2010 Opener is in the Books...

Was I fishing in a dream, or did this opener really happen?  Someone pinch me please.  For the first time since I can remember fishing a Minnesota opener, the snow didn't fly, the wind didn't blow, and the cold never set in.  It was beyond beautiful!  Heck, I even saw the first water skiiers and party cruisers on the water.  While all of the "norms" for our opener failed to transpire, one thing remained the same - the walleye chomp was on!

My opnening day partners were Dusty Gesinger and Sean Bailey.  Two fishin' dudes that I've shared many openers with.  We hit the Waconia watering hole for the midnight start time, and boy did we start the season out with a bang.  The first walleye to hit the net came shortly after midnight by yours truly.  An 'eye that was too big to keep and pushed the stick at just under 24 inches.  I was proud!  Not to be outdone, Dusty crushed my mark with a lengthy 27 3/4 inch walleye of his own.  We laughed and gave high fives.  Our streak of Midnight openers has given us some extremely large fish over the past several years.  One common scenario is that I catch the first fish, then Dusty catches one just a bit bigger.  For example, two years ago I got us on the board just after midnight with a 28 incher that I thought would win the 'big fish' honors.  As I was puffing my chest over my big catch, he set the hook into a 31 incher that blew our mind.  I guess it's fate, but I will be the first to admit that I love every time he out duels me.  I have become accustomed to it and would expect nothing less from him.  Maybe it's why I give up my night of sleep, and why I love the midnight opener so much. 

While our midnight run is always fun, we really look forward to Saturday morning and catching a meal for a fish fry.  After a short rest, we left Waconia and headed over to lake Minnetonka to watch the sun rise over the lake.  This too has been a yearly tradition, and once again the walleyes held up their end of the bargain.  As the sun hit the Eastern horizon, the lines went tight.  We boated some for the frying pan, but found most to be way too large.  A problem that we weren't complaining about at all.  We found our average size to be about a 4 pound fish, and caught several between 22 and 25 inches.  A treat for a metro fishing opener.  For a while we thought we were on Mille Lacs or Leech, but again, we weren't complaining.

The rest of the weekend was more of the same.  We fished hard, fishing a total of three lakes, and finally managed our meal for a fresh walleye dinner.  With weather typical of July, many large walleyes, and the fact that I caught at least one walleye on 3 different lakes on Saturday, I am going to rate this opener as one the best I have ever experienced.  My boat was truly blessed with the great walleye success.  The only thing I couldn't figure out was how the heck Dusty and I caught all those walleyes, and Sean got skunked?  Haha, Yep, he won't live that one down anytime soon!  Fortunately, he stepped his game up on Sunday and finally got the smell out of the boat!  Thanks to all that made my opener so memorable. 

As always, you can see more pictures in the Walleye Photo Album. Also, if anyone is interested in catching some metro 'eyes, the time is now and I still have limited room available.  From the walleye filled metro waters, keep on livin' the dream!

Opening Day, Bring It!

The time has finally come.  Opener is now less than two days away and many anglers have already told 'the boss' to take a hike.  Ah, what a perfect time of the year.  Other than deer opener, I don't believe there is a holiday in this state that gets as much attention.  So I have to ask.  What is your plan for the big day? 

Are you going to be one of the lucky bunch hoisting walleyes on Leech Lake this year?  The chatter on the street says it may be the best opener the lake has ever seen.  From what I witnessed last year, the chatter is probably right.  Mille Lacs should have several options this year too, so anglers won't have to fish on top of one another in the north end sand.  Did you know that you don't even need bait to catch them on Red Lake?  I know that has been the hottest bite since it re-opened in '06.  Or, will you be like me?  Fishing a smaller, less known body of water in an attempt to catch an opening day walleye dinner.

While I do believe that all of the previously mentioned lakes should be on fire, my optimism also hopes for the same on the small ones too.  The reason?  This is the first year in a long time that the spawn has been completely done statewide.  In fact, a normal calendar year would put us right around Memorial weekend in a walleye's world.  It just so happens that I love fishing walleye's on Memorial weekend, and so do all of my walleye fishing friends - and that's a good thing!

Like all years in recent memory, I'm going to be fishing with some of my favorite pals.  Our tradition is to fish at Midnight.  Where we launch is usually decided the evening of.  Where we spend the rest of the weekend always depends on our success, but one thing is for certain - we never give up until we have our fresh meal for dinner. 

Currently our plan is to fish the metro waters.  Unlike popular belief, this is usually far less crowded than many of the northern waters.  My plan is the same as all years.  I will start as shallow as shore and start heading out deeper until I get bit.  Sometimes this happens in a foot of water, sometimes 10, but rarely is it further than that.  I'm going to have three options at my disposal, and it may be a wise decision for you to do the same.  First, a jig and minnow, because it rarely ever fails.  Second is the crankbait, and if for some reason they have lock-jaw, then I'll have the T-Rig ready for them.  What's the T-Rig you ask?  Well, that I cannot share.  But it catches fish when nothing else will.

Many of you may be thinking that the cold front will have them shut down.  I strongly disagree.  I think it will be a blessing in disguise, and when the warm temps start to rise on Saturday I believe you will be pleased with your results.  At least I hope so, cuz after all, nobody goes into the fishng opener thinking that they will get skunked.  Not me, not this year, not ever!  Here's to a good weekend of opening fishing!  May you catch all that your net can hold!  Until Saturday, keep on livin' the dream!

Fishing For Life - Fish Fair

It's been well documented that I'm a big supporter of introducing kids to the outdoors.  Fishing for Life is an organization that takes it to a whole new level.  They do year round activities, promotions and and fundraisers that are getting kids involved in the outdoors.  This weekend, May 7 and 8, they are having their annual 'Fish Fair,' and I am lucky enough to be a part of it

Here's a little more about this year's fish fair, and you can decide if you want to help out too, or if you'd like to partake in the activities.  The doors open at 10:00 AM Saturday at the Anoka County Fairgrounds.  Kids and their families can fish for trout, make lures, practice casting, race minnows and more.  All activities are educational, teaching families and kids about habitat awareness, fishing tackle, techniques, fishing clubs, camps and about the fish they want to catch.  Consider this the county fair, but everything is fishing related.  Plus, there are going to be several fishing guides and tournament anglers around to teach their ways and give seminars too.  That's where I plan to help.  I too will be trying to share my knowleadge with anyone who cares to learn.  Maybe I'll learn something from some of the other guys like the Lindner's or Keith Kavajecz too.  Either way, it's going to be a hoot.

If you aren't 100% committed just yet, you may be interested in the Sportsmans Garage Sale.  Taking place at the same time, I've been told it will be a mix of anything and everything from anglers like you and me.  I think it may be worth your time to swing in to learn how you can help.  After all, the proceeds will be going to the children and their yearly fishing activities.  This group is making a difference, you can check 'em out right here. Fishing For Life - Hope to see you there!

Spring Action...

What a beautiful spring we've been blessed with!  The above average temps have brought along above average fishing too.  This past weekend the boys and I slipped out for a couple of hours of catching to prepare for a fish fry.  It's a yearly spring ritual for us, and our stomachs seldom leave empty.  This past Saturday was no different.

We hit the water at mid-day and headed to the opposite end of the lake, away from the big crowds.  For my group to fully enjoy a spring day on the water, we simply must be away from the crowds.  The funny part is that most people feel that they need to be anchored right up next to the other guys to catch fish.  We would prove that this is simply false.  We spent hours catching fish and throwing them back.  We covered several hundred yards of shoreline and caught fish the entire way.  Sunfish was our main catch, and boy did we find some dandies hidden in the hard to reach places.  We also found a few slab crappies and had a bunch of bass grab hold too.

This outing gave me another chance to work on my photography skills and prepare for the season ahead.  I'm really focusing on capturing all the elements of the catch through the eyes of the camera lens.  Ive found it to be a challenge in many ways, but each time on the water I come away with a few photos that I really enjoy.  Regardless, it sure is fun learning, and this whole photography things adds another dimension to my days on the water.  If you want to see some other pics, you can check out my photo blog.  I've been updating it fairly regularly.

A quick tip for those heading out after spring panfish.  The time is now, don't delay.  Head shallow, and sometimes really shallow.  Remember, the fish aren't there to spawn just yet.  They are in the shallows to eat.  You want to find the warmest water on the lake.  The warm water brings all the tiny critters, bugs and minnows in, and the panfish are there to get in on the spring feast.  Find the warmest water, and you've found your fish.  This can be as shallow as a few inches of water.  Wax worms are always a good choice, but don't overlook the new plastic lure options.  The Mini-Mites are a great panfish bait right now, and if you don't bait them, you sometimes keep the smaller fish from eating it.  Just the small hook and rubber under a float has been all that my boat has used.  For the past 3 years now, I haven't purchased any bait.  Good luck and remember to take a young kid fishing with you!  From the muddy bottom bays of the metro area lakes, keep on livin' the dream!

Now is the Time...

To take a kid fishing.  We preach it all the time, but how good are we at actually making it happen?  I feel this is a valid question, because we hear the phrase, but how well do we follow through with it?  It's simply not that easy to make it happen.  Sometimes we just don't have the time, or we might not know a young angler that even wants to go fishing.  I am not saying that I'm the best at this either, but I can assure you one thing, I try.  Yep, I make an honest effort to do the same that was done for me when I was a young fishing dude.  Now I try to find young kids that I know want to fish, and whenever I can make it work, I take them fishing.

I believe this is probably the fourth year in a row that I have written this story during the early summer months, but I think it is worth repeating again.  Now is the time to get your kids into the sport of fishing.  The panfish are biting, and if you are a young angler it doesn't get any better than right now.  Just ask young Tanner, the young stud pictured holding his fine panfish catch from this past Saturday.  The best part about this time of the year is that you need almost zero equipment to make a kids day.  A simple rod and reel, a small bobber, a few small hooks and some wiggling worms will do the trick.  That's it!  No boat necessary.  I repeat, no boat is needed for this to happen.  The panfish are now in the shallow waters and any small bay on any lake will have fish within casting distance of shore.  Tanner caught all of his fish in about 1 or 2 feet of water.  All you need to do is a little research on where you can legally fish from shore, and you can go do it.  The key is not waiting until June, July or August.  That's too late, you must go now. 

I'm not trying to sound like a nag, but I assure you that you can brighten any childs day.  There is just something about a fish pulling on the end of a young kids line that gets them excited.  Once you see their pure excitement, you will never forget it, and it will give you a better feeling than any 50 inch muskie.  I promise!  If you are able to be a blessing to a child this spring or summer, I strongly encourage you to follow through and make it happen.  Even if you are reading this and saying, I take my child fishing, I do my part, then it might be cool to take the neighbor kid along too.  It's just a thought but I feel its worth sharing.  If you need any rods or reels, just let me know and I can get you the equipment.  Also, there is a new website to teach every single fundamental thing about fishing called the school of outdoor sports.  I will stop with my rant and rave now...Thank you, and until next time, remember to take a kid fishing!