Event Ten - Whitefish Chain - 9/8/2016

The years go by faster and faster, and living in a state where summer only lasts 10 minutes, the summer fishing season is over in a heartbeat...and so is our season. All ten events are in the books, and we only had to make up one, so that was a positive. I can't think of anything bad that happened this year. No one left their boat on the landing, no one stepped in a live well, no one got a hook in the ear, so nothing funny happened this year either. But there were a few firsts, like me being on a team that won two weeks in a row, which must have come as a big surprise to everyone else that has fished in the league over the past 121 years. Another first was one team winning five of the ten events, which included tying one of the aforementioned nights we could have won outright if it wasn't for those assholes...fuckers. We also had one of the biggest lineups we've had in several years, so it appears we're going strong. And why not...there isn't one REAL asshole in the group. Things could change next year though if the same team dominates like they did this year; that team being Simon and Paul. Now that we know who they are, they won't sneak up on us next year like they did this year, so I'll predict right now they won't win again next year; especially since we're going to enforce the rule about checking live wells in advance before the event begins.

I've written about this over the course of the year, but there seems to be a disturbing trend going on. Either we're getting worse as fisherman, or the fish are getting smaller and harder to find. Two years ago with eight teams, we scored a total of 1,410 points for all teams combined. Last year with nine teams we scored 1,324 points. This year we started out with eleven teams and had ten teams fish pretty much the whole season, and we only scored 1,255 points. I don't like this trend. The bad weeds seem thicker and more abundant, there seems to be less and less of a concern for fish habitat in spawning areas with manicured lawns right down to the water line becoming the norm, and the pleasure boaters are becoming more and more clueless. Including those fucking assholes on jest skis that can't figure out what time the sun goes down or how far away they are from shore. Also, do we really need pontoon boats with 300 HP motors? I think you already know my answer is no, because as far as I'm concerned, you can't call something a boat unless it has a trolling motor and a live well. And for those of you that live on one of the lakes we fish, don't think for a minute we're the reason you have millfoil or zebra mussels in your lake, because we CLEAN OUR BOATS! Anyway, I think the fishing is getting worse not better and unfortunately, I also don't think the powers that be have a clue as to what they're doing. (have you fished Mille Lacs lately?) All we can do is speak up when we see something funky going on, but I think this league stands as a harbinger of bad things to come.

On that cheery note, I'd like to thank all of you guys for being good sports, great guys to fish with, and I hope to see you all next year!!

For the final standings, click HERE.
For event details click HERE.

Rice Lake - Ninth Event - 9/1/2016

If I was a fish biologist I might be able to figure it out, but I'm not, so I can only speculate why the point total on Rice was the lowest it's ever been. That's right, we've had as few as 5 teams fish Rice before, and even then we caught more fish. Last year with 9 teams we had 121 points; this year we only had 76 with 10 teams. I know the water was higher (but not that much) and the current was stronger (but not that much) but places that have always held fish, didn't. At least not in our boat. It must have been pretty much the same for everyone else though, because no one caught a huge amount of fish. Having said that, Paul and Simon won their 4th event of the year with 20 points, for a yearly total of 173. They now have a commanding lead over the second place team of Sam & Mike who stand at 144 points for the year. With only the Whitefish Chain left tomorrow night, I'd say the rest of us are fishing for the nightly pot.

Again, we're on the Whitefish Chain tomorrow night from 4:00 to 8:00, so I'll see you there!

For updated standings, click HERE
For event detail, click HERE

Event Eight - North Long - 8/18/16

I still hate North Long, but it was a huge point night for some teams, in particular Brian and Dustyn with the biggest point night of the year at 31. They also moved from eighth to fifth in the standings. Paul and Simon are still leading, but with two events left of four hours each, they could be caught if they have a bad night. I doubt that will happen, but there is a lot of fishing left to do and we're entering into some of the best fishing of the year, so we'll see.

We're on Rice Lake on September 1st from 4:00 to 8:00 followed just a week later on the Whitefish Chain from 4:00 to 8:00 as well.

For event details, click HERE.

For updated standings, click HERE.

Rabbit - Seventh Event - 8/4-16

Oh, that pesky wabbit. Windy, buggy, weedy; is it me or are there more weeds in Rabbit than ever before? We never got out of the west bowl, so maybe it's just where we were. Also, there has been a 24 to 36 inch slot for pike on that lake for a long time, so where are all of the big pike? There were very few caught tonight, with only one in the slot at 28 inches, and Sam said that was not a healthy fish. Something is going on with that lake, and I don't think it's good. This year we had two more boats fishing it compared to last year, but this year we only managed 98 points; last year we had 139. I know there was a cold front that moved through (pretty big understatement) last night, but that's a big point difference considering we had two more boats. Anyway, it is what it is, but I'd like to see that lake make a comeback next year. 

Tonight, Sam and Mike scored their first win of the year with 23 points followed closely by Mark and Craig with 21. Big fish went to Sam and Mike as well with that sick 28 inch pike.

My favorite lake (not) of the year is in two weeks on the 18th. We're losing time, so we fish from 5:30 to 8:30 on North fricken Long, and my partner is conveniently out of town...ok, he's taking his daughter to school in Colorado, but still, it's an asshole move to take one point from me.

For the updated standings, click HERE.
For the event detail, click HERE.

Ten Mile - Sixth Event - 7/21/2016

I apologize for this being late, but it was so fricken late when I got home from Ten Mile, that I was just too tired to do anything about the points, and at my age, I forgot about it until now. So...Ten Mile is a haul; for most of us. But for all of us, the landing is a huge pain in the ass. It's by far the worst landing we've been too, at least in recent memory and I've already mentioned how my memory is...what was I saying? Oh ya, a huge pain in the ass. For that reason alone, I'd drop it like a sailor drops his pants on leave, but I only have one vote. The Ten Mile lake association has got to love it though, because who in the hell wants to deal with that on a regular basis? Not only that, no one caught a walleye? I know it was a hotter than blazes out, but we caught more walleye's dodging lighting bolts on Whitefish. Granted, there was only one caught on Whitefish, but that's 100% more than we caught on Ten Mile. I must say it's a beautiful lake though, and if one were to fish it more often, I imagine one would do pretty well. It just ain't going to be me doing that, because I'll spend 10 more minutes in the beat up old Trailblazer and fish Leech instead.

As far as the night goes, Paul & Simon won, with Brandon & Steve winning the big fish pot with a nice pike. And for the year, Paul & Simon are starting to open up a bit of a lead, and if they keep scoring near the top each week, I don't think they'll be caught. Except for Roosevelt, where they only had 9 points, they're the only team that has put up more than 20 points each night. So, unless they have 4 more Roosevelt's up their sleeve, the rest of us have our work cut out for us. I think I can say with fairly confident but not absolute certainty, that Brian & Dustyn aren't going to three peat.

Thursday we're on Rabbit from 6:00 until 9:00, where once again we're dealing with the 24 to 36 inch immediate release pike slot, so don't forget to take a picture. Also, Dustyn isn't going to be there Thursday, so I need someone to be prepared to step up and do the measuring. See ya'll then!

For the event detail click HERE
For updated standings click HERE

Whitefish Chain - Fifth Event - 7-7-2016

Well, that was f'n fun! We stand around at the landing for about a half hour waiting for a never ending slow moving storm to move through...which it appeared had...and then went fishing at 6:30. Everyone took off, and as soon as everyone got out of sight, storm clouds started re-forming and closing in behind us (insert doomed music here). Jim and I were the first ones to call it quits. We were on the other side of Lower Hay, and all of a sudden realized we couldn't see the side of the lake where the landing was. After a quick lighting bolt that was followed up by thunder which sounded like Gordon Lightfoot singing, we headed in at 8:00. I could make a whole blog post about trying to get the boat on the trailer, but not today. About 40 minutes later, Sam came to his senses and joined us after a brief attempt at re-starting his night from when he cam in earlier, followed by Steve thanking God for bilge pumps and boat lifts in a text he sent me at 8:43. Everyone else found their way back safe and sound by 9:30, and we called it a night. Oh, except for Brent and Derrick who decided to catch two 12 inch bass at the Wharf. Needless to say it was a miserable night of fishing. Mark and Craig even found themselves huddled together in the women's outhouse on Clamshell at one point in the evening, after helping someone with a triple decker cabin cruiser that has no business being on the chain, get their boat on the trailer at the same aforementioned lake. I had assumed they told that fictional story to gloss over the fact they sought shelter in a women's outhouse, but it turned out to be true when said stupid decker cabin cruiser showed up at our landing with a bent axle. You just had to feel for those poor cold and wet bastards huddled in the women's outhouse at that point. For me personally, I'd have to put last Thursday in my top five fishing excursions I wish I had never started, with number one still being the frog box incident of 1964. That should also be a blog post, but maybe later. 

Thursday night we posted 69 points and reached the half way point of the season with a total of 694 points. Last year the Whitefish Chain gave up 147 points, and we stood at 651 points half way through last year. Remember, we had 9 boats last year, this year we have 11. As far as individual points go on Thursday, Paul and Simon won the night with 23 points followed by a strong showing from Chris & Riley with 20 after posting a tri-fecta, coupled with bonus points for the biggest walleye and a share of the big pike. The biggest fish of the night was the pike Chris & his wife caught at a whopping 22.5 five inches that they shared with Troy and Ryan.

For the standings click HERE.
For the event detail click HERE.

Next up is Ten Mile on 7/21. Should be fun because most of us have never been on it. I'll see you then.

Roosevelt Lake, Fourth Event 6-25-16

Well, I'm going to have to call this the "are you f'n shitting me?" year. Why? Because for the second week in a row, a blind squirrel found a whole shit load of nuts. Big honkn' sweaty salty nuts. My team tied for first on Edward, and now we won on Roosevelt. Al Michaels ain't got nothin' on us when it come to miracles, because that just doesn't happen to consistent bottom dwellers like us. We stand as a shining beacon of hope to fellow bottom dwellers everywhere. We're still in 6th out of 11, but winning a night for a bottom dweller is a big bitch slap in the face to every other team. Ha!

OK, I wrote that last night before going to bed while nodding off as I was writing it. Sounds like I went a little overboard, but I'm leaving it. Especially since we're shining beacons. :-)

It was actually an absolute gorgeous night to be fishing. I know some of you find Roosevelt challenging, but it's worth the scenery every time. It is never a big point night, and this year was no exception. As a league we racked up 100 points this year and had two more boats on the water than last year as we posted 122. It was mostly bass that were caught, but that's OK. Knowing that going in every year gives teams a chance to stratereogize on how we're going to get our points. Do you want to get as many bass as you can hoping to get a fill, or do you want to go after bonus points by posting a trifecta? Remember, one tiny legal Walleye is worth a minimum of six points if you already have a Bass and Pike in the boat. Now you can throw Muskie into the mix, because Derrick and Brent snagged a 50 incher! Four inches shy of legal, but it was a beautiful fish and could have made a huge difference. But it is a tough lake to fish, and I think the key to unlocking the lake, is to find the most productive looking water you can, have faith in your decision, and pound the shit out of it. You know there should be fish there, especially if you see them on your screen, so stay in that spot and figure out a way to catch those fish. Or not...that's the beauty of fishing.

Our next event is on July 7th as we take on the Whitefish Chain. It will be crowded, it will be hot, and you will need to strateriogize in order to come out on top. Speaking of on top, here are the latest standings. As you can see, it's pretty crowded up in the clouds. Stay safe, and I'll see you in two weeks.

Jamie & Chuck	78
Paul & Simon	76
Sam & Mike	70
Mark & Craig	66
Brad & Jim	65
Brian & Dustyn	51
Troy & Ryan	47
Brent & Derrick	47
Steve & Brandon	45
Joe & Dustin	29
Chris & Riley	24

For current point totals, click HERE. For event detail, click HERE.

Note for next year's discussion. Should we count Muskies using our sliding scale or not? Right now it's all or nothing on a legal fish, but I think there are ways of counting them even if they aren't 54 inches.

Edward Lake, Third Event 6/21/2016

If someone would have been selling parking spots at the landing last night, he/she would be celebrating their retirement today. We shared the lake with the Rod Benders because we were making up being rained out last Tuesday. They did their best to speed things up and accommodate us, so thanks guys!

We found a chink in the Jamie and Chuck armor last night. The guys who won the first two events going away, only managed to put 6 points on the board, so it appears they don't know how to fish a lake that has a lot of pressure on it. So, we need to get in touch with as many people as we know on Roosevelt, and have them hit the water the same time we do on Thursday. IF my theory is correct, Jamie and Chuck will fast become also rans quickly fading off into rookie hell. :-)

Actually, it was tough fishing last night for everybody. With so many experienced fishermen on the water, all of the favorite spots were hit hard...very hard. I fished with my son Craig last night, and we weren't first to any favorite. (except for my secret Walleye hole) Because most good spots had several boats on them, it forced those of us not getting there first to adapt and find new spots. Some of us hit, some of us didn't. With three teams being gone, we only had 8 boats fish this year, but that is the same amount that fished Edward last year. In comparing the the two nights, we didn't fare to badly. Last year we had a total of 155 points; this year it was 140. So, not bad considering there were up to 15 more boats on the water while fishing with the Rod Benders.

As far as winners and losers go, I already mentioned a certain team only had 6 points and in the process dropped from first to third on the year. Our new leaders are Paul and Simon with 67 points followed by Mark & Craig with 62. Last nights results gave us our first tie of the season, with Paul & Simon and Brad & Jim (with sub Craig) hitting the 25 point mark. Big fish went to me and sub Craig as well with a monster 26 inch Pike.

To sum up, even with the added pressure and a landing that sucks, Edward is always a fun lake to fish. Even if there were no fish caught, you couldn't have asked for a better night to be on the water! I'll see everyone tomorrow night on Roosevelt.

For event detail click HERE.
For the latest standings click HERE.

Gull Lake Chain, Second Event, 6/9/16

*THIS HAS BEEN UPDATED FROM BELOW. THANKS TO PAUL HE POINTED OUT A MISTAKE I MADE. THEY HAD THE BIG BASS, SO THERE WAS NOT A TIE AT 17 INCHES. THEY HAD A 18.5 INCH BASS.

The fishing was pretty tough on Gull. From what I heard and witnessed, most of the fish came off the top of the weeds or at the weed edge, if you could find the weeds. It was weird...some places that always have weeds this time of year didn't, and some did. The main lake was at a temp of 68 degrees, while the bays and on the upper end of the chain the temp was about 72. As far as fish caught, there weren't many. We have two more boats in the league this year compared to last, yet last year we had 128 points, and this year we only managed 116. That's a significant difference, especially when you figure in the ugly fact, that the top team this year wasn't even in the league last year. There was only 1 legal Walleye caught at 14.5 inches, with the biggest Bass being a tie at 17 inches, and the biggest fish of the night was a Pike that measured a whopping 23.5 inches. I don't think our skills have diminished that much from last year, so for this year anyway, Gull sucks.

For the second week in a row, the new team of Jamie and Chuck won the event, but since they're new and still in their probationary period, their points don't count. Unfortunately for the rest of us, that was never officially written into the rules, so I guess their point total of 26 points for the second week in a row stands. Yo assholes...I don't think you know you are fishing with guys that are connected, so you might want to have your electrical system on the boat gone over with a fine tooth comb before fishing next Tuesday. You just never know when a pesky electrical fire will happen.

Next up is Edward on Tuesday the 14th from 6-9:30, so I'll see y'all there!

For updated standings click HERE
For the event detail click HERE

Pelican Lake, First Event of 2016-5/26

Pelican Lake can be a real bitch to fish when it's cold and windy, but that was last year. This year, it was a little windy, but it certainly wasn't cold. It made a difference in the fishing as well. Last  year, we had 10 teams fish, and we scored 106 points. This year we had 11 teams, and we scored 190 points. Even if we take out the top score of 26 points, the difference between this year a last is quite amazing. I did find it interesting that a lot of us thought there were more weeds this year than last, and there were some of us that thought the opposite. I know that Jim and I had no weeds in our go to spots, so it didn't take us long to figure out that we were doomed for the night. Before you know it, two hours are gone and you have no fish in the boat. Come to think of it, that's a pretty normal scenario for us, so I don't know why I was surprised by that last night.

99.265897654129% of the fish caught last night were Largemouth Bass. Since the DNR allows fishing for them on a catch and release basis, we decided to count the points for bass caught if everyone had a good picture against a ruler. Every one did a nice job of taking the photo, so all fish counted. Other than that, there was only one Walleye and four Pike caught, so it didn't take long to measure fish!

So, the new guys, right off the bat won their first event, so I automatically don't like them. How dare they come into this league and show the rest of us up. It's like a runner after hitting a home run, dogs it around the bases while staring at the pitcher. By the time the runner gets to home, the catcher has now decided he doesn't like that guy, and punches him in the face. After that the benches clear and all hell breaks loose. So, here's a warning to Jamie and Chuck. If you do it again next week, I can't guarantee your safety, because I'm sure there are some of us that will come after you with fishing nets flying toward your heads. Duck and you'll be fine, but watch out for the guy behind you.

So Jamie and Chuck had 26 points, followed closely by Mark and Craig with 25. Jim and I are nipping at their heals with 5 points. Come to think of it, we're nipping and everyone's heals on the bottom looking up. I like being on the bottom a lot, but not when we're talking fishing.

Up next will be June 9th on Gull. We'll be fishing out of the landing by Zorbaz from 6:00 to 9:30. Stay safe, and I'll see you in a couple of weeks!

For point totals, click HERE.
Fore event detail, click HERE.

As always, if you see anything I screwed up on, let me know. I ain't gettin any younger.

Season Schedule and 2016 Teams Announced

Here is the schedule for the upcoming year:

April 28th - 5-30-8:00 - Crappiethon - Whitefish Chain, Lower Hay Landing.

This is an event for the entire family, or at least as many people you feel comfortable throwing in your boat. Entry fee is $10 per boat. The boat with the biggest bag of 10 Crappies (by weight this time) will be declared the winner. The weigh in and subsequent Crappie fry will take place at Brad's house (directions from the landing will be provided). Bring your favorite beverage and a bag of chips to pass. This is a no points event.

Thursday, May 26th - 6:00-9:00 - Pelican, Stewart's Bay Landing. The official Bass opener is two days later, so if you catch a bass, take a picture on a legible ruler and show it to the weigh in team. These fish will count, unless we're unable to see the length (with full fish view)...mouth closed, tail pinched.

Thursday, June 9th - 6:00-9:30 - Gull Chain, Zorbaz Landing

Tuesday, June 14th - 6:00-9:30 - Edward

Thursday, June 23rd - 6:00-9:30 - Roosevelt

Thursday, July 7th - 6:00-9:30 - Whitefish Chain, Lower Hay Landing

Thursday, July 21st - 6:00-9:30 - Ten Mile

Thursday, August 4th - 6:00-9:00 - Rabbit. There is a 24-36 inch slot protecting Northern Pike on Rabbit. If you catch a fish in the slot, take a legible picture on a ruler, then return the fish back to the lake. Photographs will count. Any fish brought in within the slot limit will not.

Thursday, August 18th - 5:30-8:30 - North Long

Thursday, September 1st - 4:00-8:00 - Rice (Lum Park)

Thursday, September 8th - 4:00-8:00 - Whitefish Chain, Lower Hay Landing

Teams (as of April 14th):

1. Joe Goerges & Dustin Jobe

2. Brad Wallace & Jim Gardner

3. Sam Hennies & Mike Monahan

4. Mark Wallin & Craig Dickmeyer

5. Steve Millner & Brandon Anderson

6. Brian Larsen & Dustyn Aleckson

7. Paul Reier & Simon Stricker

8. Brent Nybakken & Derrick Johnson

9. Troy Friberg & Ryan Rupp

10. Chris Teich & Riley Teich

11. Jamie Hartog & Chuck Anderson

That's more teams than we've had in a long time, and there is rumor of another team or two. We've decided to cap the league at 15 teams, so if you know of someone, have them get in touch with Brad.