Annual Fall Trip

Each September, the Smoked Fish Guy and I try to take a fall lake trout trip on the last weekend of the month. This year, we were joined by the Farmer and Chief Many-Little-Bottles. We met Thursday morning and got the gear packed before heading north to Grand Marais and the Gunflint Trail. We located our entry point, paddled for a bit, and then took the moderate portage into our destination lake. We trolled our way towards our desired campsite and caught a few trout right away. The campsite we wanted was available and we got the tents and kitchen tarp set up in a drizzle. It was chilly and the drizzle was annoying but there was only a slight breeze as we got back into the canoes and trolled up a few lake trout for supper. After a happy hour that included our favorite Fitgers Brewhouse beers, we made a pot of red beans and rice complete with mirepoix and andouille sausage. Fried trout finished the entree. Delicious. Lots of laughs occurred that night, but not around a campfire...with the Pagami Creek Fire still burning well to our southwest, there was fire ban.

On Friday the weather remained chilly and gray, but it was dry. We fished for lake trout and did well, getting many eating sized fish. We learned from another group that the fire ban had been lifted that morning and fires were now allowed between 6pm and 12am. Chief and Farmer took a walk with the shotgun on a nearby lengthy portage and found a sign placed by the Forest Service that confirmed that the fire ban had been lifted, but did not find any grouse. We had fried trout and pesto noodles that night...delicious again.

Saturday dawned with more gray clouds, but as the sun rose the clouds burned off and we enjoyed a sunny, but not exactly warm, day. We caught some more lake trout, took a (short) swim, explored a nearby campsite, and relaxed. There was lots of conversation about food and different ways to prepare and preserve a variety of meats. We had curry coconut rice with lake trout that night-a really great dish. We enjoyed a campfire and gazing at the stars.

Sunday awoke with a thick fog and a grouse right in camp, but the gun could not be loaded in time to add it to our breakfast, which included a variety of smoked and cured meat products. The fog burned off and the sun came out as we packed up camp. We trolled up a couple more lakers as we headed to the portage. It was an uneventful drive home to Duluth. It was another great trip-extremely relaxing and lots of laughs with good friends.

Not sure that I will be able to get out again in October-the schedule is pretty tight. It looks like I might not get out again until the ice forms.

Nature Moment: On Saturday each canoe had gathered a bunch of firewood while we were out and brought it back to camp. When he took the wood out of Chief's canoe, the Farmer noticed a very small lizard-like animal in the bottom of the canoe. Striped with short legs and a long tail, it was only about 4 inches long. A baby salamander or something unknown? We'll have to investigate using the photos we took and find out what it was. Watch this blog for updates.

Feelin' the Burn

I took a nice fishing trip last week with some family and friends. The gang (Tangerine Boy, Wacky Worm, and Trail Mix) arrived on Wednesday night and we finished packing. On Thursday morning we headed up the North Shore and to the Gunflint Trail. We caught a tow boat ride across the first lake and paddled and portaged our way into an area that was burned in the Ham Lake fire. We were able to find an adequate campsite in a small area that hadn't burned and set up camp on a slightly warm, but overall pleasant afternoon. The fellas set up their rods and started catching some decent smallmouth bass after a bit. I cooked up a supper of brats and a vegetable medley. It was a nice evening with no bugs.

On Friday we had breakfast burritos and hit the lake. It was sunny and in the mid-70's. It was a bit breezy, but manageable. Tangerine Boy and Trail Mix hit a steep shoreline and caught a nice walleye right away. Wacky Worm and I found a familiar mid-lake reef, caught a few bass off the top of it, and then did some trolling around the edge. We were rewarded with several nice eating sized walleye that we invited for supper. Wacky Worm had a larger fish on that felt like a large walleye, but it spit the hook after a bit. We then joined the others in bass fishing the shoreline out of the wind. It was fun to watch Wacky Worm slowly work his artificial baits on the steep edges of the lake. He caught many nice bass. I trolled behind and caught a few bass and got bit off by a couple northerns that felt decent. One took my green artificial worm. Tangerine Boy and Trail Mix had equal if not better fishing for the smallies working the same shoreline, and later they spotted a bear eating blueberries on a burned hill next to the water. They got some good video of it. That night the shorefishing never turned on, but we enjoyed red beans and rice with andouille sausage and fried walleye for supper. It was another pleasant evening.

On Saturday we switched partners and I went out with Trail Mix to the "Grocery Store" walleye reef after an early morning rain shower and breakfast. The fish were still there, but this morning they were bigger. Trail Mix caught an eater walleye and a bigger bass and I had my best fishing of the trip, getting a 19" smallie, an 18" smallie, a 21.5" walleye, and a 26" walleye, all released. It was lots of fun but the fishing slowed quickly, and remained slow the rest of the day. Another walleye was added to the stringer at some point, and the bass bit a little, but overall it was slower. Trail Mix did pick up two decent pike on one pass over a reef. Trail Mix's pike had a green artificial worm hanging from its mouth-the same one I lost the day before. He caught the pike about 1/2 a mile from where I lost it. We had walleye with mashed potatoes that night. It did rain a bit that evening.

On Sunday morning it was a pleasant day as Wacky Worm and I hit the "Grocery Store" again, but only picked up one eater walleye. We switched to bass fishing the cliffs and were rewarded with several nice bass and a couple decent northern pike (28" to 30"). We checked out some other campsites on the lake, and most were made unusable by the burn. After a bit we headed to a smooth rock hill, intending to climb it and take some photos of the lake. As we waited for Tangerine Boy and Trail Mix to meet us there, we found a nice blueberry patch to snack on. The others arrived and informed us they had enjoyed fantastic fishing for smallmouth bass, including some larger ones. They had found a bay off the main lake and the fish were stacked in there. We climbed up the hill and took some photos of the view. Rain showers were just missing us to the north as we then hiked further into the burned woods to an even higher promontory. The view from there was spectacular as was the highest spot around in every direction except west. It was well worth the break in fishing to see the sights. After our hike and photo session, we hit the water again, determined to catch enough walleyes for supper. Wacky Worm and I hit searched the grocery store again, but didn't find the fish. We expanded our search around the reef and we found a secondary reef to the north that held the walleyes. We caught several, keeping a few for supper. It felt good to persevere. In the middle of our search we were caught by a surprise rain shower that came of the hill to our west. The other guys rode it out under the tarp in camp, but we never saw it coming. We weren't too wet, though, as we paddled back to camp and made a supper of pesto noodles and walleye.

On Monday it was calm as we quickly packed (Trail Mix and I had slept in a bit longer than anticipated) and paddled back down the lake to the portages and the tow boat pick up. For good measure, Wacky Worm caught a 19" smallmouth bass from shore as we waited for the tow to show. The tow ride was slow as the motor was running poorly and the operator had some issues with the route through the shallow rock section. We got the truck loaded up, made it back down the Trail, had some lunch in Grand Marais, made it back to Duluth, got the gear sorted out, and sent everyone on their way. It was good trip. We got to say hi to all of Trail Mix's family-they had come up to visit My Wonderful Bride and Super Kid while us guys were out fishing. Sounds like they had a fun Duluth weekend.

My next trip will be to the Ely area, as the MIL has rented a cabin there and asked my family to join her for a long weekend in mid-September.

Nature Moment: When paddling up the lake on our first day, we spotted movement along shoreline and were surprised to see three Great Horned Owls hanging on a tree along shore in the middle of the day. It seemed to be an unusual sight...three owls in one spot, but we surmised that they were this year's nearly fully grown owlets, waiting for mom to bring a meal.

Take a Kid Fishing

I took a fun little fishing trip earlier this week. On Sunday morning Officer Friendly, the Smoked Fish Guy, and I got the camping gear, a boat, 2 canoes, and the Smoked Fish Guy's three boys (Fire Feeder-age 10, and twins Spider Man and Chatter Box, age 8) packed up and we headed north. We picked up the permit and a rented a boat at the landing (I have my own motor). So, at about 10am, we headed off into the lake with 2 motor boats, 2 canoes (on a rack on the Smoked Fish Guy's boat), 3 adults, 3 kids, and a ton of gear and refreshments. The trip across the first lake and then the "truck portage" (actually a four wheeler and a boat trailer) went smoothly as did the long ride across the BWCA (motors allowed) lake we would be camping on. After getting camp set up and taking a swim on this hot, muggy day, we set out to get some fish for supper. A reef just off camp produced several eating sized smallmouth bass, which we fried up and ate. The mosquitoes were out in force at dusk. Unfortunately, the Smoked Fish Guy's outboard motor quit while we were out fishing and wouldn't start again. (Phone conversations (cell coverage is quite good in this part of the BWCA) with the boat rental place later in the week were not fruitful in getting a replacement motor brought to us (odd logistical issues), so in the end we would just tow one boat.)

On Monday, we had a leisurely breakfast, packed our fishing gear, and portaged into a nearby, smaller, lake. It was a breezy day as paddled Fire Feeder and Spider Man around, trolling spinners. All I did was paddle, bait hooks, and unhook fish. The kids were great and the action was fast for eater walleyes and small northern pike. The Smoked Fish Guy, Officer Friendly, and Chatter Box also had lots of action. We left the canoes on the far side of the portage and went back to camp via the portage and a connecting trail. After a swim, we cleaned our walleyes and fried them up with some mac and cheese.

Tuesday dawned much cooler with a breeze. We packed our gear and headed back across the portage. This time I was pair up with Officer Friendly and Chatter Box. We explored the north portion of the lake getting some pike and walleyes trolling spinners and Officer Friendly caught a couple walleyes from shore while eating lunch. One was fairly large-the biggest walleye I had ever seen in this particular lake. We portaged the canoe and gear back to the big lake after lunch and did some fishing there, getting only small bass and one big bluegill-an unusual BWCA catch by Officer Friendly. We had fried fish and mashed potatoes for supper.

Wednesday morning was cool and breezy. We packed up camp and then rigged up a tow rope for the rental boat after putting my operational motor on the Smoked Fish Guy's boat. The whole operation, including the truck portage, when surprisingly well and we made it back to the landing unscathed. After getting the gear packed in the van and trailering the boat, we headed home, stopping for burgers at a local joint.

It was a fun trip. The boats allowed us to bring some luxury items such as beer and chairs, the fishing was good, and I enjoyed helping the kids learn some new skills (trolling, portaging, gathering firewood, etc.).

Nature Moment: The kids were not fans of the bugs in the BWCA. Their biggest concern was for spiders. Spider Man was particularly anxious. On Tuesday night we were just about to hit the hay when my headlamp caught a shadow hovering right above Spider Mans's head. It was a huge, creepy looking spider descending from a pine tree. Much to Spider Man's relief, the arachnid zipped back up to the crown of the tree when he saw us checking him out.

July 4th Fun

We took a family camping trip over the 4th this year. On Sunday morning (the 3rd) My Wonderful Bride, Super Kid, and I left Duluth and headed up the shore. We turned inland at Grand Marais and headed up the Gunflint Trail. After lunch at trail center, we continued on to our chosen campground. We had reserved a very nice site with big pines and a lake view. Super Kid was very excited and helped set up the tents and the rest of camp. It was a warm, sunny day and the Bride took a nap while Super Kid and I played cards and listened to the ball game. We had a great supper of chicken and red beans and rice. I did some shore fishing that night and caught one walleye with the lighted bobbber. Mosquitoes were out in force.

On Monday the 4th, we had a lazy morning with big breakfast and then we took off on canoe ride. We spotted a mama bear and cub in a nearby tree, just hanging out. We didn't get any fish and it was getting muggy, so we drove to a nearby lake to enjoy it's sandy beach. After lunch My Bride and Super Kid took a nap. We dodged rain showers and took a walk to see a small waterfall that afternoon. We took another swim as well. The muggy day gave way to severe thunderstorms that night, right after bed time. I had to wake My Bride and Super Kid up to evacuate camp when one of the storms hit (the big pines made me nervous regarding lightening and strong winds). After it calmed we were able to get back to sleep.

On Tuesday we drove down the road to a river area to check for moose, but didn't spot any. We then checked out a new museum that featured the history and nature of the Gunflint Trail. It was nice and kid friendly. We took a walk on their boardwalk and watched a loon on her nest. After lunch we all took naps. I did a little fishing that afternoon and we did some swimming and went to a nearby outfitters for ice cream. It was a quiet evening.

On Wednesday we packed up and hit the road back to Grand Marais, where we had lunch. It was an uneventful ride home.

Nature Moment: A pair of merlins (small hawk/falcons) were nested in a pine tree right new our campsite. They were interesting to observe. We saw mid-air handoffs of food (mice and songbirds) and we laughed at their protectiveness of the nest. They would attack anything that wandered into their area. We saw them hit eagles, vultures, ducks, and sea gulls.

Sun Dappled Rocks and Sea Salt

The Umpteenth Annual Camp Sh*tstorm Canoe Trip occurred this past week. It was a great trip with excellent fishing and even better comradeship. It might have been my favorite wilderness trip thus far.

Fran Tarkington Fan, The Smoked Fish Guy, and I finished up most of the packing on Thursday, June 2. A bear meandered across the Smoked Fish Guy's back yard as we ate supper. The rest of the gang arrived late that night and we all sacked out around the house. We woke up at dawn put the final items in the vehicles and hit the road on the morning of June 3. We headed north and made it through the Canadian border station in short order. After crossing a bridge that was very rough due to a construction project, we hit a snag. The canoe trailer that had been recently repaired had re-broken a weld. Wear-Some-Shorts made a temporary repair using some rope and we limped the unit into a nearby mining town. After striking out at the hardware store when looking for supplies to make a better repair, we soon found ourselves at a large fabricating shop, who nicely dropped everything to weld the offending piece. Repaired and with permit now in hand, we drove to the Quetico entry point just down the road, loaded the canoes and hit the water, just a bit later than planned. We cruised across the first lake and portage, then made our way through series of lakes and narrows to a campsite on a small river between two large lakes. After setting up camp and eating a great supper of steaks and asparagus with the local microbrew, we set out to get some evening walleyes. Gatorade and I did pretty well, getting a couple walleyes and a fairly large northern pike (around 30 inches). The others had less success, but a few other fish were caught. After some laughs catching up with each other around the campfire, we hit the hay.

Saturday morning dawn warm, sunny, and breezy. We packed up camp and had egg burritos for breakfast. After loading the canoes, we rode the tailwind east down the long, narrow lake, fishing as we went. Gatorade caught a really nice walleye (26") nearly right away, and we caught multiple smallmouth bass and small northern pike. We caught up with Wear-Some-Shorts as we crossed into some deeper water that looked good for lake trout. Both Gatorade and Wear-Some-Shorts caught nice lakers that were strung up for supper. A nice island campsite was found at the mouth of a bay and we set up camp, had a cocktail or two, and then the Smoked Fish Guy led the cooking up of a Thai curry rice with lake trout dish that was excellent. Unfortunately, a fillet knife accident during meal preparation resulted in Gatorade stitching up a nasty cut on the Smoked Fish Guy's left index finger. It was a nice evening.

On Sunday we packed up and hit the lake on another beautiful day. We made two moderate portages and arrived on our destination lake, a massive, wending body of water. Gatorade and I joined Tick Check and the Freshman at a rapids coming into the lake. We watched The Freshman fight a huge northern pike, but lose it after 15 minutes of fighting it. Fortunately, on his very next cast, the Freshman hooked another big fish. After a big battle, I helped to coach him on how to land a big pike and he secured the fish in his grasp. It was at least 40" long-his personal best. Gatorade and I failed to get any fish at the spot and we soon moved on to fish for lakers in the middle. We had no luck as we crossed the big part of the lake, but when we cruised into a deep narrows, both of our rods bent over. We were both surprised to reel up two nice walleyes on our trout spoons! We made a couple more passes in front of the rock face and caught several more nice walleyes on the spoons. We made a final small portage into the next lake and found the rest of the group on a fantastic five star campsite. All reported good luck catching nice sized walleyes, but no trout were found. A feast of red beans and rice with andouille sausage and fried walleye was prepared and subsequently devoured by the group. Another great day.

On Monday morning we switched up partners and left camp intact as we all explored areas of the lake. I was paired up with Fran Tarkington Fan and we found a few bass in shallow pockets as we fished our way to a major rapids pouring into the lake. Soon after throwing our first casts with jigs into the current, Fran Fan declares he has a snag. As we tried to get it out, however, the "snag" began to move. After about 15 minutes of a slow, dogged fight, I told Fran Fan that I thought he had a sturgeon (the largest freshwater fish in the area). After yet another 15 minutes, I thought the fish must be foul hooked. Finally the fish came to the surface and it was indeed a foul hooked sturgeon. Fran Fan landed it expertly and we got a quick photo before releasing it. We were 1/3 of a mile away from where the fish was first hooked. We went back to the current and proceeded to catch many "eater" sized walleyes. After a bit, we stopped at a nearby rock and took a bath on this warm, calm day. The rocks were warm, the water was not, but we succeeded in getting some of the grime off. From there we headed down the lake to its outlet, where there was significant current pouring over a deep rock reef. On the reef were many hefty walleyes. Tick Check and the Smoked Fish Guy along with Gatorade and Dr. Calm joined us in the bonanza. No monsters, but lots of 22"-23" walleyes were hauled up and released. Doubles in canoes were common and there were some triples and two near quadruples (four of us fighting walleyes at the same time). A very fun afternoon. We had fried walleye and gourmet mac and cheese for supper.

We woke to rain on Tuesday. We putzed around camp making blueberry pancakes and waiting for the rain to subside, which it did around noon. I was paired with Dr. Calm this day and we headed back up to the big rapids. Dr. Calm hooked a fish on his first cast and yet another long fight occurred. He finally landed a big northern pike after a good tussle. It was probably about 38 or 39 inches long, his biggest fish ever, and, true to his name, Dr. Calm's heart rate barely rose during the entire event. We caught a bunch more walleyes and we also got out of the canoes and explored the woods next to the rapids. It was raining again as we headed back to camp, but soon cleared. We enjoyed fried walleye and "Quetico Supremes" (grilled salami, swiss cheese, and mustard sandwiches) for supper.

On Wednesday it was damp, chilly, and windy. We packed up camp and struck out down the river to the next lake, fishing a few spots as went, getting a few nice walleyes and smallies and Gatorade got a decent pike. The Smoked Fish Guy and Fran Fan hit a little inlet and were rewarded with some big smallmouth bass. We made a few portages and were met with a stiff wind on our destination lake. After some exploration we settled on a campsite and ate our only meal without fish-pesto noodles with salamini. Fantastic-it might be my favorite.

Thursday dawned chilly but sunny and we all went out after lake trout. Tick Check and I caught a few bass and several walleyes right away, and after a good luck feather ceremony, I finally caught a nice trout off of a rock wall. Tick Check lost another good one right at the boat. Soon afterward he accidentally lost his rod and reel in the water. Our efforts to snag it back were fruitless. Gatorade and Freshman caught two nice lakers and Wear-Some-Shorts got his personal best trout-about 30 inches. It was Kek Burgers (lake trout bacon cheeseburgers) and baked trout for supper. The Smoked Fish Guy and Tick Check did a great job with another excellent meal.

On Friday we packed up and hit the first of four moderate portages. We made the carries without incident and ended up back at the spot where we camped the first night. We trolled our way past that site and into the next several lakes, which are connected by channels. Nearly all of us were rewarded with lake trout. We were back within one portage of the landing and the "crowds" appeared (still a heckuva lot less people than the BWCA). We found a nice campsite after a short search and set up a roaring fire on precipice of a cliff over looking the big, island studded lake. The sun came out just in time for a spectacular sunset. We dined on trout boiled in spiced water and drizzled with butter. The side dish was mashed potatoes with hamburger and veggies.

Finally, on Saturday, June 11, we packed up camp on a spectacularly sunny and calm morning. We cruised across the lone remaining portage and paddled to the landing and the waiting vehicles. We got the gear and canoes loaded and headed down the road, stopping for a "game and fish" checkpoint, which went fine, and for burgers once back in the USA. Back in Duluth, we shook hands and said our goodbyes, already discussing trip ideas for next year.

Looking back, this may have been my favorite trip ever. The fishing was excellent, the weather was great, the entire route was new to me, the food was out of this world, and the fellowship was beyond fun. There were a few bugs and other challenges, but they simply added to the adventure. Despite some long paddles and a few moderate portages, this trip was always relaxing. I am truly thankful that the group lets me join them and I am looking forward to next year.

My next trip will also be a good one-my beloved wife and child will be joining me on a family camping trip to the Gunflint Trail over the 4th of July.

Nature Moment: On the road heading to the entry point, we were lucky enough to see a mama bear and her twin cubs cross the road in front of us. The cubs were still tiny and super cute with their long legs flying everywhere as they ran. Kinda reminded me of Superkid.

Pleasantville

Ardent followers of this blog (all four of you) will remember the unfortunate experience I had with a fellow angler last opening weekend. I even went so far as to declare that I would never go fishing on opening weekend again. Fortunately for me, a good friend, Chief MLB, asked if I would join him at his family's hunting cabin this year. It is located on a navigable river that, while not being known as great fishing river, does have some fish in it. I agreed to go and Captain K and the Lt. decided to join us. We left Friday afternoon and cruised north, marveling at all the big boats and motors heading the same direction. We stopped for lunch, did some grocery shopping, and made our way to the cabin's one lane, rocky, and muddy access road. It was drizzling and cold as we got out of the truck and checked out the site. The cabin is perfect-made from logs, one room, four bunks, a table, and a wood stove. No cell service, no electricity, no problem. A step back in time. We got the motors put on the boats and had some grilled venison for supper.

On Saturday, opening day, we rose, had some breakfast and headed out fishing on a chilly morning. We explored the river, ran some swift current areas and checked out a creek, all with no fishing luck. We spotted a rotting, bloated moose carcass floating downstream, and also rescued a wooden chair that had floated away from camp during the spring flood and jammed against a tree downstream. Finally, we caught a couple smallmouth bass near a larger rapids. As the sun started to come out, we went back to camp and I watched Chief and Lt. set up their muzzleloaders and do some target shooting. Kind of a neat way to hunt, they even let me shoot them a couple times, and I didn't make a fool of myself-I hit the target pretty square on both times. Pure luck, but I'll let them think I am a good shot, just in case. While we were shooting, Capt. did some shore fishing and caught a nice walleye. It was the only one home. Some friends of Chief's boated up and shared a happy hour with us. We grilled some large pieces of meat for supper and sat outside around the campfire.

I was the first to rise on a sunny morning on Sunday. I threw a line off the dock and immediately caught a nice walleye. Capt. soon joined me and he caught another one. Chief caught a walleye when we went out in the boats a bit later, but that was it for the day. It was beautiful afternoon and we packed up and cleaned the cabin, putting everything back in its place, as other family members were coming up later in the week. It was an uneventful ride home.

It was a very nice opener, and I really enjoyed seeing the old cabin and hearing about all its history, a great family tradition.

I don't have any plans to get out until the big Camp Sh*tstorm trip June 3-11, but maybe I'll get out around Duluth for a couple hours in the next couple weekends.

Winter Gear Review

Now that the ice fishing season has wrapped up, here are my reviews of some products I tested out this year.

Showdown Troller…The Troller is a super small ice fishing flasher type depthfinder made by Marcum. The intent of the product is to give people a flasher option that is easy to use when moving from hole to hole when tying to find fish (“trolling”). I thought it would be a good option for wilderness ice fishing where limiting space and weight is important.
Pro: The Troller truly is lightweight as it runs on six AA batteries and is the size of a couple baseballs.
Pro: Its vertical screen is easier to interpret compared to the standard circular flashers.
Pro: I also like the fact it gives you the depth in text in the corner-that way there is no need to do math when looking at the screen (circular models often require you to interpret your depth by multiplying the depth shown by 2 or 4).
Pro: Another nice feature is the option to heat the LCD screen so it won’t slow down when used outside.
Pro: Finally, the cost of the Troller is much less than any other quality flasher. I have seen them for as little as $169.
Con: The screen on the Troller is very small and when you are in a depth at the low to mid point of its 20 feet ranges, it is even smaller yet. For example, if you are in 24 feet of water, you are in the top end of the 20-40 foot range. This means the screen is about ½ the size it would be if you were in 39 feet of water. At 39 feet, you would be using nearly the entire screen. The result of having a super small screen when fishing at the example of 24 feet is that you barely see fish coming up from the bottom to look at your bait, because there is such a small difference between your bait hanging at 23 feet and the bottom of 24 feet.
Con: Additional issues include the AA battery run time of 20 hours. It makes using standard AA batteries less desirable, as you’ll go through them pretty quickly. I chose to invest in rechargeable AA batteries instead. The run time of 20 hours can still be a bit short when you are in the wilderness, though, with no access to the recharger. I had to bring a back up set of batteries on most 4 day trips.
Con: The size of the unit also has its drawbacks-you could easily drop the flasher down a fishing hole.
Con: The unit seemed to struggle to identify fish that were hugging the ice right below your hole. One weekend I used both the Troller and my old Vexilar and the Vexilar identified multiple fish right under the ice over the course of the trip and the Troller never did. It could be coincidence and I just never had any shallow trout come in when using the Troller, but my experience doesn’t support that theory.
Con: The Troller simply doesn’t mark fish as well as my Vexilar does. Fish shown on the Troller were often just the same size as my jig on the screen, which made identify active fish versus interference, bait, and bubbles somewhat difficult. Additionally, I often would get surprise bites from fish I simply never saw come up to my bait.
Final analysis…the Troller is good enough for what I bought it for-walking into the wilderness to ice fish when conditions make going lightweight a critical factor. It performed well enough in those situations. By making sure I fished at a depth at the bottom of one of its ranges (19 feet, 39 feet, 59 feet), I overcame the small screen issue. If space, weight, and cost are your concern, the Troller is not a bad purchase. It should be noted that I don’t have analyses of its toughness or longevity yet.

Active Trax Speaker…Made by Seattle Sports , this little 3 x 3 x 3 speaker plays my iPod and is an am/fm and weather radio. It has a permanent battery that is recharged by plugging it in to the wall at home, by a solar panel, or by a crank. You can also plug your iPod in with a usb cable and charge the iPod using the crank or solar panel.
Pro: The speaker, its connecting cords, and an iPod Nano fit in a provided little case that is very compact and lightweight-it fits well on a wilderness trip.
Pro: Seattle Sports says the battery will last seven hours on a full charge-but it seemed to last much longer than that.
Con: As stated above, the battery lasted longer than the 7 hours stated, but it also seemed that the unit sucked power from the iPod itself. I must say I am not sure about that…my Nano’s battery may be not performing as long as it once did.
Con: The crank and solar power options are barely worth it…the solar panel takes many hours to charge the unit (think days, not hours, to fully charge) and 2 minutes of full cranking only yields about 20 minutes of power to the speaker/radio.
Con: In light of the previous Con, this note is particularly concerning-the Active Trax Speaker no longer comes with the wall outlet charging option like mine.
Con: Like so many cheap radios I have owned, the first issue with this unit was volume control. After a couple uses, the volume degraded into 2 options-loud or off. Not real sure why, but I have had couple units develop this issue.
Final analysis…This unit is really close to being the perfect unit for winter camping and ice fishing in the wilderness. It has all the needed features. Unfortunately, it isn’t a quality unit and its charging slowness makes it an annoyance. I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone without seeing some major improvements. I am not sure what other options are out there, though.

Texsport Propane Mini-Heater…To make my small flip shack (see below) viable, I needed small propane heater that left room in the house for my depthfinder. I found a Texsport heater as one of the few options. Unfortunately, it malfunctioned on just my 2nd trip of the winter. It would work fine for a bit, but then would suddenly start roaring and the unit would become so red hot that I feared it would melt down or explode. I would shut it off for a bit and then restart it. Again, it would work for a bit, but then over heat a short time later. I was forced to retire it. Interestingly, I had an older heater of this type that was made by a different company. It had done the exact same thing (but not until I had owned it for many years). I am thinking about sending the new heater back to Texsport, but even they send me a new one, I am not sure I would trust the heater enough to take it on a trip.

Modified Mini Portable Fish House…If you recall from my November 16, 2010 post, I had modified my super lightweight, small flip style portable ice fishing shack with several items. Unfortunately, the improvements didn’t result in a drastically more comfortable experience. Extending the snowflaps did block more wind from coming in the house, but strong winds still found their way in-the house’s lack of a zippered door prevents the sealing of the flaps with snow. The reflectix insulation cut for the ceiling did keep the house warmer and held off frost formation, and the rod and drink holders worked great. However, the house has some fatal flaws that mean I won’t be using it too much in the future. One issue is the lack of the door as discussed above. A second issue is the overall lack of room in the house. It simply is too small for a heater, depth finder, and fishing hole to co-exist and it is hard to reach behind your back into the tub to get your lunch, for example. Another major flaw is that, despite its light weight and small size, the unit is harder to pull through snow than a regular hauling pulk or toboggan style sled. This is simply because it is wider at the base-narrowness makes more of a difference than weight. I’ll keep the house around for others to use when they join me, but my search for the perfect fish house continues.

Cooler Storage Chair…Also revealed on my November 16, 2010 post was my cooler that I had modified into a chair and storage unit. I specifically developed it to use in the modified fish house discussed above. My review of this item is a positive one. The chair was comfortable and the storage unit was hard sided, water proof, and roomy. When I took the snowmachine and had a bigger chair and my bigger fish house along, I used the cooler as a table and it was a welcome addition. The best part of the cooler’s storage was my idea of attaching items that are used more often or needed at a moment’s notice (e.g. hemostats) on the outside front panel. This meant those items were always handy. When walking in deeper snow, however, I did leave the cooler at home and lightened the load with 2 smaller softside coolers and a smaller chair.

Rod Tubes…Yet again revealed on my November 16, 2010 post, were my homemade protective rod tubes. Made from clear plastic tubes originally designed to protect fluorescent light bulbs, the rod protectors are flexible and didn’t seem to become brittle when cold. They worked great when walking to the chosen fishing spot. When taking the snowmachine, though, they didn’t seem protective enough. When the snowmachine is hauling the Otter Sled, I tend to pile more gear in and it became difficult to find a spot on top for the rods in their cases. A solid box is still desirable and the development of a prototype is in the works.

Tent Base…I fabricated a wooden base for my canvas tent. The base is made of 2 x 6 treated deck boards that are stood on their sides and fastened in the corners to make a rectangle with the same dimensions (8 x 11)as the tent bottom (there is no floor in this tent). I put hinges in strategic places in the deck boards in order to make sure the base would fold easily in the back of my truck.
Pro: The base worked better than even anticipated. It forms a more defined shape for the bottom of the tent, ensuring you are getting maximum use of the floor space.
Pro: It raises the A-frame tent 5.5 inches, creating a surprising gain in living space.
Pro: The solid base forms a solid wall to throw snow against to seal the bottom.
Con: The base is very heavy-it will only be used when camping right next to the truck.
Con: The base raises the snowflaps off the ground, so you have to have plenty of snow handy to seal the tent bottom from the elements. This makes the base less useful for fall hunting trips or spring fishing outings.
Final analysis…the tent base was a good project. I got almost all the materials from leftover stuff in my garage. I often said that most of my use of the winter tent would be camping right next to the truck, and the base makes it even more comfortable. The base would also make it more comfortable to camp right on the ice if you could drive to your spot. Would I drill holes and fish in it? I’d want to build a floor for it first.