Heading South!

I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving weekend and enjoyed their time off. We are in that 3 - 4 weeks of the year where although it is not impossible to go fishing, one might risk too much by finding some thin ice. After driving to Wisconsin on Thursday I decided to take my tree stand down on Friday. The swamp was good and froze making that chore much more easier than it was setting it up. Most of our guys leave their stands up throughout the year however I like to keep my equipment in great condition so I take it down, clean it up and put it away. There was some snow in the woods and wouldn't you know it, there were plenty of tracks under my stand from the week before. Oh well, as Ed Enos once said, you can't make track soup!

The rest of the weekend was spent getting my ice fishing equipment ready. As usual, I just had to add to my collection of stuff needed to enjoy sitting on the ice all day. Cabela's had their customer appreciation night last week and I just happened to stroll by a underwater camera at a super deal. As well, traveling to Wisconsin this weekend allowed me to investigate a number of baitshops for the fabled Purist ice jig. I was able to get a number of different sizes and colors that if nothing else, makes my tackle box look pretty! (Never mind they are a pretty good on panfish). Last year I decided to sell my older Otter portable shelter and get the new insulated Thermal X from Fishtrap. Although somewhat heavy this shelter is fully insulated and really holds the heat. I switched to the Buddy Heaters as the older Mr. Heater type kept destroying my pants, coats, fishing line as well the Buddy Heater has a low oxygen sensor, which is something I always worried about. It could be -10F outside and the Thermal X keeps it nice and toasty inside. The St. Paul Ice Fishing Show is next weekend and affords one the opportunity to see the latest and greatest innovations in this sport.

Speaking of nice and toasty, I will be returning to Jacksonville Florida this week for our annual fall Transformer Association meeting. We have these meetings the week after Thanksgiving as this is one of the slowest times of the year for resorts and we get to stay at a 5 star place for less than half the normal rate. Our meetings are at the famous Ponte Verda Club and Inn, south of Jacksonville. The picture is one looking out of our room, overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. It is simply beautiful. While it will be 10 degrees in Minnesota, I will sleep with the windows open being serenaded to sleep by the sounds of the waves. We were there in 2006 and while touring Augustine, I wondered in a fishing shop to inquire about the local fishing scene and what was going on. I made it my goal if we ever got back, I would try to fish the area. My meetings actually start on Wednesday afternoon so I decided I would have a few hours in the morning to get out. After searching the internet, I ended up booking with Capt'n Dave, as he sounded like a great guy. I called him to discuss fishing and the plan is to fish the breakwaters of the Jacksonville harbor. They extend into the ocean about a mile and is a magnet for redfish, speckled trout, drum, and number of species I have never caught. Being the optimist, I checked with the resort to verify if I could put my fish in their freezers, which will not be a problem. With a little luck I will be enjoying blackened redfish next weekend. Either way I will post a report of my fishing in Florida, which I am really looking forward to, and certainly has to be better than the last couple weeks of Packer scores, uffda!