at the optimal time was the ticket, whatever I am enjoying the best apples I have ever grown.

So let's start with my pears. This picture is of my Patton Pear tree. It always yields nice supermarket sized pears that are hard fleshed and sweet. This week will mark the end of these as they ripen super fast on the trees then fall to the ground. With apples, those pears that are subjected to long periods of sunlight develop a blush where the sun hits them. The pears are delicious, numerous and I can't give enough of them away. My other 2 pears are the totally worthless Parker, and the Summer Crisp that goes from green to over ripe in about 3 days. The Parker and Summer Crisp really make great pollinators for my good pear. I suspect someday I will learn to time my early pear harvest better. Pear trees have quite a few suckers and as a post I did last fall, often grow 8 feet in a year. My largest pears tend to grow near the top of the trees so I have tended to trim off the crowns to allow a more reasonable means of harvest as my Little Giant Ladder only goes to 11 feet.

My next picture is one of my most unusual fruit trees, the Wolf River Apple. I call this a heritage apple variety, originating in the Wolf River Valley of eastern Wisconsin. It is often called the one pie apple as they are an extremely large apple, the size of a softball often weighing a pound or more. They are very cold hardy and also carry the "Frost Apple" label as it will become sweeter after the first frost. Fairly disease free I am ready to pick these within a few days. I have main purposes for this apple, first it provides good blending qualities for making cider and secondly, it's a great bragging apple. When people see it they are often very impressed with my growing abilities. Little do they know it's all in the tree! The funny thing about this apple is I never bought this variety. For years I thought it was a Fireside but could never figure out why it was so different than my others. A few years back I decided to do some research and finally solved my problem. The next picture on the left is my Haralson tree. This tree is my most prolific, producing a fine crop of apples every year. They are a late apple and will not be ready for harvest for a couple of weeks yet. The sun has really worked its magic on this years crop as they are a beautiful deep ruby red color. The Haralson is crisp and tart making it perfect for eating, baking, and cider. Because of its tartness, most of my cider is based on this apple. I'm betting I'll get 3 bushels off this tree.

The fifth picture is my Fireside apples, my absolute personal favorite. These are the second largest apples I have and are also the latest to mature, often at their best after a hard frost. The Fireside is another long forgotten apple yet has a very unique flavor with a crisp texture. The 2 trees I have are very close together, I should have separated them a long time ago. I did replace one of my original apple tree's that died with a third Fireside. These apples trees tend to be quite thick branched as well being close together they don't "red up" as well as the others. One thing I noticed about this apple is it produces 2 different skin types, a dull matted surface and a glossy, almost oily look. I prefer the dull matted looking apples as they seem to have a better flavor and texture. This is another nuance that I need to look into. The next apples pictured are my Honeygold's, an derivative of the Golden Delicious but much sweeter and cold hardy. These trees are also very prolific and really come into their own around October 1st. They are an excellent for eating as well as perfect for blending into cider to add that fabulous sweetness. The apple gets it's name from it's beautiful color and honey like sweetness. Those apples that have direct access to the sunlight will develop a nice copper colored blush on the exposed side. If you look closely at the picture you can see on the center apple how the leaf has blocked the sun enough to create an outline of the shaded part of the apple. Commercial orchards prune their trees to allow the maximum allowable sunlight to hit the apples to create the optimum market characteristics.

On Saturday I ended up picking about 5 bushels of apples off of 3 trees, my Honeycrisp and McIntosh. This is the first year my crop of Honeycrisp actually turned out decent with few worms or bruises and are as good as if they came right from a commercial orchard, crisp and sweet. The McIntosh apples always turn out good as they are another relatively older apple with its origins back to 1811. Being crisp and tart they make a great pie apple and are very good for blending cider. After picking my first crop of apples I was off to Adam's wedding, a nice affair as they were married at an outdoor park, the weather was kind. Adam and his dad Mark fish with me every year at Leech Lake. For his wedding I put something extra in their gift to assure Adam come better prepared to fish with me next year. His dad provided the refreshments for the night so we told him that we would fill up our thermos before we left. Mark appreciated that of course! Saturday is the neighborhood Pig Roast at the Kuntz's and Sunday Mille Lacs is calling pretty loud. The water temp has dropped almost 15 degrees from a couple weeks ago and I hear the bite is going pretty strong.

Walleyes with Welly

2011-09-14T13:09:00.002-05:00

It's been an interesting week as we are on a collision course with autumn. I am writing this from the San Diego Convention Center exhibiting at a medical show. The weather here is beautiful and consistent, 70 degrees during the day and 65 at night. Intellicast is saying tonight will be 30 degrees at home. Usually that number is associated with the temperature at the airport so unless they are wrong we could have a hard freeze. The garden is in a low spot, so much for my watermelons! The great news is the mosquito's day's are limited. I am flying back on Thursday and will assess the damage then. Sunday was the full moon, the opportune time to fish walleyes on Mille Lacs. During past September mid month fishing trips to Mille Lacs, I have been extremely successful casting Shad Raps and Rouges on the shallow mid-lake reefs. An hour before sunset to an hour after, the reef would become the popular destination for walleyes looking for an easy meal. Admittedly that bite and pattern hasn't been so good lately. There were evenings where we would handily catch 12 - 15 nice walleyes. My goal last Sunday was to see if that bite will ever materialize again. Stopping at Lundeen's, Bill knew my plan and sarcastically ask if I was fishing for memories tonight! Based on my success of the last 4 years that was a pretty honest assessment. Even so if you don't try you'll never know so I had to try. A new fisherman joined me, Welly Chou, an engineer that I work with. Welly was born in Hong Kong, has developed into an excellent engineer as well an excellent Karaoke singer. Having won a number of amateur contests, he even opened up for Keith Urban a few years back. Not much of a fisherman, he expressed interest in accompanying me on one of my trips to the pond. One thing I really enjoy is introducing fishing to someone who has little experience. Sometimes I can be somewhat overwhelming with the electronics, methods, and strategies, Welly is curious enough to put up with that for a day. After buying a fishing license we headed to the east side of the lake the plan was to lead line the nearby deep gravel bars for a few hours then head to the reef and cast shads through dark. Connecting a #5 purple shad rap to Welly's line and the same in hot steel pattern to mine we let out 5 colors of line and started trolling. We would go through pockets of fish but didn't seem to strike a pattern to make them hit. Bill had called to see what we were doing and decided maybe the #5 shad raps were too small and the fish were looking for something different and larger, maybe a husky jerk or a rouge. After hanging up on him we would switch after we went around the one hump however within about a minute the port rod bent over. Giving Welly the rod he reeled in our first keeper walleye I had gotten in over 2 months, a nice 16 incher. Resetting the lines back at 5 colors we went another 100 yards when we nailed another one. Between the keeper walleyes would often be a single pull on the rod then it would return back to normal. Reeling in to check the line there was a 9 inch walleye at the end of the lure. Enough to move the rod but once hooked they would simply be dragged behind the lure. Because you really want to keep a clean lure going you had to watch the rod all the time.

Within 45 minutes we had 4 keepers in the livewell and by the time 2 hours had passed we had 6 keepers, a nice 12 inch perch, and released a 27 1/2" as well as a 23 inch walleye. In addition Welly caught a nice 28 inch northern pike, an unusual catch in 30 feet of water. We ended up with 13 walleyes caught, 1 northern, and 5 perch. Not bad for 3 1/2 hours of trolling. As the moon began to rise over the horizon we decide to pull in the trolling lines and head to the reef to cast for walleyes. As Bill gave me a hard time about "fishing memories" I noticed the buoy marking the northwest corner of the reef had been moved. It is good that I have the latest Lakemaster chip which overlays the bottom contours (1 foot increments) on my front HDS5. There were still GPS tracks from last October's trip so following the reef would be easy. With a southwest wind we stayed on that side of the reef casting with the wind into the 3 - 5 feet of water. It took about a half hour to cover the entire reef and as Bill probably predicted, not even a follow. Having to fly to California in the morning, I decided that one pass was enough. If the fish were there they would have hit. Not the case. Maybe Bill is correct as this would be the 5th or 6th time I have tried my hot pattern of 6 years ago with little or nothing to show for it. I am not sure what has changed but it certainly doesn't look good. I will try again in a week or so and maybe we just need a little cooler weather (it's coming!). With surface temperatures in the mid 70's this could be the key, we'll see.

My good friend Adam Mayerich is getting married this Saturday. I gave his him and his dad a lesson on trolling walleyes on Leech Lake last opener and I am looking forward to seeing him and his family. Sunday will probably find me back in Eau Claire as my brother Jon has been in Intensive Care since last Friday with a severe case of pneumonia. I am worried about him as he has had enough medical problems in his life. I am not anxious to see the frost damage tomorrow but unfortunately it is what it is. Maybe we'll be ice fishing soon!!!

Riding with Brother Steve

2011-09-08T15:58:00.000-05:00

Actually it's my real brother Steve, not my spiritual leader although sometimes he would beg to differ! Ever since Steve bought my 600 Honda motorcycle we have been talking about getting together some day to ride together. Talk is always cheap and after about a year we decided on last Saturday as our do it or forget it day. Trailering my bike to Alma, WI I unloaded it with the next stop being his house in Onalaska. The weather forecast had been on and off rain but it appeared as though there would be a window of good riding before dark. Just as I passed the bait shop on the south side of town I decided to put on my rain gear just in case. None too soon as the rain started a mile down the road and continued for the next 52 miles to his house. The radar indicated the rain was heading east and I threw my jeans and socks in the dryer while we gave it an hour to move along. Our original routes were pretty ambitious so we decided to stay within 60 miles of La Crosse, WI with our first leg taking us to Melrose. The area in western Wisconsin is called the Driftless Area, an area untouched by the glaciers during the last ice age. The main feature is the Mississippi River Valley yet many smaller valley's emanating from the numerous ridges are everywhere. Often these valleys are called Coulee's or Dugway's, they are essentially areas where creeks and rivers follow old canyons eroded by ancient water forces. The result are many roads that curve through the valleys and follow ridges connecting the small towns and villages 10 - 15 miles apart. They are perfect for riding motorcycles, offering a great balance of curves and stunning scenery. Our route took us through the Mindoro Cut, a very unique feature on Highway 108 out of Mindoro, WI. As you can see from the top picture the road just squeezes through the cut which according to the plaque was constructed in 1907-08 and was all hand-hewn. I found it interesting that it claims to be the second largest hand-hewn cut in the nation. Whether this is true or not, one can only go by the sign. I suspect that if no explosives were used, this might be an accurate statement.

Heading down to Cashton, WI we stopped for a bite before noticing the rain was again approaching. A quick check of the radar image on the phone suggested we could ride to Prairie du Chien, maybe spend an hour at Cabela's to wait it out so away we went. The route took us along State Hwy 27 which followed the top of a long ridge for over 36 miles, right into our destination. The ride was awesome as the valleys branched out of both sides of the ridge as we travelled the road. Arriving in Prairie du Chien we check the radar again and it appeared as though nothing had changed. Steve had failed to update it when we were in Cashton, a quick refresh and uffda! It would appear as though the rain was going to be around for a while. Donning our rainsuites we drove the 60 miles back to La Crosse in a deluge. One of my safety books insist that you ride in the rain on purpose to get a feel for it so when you have to ride on wet roads you know what to expect. Not complacent, never the less I was surprised how well our bikes rode in the rain. I really want to get back in that area again before the snow falls as there are hundreds of miles of roads to explore.

Monday was sort of a lazy day, a time to get caught up around the house. My orchard is exploding with fruit, something for next weeks post. I did slip away on the river with my neighbor Tom Olson. His father had just passed away and it was a good time for us to spend some time together and discuss the situation. Launching at the neighbors it was amazing how much the river level had fallen in the last 2 weeks, almost 3 feet. The reduced water flow was evident as my jon boat and 15 hp motor hit a respectable 15 mph on our upstream journey. This is a full 3 mph faster than just a few weeks ago. Where you could go almost anywhere was replaced by watching the depth finder closely making sure we didn't run a ground, which I did! Luckily I have a rock hopper on the skeg of my motor making it pretty bulletproof. My favorite island was now a solid piece of land connected to the shore and it was evident why we caught fish were we did when the water was high. While exploring an area the trolling motor caught the bottom and sheared the adjustment pins right off. Although it continued to work it was a struggle to hold it in place while running the motor. Overall it was another good trip. We each caught about 5 smallmouth with most of them experiencing LDR (Long Distance Release) as well 4 northern pike and this nice walleye that Tom convinced to hit his lure. I am really interested to learn more about the walleye haunts in the river however the time for the shallow water walleye bite on Mille Lacs is starting now. It looks like Sunday might be time to try it out.

Back to Mille Lacs

2011-09-01T16:40:00.000-05:00

With the promise of getting back fishing on Mille Lacs each week I finally got the opportunity to go on Sunday. The guy that has been helping me the last month or so had a special request, one I could hardly turn down. Lory's father-in-law, John Mindermann of New York Mills was coming by on Sunday and he asked me if I would take him fishing. With the wind forecast for Mille Lacs being calm, it would be a perfect place to try lead line trolling as there has been a few fish going on this technique. Mille Lacs Windcast is the site I go for the wind forecast as it is a great way to plan your trip, where to launch, and how uncomfortable you are going to be. Having not been in the Ranger for at least 6 weeks I decided that she needed a good cleaning. Just having completed my new HDS installs and the 2 month old fish slime still on the carpet I decided a trip to car wash was in line. The nice thing about today's self serve car washes is the pressure generated is not as high as they once were, and is perfect for getting the carpets clean. The problem is there is a lot of water left to drain out and it was still somewhat wet and fish smelling by the time we left. Of course it is a boat! After loading up on refreshments and launching the boat we headed to a deep gravel bar a few miles out. With three in the boat the strategy was to run 2 lead line rods with #5 Shad Raps plus a side planer board with a #11 Tail Dancer 150 feet back from the board. My bets were on the #5 Shad Raps doing all the hard work however that was not the case. The first hit came off the planer board as the Tattle Tail flag was completely down. Handing the pole to John he reeled in to the line attached planer board, I removed it and let him fight the fish. At first he claimed it didn't feel like a fish but as the end got closer to the boat it was obvious this was not the case! 2 minutes later we landed a nice 23 inch walleye. As we trolled around the gravel bar the HDS marked individual fish, schools of fish, large swarms of bait fish, fish here, fish there, fish everywhere. Obviously the fish were there but not very hungry. After 2 hours of trolling we moved to the next gravel bar 5 miles out. Although we marked another mother load of fish the only fish we got was on the planer board again, this time a nice 25 inch walleye that we gave to John. Here is a picture of John with that walleye. We did get a keeper walleye on a lead lined Rouge as well when we pulled in our lines to move we had a couple of small perch that didn't even register as a hit. Finishing the day we trolled Indian Point with Shad Raps and hooked a nice smallmouth for John to reel in.

Last night I went to the Minnesota State Fair with a few goals in mind. I have a great and a not so great pear tree in my orchard but for the life of me, I forgot which tree was which. I originally purchased a Parker Pear and a Patton Pear variety. I grabbed my best and largest pear and brought it with with the plan to talk to the University Horticulture Department. Well after being passed around everyone exclaimed it was a beautiful pear but didn't know the type. Frustrated I went by the fruit judging area and voila, there were a few trays of pears that looked exactly like what I had in my hand, a Patton Pear. That only took me 15 years to figure out! Next was a visit to the John Deere display to discuss which snow blower attachment to buy. Getting that out of the way it was back to the Horticultural building for a little Minnesota made wine. Although Minnesota is not the best place in the world to grow wine grapes, the local vineyards do a pretty good job with the fruits that are available. For $10 you can get a sample of 3 different types so we had a semi sweet raspberry, a local made dry red wine, and a lighter red similar to a Pinot Noir. They were all pretty delicious, enough to buy a bottle or two next time I have the chance. Next stop was the DNR building. They have a huge outdoor cement pond full of fish from huge sturgeon, muskellunge, northern pike, buffalo fish, gar, trout, and almost every species found in Minnesota. As a fisherman and amateur naturalist it was fun to stand next to people and hear them try to identify the different fish swimming by. It's a fabulous display and I could stand there for hours if time allotted. Taking a tour through the main building I ran across a young intern manning evasive species booth. This is a pet peeve of mine and although I understand at the high level the laws, I liken driving away from the boat landing with my drain plug still in and getting a ticket is like giving me a speeding ticket before I even get in the car. Although I have never got a ticket for any of this I like to argue on principle. While there I had my friend Tom take a special picture for my friend Dewey Ness. He loves these kinds of pictures so me looking like a Forest Ranger was the perfect gift for him! Labor Day weekend is here and I have a motorcycle trip planned with my brother with the potential of getting out on the water on Monday, either the River or Mille Lacs again. Fall is in the air as the Sunday night forecast is supposed to be in the low 40's.

It's Always Better to be Lucky Than Good!

2011-08-24T16:36:00.003-05:00

So last week's post described the fate of one of my beloved fishing rod and reel combo's. Sitting in 10 feet of water at the bottom of the Mississippi River is not exactly my idea of a proper storage site. The St. Croix Legend rod is a beautiful piece of fishing gear as it's distinctive blue color stands out from the more traditional black colored rods. The attached Shimano Chronarch reel was a left handed wind, special order low profile baitcaster with the latest spool and braking technology. Although I never did get comfortable with the tight reeling motion needed by my left hand to crank the reel handle, I did like the convenience of a single fluid motion when hooking a walleye while trolling shad raps. I am always very careful with my equipment but when I turned around in the boat and didn't see that sky blue rod anywhere that big knot one gets in your stomach settled pretty hard. My ranger has nice sides keeping rods that are set down fairly secure. The jon boat on the other hand has very low sides and which(as I found out) requires much more diligence with your equipment. The other issue is putting limits on the amount of fishing rods one needs to take with everytime you go out, a habit hard to break. Finding the rod gone requires one to quickly get a handle on your emotions. As stated last week, crying over spilled milk does little to solve your problem, hence forth this weeks plan of attempting to get rid of my knot! Having purchased the large snagging hooks in Denver the next stop was Fleet Farm to pick up the rest of my scheme. The idea was to get a 3 foot piece of 5/8" threaded rod, finding some eye bolts, some large nuts, chain to connect the hooks, and chain to pull the entire contraption on the bottom of the river. I had thought about solving this problem and felt I had a viable contraption at hand. On Saturday afternoon, with the help of Lory, we headed to the scene of my agony. It was closer to launch at the Dayton/Crow River landing and drive down a mile to that portion of the river. Arriving at the dock, my starting point, had its owner cleaning out brush. Approaching the dock he was nice but had that sceptical look like...what are you guys really up too? The water had dropped another 8 inches from last week and the current had slowed enough to allow the 15 hp Evinrude to hold the boat in one place while backtrolling. Lory's first snag caught a rather large waterlogged piece of wood. Big enough to bend the hooks and rip off one of the chains, I towed it to the middle of the river and headed back. Each effort brought up more junk, to the point where I was getting frustrated. 10 minutes into the effort Lory brought up the contraption and this 7 foot blue rod was hooked onto one of the chains. My secondary worry was if we did actually hook the rod it would disconnect the minute it reached the surface. Lory had it hooked through a rod guide and it wasn't going nowhere. The rod had started to get some insects attached to it and the shifting sand basically filled the reel. I cannot even express how relieved I was to actually get my prized possession back. The rod looks good as new and I decided to send the reel back to Shimano to have the factory tear it apart and clean it. As for Lory, he has a few battle wounds dealing with unhooking logs while the boat moved around. As the post title states, it's sometimes better to be lucky than good.

So with that out of the way we pointed the boat up river and headed for the 101 bridge, 3 miles upstream. The first thing we noticed was a guy walking the shoreline, sorting rocks. A quick "whatchadoin?" resulted in finding a new location to look for agates. Working our way back to the landing I spent most of the time casting bombers while Lory put on one of my favorite Rattlin' Rouges, the brown perch. I am always amazed at the ferocity of a 10 inch smallmouth hitting a 4 inch lure. Although the day was already a success for me, Lory picked up this beautiful 17 inch bass that inhaled his Rouge. Now that the river current is reasonable it would be fun to start exploring the walleye and catfish hangouts. Ending up with about 9 smallmouth it was another good day. We have only fished crankbaits as the current speed forced a quick presentation however the ability to slip the river using the main motor should offer an expanded choice of lures like tube jigs, beetle spins, and live bait on 3 way rigs. The famous river guide from Big Lake, Dan Gapen, used jigs like the Ugly Bug to catch 30 - 50 bass an outing and it would be a blast to get that proficient. In addition to recovering my rod I successfully installed my Lowrance LWX-1 weather/Sirius radio module for my HDS 10. I removed my Garmin 162 chartplotter, replaced my Johnny Ray mount with the heavy duty RAM mount and generally cleaned up my electronics mounting. Pulling the boat out of the shed (the metal roof blocks the signal) I was able to lock onto the satellite, see the weather overlay on the chart plotter function, then call on the radio service, and voila! What was even better was Sirius set me up to shut off service in the fall without having to pay the reactivation fees in the spring. It works very well as I was getting a little tired of listening to my Ipod all the time. It's been 6 weeks since I have been up to Mille Lacs and although the reports have been spotty, it's always worth a try. Maybe this week.

Another Week

2011-08-18T18:54:00.011-05:00

Well, another week flying by as fast as the plane I am stuck in for the next 2 hours! I am returning from Denver where I made my once a trip pilgrimage to Bass Pro Shop, just west of the airport. I really like their fishing lure selection although it is somewhat geared to Colorado, it’s still pretty extensive. Their boating accessories department is second to none and although I am not a huge fan of their branded line Redhead, they carry a good selection of Columbia, Under Armor, and a favorite of mine, their Bob Timberlake styles. One of the reasons for stopping at BPS is they carry snagging treble hooks, big ones! There are areas in this part of the country that snag for various types of fishes including the unusual prehistoric looking paddlefish. Paddlefish can get very large however they are strictly plankton eaters and will not hit a standard bait setup. In some states it is legal to snag fish for them, similar to what we did in the early 80’s when you could snag salmon from Lake Michigan. That itself deserves a post all its own someday. The hooks I bought were sold as treble hooks for snagging and I bought the biggest ones they had, 12/0 size. These are probably the largest treble hooks you can get without special ordering them. The picture is about actual size. I was forced to buy a box of 24 and even so, they were less than $20.00, a bargain for sure. As for what I am going to do with these gigantic hooks, I’ll explain in a few minutes and was pretty happy to find them. I spent the next day with a nice potential customer who visited our new Loveland Colorado plant. There is always something going on these days and now that my schedule is less tentative, I have a full month of travel booked from Cleveland next week to San Diego in 3 weeks. I’d really like to spend a day fishing tuna out of the California coast and it’s on my bucket list for sure.

So, how about fishing this week? Success and frustration pretty much sums it up. Wanting to drive down to make sure my mother was doing well and with a few hours to sneak away the Mississippi River has been my short term go to spot. It might be for the best as my friend Bill Lundeen claims the perch hatch on Mille Lacs was huge this year and the lake is filled with young of year perch. Usually 2 – 3 inches long and found in dense schools, it’s a regular smorgasbord for the walleyes. This means that with all the food in the lake its difficult at best to get something to chase a lure down. As the water cools and the ranks of the young perch get thinned the fishing usually picks up. With little time to run up to Mille Lacs I can be on the river in less than 5 minutes. My friend Pete Mlinar had taught me the virtues of fishing large live minnows for smallies so I picked up a dozen medium sucker minnows at the hardware store in Champlin. I tried Action’s Bait Shop in Anoka as they usually have a nice selection of minnows for the river consisting of creek chubs and more hardy varieties. Pete likes to use the Red Tail Chubs but they are really hard to find these days. Suckers work okay even though they do not last very long on the hook. My neighbor Lory went with and after a half hour cruise we started fishing. I decided to fish the north side exclusively as we began to cast the Bombers. A couple of fish later we went by a spot that Pete would have caught his eye. I had taken an extra fishing rod along, pre-rigged with a bobber set up and hook. Attaching a 5 inch sucker I casted it in along the shore only to see my bobber slip past the slip knot meant to control the depth. Well, that wasn’t any good so I reeled in, set my rod down, and started to re-tie the rig. Of course there is current so we drifted about 50 feet when I reached to get something and when I turned around my rod was gone. Having learned not to panic in these situations admittedly I remained as calm as one could expect. The rod was a St. Croix Legend 7 foot baitcast with a Shimano Chronarch attached to it. That’s all I’m going to say. I am pretty sure I know “about” where it is as there was a dock right where it happened. The issue is the 2 mph current and 10 feet of water, to dangerous to simply dive in and look for it especially at my age my family just got done with one funeral. Hence forth the snagging hooks. About 28 years ago I lost a favorite rod in Weaver Lake, west of the cities. With no GPS I memorized the location, built a homemade contraption with large treble hooks, and the following week recovered my prized possession. It was an interesting experience as the week prior someone had murdered a person, cut up the body, put it in black plastic garbage bags and threw them in Weaver Lake. Wouldn't that be a surprise! My brother gave me the idea of using my ice fishing camera and with a little luck, my large treble hooks, I might be able to recover it. As stated earlier there is no use in crying over spilled milk and after the shock wore off we went back to fishing. We did get about 12 smallmouth again and am really starting to read the river better, learning the best spots to hold fish. Here are a couple of pictures of our success. The largest we have caught is about 18 inches however I do know there are some larger fish and it will be a matter of time. I am in the middle of installing my LWX-1 on the boat and with some luck will be on Mille Lacs on Sunday.

Back to Normal

2011-08-12T10:12:00.000-05:00

Things are back to normal, whatever normal is. On Saturday we had a wonderful memorial service for my dad. POD (Poor Old Dinnie) had most of his wishes planned, a simple cremation followed by a nice church service then a nice tribute at the cemetery by the local American Legion. Apparently he asked Tommy Benning, another fixture in Eleva, to sing at his funeral. Tom did a fabulous job. There were quite a few people at the church as they almost filled every pew. Pastor Kermit Solem (talk about a Norwegian name!) always does a wonderful job and this time was no exception. To my joy a number of my neighbors and friends drove down from Minneapolis, which was nice. Volunteering to say a few words about dad at the service, I surprised myself by making it through the entire time in front of everyone without a tear. Dad was once a toastmaster 30 years ago and he gave me his speaking manual, which I still use today. My brother Steve got up and said a few words of reflection and did a great job. Dad was the Commander of Legion Post #459 in Eleva so he was afforded full military rights. My niece Heidi Lee is in the Army and along with her sister Katie, they performed the flag folding ceremony. Heidi was in full dress uniform as she presented my mom the flag given to all veterans, presented flawlessly as she saluted. There wasn't a dry eye to be seen. As the Legion gave the traditional rifle salute, my nephew Alex played taps in the background sending a chill down everyone's spine. I am sure that grandpa was awfully proud of their roles. Like all good Norwegian Lutheran's we gathered in the church basement for the traditional fellowship including hotdish, cake, pickles, and coffee. Dad was on the "Funeral Kitchen Crew" and in 2007 was promoted from Pots and Pans to the dishwasher! I would like to thank all of you who called, left comments, sent card and condolences, and offered food or gifts to my mother. Dad might have been known as POD, but by the support I saw last week he was the richest man I knew.

So, what better way to forget all your troubles than to go fishing! With little time to plan a trip to Mille Lacs and the river being so close, I invited my neighbor Tom to join me for an evening excursion last Sunday night. Hooking up the boat on the ATV we launched at the neighbors house and headed up river. The water had fallen about 8 inches from my previous trip resulting in a reduced current that was evident as I hit 13 mph upriver, a full mph faster than before. Running up to the third set of islands from the landing, we drifted the south shore without much success. The high water tends to push the fish close to shore and the rocks hold the smallies, yet this side proved less productive. About a half mile of fishless water we headed to the north side of the river where I have had pretty good luck in the past. I decided to put on my go to crankbait, a Bomber A, shallow running (2 - 4 feet) lure in a Fire Tiger color. On the first cast I nailed a nice small mouth bass. Within the next 200 yards I had caught my third bass and a nice keeper walleye. The next bass wasn't so friendly. Although only about 13 inches, just as I was about to grab it to remove the bait it gave a flip and embedded the front hook into the top of my wrist far beyond the barb. So there I am, the top hook securely fastened to me and the bottom hook attached to a determined small mouth anxious to get released, not a very good combination. The first order of business was to get the thrashing fish off the lure, which Tom quickly accomplished. My thought was to grab the pliers and see if I could yank it out. That doesn't work, trust me. I really didn't want to give up the hot bite so we cut the hook off the lure, cut the remaining 2 points off the hook, and under now Dr. Tom's advice, attached some 12# mono to the embedded hook. While he pushed the shank of the hook downward, I gave the mono a good yank. Well, that didn't feel to good as the hook was still in my arm, yet it showed promise. Determined I got a good grip on the line another yank and the hook popped out, just like it was suppose to. Letting out a yell for good measure we were back in the business of catching fish. The bait was definitely hot so I removed another hook from a different bait and reattached. Tom and I continued to catch fish as we ended up with over 12 smallies, 1 respectable walleye, and a catfish that I saw hit the lure as it approached the boat. Not bad for a simple evening outing. I have my new Sirius Satellite receiver for the Ranger as well as a different mount for my HDS 10 to install, it will give me something to do this weekend as I prepare for the lead lining bite on Mille Lacs. It's been about a month since I've been to the pond and that itch is getting pretty intense.

My Dad

2011-08-04T17:25:00.001-05:00

Well, I dreaded this post for about a year now but now it's my time to write it. After visiting him this weekend with a business trip scheduled for Wednesday thru Friday, my wife and I decided to spend Tuesday afternoon with him. Arriving around 4:00, he was sleeping but it didn't take long for his eyes to open with a smile on his face. He seemed to be alittle better than Sunday but was one never to let on his real situation. We had a great 2 hours of conversation, intermixed with a few coughs and downing a glass of his new found beverage of choice, Sobe. The conversations ranged from tomato's, apples, John Deere Lawn tractors vs Simplicity, Mobil 1 motor oil, his grandson Alex's Air Force Ambitions, and other important problems deemed to be solved. Of course, solved we did!! My pitiful tomato plants were probably mismarked from the nursery, Mobil 1 probably saved my lawn tractor engine when it over heated. At my age he suggested I get that snow blower attachment, reminding me that I was on my second lawn tractor and he was still running his. We agreed that Alex was doing the right thing, going into the same branch of the Armed Services he entered in 1947. What we could not solve was the wasting away of his life. It is difficult at best to know each new minute will never be as good as the last minute, something we talked about. Leaving at 7:00 I had to pick my truck up at work, walked in to my office only to receive a call from Mom, Dad had collapsed and she feared he had passed. She was correct and 2 hours after I said goodbye he died peacefully at home. He had accepted his situation and I did get a chance to give him a big hug and told him I loved him, something I have been saying lately and something that I waited way to long. Dad was probably somewhat uncomfortable with that, not that he didn't like it but it just wasn't something your 56 year old son told his dad. He talked to me about this saying that when he grew up, his dad never hugged him or said he loved him because he just knew. I think that there is a big difference in what was expected and the self confidence instilled in his generation. Children were raised to be more self reliant as there was little money for the things we have today. One relied more on your imagination and friends rather than the latest tennis shoes or cell phone. I don't know if we will ever get back to his generation of individual responsibility, something my dad had a ton of. Honesty, integrity, and accepting are all qualities that seem hard to come by today.

I am posting my favorite picture of us when we celebrated our 80th and 55th birthday together at the Full House in beautiful downtown Eleva. Like father like son! Busy with arrangements this week I will definitely dig out a few more pictures and post them in the future. In the meantime I have included his obituary. He loved my blog and is one of the reasons I faithfully continue to write it. I also want to thank everyone who has supported me through this chapter of my life, one that either has or will play out for everyone. In the end, as my dad has proved time and time again, it's friends and family that really matter as when you are down to your last days, it is the only thing you have.

Donald G. "Dinnie" Anderson
(February 2, 1930 - August 2, 2011)
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Donald G. "Dinnie" Anderson, 81, of Eleva, passed away Tuesday, August 2, 2011 peacefully at his home.

He was born on February 2, 1930 in Eleva, WI to Roy and Myrtle (Fagerland) Anderson. After graduating from Eleva High School in 1947 he joined the Air Force and served from 1947 to 1950, mainly in Panama. On September 11, 1954 he married Betty Thielke in Eleva. Dinnie was a supervisor at Uniroyal Tire Co retiring in 1985.
Dinnie was a member of Eleva Lutheran Church and the Eleva American Legion Post #459 . He is survived by his wife, Betty of Eleva; five children, David (Lyn) Anderson of Dayton, MN, Steven (Jean) Anderson of Onalaska, WI, Beth (Jerry) Lee of Eau Claire, WI, Jon (April) Anderson of Mondovi, WI and Blake (Jo) Anderson of Eleva, WI; 12 grandchildren; 9 great grandchildren; two siblings, LaVonne (Loren) Nelson of Eau Claire,WI, and Gerald (Marilyn) Anderson of Meridian, ID; nieces, nephews and other relatives.
Dinnie was preceded in death by a grandson; his parents; and two brothers, Keith and Gordon Anderson.
Memorial services will be held Saturday, August 6, 2011 at 11:00 AM at Eleva Lutheran Church in Eleva, WI with Rev. Kermit Solem officiating. Burial will follow at the Eleva Cemetery with military rites conducted by Eleva American Legion Post #459.
Visitation will be held from 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM on Saturday, August 6, 2011 at the Eleva Lutheran Church in Eleva.
Visit www.kjentvet-smithfuneralhome.com to offer on-line condolences.

Pickin' With Dave

2011-07-27T17:53:00.003-05:00

My weekends are consumed with spending as much time with my dad as possible. Time is against us so I am making the best of it. This weekend also marked the opening of Blueberry Ridge Orchard, where you can pick your own blueberry's by the truckload if you so desire. My brother Steve and mom have been picking here last year and claimed it was pretty easy to fill up a 5 quart ice cream bucket full of beautiful blueberries. Sunday morning I headed north towards Eau Claire on Hwy 93 to the old Darrell Hageness farm. When I lived in Eleva and worked for Vic, Darrell was a good friend and a very nice man. He had suffered quite extensive burns while working at the Paper Mill in Eau Claire and he was going back to school for accounting at the same time I was going there for electronics. The farm is visible from Hwy 93 and he often had a word cut into the hay field for everyone to read. Darrell has since passed away however I was delighted to find out that his daughter and family were still on the farm and had started the orchard featuring U-pick blueberries. And pick there is! My brother and mom had been there on Saturday morning picking 8 ice cream buckets. Parking in the field, I was pointed in the right direction and picked 6 ice cream buckets in about an hour. The berries were huge, some as big around as a quarter. I have a number of blueberry plants, the same variety but nothing like these. Sweet and bursting with flavor, I ended up going back in the afternoon to get another 2 buckets worth. I thought the prices were very reasonable as well. At $1.85/pound, an ice cream full of berries weighs about 6.5 pounds and cost about $12.00. Comparing to the bland berries you buy at the store for $3.00 a pint, the equivalent amount would have cost you $30.00. The picture on the right gives a great example of how loaded the bushes are with berries. If you are in the area check out Mark and Andrea Nyseth's Orchard and pick a few pails (they freeze really well!). They are the nicest people and you will leave very satisfied. You can visit their website at http://www.blueberryridge-orchard.com/

So, weekends back home has left little time for fishing. With the Mississippi River finally settling down to a manageable level (it is still pretty high and fast), my neighbor Lory and I decided to try out the Jon boat for the first time this year. Loading up the boat and using my ATV, we simply drove to the neighbors house, through the horse pasture, and used his landing. This take all but 5 minutes before you're in the water. With the current still fast and 2 guys in the boat, we hit a whooping 10 mph running upstream. Zig Zagging the river, looking for holes, our strategy was to run upriver as far as practical, drift back down fishing the rivers edge before anchoring close to the landing and trying for catfish, carp, or whatever enjoys a nice nightcrawler. About 3 miles up we stopped, put on a couple of artificial lures and started casting. My first choice was a shallow running Bomber A crankbait in fire tiger. On the very first cast a small smallmouth bass inhaled it. A nice start. 3 minutes later and 200 yards downstream I casted in front of a downed tree and this nice 17 incher grabbed the lure and put on an aerial display. Lory finally got it in the net after about a minute and was taking my picture. Releasing the fish we proceeded to follow the shore, casting tight and bringing it back. With the water high and fast current, the fish were hanging tight. By the time we arrived at our designated catfish hole the total was 6 smallies caught and released. Not bad! Our catfish hole was located where a side channel met up with the main river and formed a large current slack. The edges of these slacks can be super productive. The hole itself was about 14 feet deep so once anchored I rigged my casting reel with a 3/4 ounce bell sinker, snap, and a 2 foot leader with a circle hook at the end. A fat and sassy crawler threaded on the hook I casted into the current edge. It wasn't 5 minutes later when my pole almost went over the side. Grabbing the rod I could tell it was a nice fish and within a few minutes the catfish showed itself. After netting, unhooking, and snapping a picture, I released it back to fight again. Because the line broke at the hook I retied, rebaited, and back out to the current break. This time I wasn't going to chance losing my prized rod so I hung onto the pole waiting for that tell tale tug. It wasn't long before something was yanking pretty hard. The reel was in freespool so I let the fish run about 6 feet before reeling straight in, the proper method for circle hooks. Well this fish was significantly larger than the first catfish however after about 10 seconds the line broke. Although I did retie again it was getting late so we left. The river is an exciting place to be. We saw 2 immature eagles perch right above our heads while an osprey screeched it displeasure with our presence another half mile down stream. It a great resource, one that is close to home and provides excellent fishing.

I will be heading back to Eleva this weekend to see dad, pick some more blueberries, and my good friend Rick Semingson from Blue Ridge, Georgia is coming home for a wedding. Rick was a class mate of mine and I am always excited to see him. He's lived in the south for over 30 years now and has developed quite a Southern Drawl. My friend Charlie is suppose to be here for my annual trip with him and as well I am scheduled to go to San Francisco. It's looking to be a busy next 10 days.

Too Hot to Fish?!?!?

2011-07-21T23:36:00.002-05:00

Years ago if someone said it was "To Hot to Fish" I would have laughed in their face. Remembering 1983, my boat was a 1982 Lund S-14 Deluxe with a 25 hp Evinrude. My first new boat purchased the year before, it was a product of inspiration from my friend Gary Barneson, who had the exact same boat. Come to think of it I saw him last week and he still has it so I took a picture of him standing next to his fine rig! For 1983 it was a pretty nice boat, flat floor between the rear and front seat with a split center seat you could walk between. Each center seat had a storage compartment for anchors, life vests, and other necessities. This boat also had an open storage space under the rear bench seat, perfect for the 6 gallon gas tank. A far cry from what I have today it was my yacht. Being pretty handy I fashioned a front casting platform out of 3/4 inch marine plywood, added my own pedestal seat, and made a small front deck for mounting lights and an anchor mate. It was pretty tricked out for the time and looking back I would have to admit there was something special about the simplicity of it all. I caught a lot of fish out of that boat, with a metal mesh fish basket as my livewell, hung over the side it worked pretty well. It was late July of that year and we were in a throngs of a pretty good heat wave. I had just purchased a new Metro Fishing Guide and had read up on a lake I was interested in checking out, Whaletail. Near Lake Minnetonka, it was suppose to be clear, full of bass and big crappies. Getting away on a Sunday afternoon the bank thermometer in Wayzata said 105 degrees! Often when it is this hot the wind is blowing hard right out of the south. Remembering the humidity wasn't too bad, the breeze made it even warmer. This weeks weather was insane. As they often say, it's not the heat, it's the humidity and this week was no exception. If you have ever been in southern China in August, you would have experienced exactly the same hot and humid conditions we saw in Minnesota this week. It will actually take your breath away when you walk outside. The latest trend in weather is to accentuate the Heat Index. Living in the north country, we seem exceptionally proud of our wind chill index. This is the result of the air temperature combined with the wind to make it feel colder than it really is. Well we have gotten our fill of the "Heat Index" as a relative perception of the temperature, humidity, and wind to give you the feeling as though it was 120 degrees out. Right, just as the wind chill all we need is something to make us feel more miserable than we really are!

So this is Fishin with Dave, not Bitchin' About the Weather so I my fishing picture today is of my sweetheart Megan. The daughter of my friend, Megan and her brother Ben (who has been featured before) are very special to me. As I have stated in the past, Megan's dad Jack Taylor and his family are my family away from home. As long as I can remember I am Uncle Dave to all of the Taylor clan. Dealing with my dad's hospice, it is comforting to have my "family" close. Well, Megan is quite the fisherwoman, she can be stubborn, but that's OK, it gives her that spunk! Here is Megan with a couple of dandy sunfish caught on their lake just west of Mille Lacs. You got to love it!! She is turning into a lovely young woman and knowing how to fish just adds to her resume of her many talents. Her brother Ben is an absolute fishing addict and in a sense reminds me of me when I was young. Having adopted the saying, "My greatest fear in life is when I am dead and gone why wife will sell my fishing equipment for what I told her I bought it for!", I think maybe Ben would be a good repository for some of my stuff.

The heat is breaking however the weather doesn't look good for the weekend with storms in the forecast. Hopefully I can get back up to the pond as the State of Minnesota is back in business and with a little luck the slot limit will be increased from 18" to 20". If nothing else it might be time to get the Jon Boat out and try cat fishing on the Mississippi River behind the house. My good friend Jeff King of Mile14 (see the side bars) will be having surgery soon and I want to wish him well. I have been working with Matt Taylor and his trip to Alaska, hopefully he can see some of my friends and say hi for me. I am off to the Twins game on Friday night with my neighbor Lory, always a good time. Lot's of stuff going on.

Second Time Around

2011-07-14T23:00:00.000-05:00

Last week was as crazy as this week. After flying to Chicago and getting back late on Friday night, Saturday we left early to see my Dad in Eleva. My brother was there so we got a number of things done around the house. I decided to take the "old" way of going back home, Hwy 10 which runs a mile from the house all the way to Eleva. Back in 1973 Oil Crisis the government instituted a 55 mph speed limit on major highways so there was little advantage between taking Hwy 10 vs the interstate, I94. Today the major 2 lanes remain at 55 mph but the interstate is back up to 65 (in Wisconsin). Having recorded mileage both ways, Hwy 10 is 5 miles shorter than taking I94, is much more scenic, and only takes about 5 minutes longer. It's a welcome change from the last 25 years of thinking the interstate is better. We headed back early Sunday with the intent of hooking up with my neighbor Lory Brasel and trying the late afternoon bite. Last week the bite lasted well into the 6:00PM time frame, could it still be on? Heading to the landing north of the Casino, evidence of a busy morning was confirmed by the truck trailers parked in the ditch. Arriving at 3:00 there were enough empty spaces to stay withing the landing. My strategy was simple, head to the Cut, backtroll to the corner, and depending on our success, either stay or move to 7-mile flat, scene of last weeks success. Although the cut was void of boats, we only nailed 1 fish before deciding to move. We did mark a lot of fish but they didn't seem to interested. I caught a smaller walleye, 21 inches, but that was it. Time to move to 7 Mile. There were a few more boats on 7 Mile but the fish were just as uncooperative. One thing was evident, a big mayfly hatch was about to commence. My sonar marked huge masses of mayfly larva setting themselves up to emerge into adulthood. There are theories as to whether these bug hatches affect the fishing or not but I can't believe they don't. Evidence of the previous night's hatch were all over the surface. Marking a load of fish on the point, we decided to anchor and try bobber for a while. Using a crawler, Lory nailed the first keeper I had seen in 4 weeks. We through it in the live well then spent the next hour trying to duplicate the feat. No such luck.

My friend Bill had called to warn us that a weather front was moving in fast and we need to be cognizant of the approaching storm. Deciding to move closer to the landing, we headed back to the Cut. Again, there was not a boat to be found we started on the edge and immediately began marking fish. Putting down the crawler rig, we went 20 feet before that tell tale thump, a walleye. Setting the hook the 26 1/2 incher finally succumb to the net, a good start. Re-baiting and 2 minutes later boom, another 22 incher hit. Releasing it and re-baiting I nailed a 24 inch walleye, again within minutes. After the 4th fish, I suggested to Lory he reconsider my offer to use one of my hand tied spinner rigs as it was obvious the presentation was hot and what ever he was using was not. Almost as scripted he retied, threaded the night crawler, let it to the bottom, and within a minute had a nice walleye. I am not sure who was more excited, me steering him right or the fact that he caught one right away. As we unhooked his walleye, the lightening made it's presence known. Time to head for the landing. We ended the day with 7 walleyes, 5 caught in the last 30 minutes. We were able to stay just ahead of the storm but eventually it caught up with us. An hour later the wind took out one of my nicest Autumn Blaze Maple, a 10 year old tree, the 3rd I have had in that location! Oh well. Power was off till 2:00, just in time for the air to kick back in. The first picture is the 26.5 incher that I caught and the second is the last fish of the day, Lory's 24 inch walleye that practically jumped into the boat! I am expecially fond of how his hat dressed up the boat significantly! I am in Loveland, CO returning Friday, maybe heading back home for Saturday and doing the Mille Lac thing this weekend. Hopefully the bite is still strong!

Spinner Blade Madness

2011-07-07T22:12:00.006-05:00

Monday was the 4^th of July, a great day to celebrate our nation’s birthday and even a better day to spend it fishing on Mille Lacs. My traditional partners for the weekend were not available this time and as luck would have it my friend John Delestry was ready to fill the empty seat. John was staying at his dad’s cabin near McGregor, MN and he e-mailed me looking for a vacancy in my boat. I was able to accommodate and we met at the landing, not too early of course. I was somewhat surprised at the lack of rigs that were parked at the landing; apparently everyone must have got it out of their system on Saturday and Sunday. Normally arriving at 10:00 would assure parking in the ditch on the service road. The day was looking to be a dandy as the southerly wind was strong enough for the perfect drift speed yet comfortable enough to make the fishing enjoyable. After talking to a few guys that had just returned to the landing we made a beeline for my deep rock hump off Sherman’s Point. Having done very well in the past, this year it has produced only a fish or two. Still worth a stop it proved elusive again. The next stop was The Cut on Sherman’s Flat. We had pulled a few fish off this structure last week as they were stacked right off the end. Heading up the edge, the wind was perfect as we long lined a couple of plain hooked leeches. Marking a school, as we passed John and I hit a double. Netting mine first produced a nice 21 inch fish. I unhooked it, took a measurement, and released while John was still battling a monster. As it appeared near the boat I could see John getting nervous! It was the largest walleye he had on a line, and a minute later we had her in the net. At 27 ¾ inches, she was fat and sassy, well exceeding 8 pounds. Not the magical 28 but close enough to be satisfied. Snapping a few pictures we quickly got her back in the water as she took off for the deep. Here is a picture of John and his fish. We continued to make our way up the edge until another boat claimed the last 50 yards. Working the edge, they nailed 5 while we basically stayed out of their way. We caught a couple more in the 20 inch range before the bite went dead. It was time to move.

Next stop was 7 mile Flat, a structure basically in the middle of the lake. Probably one of the best known flats on the lake, it’s been hot and cold the last few years. I think it’s popularity tends to attract a lot of boats and the activity tends to push and scatter the fish off the deeper edges. Today it looked like a ghost town. John stayed with a leech while I switched to a 3 way rig consisting of a 2 foot dropper anchored by a ¾ oz bell sinker and an 8 foot homemade crawler rig. My rigs are tied with 2 hooks that are 4 inches apart, 5 beads, and a quick change clevis. Starting with a chartreuse #5 Indiana Blade, it wasn’t the color. I switched to a silver hammered Colorado Blade, nothing. I replaced that with a red blade before finally digging out an old Glow color. It was like turning on the dinner bell. As fast as I could get a crawler on, the walleyes were hitting that lure with vengeance, often hitting so hard once or twice I almost lost my grip. John had got a few more on his leech but it was obvious a change was needed. For 3 hours we were getting a walleye every 10 – 15 minutes, right up to the time we had to leave. We had netted at least 20 walleyes, not one was under 19 inches, including this 27 ½ that I nailed. As I stated last week, the slot for keeping walleyes on Mille Lacs is anything under 18 inches. No fish for frying pan again this week. Oh well, it’s hard to complain! Rumors are that the walleye harvest numbers are down this year on Mille Lacs again as I have caught very few fish small enough to keep. Like last year the DNR is reportedly set to increase the allowable maximum size to 20 inches, but with the State of Minnesota shut down, who the heck knows what they will do. I guess we will know by July 15^th. Either way it was one of the more memorable trips and I was very fortunate to have John as my partner for the day. I have promised him a late summer lead line trip and I hope we can make it happen.

As for the rest of the weekend, I spent the other 3 days with my dad in Eleva. I had decided to deviate from my normal I94 route and cut down to Hwy 10, which passes a mile from my home in Dayton and goes right through Eleva. It is a scenic route and a stop at the Ellsworth Coop Creamery for some fresh cheese curds is a must. At 11:00 AM they bring out the days freshly made curds and they are manna from heaven. The fresher they are the more they squeak as you chew. You buy them in a 1 pound sealed bag and they are just laying on the counter at room temperature. The first bite produces a symphony of sounds bursting from your mouth. I am not sure that even describes it well. The next stop was Gunderson's Meats in Mondovi. In Minnesota no one knows how to make good summer sausage. They have the best, that tangy sour taste with plenty of mustard seeds to get stuck in your teeth. As a bonus I bought a pint of pickled kielbasa, fabulous! With the bite strong I am hoping to get out again and take advantage of the hot bite. I bought some plastic crawlers and would like to try them out. Hopefully I might even get a few to keep this time.

June Walleyes

2011-07-01T16:07:00.000-05:00

As predicted last week, I made it up to the pond on Saturday morning with my neighbor Tom. He had not been out this year so I figured he was ready. Normally I don't try to get up too early as I prefer the early evening bite and of course allows me to get my much needed beauty sleep. The wind was a little stiff but in a goofy direction. The best winds are those that allow you to slow drift an edge of a flat or back troll with some sense of accuracy. A calm wind allows you to use your trolling motor to present your bait right where you need it but if I need to fire up the big motor along with winds at right angles it becomes a challenge. Pulling spinners with a crawler and Tom with a leech, we started at the humps before moving to a deeper rock reef. I nailed a nice fish right away then nothing for the next hour. From there we headed to the Cut, a area on Sherman's Flat that usually produces well this time of year. There were quite a few boats scattered on the edges and by the looks of what I was marking on the HDS 10, they had shoved the active fish off the edges and into the deeper water. Hugging tight to the bottom we needed to move as generally these fish tend to not cooperate very well. Searching for a flat edge that was in the right direction of the wind by the time we arrived the wind ad switched! Oh well, with time running out for the day we headed back to the rock reef catching a nice smallie before loading the boat up. We caught 4 walleyes, all longer than 18 inches so my plan to bring some fish home didn't turn out very well. Catching fish too big........darn!

Sunday saw us heading back to Eleva to see my dad. Dropping my wife off in Eau Claire to spend some time with her cousins, I hauled my motorcycle on a trailer and went for a little ride before getting to Eleva. This part of Wisconsin is deceivingly beautiful and scenic. My goal was to get on the back roads that wind between the villages and farms of west central Wisconsin. Heading to Mondovi I followed Hwy 37 to Hwy 88 which took me to Gilmanton. There I went east on Hwy 121, past Lookout taking a right on County Road Q. This road was made for motorcycles as it curves it's way to Independence, following the ridges and valleys along it's course. Alone on the road, you notice things that were once an everyday part of your life. The smell of fresh cut hay filled the air as the farmers were harvesting their second crop of the year. Coming over the ridge one would get a wiff of good old cow manure. Not exactly like smelling fresh apple pie, never the less brought back memories of cleaning barns with my friends in years past. It was a good smell. Heading north on Hwy 93 past Elk Creek, I took left on Cty Y deciding to go through Chimney Rock. Not much has changed other than I almost hit a jake turkey as he pecked at the gravel along side the road. I ended my trip by going past Jimmy Tollefson's old place where I spend many a day in the summer experiencing those smells that bring me back. Up the hill and over to Mockingbird, it is the highest point between Eau Claire as it overlooks the valley were I grew up.

Heading to my folks I was put right to work mowing, trimming and weeding the garden. One thing my dad taught me well was the right way to mow a yard. He has this old Simplicity with a back mower roller that gives that ballpark, checkerboard look. Seeing how his help (an bless their souls) had simply mowed the grass, I took charge and did it the right way, mowing in the opposite direction, trimming around everything, and edging the driveway and sidewalks. It's the least I could do as we learned on Tuesday there is little left to do for my dad. With a 4 day weekend, we'll go see him first then hopefully I can head to Mille Lacs and catch a few walleyes as they are much easier to eat as he likes anything my brother or I catch for him. I will leave you with a picture from Mockingbird Hill looking over Eleva. It's a great place to be from, that's for sure.

Father's Day

2011-06-23T23:16:00.000-05:00

Last Sunday was Father's Day. Although the bite continues to be hot, between seeing my dad and having the double pleasure of visiting my Uncle Jerry, who is in from Boise Idaho, I don't think fishing would have been any better. As both my dad and I get older, you come to the realization that things will not last forever. Thinking back these two guys have given me some interesting fishing experiences over the years. Dad got me started fishing as we often fished the Eleva Pond for trout and crappies, the Buffalo River for carp, and as a special treat we would head to Marshmiller Lake near Bloomer Wisconsin for the slab bluegills. April was sucker fishing in the creek below the dam and a few choice holes in the river. Trout fishing in Eleva was usually relegated to the months of May and June as the Rod and Gun Club and the Wisconsin DNR would plant hatchery browns, rainbow, and brook trout into the pond and local streams. I will remember one April, I suppose I was no older than 10 years old. My fishing pole was an old 5 foot steel octagonal rod with a Pflueger level wind reel loaded with black Dacron line. My dad had rigged it up with a sinker and hook, with a can of worms my brother Steve and I headed to the bridge on Hwy 10 that crossed the creek from the pond. The creek ran through town so it was only about a block from where we lived at the time. Well, don't ask me how but I somehow caught a northern pike that had come up from the Buffalo River and it was huge! It was the biggest and meanest fish I had ever seen (compared to the suckers in the river), guessing it was at least 3 feet. Not knowing what to do with it, Steve ran home to get dad. Lucky thing northerns are pretty tough as I suspect my sense of panic was well relayed to my dad as it took about 5 minutes for him to get down to the creek. Dad unhooked the fish, took one look at me and slipped it back into the water. As it swam away my jubilation went as well. Knowing my limits of expressing myself in front of my father, he sensed my frustration, explaining that this fish was not legal to keep for at least another week. In hindsight it taught me a good lesson as I probably could have got away with carrying it home but those teeth were pretty intimidating. BTW, the fish was only about 22 inches but I can guarantee it was much bigger when I caught it.

I had not seen my uncle Jerry (Zeke) since uncle Keith had passed away a few years ago. I have mentioned how influential he has been in my fishing life and seeing him on Sunday was a pure pleasure. I have previous posts of our fishing adventures in Alaska and Mille Lacs however it really started in the summer of 1965 during a visit to Boise. Zeke was a dentist and I suspect he made an offer to my dad, bring Steve and Dave out for a visit, I'll fix their teeth for nothing and we can enjoy some time together. Well the trip out was memorable as we went through the Black Hills, stayed in Cody Wyoming before heading to Yellowstone. At that time it was popular to feed the bears and we saw quite a few of them. Heading to Boise my brother and I got all of our cavities filled (still in today) and managed to find some time for fishing. Zeke used this opportunity to teach me how to fly fish, something almost unheard of in Eleva. Boise is considered high desert and because we were pretty young we stuck to fishing the irrigation canals that flowed through the area. I suppose there might have been some trout in these waters however we caught mostly squawfish, a native member of the carp family which inhabits the western part of North America. Zeke says they call them pikeminnows, a more politically correct term these days. Today I still fly fish today using the same techniques I learned over 40 years ago fishing in Idaho as this nice dolly vardon caught in Alaska demonstrates. With a little luck maybe Steve and I can retrace our journey of 1965 and try a little Idaho fishing later this year.

As for Father's Day, it was a good one. My dad is not doing too well but then again just seeing him was a blessing. Here is hoping for the chance to celebrate it again next year. The weather has been wet and windy yet with a little luck I'll get to Mille Lacs on Saturday to catch him a few walleyes for supper, he'll like that!

The Bite is On

2011-06-16T18:06:00.001-05:00

Sunday was our day to reaffirm that the hot bite we experienced during last weeks MTT was the beginning of that pre summer frenzy which usually lasts through the month of June. Joining me in my boat was my neighbor Lory as well I allowed my friends Tom and Tom to tag along, provided they stayed out of my way! Having exhausted my supply of leeches we stopped and picked up a half pound before heading to the lake. Our destination was the Shah-Bush-Kung-Bay landing, just north of the casino. Sometimes known as Cashes Landing (years ago), it has a nice deep water protected landing and offers a lot of fishing options being near the middle of the lake. There are a number of great late spring/early summer spots just off the landing which are excellent for catching walleyes. This year everything is about 2 weeks late and these near shore locations should be really hot. Well my predictions were true. Within 15 minutes we had our first walleye. Looking for something in the box the first 6 fish were all larger than 18 inches. With the slot at less than 18 and 1 over 28, it was proving difficult to do. I started with a crawler and Lory with a leech, Lory nailed the first 2 so I switched. That was a good strategy for the first couple of hours.

As often happens, the bite went slow for a little while so I decided to head to a deeper rock reef a mile north. Generally this reef is good for some of those slot fish for the livewell but the rocks makes it more difficult to fish. My guess was correct as we nailed 2 fish, one for the box and a 25 incher I am holding in the first picture. More often than not usually I am the only guy on this reef. Many times guys will drive by and see my boat, quick turn around and see what's up. On Mille Lacs most people fish the well known spots where all the other boats are. When they see someone in a spot unfamiliar, they got to check it out. As I stated its quite difficult to fish with the rocks so most people don't stay long. After a few lost rigs and fewer marks on the sonar we headed back to our original spot. We immediately started catching fish again, ultimately ending up the day with 12 and 2 in the box? Lory nailed this fat 26 incher on a leech, the largest of the day. We chose to spend the last hour trolling Indian Point with Shad Raps. With a south wind hitting the reef all day it should have been good for a couple of keepers. Well all we caught were 6 smallies. I truly believe that these reefs have been over run by smallmouth bass which leaves little left for the walleyes (in my opinion!)

I am getting more familiar with my HDS10 and am having a lot more fun. My previous depth finder, the Genetron, was excellent at marking fish which over the years I had developed the confidence. My greatest concern with the new Lorwance was redeveloping that confidence. One of the ways I am learning is to record the sonar readings and look at them on my computer. This is actually pretty amazing as I found recordings of my sinker and bait falling to the bottom. We marked a tremendous amount of fish and it is fun to go back and actually see where they were, look at the GPS points, and try to establish some patterns. A labor of love for sure. Friday is my annual duty of helping my good friend Mark Applen making his ENA Golf Tournament another success. We hope to raise another $25,000 for helping kids with cancer, having passed the $200,000 mark in the last 8 years. It is a tribute to the Applen's dedication to their son Eric, who passed away from this terrible disease. Sunday is Father's Day and with my father struggling it will be good to spend some time with him. As a bonus my Uncle Jerry is in Eleva, man I have been practicing up for a few years now! Luckily we like each other. Might just have to skip out early one day next week for that evening bite as the night ban has expired on Mille Lacs.

Wrong Strategy or Simple Greed!

2011-06-08T23:48:00.000-05:00

The plan for Saturday's MTT Tournament was set, leave work early on Friday heading up to Mille Lacs for a possible hour or two of pre-fishing. Stopping at Bill's for a possible last minute update I stopped for gas before meeting my partner, Mark Applen at his fish house. The tournament rules meeting was at 7:00 at Hunter's Point Resort. The organizers had a pretty nice set up with grilled brats and burgers available and an outside bar pouring drinks and serving beer. My friend Joe Stanfield coined a new title for a common cocktail I enjoy, a Captain Morgan with Diet Coke. He calls it a Skinny Pirate and about 80% of the bartenders figure it out. When I ordered it Joe's way, the lady loved the name but couldn't figure it out. Pointing to the bottle of Captain, she smiled............coming right up. The rules meeting started, 2 flights leaving, 1 - 50 at 7:00 AM and the second 51 - 70 at 7:30. We were officially #47. No culling was allowed meaning once a fish is in the live well, it stays there. Our limit on Mille Lacs is 4 fish each so each 2 man team could catch 8 fish however only the largest 6 fish could be entered. The legal slot on Mille Lacs is under 18 and 28 and over. The rules were specific, any fish on the 18 inch line and you would be disqualified. Any fish on the 28 inch line would count. Fish under 13 or dead fish turned in would result in a 0.12 pound penalty. You must be recognized as in line for the weigh in before 3:00 (or 3:30 if in the 2nd heat), the official time was determined by the Tournament Director, no ifs, ands, or buts! Winners would be announced at 4:30. Deciding to relax rather than pre-fish we headed back to the ice house for a walleye and smoked rib dinner. It was a pretty early evening as we had to be up by 5:30 and at Hunter's by 6:15.

Waking up at 5:30 we were greeted with a familiar loud hum of at least a billion lake flies that hatched through the night. The trees, cars, houses, anything withing 100 feet of the lake was literally covered with these rather benign but annoying insects. BTW, I do mean a billion. This is one of the largest bug hatches I have seen in years, verified by the tremendous amount of carcasses floating on the lake. Although a royal pain, we did manage to load and launch our boat arriving at Hunter's Point with plenty of time to spare. All the boats staged just outside of their breakwater as the "Official" pontoon broadcast the National Anthem over the marine band radio, channel 68. Boats were to parade by the pontoon single file and in order and away we were off. Our strategy was to head back to the winning reef we fished last year. About a 10 minute ride we arrived to an empty hotspot, fabulous! Last year there was a tournament boat parked on our spot, although he did leave early. Mark started with a short snelled leech while I long lined a crawler. Within 5 minutes we had our first keeper fish, a nice 17 incher. The next 2 hours were incredible. By 9:00 we had 5 in the box, had caught over 15 walleyes and were well on our way to a respectable tournament limit. The bite was definitely hot. Our plan was to keep those fish over 16 inches, get our 6 then head out to try the flats for a 28+ fish. Debating to keep that 15.5" inch fish, we decided to through it back as we "knew" we could get that last fish to meet our high expectations. Having laid down a pretty good set of GPS tracks Mark was on the front of the boat when this huge muskie swam by. I caught a glimpse of it's tail and my estimate was 48 inches plus. Muskies are always exciting to see but not this time. The slot fish simply stopped hitting for about a half hour after the muskie swam through. When the fish decided to start biting again, all we could catch were those in the over 18 to 26 inch range. With 5 fish and only larger fish hitting, we decided to go for broke and head to the flats for a big fish. Noticing no one was on the Midget Flat, we cruised over and started marking fish like crazy. Missing a couple I finally felt something nail my crawler rig. Feeding it line for a few seconds I set the hook and she was a hog. As it came into sight it looked like the tourney winner. Quickly landing the old girl a measurement revealed we'd have to stretch her another 2 inches to contend. A quick picture and back she went along with the last of our hopes for that first place. We weighed our fish at exactly 7.77 pounds, well maybe that number was lucky. In the end we finished 16th out of 70 boats, with a pound separating 16th from 6th. Our decision to throw back that last 15.5 inch walleye cost us the money. Disappointed in our hearts we screwed up. Never the less our "real" score would have put us in the top ten finishers 2 years in a row. Oh well, I think there is a saying about being a "Legend in our own mind", that's us! Next year we will definitely remember what we didn't do. The first picture is the 26 inch walleye we coaxed out of the Midget and the second one is the bugs resting on a boat in the harbor. It was a ton of fun as we did catch over 20 walleyes.

The plans are to head back up on Sunday to see if the hot bit is still on.

Back on the "Dead Sea"

2011-06-02T23:37:00.001-05:00

With all the hoopla of the opener behind us, it was time to head up to the pond and see how the walleyes were biting. Having 2 weeks to report on, I will start with my trip on May 22nd with Jeffrey Chen, my business colleague from Taiwan. Jeffrey gets to Minnesota about once every 2 years so I look forward to doing something special with him. Having no set time of the year to travel we have made done everything from snowmobiling on the North Shore to checking out the floods on the Mississippi River. Of course all of these things have a down home slant of good old Midwestern fun. Because he had never fished before, we decided a day on Mille Lacs would be a great way to spend the day. Asking if he'd go rain or shine, he answered "of course!". Well, with the weather we have been having lately it looked more rain than shine. After picking him up at the hotel we headed north to Bill's for a license and bait. Although Jeffrey had fished in Taiwan before, the bait shop proved to be pretty interesting. It sort of reminded him of the restaurants in China where your meal is either crawling or swimming. A bucket of leeches, some crawlers, and refreshments we headed to the east side where the bite was reported in 20 feet of water just off the rocks. Well, half the lake must have gotten the same report as there was a pretty good crowd fishing the area. After about an hour of backtrolling the rain decided it was time to make our trip more miserable. Donning our rain suits the sky opened up like one of those overflow buckets at the water parks. Having had enough of the "hot bite" we headed to a shallower spot closer to shore. 10 minutes into the pattern a 15 inch walleye answered the call. Being the good sport I let Jeffrey reel in his first walleye. The rain continued off and on and with the light bite decided to try some bobber fishing which would give Jeffrey a chance to see a bite in action. Anchored on the spot we caught the first walleye, the strategy seemed sound anyway. After an hour and anther 1/4 inch of rain we moved out to deeper water. The wind had picked up and noticing a net being used on Big Point we decided to drift across the point. Once again within 5 minutes we nailed a nice 22 incher. Jeffrey reeled this one in as well and after 3 more drifts would be the last fish we caught. He didn't quite understand the reason we had to throw the big one back as he was looking forward to a walleye dinner later that evening. Assuring him we did the right thing, we still had at least one fresh fish and with a couple out of the freezer, he would have his wish. Deep fried walleye and fresh grilled asparagus, it was truly a meal fit for a king, at least Jeffrey thought so!

On Monday my good friend Tom Emmons and I decided to start out his open water season on Mille Lacs. Although the day was nice and warm, the wind was howling out of the SE at around 30 mph. In order to be somewhat comfortable, we launched out of the Cove Bay landing and fished the south end of the lake. It wasn't as bad as I anticipated..........the waves that is! Man, the walleye bite left a lot to be desired. Everything seems to be about 2 weeks behind schedule as the lilacs are still in full bloom around here. With surface water temperatures around 56 degrees, the fish haven't seemed to move too deep yet. We spend a bunch of time on Sloppy Joe's and marked a number of fish but they had lock jaw for one reason or another. Moving to a few shallower spots proved fruitless. Deciding to try and troll some shad raps around Anderson Reef about the only thing we came up with was a 14 inch smallie. My secondary reason for going up was to do a little scouting. On Saturday my good friend Mark Applen and I are once again entered in the MTT Walleye Tournament. The entry fee was again part of our ENA Charity Golf outing where last year Mark and I took third place winning $1024 on behalf of a generous donor. This year we are being sponsored again by our committee member John Budde, a testament to his faith in Mark and I's ability to at least triple his money! I only hope that we can find the mother lode again and make John happy. The rest of the week is going to be nice and warm and should help our strategy. Wish us luck, we'll probably need it.

The Final Results

2011-05-26T07:01:00.004-05:00

I finally have found time to post the final results from our Leech Lake Opener this year. Although I am still waiting for a few more pictures, Ron sent me enough to put something together. As for the summary Team Walleye had 22 attendees this year. 2 short of our record of 24 guys last year, everything went off without a hitch. As stated earlier, the weather was pretty tough on Saturday but turned around on Sunday with the best day being the day we left. This usually happens 9 out of 10 years so we are well acclimated to the nuances of the weather. Around 3:00 on Saturday the representative from Ron Schara Productions showed up to film footage of our group's appearance on MN Bound. Laurie did a great job interviewing the key members of Team Walleye including Ron Edberg, Mark Mayerich, Gary Ullom, and Mark Taylor, the original members. I was given about 10 minutes to explain how Team Walleye keeps track of our tournament status, scoring, and the trophies involved. She ended with the next generation of Team Walleye, Adam Mayerich and Matt Taylor. Saturday night's menu included 16 oz rib eyes for everyone and after a great meal it was back out on the lake for more filming. Greg from Brindley's volunteered to take her out so she could film Team Walleye in it's preferred environment, fishing! We were one of the first boats they came by and as if on cue Gary set the hook on a nice walleye. Grabbing the net I landed the fish as I have thousand's time before and the video camera caught all of the drama! With a little luck it will be part of the segment. Wrapping up the filming on Sunday morning we have been told it will be a couple of weeks and she would let us know the schedule. I suspect she got about 3 - 4 hours of material which will probably be shrunk to about 10 - 15 minutes. Asked about the process, she would actually do the editing and Ron Schara would narrate the story. We are really looking forward to the finished product. Here is a picture of this year's group.

We did have some new winners in the Big Fish Tournament this year. Having won it last year, I was in charge of presenting the trophy to John Felix, my friend from Ashland, WI. Unfortunately I don't have a picture of him however his fish tied Matt Taylor for the largest walleye caught in the 38 years of Team Walleye, 27.5 inches. I was very nice fish and continues to set the bar high for next year. Second place was my friend Kevin with a 27 inch fish, another nice walleye. Third place was my brother Steve with a 26.25 inch fish caught first thing Saturday morning. For individual points, Kevin took top honors with 98 points. Points are a combination of total individual walleye's caught, total fish caught in the boat, and extra points awarded for catching the largest fish in the boat per session. Although 98 points is a respectable score, the record was 202 points by a gentlemen in my boat 3 years ago. That will be a number destine to stay on top for a while. As stated last week, Team D Anderson again took top honors with the top boat award scoring a total of 46 walleyes caught in the old Ranger. Last but not least the DCS (Didn't Catch $hit) trophy went to my brother Jon for his lack of being able to put any fish in the boat. With Ron Edberg winning the last two years, I am sure that he was relieved not to be in the running this year. Admittedly Jon was pretty happy to walk away with something, a toilet seat trophy and $20 for his efforts. The good news is that the Anderson boys, my brother Steve, Jon and myself all walked away with some type of honor this year! Here is Jon receiving his award from me, a reconfigured toilet seat made of clear acrylic complete with fishing lures embedded.

Each year Ron has been compiling data on the total number of fish caught. Compared to the previous 2 years our total fish count was down quite a bit, 250 walleyes vs 386 for 2009 and 314 for 2010. Although we did get enough for a nice fish fry on Sunday night as well as each brought home at least 3 walleyes, the slow Sunday's catch was a major contributor to the lower numbers. One thing notable was the lack of fish under 15 inches. The previous 2 years had good numbers of smaller walleyes, apparently they grew up some! Often the weather and bait fish numbers have a big factor on this as we see the future of fishing on Leech to be very positive. Ron has done some comparative overlays on the graphs and I will try to post them later. I did get out on Sunday for my first trip to Mille Lacs with Jeffrey, my friend from Taiwan. Time is forcing me to put that off till next week! Have a great Memorial Day and don't forget those who have gave all for our country.

38th Annual Leech Lake Report

2011-05-19T23:03:00.002-05:00

Another year of fishing has passed and the start of a new season has begun. My open water season gets inaugurated with our annual Fishing Opener at Brindley’s Harbor Resort on beautiful Leech Lake, Minnesota. This was my 22^nd year with the group and as always it proved to have all of the elements of a great time. Our trip started on Friday morning with Ron, My brother Steve and Jon meeting at the pole shed, loading up the gear. Heading out at 9:00 we stopped to pick up another friend, Gary Ullom then proceeded to Lundeen’s, meeting my friends from Wisconsin, Kevin and John. Loading up on bait we headed north. Arriving at the resort 2 hours later, the first order of business was to get our boats unloaded and the minnows in our holding containers. Unfortunately one of my live well pumps failed and I lost quite a few shiner minnows however luckily we split them up so the impact was not too severe. I had bought an oxygenator as a backup and quite frankly was very disappointed in how it didn’t work. After a few celebratory traditions a couple of us headed to the harbor point at midnight to cast a few crankbaits. Success usually means the morning will be pretty good. Within 30 minutes we already had 5 nice keeper fish caught on Shad Raps and Rattlin’ Rouges. The Omen proved correct as we woke up to a 20mph NE wind, rain, and a hot bite. Leech Lake walleyes were in a tight post spawn pattern as the ice had just left 2 weeks earlier. Wind blowing into Pine Point concentrated the fish, which were scattered throughout the 10 foot depth range. Everyone caught walleyes on Saturday morning. By noon you could see a clearing line coming in from the northeast and by time we ate supper the rain was gone but not the wind. The bite continued to be OK however by the Sunday morning the sky was clear, the barometer was rising and the fish didn’t seem to like that very much. The group records all of the fish caught, individual points as well as team points (by boat) are awarded. If I have 2 guys in my boat and they do really good, I benefit as the total fish caught in your boat adds to your individual score. Sunday morning wasn’t very good for Team Anderson! Usually a good session can catapult you into the top scores as Sunday nights session would prove.

Having tried the Goose Island area the day before with some success, I decided to open the evening session there. Leech is a funny lake. One year they can be killing on Goose and the next year there is nary a boat in site. Sunday night was no exception, no boats on Goose and no fish. After about an hour my brother (bless his soul) called to inform me they were getting some nice fish on Ottertail Point. Heeding his advice we cranked in and fired up the Suzuki. Arriving at Ottertail, there were about 10 boats working the area and a few nets showing themselves. 15 minutes into it I landed a nice 25.75 inch walleye….great start! Well the next hour saw a number of fish caught in the other boats while we hit another dry spell. As the sun went down my strategy shifted telling Mark and his son Adam, we were going to troll shad raps. Earlier that day they had asked if both could accompany me that evening which was fine with me. The rules are it’s my game. Thinking they were simply going to use their spinning reels I informed them to put the lightweight gear away, I am not spending half the night getting baits unstuck. Being the gentleman I am Mark got my top trolling rig and Adam got the next best. Selecting baits for them, I suggested that color is less important than size and depth. Sometimes you can have 3 identical baits but one has that special nuance which really turns the fish. That night Mark’s white with a red bill was the clear ticket. Trolling shads is one of my strategies on Leech however these guys had never tried it. Sunday night I put on a Shad Rap clinic and by midnight we had boated 18 walleyes, the largest at 25.75 and put 8 in the live well. Mark had the hot rod with 12 fish caught, Adam added his 4 and I only ended up with 2, which were twins at 25.75”. This is why Mark and Adam wanted to fish with me that evening and I am glad they were not disappointed. Of course I attributed Marks success to the fine trolling rod he was given to use, yet when you’re hot you’re hot! The first picture is my 25.75” that fell victim to a #7 silver Shad Rap and the next one is Mark’s largest fish of the night. Although I didn’t do so well personally, Marks performance put Team Anderson in the lead for top boat.

I believe Sunday night’s success was based upon a common situation that sets up on Leech. As the wind pounds into a point it concentrates the walleyes. The wind had been blowing into Ottertail point for 4 days and finally died Sunday afternoon. That evening the fish were still there however by Monday morning they had scattered with the rising barometer. Monday morning the lake was glass calm being much more reluctant to give up her walleyes. By noon we had managed 2 walleyes so it was time to pull out the entertainment portion of the session and head to Submarine Island for a little sucker fishing. With water temps in the mid 50’s the lake suckers were stacked in the 3 foot tops of the reefs spawning. There were thousands of them full of eggs and milt, ready to hit a Hot’n’Tot that got too close. It was a nice break to the rather monotonous state of the walleye bite and my boat companions enjoyed something they have never seen. Back trolling Sunday night with Mark, we tried Stony Point with little fanfare so back to Ottertail and 5 more fish, again Mark had the hot rod. This year was an interesting one as I scored a quintfecta catching 5 species including walleye, perch, northern pike, eelpout and sucker. An interesting mix for sure. Here is a picture of me with a trophy lake sucker. Unfortunately I had to leave for Denver within hours of returning home so again I am writing this on the plane. The flight attendant just told me to turn it off so stay tuned as I will post more pictures and results from another fantastic Minnesota Fishing Opener. In addition, the representative from MN Bound showed up on Saturday afternoon and I will report on what proved to be an interesting filming session.

The Big Weekend's Coming

2011-05-11T00:40:00.004-05:00

Well, Minnesota Fishing Opener is just a few days away and everything seems to be coming together like it always does. For me the Opener still has a magical appeal as it has all of my life.   Back home in Eleva fishing opener was always the most anticipated day of the year, better than birthdays or even Christmas! Its been that way for as long as I remember. The Eleva Pond was a typical Mill Pond created by the damming up of a fast moving creek then using the power of the water to mill grain prior to the invention of the internal combustion engine. Most small towns and villages had a local water powered mill to provide the community with a location to process grain for many applications. Although many of these ponds are no longer maintained, Trempealeau County, Wisconsin has no natural lakes so the ponds were the focal point for fishing and remain that way today. The Eleva Pond is feed by Big Creek and Adams Creek, both spring feed and perfect for trout. Every spring the local Rod and Gun Club would stock 500 or so adult trout in the pond, just in time for opener, the first week in May. Known as "planted trout" their flesh was white and rather bland. If the trout survived the season, feeding on freshwater shrimp eventually turns their flesh to a deep orange color improving the flavor tremendously. We called these fish "natives" although true native fish were rate. Worms were usually the bait of choice however an occasional Mepps Spinner was used when a more exciting way to fish was desired. Here is a picture I pulled from the Eau Claire Leader, a young man fishing the Eleva Pond on the opener. That could have just as well been me 50 years ago, I am glad some things never change.

The opener sets in motion a good list of things need to be done. Tackle box cleaned, new line on the reels, searching for the last place you set down that prized lure last fall, and getting the boat ready. Having installed my electronics, I had the chance to launch the boat in Diamond Lake, a shallow weedy farm lake a few miles from the house. The lake is about 10 feet at it's max and although I believe it must freeze out from time to time, it's become home to a number of White Pelicans either migrating north or staying for a few months. There must be some fish left as the count was over 30 birds. Launching the boat, the motor started, my goal was to get some feel for the new depth finder and GPS, check out the side/down scan function, and do my normal check of all systems including livewell pumps, switches, gauges, and electric motors. In mounting my Side Scan transducer there are conflicting theories of whether to mount for high speed operation as over 8 mph, the readings become less accurate. I did a combination mounting, securing it to the step under the transom yet allowing the surface to read at full throttle. This proved to be one of my better ideas as at full throttle my down scan images mirrored the sonar readouts with incredible accuracy. The down scan offers an interesting look at what is underneath you, sort of like standing on the bottom of the lake and looking at a side view. There are still a few settings to figure out on the HDS system but slowly I am mastering the intent of the manufacturer, not necessarily the easiest task.  There was an interesting twist to my maiden run this year. I have removed all of the old transducers as the Ranger has a factory installed transducer epoxied to the fiberglass floor which "shoots" thru the hull providing excellent high speed performance. The side scan transducer is long and narrow, offering little if any drag. The first thing I noticed was my boat seemed awfully fast for having a full tank of gas. A check of the GPS read 38.7 mph. This made no sense as the most I could ever get out of the boat with just me in it and a quarter tank of gas was 37 mph. I made a number of test runs hitting 39 at one point, 2 mph faster than last year. Was it the 6 month rest the motor experience, I doubt it. The only thing I can figure is my two Genetron transducers where adding drag. I hardly believe this as these were installed for minimal effect but numbers don't lie. Maybe its an anomaly!

Opener is going to be extra special this year. Not only is it our 38th annual but now we are destined to be television stars. Yep, Team Walleye organizer Ron Edberg was watching a regionally produced outdoors show call Minnesota Bound, hosted by Ron Schara when he noticed a contest they were having. The show was featuring traditions in the outdoors and invited anyone to submit their "Fishing Opener Traditions", 300 words or less (of course) and the winner would be picked around May 10th. The Grand Prize would be their production crew spending a couple of days with the winners to film an episode for an upcoming show.  Ron and I put something together, revised it a couple of times and sent it in. Well, today we were informed that Team Walleye has been selected for the Grand Prize, WOW!!! The details are starting to gel and the film crew has already made reservations at Brindley's to spend a few days with us. I will have more updates as things progress including a review of our experience and the show dates. One thing is for certain, it's going to be and exciting weekend for Team Walleye.  Here is our winning essay penned by Ron:

Our opening fishing tradition will celebrate its 38th year on Leech Lake. Started in 1974 at Leech Lake with 4 high school friends, we have continued the same tradition every year since. My late father once told me “If you give it up once, you will never get it back” and he was right. Over the years our Leech Lake Opener has grown, evolved, and changed to maintain the excitement and anticipation of the Minnesota Walleye Opener. In 1978 we created a traveling trophy that has the names of each winner engraved. Akin to the Stanley Cup is showing its age, complete with its own nuances left by each holder.

Camping at various resorts on Leech, in 1982 we settled into Brindley’s Harbor Resort and 3 years later secured the much coveted Cabin 14. Our group expanded, including more family, friends, and 3 different resort owners. Fathers and kids joined the group, some have passed away and some of our kids, now in their 30’s are poised to carry on the tradition for well into the future. This year along with the original 4 will be 18 more with 5 cabins reserved. Over the years we have had 61 different guys being part of our group. In 1991 we adopted the name “Team Walleye” long before any others. Each opener every team member gets an official embroidered hat with our logo, magnetic signs for our cars, stickers, and each person bringing a boat for the group gets a commemorative T-shirt. Each member has their pre-assigned duties from KP to sleeping arrangements.

In early 2000 the walleye fishing on Leech Lake was in serious decline. At one time there was a waiting list to get a cabin at the resort however the decline caused everyone but “Team Walleye” to abandon Brindley’s and Leech. At its worse we were the only group at the resort that year. Paris,at Brindley’s expressed their appreciation for sticking with them however we explained that tradition and their friendship were more important than all the walleye in Minnesota.

This year’s opener includes the combined efforts 38 years in the making. We break our fishing into 6 sessions, 2 each day. Having developed a points system for scoring total fish caught, it helps to keep an accurate count of our fish in the freezer. On Sunday we have a draft, the guy with the lowest points gets to draft his boat for the next session. This allows members a fun way to mix up the group. We have a Sunday Night fish fry as both 2009 and 2010 have saw record catches of 390 and 370 walleyes over 12 inches. During the early years it was only about fishing. In 2011 it continues to be much more than catching fish or getting together, it’s about the memories, the future, and tradition.

It's a winner for sure. A crazy week has just turned crazier.............I love it!!! Lot's to do in a few days.

Too Much Time in Chicago

2011-05-05T22:39:00.001-05:00

Well, I am getting pretty familiar with Chicago's O'Hare airport these days as I just spent the last 3 days hosting our trade association meeting in Chicago. The last speaker of the day had a great topic about creating experiences for your customers (more on that) and started his talk with a couple of interesting stories. I found them fascinating and thought I would share them. My apologies if you know the ending!

THE FIRST STORY: Many years ago, Al Capone virtually owned Chicago. Capone wasn't famous for anything heroic. He was notorious for enmeshing the windy city in everything from bootlegged booze and prostitution to murder. Capone had a lawyer nicknamed “Easy Eddie.” He was his lawyer for a good reason. Eddie was very good! In fact, Eddie’s skill at legal maneuvering kept Big Al out of jail for a long time.
To show his appreciation, Capone paid Eddie very well. Not only was the money big, but Eddie also got special dividends. For instance, he and his family occupied a fenced-in mansion with live-in help and all of the conveniences of the day. The estate was so large that it filled an entire Chicago City block.
Eddie lived the high life of the Chicago mob and gave little consideration to the atrocities that went on around him. Eddie had a soft spot, however. He had a son that he loved dearly. Eddie saw to it that his young son had clothes, cars, and a good education. Nothing was withheld. Price was no object. And, despite his involvement with organized crime, Eddie even tried to teach him right from wrong. Eddie wanted his son to be a better man than he was. Yet, with all his wealth and influence, there were two things he couldn't give his son; he couldn't pass on a good name or a good example.
One day, Easy Eddie reached a difficult decision. Eddie wanted to rectify wrongs he had done. He decided he would go to the authorities and tell the truth about Al “Scarface” Capone, clean up his tarnished name, and offer his son some semblance of integrity. To do this, he would have to testify against The Mob, and he knew that the cost would be great.
So, he testified. Two weeks before Capone was to be released from prison, Easy Eddie’s life ended in a blaze of gunfire on a lonely Chicago Street. But in his eyes, he had given his son the greatest gift he had to offer, at the greatest price he could ever pay. Police removed from his pockets a rosary, a crucifix, a religious medallion, and a poem clipped from a magazine. The poem read:

The clock of life is wound but once,
And no man has the power
To tell just when the hands will stop
At late or early hour.
Now is the only time you own.
Live, love, toil with a will.
Place no faith in time.
For the clock may soon be still.

THE SECOND STORY: World War II produced many heroes. One such man was Lieutenant Commander Butch O’Hare. He was a fighter pilot assigned to the aircraft carrier Lexington in the South Pacific. One day his entire squadron was sent on a mission. After he was airborne, he looked at his fuel gauge and realized that someone had forgotten to top off his fuel tank. He would not have enough fuel to complete his mission and get back to his ship. His flight leader told him to return to the carrier. Reluctantly, he dropped out of formation and headed back to the fleet.
As he was returning to the ship he saw something that turned his blood cold: a squadron of Japanese aircraft were speeding their way toward the American fleet. The American fighters were gone on a sortie, and the fleet was all but defenseless. He couldn't reach his squadron and bring them back in time to save the fleet. Nor could he warn the fleet of the approaching danger.
There was only one thing to do. He must somehow divert them from the fleet. Laying aside all thoughts of personal safety, he dove into the formation of Japanese planes. Wing-mounted 50 caliber’s blazed as he charged in, attacking one surprised enemy plane and then another. Butch wove in and out of the now broken formation and fired at as many planes as possible until all his ammunition was finally spent. Undaunted, he continued the assault. He dove at the planes, trying to clip a wing or tail in hopes of damaging as many enemy planes as possible and rendering them unfit to fly. Finally, the exasperated Japanese squadron took off in another direction. Deeply relieved, Butch O’Hare and his tattered fighter limped back to the carrier. Upon arrival, he reported in and related the event surrounding his return. The film from the gun-camera mounted on his plane told the tale. It showed the extent of Butch’s daring attempt to protect his fleet. He had, in fact, destroyed five enemy aircraft.
This took place on February 20, 1942, and for that action Butch became the Navy’s first Ace of W.W.II, and the first Naval Aviator to win the Congressional Medal of Honor. A year later Butch was killed in aerial combat at the age of 29.
His home town would not allow the memory of this WW II hero to fade, and today, O’Hare Airport in Chicago is named in tribute to the courage of this great man. So, the next time you find yourself at O’Hare International, give some thought to visiting Butch’s memorial displaying his statue and his Medal of Honor. It’s located between Terminals 1 and 2.
SO WHAT DO THESE TWO STORIES HAVE TO DO WITH EACH OTHER?
Butch O’Hare was “Easy Eddie’s” son!

OK, I thought it was interesting. The point was how we never know how our actions will affect people or the future. I particularly love Easy Eddie's poem. Our talk progressed to how in today's market people are looking for an experience. Well, it immediately made me think about my good friends Bill Lundeen, Jeff King, Keith Holtan, and of course my experiences guiding clients for fish. Guiding turns out to be the ultimate in providing your customer with an experience. Because one can never count on the fish cooperating, the experience is what saves the day. His point was that successful businesses today provide that experience in a number of ways from buying a scoop of minnows to selling transformers. It was a great lesson. I did get all of my electronics connected and buttoned up. With opener a week away I am scrambling to get the boat out for it's 2011 maiden run and a chance to do a dress rehearsal. This week will be a mad dash to get line replaced, lures sorted, boat compartments cleaned, and everything polished up. I'll let you know how that goes as it is looking pretty interesting.

Another Year!

2011-04-28T18:15:00.000-05:00

Although I started Fishin' With Dave in May of 2008, I consider the last post in April as the end of my Blog Year. For the Christmas Season in 2009 I was perplexed as to what I could give to my father. At 79 there isn't much that he needs that is personal in nature, sure he loves the year subscription to the paper but I was looking for something special. An e-mail came one day promoting a site that would actually print your blog in hardcover book form. Called Blog2Print, I decided to check it's validity not knowing what to expect. It was surprisingly simple, give them the URL of your blog address, pick the dates, add a few pictures and dedications and Voila, your blog has been just published. Deciding this would be a good gift for my father, I downloaded Fishing With Dave, Volume 1, spanning my posts from May 1, 2008 to April 30, 2009. Adding a dedication to my dad, it turned out to be one of the best gifts he has ever received, as he even made me autograph it. In my posts are often people from Eleva mentioned. Dad would go downtown everyday for coffee and bring the book with him for others to read. Not having Internet, it was a fun way for him to see what I was writing about. It went over so well that in 2010 I printed volume 2, May 1, 2009 to April 30, 2010. Having learned a few things from doing the first one, I changed a number of things and printed 3 copies, 2 hardcovers and 1 soft cover. Getting more winded with my posts made Volume 2 larger and more expensive (you pay by the page). It made the perfect Father's Day gift that he continues to enjoy and it is my plan to start Volume 3 as soon as I am done today. At 81 and struggling with throat cancer it's nice to be able to do something special for him. My dad grew up in Eleva, a pretty strict Lutheran community. I have said before it was not necessarily his job be my friend but to make sure I grew up to be a responsible, self sufficient adult. Along the way we had issues and admittedly saying I love you to your dad wasn't something you did, I am sure he didn't to his father. I think I need to take care of that before it's too late.

So the electronics install saga continues with my boat. Having decided that repairing the holes cut into the panels would be too much work, I ordered new ones from my dealer Frankie's. In the end it was a smart move on my part as now the installation is looking much better. I did get the Ipod dock mounted and ran the ethernet cable from the front HDS5 to the back HDS10. That works pretty well but there are a few bugs to work out. On Tuesday, Lowrance came out with a software update and now the units are up to date with a lot of extra features. Last night I finally got the Sonic Hub working and is it ever slick. I can now control my audio system (radio, Ipod, speakers, volume) all from the HDS unit. Thinking I could control the audio from the front via the ethernet was a mistake and now I have to install a NMEA2000 network cable from front to back. Hopefully this will take care of it. I still have to mount the transducer for the LSS-1 (Structure Scan) and network the system into the HDS unit, I am about a week away from that and will post pictures when I am done. It is proving to be interesting and fun as long as I don't run out of time!

My last picture is of the new pickup truck I took delivery of on Tuesday, a GMC Sierra 1500. My Suburban was pushing 6 years old and had over 130,000 miles, it was getting to look well used. I found myself hauling more stuff and with the gas prices rising, needed something to easily transport my ice fishing gear without always having to take my trailer. Things really change in 6 years. The engine is a 5.3 liter V8 (327 for all you guys my age) with an engine management system that when cruising under light loads the engine drops to 4 cylinders. Coupled with a 6 speed transmission it claims to get 21 mpg on the road. My brother Steve has the same truck and has confirmed up to 22. Having all the latest electronics gadgets like built in bluetooth for your cell phone that actually comes through the radio to the USB port allowing you to plug in your Ipod and control it from the radio control, it's pretty slick. Heck even my salesman Clyde, who is my age, was amazed at what you could do. It's still snowing in Minnesota and Leech Lake is still ice covered, maybe going out next week. I am hoping I can get out before opener and try all of my new stuff!

April Doldrums

2011-04-20T23:07:00.000-05:00

The time between the last safe ice and fishing opener is always a challenge. It is a time to get the garden ready, trim the apple trees, and get everything ready for fishing opener. This year the opener is the second latest date it can be (last year was the latest) which basically means we have an extra week to wait before we hit Leech Lake. My current project of reconfiguring the electronics in my boat has hit a snag as it is less expensive and more convenient to order new sheet metal panels for my boat rather than simply try to make an adapter to cover up the existing holes. Hopefully they arrive soon so I can get back to the work of finalizing everything. I did replace my wired remote cable with the Ethernet cable and was able to link the two units together to see if they would talk to each other. Like it is suppose too, I could display each units output on each other's screen which was pretty exciting. The weather still can't decide what it wants to do, winter-spring-winter?!?!?! Two times this week I woke up to snow, Saturday morning and this morning. Although it was a beautiful scene, it melted fast and by noon on both days it was gone. I know we can have snow into May but I have to admit, it's getting old. The weatherman suggested that this winter is the 4th snowiest on record. I think he is being kind!

The highlight of my weekend was taking the MSF (Motorcycle Safety Foundation) course. Lasting both Saturday and Sunday, a total of 16 hours of classroom and road course training proved interesting. There were 6 guys in the class with me being the oldest. Most people take this course to get their motorcycle endorsement however having passed my test last year, I was interested in learning the correct way to approach riding. Having some experience was interesting as the course assumes you have never been on a bike. The first 6 hours was classroom work and I aced the 50 question test at the end. Being multiple choice questions I approach each one by looking at what are the wrong answers. The next 10 hours consisted of riding a small course in the parking lot. We were all given Honda Rebel 250 motorcycles (pictured) and it was obvious they had seen better days. All had the mirrors and front turn lights tore off, half had the back turn signals missing, and a couple showed evidence of some horrible event the bike experienced at the hands of a seasoned rookie! It was pretty thorough and although it seemed as though I knew the material, it was good to have someone critic your habits and work on good fundamentals. The highlight of my course was when I wiped out on the bike while working on a curve exercise. Rolling through the corner, we were to accelerate and apparently I exceeded all expectations by having to lean enough for the right peg to hit and grab the pavement. Ending up under the bike the instructor came running. Expecting a good lecture, I was pleasantly surprised at the rather mature discussion of my misfortune. I went on to secure a perfect score on the road test, something that even surprised me.

My last picture is of me celebrating the gifts from my co-workers Welly and Tom. Both had spend a good amount of time in Mexico lately and each brought me something that I am truly grateful. Of course everyone at work is aware of my Green Bay Packer status so Welly found this beautiful Poncho in lovely Cancun. One look and he knew it was me. I simply can't wait to wear it during next year's Super Bowl! In my right hand is the special gift I received from Tom. In a traditional hand crafted bottle is some of the finest Tequila in Mexico. Both are wonderful gifts and allows me to reflect how special these guy are to me. Of course I did have to model the Poncho to all of our factory workers, most of whom are die hard Viking fans. I was definitely a good way to remind them which team to support next year! Easter is this weekend and I hope to get most of my boat electronics completed, assuming everything comes in by Friday. Speaking of Good Friday, it's a great time to plant potatoes and that might be the goal for this weekend as well. Three weeks to opener, I am getting anxious for sure. The fishing sales are in full force as I am doing my annual accumulation of the latest and greatest.

Networkin' with Dave (or Dave the IT Guy)

2011-04-13T23:24:00.002-05:00

I have to admit that technology is really starting to wear me down! My first cell phone was in 1990, what they called a bag phone. It sat on the front floor of the car, with a rather large device stuck in the trunk and an antenna coupled through the back window. Wow, a phone I could use in the car, just like at home, a simple 10 key number pad and a send button. Fast forward to 2011, I have owned a Blackberry now for 2 years and trust me, I still haven't figured out how to really use it to it's greatest potential. That will probably never happen. Well, it's time for me to upgrade my depthfinder/gps on the back of my Ranger 620T. Working with Bill, we have done some horse trading and I am finally ridding myself of the reliable Genetron for something a little more technical, a Lowrance HDS-10. It came with Structure Scan/Side Imaging which can literally scan the bottom up to 500 feet either side of the boat. Included is a down scan feature that more clearly identifies objects under the water, such as those sunken Spanish galleons in the middle of Mille Lacs. Adding to the mix, Lowrance has a Sonic Hub made by Fusion, which is the same manufacturer of my current stereo system. Along with my front depth finder, a HDS-5, they can all be magically hooked together via cables, software, and sweat to talk to each other.

So it goes like this........... The HDS 10 is the basic display and also serves as the main "server" in my new boat network. The Structure Scan/side imaging module consist of a oblong shaped transducer that is feed into what appears to be an Ethernet Hub. My HDS 5, in the front of the boat is connected to the hub via a 25 foot Ethernet cable. From the Hub is another Ethernet cable that plugs into the HDS 10. Now the Sonic Hub is really a NEMA2000 network device. NEMA 2000 is a communications protocol and consists of a network tree of parallel connected devices that can communicate with the server (HDS10). Because I have a factory glassed in, thru the hull transducer, I see that the boat had been pre wired with a NEMA 2000 based water temperature sending unit. This makes sense as most water temperature sensing is done at the externally mounted transducer, so with a thru the hull transducer a separate temp sensor was installed. So, I have this branch looking network assembly that has a cord to power the network, a temp sensor port, a Sonic hub port, and a cable going out to the HDS 10. All of these cables crisscrossing my boat will allow me to switch displays on my front and back HDS units to track each other, I will be able to observe the structure scanning on both units simultaneously, as well control my stereo system via the depth finder screen. This will allow me to change songs, channels, volume from both units, which is much better than kneeling down to adjust everything. The unit comes with an Ipod dock and can be plugged into a Sirius Radio, which in turn can display the latest radar weather reports on the HDS10. Uffda!

The real problem will be simply trying to learn every menu, option, configuration, setup and I am sure few thousand combinations of all you can do with the system. Just interpreting the Side Imaging displayed what it all means will be a challenge in itself. I had a tremendous amount of confidence in the Genetron as I could anchor in 20 feet of water, put a 1/8 ounce jig with a leech on, drop it off the back of the boat all while watching it fall to the bottom, move up and down, and get hit just like winter fishing with a FL20. I am sure it will take a bit of getting used to the new system and I only hope it is as good as what I am replacing. Here is a picture of what the display of the side scan looks like. Of course this technology has been the rave for a few years now, started by Bottom Line (now Humminbird), I can see it will take a lot of trips this year to finally figure how to interpret what the transducer is looking at, not that I am complaining . Sort of feels like a new episode of Sea Hunt! This weekend has snow in the forecast for the Saturday morning, hopefully the last. I have committed to spending both Saturday and Sunday taking a Motorcycle Riders Safety Course, a 16 hour classroom and riding skills class at a local motorcycle dealership. I guess we are never too old to learn the right way to do things. Next week is Easter then maybe a chance to get on the water and try my new network out, if I get it installed by then!

It's Finally Gone!

2011-04-06T19:30:00.001-05:00

Flying to Chicago this week I had the option of simply getting on my return flight or riding shotgun with my friend Tom Emmons, who was working in Libertyville for the last 3 days. Sometimes O’hare airport can get really congested with long delays. Often it would be faster to just rent a car and drive back rather than wait for your plane to take off. Well late this morning the airline called me 4 times to notify me of the changes in my schedule , delayed an hour, moved up 15 minutes, moved back 30 minutes. The real message was that if went to the airport, I’d be lucky to get back by 10:00. My last sales call was only 15 minutes from where Tom was, I decided to take the known method of transportation and ride with Tom. A quick stop at the Bass Pro Shop in Gurney Mills and the relaxing ride is allowing me to get caught up on a few things. This weekend was the annual Northwest Sportshow at the Minneapolis Convention Center. Last year’s economic conditions really affected the show however the improved situation was evident this year. I had the chance to go down to the show both on Thursday night and Sunday afternoon. For me 4 hours is not nearly enough time to see all the new things and ask all of the questions. From getting my Lorwance Ethernet connection issues resolved to checking on a the latest new lures, it’s always a fun time. One of the things I really enjoy is visiting my friends Judy and Ken Marlow from Marlow’s on the Kenai. Featured in my Alaskan Links on the left side bar, it’s always great to see them again. As always they have a special treat for me, smoked canned sockeye salmon with a touch of jalapeno pepper added, it’s like manna from heaven. Here’s a great picture of the two with their booth. I like to sit with them and converse with the interested customers as we have a few pictures featured on their display.

Unfortunately I am going to miss ice fishing Lake of the Woods again this year. Normally the weekend before April 15t with last year’s trip being canceled as the ice conditions were such that the lake closed down by the end of March. This year was just difficult to get organized to go. My friend Ryan Sterle, who lives on the Iron Range tends to find time to do all sorts of things. Last year I posted a few pictures of the fish he caught on the Rainy River, and yesterday he sent another, a 55 inch sturgeon he got this weekend. Not the clearest picture as I am sure he used his cell phone and it looks like it was snowing. Last year’s fishing season on the Rainy was fabulous do to the early spring however I am sure this year is somewhat more normal and challenging. This is a really nice fish and it's something I'd like to try and do someday.

My next 4 weeks will be focused on getting all of my fishing equipment ready for opener. From getting the boat ready, tuning up my reels, reorganizing my tackle boxes, I’ll have plenty to do for the next month. I just got the Leech Lake Tournament trophy engraved and I think I really outdid myself this year! It will give me something interesting to post for next week. The good news is that the snow is FINALLY GONE!!!

A Couple Nice Fishing Reports

2011-03-30T23:29:00.001-05:00

My planned "last trip" to fish Mille Lacs hard water fell apart at the last minute on Sunday. Deciding to call Bill before leaving he said to bring the ATV as you can't get on with the truck. Not wanting to drive back home and spend another hour hooking everything up I decided it would be a good day to get caught up on fixing my lawn tractor tire and putting new wheels on my jon boat trailer. I always like getting fishing reports from my friends and earlier this week I received a couple of nice ones, One from Ben Taylor and the other from my Wisconsin buddy Kevin Aiona. This first picture is Ben holding a large crappie caught on Platte Lake, where their cabin resides. 12 miles west of Mille Lacs, Platte Lake is a fairly shallow body of water that has sunfish, crappies, bass, the occasional walleye, and a ton of snake northerns. Ben's dad is my friend and deer hunting partner Jack Taylor and he is turning his son into quite the young fisherman. Still a little young to join us on our annual Leech Lake Opener with the guys, it's getting harder to leave him behind. Ben is always the last one off the dock, fishing up to the last minute before hopping in the car to head back home. His fishing accomplishments include a number of nice crappies like this, many northers caught on tip-ups, and largemouth bass caught right off their dock. One of these days I'll look forward to showing him how to fish the big pond. Nice catch there Ben!!

The next picture is right out of a Sunday morning fishing show. Earlier in the week my good friend Kevin was fishing below the dam in Alma, Wisconsin and nailed this 28 1/2 inch pig walleye. Kevin and I have spent many a day chasing walleyes and saugers in the spring as the fish tend to congregate below the dams, getting ready to spawn. The fishing is usually pretty good up to the time the water gets too high and fast from the spring runoff. This year the wet autumn and generous snowfalls have pushed the river to over it's flood stage fairly early. Often we simply have a high water crest, then the river settles down somewhat back to a fishable state. I am afraid we may be looking at 2 flood crests this year. Never the less those big walleyes are there and if you can time it right, put on quite a show. When the water comes off the crest and the temperature hits 45 degrees, you can find the big walleyes up on the flooded banks, in the timber, sometimes less than 3 feet of water. Kevin picked this nice fish up in the middle of the river as you can see the lock walls and downtown Alma. The flooding also means the backwater areas above the dam are accessible. 35 years ago this was prime time to fish northern pike on Daredevils and Johnson Silver Minnows. We have been talking about trying to get back and try these waters for old times sake. We'll see where that goes!

As stated earlier the end of March signals the start of the dead period, waiting for the ice to go off. The next 2 weeks will determine if it's an early, normal, or late ice out. Last year was pretty early as the ice on Mille Lacs had already pulled away from shore. 3 years ago Leech Lake still had ice on walleye opener, May 9th. March is the perfect time to trim all of he fruit trees in my orchard. Trimming promotes healthy growth, optimizes fruit production, helps disease prevention, and keeps the trees a manageable size. Mature apple and pear trees tend to grow sucker branches on the pruned limbs. All of these sucker branches have to be removed as they serve little purpose other than to fill up the space you just pruned out. It's amazing how prolific these rouge branches can be. With 11 apple trees and 2 pear trees the number of branches that need remove are in the hundreds (I know I said a million earlier, it just feels this way). Some of them can grow quite long over a single summer. Here are a few of the longer branches I trimmed from the trees, as you see they are almost 8 feet long. Thinking about the real growing season, that's almost an inch a day. Last year a very late frost in the second week of May pretty much destroyed my entire crop. Hopefully this year Mother Nature will be somewhat less aggressive. I am off to one of my favorite events of the year, the Northwest Sportsman Show. There never seems to be enough time to cover everything I am interested. Oh well, it will be fun trying.

Winter's Back

2011-03-23T22:56:00.001-05:00

Today I woke up to the grim reminder that even though we have officially passed the Spring Equinox, winter still rears it's ugly head and has it's option of returning for another 30 days. With 7 inches on the ground and a low temperature of 0 predicted for the morning, the wonderful weather I experienced in Texas is simply a fond memory! We are entering the time of year I call no man's land. The ice will be on the lakes till at least the 3rd week in April, yet too unstable to ice fish unless you go 300 miles north. It usually takes a few weeks for the water to warm up but I am guessing it will be May before the boat will come out. Along with the snow we got a pretty good rain, totally around 2.5 inches of total precipitation. Of course this has raised the latest media hype regarding the flood warnings around Minnesota. I don't recall it being at this level however based on the snow and rain, it doesn't look good. Roads are closing and unfortunately a state road worker was killed when his excavator was trying to clear an ice dam when the water's current sweep his machine into the raging flood. My good friend Kevin sent me an e-mail today with the current Mississippi River conditions at Alma, Wisconsin. Fishing below the dam, he caught a real nice 28 inch walleye (Kevin, you need to take pictures!). Kevin reports that the river flow is over 3 times the normal rate for this time of year and the fishing below the dam is pretty well over until the levels crest then settle down. It's seems pretty early for these levels as I recall the middle of April was usually the peak of the high water. As I have comment in a past post when I was young and living back home in Eleva, this would be about the time Kevin and I would start sucker fishing the Buffalo River. It was an annual event that seems as though it was only yesterday we were fishing places like Bud's, the Culvert, Trix's, and Carp Sough. A gob of worms and we were in sucker heaven!

Last week we did get a hint of things to come with a few days hitting the mid 50's, it temporarily melted a lot of our snow. One of the things I have been working on has been my winter motorcycle project. Last spring I bought a Honda 600 Shadow and after 3 months sold it for a Victory Kingpin. A larger bike, I have been spending some time upgrading the looks and comfort by changing out the rear license plate holder, changing out the seat, adding a luggage rack and switching a few items with chrome versions. Having put the bike back together it was nice enough Saturday to go for the first ride of the year. I decided to check out the "flood stage" of the Crow River and put 45 miles on before discovering there was little evidence of what was to come but never the less it was a great excuse to get out. My ride occurred between spending most of the day trimming my fruit trees. March is the perfect time for this activity and I will elaborate on this later. All I know is I must have cut at least a million branches! The highlight of the day was seeing a flock of 35 Sandhill Cranes flying overhead. Normally we see them in small groups seldom over 6 birds so this was a quite the sight.

Sunday proved to be somewhat cooler, a perfect excuse to ice fish for what might be the last time of the year. Although the ice is still plenty thick the warm weather had deteriorated the access points enough to prevent one from driving onto the lake. Loading up my auger, tackle, Vexilar, and bait into a pull sled, I headed for the north end of Pelican Lake where a short 1/4 mile walk put you on fishable waters. The first thing I noticed were most of the holes were wide open. Water form the snow melt tends to drain into these holes and keeps them open. Walking from hole to hole I spent the first hour trying to figure out where the fish were. After about an hour and 30 holes fished, I finally hit upon a couple of fish and parked myself in 10 feet of water. Catching a fair amount of fish I only ended up with 1 nice crappie and 1 nice sunny as the rest were pretty small. The weather made the area around the lake extremely foggy yet the geese and swans were making their presence well known. With no wind, it was a very peaceful afternoon. With temperatures falling for the next couple of days, I might be able to sneak out on more time, maybe looking for those Jumbo Perch on Mille Lacs that have eluded me the last few years.

Texas Reds, Part 2

2011-03-17T22:32:00.002-05:00

Redfish fishing in Rockport Texas was an experience I will never forget. I feel very fortunate to have the opportunity to fish in a number of interesting areas around the country and each has their own unique set of circumstances. By now you probably have figured out that I love to fish. Whether it's fishing suckers off the dock or hauling in halibut in Alaska, there is another common thread that always adds to the experience, the people I have the pleasure of meeting. Over the years those people have become good friends, whether it's Jeff King, Mile 14 fame, Ken and Judy Marlow, Keith Holtan, Bill and Kathy Lundeen, and for the most part all of my close friends, we have a common bond, fishing! My trip to Texas was no different, new friends were made and it was though I have known them all my life. My host for this trip was Joe Stanfield (sitting on top, to the left). Having met Joe over 20 years ago at a trade show in Cincinnati, it was clear we had much in common. He's quite the Joe, a Texas boy, has that typical Dallas accent with a heart that I cannot figure out how it fits in that short little body of his. Although I only get to see him once a year we make up for lost time pretty fast. This years APEC conference (work related) was in Fort Worth and Joe suggested that our friend Jim Cox (lower left) from California and I join him the weekend before for a Texas adventure. Jim is an avid fisherman himself and often seeks tuna off the coast of California as well is at home being an independent judge for billfish tournaments in Costa Rica. Joe met both of us at the Corpus Christi and took over from there. From the hotel to the guided trip he took care of everything.

After checking into our hotel the next item on the agenda was to make contact with Butch and Penny (Butch is in the yellow jacket), Joe's old neighbors when he lived in Rockport. From the minute we walked in you could sense that any friend of Joe's was a friend of theirs. The have a beautiful home on a canal that is connected to the main waterway leading to the popular fishing spots in Rockport. Built above a sacrificial floor designed for hurricanes, their house became our home for the next 2 days. After catching our fish, Butch and Penny hosted our fresh fish dinner as long as we furnished the wine. The redfish on the grill with Butch's recipe was incredible. Although he cooked each of us a fillet, half way through mine I knew it was not going to be enough and weaseled my way into having him cook another whole fillet for me. Truth be told I could have ate a third one but decided not to make a total pig of myself. Here is a picture of Joe, Butch and Penny.........I left with an open invitation to visit them again. I hope that it will be possible in the future.

Jim had to fly back to Dallas on Sunday morning so after dropping him off at the airport, Joe and I headed up the coast to Galveston, meeting up with his good friend's Dick and Horacene Daugird. These two amazing people run the Lighthouse Charity Team http://lighthousecharityteam.com/, a charity dedicated to helping people in need and assisting in raising money for other charities through providing meals to raise funds. Completely made up of volunteers and sponsors they have carved a valuable need for servicing those less fortunate. Dick, Horacene, and their crew served over 3000 meals a day for a month, helping the victims if Hurricane Ike, which devestated Galveston in 2008. Arriving at their Galveston home it was pretty incredible. A sizable building sitting on the water front, it served as a base for charitable events in the area. I was to meet Dick last summer while he was in Minnesota however the storms prevented us from getting together. We sure made up for it in Texas. After having a couple for beers Dick and Horacene gave us a tour of the town, checking out a friends $1,000,000 house before treating Joe and I to dinner at a waterfront restaurant. Here is a picture of my new friends as we enjoyed our dinner. It was clear that Dick enjoys smoke cooking as much as I do and has the equipment to prove it. Our discussions lead to turkey brine's and I sent him a few packages of PS Seasonings Maple Cure to try out. Somehow I think that it will become his favorite.

Leaving Galveston Joe and I drove to the marina where he moors his 58 foot yacht. Although he would probably disagree with me, where I come from 58 feet is a damn big boat. Finishing the night at the "club" we met a few other amazing people before we hit the sack, ready to head to Dallas the next day. The fishing was great but the people you meet makes these trips even more memorable.

Of course I did go fishing on Sunday. Inviting my friend Mark Applen to head up for another batch of tullibee's, having never targeted these fish he readily agreed. We picked up Lory and headed to Mille Lacs. The ice season is winding down as the walleye fishing is now closed. We still were able to drive out to the hot spot and by dark had 26 tullibees for Lory to pickle. This will probably be our last trip to the pond before opener as the temperatures are scheduled to be in the 50's this week which causes the ice to expand and heave. It's been a good season and maybe I'll try one last attempt to fish crappies on Pelican.

Texas Reds

2011-03-09T09:30:00.001-06:00

My well planned fishing trip to Rockport,Texas was everything I had imagined and much much more. Meeting my good friends Joe Stanfield and Jim Cox at the Corpus Christi airport on Friday afternoon, we located our hotel on the main drag and headed directly for Joe's friends Butch and Penny. Resident's of Rockport, Butch was also going to join us on the trip Saturday. Rockport Texas is a smaller city on the gulf coast, nestled behind the Inter-coastal Waterway, 3 hours south of Houston. Here large saltwater marshes and barrier Islands create a haven for fish and wildlife, including alligators, migratory geese, white pelicans, and the endangered Whooping Cranes. Aransas National Wildlife refuge is located in this area and the chance to see one of these magnificent birds was pretty good. Waking up at 5:30 Saturday morning, a quick breakfast and we were off to pick up Butch. Arriving at the house he had some bad news...............storms with severe hail were due to pass through the area and our captain had called delaying our trip till after the squall line passed, he figured about 11:00. Killing time we had a chance to view Butch's beautiful house, located on a canal leading to the prime fishing grounds, talk about fishing strategy and envision how good those fish were going to taste this evening.

Being a fishing guide also means that you have to know your weather, and our guide Dave was no exception. Heading to our rendezvous point, it was 10:50 and the blue skies were within sight after enduring a pretty windy, rainy morning. Our trip would be a first for me, first airboat ride, first redfish caught, first time fishing the gulf. I can guarantee you it exceeded my expectations for all three. The first order of business was loading up our gear into the 22 foot, flat bottomed boat powered by a huge V8 engine. Putting out 545 hp, this aluminum blocked, fully blueprinted Cadillac engine drove 2 - 8 bladed propellers, each counter rotating for stability. This machine rocked. After securing our noise muffs, hats we took our place on the boat. Being the one most excited about the trip and my past guiding experience, I got to ride up in the elevated cockpit of the boat, putting me about 7 feet above the surface of the water. Our guide Dave idled out of the launch area before he hammered the throttle. I know one thing, being up on the top, right in the main flow of air is a rush that's hard to explain. It was still pretty windy from the morning's storm so we stayed close to the edges of the marsh, crossing over oyster beds, the Inter-coastal, up small islands, thru channels to our fishing grounds. Dave would simply take the boat, run it up into the marsh grass, pointing the front end into the waters edge and shut it down. We fished the channels that ran through the marshes, usually in water less than 2 feet deep. It actually reminded me a lot of fishing Indian Slough back home with my buddy Kevin. Our rigs were simple, a 3/4 oz egg sinker with a 2 foot leader, plain hook, and hunk of fish for bait. Casting it out into the open water, it was identical to cat fishing, wait for the fish to grab the bait, let it run for 10 seconds or so before tightening the line and hammering the fish. It didn't take long before Jim nailed his first, a beautiful 24 inch fish, one for the box. Reds have slot limits in Texas with all fish under 20 inches released and you can keep one over 28 but you need to report it to the Fish and Game department, where you will get permission to catch another one. Few do as the 22 - 26 inch fish are the best to eat. Moving a couple of times, we had 3 in the box before heading to the honey hole, and honey it was. Our limit was 12, and with 6 in the box, none caught by myself, the "feel sorry" factor started. "Here Dave, reel this one in........BS, I catch my own fish! Well 3 minutes later and I nailed the 26 incher you see in the first picture. Once the ice was broken, I quickly established myself as a credible Red Fisherman, catching the largest of the day, one over 28 that had to be released.

We ended out the day with 12 nice redfish caught within a span of less than 2 hours. We endured a once in a lifetime ride on an incredible machine, capable of skimming across anything that's wet, and got to see 2 Whooping Cranes on the way back. Once at the dock we loaded the boat and watched the guide clean the fish with the efficiency of a seasoned pro. There were the usual cast of pelicans, gulls, and terns to take advantage of the free meal they were about to experience. Simply slabbing the fillets off the backbone, he removed the ribs and left the skin on. Our plan was to have Butch cook them up for us that evening, using a few of his famous seasoning and barbecue grill. We headed back to the hotel, cleaned up, and stopped at an oyster bar for a little appetizer of 2 dozen raw oysters before heading back over to Butch's. His recipe was pretty simple... fajita seasoning, lay the fish directly on the grill skin side down, close the cover and cook for 20 minutes. It was the final reward for what turned out to be a memorable trip for me. Another item crossed of my bucket list! There is too much to tell in one post so I will add another later in the week. I am still in Fort Worth, heading back tonight with nothing left but a sunburn and memories.

Pickled Fish, a Labor of Love

2011-03-02T15:44:00.004-06:00

Two weeks ago our trip to Mille Lacs was specifically to catch some tullibees for making pickled fish. As stated earlier, the tullibee is a member of the whitefish family, an oily fish, makes an excellent imitation of real pickled herring. I have had pickled sunfish, northern, suckers, yet these fish lack the specific texture of herring. My dad was a big herring eater and when I was young the real good pickled herring was bought at Nelson's Grocery Store in downtown Eleva. The store was an old fashioned small town store in a brick building with wood plank floors and a full service meat counter. Back then everyone shopped the local store as it was more convenient to simply go downtown as opposed to driving to Eau Claire. There was also a different attitude about supporting the local business man, the level of service was superior and there was little need for going to a grocery store for things other than groceries. Gary Hillestad was the butcher behind the meat counter and would cut up a steak anyway you wanted. Usually in the fall Nelson's would feature pickled herring. It was always served bulk as it came in a large wooden pail made of vertical wood pieces held together with brass banding. The herring chunks were mixed with whole pickling spices, onions, and were sold by the pound. Herring was in the category of oysters and T-bone steak, a special treat and it was none fresher than from Nelson's. After moving to Minnesota and meeting my friend Earl Taylor, he was a huge pickled herring fan. Earl always had pickled herring and his favorite was from the Day Fish Company in Day, Minnesota. Later in life we learned that the Day Herring was really supplied by Olsen's Fish Company in Minneapolis. Olsen's makes a pretty good herring however I have fell in love with my new favorite brand, Brasel's Dang Good Pickled Herring. The first picture is the real deal from Lory.

Per my post a couple of weeks ago, we caught 7 nice tullibees. I cleaned the fish and Lory agreed to make the pickled fish. Ending up with 6 pints, it took about 12 days and holy smokes! The fish has the exact texture of the best pickled herring with a much better flavor, less fishy and very fresh. With my taste buds in a whirl I suggested to Lory we head back up to the lake and see if we can get more for pickling. Stopping to see Bill, we picked up a carton of waxies, a couple new secret baits, and the latest perception of where to fish. Deciding on a mid lake hump coming up to 30 feet, we drilled our holes and set up the houses. Saturday was pretty cold, never getting above zero, however the fish didn't seem to mind. Dropping my first line into the hole, the bait never reached the bottom before a nice fish hit the lure dressed with waxies. Tullibees really put up a great fight and I was amazed at the size of the fish that came through the hole. What a great start. The fish continued to bite throughout the day and within a couple of hours we each had our limit of 10 fish. I drilled a hole for my underwater camera and the fish really put on a show. Tullibees tend to bite light and often are just at the end of the line. A slow oscillation of the rod tip can can be critical to pick up this bite. When seeing them hit the lure on the camera, it's fun to correlate what you see to what you feel. Often there were up to 6 fish in the camera's view with fish appearing every few minutes. It's also interesting to see the fish under the hole that the depth finder is looking down and see how the fish are represented.

With 20 tullibees and a few bonus perch we headed back early to start cleaning fish. I like to use my brother Steve's method of filleting fish for the tullibee, slab off the sides by cutting down the backbone then remove the ribs and skin. This is identical to how we clean our salmon in Alaska. Not being very good at the secondary operation of cutting the rib bones out, my new Cabela's fillet knife has made me an expert. Wasting little meat, we ended up with over 9 1/2 pounds of fillets for the next batch of pickled fish. Lory and I make a great team. I have shown him a new species of fish to target along with locations, and technique whereas he brings his ability to turn them into a bonafide delicacy. They won't be done for another week or so but I can tell you it will be worth the wait!

Friday I am off to Rockport Texas to fish reds and sea trout. A couple of years ago I fished in Jacksonville, Florida and had high hopes on catching a red drum as this is one my list of fish I have not caught. I love watching the weekend fishing shows, especially when they are going after reds as they look like an interesting fish. We will be fishing out of a large air boat in the barrier marshes of the coastal regions of Texas. Reports include the possibility of seeing an alligator or two. My host Joe Stanfield has arranged to spend the evening with a friend of his and are planning on having fresh fish for supper (notice I said planning!). The famous Blackened Redfish starts with this fish and heres hoping we are successful. Look for my full report next week.

A Wild Weekend

2011-02-23T23:21:00.000-06:00

With the weatherman predicting another record snowfall for Sunday while Saturday's weather would be the last of the February thaw, I decided it would be a great time to head up to our deer hunting grounds on Rich's place and retrieve my ladder stand. The trek back to my stand consists of a quarter mile adventure through an alder swamp. At the end of deer season last fall it was decided that rather than go through all the work of removing it piece by piece, it would be much simpler to leave it in the woods and wait till the swamp freezes. Of course that's what I said year and the heavy part of the stand keep it's host tree company all year. Determined to get it out before the thaw, and looking at my schedule, it was as good a time as any. The fact that I needed to pick up my ice fishing gear from Bill Lundeen and my friend and hunting partner Jack claimed the crappies were really biting on his lake, I picked up my frequent weekend companion Lory, and once again headed north. Our route takes us up the Great River Road which parallels the Mississippi River, crosses the confluence of the Crow River before meeting the highway north. Crossing the Crow River, we ran into an interesting scene, 10 - 12 wild tom turkeys robbing a ground feeder in front of a house. It's been a tough year for turkeys with the deep snow.

The pending storm must have had the all the wildlife on high alert. Hooking the trailer to the truck, I noticed something ran over the edge of my holding pond. Sure enough it was my red fox whom lives inside the drain culvert. This holding pond is basically a depression that drains a good portion of my neighborhood runoff rain and melt water and allows it to be reabsorbed into the water table. If the water gets too high, there is an outlet culvert which runs underground a few hundred feet, emptying onto the flood plan of the Mississippi River. It only to the outlet in the spring while the ground is still froze and the melt is fast. I suspect that the depth of the culvert keeps it fairly warm deep inside, making a cozy home for the fox. One of the benefits of having the fox around is the noticeable absence of rabbits on the property. Last year the rabbits were at epidemic levels, eating everything in site. I hope it decides to stay around for a while as it pretty cool to see it around quite a bit these days. One thing is for sure, if you walk down to the culvert the fox has made his presence well known as they make sure their skunk like scent is everywhere!

Our first stop was at Bill's to pick up my portable ice house, Vexilar FL20, and my underwater camera. For my efforts I was rewarded with a smoked Tullibee that he had caught last week. The fish was a work of art and would go great with the Miller High Life that Jack always has. Next stop was Jack's cabin on Platte Lake, 12 miles west of Mille Lacs. There we unloaded the trailer, replacing the contents with his 2 up snowmobile, the perfect means for hauling out tree stand and headed for Rich's place. Coming around the corner, something caught my eye, a huge immature bald eagle high in a tree. Stopping to take a look, it soon became apparent, it was guarding a road kill deer, exposed by the weeks snow melt. Getting out to take a picture, it decided to take flight. Had this been a more mature eagle, I doubt it would have given up it's readily available food source. Never the less it was pretty cool to see a young eagle this close. After accomplishing my goal, we headed out on Platte Lake for the evening bite, which never developed. A few sunnies was about all I could muster up, but all in all it was a good day.

Admittedly I am getting sick of winter. After spending a few days in 76 degree Anaheim, CA two weeks ago, then a couple of 60 degree days in Denver last week and reading Jeff's adventures in Mexico, the latest 12 inches of snow has taken the wind out of my sails! A week from Friday I travel to Rockport Texas to fish Redfish in the barrier marshes of the Gulf of Mexico with my Texas friend Joe Stanfield and Jim Cox, one of my suppliers. The website looks interesting and will provide a good break for this long winter. In the meantime the weekend plan is to try again for a limit of tullibees, maybe smoking them this time. We did open a jar of the pickled ones Lory did last week and they are coming along real well.

Tullibee Time

2011-02-16T22:29:00.000-06:00

Earlier in the week my friend Bill Lundeen asked if he could once again use some of my ice fishing equipment for a large client outing he is having this week. This presented a perfect opportunity to head up to Mille Lacs as the word was out the tullibees were biting with some bonus jumbo perch mixed in. With the weather scheduled to hit the mid 40's on Saturday, I called my neighbor Lory to see if he was up for some tullibee fishing. Having never caught one of these beautiful silver fish, he jumped at the chance. Tullibees are a member of the whitefish family and are often referred to as cisco's. Mille Lacs represents the southern most extent of their range as they are a cold water fish, thriving in the lakes north to the arctic circle. On Mille Lacs tullibee die offs occur, especially if the surface temperature stays in the high seventies for too long. The lake is shallow and windy causing the water temperature to mix and stressing these cold water fish. 3 years ago the lake experienced a considerable warm spell triggering a massive die off of tullibees. In August, thousands of dead fish were floating everywhere. Well of course, this has happened before however this time we had a new culprit, Global Warming! The crash in the population at Mille Lacs generated new regulations. Fisherman were now limited to a 10 fish limit and the fall netting season was cancelled, and remains so today. At one time they were considered rough fish, bony, only catch able in the winter, and basically good for pickling and smoking. The last 2 summers have been much cooler and the fish have rebounded tremendously. Gill net surveys of the lake revealed a year class never before seen on Mille Lacs.

Tullibee are a fun fish to catch. They generally inhabit the deepest waters of the lake and a good place to start is on the deep edge of the flats that are scattered through out the north half of the lake. 32 to 36 feet is prime depth. These fish have a pertinacity to follow lure high off the bottom, and the flashier the better. I have "jigged" them up over 25 feet to the point where I could see them down the hole. Having a fairly small mouth, they will occasionally hit a lure dressed with a minnow head however a nice plumb waxy grub is almost irresistible. I like to use a small panfish jig with a larger hook, say #6, tied about 6 inches below a hook less spoon, something shiny as an attractor. Perch find this combination pretty tempting as well. Drilling a number of holes starting from the top edge of the flat to about 30 yards off the deep edge we immediately started catching smaller perch. Sometimes these little perch will also follow a bait up high before plunging back down to the bottom. When a tullibee hits, you will know it. They are very powerful for their size, violently head shaking all the way to the surface. By the end of the day we had 7 nice tullibees and 4 jumbo perch in the 12 - 13 inch range. I figured we must have missed at least 10 more of the silvery fish as they were biting pretty light. I made a deal with Lory, I'll clean them for you and you make your famous pickled fish. Tullibee is a member of the herring family and have the same texture and flavor you find in gourmet pickled herring (although some may find that a contradictory term). It will be a couple of weeks before they are done but I will let you know how they turn out.

Writing from 38,000 feet, I am on my way back from Denver. Tuesday night we had the chance to take a quick ride through Estes Park, CO and the gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park. This time of year the town fills with wild elk that use this area as there wintering grounds. I was surprised to see a large number of nice bulls gathered in small groups grazing along the roads. This was an exceptional animal as you can see he has a few battle wounds from previous encounters with other bull elk. His left brow tine is broken, his left ear is pretty mangled and his hair had evidence of past fights. I guess they will begin losing their antlers soon, growing a new set by August. Simply amazing!

All's Well in Cheeseland

2011-02-10T01:02:00.000-06:00

Well, I suspect you probably know what this post will be, my beloved Green Bay Packers won their 4th Super Bowl on Sunday with Aaron Rodgers erasing any doubt that Ted Thompson did the right thing in getting rid of Brett Favre after the 2007 season. Being the only true Packer fan in my neighborhood, it was sweet justice! Even on Sunday afternoon my Viking fan neighbors chose the Steelers over me. In the end the inability of the Steelers to complete their 4th down play in the last minute killed their chances. The Packers were a sleeper this year. Their record of 10-6 didn't tell the whole story as the Packers never trailed by more than 7 points both during the regular season all the way through the playoffs being the first team in NFL history to have such a tight scoring differential. Of the Pack's 6 loses, 5 were by 3 points and the 6th was by 4. Pretty unbelievable if you think about it. Either way its a great time to be a Cheesehead for sure!

Last week I reported the plan was to take put the Brazilians for a Minnesota ice fishing experience. Well Friday I received the call, it was too cold and they cancelled. What!!! Too cold, holy moly, it was only 28 degrees out! Never the less I was still interested in going out to I decided to call the Braselians, Lory and his wife Lynn to see if they were willing to step up to the challenge. Agreeing, we headed back to Pelican Lake for the evening crappie bite. Getting there around 1:00 we moved 2 times before hitting the honey hole. Drilling 2 holes and setting up the house, i was lowering my dead stick bait with a minnow however it wouldn't go down. Little did I know that the a crappie had sucked it in, waiting for someone to set the hook. I had a rather small #10 hook which is not the best for minnows and subsequently lost the next 6 minnows to the initial drop. Finally getting a nice fish, we stayed till dark catching a nice number of fish while bringing home enough for a meal. Not the most prolific day on the lake, it was fun never the less.

Writing this from Anaheim California, the weather is nothing short of fabulous. With temperatures back home below zero, we are enjoying 70 degree days. Attending the Medical Device and Manufacturing Show, the largest in the nation, we get a chance to talk to future customers that may need our services. Working trade shows is a lot more difficult than it seems but all in all it is a necessary to attend and be a player in the industry. I will leave you with a picture from my back lot, a beautiful red fox living in the culvert that drains my water catch basin for the storm sewer system. The culvert is 4 feet or so under the surface and provides a warm environment for the fox. He often is found sleeping on the south facing bank of the catch basin, catching a few rays of the warm sunshine. I hope he sticks around for a while as it's kind of cool to have him around. Hopefully I can get to Mille Lacs this weekend. You will have to put up with one more week of my beloved song, sorry, I cannot help it!

My Snowmobile Weekend

2011-02-02T23:30:00.002-06:00

Friday was my annual snowmobiling trip with my friends Dwight and Mike. This is our third year of hitting the trails and its been nothing short of fantastic. Taking Friday off assures that the trails are still pretty smooth before the weekend crowd does it's damage. Friday we put 146 miles on our sleds as we made a loop from Emily, MN to Hill City, Palisade, then back to Emily. Finishing out the evening at the Bungalow Supper Club, we enjoyed an all you can eat rib dinner that was out of the world. Nothing beats a small town Supper club. Having stuffed ourselves beyond reason, we headed back to Mikes cabin for an evening glass of wine while sharing a few stories of our snowmobiling adventures from years past. Unfortunately this is one of the few times I can get out with my sled and it's much appreciated. Saturday morning we got up and drove west 15 miles to Cross Lake, MN for breakfast. That sausage and sauerkraut omelet sure hit the spot! Back by noon we loaded up with a total of 176 miles, shut the cabin down and headed back to the city. We have record snow on the ground I am planning on trying to get more miles in this year.

Vic Wenaas owned the Mobil Service (heavy on the service) Station in Eleva. Formally owed my my grandpa Roy, I started working for Vic in 1970 at the tender age of 15. My job was to work the 5:00 - 9:00 shift, pumping gas, washing windshields, checking oil, all those things that one used to expect when you would pull into a gas station. All gas stations were "full service" then and the thought of pumping your own gas was unthinkable. Regular leaded gas was $0.379 per gallon and fuel oil was a whopping $0.199 per gallon. During that summer I had 2 jobs. 3 nights a week loading chickens for Willy Drangsveit and 4 nights a week working for Vic. About August Vic gave me an ultimatum, either quit loading chickens and work for him or quit and work for Willy. I chose Vic and never looked back. I can not even imagine today any 15 year old having to make that decision, as I don't even think they could work until they are 16. One thing it did was give me plenty of money in my younger days. Vic was the most important mentor in my life outside my family. He also had a Ski Doo snowmobile and influenced me to buy my own that year. Managing to save a pretty good chunk of money, Vic brought me to the Ski Doo dealership in Augusta, Wisconsin were I bought a 1971 Ski Doo Olympic 299 single cylinder Rotex engine with a whooping 18 horsepower. I still remember paying $572 cash for my new form of winter entertainment. Those were some of the best times of my life. Along with my friends Jimmy Tollefson, Steve Herbenson, and Tom Peterson, we turned snowmobiling into the major transportation method for the next 3 years. Most trails at the time where simple one width tracks that traveled between major towns and those that owned sleds. My friend Jim had a trail going from behind my house, up through Schultz's pasture, through Indian Valley, up over Old Baldy (a large hill with no trees on it), through Heaths, across O'Krooley's and ending at the Tollefson farm. Jim, his dad Gyle, and brother-in-law Jim Rose had made a number of trails through their back wooded acreage which claimed a number of front bumpers as maneuvering became more difficult as the winter went on. I ran that sled hard for about 3 years, literally wearing it out before trading it to Gary Engen, along with a bolt action 22 rifle and a recurve bow for a blonde stock Belgium Browning A5 shotgun. I still have the shotgun as well memories of those days sledding with my 299 along with Jim and the "Great One".

Today I run a 2006 Polaris 900cc Switchback. This sled is quite a contrast from that 1972 single cylinder Ski Doo. Putting out a solid 152 horsepower, she'll top 115 mph faster than you can imagine. It sports a 144 inch, 1 1/4 inch lug track that hooks up with the ability to lift the ski's when you crack the throttle at 55 mph. One of the best things about the motor is the electronic reverse feature. To go in reverse, let the engine return to idle, push a button and the engine begins to slow down. Just before it's ready to stop the ignition suddenly changes causing the piston that was just on its way to TDC (top dead center) to ignite prematurely forcing the engine to reverse direction. No gear changes, nothing to engage, just a simple push of the button. Back up, push the reverse button again and the motor does the same exercise only reversing the engine back to it's normal running direction. Sweet! The sled is great in the deeper snow as it has that longer track (normal track size is 121 inches) however unfortunately is pretty front heavy. It's been out west with me a couple of times before I reconfigured my older 2004 700cc Switchback as it is lighter, more maneuverable, and handles much better on the side hills. Oh well, with the new sleds selling for more that $10,000, I suspect the 900 will carry me for a few more years.

This weekend is guaranteed to be exciting. On Saturday I have been recruited to take a number of guests visiting from Brazil ice fishing with my fishing partner Mark Applen. Mark called me for some advice and help. I think we have a great plan to show what we do for entertainment here in Minnesota. Maybe we can trade and ice fishing trip for a Peacock Bass Adventure on the Amazon. Sunday needs no explanation as the Packers are in the Super Bowl. Back at my neighbor Tim's for the big game, there will be at least 50 people expecting to leverage the situation against me. Oh well, at least the Pack are Back. Enjoy the game and Happy 81st Birthday to my Dad!

GroundHog Day?!?!?

2011-01-26T23:38:00.000-06:00

In the 1993 movie Groundhog Day, Bill Murry was destined to live the same day over and over and over. Last week seemed like my own Groundhog Day week, living the week as I did the week before, fishing Pelican then watching the Packers. Stopping at my neighbor Lory's, I asked him if he was interested in hitting Pelican Lake for a few hours on Saturday. Never one to miss an opportunity to wet a line, I picked him up and we headed to Pelican. Now last weeks spot was fabulous and I had turned the GPS on to get a fix on our position yet I made one mistake, I never marked the spot. Taking an educated guess, away from the crowds, we drilled a hole and verified we were in the zone, 11 feet. Drilling 2 more holes for the house and 3 outside we cleaned them out, set up the shack, and lowered my camera. Well at about 6 feet the camera hit the bottom..............impossible! A sanity check with the Vexilar confirmed that whatever I read 10 minutes ago wasn't what I was seeing now. Looking at Lory, I informed him that we would have to move. I think he assumed I was crazy yet somehow knew that if he didn't agree, he was going to have to fish them holes by himself. Driving around, trying to get my bearings, we stopped, drilled and CAREFULLY measured 11 feet. I suspect that I had ice on the bottom of the transducer, skewing my first assumptions. Resetting everything, the crappies started immediately. Starting at 3:00 and finishing around 6:30, we logged about 30 total sorting out 9 for a meal later. It was fun, lot's of little ones with not a single sunfish caught. I felt we had a good spot but maybe too close to the crowds.

One of the things worth mentioning was the temperature Friday morning, January 21st. My thermometer had 25 below zero when I woke up and had climbed to about -22 by the time I took a picture of the bearer of bad news. Later conversations confirmed that the neighbors had a minimum temperature of -28 earlier that morning. Although these temperatures are great for making ice, as I get older it is easier to understand why people head south for a few months. I sent this picture to my friends in China as they seldom see temperatures lower than 40 degrees. When asked how cold it really is I tell them that if you went outside and yelled your name, it wouldn't be till March until you heard it! This is traditionally the coldest week of the winter and temperatures in Northern Minnesota lived up to it's reputation, -46 in International Falls. It certainly builds character!

If you have sound on your computer, you can't help but love the selection for my opening song, I love The Green Bay Packers. In a repeat of last week, the Packers defeated the Chicago Bears to win the National Football Conference Championship and are headed for the Super Bowl on February 6th. Trust me, being a Cheesehead in Minnesota, especially in my neighborhood can be rough. Viewing the game at my neighbor Tim's place is a pure pleasure despite being outnumbered by Viking fans 10:1. No matter, I am basking in the glory as everyone knows where my allegiance is, win or lose. The entire state of Wisconsin is giddy for the next 2 weeks and we are excited about Aaron Rodgers having the opportunity to finally put the last nail in the Brett Favre era. Tim has an annual Super Bowl Party and I am sure all of the neighbors are just waiting for me to show up as I always make a big deal about my Packers every year. Hopefully it will end exactly how every Cheesehead dreams of. Next week I am traveling with my sales representative Bernard Guzzi from the Chicago area. Our plan is for me to fly to Milwaukee, drive to LaCrosse, drive to Appleton, then back to Milwaukee. When he originally asked me to make the rounds I responded, under one condition...........we stop at the Packer Pro Shop in Green Bay. He agreed however I found out today Bernard was at the game on Sunday. It should make for an interesting 9 hours in the car together! So until the Super Bowl is history, you will have to endure a couple more weeks of Eddy J. LEmberger. GO PACK!!!