Broken Record

Dire situation on Mille Lacs, Sunday Morning

Thinking about this weeks post forces me to look backwards at the one last week and decide what was the big event as this is Fishin' With Dave, not What the Heck is Dave Doing,  yet the current weather situation here in Minnesota has forced this to become exactly that.  Getting older doesn't help either yet much of my time has been spent removing snow or helping people.  As posted last week, normally this would be about our Perch Extravaganza experience but the heavy snows of the last month really put a damper on this and in fact although they had a record crowd  yet for this year hindsight is definitely 20/20.  Mille Lacs Lake has about 18 inches of snow on it, much of the snow is light and fluffy, the type that can really get blown around easily.  Saturday night was the backside of the storm and for Minnesota that usually means the counter clockwise rotation of the low pressure as it moves east, the winds roars out of the northwest as it is squeezed between the outgoing low and the incoming high pressure system that rotates clockwise, and blow it did.  We had winds Saturday night and into Sunday afternoon of over 45 mph, essentially blizzard conditions.  With the light snow it really drifted and if you were on Mille Lacs with a wheel house and didn't get off the lake before the big blow, you were stuck.  Apparently hundreds of wheel houses got drifted in and had to wait for the resort plows to get them out.  Check out this link for the story.  I guess 10 years ago we would have toughed it out as it would just be another story in our minds.  Today, Russ, Mark and myself look pretty dang smart for staying away.  I still missed the event but there will be next year!

Down the Road to the Pole Shed

So the title, Broken Record.  Many of you know exactly what that means yet others recognize the
phase but are not sure of it's origin.  In the 60's us kids used to play records, 45's (so named as they rotated at 45 RPM) and LP's (so named as they were Long Play albums with 10 - 15 songs).  Records had grooves with the music profile etched into those groves then a fine needle, usually made out of sapphire would travel in those grooves turning the mechanical bumps and valleys into music. Often times a record would get a scratch on it causing the needle to jump back to the previous groove and it would simply sit there and keep repeating itself until you bumped the needle to the next groove.  Well this weather is like a broken record!  Snow then cold, snow then cold.  As last week stated, and today being the last day of February, we have set the modern day record for the amount of snow and it shows.  Waking up yesterday there was another 2 inches of the fluffy stuff.  I decided to stop and take a picture, it was sort of pretty if one wasn't sick of dealing with this.  If you notice on the left side, which with a strong Northwest wind, would be the side where it drifts, the tops of the snow banks have been pushed back further into my yard to accommodate the next snow fall.  Interesting but March is usually our snowiest month.  The National Weather Service is already issuing it's flood predictions for this spring and depending on how fast it melts or how much snow and rain we get in the next 6 weeks will be a big determining factor.   One can usually figure on about the equivalent of an inch of rain in each 10 inches of snow.  With February's 30+ inches of snow there is a lot of water stored up in the Mississippi drainage area, it will definitely be interesting.  Floods tend to change the river quite a bit...some for the good, some for the bad.  At least it gives me a good reason to get in the boat and go exploring!

So I did do something fishing related this week, Cabela's is now owned by Bass Pro Shops and everything I like about Bass PRo is now at the Cabela's store just 6 miles form the house.  Two weeks ago the discussion was about a Berkley Lightning Rod, a very nice fishing rod on Sale for $29.95.  Although we are not going to Dallas, I still consider the rod/reel combination that was bought is still Joe's.  Thinking about maybe a heavier rig for catfishing, I did buy the 6'6" Medium Heavy 1 piece spinning rod with an appropriate matching reel to handle 12 pound test line, perfect for heavy sinker, cat fishing on the river.  It will also be a nice crankbait rod and my neighbor Todd will do a lot better with it.  Also it was time to renew my Navionic's chip that is in the GPS on the Ranger, it does an excellent job mapping Lac Seul.  The offer is the same as last year's....$100.00 to renew the yearly update subscription or $49.00 for a new chip with 1 year's updates included.........duh!  I already have buyers for the old chip if needed and if push comes to shove, it will be a good spare for the Jon Boat.  Either way you can't go wrong!  I did get to help my friend Bruce in Garrison and see Bill and his mother, both were a nice way to spend a Saturday.

When it Rains It Pours

This year's Extravaganza Logo

OK, maybe when it snows it really snows!!!  Events of the last few days have severely impacted the next few weeks plans and there is little I can do.  February has proven to be quite wintery this year, so much that as of today it has become the snowiest February on record.  Admittedly in the grand scheme of things, it's only since records have been kept, maybe the mid 1800's so maybe 150 years, however I guess what really counts is today, and we will surpass the old record of 26.5 inches of snow set in 1962.  Before this morning we were at 22.6 and I know we have had at least 9 inches at the National Weather Service so we are over 31 inches and this weekend could be another 10.  Admittedly this is one of the things that has put a damper on the planned activities for Saturday, Johnson's Portside Perch Extravaganza, held the last saturday in February at Hunter's Point Resort on the east side of Mille Lacs.  Usually there is Mark, Randy, Russ, Mike, and myself with our wheel houses grouped together were we enjoy some time together, we cook lunch before heading into Hunter's Point  to attend the door prize drawing, on where they give away about $100,000 worth of great stuff.  Well, beings somewhat disorganized and with probably 17 inches of snow on the ice, our routine of staying together is just not going to happen.  The last time we had this much snow on the ice, there was so much weight on the ice, large tracts of water came up onto the ice making it almost impossible to pack up.  Add that to a couple of different factors, Mark had carpal tunnel surgery a few weeks ago, as we have gotten older, fighting the snow isn't so much fun anymore, it just may be that instead of dragging our wheel houses up we might just attend the drawing.  Adding insult to injury and as mentioned earlier, Saturday could have big snows associated with it, maybe it would be a good year to skip, we will see on Saturday morning.  I can tell you that they are warning of the snow depth and the ban on Wheel Houses in the front area of the drawing area.  It's too bad as I suspect there could be a lot of money being spent on Custom plowing but that's not my call. 

Great Advice!

It's probably good as I need to take care of some stuff around home anyway.  The other issue that has been changed is my trip to see my friends Matt Davis and Joe Stanfield, my plan to meet my other friend Bruce near Dallas and fly back to Minneapolis with him.  Bruce was planning on a week's getaway from this God Awful snow in South Texas, I'd meet him in Dallas spending a few days bass fishing before heading back through Springfield, Missouri then back to Crystal Airport.  Well last night Bruce's traveling partner and wife slipped on the ice shattering her wrist.  A couple hour surgery and the followup appointment has put that trip on hold, which is fine, I have my own issues as well.  It's too bad as I get really into the planning aspect of this, even bought Joe an new fishing rod, some plastic worms, and terminal tackle, I told Bruce that we will just have to fly down on our own sometime and test that southern Texas hospitality!  I did drive up to see my friend Bill Lundeen last Saturday and picked up my ice fishing equipment that I loaned him of a guide trip he had.  Bill is still going to guide on Lake Mille Lacs this summer so I threatened him I would buy this shirt for him!  I guess if you have ever guided people fishing you would understand what this means!  So Bill calls me, as a couple of weeks ago he asked me to pick up a Live Trap special at Fleet Farm, I did.  Where did you set the traps?......Sorry they are still in my pole shed, CRS dang it!!  He laughed and maybe if I go to the drawing on Saturday I could drop them off, we'll see.   With the current issues at home I don't know when I will get out next, all that can be said for certain is the John Deere with the snowblower attachment will get plenty of use these next few days!

Middle of February

Tulibee's

The snow just keeps piling up as we have just moved into the 4th snowiest February on record with in excess of 20 inches for the month and it's only the middle of February.  As stated last week, the snow has really put the damper on fishing, not that I don't think about it yet the amount of snow on Lake Mille Lacs is restricting travel to plowed roads and no "off road" travel is suggested at all.  Last weekend I ran up to my friend, Bill Lundeen, former owner of Lundeen's Tackle Castle.  Our relationship is built on our love for fishing and not just another customer.  Admittedly that's how it started!  Bill still is doing some guide work and this time of year, there is usually a large corporate event that entails snowmobiling, ice fishing, whatever trips your fancy up north.  We talked about how interesting it is, some of these guys are from the southern United States, and really never get to experience snow.  Well the snow came just in time for these guys as the snowmobile trails around Mille Lacs are in excellent shape but the lake offers some challenges as there is about 12 inches covering the ice.  Nevertheless they rent like 3 ice houses from Mac's Twin Bay Resort and Bill is the guide in charge of helping the rookies out, showing them how to operate everything.  As well, I dropped off my portable Eskimo Pop Up  Insulated Ice Shelter, my FL28 depth finder, a Marcum underwater camera, and a couple of portable Propane heaters to keep everything warm.  I have become so dependent on my Vexilar FL28, I could probably fish without it however what would be the point as it makes everything much more enjoyable.  The guest's look at this and more than likely think it's crazy yet it is amazing to watch.  The tulibee's were biting and they are fun to watch on the Vexilar as these fish tend to chase the bait quite a distance vertically.  They had a few walleyes on but the tulibee's were the star of the show.  Bill likes to smoke them as they are a type of whitefish.  Admittedly I like to catch them as they are quite active on the depth finder and they put up a good fight.  As well, I like them pickled, they are like pickled herring and are pretty good, that is if I can get either Mark Applen to make it or at least give me his recipe!  This weekend might be a great time to go pick up my equipment and head out on one of the plowed roads for some ice fishing.  I guess we'll have to see how it goes.

Soft Sided Worm Binder

Although things might change, I am still getting ready for the Texas Bass Fishing adventure on
March 8th.  One of the things that needed to be done was to organize the collection of wacky worm components that has been accumulated.  Keeping it all in one place and to have everything at your fingertips, a quick trip to Cabela's and they had the perfect item, a soft sided, medium sized worm binder, perfect!  It has about 12 ziplock plastic "pages" to store your worms, a series of pockets on the inside of the covers to put your hooks in, it will fit nice in my suitcase and will allow myself to have everything at my fingertips.  Originally the plan was to simply take a few things with but not now!  It wasn't too expensive either, under $20.00.  The next thing that needs to be addressed is an adequate spinning combo for Bruce.  Something like a fairly stiff Medium action 6'6" 1 piece rod with a nice reel that will handle 10 pound monofilament line, maybe a 3000 or 3500 series reel.  Cabela's had some really nice deals on Black Friday weekend, some $70 Pflueger's for $34.99, it was a heck of a deal and I got 2 but now maybe I should have bought an extra, seems like there is always a need for another reel!  Today that same reel is sale priced at $49.99.   As I always say............Oh Well!  I have been telling Bruce how much fun wacky worming for bass is, simply cast the worm out, it is heavy enough to slowly sink on it's own and when you see the line take off, set the hook and hang on!  I guess one just has to experience it yourself!

Having things to do today, I am finishing up the post later.  Last year we were having trouble with my main starting/electronics battery in the Ranger boat.  It is a series 31 AGM and has performed well up until last summer where it would only last a few hours before one had to jump it with a trolling motor battery.  Last fall I traded the battery in for a new one, it only had 39 months on it yet the warranty was for 36 months...not much one could do.  Well the Interstate guy took my battery from the dealer, checked it out and said it was fine.  I suspect something is wrong with my onboard charger and will have to look at this more closely when the snow finally leaves us.  Today I picked up my old "good" battery and brought up my 25 hp Mercury that is one my Jon Boat which is used on the river.  Deciding it could use a good tuneup and carb cleaning.  Almost back to work and the mechanic called me, the bottom cylinder is scored and it's really not worth fixing.  Well, that changes things and I will be making a decision on my river boat soon as it definitely needs a new or different motor.  My age has me thinking of electric start this time.  It sure would be nice!

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow...

Snow plowing in Minnesota

Oh, the weather outside is frightful
But the fire is so delightful
And since we've no place to go
Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow

Boy this could not be more true than is has been this week! On Tuesday we had about 4 inches then after an evening of reprieve another 4 to 6 inches is expected today.  The cold air will rush in for the weekend before more snow is forecasted for next week.  All this has put a damper on the original plans to head up to Mille Lacs for an evening of fishing as it will take them at least a few days to deal with the snow in getting the roads back open and ready for the wheel houses.  Besides the snow we will be just on the edge of a blizzard warning  so there is no reason to push things.  Besides watching a rather boring Superbowl at our neighbors house, we did head to Eau Claire to have lunch with my niece's daughter who is going to school in Eau Claire.  Although I did not get a chance to stop at Scheels, it was fun to see her as we ended up at the Olive Garden.  This is the week that I usually am in Anaheim, California however this year did not work out very well.  Talking to a friend he said it was cold, in the low 60's there........heck, based on last weeks temperatures, 60 degrees would be 90 degrees warmer than last Wednesday morning's temperature of -30, personally it could not have been that bad!  This last weekend it warmed up and gave a chance to deal with some maintenance issues like changing the oil on the Honda generator.  I am pretty sure that the manual suggests changing oil every 100 hours yet because it runs on ECO mode most of the time, with little load attached, as well the oil used is a Mobil 1, 5W-30, fully synthetic, extended range oil so realistically there is close to 300 hours on the oil before it's changed.  Actually the oil isn't too dirty and it uses only 13.5 ounces of oil per change so it isn't too hard to do.  The other issue that been keeping me busy is cleaning and restocking the Salem as we get ready for the Perch Extravaganza at the end of the month. Things like getting the propane tanks filled, the inside dried out, the cupboards restocked, and the stuffed reorganized and put away.  One thing was to get a propane torch for the tool box.  It was -22 below when we packed the Salem up at Red a couple of weeks ago and when we tried to raise the house up to pin the axles, the cold weather had stiffened the grease in the axles enough to prevent them from moving, which they usually do by their shear weight.  Marked asked me for a propane torch to heat the grease however a simple pulling on the spring allowed it to get back in place.  Nevertheless I figured it would be good to have a torch in the house so we are ready for most any emergency.

It has been really cold!!!

After this weekend the phase of cold weather should be behind us.  Besides snow removal, I'd like to get up to my friend Bill Lundeen's, he has a guide trip next week and I always let him use some of my equipment.  There is a Sports Show in St. Cloud this weekend, I always enjoy going to them.  One interesting thing that happened while blowing snow with my John Deere lawn tractor is that something punctured the plastic window in the door of the cab.  Deciding to try this clear Flex Tape to repair it I brought it to work and went to the local Walmart and found a roll for about $13.00.  Admittedly that stuff is crazy.  The goofy guy on Television cuts a small boat in half then uses it to hold it together then takes it out on the water.  Well, I believe it now as the warning inside the roll says: Test in an inconspicuous place before using.  Tape is not intended to remove cleanly.  May damage surface during attempt to remove.  Well, they are not kidding!  It is truly amazing how strong that stuff is and my first attempt didn't sit right and I was able to get it off but just barely!  The window is good for the rest of the winter but just in case I called my John Deere dealer on getting a replacement door.  After a day he calls back, says that I might as well call their supplier direct and deal with them.  He gave me the part number, the 1-800 number, and the price, $30.00 for a replacement panel.  Heck that is a pretty reasonable price so I called an ordered one figuring the repaired one will be okay till the end of the season and it can be dealt with when it's warmer out!!!.  The other thing I am working on is my trip to Dallas on March 8th.  Locating all of my bass tackle isn't easy in the cold and I have my boat stored up north so that's out of the question.  I have found most of the stuff and

Wacky Worm Setup

only need to get a new O ring tool which isn't much.  When fishing Joe's tanks are bait of choice is the sinking plastic worm, rigged Wacky style.  Basically an O ring put in the middle of the worm then a hook goes under the O ring.  It is quite deadly and luckily on February 15th Cabela's/Bass Pro has their O ring tool on sale for $5.00, cheap enough!  I have enough time to secure everything I need as our friend Matt has already sent pictures of a recent bass outing that was met with some success.  In another month it will be even warmer and the bass should be biting better.  It was a fabulous time last spring when we fished Joe's Tank's and it will be nice to see those guys again and fish bass, Texas Style!  As mentioned before, our plans are to still stop at the Bass Pro Shop headquarters in Springfield, Missouri and see the Wildlife Museum, apparently the largest in the world.  The only problem Bruce is worried about is if his plane can safely fly back with all of the new stuff we buy!  I don't think that will be a problem but one never knows!