Walleye Wonderland

Some odd circumstances resulted in my going on a neat canoe trip June 20-24. Chief Many Little Bottles learned he couldn't go on the first part of an 11-day trip with Lt. Dan, Cpt. Karkov, and the Farmer after it had already been set up. So he recruited me to accompany him to meet them (they found an able replacement) on their route.

We packed up on Friday night, I did some more packing on Saturday, and then we left Duluth early Sunday morning. We headed up to Ely, picked up the permit (which was once again very confusing), and then hit the water. We were able to use motors on the first 11 miles of the trip, which included two portages. We actually brought two 2-horse motors, because we brought an additional one for the other guys on the way back. We got some strange looks on the portages, as we were likely the first people to portage 2 motors but only one canoe in the BWCA. It was calm, pleasant day, and we made good time to the no-motor zone line. We stashed the motors and continued paddling. The next portage was a doozy-340 rods along a rushing river. At just over a mile, I was cursing the weight of my pack, but the portage is very flat and we made it eventually. After three more portages we came to the narrow, winding lake with plenty of current areas. We set up camp on a narrows at about 3:30pm. The spot was small, but good enough for two people and the shore fishing looked good. We threw out our lines and set camp. We had dirty rice with sauteed andioulle sausage for supper. Chief finally caught a rock bass and a small walleye at dusk, but that was all the fishing we had. The mosquitoes were out pretty thick.

On Monday morning we packed up the gear and headed north and west on to the bigger part of the lake. We went through a series of narrows with current, and we caught walleyes in most of them. Most of them were eaters, but Chief did get one about 22 inches. A few bass and small pike were thrown in for good measure. We looked at a number campsites on the way and they were either occupied or not up to our standards. We finally settled on a nice one on a small island-it had everything going for it except the nearby shoreline was likely too shallow for good shorefishing. Decent tent pads, nice kitchen, open and airy (but not too exposed). After we got set up, it started raining. We waited it out for a while, but since it wasn't thundering or anything, we eventually went fishing in the rain. We caught some decent bass in a nearby current area then started trolling leeches over rockpiles surrounding our island. The eater walleyes were there, and they were hungry. We quickly caught enough for supper plus a few more. Chief fried up the walleyes perfectly as always. We had stuffing with chorizo sausage as a side dish. Delicious. The rain let up as we were eating, but then the mosquitoes came out with a vengeance that night.

Tuesday dawned cloudy, but calm and not raining. We hit the water after breakfast and started trolling the rock piles again. We picked up a few walleyes here and there, and we discovered the site of a pre-BWCA regulations resort. We could see the old dock pilings in the clear water. We then trolled around some islands, where a Nature Moment occured (see below), which forced us to find another fishing spot. We discovered a sunken island and caught several walleyes on it-including a nice 23" fish. We wandered back to camp for lunch and soon we got a radio call from Lt. Dan. We directed the other group of guys to our location. After a hearty reunion, the guys got there tents set up and we headed out fishing again. Captain K and his bow man caught several walleyes, while the rest of us caught a few. Chief MLB caught a nice smallmouth bass. The wind had whipped up, preventing our return to the mid-lake reef. We enjoyed a great supper of smoked pork loin, sauerkraut, and au gratin potatoes. We listened to the Twins lose as we swatted bugs that night.

On Wednesday, we packed up camp after breakfast and then fished our way back up the lake in the direction we had come. Chief and I fished all the current areas as we went catching quite a few walleyes. Chief had a very large fish on for a while that fought more like a walleye than a pike or bass, but it threw hook before we could see it. We really got into the walleyes in the final current area, catching them as fast as we got our baits down at one point. We set up camp near the northern most portage which goes around a large waterfall/rapids area. We fished the pool below the falls, getting a few small walleyes. It was fried walleye and pesto noodles for supper. It was the consensus of the group that we prefer bowtie noodles over spaghetti for pesto. This is due to the fact it mixes with the pesto better. The skeeters were out again that night as we heard the Twins lose yet again. Lots of laughs around the fire, though.

On Thursday we packed up and started the trip out. We did the four portages, including the 340 rodder (which was easier for me due to food consumption and smarter packing), recovered the motors, and zipped out the last 11 miles. Saw a lot of people with a lot of gear on the lake and the portages. We ate supper at a local restaurant and headed home. Another good trip. When I got home I learned my Grandma was very ill. She passed away on Saturday night. She was a good grandma. I attended services on Monday and Tuesday and now am back at work.

Nature Moment: When Chief and I attempted to troll around some islands, we were suddenly and viciously attacked by an angry sea gull. Repeated strafing runs that were at most a couple feet over our heads convinced us to head for different structure.

Family Fun

We had a really enjoyable family camping trip this weekend. My wonderful bride, super kid, and the wonder dog headed north on Saturday morning and got to the campground before noon. We set up a nice looking camp with a great rain tarp and kitchen area. The girls decided to take an afternoon nap, so the wonder dog and I hit the lake for some fishing. The campground has a canoe dock, which made it easy to load the mutt into the canoe despite his hips. We fished our way down the lake and nailed nice 25" walleye on a wind-blown sunken island. None of his friends were around, and before long I got a radio call that the nap was over and the girls were ready for fun. I stashed the canoe and joined the group at camp. We did some bike riding and checked out the nearby outfitter/store. A family with 10 kids was camped across the road from us. Ages 2 to 15. They were actually pretty quiet, considering. We enjoyed happy hour while listening to the Twins win and then made pesto pasta for supper-fantastic. After super kid hit the hay we enjoyed popcorn while listening to my favorite podcast-Stuff You Missed in History Class.

On Sunday morning we made a big breakfast and then we all went for a canoe ride. The super kid enjoyed it, but I didn't get any fish to show her. We went back to camp for lunch, during which we heard a gunshot from somewhere in camp. The authorities were very soon addressing the situation at a site nearby, but there were no indications anything serious had occurred and the young people in the site were still there that afternoon. The girls took another nap that afternoon, so I got out fishing again, catching 3 decent smallmouth bass in about 2 hours of fishing. I just beat a rain shower back to camp. We enjoyed happy hour under the tarp and made hot dogs with cheesy rice for supper. My wonderful bride and super kid took a shower at the outfitter's that evening as I did the dishes and caught the Twins game on the radio.

After an uneventful night, we got up in the morning and made pancakes before packing up. It was a warm, sunny day. We did a review of all the campsites in the campground before heading out. We took the backroads to avoid the holiday traffic on the highway and rolled into town mid-afternoon. It was a very enjoyable trip.

Nature Moment: We were the lucky recipient of an inchworm hatching event in our camp. Little baby inchworms were falling out of the tree above our kitchen and actually piling up on the tarp-probably a couple hundred of them. Interesting.

No Trout for You!

It was a tough weekend of fishing May 21 to May 23. The Smoked Fish Guy, Officer Friendly, and I headed up the North Shore from town after work on Thursday, stopped for supper at the Gunflint Tavern and then went up the Trail. We camped in the lake parking lot that night.

On Friday morning we got an early start after making coffee and headed onto the lake on calm seas. I kept up in my solo canoe and we discovered our preferred campsite was occupied by Captain Karkov and his friends. We chatted for a minute and then moved onto another site, which is a decent one and it looked like it should have decent shore fishing. The biggest issue with the site is that wind can really howl through that part of the lake, trapping one in camp, particularly if you are in a solo canoe. No matter, it was a beautiful day. We set up camp and then headed out to fish. It was slow at first, and the Smoked Fish Guy and I got skunked, but Officer Friendly came through in the clutch, catching five lake trout right before supper. We enjoyed lake trout, steaks, mushrooms, and asparagus for supper. No bites from shore that evening.

On Saturday we had a big breakfast and headed out to fish on another nice day. The wind came up soon after I got on the lake, however, and I was forced to fish in the lee of several islands and caught only a couple smallish northern pike. I tried some shorefishing with a cisco with no luck and tried casting a rapala, which only resulted in a snag in a sunken tree which claimed the rapala. It was windy enough that afternoon that I couldn't safely return to camp, so I stopped at Captain Karkov's campsite and learned of the decent success they were having for both lake trout and walleyes from shore. They all were very relaxed and had custom made cedar stump drink holders. The wind calmed a bit after the visit and I fished my way back to camp, meeting up with Officer Friendly and the Smoked Fish Guy on the way and learned they had some success with lake trout, smallmouth bass, and a decent northern pike (31"). We enjoyed "Kek Burgers" for supper (lake trout bacon cheese burgers). Shorefishing resulted in three lines being sliced by a northern pike.

Sunday dawned cloudy and windy again. We packed up camp and ate a leisurely breakfast, then snuck through some islands on our way back to the truck. I caught a northern pike and had a lake trout-like strike, but didn't connect. We loaded the truck as we observed a group of rookies being instructed by their group leader on the basics of getting into a canoe and paddling. I was surprised that one of his basic instructions wasn't "put on your life vest" considering the rookie status, the strong wind, and the cold May water. I guess I shouldn't be surprised anymore. We headed back down the Gunflint Trail and were disappointed that, once again, Huie's Taco House "Home of the Puff Taco" wasn't open for lunch. We had a pizza at Sven and Ole's instead. We rolled into home base late that afternoon.

So, another good trip, but fishing was disappointing for me again. Have I lost my touch? (Did I ever have a touch?)

Opening Weekend Blues

Opening weekend...a Minnesota holiday, a tradition that surpasses all others in the State. Opening weekend 2010. The last one I'll ever participate in?

This opening weekend started on Thursday for me. I had planned to go up on Friday morning, but a meeting on Thursday night up north got scheduled at the last minute, so I loaded up the truck and just went to my campsite after the meeting on Thursday. I ended up setting up camp on our favorite road accessible walleye shore fishing spot at 11pm in a 35 degree drizzle. It sounds worse than it was. The camping/fishing spot isn't a secret, so going up early assures me of getting the spot. Captain K and his girlfriend planned on joining me on Saturday.

So on Friday, we had the whole day to explore, just the Wonder Dog and I. It was rainy all day, but mostly just heavy drizzles. I broke out the GPS unit I had gotten for Christmas and taught myself to use it as we went. We bushwhacked to three different lakes that don't have a developed access, but the travel wasn't easy through the brush...portaging a canoe or even carrying fishing poles would be tough. The GPS unit worked great, but it turned out to be unnecessary on the way back to the truck...I discovered that the Wonder Dog actually does have a talent...he can track his own scent really well. Each time he led the way back to truck on exactly the route we took to get to the lakes. It cleared off that evening and it was a chilly night.

On Saturday, Opening Day, we got up early and drove to a designated stream trout lake. We got loaded up in the canoe and I noticed the Wonder Dog's hips were a bit sore and he barely made into the canoe on his own. He had been struggling all winter with his hips. We trolled down that lake with no bites and found the portage to the next lake over. We made the portage and this time the Wonder Dog really had a heckuva time getting into the canoe and I had trouble helping him because of the friendly people that were sharing the portage had placed their canoe in such a way that clogged the whole landing. So I moved a bit deeper at the landing and helped the dog into the canoe. It was at this time that I discovered by trusty, but well worn, rubber boots were leaking. Awesome. The water is still very cold, despite the early spring. I made one trolling pass around the entire lake and caught two decent lake trout. By the time I left the small lake there were over 10 other boats fishing the lake. Crowded by my standards. We portaged back to the other lake, and again struggle get loaded because a canoe was clogging the landing. This time we struggled enough that I was forced to come to a realization. This paddle across the lake to the truck was going to be the Wonder Dog's last canoe ride. Not of the day, but of his life. He just can't get in and out anymore. We then took a shore fishing tour of the area, catching absolutely no fish. That night back at camp, I made supper and started fishing for walleyes from shore. Three parties started down the trail from the road and turned around when they saw I was there. I expected Captain K and his date to arrive, but they didn't show. Later, another loud party came down the trail in an attempt to fish the spot. This party of two men and two small kids didn't turn around when they saw me. Their leader declared that he had fished this spot for a long time and he was fishing there that night. I said it was a small spot, my friends were on their way, but he decided to fish anyway. I said, okay then. I talked a bit with my new friends and the kids liked playing with the Wonder Dog. Captain K and his girlfriend finally showed up and they were forced to fish on the shallow, snaggy side of the point. The new friends left after a bit and we finally caught a few small walleyes on lighted bobbers after dark.

Sunday dawned bright and warm. I took down camp and headed out on another shore fishing tour. Nearly every one of my good spots had other people on them. I only fished two more spots and caught one lonely splake. It was then I said..."Why to do I go up north to fish on Opening Weekend?" A week after opener there is less people and the fishing is usually better. So that is my declaration...I won't go fishing on opener again. Well, maybe I will, but not until Sunday and then stay into the week for a bit. I made it back to Duluth mid afternoon and got unpacked.

The next trip is set for this weekend, Thursday night to Sunday, lake trout fishing with the Smoked Fish Guy and Officer Friendly. That will be the last camping trip until late June.

Nature Moment: As I paddled across the lake going back to the truck on Saturday, we were suddenly surrounded by a navy of otters. They bobbed up and down in the water and hissed and chirped at us, warning us off their territory. It is always fun to watch otters in the water, so sleek and smooth swimmers.

Spring? Fishing

My lovely bride and precious child went to the Cities for the weekend, so I decided to go camping up north. I managed to convince Officer Friendly and the Wonder Dog to join me. The forecast kept getting worse all week and when we hit the road after work on Friday, the snow was accumulating. We drove out of the snow at about Two Harbors and when we got to the secret drive to campsite on Random Rock Lake at about 7pm, it was just windy and cold. We set up a tarp and Officer Friendly set up her tent. As we ate smokehaus sandwiches for supper the snow began again in earnest. It accumulated to an inch or two, enough to collapse the tarp. We sat in the truck cab after that. We had hoped to listen to the Twins, but they were rained out. The Wonder Dog and I slept in the bed of the truck. His hips are bad enough now that I have to help him into the truck.

We woke up on Saturday to a cold wind but partly sunny skies. The snow was already melting. We took our time getting the canoe loaded up and eating breakfast, hoping that it would warm up a bit. We finally bit the bullet and hit the water. Once we got behind some points, it wasn't too cold. Wasn't warm, though. We initially fished where a small river flows into the lake, hoping the crappies would be stacked up in the current. They weren't. Nothing was in the current. We paddled further upstream, but our path was blocked by a big beaver dam. We turned around and fished some shallow bays. No fish. We then tried deeper water near an island. No crappies, but we did get two hammer handle pike. We tried some more points and bays and only had a couple sad little perch take the bait. We gave up about 4pm and went back to camp. It was nicer there out of the wind. We played catch with a football and then had Italian sausages for supper. Delicious. The temps dropped quickly, so we listened to the Twins in the cab of the truck.

Woke up on Sunday to frozen water bottles. It was chilly, but clear skies ensured it would be warming quickly. We packed up camp and hit the road. First we fished a non-designated lake that is stocked with brown trout. No bites. Next we fished two different streams for brook trout. One creek chub was our only bite. We then tried one more small stream for brook trout. It paid off-we caught several native brook trout. They are absolutely gorgeous fish. Officer Friendly caught one that was about 12 inches long, which is a really nice one for native brook trout in streams. After a bit we noticed that black flies (gnats) were hatching in the river right as we fished. We also noticed the fish were feeding on them. Finally we noticed the fish were so busy eating flies, they didn't want our worms any more. So we headed home, arriving without incident.

Nature Moment: Just after we left camp, Officer Friendly noticed a large bird sitting on a tree next to the road. It turned out to be a Goshawk, which are really cool birds that hunt in thick forests, expertly making tight maneuvers around the trees as they chase prey. Since they like the thick woods, we don't see them very often. This one hung out next the road for a while, so we got a rare good look at it.

Next weekend is walleye and lake trout opener, so I'll be heading up north again, this time fishing with Captain Karkov and his girlfriend.

Last Winter? Camping Trip

I went on my final winter camping trip of 2010 this past weekend. It was touch and go if we would even made the trip up north, as record breaking warm temperatures were threatening the ice. The Lone Chihuahua and Tangerine Boy arrived at my house from the Twin Cities Wednesday night and got some repacking done, told some stories, and hit the hay.

Officer Friendly arrived at 6:00am the next day and we took off for the Gunflint Trail. After a couple stops we arrived at our destination lake. There was absolutely no snow in the woods. It was 50 degrees and windy. The ice had pulled away from the landing enough that we couldn't get on the ice pack. I wandered around and finally found a spot in the shadow of the shore that we could use to get in the lake. We made the decision to just camp in the parking lot instead of going onto the lake to find a campsite. I didn't want to walk 3 miles only to find out that we couldn't find a spot to access the shoreline to camp. We hit the ice to fish near the parking lot. The ice was still about 20 inches thick and fairly solid, but it was shrinking and it was water logged. We checked out some points and islands and managed to land four lake trout between us and Officer Friendly caught a bonus whitefish. We set up camp on a warm evening and enjoyed venison steaks and mushrooms.

On Friday morning we ate breakfast and were about to hit the lake when a busload of high school seniors arrived. 57 kids were planning on camping on the lake. The max group size is 9 in the BWCA, but that didn't seem to bother the leaders. They were head south, so we headed north. After about a two mile walk, we discovered that open water and bad ice in a couple narrows was preventing us from accessing desirable trout water. We were forced to fish in areas that weren't near really deep water (areas with access to deep water is generally better for lake trout). After a bit, Tangerine Boy and the Lone Chihuahua gave up and headed back to deeper water near the landing. Officer Friendly and I stuck it out in the shallow area, fighting off the cold, gray, windy day. It paid off. We each caught several trout, including 2 26 inch and 1 25 inch fish. We wandered back to the main lake and found that our associates had caught nothing. Just after we arrived, however, Tangerine Boy caught a nice trout on a tip-up. I jigged up another trout just before we called it a day. It was corned beef and cabbage for supper-a wonderful meal provided to us by a co-worker.

On Saturday, after a cold night, we all headed back to the hole that Officer Friendly and I had done so well in the day before. We set up Tangerine Boy and the Lone Chihuahua on our holes and Officer Friendly and I went to a new area to fish. I immediately hit a hot streak-jigging up four nice trout in the first 1/2 hour. As I was fighting the last fish, a nice 25 incher, my tip-up went off, and after landing the trout on the jig rod, I went and caught the one on the tip-up too. It was lucky streak. It slowed after that, so we entertained ourselves on the cold, sunny, and windy day by playing on the clear, slippery ice surface. Throwing a frisbee disc on the bare ice meant it would go forever before stopping. We also used our safety picks and ski poles to propel our sleds down the ice. The Lone Chihuahua also played a game where he let his chair blow away down the lake and he chased it for a long time before catching it. The rest of us declined to play that game. The Lone Chihuahua finally caught another trout that afternoon, but that was it. We went back to the main lake for the 5:00 bite and it again paid off, with the Lone Chihuahua and I each jigging up nice trout. Supper was the world famous Tangerine Boy's wife's secret family recipe chili. Delicious.

On Sunday, the Lone Chihuahua and Tangerine Boy packed up and headed home. Officer Friendly and I fished near the landing for a couple hours and she caught 2 more trout. We packed up at noon and hit the road, stopping for lunch at the Gunflint Tavern. It was a good trip to end the year, even though we we unable to reach our original destination.

Nature Moment: On the way north at the beginning of the trip we spotted a lone wolf along the highway. It was in the same area as we saw a wolf two weeks ago.

Trout on the Beach

It was another trip up north this past weekend. The Lieutenant met me at my house at 6am on Thursday. We hitched the snowmachine trailer up to my truck and headed up the North Shore. It is interesting to drive Highway 61 during this time of year. The North Shore is home to a very large population of wintering whitetail deer due to the south facing slope of the hills lining Lake Superior (the south slope gets more winter sun than other areas). As winter begins to fade into spring, melting snow begins to reveal all the deer carcasses along the roadway. There are hundreds of them. Often, when melting conditions are right, the snow under the carcass won't melt and the carcass will be perched up on a snow podium well above the ground. We call the perched carcasses "deersicles." Deersicles attract all kinds of critters, including ravens, coyotes, and bald eagles. On Thursday morning we even saw a timber wolf at a carcass.

We cruised up the Gunflint Trail to our destination lake. We unloaded the snow machines, hitched up the Otter Sleds with our gear in them, and took off down the lake. It was sunny and it was already getting warm as we made our way to our campsite. It was well above freezing as we set up the winter tent and wood stove, organized our gear, and headed out to a proven fishing spot. No fish house or heaters were needed-instead sunglasses and sunscreen were employed. The Lieutenant caught a few small lake trout and one decent one that afternoon and I caught one trout and lost a couple more. We were surprised to see several other anglers on the lake-we had always found the lake to be very quiet in the past. That night we ate wild rice and trout chowder and enjoyed "fire brick ginger cookies," a winter camping staple.

On Friday it was warm again, although a brisk wind cooled things a bit. It was a fast lake trout bite all day. Lieutenant caught several lake trout and I caught eleven. Most of them were on the small side, but I did get a 27 inch fish that was very heavy for its length. Later in the afternoon, I set the hook on a bigger fish. It immediately peeled off nearly all of the line on my reel and the battle was on. After a bit I started to finally gain some line, but soon felt the hook pop free. Aargh. But wait-I still had him...that was odd. I continued the fight, which didn't feel quite normal...the fish felt weird. I got the fish up to the hole and saw it was a dandy...30 to 32 inches, I am guessing. I also saw the cause of the mysterious fight. The lake trout was no longer hooked. The hook had popped free as I had thought, but somehow the hook and line worked together in a veritable lasso to rope the fish around the dorsal fin. I tried to get the fish up the hole tail first, but it slipped out of the "lasso" and swam away. Shucky darn, I said (or words to that effect). Still, it was a good day of fishing. Some of the fish came on my Windlass tip-up, which is always fun. The Windlass is a tip-up that uses a wind sail to jig the bait automatically. It doesn't get a ton of use because it has to be above freezing and windy, but not too windy, to use it. So using it is a treat. It was a warm evening outside as we enjoyed jalapeno brats and sauerkraut for supper.

On Saturday we went back to the hot spot, which broke my general rule of not fishing in the same spot two days in a row for lake trout. I should have listened to myself. It started out pretty well with a nice fish on a tip-up for me and the Lieutenant hooking, but eventually losing a big fish. It shut down after that. I didn't get any more fish and the Lieutenant only caught a few smaller ones. It was another sunny and warm day. Chicken and Dumplings for supper. Lots of people on the ice again today.

Sunday dawned very warm. Concern about deteriorating snow conditions encouraged us to leave right after packing up. Our concern proved to be true as we were forced to cross some bad ice near the open water of a creek mouth and then the bad snow was causing our snowmachines to not cool properly. We made it back to the truck safely however, and, after a Gunflint Tavern lunch, we got back to Duluth by mid-afternoon.

All-in-all, it was another good trip with good fishing part of the time, and slow fishing part of the time, which is fairly typical. Being able to use the snowmachines up north may be done for the year unless some new snow falls. I'll take one more trip in a couple weeks in which I hope to walk a bit into the BWCA. After that, I'll be looking forward to the canoeing season.

Nature Moment: Friday morning, as we were getting settled over a favorite spot, a chorus of howling wolves let their nearby presence known. They were quite close and quite loud.