Journal of a Minnesota Angler

Earlier this month, I was contacted by Simeon Chambers of the Replica Toy Fish company. He said he had a product that kids love and parents really appreciate. Not sure of his claim, I checked out his web site. His story was very interesting. One summer his 7 year old son asked him for a toy Northern Pike. He searched one of the big stores for 20 minutes before finally buying a fishing lure that looked like a Northern. He gave it to his son (after taking off the hooks, of course), and his son... (more...)

[This post contains several place holder images that hide images of dead deer. Please do not click on the place holders below if you do not want to see them.] Back in early February, I happened to notice some tweets by Jim Braaten giving information on the MN DNR’s effort to test deer in Southeastern Minnesota because one in the area was found to have chronic wasting disease (CWD). To test the deer, they would have to cull the heard and test the deer that were killed. A total of 900 would... (more...)

A year and a week ago, I saw my first open water of 2010 and hence began my wait for open water season. Given the winter we had this year, it’s no surprise that open water has yet to appear on any local lake, especially after we got 3-4 inches of snow/slush/sleet mix in the last 24 hours. I had to pull out my snowblower for (hopefully) one last time. We are currently in the 5th snowiest winter on record with just another 0.3″ needed to crack #4. Unlike most other Minnesotans, I haven’t... (more...)

The Outdoor Blogger Network posted a photo prompt today that could not be ignored: Most Un-Frame Worthy Outdoor Photo, otherwise known as, “Smallest Fish” or “Most Un-trophy Trophy”. Mine was this one: Can you even see it??? It was caught at my dad’s cabin in Northwestern Wisconsin. We were there for Christmas and my brother wanted to do some ice fishing. We drilled some random holes and I caught this guy. I don’t even remember what I used as bait. It was... (more...)

A couple of months ago, I reported on a story of a gentleman who went ice fishing on his 101st birthday. He caught two very nice bass. After my post, his granddaughter contacted me saying he would get a bigger kick out of being on a Minnesota fishing website than on TV. While that was nice of her to say, I can’t imagine anything cooler than catching keeper bass on TV. A few months later, as I was considering topics for the lull of the winter fishing season, I thought it would be fun to interview... (more...)

Mark, Rob, and I decided to try Bluegill Bill‘s lake to see if we could catch some of the slab panfish that has been reported to be in that lake. In our three hours out there, we managed less than 10 fish total. I caught two crappie, Mark caught somewhere around 6, and Rob got none. We tried everything. Euro larva, small minnows, large minnows, hooking through the mouth, hooking through the back, you name it, we pretty much tried it. It was a lot of work for the few fish we got. And not... (more...)

In my last ice fishing report, I talked about a technique Mark used to catch more than 20 crappie in less than 2 hours. As promised, I am going to describe his technique now after delaying my initial commitment due to a special post. I thought about titling this post “Ice Fishing 101,” but this technique is really beyond the basics into more intermediate skills. It’s more of an upper-classman lesson than one for a freshman. It uses a fish finder known as a flasher because of... (more...)

Too often we forget to express our feelings to the people that matter most in our lives. We also forget to thank them for everything they do for us. Not just in the obvious big events, but also in the little things that get lost in our daily lives. So on this, my wife’s *ahem*ty-third birthday, I would like to say, “thank you,” to her for everything she does for me and our family. From the laundry, to taking care of the kids, to the Thanksgiving dinners for 20+ family members.... (more...)

A few weeks ago, I dubbed my brother the Master of Ice Crappie because he had caught 13 crappie in just a few hours of ice fishing. That was an impressive feat considering the conditions. We essentially drilled some random holes near some other ice fishermen and he jigged his way to success with no electronics. We were essentially blind to what was below us, but he was still able to catch all those fish. However, having a Vexilar (fish finder) and knowing how to read it and use it effectively... (more...)

I was at a neighborhood gathering tonight where the guys were in the living room talking fishing and the ladies were in the kitchen playing Yahtzee. I was definitely in the right room. During our conversation, one of the guys mentioned that one of his co-workers brought in an article for him about a local panfish fisherman known as Bluegill Bill. Much like Kermit Wick, Bluegill Bill has been fishing for most of his life. And he’s been ice fishing for 75 years. He’s seen a lot of changes... (more...)