The winter trout opener occurred this past weekend. It may be the most anticipated fishing event of my year. I usually chase lake trout on Gunflint Trail lakes and this year was no different. The Smoked Fish Guy and I made our way up the trail after work on Friday and set up camp in a spot we have used before. It is a fairly quiet spot where the tent can go up right next to the truck. After the "White House" (the new nickname for my tent and baseboard set up) was up we got the wood stove fired up and the SFG conjured up some giant ribeye steakes with onions and mushrooms. Captain Karkov rolled in to join us just as supper was ready. We had some laughs after supper and hit the cots fairly late, only to be woken up a short time later by a group of folks coming into the parking lot and taking off on snow machines in the middle of the night. A little odd.
On Saturday morning we made the coffee and tea water, packed our toboggans and hit the lake. We hiked on the ice, which was about a foot thick and had only a couple inches of snow on it. We headed to a spot I had nailed the lake trout the January previous. Unfortunately, some other folks had the same thought and just as I was finishing setting up my portable shelter, some snow machines zipped up and starting fishing right next to me. Not one to hurt my chances by sharing fish, I packed up and moved down the shore to a spot that didn't give me a lot of confidence, a shallow slope. Still, I had my chances and had a couple bites, but I failed to get them up the hole. Skunked on day 1. The SFG and Captain did better, get 2 decent trout a piece. We had a visit from the game wardens that afternoon, at which time the SFG discovered he had his wife's portion of the husband/wife license and not his. The officer was understanding and only gave him a warning. We headed back to the White House as darkness fell. We turned one of the lake trout into the main ingredient in a pot of thai curry rice. Very good.
On Sunday we decided to get away from the crowds and headed to a different spot that is inside the BWCA (meaning snow machines can't go there). It was a longer hike and we did indeed have the lake to ourselves. The Captain was the only one that had any luck, even though he set up on a shallow flat and the SFG and I were on a more traditional laker spot, a steep cliff. After getting checked by the game wardens once again, Captain got four nice trout and the SFG got skunked, having lost the only two fish he hooked. I didn't catch a fish until I gave up, put the rod down and stopped jigging. As I was goofing with my ipod or something, the rod started bouncing and moving towards the hole. I grabbed it and reeled in my only trout of the day. It was slow fishing! Not what I had been anticipating all fall and winter, that is for sure. Back at camp we had some pasta with Italian sausage for supper. Another tasty meal.
On Monday morning we woke to a strong wind swirling down the lake. We ended not fishing at all that morning because the wind made getting the portable shelters set up impossible. Instead we packed up the White House and headed home. As we drove down the North Shore Drive that afternoon, I suddenly remembered it was my birthday! I hadn't thought about it all day. It was nice to get home early and have plenty of time to unpack. My Wonderful Bride had to work that night, so my birthday supper will be tonight instead.
The next trip is planned for the first weekend in February, hope we catch a few more fish.
Nature Moment: It is hard not to notice the lack of moose in northeast Minnesota. In 2004, I once saw 9 moose on 1 trip. I now haven't seen a moose in nearly 2 years. There was only 1 set of tracks on the shoulder of the road on the Gunflint Trail...a few years ago, the bank would be littered with the tracks as the moose love to lick road salt in the winter. Scientists are working to figure out why the moose are disappearing, but aren't getting any clear answers.
