Autumn Breezes In

 The View from a Tow Boat

I was lucky enough to take a short canoe trip last week.  The Basement Brewer and I left Duluth extremely early on Thursday morning and headed up the North Shore and then inland to our towboat departure.  The towboat put our canoe on top of its rack and then shuttled us up to the BWCA non-motorized zone.  From then on it was just paddle power.  It was a light drizzle interspersed with light showers all day.  The clouds were low and gray, but the temperature wasn't too cold for late September.  We cruised over a couple portages and lakes and made the final, uphill portage to our destination, a fairly good sized lake that had given up several lake trout during my one night stay there a couple years ago.  We traveled a few miles on the lake and set up camp at our preferred site.  Only one other site on the lake was occupied.  Our site had a poor landing area for the canoe and the tent pads were marginal, but it had a great view from the fire grate and it dropped straight into deep water for a shot at shore fishing for lake trout.  It also had strategically placed jack pines that allowed for an easy set up of the rain tarp.

After camp was set up, we headed out trolling spoons for lake trout.  It took a little bit of time, but we some bites and brought a nice fish back to camp with us to serve as an appetizer for our bratwurst supper.  I had snuck in a growler of Starfire from the Fitger's Brewhouse to augment the meal.  Sleep came easily after an early morning and a long day.

Landing a Lake Trout

On Friday we had a leisurely morning on a cloudy, but not rainy, day.  We tried some shore fishing while eating breakfast, but had no bites.  We packed a day pack and headed up the lake, trolling as we went.  We didn't have any bites before we pulled up to a steep, little used portage.  The Brewer threaded the canoe through tight turns to the next lake.  We found a small lake with steep cliffs.  We had trolled our spinners only a few yards when I caught the first lake trout, smallish, but with big shoulders.  It became the theme of the day, as we caught many nice lakers on a variety of lures, a real fun day.  We checked out the two campsites on the lake and neither were real good, but would do for a couple nights and a small party.  After a while, we portaged back to our camp lake, where we picked up another nice laker on the way back to camp.  The sun was starting to think about coming out.  We had one of my favorite suppers - Thai curry with lake trout over rice.  Much of the meal was made with my own dehydrated ingredients - green peppers, sundried tomatoes, basil.  It was very good as usual.

Saturday dawned with sunshine and a south breeze.  We lingered around the coffee pot, enjoying the rays.  We decided to hit the area around camp hard to see if the trout were there.  One was.  Just one.  We tried all kinds of lures, depths, and structure.  Only the one fish.  The wind didn't help, making trolling a chore at times.  Such is fishing, these days keep you humble.  We took a mid day break and had a shorelunch of trout caught the day before.  We also hiked a portage trail to another lake - it was one of the steepest, slipperiest portages I have ever been on.  Glad I didn't have a pack or canoe.  We had a great supper of bowties in pesto sauce with Northern Waters Smokehaus salamini.  We enjoyed a great fire and watched the nearly full moon rise over the lake.

The View From Under the Tarp

On Sunday we woke to a strong southwest wind - good news for once - we would have a tailwind back to civilization.  Camp was packed up and we reversed our route, enjoying some downhill portages this time.  It was a stiff wind and big waves on the last section of the route, but we made it to the tow boat pick up area safely.  Our ride was right on time and we were soon skipping across the lake.  At shore, we loaded up the truck enjoyed a nice lunch on the way home, and rolled into Duluth early in the evening.  It was another fun time.

Nature Moment: We enjoyed a lot of bird life on this trip and particularly enjoyed those that we get to see from Hawk's Ridge in Duluth.  All fall, raptors migrate south from northern Minnesota and Canada until they hit Lake Superior.  They don't want to cross the big water, so they funnel down the North Shore, wear they are observed and counted in an ongoing scientific analysis on Hawk's Ridge.  We were seeing the same species crossing the BWCA on our trip.  Eagles, osprey, vultures, and, in particularly high numbers, sharp shinned hawks.  

Hubs Flub: We had to set up a time for the Tow Boat to come pick us up on the last day.  2pm, we said.  As the Tow Boat pulled away and we loaded the canoe at the start of our paddle, I realized that we had no watch, phone, or other means of telling time.  Arriving back to the tow boat at 2pm might be a general goal...  Luckily, I discovered our emergency texting device did give a time on it, although we learned it was on Central Standard Time, one hour off.  

Quote of the Trip: "Got one."  This quote was repeated several times on Friday as we set the hook on another laker.  It was a fast fishing day.  

What Broke: It might be too early to tell, but my favorite canoeing depthfinder might be on its last legs.  It went blank for no reason at one point and at other times it read wildly changing depths, alternating between 5 and 105 feet, neither which of was correct.  I had to unplug and replug the transducer into the unit to get it to work.  Not sure why it isn't working right, the depthfinder is only 30 years old or so.  

Fallin' Behind

Anticipation

It seems that putting out a quarterly blog post is going to be the standard schedule.  That's not too bad.  So, just to catch up on the summer...

I was able to get out on Lake Superior in the Blue Sweetie several times in July after the June Camp Sh*tstorm trip.  I caught nothing.  The most I could muster was a couple bites.  I tried multiple locations - Duluth, Silver Bay, and Tofte.  Nothing.  Finally, early in August, I tried going out of Superior Wisconsin's entry.  Fishing in Wisconsin means I could fish three lines at a time.  By switching lures often on the three lines, I hoped to find a lucky one.  Success!  I caught three lake trout trolling a yellow spoon 45 feet down over 75 feet of water.  I went back shortly thereafter and caught a couple trout, including a dandy 36.5" laker (13-15lbs).  The big one came on a orange stickbait with a 4oz snap weight, off of an in-line planer board.  By myself, that was a crazy rig to fight the big fish on, but I managed to land it.  The next time out, I got skunked.  The pattern had changed.

Late in August, I went to try and re-find the fish.  Luckily, I ran into a chatty guy at the dock who said he was getting trout on purple spoons, 60 feet down over 90 feet.  I figured it might be a red herring, but what the heck, that is where I went.  I did not think I had any purple spoons, but I found a blue one with white spots in my tackle box.  Boom - I caught six lake trout that day.  Fun.  Went back a day or two later and caught three more lakers.  Went out the next morning and caught 2 more trout, including a 26" one.  All the fish came on the blue spoon with white spots of the downrigger.  The Colonel went out with his wife one day trying blue spoons and got skunked.  On Labor Day weekend, my Mother In Law and Brother In Law were in town for a visit.  We tried some fishing.  This is when they informed me that my blue spoon with white spots was actually purple with pink spots.  Oops.  Colorblindness.  We got blown of the lake that day with no bites.

The next time I went out I caught several more trout and got up close and personal with a 1,000 foot ore boat on the big lake.  Finally, in mid-September, I made a run 8 miles out onto Lake Superior to a new spot I felt confident with.  It was a good hunch - I caught nine lake trout, including a 32" fish.  A great day.  The Blue Sweetie had its first double, I had two fish on at the same time.  I just let one rod bounce away in the rod holder while I landed the other fish.  Turns out the second rod had the 32" trout on it.  All nine fish came on the same purple spoon with pink spots.

So, it ended up a good summer on Lake Superior.  I hope to make it out maybe one more time before I put the boat away.

Sharing the Shipping Lane

Easy Does It: Camp Sh*torm 2015

Schedules determined that the annual Camp Sh*tstorm Canoe Trip would be a couple less nights this year.  Therefore, we decided to take a shorter, easier route in order to maximize our time to fish.

Day 1: We took off from Duluth headed north on Saturday morning (June 20, 2015).  We had an extra vehicle in our party so that a couple friends could complete a cross-Quetico trip from the end of the Gunflint Trail.  We were delayed at the border due to a high volume of vehicles crossing into Canada, but we made it to the Ranger Station in time to get our permit.  We loaded up the canoes late in the afternoon.  On the trip were: Myself (Private Phillips & Group Leader); Tick Check (Assistant to the Group Leader); Fran Tarkington Fan; The Colonel; Wear-Some-Shorts; The Bull; The Freshman; and Corporal Cuervo.  The Corporal was new to Camp Sh*tstorm, but familiar to some of us from other trips and we knew he would fit in.

We paddled across the first lake to the first portage, a carry of moderate length, but well maintained.  Tick Check enjoyed carrying his brand new Northwind kevlar and carbon canoe.  It was light and fast.  We loaded up the canoes again on the other side of the portage and broke out our trolling rods.  The Corporal and I caught only a walleye and a few bass on the way to the first campsite, but the others caught several lake trout coming across.  Once into the targeted bay, we found our friends Lieutenant Dan and Farmer Troy with their camp set up.  It was good thing we arrived when we did, as they had just finished their supply of bourbon.  We resupplied them and they joined us in our camp as we set up the tents and kitchen.  They joined us for supper, Northern Waters Smokehaus real German bratwurst.  Very, very good with sauerkraut and mustard.  Around the camp fire we heard about the other fellows' big trip crossing the Quetico.  They reported that walleye fishing was very good early in the trip and lake trout were cooperative at the end, a good sign for us.

Day 2: We woke up to a sunny, nice day on Day 2.  Lt. Dan and the Farmer headed out of the park to the vehicle we had brought up for them.  They will have to return the favor one day.  It was a partly cloudy, breezy day that seemed to be under constant threat of rain, but it never did.  It took a while for the Corporal and I to get warmed up, but we finally found a few nice lake trout over a deep basin.  We also caught a few random walleyes.  Returning to camp, we learned that others had did fairly well for walleyes and bass, but the trout were tight lipped.  The big story, however, was Fran Fan's big pike, his Personal Best northern, which was was over 40" in length, a real bruiser.  He returned it to the lake to grow even bigger.  Tick Check led the supper preparations with "freestyle" lake trout, steaks, asparagus, and red wine.  Perfect.

Fran Fan's Monster Pike

Day 3: We packed up camp under darkening skies, and, sure enough, a soaking rain started just after we took to the lake in our canoes.  There was no lightning, however, so we just continued to paddle and fish our way through a long narrows between major lake basins.  I was paired up with Fran Fan this day and we started out with some decent walleyes and bass, but most of the action was courtesy of small to medium sized northern pike.  These unwanted "hammer handles" went for my baits in particular.  Each time I thought I had a decent walleye on, it would turn out to be a pike.  Oh well, it was fast action anyways.  Once into deeper water, Fran Fan turned on his lake trout magnet.  He caught several nice trout in just one pass through a 100+ feet deep basin.  I hooked zero.  It happened enough that I was a bit perplexed.  We had very similar lures, we were at similar depths, and we were (obviously) going the same speed.  In the end I decided that his success was simply because he was in the front of the canoe...the fish saw his lure before they saw mine.  That is at least something I can tell myself to make it feel better.  Others had had less trout action but landed plenty of pike, walleyes, and bass.  We set up camp on a big island site in the continued rain.   We put up three rain tarps to ward off the elements, and just before supper, the skies cleared enough to let us cook and put tents up without being rained on.  It was fried fish alongside dirty rice that evening.  The clouds cleared up completely just before midnight and we were amazed to see...  You'll have to wait for the Nature Moment at the end of this report to find out.

Day 4: It was sunny and pleasant the next morning.  As we enjoyed breakfast we were visited by a couple of Ontario rangers, a first for us in the Quetico.  This was even more notable because I actually knew one of the rangers through my work.  I introduced him and his young female assistant to the fellas and we had a few laughs with coffee.  They went on their way shortly and we got ready to fish.  I was paired up with the Bull.  We caught a couple nice trout right away, but then the bite eluded us.  We even checked out the pool below a major rapids and there were no fish home.  Just after lunch, a fairly big storm moved in with heavy wind, rain, and lightning.  It didn't last long though, so our wait on shore was short.  We only saw a few pellets, but others in our group fishing further north had been hailed on pretty heavily.  We fished out way back towards camp with no bites.  I wasn't real surprised, storms seem to discourage fish from eating.  Near camp, we were again hit by a thunderstorm.  This one had more rain, but less wind and no hail. We again waited it out.  Afterwards, the Bull caught another trout and this time, it went on the stringer.  We headed back to camp and rehung the tarps - the wind from the first storm knocked them all down.  Everyone arrived back to camp just as another thunderstorm hit, but it again wasn't real strong.  It was Thai coconut curry rice with trout that night - I think that is my favorite meal of the trip.

Stormy Day

Day 5: It was sprinkling as we packed up and headed out onto the lake on a travel day.  I was back with the Corporal and we caught a couple lakers before going through a long, narrow, and very shallow, narrows into a deep, but stained lake.  We scouted campsites and one of them was occupied, the first people we had seen in a long time.  We settled on a very nice site near an incoming rapids.  After setting up camp, including a screen house to ward off bugs, we took advantage of the warm temps to jump in the lake and wash up.  Refreshed, we cleaned some bass and walleyes for fried fish with macaroni and cheese.  The mac and cheese was stellar with a slightly different blend of cheeses this year.  It was a quiet night.

Day 6: None of us had ever been to this lake, so we set up to fish and explore the next morning.  Seeing its stained water, we surmised it would be a good walleye lake, and it didn't disappoint.  We caught a bunch of the golden fish by jigging on points and sunken islands.  I fished with Wear-Some-Shorts and we were able to get caught up on each other's lives.  It threatened to storm again a couple different times during the day, but the rain seemed to just miss us each time.  We got the fish cleaned and had fried fish with mashed potatoes.  Very good again.

Day 7: It didn't have any portages, but Day 7 was a long paddle to the next campsite.  Everyone fished as they went and a decent number of lake trout were caught.  I piloted Tick Check's nice new canoe and I must say I really liked it.  Lots of space, but still pretty fast.  We were glad for the relatively calm winds as we had to cross several big basins of open water.  We secured a sand beach campsite under tall pines.  Everyone was able to scrub off the day's grime again and some even snuck in naps.  It was the traditional last night meal of pesto pasta that night.  Delicious.  The Colonel really does a great job of cooking.

Sand Beach Sunset

Day 8: We got up early on the last day, packed up, and headed for the landing.  The landing was not the one we used on the way in, but the Lt. and Farmer had agreed to drop off one of our vehicles at the parking lot.  We just didn't know where the parking lot was.  After getting some help from a friendly ranger, we did find my truck, and after running to get the other car and getting everything packed, we hit the road to home.  After a lunch stop, we arrived in Duluth late in the afternoon.  We all said our goodbyes and I held the annual leftover food auction.  We did pretty well this year and didn't have too many items that needed a good home.  It was another great trip with good friends and a lot of laughs.  I am grateful I am a part of such a good group and have the means to go on such adventures.  One more highlight: When I got home I discovered that My Wonderful Bride had painted the entire exterior of the house.  Wow!  What a week!

Nature Moment: As hinted at, as we were walking to our beds at the end of Day 3, the clouds suddenly parted and we were treated to an amazing display of northern lights. The aurora spread shimmering across the entire sky, dancing and shooting all directions as far as the eye could see.  We all stayed up an extra hour taking in the show.  

Hubs Flub: On rainy Day 3, I was using a borrowed sponge to soak up rainwater and get it out of the canoe.  I was in the process of using the sponge when I had a jolting strike on my trolled lure.  I set the hook and fought the fish, disappointed to see another small northern pike on my line.  I got it unhooked and released, then reset my line and began trolling again.  After a bit, I went to sponge out some more rainwater, but couldn't find the sponge.  Looked all around...where the heck (cursing isn't allowed on this trip) did it go?  Nowhere to be found.  Replayed the events in my mind and realized I must have dropped it in the lake when I set the hook on the pike.  Now I owe someone a sponge.  

Quote of the Trip: There were multiple candidates for this, including "I love sleeping" (Me, stating what the others had already determined), but the winner came from the Colonel: "Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"  That is what he screamed when he was rinsing fish fillets in the lake from a shoreline rock and a massive snapping turtle suddenly appeared inches from his hand, making a play for the fish.  A bit unnerving, apparently.   

What Broke: My wife always asks, whenever I come home from a trip, "What broke this time?"  Not a real vote of confidence, but it is probably warranted.  This trip, most everything came back unscathed.  My old bent shaft paddle that is used as spare finally gave up the ghost and its slats started to detach from each other.  17 years of use probably is a good run for it, as it was my primary paddle for 15 of those years and I used to paddle about every other weekend.  Tick Check's new propane stove started leaking at the fuel feed, but that is easily replaced.  I do need to start thinking about a new solo tent, as it is also 17 years old and UV rays are starting to take their toll.  

L to R: Wear-Some-Shorts, Private Phillips, Tick Check, The Colonel, Corporal Cuervo, The Freshman, and The Bull, photo by Fran Fan

Spring Catch Up

Superkid's Lake Superior Charter Service on the Blue Sweetie

Once again, I am falling behind on the blog posts.  Between work, a house remodel, and a new boat, I haven't had much time!  Here is a catch up on the outdoor pursuits this late winter and spring.

Ice fishing round up: After the big January trip, lake trout fishing really slowed down.  I fished Burntside Lake near Ely with two friends on a Sunday, but we only got one trout between 3 of us.  Later in Feburary, a friend's bachelor party was held near Ely again, but the conditions were so cold and windy that virtually no fishing was done.  Two subsequent winter camping trips in March had me seeing very poor fishing, with only a few trout.  It was surprising, as ice and weather conditions were really good.

I picked up our new 16' Lund Fury with 25hp 4 stroke Honda from the dealer in late April.  It took quite a bit of time to outfit it with my add ons, including rod holders, a base for a downrigger, depth finder, GPS holder, line cleats, and more.  Finally got it out in early May onto Lake Superior.  The motor wasn't quite working right and we didn't get any bites.  Took it out again a couple days later on the big lake, and it still wasn't quite right.  It was a nice day, though and Bergen seems to enjoy boat rides.  Took the boat back to the the dealer that next week and it turns out the motor wasn't synced up quite right by the factory.

Got out one more time on the big lake after the motor was fixed and it worked well, but I lost the only fish I hooked after fighting it for a good bit of time.  Probably a good thing to lose the first fish hooked in a new boat...get it out of the way.  On a subsequent warm early May day, the Chief and I headed out on the big lake again and caught several lake trout and salmon.  We were in his boat though, so the Blue Sweetie was still fishless.  I went out with My Wonderful Bride and Superkid on the Blue Sweetie the next morning to the exact same spot and caught nothing.  And the motor wasn't quite working right again.

Took the boat back to the dealer and he made one more adjustment.  We backed it into the water, still on the trailer, to see how it performed.  It seemed to be right.  On the way off of the landing, I heard a hissing sound and watched one of the boat trailer tires go flat in about 30 seconds.  Luckily I had just bought a spare.  I took into town to get it fixed and then went to get gas down the road.  I had noticed that the spare tire was a bit under inflated, so I made some goofy maneuvers to get the tire in place to the air hose at the gas station.  Before I could even get out of the truck, I was approached by a game warden.  He stated that my maneuvers in the parking lot were suspicious considering I had just seen him.  I said I didn't see him, I was just getting air.  He seemed to buy that, but then pointed out I had left the plug in the boat and I didn't have registration numbers on the bow.  OMG, I thought, on top of having to take a brand new boat back to the dealer (90 miles one way) twice and then getting a flat tire, that I was going to get a couple tickets, too?

I explained that it was new boat and that I had just gotten the registration from the State that very day.  He seemed to accept that as well.  The explanation about the plug being in because I had simply backed the boat in on the trailer and didn't run it was not acceptable, but he only gave me a warning ticket.  Whew!  The drive home was uneventful.

The next time I got the boat on to Lake Superior, I was all alone at the landing, hoping the warm water had drifted north enough to bring the salmon north.  It had - I caught 3 salmon and lost 2 within the first hour of trolling in the Blue Sweetie.  Success!  It was shaping up to be a stellar day, but then the wind picked up and blew the warm water away from shore.  It was too windy to chase it in my small boat.  Oh well.  Made it out one more time after that when a hometown friend was up.  We caught only one salmon, but it was again very fun.

The week after that (June 20-27) was the annual Camp Sh*tstorm Canoe Trip.  Watch for a report on that soon.

North of the Border

January means lake trout through the ice, my all-time favorite fishing method.  This year mid-January found me (the Private), the Captain, the Chief, the Colonel, and Rocket Man all headed north of the border.  About an hour into Ontario, we parked the trucks and trailers and reorganized everything onto the snowmachines.

"Winter Canoes"

From the parking lot we went on snowmachine another 20 miles on logging roads and trails to the lodge.  Our favorite hangout has 4 cabins, a sauna, and two friendly owners that do a great job with upkeep and hospitality.  Despite its remoteness, generators give us lights at night and even a hot shower.  Pretty cushy compared to some of our spots.  We settled into the cabin as the sun set.  Wood heat feels nice after a pretty chilly ride in.  The forecast, however, called for a warming trend, raising our fishing hopes.  The traditional first night supper of Northern Waters Smokehaus ribs and homemade sauerkraut set the tone (and the smell) for the first evening.

Not exactly like my canvas winter camping tent...

On Saturday morning, it was a quick packing of the fishing gear and we hit the ice on the snowmachines headed down the massive, island studded lake to our favorite spots.  I set up with the Colonel and the Chief on a sunken island in the middle of the lake's main basin.  This was the exact spot (gotta like GPS) where I caught 12 trout in 4 hours the year before.  Well, the action was fast again, but this year I managed to lose a few fish on the way up and some of the bites were whitefish, not lake trout.  No complaining - we love to eat whitefish, an under-appreciated species.  It was nice enough weather that I did a little trolling on my snowmachine outside the portable shack and caught a few trout off a rock wall as well.  I think I ended with 7 fish for the day.  The other fellas had similar luck and Rocket Man landed a 31" laker off an island.  It ended up as the biggest fish of the trip.  We got checked by the Ontario wardens-a Saturday tradition-with no issues and even some compliments...everyone loves the rod box my dad built me a couple years ago...maybe could sell a few to some Canadians, eh?  The fun day ended with fried trout and whitefish, spaghetti, and a sauna.  

Sunday was a bit chillier, but the sun came out for a bit.  I set up in a new spot on a super steep wall.  I had been there a bit with no action and thought about moving when it kicked in-another epic day of laker fishing.  Lots of bites, lots of fish that fought their way off the hook, but I still managed to land 11 trout for the day.  The biggest was 29 inches.  The others had slower luck, so the Chief ended up moving near me and ended up with a better afternoon than I did.  The Colonel was snakebit, getting only 2 trout all day.  The others did okay.  It was, get this, a braised venison shoulder that had been slow-cooked all day for supper.  20 miles in by snowmachine.  Amazing.  A sauna fit the bill again that night and the hot shower felt great.  

Monday found the Chief and I setting off on our own to another unproven spot while others settled on familiar honey holes.  I'd say that it was a slow fishing day, but the Chief, only a hundred yards away, had a great day, getting multiple dandies approaching 30 inches.  I started the day with a decent trout, but then, a rare event ice fishing, my white tube jig got snagged on the bottom.  I yanked it around, but had to break it off.  Tied on another jig, dropped it down, and...got snagged again.  This time it came free, but I can take a hint, so I pulled stakes and moved to a different spot.  A bit of a screw up (see Hubs Flub below) resulted in my fishing a structureless flat.  It produced no fish for the afternoon.  I moved again, after taking pictures of the Chief's big fish, but still no action.  Finally, as I was packing up before dusk, I had a big strike.  It took a bit to land him, but I got a nice 29" trout.  I decided that it would be a good one to bring home and feed the family with (and two neighbor families, too).  It had my white tube jig pretty deep, so I reached in with my hemostats and pulled the hook free and set the jig on the floor.  I then reached in and unhooked my white tube jig out of it mouth.  Wait.  I had already unhooked it.  What the hell, why are there two of my tube jigs in its mouth?  No joking, the second tube jig I pulled out of it was the one I had snagged and broke off that morning.  Somehow that fish had dug out that jig with its salted minnow on it and ate it, then 6 hours later and 75 yards away, I caught it and got my jig back.  Crazy.  Others had very good luck that day - the Colonel had his best day ever, hitting double digits.  It was fish tacos for dinner - really tasty with fresh herbs and chopped radishes.  

Chief with a nice trout

On Tuesday, the Chief had to take off for home, so we bid him adieu and the rest of us hit the lake again.  It was calm and warm and misty...not a real "trouty" day.  The fishing was slow for us all...except the Colonel.  He tried a new spot and again had tons of action.  I ended up with only 2 trout, I think Rocket Man only had a couple, and Captain only had 4.  The Colonel was into double-digits again.  One trout was more memorable than the rest...  Turns out he decided to do some trolling outside his house.  As he was jigging about 75 yards away, he gets a funny feeling bite.  He reels up to find he had hooked a fishing line.  There was some evidence of other people fishing in that area previously, so he assumes they had broken off the line.  Then he realizes there is a fish on the end of the line.  He hand over hand reeled it in and landed the trout.  It had swallowed the hook.  There was a bobber on the line as well.  So he starts pulling on the other end of the line to get it out of the water and he feels resistance.  He pulled and pulled and finally came to a stop.  The line was snagged.  He realized that someone must have lost their entire rod down the hole and the rod was hung up.  He pulled hard to break it off and it gave a bit.  He pulled some more and he felt it give again and start up to him.  Sure enough, after pulling a while, up comes a perfectly good rod and reel.  How neat is that? But, wait...he looks at the rod and realizes it is very familiar.  It is just like a rod he owns.  Just like the one that he left in his portable shack with a plain hook with a minnow on it, with a bobber, and the bail open so a fish wouldn't pull it down the hole while he was gone...  That's right, he had caught his own pole.  He had left it deployed in the house, a trout bit the minnow, happened to swim to where he was jigging 75 yards away, he caught the line, he pulled in the fish, then he pulled on his line until all of it had come off his reel spool and then he jerked on it until the entire rod and reel tipped over and went down the hole and then he reeled in his own rod and reel in a different hole.  Lucky...or something else?  It was worth some pretty good laughs, anyway.  We had leftover venison sandwiches that night.  Still very good.

Wednesday morning we packed, cleaned up the cabin, settled bill and hit the trail.  It was an uneventful ride out.  At the parking lot, we discovered my snowmachine tiedown on trailer had stripped out, but with some extra straps and ingenuity, we got it secured.  We rolled into Duluth about 5pm.  It was a very good trip again with lots of fish and lots of laughs.  We were lucky that we didn't catch a January deep freeze, making the snowmachine riding pleasant.  We already scheduled the cabin for the same weekend next year.  

Nature Moment: We found out later that the Chief's ride out the day before the rest of us left was eventful, as he had to yield to three moose.  Going around a corner and encountering a moose is a real danger on a snowmachine, but he avoided injury. 

Hubs Flub: So after I had gotten snagged that day, I moved to a new spot.  I was checking depths by shooting my sonar right through the ice, and found 45 feet, then moved bit further and found 48 feet, then a bit further and found 51 feet, then a bit further and found 104 feet!  Wow, an underwater cliff!  I set up on the top of it in 50 feet.  This structure was not on the map.  After a while and no bites I started to think...can it really be 104 feet so close by?  I rechecked it.  52 feet.  The sonar, as it will do once in a while, had double sounded.  I was on no structure at all.  Wasted most of the afternoon.  

Quote of the Trip: "Hey wait a minute, this is MY rod!"

New Feature! What Broke: My wife always asks, whenever I come home from a trip, "What broke this time?"  Not a real vote of confidence, but it is probably warranted.  As stated, the trailer tie down stripped out.  That will require replacing all the hardware.  Also, there was a sauerkraut spill in the oven that smoked us out of the cabin for a bit, but I don't think there was permanent damage.  Everything else seemed to perform well, including my snowmachine, and the new electric auger I got for Christmas and my birthday worked great.  

Safety First When in Canada

Fall and Early Winter Catch Up

After a great canoe trip in September, I had a pretty busy fall and didn't get much fishing in.  I made it out one weekend in October for hiking trail stream trout.  One of my favorite annual events, shorefishing lakes for stocked stream trout in the fall, is easy and comfortable.  Fishing wasn't nearly as good as it was last year, but I still had a couple tasty trout meals.

Ice arrived early this year and Sportsbar, our ice fishing shack, was deployed in early December.  And what a start it was!  Captain K set the hook on the first bite of the year in the shack and tussled with a massive pike for about 15 minutes before landing the 44 inch behemoth!  What a riot.  "Tank" the pike was released to bite again.

Tank the Pike

Once Tank was cleared out of the way, we enjoyed a great December of fishing with lots of keeper perch showing up.  They were nice, non-wormy, fillets that, when dipped in my secret batter and some panko crumbs and fried, tasted awesome.  A few crappies were mixed in with the perch as well.  Some "normal" sized pike were also invited home for dinner.  We've discovered that when you fillet a pike like you would a walleye, leaving the hated "Y-bones" in the fillet, and then put the fillets through a food grinder, you can make a great fish patty.  The Y-bones grind up and actually help hold the patty together.  Pike burgers are a big hit here in Duluth.  

Unfortunately, the Sportsbar bite disappeared as we went into January.  The lack of snow means the ice is getting really thick and oxygen is dropping, slowing the fish way down.  It was fun while it lasted, though.  Overall, fall and early winter were fun.