It's Cold!!!

Roger's on Red has almost 4 inches of ice already

November is really coming in like a lion (I know that's a reference to March!) however things are really starting to tighten up and making ice.  My good friend and neighbor, Lory Brasel came back from deer hunting in his home town of New York Mills, MN and claims he had -2 degrees on Sunday morning, music to my ears!!  The friends I hang around with for ice fishing, Mark, Russ, Randy, are all getting ready to head up to Red Lake next week to at least try and walk out to fish.  We all stay at JR's Corner Access and I suspect they will pull up their wheel houses on or right after Thanksgiving, they can stay on shore for the nights and pull out portables with their ATV's in the day.  JR's Facebook page shows pictures of the lake via his airplane and claims it's froze up tight.  Roger's on Red, a resort down the road is reporting more specific conditions like the picture from last Monday the 12th of November showing around 4 inches near shore with around 2 - 3 inches about a half mile out.  This was totally disrupted on Wednesday when they experienced a fairly strong south wind which broke up the ice pretty good.  Those who were thinking of getting up to Red this weekend, it probably won't happen untill we get back to single digit temperatures at night, something that will happen this weekend but it's probably going to warm up over Thanksgiving.  Still it might be a great excuse to get up to JR's and get the house ready to go as I am now predicting that we may not be able to get out on the ice with our wheel houses until the weekend of December 8th.  Not that I am looking for an excuse to stay home however I do have a fishing trip scheduled for December 1st in Savannah, Georgia.  That will provide a nice way to bridge the "Wait for the ice to thicken" verses "not doing anything for the last 2 months."  In the meantime the Salem is pretty much ready to go, I did get the chance to do some re-wiring and added two 120 VAC outlets, one next to my power control center, which will be nice for the aerator for the minnow cooler, as well one in the front closet, now I can keep my  battery operated power tools charged up without having to have them laying around the house.  It turned out very nice!

Nature's stump Grinder!

While waiting for everything to freeze I have been dealing with my seizure issue, which my
neurologist thinks was just a freak deal.  What is interesting is that I have to volunteer this information to the State of Minnesota and not drive for 90 days after the incident.  Like anything the government does, their forms are simply confusing and make no sense.  Of course calling them does little good as one is usually put on hold for 30 minutes then one has to hope you get to talk to a person who actually knows whats the correct process is.  Uffda.  I have already talked to my brother Steve and he is more than willing to drive up to Red this season.   I do have an interesting thing happening in my yard this fall.  Last year one of my prized maple trees died so I basically cut it down leaving about a 2 foot stump standing, with the intent of getting my neighbors stump grinder to finish the job.  Well that hasn't worked as planned as the stump is still there yet it is going through quite a transition.  The stump is getting really punky and a few weeks ago something has been working away at it because the base is simply full of wood chips.  One afternoon I was cleaning up in the garden, near the stump when a very loud squawking noise came from that area.  All of a sudden a very large Pileated Woodpecker landed on the stump and began tearing it up......now it makes sense.  Apparently the stump wood is soft and I assume full of delicious grubs that the woodpeckers find a delicacy.  If you have never seen a pileated woodpecker, they are amazing birds.  Almost the size of a crow, they are quite large with beautiful red feathers on their heads and a loud call to match.  I am sure that the punky condition of the stump makes it an easy job, in fact I have seen 2 on the stump at the same time.  We have had these appear at our suet feeders from time to time however they have seemed to take up a permanent resident, probably until the stump is gone!  Either way they are amazing birds to watch and admittedly if they want to grind up my stump, go for it!!  As well the apple crop wasn't very good this year and a couple of my trees still have lot's of worm infested apples hanging.  Of course this is a smorgasbord for the local deer herd, I counted 9 one night.  Once again, there is no problem if the deer want to clean up those apples that fall on the ground. 

The first Hard Water Sportshow is this weekend at the Blaine Sports Center.  Lory and I will try and attend on Saturday.  The big ice show at the St. Paul Civic Center is the same weekend that I'll be in Savannah offshore fishing.   Maybe there will be time to stop there on the December 2, the day I arrive back in Minneapolis.