Getting ready for Deer Hunting

Matt's 23" Seatrout

Admittedly it's getting harder and harder to get ready for the deer hunting season.  It's not that I don't like to get out and it is a good filler for the time between open water fishing and ice fishing however crawling up a tree and sitting there all day hoping a deer walks by, well at least it's supposed to be in the upper 50's this weekend.  Last weekend I did use the winterizing function on my big outboard however I forgot to start my kicker motor and run some of the treated gas through that.  My concern is that the last time I ran it was with ethanol blended gas, not good on carbureted engines.  The kicker is a bitch of a motor to start anyway but I was determined to run some treated gas through it, well not much has changed as although I did get it started it was only through pouring gas in the spark plug holes, not good for a new motor.  I may have to bring it back to Frankie's and have them look at it because something is not right.  So I didn't go out this week however my good friend Matt Davis from the Dallas, Texas area sent me a picture of his largest sea trout he's caught, a beautiful 23 incher.  Sea trout are excellent table fare and Matt is quite proficient at fishing them and redfish out of a kayak.  It seems like this would definitely be the way to fish rainbows instead of a canoe, like we did a couple of weeks ago, but I suspect it's just another thing to learn!  I met Matt through the Transformer Association and he is a good friend of my good friend Joe Stanfield.  Back a few years back we were having a conference in Fort Worth, Texas in March and Joe arranged a fishing trip in the brackish waters of Western Louisiana.  Matt was there and we had a heck of a good time.  Matt is joining us next month in Naples, Florida for our fishing trip for Grouper, it should be a blast.  Anyway this is a very nice fish and you have to admit, not a bad picture either!!

How true, How true!!

So, I can't wait till this political season is over!  I don't like to make my blog political at all, half of you guys would probably leave. On the other hand a little poke at my fellow fisherman would probably be tolerated so here goes. The picture to the right says it all for us diehard walleye guys.  Not that bass are easy to catch but certainly they don't seem as finicky as the almighty walleye. Like anything else it's down to a matter of opinion however as I tell my Facebook friends, anything you post is the same as saying it yourself so be careful!  After last weeks adventure to Wisconsin's Walleye Capital, ok, we got 4 walleyes total, they were tough to get. Even fishing walleyes through the ice on Red Lake can be challenging yet it is enduring for sure. Speaking of ice fishing, even though the weather for the rest of the week is supposed to be in the 60's, by Tuesday the bottom is about ready to drop out.  I looked at the monthly forecast for Red Lake and towards the end of November they are predicting below zero weather, enough to make ice fast.  Hopefully it will not be on Dec 3 when they open the access for wheel houses yet in 2014 we drove out of JR's Corner Access on Red Lake the Friday after Thanksgiving so one never knows.  Either way I am looking forward to this year's hard water season as I got my Salem pretty much ready to go.  New tires, new battery, I still need to make a dry run and fully let it down and that should happen next week.  Unfortunately I will be gone the weekend of the St. Paul Ice Fishing Show, it's a bittersweet situation.  I do enjoy going to the show however I would not give up my Florida Grouper fishing trip for it.........so many things to do, so little time.

Anyway, good luck to all you deer hunters out there, be safe and if you get a dandy, send me a picture as I need some interesting stuff this month to write about.