Back on Lake Pepin

With walleye season closed on Mille Lacs I decided to call my friend Kevin and my brother Steve to see if they wanted to meet me back down on Lake Pepin on Saturday to try our luck again for panfish.  I was really looking for an opportunity to fish against Kevin now that I had his secret rig, a Jason Mitchell Meat Stick.  It also gave my brother a chance to get away from work for a while.  Dropping my wife off at her sisters in Hudson I headed cross-country to Hwy 35 while Steve picked up Kevin in Eleva.  Arriving a few hours earlier I met them on the ice to find out the bite was tough.  Steve had seen a number of nice fish on his underwater camera but they didn't seem very interested in getting caught.  Dragging my Eskimo portable, a hand auger,  and a few of the basics, I decided that based on the temperature projections, would leave my heater in the truck.  Well, that was a mistake.  With my Ice Armor bibs and coat I can usually stand to be outside most of the time, however Saturday proved to be quite windy which sucked the heat right out of your body.   Relenting I set up my portable hoping to at least get out of the wind.  The Eskimo Kwik Fish shelter can be a challenge to set up in the wind as it is basically a sail, catching as much wind as it can as you desperately try to get it secured to the ice.   I did manage to catch a few fish, 6 to be exact with 4 sunfish around 8 inches, an almost respectable crappie, and a perch.   The good news is that although he had a few hours head start on me, Kevin ended up with the same fish count as I, 6.  I can only conclude that given the same set of circumstances, Kevin and I are pretty much alike.  My brother Steve did get a couple fish and because we have had some good successes this year we donated our catch to him so he could at least have a decent fish fry.  The side benefit is both Kevin and I did not have to clean fish. 

Tuesday was my day for tests at the medical clinic.  At 9:30 was a date with the Dermatologist, 10:30 was with the Heart Echo Lab, and 12:30 was with a NeuroOptomologist.  Uffda!  The first appointment with the Dermatologist was to discuss a mark I have on my temple.  With all the time I spend on the water, admittedly my application of sun screen is often secondary to getting out fishing.  In addition I really believe the higher the SPF rating, the more it scares the fish.  Truth be told that SPF really means Surely Poor Fishing!  I do carry that spray type that allows you to apply without touching your hands but often by the time I remember applying it my skin is half cooked.  Well, the doc determined that the mark was precancerous and needed to be removed.  After asking me if I was going to be in a wedding, giving a presentation, or on television within the next 2 weeks, using a small aerosol can of liquid nitrogen he quickly froze the affected area.  He was right, it burned a bit! As he set down the can I was expecting a good lecture on the use of sunscreen, my time in the sun, and other doctorly things you hear once faced with a diagnosis.  Actually he was pretty good about it.  Although my excuse of SPF being a fish repellent must of hit home as he mentioned a couple of others such as gasoline and bug spray, he suggested that I put SFP 30 UVA and UVB or better on my exposed skin before I leave in the morning, allowing time to wash my hands and free my hands from the scent.  I'd be lying if I told you it was probably not expected but you can be assured that I will start taking better care of my face (it's the only one I have!).   To prove that it has crossed my mind, about a month ago while checking out the Maple Grove Gander Mountain store closing, I picked up this nice TilleyLTM6IS Airflo hat complete with a hidden, pull out neck protector and InsectShield.  I am not sure about the insect protection but at least the wider rim and neck protector will help with those raccoon eyes I sport after a good day of fishing on the lake.  Hopefully I can get used to the hat as my good friends always claim that I look good in a hat..........it covers up more of my face!  My echo went well as my heart shows no changes from my surgery exactly 2 years ago last Thursday.  The NeuroOptomologist was pretty amazing, heck I never even knew they existed.  Searching my records he found a test for Acetylcholine Binding Antibody needing to be run again.  That's a pretty big word and looking it up on the Internet, I am still confused.  Oh well.

This weekend is suppose to hit 60 degrees.  The snow will be melted, Lake Pepin will probably have an ice breaker open a path for the waiting fleet of north bound barges, and the tullibees have not yet shown their intent on Mille Lacs.  I have started putting my Ranger back together and my river boat is in need of a new interior make over.  Maybe some open water fishing is in the cards.  Alas there is much to do to get caught up before Opener just 65 days away.

Bonjour from Montreal

I am writing this post from Montreal (no Eric not Montreal WI!) Quebec. Fishing has been slow so I spent the weekend finishing up my brother in law's landscape job that his wife Suzy asked me to help with. He has been struggling with cancer and I have offered to get some stuff fixed up around the house for them. It was hot but after 3 weeks I was able to completely redo their landscape edging around the house. I looks real nice and it's one more thing that they don't have to worry about.

I always drive down Wisconsin Highway 35 on the east side of the Mississippi River. This winds it's way along Lake Pepin though Diamond Bluff, Stockholm, Maiden Rock, Pepin before meeting the river just south of Nelson Wisconsin. I will put a plug in for the Nelson Cheese Factory. At one time it actually manufactured cheese however I think their current store which sells cheese, wine, gourmet items, and ice cream is much more successful. I have never been in there where it is less than 4 deep waiting for an ice cream cone, still $1.00 for a single and $2.00 for a double. It's a nice break. As you head south on 35 past Nelson, to the right is Big Lake. Being an old river rat we pass familiar haunts like Indian Slough, Wilbers, Thachers, Catfish Slough, The Cutoff, Railroad Slough and the Oil Tanks. As I passed these areas a lot of memories also passed by. Kevin and I would fish these areas every weekend through the summer. We were not much walleye fisherman then but we sure hit the bass hard. Here is Kevin holding a nice bass we got in the slop up Catfish Slough. I believe this was taken in June of 1981 as I have bought a new Lund in 1982. It's surprising to see that Kevin had a good start on his beer gut even back then! He is sitting in my first boat, an narrow aluminum Starcraft that we bought from Paul Wichmann. With a 15 hp Evinrude it was a great first boat for the river. I replaced the cross seats and made a new transom, added a trolling motor and real swivel seats. That boat could really catch the fish. Our arsenal consisted of daredevils, moss bosses, spinner baits, Johnson Silver Minnows and here Kevin caught this fish on his favorite, a Miller Wobbler with a chunk of Uncle Josh's Pork Rind on the back. Our technique for bass was pretty elementary, cast into the carpet of duck weed and slowly work it back on the surface. The bait coming over these thin layer of weeds would leave a distinct trail, recording its path back to the boat. When a bass did hit, it blew a 2 foot hole in these weeds, often missing the bait and leaving an interesting history of what just happened. The pork rind really added that extra attractant however the fish often grabbed the end of it rather than up higher into the hook. A quick recast would often be enough to have them hammer it again and the fight was on. Back then we would definitely eat a fish like this! As stated, walleyes really didn't even exist as a viable game fish. Of course today it is completely opposite, the bass go back and the walleye's get deep fried! I really miss fishing with Kevin and have made a promise to rekindle the "Good Old Days". Sitting on the tarmac in Chicago I got a nice e-mail and decided to call him. It's settled and we will get together like days of old. I am looking forward to our date.