Journal of a Minnesota Angler

As outdoorsmen (and women) many of us like to share our accomplishments with friends and family, sometimes the world. Whether that be our latest catch, latest kill, or the view from the top of the mountain we just climbed. A lot of the fun isn’t in the destination, but in the journey. And we like to share that, too. Enter GoPro. GoPro was created by Nick Woodman more than 10 years ago when he wanted to record his surfing adventures. He started out by strapping a camera to his wrist. He... (more...)

The Minnesota Bass season typically opens two weeks after the fabled walleye opener. That usually puts it on Memorial Day weekend. The forecast for the weekend this year was for rain. Every day. So this is what I ended up doing last weekend: Unfortunately, the weatherman was wrong and it only sprinkled a little bit over the three days. It didn’t really rain until Monday night. So I missed an opportunity. Forecasts show it getting nicer this weekend, so I’m aiming to wet a line Sunday... (more...)

Sometimes Mother Nature creates contradictions that some might call an oxymoron. A common example of this is known as a sun-shower (rain while it the sun is shining). A happy consequence of such an occurrence is a rainbow. If you’re lucky, you might see a double rainbow. This past weekend, with the sudden change in temperature, it seems Winter and Spring collided and produced a different kind of oxymoron: 70 degree temperatures with ice still on local lakes. The consequence of this contradiction... (more...)

While the recent weather hasn’t indicated that it is Spring, Mother Nature continues to show signs that it is on its way. The sun is showing itself a little more often, weather forecasters are predicting temps in the 50s (F) next week (we’ll ignore the snow predicted tonight), and Spring babies are starting to appear. We saw proof of that last sign when a pair of bald eagles in Central Minnesota welcomed an eaglet to their home 75 feet in the air. The “birth” was broadcast... (more...)

I wanted to take a moment to say, “Thank you,” because today, WordPress stats reported that I hit a traffic milestone. Nine days ago, Google Analytics reported the same milestone. When I started this blog a few years ago, a six figure pageview stat seemed an impossible achievement. Who would even care about my adventures? I’m grateful that a few of you do. I never imagined that I would hit this milestone before my 3rd anniversary. And for that, I would like to thank everyone... (more...)

With ice out having already occurred on many nearby lakes, you’d think I’d be out on the water tickling my angler itch. Unfortunately, life gets in the way. But to keep at least one or two of the 3 or so regular readers I have left, I want to try to keep posting regularly, even if it’s not about fishing. If you’re one of those 3 regular readers, you know that for the last few years, my family has been raising chickens. Since egg production slows after they get about two... (more...)

Just to show how crazy this Spring has been, the National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office posted the records we have broken (so far) since March 10. In the last 11 days, we’ve broken 8 record highs and 6 maximum lows. And technically, it was still winter as today is the first day of Spring. The metro lakes have already iced out and Northern Minnesota lakes aren’t far behind. I’ve stolen copied the stats and posted them here in case the page goes away some day in the future. Twin... (more...)

It’s been a crazy winter, or non-winter as the case may be, in Minnesota this year. Unlike last year when we had storm after storm and subzero temps, this year has been mild beyond belief with virtually no snow. Here is how the Minnesota DNR Climatology Office ranks this year’s Twin Cities’ meteorological winter (December-February): Warmest Avg. Temp. 1877-78 29.0 F 1930-31 26.9 F 2001-02 26.8 F 2011-12 26.3 F* *Estimate including average temperature for February Fewest... (more...)

The wilderness won a battle yesterday thanks to the decision of a Minnesota judge. AT&T will not be allowed to build a 450 foot cell tower in the middle of the BWCA. Instead, it will be a measly 199 feet. AT&T claims the shortened tower will cover 1/16th of the area a taller tower would, but actually, it will only be a 17 percent decrease. Full story: Judge says no to 450-foot cell tower near BWCA, but 199-foot tower OK For years, people have debated whether or not cell service should... (more...)

The average temp in Minnesota this time of year is around 55 degrees. But this last weekend, it hit 70 degrees F and ice out happened overday (as opposed to overnight) for many local lakes. So in keeping with the warming/melting theme, I wanted to show what happens in Yosemite this time of year. This video made the rounds several months ago. I forget where I first heard about it, but it’s worth another look even if you’ve seen it before. It’s amazing how the ice moves like a... (more...)