Even with all today’s emphasis on technology, gaming stations and cell phones, most youngsters still find a certain fascination with fishing. A youth’s excitement at pulling a fish from the watery world of a lake, stream or river is something that has endured for ages.

I vividly recall the first fish I caught on a rod and reel. My dad and I were out in a boat fishing for sunfish. He showed me how to bait the hook and instructed me to keep a sharp eye on my bobber. It was only a few minutes before the bobber suddenly sank from sight. Words can’t explain the excitement that sinking  bobber caused in me. All the anticipation and enthusiasm I had been storing up came out in one big rush as I threw my rod and reel on the floor of the boat and pulled in the struggling bluegill hand over hand. I imagine my dad thought it was rather funny, but all I can remember is being embarrased. I think it was the last time I dropped my rod and reel and elected to pull the fish in by hand.

The bluegill was not even a big one. In fact, it was on the small side, but it looked like a whale that day. We continued to catch fish and enjoy the day. I pestered my father with silly questions like “Are they called sunfish because they bite best on sunny days?” and “Would the fish bite me if they had the chance?”

If I had to single out my happiest fishing days it would be those days when I was young. I was thrilled more then by a biting fish, and I took nothing for granted.

When I first started journaling my outdoor exploits, I wrote about taking my first boy on his first fishing trip. Since then I have introduced three more children to the sport – the youngest one just this spring. They have taken to the sport with various amounts of interest. Some consider it fun now and then, others want to go every chance they get. But one thing remains constant with all of them – we get closer when we go fishing together. I’m convinced that if you don’t take your kids fishing you are missing out on a great experience. It is a blast and teaches young people a form of good clean recreation. But most of all, fishing bridges any gap left by a generation of time and gives parents and children something in common. I don’t know who will enjoy it the most, the parent or the child!

Share/Bookmark

Have you ever thought about why a walleye will bite on a leech, or even a nightcrawler for that matter? Unless there is some sort of natural displacement phenomenon that I’m not aware of, I doubt a walleye happens across a leech or a night crawler very often.

In all the icthyology (study of fish) books I have, only one mentioned that leeches were a part of a walleye’s diet. There’s a chance that a leech may wander into deeper walleye haunts and get gobbled up. Yet do you know where they get the kind of leeches you buy at a bait store? They’re caught in swamps and ponds with lush cattail, lily pad, and algal growth. Not exactly what you’d call walleye waters.

How about nightcrawlers? No fish book I have says nightcrawlers are standard walleye fare, or even a fraction thereof. Now a river walleye may run across a ‘crawler that slithered into the current, but in a lake it’s not likely.

So why do walleyes, and other fish, devour these unlikely baits? My guess is they just seem like darn good food at the moment. What does a fish care if they’ve never seen them before?

Actually, fish like baits that are even more far fetched than leeches and nightcrawlers. I’ve caught sunnies on bread wadded up on a hook. Once a bunch of us kids at a family reunion caught some on potato chips. The tough part was getting a chip on a hook. There was a time in desperation when I hooked a chunk of bacon on a big hook and added a piece of orange peel. The bacon would ripple through the water just like a snake. And the orange peel gave it a neat color contrast. I thought it looked great – and a big northern or bass did to. That fish swallowed it right down but I managed to lose it before we could get a hand on it. Now that I think of it, that piece of bacon came through the water just like one of those new Sluggo baits that are so popular. There was even a lure called the Porko made of pork rind. Another great idea I didn’t capitalize on.

I have yet to catch a fish on a cigarette butt, however. That used to be the vogue saying years ago. You know, “the fish were biting so well they’d hit a cigarette butt flipped out into the water.” Anyway, who would want to eat a fish that had a butt in it’s mouth.

So unlike humans, fish are not what they eat. That’s a good thing. They don’t know what they like anyway. Leeches, bacon,  potato chips, nightcrawlers, and cigarette butts. If there’s a common denominator present, I can’t see it.

Share/Bookmark

Even though tourism marketers insist their demographics and surveys reveal outdoor sports like golf and tennis are equal, or even surpass, fishing and hunting in popularity today, my heart says it isn’t so. True, golf and tennis are admirable sports, games at which I embarrass myself at occasionally. But when ever has a tee shot onto the green or acing an opponent on the serve really made one’s heart race or cause hardened global entrepreneurs to turn giddy? It happens all the time when hunting and fishing!

My friend Jim is such an example. He is a self-made millionaire from out east who earned his fortune with an unrelenting work ethic, nerves of steel, and veins with ice coursing through them. He appears to fear no one, and has enjoyed wild success in all he’s set out to do. Yet a simple walleye unnerved him.

Jim visited the Brainerd area awhile back to speak at a convention of utility professionals. Once he was through he had one request: to go walleye fishing. He had done many things like mountain biking across France and claimed victory at prestigious sailing regattas, but he wanted to catch a walleye.

To better assure success, we lined up guide Rob Rasinski who had fished Gull Lake all his life. He had been guiding his clients to limits of walleyes for a few days, so we left the dock with expectations on high. The day was one of those rare Indian Summer days. The leaves were in full autumn glory, the sky was brilliant blue, and the unseasonable temperatures had the thermometer up over seventy degrees. We agreed that no matter the outcome, just being out on the lake that day had already made it a wild success. Still, we both wanted walleyes.

The recommended bait offering was typical fall fashion – a red tailed chub hooked on a slip sinker rig and fished on the bottom. The first spot held fish, but none that cared for red tailed chubs. Same with the second, third, and fourth spot. I listened to Jim’s stories of high stakes business launches and hard-nosed negotiations. Rob got more serious. Like any proud fishing guide, he said the empty live well wasn’t looking too good.

On our fifth spot, we finally hit active fish. Rob caught a keeper walleye and showed Jim what they looked like. Witnessing a little success got us going. Jim started telling the fish they had better bite. I told him it wasn’t the same as cutting a deal with humans. Then he got a solid walleye bite. He tried to feed it line, fumbled with the reel bail, and tried to keep the tangle out of his line -  all at the same time. High buck investments and Wall Street deals couldn’t rattle him, but a scaly, small-brained fish had him talking to himself.

Jim was quick though and rebounded well. He gathered the line and set the hook. The look on his face was priceless. Nervousness, excitement and joy all at once. Rob netted the walleye and brought it in. Jim was as giddy as a kid at Christmas. Here was a man who had all financial and professional success a person could want, and catching a walleye was at the moment the greatest thing that had ever happened to him.

The fascination of all things wild can indeed make grown men and women act like youngsters. And youngsters, well, they are the best to watch as they experience hunting for the first time. Trevor, who is the last of my boys, turned nine earlier this year. He was old enough to come along and watch on the opening day of duck season. Like us older folks, he found joy in all aspects of the hunt. Packing a lunch with favored goodies, loading up the gear, and driving the ATV far into the woods were all just little slices of the day to be savored.

There were wet places to cross and woods to travel through before we arrived at the beaver dam that we expected to hold wood ducks, mallards, and teal. Trevor carried our lunch and some gear in a small scout back pack that I had gotten when I was about his age. There’s something very satisfying in seeing kids today leave the video games and cable television behind and strike off on an adventure with Dad.

We stopped at a traditional spot in the woods for lunch with family and cousins. Season was still two hours off, so some of the younger hunters, and Trevor, sneaked down to the water’s edge to see if there were ducks or not. Trevor’s eyes were fired with excitement when he came back to say there were lots of ducks in the water. I, too, hummed with excitement as we hunkered down to wait for noon to come.

I told Trevor that his job was to keep our retriever Bandit on the leash until we wanted him to go out and fetch ducks we, hopefully, were going to bag. I told him the dog would be very excited because this was his first hunt of the year, and when he heard shots, he would want to run out right away. Trevor assured me he would keep him under control.

At five minutes after noon, a small flock of mallards left the pond and winged their way over us. I rose up and missed with my first shot, but not my second. A drake greenhead in budding plumage splashed in the water in front of us. Behind me I heard a crash in the brush and turned to look as Bandit went tearing out into the water with his leash trailing behind. Trevor was picking himself up and sheepishly told me he didn’t know the dog could pull that hard. He was relieved when I laughed and said we would make the dog behave himself when he got back with the duck.

For the next several minutes, sporadic flocks of mallards left the beaver pond and flew over us well within shotgun range. I showed Trevor how to keep his head down until we were ready to shoot. When we were successful, he would send Bandit out for the bird and take it from him when he returned. He agreed that sending the dog to retrieve ducks was more fun than throwing a stick or ball for him to bring back. Trevor laid the ducks out in a neat row and kept careful count so we wouldn’t go over the limit. When I bagged a green winged teal I showed him how small one duck can be compared to others.

Soon we had our limit and prepared to leave. My cousin, who was our host, asked Trevor what he thought about duck hunting. It was not so much what he said, but how he said it, that made me believe he felt the same excitement that I and all our fathers before had felt when first hearing the whistling wings  of mallards coming in from the sky.

Do not ask me to define the reason behind the passion, the excitement that draws us to hunt game and catch fish. All I know is that it is there and it is powerful enough to make accomplished men laugh with delight. It is the same thing that makes boys’ hearts race when a flock of ducks turn their way. Golf doesn’t do it, tennis either.  In fact, nothing seems to move the soul like pursuing the wild things of this earth!

Share/Bookmark

The wait was finally over this evening at around 8pm, what an exciting end of the day.

I’ve been in visual contact with this piebald deer for about five months now (location not to be disclosed). The previous four encounters have been on my way home from RRR (Rod and Rifle Rag) headquarters late in the evening or in the early morning hours (12-1AM). All the times have been in the same general area, but ever so slightly moving west from my original sighting.

The first time I really didn’t realize what a unique sighting it was. After more research and talking to others it has taken on more and more meaning for me. I’ve been as close as to within 10 yards of this beautiful deer, as it has been crossing a county road right in front of my car or in the ditch just off. Every time it has been with three or even four others, never alone. The deer has also grown in size as time has went by.

After each time I see the deer, I always wonder if I would see it again. I’ve tried to use the camera on my phone before to no avail. Tonight on my way into RRR headquarters, not leaving, I spotted it as I flew by it. Practically slamming on the brakes and shifting my car into reverse, the opportunity finally arose. Thanks to my wife who suggested I just take our digital camera with me every time I go into RRR headquarters. These photos were taken from about 50-60 yards…hopefully I will get some more, but just seeing the piebald deer from time to time is a treat in itself!

See another image here

Prez. at Davis J. Hennes, LLC

Share/Bookmark

Walleye fishermen have been indoctrinated with lake bottom structure. We’ve been told humps, bars, reefs, breaklines are all changes in the lake bottom that attract walleyes. Or are these things that we use to give ourselves a point of reference – something to keep our boat parked over while we fish?

There is a general rule about walleyes in a lake with a lot of evident structure, the walleye schools will be tight and usually hang around some sort of structure.  But in flat-bottomed lakes, or one with only slight rises and dips in the bottom, the walleye schools will be scattered and roam the lake as they forage for food.

Then you have another rule, if you are going to catch walleyes in a structureless lake, you have to cover water, be on the move. If you insist on meticulously jigging or bobber fishing you maybe very disappointed with the results.

The first moving presentation that comes to mind is trolling lures of some kind. It is an age old technique that is very simple.

The most versatile lure for trolling for walleyes is a crankbait. These lures evoke a strike reflex. When a hard-swimming crankbait races by the walleye strikes instinctively. The fish isn’t necessarily hungry, it’s just responding to an instinct to grab anything that emits the vibrations of a distressed bait fish.

The key to catching walleyes on crankbaits is to get your lure down to the same depth the fish are at, which is most likely within a few feet of the  bottom. In flat-bottomed lakes you need to determine the right depth by seeing fish on the locator or by experimenting at various depth until you catch enough fish to determine the most productive depth.

Different crankbaits run at various depths, usually because the bill is longer or shorter. Long-billed models run deep, short-lipped models run shallow. It usually says on the lure package what depth the lure will run.

Crankbaits are tremendous lures for trolling for walleyes, but there are times when you’ll catch more fish on spinner live bait rigs. When I say spinner live bait rigs, I’m talking about the Little Joe Spinner, Mity-Grip, or Red Devil with some sort of live bait hooked on it. These outfits effectively add the flash of a spinner with the tempting taste of live bait, two things walleyes can’t resist.

The important thing is to troll the spinner rig at the depth where walleyes can readily see and attack it. Again, seeing walleyes on your depth finder or getting hits at a particular depth will indicate how deep to fish.

These are two of the best methods for walleye fishing in flat, structureless lakes.  Try them the next time you need to cover water to catch walleyes.

Share/Bookmark

I don’t know who was the first person to ever catch a fish, but I’ll bet they went back to their cave or hut and tried to think of a better way to do it. Everyone tries to come up with new methods of catching fish, it’s part of the sport.

Man’s desire to catch more fish is never more evident than in lure innovations. Every year new lures appear on store shelves that are supposed to be better than ever. Read More of the Story…

Share/Bookmark