July 29, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

I Leave Leech Lake Today

I woke up the morning to a beautiful day. The temperature by 9:00 a.m. had reached 60 degrees, yes, we're still in July, the sky was clear and mostly sunny and the wind was light at 5-8 mph out of the west.

I would have loved to have had some breakfast then go out fishing, but I've got a million and one things to do to get ready to leave for California later today. So rather than fish, I'm spending my morning working around the house. I am allowing myself a little break to have some coffee out on the back deck and to post to the blog.

After many, many chores, I took a break to do some fishing -- couldn't help it. I snuck out onto the lake from 11:00 a.m. to 12:10 p.m. Not a long time, but enough for one last excursion for some walleye.

I motored out to 14 feet of water and deployed the drift sock. As the morning had progressed, the sky had begun to cloud over and the wind picked up. By the time I started fishing it was blowing at 12-15 mph out of the WNW.

I was using a Lindy Max Gap jig tipped with a Northland Slurpie Grub and managed to catch a couple of medium-sized perch and three northern pike. The first pike spit the jig just as I put my hand on him to lift him out of the water. That was fine with me, I don't like northern slime in my boat anyway.

The second northern got close to the boat before making a mad run for it and snapping my line. I decided to tie on another jig and get back to fishing. The third pike I caught got right up next to he boat, like the first fish had, but unlike the first pike I caught this one made a contorted twist as I was reaching for him and snapped the line.

I had a decision to make, go in or tie on another jig. I tied on another jig.

Despite several bites, I never did hook another fish. So just after noon I came ashore.

I finished up some more chores, took the garbage down to the bins at the community center, came home, took a shower, had some lunch and finished updating the blog.

This will be my last "At Leech Lake" entry for a while. I will be posting to this blog periodically, so do check back. I will have a review of the equipment I was using here at the lake, I'll post some photos from my stay, and I will surely have updates (as they happen) with regard to the Army Corps of Engineers and its desire to lower the water level on Leech Lake.

So until sometime in September (hopefully) I'll be signing off from Leech Lake.

It Marches On...

Time

It flies, it crawls, it never ceases
In youth, it moves so slowly that we’d swear it’s stopped
As we grow, it moves quicker each year, but we may not notice

It goes forward while we sleep
It marches on if we pay attention to it or if we ignore it completely
It treats us all the same, while never knowing any of us

Some claim it doesn’t exist
Others call it the fourth dimension
A few say it’s inexorably linked to space in a continuum

It’s a magazine, it’s a Pink Floyd song, some think it’s an herb
On occasion, there’s too much of it, and sometimes not enough
Some say they’re “serving it,” but then again aren’t we all?

We measure it with two little hands on a dial
We dissect into billions, or even trillions, of parts
We compile it into eons, eras and epochs

Is it to be treasured and held dear
Or to fade away into the background and lost?
Either way, for all of us, it will run out

July 28, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

1 Day and Counting...

Tomorrow afternoon at 4:15 p.m. I am scheduled to fly from Bemidji to Minneapolis on the first leg of my journey back to San Jose. While I will miss being at Leech Lake, and everything that I love doing here, I am looking forward to seeing Kathleen, Jayden, the kids and my dogs. I received some very nice photos from Kathleen today reminding me of home and why I'll enjoy being there too. Thanks.

The temperature here at the lake at 9:00 a.m. was 54 degrees. I had left many windows open in the house the past few days because the temperature had climbed into the mid-70s, but this morning I had to scramble to shut them so I could turn on the furnace. Yes, my furnace is running as I type this in an attempt to get the inside of the house warmed to the mid-60s. At 58 degrees, it's currently just a little warmer inside than outside.

The sky is gray and overcast, and once again the wind is blowing hard at 12-18 mph out of the NW, with gusts up over 20 mph. The lake is choppy with good-sized waves and a few white caps. I've not yet seen any boats on Sucker Bay this morning, but I'm sure the FIB's will be out later, if they aren't already.

(NOTE: I heard from Tom Malay that the FIB's are friends of Frank, the owner of Birch Ridge Resort and that they caught 3 walleyes and a number of jumbo perch while fishing in front of Tom's place yesterday.)

I did many chores around the properties today in preparation for leaving tomorrow. I put away camp chairs we use around the fire pit at the cabin, I collected the garbage (which I'll take to the community center tomorrow), I dusted and vacuumed the living room and many other mundane chores I won't recount here.

At 4:15 p.m., the same time I'm scheduled leave Bemidji tomorrow, I decided to go fishing. The wind was still strong at 12-15 mph out of the WNW, but I figured I won't have a chance to fish on Leech Lake again until this Fall -- early- to mid-September if I'm lucky -- so I better go now.

I motored out to 14 feet of water, which has cooled to 70.2 degrees, deployed the drift sock and dropped my Lindy Max Gap jig tipped with Northland Slurpie Grub in Alabama craw color into the water. During the next hour and 45 minutes I made four drifts from 14 feet of water in front of the Malay's cabin to 8 feet of water. No, I wasn't trying to mimic the FIBs, this is a spot I've marked with a waypoint on my electronics.

During those 105 minutes I caught numerous perch, including several very nice jumbo perch. If I weren't leaving tomorrow I would have kept some of them for a fish fry. As is was, I had a nice jumbo sitting in an aerated bucket back at the cabin which was going to be my dinner tonight.

I came ashore just before 6:00 p.m., put many items from the boat into the garage for storage until my return this Fall, then turned my attentions to cleaning the perch.

Using my Leech Lake fillet knife, which was designed and engineered by Don Canney, I made short work of that perch. By the way, I met Don Canney last year during my stay at Leech Lake. I needed to have my knife sharpened by a pro and the folks at Reed's Sporting Goods in Walker, MN suggested I contact the man who made my knife, Mr. Canney, who happens to have a house on Leech Lake near Kabekona Bay.

I took my knife to Canney's house and he took me downstairs to his workshop, sharpened my knife, showed me how to sharpen it properly and then showed me a number of knives he was making. A unique experience, but back to the events of tonight.

In addition to my fried perch, I made some home-fried potatoes and had a big bowl of spinach and vegetable salad. After my great dinner, I cleaned up the kitchen and then went out to the end of the dock to check the weather situation.

During my dinner it had rained a little, but the wind was finally starting to die down, to roughly 8-12 mph out of the WNW. After doing my "over-the-water" weather check, I decided the conditions were suitable for an evening troll. I gathered up something to drink, my flashlight and went next door to the boat.

The moon tonight was 49 percent waxing, or a half moon, the water temperature had dropped even more to 69.8 degrees, and the air temperature was a cool 56 degrees. The low tonight is supposed to drop to 45 degrees; great late-July weather.

I trolled The Alley in 8-10 feet of water using my hot-steel colored #9 Minnow Rap and caught two beautiful "eater" walleyes. The first was 16 1/2" and the second fish was 17 3/4". Again, if I weren't leaving for California tomorrow, one, if not both, of those fish would have ended up in the livewell. As it was, both were returned safely to the waters of Leech Lake.

I caught the second walleye directly in front of our properties in 9 feet of water. It was only 10:15 p.m., but I figured it was time to go ashore for the night. What better way for me to wrap up my final night of trolling (for several weeks anyway) by catching a nice 17 3/4" walleye right between our house and cabin.

I pulled the boat into the boat lift, walked down the dock onto shore, made my way back to the house and completed another fantastic night of walleye fishing on Leech Lake.

July 27, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

2 Days and Counting...

At 9:00 a.m. the temperature was just a hair under 70 degrees, the sky was mostly sunny with several large, white billowy clouds here and there, and the wind was out of the WNW at 12-18 mph, with gusts up over 20 mph.

By 11:00 a.m., the lake was covered in white caps and I could see only one boat out on Sucker Bay. I did a quick check of the boat's license number by looking through the binoculars, and sure enough, they were from Illinois; FIB's. Obviously they are up here on vacation and will go out fishing regardless of the wind conditions.

I had a business call that kept me busy until around noon, then I spent the next couple of hours cleaning -- bathrooms, washing sheets, making beds, cleaning up the kitchen, etc. I don't want to leave everything until tomorrow or early Wednesday. I'd like to get as much cleaned up today as possible so I have some time to fish and enjoy the lake before my departure.

The entire day ended up being very windy; too windy to go fishing today. So instead I decided to go for a walk on our dirt road. I got as far as Norm's when swarms of horse flies, the biting kind, descended on me.

I had to swat at flies and wave my hands over my head all the way home just to keep from being bit. I must have looked like a lunatic waving my arms over my head as I trotted home. There is always a bug-related adventure in the northwoods during the summer.

When I got home I got out the ATV and went for another ride. I like to see the peninsula and on the ATV I’m able to move fast enough to where the flies and mosquitoes can’t bother me.

At 9:00 p.m. it was still very windy, and it started to lightly rain, so I didn’t go out trolling for walleye tonight. Instead I stayed in and enjoyed listening to music from my vast vinyl LP collection. A pleasant evening on the shores of Leech Lake.

July 26, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

3 Days and Counting...

This morning at 9:00 a.m. it was nearly 70 degrees on its way to a high of 78 degrees, the sky was sunny, but it was windy. The wind was out of the WNW at 12-18 mph creating nice swells on the lake and the occasional white cap.

While I was enjoying my third cup of coffee on the back deck of our house watching the beauty of a Leech Lake morning, Tom Malay stopped by with the Sunday papers from Minneapolis and Bemidji. We spoke for a few minutes, and then he had to leave. He is working at Birch Ridge Resort again today.

After I finished reading the Sunday papers and had had some breakfast I went out onto the lake to do some fishing. I started in 14 feet of water in front of Malay's cabin using a jig tipped with a leech. I had numerous bites, but caught only a couple of small perch.

Once I had exhausted my supply of leeches, I switched to Northland Slurpie Grubs in an Alabama Craw color. Instantly, the number of bites I was getting increased and I started hooking many more fish. I guess plastics really are the future!

From 12:15 p.m. to just before 4:00 p.m. I caught dozens of perch, a few rock bass and a small northern pike. I kept one of the jumbo perch that I caught for a future fish fry. I fly back to California on Wednesday and I'd like one last Leech Lake fish fry before I leave. A walleye, even a 16" fish, is more fish than I can eat in one meal. A nice 12" jumbo perch is the perfect size for my one-person dinner table.

By 8:00 p.m. tonight the wind had died down to completely calm; there was barely a ripple on the lake. I decided that I'd go out early and try jigging with my Northland Slurpie Grub before switching to trolling a crankbait for walleye.

I caught a couple of small perch with the jig and plastic combo, but had no where near the action I had had earlier in the day. At 9:15 p.m. I put away my spinning rod and reel and switched to my baitcasting rig with the #9 Minnow Rap.

I trolled The Alley from 9:15 p.m. to 10:45 p.m. but caught only one northern pike and a couple of rock bass; no walleye. The water temperature tonight varied from 71.6 to 72.3 degrees depending on my location and depth.

With no wind at all on the lake tonight, the big Minnesota mosquitoes were out in full force. Even with my Deet-laden spray I was covered in mosquitoes the entire evening. Nonetheless, it was a beautiful night on Leech Lake.

July 25, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

A female common merganser, like the one I saw off our dock this afternoon

Juvenile common mergansers, like the five I saw off our dock today

4 Days and Counting...

This morning was once again more akin to a mid-September morning than one at the end of July. The temperature at 9:00 a.m. was 62 degrees, the wind was very strong at 15-18 mph out of the NNW with gusts up over 20 mph, the sky was gray and overcast, and the ground was wet from an early-morning rain.

The lake this morning is a gray color as well, with the exception of the white caps that top the waves. The weather report calls for a mostly cloudy and windy day until around 9:00 p.m. this evening when the wind is supposed to drop to below 10 mph. If that is indeed the case, then I'll try to get out to do some late-evening trolling for walleye.

By 2:00 p.m. this afternoon the sky had cleared and it was mostly sunny, but the wind hadn't let up. It was still blowing at close to 20 mph out of the NNW as I pulled the ATV out of the garage to go for a ride around Ottertail Peninsula.

When I returned home from my ride, I saw a common merganser mother and her five juvenile chicks off the end of our dock. The mother flapped her wings and basically jumped up onto our dock, while the five smaller birds paddled around in the water below her.

I watched them for 15 minutes or more before the mother finally jumped back into the water and the entire family paddled away. The chicks are getting big and should soon strike out on their own.

At 4:30 p.m. I went for a walk down West Shores Rd. to the Paulsen's and back, a nice 2-mile walk. Along the way I did a "stop and chat" with Noel Hancock who was out riding his ATV on his way to visit the Schiebe brothers.

I ate dinner a little before 7:00 p.m. and within an hour after finishing, the wind began to die down. I decided not to waste any time, and got out on the water at 8:15 p.m. The temperature was 66 degrees, the water temperature was 70.2 degrees, the sky was mostly clear and the wind was down to 8-10 mph out of the WNW.

I started by motoring out to 14 feet of water in front of the Malay's cabin and fished with a Lindy Max Gap jig tipped with a leech. I caught a couple of perch, including a nice jumbo (which I released) and lost numerous leeches to good bites. I'm guessing most of the bites were perch, but at least a couple were walleye or pike because the leech was bitten clean through.

Just before sunset, which came at exactly 9:00 p.m. tonight, I hooked something big. I got it close enough to the boat to see that it was either a good-sized pike or a big walleye, when it turned, headed for deep water and snapped my line like unwaxed dental floss in between back molars.

I figured that was a sign to switch tactics so I put away my spinning reel and took out my baitcasting rod and reel complete with my favorite hot-steel colored #9 Minnow Rap. I started trolling The Alley in 8-10 feet of water.

I caught a couple of rock bass (and thought of you Rick; by the way, Skylar was again the DJ on Z99 tonight, ugh) before hooking into a nice 20 1/2" walleye. I got the walleye close to the boat, put the landing net underneath the fish and scooped it up and into the boat.

As always, I released the reel to let out some line and as often happens, the walleye unhooked itself. However, when I reached into the net to pick up the unhooked fish it flopped just as I was putting my hand around it and my middle finger must have hit a tooth, a fin or a gill plate, because something cut the tip of my finger.

After measuring and releasing the fish, I had to mop up the blood that I was dripping all over the boat. Another fish, another cut. That must make at least 20 nice fish cuts on my left hand these past couple of months.

With the walleye back in the water and blood cleaned up, mostly, I began trolling again and looked up to see the golden crescent moon (18 percent waxing) setting into the western sky. It looked like an overly ripe slice of cantalope being dipped into a pool of black paint. A beautiful moonset.

With the light of the sun and moon now both gone from the sky, the stars came out in full force. Even the white glow of the Milky Way was clearly visible.

I didn't catch any more fish, so at 10:45 p.m. I came ashore after enjoying another wonderful night of fishing on Leech Lake.

July 24, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

5 Days and Counting...

We awoke this morning to very strong winds of 15-25 mph out of the WNW. The lake was churning and covered in white caps. The sky was mostly sunny, the temperature was 68 degrees (although it felt much cooler than that because of the wind), and the water temperature was 70.2 degrees.

Liz and Ashley spent most of the late-morning and early-afternoon packing and getting ready for the drive down to St. Cloud. Ashley was able to take a break from her work to go on an ATV ride with me. I took her to the south end of Ottertail Peninsula.

At 3:45 p.m., Liz and Ashley, along with Sandy and Jackson, left Leech Lake to drive to St. Cloud. Later tonight Liz and Ashley will go to Minneapolis with Kathleen's sister Mary where they will spend the night. Then tomorrow, Ashley leaves for California. Liz will go back to St. Cloud where she will stay with her grandma for another week.

After everyone left I contacted Tom Malay. Earlier in the day he had gone into Cass Lake and picked up one of the bake-at-home pizzas for me. He stopped by to drop it off and when he did, I invited him in for a beer. We sat out on the back deck and shared a cold one.

When Tom went home I decided to go fishing for a little while before it got dark. Usually I go out trolling at night, but I heard that the wind -- which had died down to about 10 mph out of the west at 5:30 p.m. -- was supposed to pick up again around 9:30 p.m.

I motored out to 14 feet of water in front of the cabin, put a leech on my jig and began fishing. I made a couple of drifts toward shore, but caught only one fish, a bluegill. Oddly enough, it was the first bluegill I've caught all summer long (of course, they haven't been one of the fish I've targeted either).

As predicted, at just before 10:00 p.m. this evening the wind began to pick up and is currently blowing very hard out of the west. It is not a night I'd want to be out trolling for walleye on Leech Lake.

[NOTE: I will not be posting any new pictures to this blog during my current stay. In her haste, Liz packed the USB cord for my camera in her things and took it with her. I probably won't get it from her until we're both back in California.]

July 23, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

6 Days and Counting...

Believe it or not, the temperature hit 78 degrees this afternoon! That's the warmest it's been here at Leech Lake in a number of weeks. The water temperature has warmed to 70 degrees.

The wind today was light at 5-8 mph out of the SSE, but the sky was mostly cloudy. As the day progressed, the cloud cover increased until it the sky was completely overcast by 4:30 p.m. There is a chance of a late-afternoon or early-evening thunderstorm.

My nephew Jackson and I went fishing from 1:15 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. and tried numerous locations on Sucker Bay from Second Duck Point to in front of our house to The Birches. Jackson caught numerous perch, including some very nice-sized ones, some rock bass and a 22" northern pike. Jackson was using a jig, a small Colorado blade spinner and a chartreuse plastic trailer.

I used a variety of jigs and plastic and a jig tipped with a leech. I caught a few perch and rock bass, but no northerns or walleye.

This evening I made BBQ chicken and roasted corn-on-the-cob for dinner. Afterward we sat around the camp fire and made s'mores. Ashley and Jackson played ping pong while Sandy, Liz and I sat around the fire and talked.

As of 10:00 p.m. we still haven't had any thunderstorms, or even any rain.

After we doused the fire, we went back to the house to watch a movie. Liz and Ashley leave for St. Cloud tomorrow. I hope they enjoyed their time at Leech Lake.

July 22, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

The approaching storm at 5:05 p.m.

7 Days and Counting...

One week from today I'll be on a plane jetting my way back to San Jose, California and away from the peace, serenity and beauty of Leech Lake. I have many things that require my attention in California so it is necessary for me to be there, but if given the choice, I'd remain here in the northwoods.

Today we awoke to a day much like yesterday -- sunny, but with a good amount of billowy white clouds in the sky, a light wind of 5-8 mph out of the SSW, and a humid 68 degree temperature. As the day progressed, the cloud cover increased, the rumble of faraway thunder could be heard and the threat of thunderstorms hung in the heavy air.

At 1:00 p.m. I took Ashley for a long ATV ride around the Ottertail Peninsula. While we were south of Moose Lane, we started to get pelted with very large rain drops. I turned the ATV around and headed for home. But within a minute, the rain stopped, the sky cleared, so we decided to continue our tour of the peninsula.

This evening my sister-in-law Sandy and her son Jackson are going to be coming up to the lake for a visit. Sandy has graciously agreed to take Liz and Ashley back to St. Cloud on Friday (thus saving me a 6-hour round trip) so Ashley can catch her flight back to San Jose on Saturday. Liz is going to stay at Grandma Coyle's for another week.

I knew there is "a-storm-a-brewin'", but I thought it might be fun for Liz, Ashley and I to go fishing for a little while before the storm actually hit. So at 3:30 p.m. we all got in the boat and made our way out to 12 feet of water straight out in front of our house.

With the slight breeze blowing our boat was pushed north toward Malay's. We all were using jigs tipped with leeches. We caught a couple of small perch, but that was all. Since Liz wanted to go for a run, and Ashley was having a hard day and wanted to go back to the house, we cut our stay on the water short, and headed in at 4:30 p.m.

After dropping off the girls on shore, I went back out onto the lake to do a little more fishing. I was only out there for 20 minutes or so when I could tell the storm was getting close. The temperature began to drop, the wind began to pick up, and I saw some bolts of lightening.

I came ashore at 5:00 p.m., and within 15 minutes the storm was upon us. The wind blew like crazy, the rain came down hard, and lightening and thunder abounded. Then just as fast as the storm came up, it passed. By 5:45 p.m. the sky was clearing, the wind had died down, and it looked as if it will be a beautiful evening.

My sister-in-law Sandy and her son Jackson arrived at the lake at 8:15 p.m. After getting their car unloaded and some brief conversation, I took Ashley and Jackson out fishing.

As usual, we trolled The Alley in 8-10 feet of water using #9 Minnow Raps. We caught a couple of perch and rock bass, and then I caught two walleye. The first was only 14” and immediately went back into the lake. The second walleye, however, was 17” and perfect eating size so I kept it. If we catch one more walleye tomorrow, or a couple of nice-sized perch, we’ll have enough for a fish-fry dinner.

The weather tonight couldn't have been nicer. The temperature was 64 degrees (sweatshirt weather), the wind was slight at 5-8 mph out of the SSW, the water temperature was 68.8 degrees and the moon was 1 percent waxing, or basically still a new moon.

The kids and I came ashore at just before 11:00 p.m. after another wonderful night of walleye fishing on Leech Lake.

July 21, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

Today we woke up to the remnants of a late-night/early-morning rain. The ground was wet, the back deck was wet, the dock was wet, yet the sun was shining and there were only a few fluffy white clouds in the sky.

The temperature by 10:00 a.m. was 68 degrees on its way to a high of roughly 74 degrees. The wind was light at 7-10 mph out of the SSW, the water temperature was 67 degrees and today was a new moon.

Elizabeth, Ashley and I went fishing this afternoon at 1:15 p.m. We took advantage of the light wind and drifted in 10-14 feet of water from in front of our house to in front of Norm's cabin. We were using jigs tipped with leeches and caught a few perch and rock bass, and I caught a small walleye, maybe 12" long.

Then about 3:45 p.m., I could tell that the storm we'd been keeping an eye on all afternoon was getting too close for comfort. I told the girls to reel their lines in and get their things put away because we were going to have to make a quick run back to the boat lift if we wanted to avoid getting caught in the storm.

My timing was off by about 1 minute because we were on the lake as the rain came upon us and the wind whipped up. I was, however, able to safely get the boat on the lift and everyone inside before the worst of the storm hit. Within an hour, the storm had passed, the sky cleared, the wind died down and it turned out to be a beautiful late afternoon, evening and night.

After a very tasty BBQ rib dinner, complete with salad, corn-on-the-cob, and french fries, we decided to go fishing. We got out onto the water a little earlier than usual, at 8:45 p.m., so we could watch the sunset while on the lake.

It was a nice sunset, but nothing as spectacular as some of the sunsets we've seen on Leech Lake. Of course we weren't on the water just to enjoy nature, we were also out there trolling for walleye.

We trolled The Alley in 8-10 feet of water using #9 Minnow Raps. Liz and I each caught a couple of rock bass, Liz caught a very nice 22" northern pike, and I caught a 19" and a very hefty 25" walleye.

After I hooked the big 25-incher, I had Ashley reel it in for me. She said it wasn't that hard to do until the big fish got close to the boat and decided to make a run for it. But Ashley played the fish perfectly and I was able to net it.

I have to say it was probably the biggest walleye I've boated this summer. Not only was it all of 25", but it was extremely fat. I bet that fish weighed at least 8 pounds if not more.

We caught that big fish right off Second Duck Point so we decided to troll home from there and call it a night. We didn't catch anything else on our way back to the boat lift.

Maybe it was the new moon or the stable weather after the earlier storm, or maybe it I just put us right on the fish tonight, but whatever it was, tonight was our best night of fishing since the girls arrived. We had a wonderful night on Leech Lake.

July 20, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

This morning at 9:00 a.m. the temperature was 66 degrees, the sky was overcast and gray, a light, but steady, rain was falling and the wind was out of the SSW at 5-8 mph.

The rain finally stopped at about 11:30 a.m. and slowly the clouds began to dissipate and blue sky began to emerge. By early afternoon it was sunny and humid, although the temperature never went beyond 74 degrees.

I had some business to attend to that kept me busy until after 1:00 p.m. Earlier in the day I had made arrangements to go into Bemidji to have the truck serviced, so that's what we did this afternoon.

Liz, Ashley and I left for town around 2:30 p.m. and as we made our way up Sucker Bay Road the sky began to cloud over and by the time we hit Cass Lake the rain had once again begun to fall.

While the truck was being worked on, the three of us walked around down town Bemidji. At 5:00 p.m., the truck was ready to pick up. After getting the truck we made a quick stop at Target and then drove back to the lake.

The entire time we were in Bemidji and the entire trip home the rain continued to fall. Finally around 7:30 p.m. the rain stopped, although the sky remained cloudy. We decided to go fishing at 9:00 p.m., despite the possibility of rain, and made our way over to the boat lift.

Once on the water we trolled The Alley in 8-10 feet of water. The water temperature was 66 degrees, the air temperature was near 60 degrees, the wind was at 5-8 mph out of the SSW and the moon was 3 percent waning; almost a new moon.

We made several passes, but with the exception of one rock bass, we caught nothing. I don't know what's going on, but ever since Liz and Ashley have been here the fishing has shut down completely. I was catching fish regularly until the past few days. The weather should be OK tomorrow, so I'm sure we'll try once again.

Despite the lack of catching fish, we had an enjoyable time on the lake this evening, and I'm sure that tomorrow we'll once again enjoy being out on the waters of Leech Lake.

The White Spot Tradition

The White Spot Tradition

The acrid smoke of the Lucky Strike straight
wafts its way into the backseat of the old car

My sister and I stand on the bench behind him
as he makes the short drive from the store

We get out of the car and make our way past
the heavy door into the dark, smoke-filled room

Music I don’t know plays on the jukebox and competes
with loud talking and the clacking of billiard balls for my attention

Greetings are made, big hands shake, orders are placed
including a cold beer for Grandpa and pops for my sister and me

I sit on a stool high above the sticky floor and watch
as they play pool, smoke cigarettes and drink glasses of yellow beer

Soon our name is called and big white bags are passed over the bar into Grandpa’s hands, money is exchanged and we move outside into the bright sunlight and smokeless air

Again we’re in the car and soon we’re climbing the back stairs of the store,
golden fried fish, crispy French fries, sweet Cole slaw and warm rolls grace our table

Grandma, grandpa, brother, sister start to eat a Friday night Catholic dinner
as the summer sun begins its descent after another memorable visit to Pete’s White Spot

July 19, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

A beautiful sunny summer's day on Sucker Bay, Leech Lake

Today was the best day weather-wise we've had in a week or more. The temperature at midday was 74 degrees, the sky was sunny, the wind was light at 5 mph out of the SE and the water temperature was 65 degrees.

At approximately 1:00 p.m., Ashley, Liz and I went fishing. We were using jigs tipped with leeches, and fished in numerous spots I know on Sucker Bay -- ranging from 8-14 feet of water. Unfortunately, we only caught a couple of perch.

At 4:00 p.m. we came ashore. Although we didn't catch many fish, we did have an enjoyable time together on the lake.

Once we were home, Liz went for a run, I read the Sunday paper, and for some reason, Ashley decided she wanted to clean the kitchen. She swept and mopped the kitchen floor, cleaned the counter tops and even arranged the fruit in the fruit bowl. I really appreciated her efforts, no matter how unnecessary I thought they were.

We made a wonderful shrimp pasta dish for dinner and afterward Ashley and I sat on the dock and watched the sun set into the western sky.

I think we're going to watch a movie tonight rather than go trolling. And if that's what the girls want to do, that's what we'll do. Tomorrow night, however, I will encourage them to go trolling with me for walleye on Leech Lake.

July 18, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

This morning at 10:30 a.m. I left the house to drive down to St. Cloud to pick up my daughter Liz and my granddaughter Ashley from my mother-in-law's house. It was a quick trip. I drove the 3 hours to St. Cloud, stayed for lunch and visited for a while, then a couple of hour later we left.

After stopping for groceries, Liz, Ashley and I drove back to Leech Lake. Upon our arrival the temperature was 64 degrees, the wind was light at 5 mph out of the north, the sky was sunny and the moon was at 16 percent waning.

At 9:15 p.m. the three of us went fishing. We trolled The Alley in 64 degree water with a Cotton Cordell Wally Diver and a Minnow Rap, but we caught no fish. We decided to come ashore a little before 11:00 p.m.

Although we caught no fish, it was fun being together -- watching the sunset and the stars come out -- on Leech Lake.

MN DNR Concerned Over Theft of State Flower

A couple of weeks ago on this blog I posted several photos of Minnesota's state flower, the Lady's Slipper.

We here on Leech Lake's Ottertail Peninsula are fortunate enough to have the flower grow in various locations along our roads. But unfortunately, some people can't leave well enough alone, and for reasons known only to themselves, they feel that they have the right to dig up the state flower.

Apparently, this "theft" is spreading to Minnesota's state parks and other public lands. Click here to read the report.

July 17, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

It's another beautiful mid-summer day here at Leech Lake. At 10:00 a.m. the temperature is 50 degrees, the sky is gray, overcast and spitting rain, and the wind is 12-20 mph out of the NNW churning up the lake and covering it with white caps.

It is the wrong week to be at the lake if you were looking to do some swimming, tubing, water skiing, or any other activity that is enhanced by warm sunny weather.

The hour-by-hour weather report calls for the wind to die down -- to around 8 mph out of the NW -- by 9:00 p.m this evening. If that is indeed the case, then I will have the opportunity to go out trolling for walleye.

Update: It's now 2:00 p.m. and the wind is still strong at 15+ mph from the NW, the sky is still gray with occasional light rain, and the temperature is 52 degrees.

I saw two boats out on the water earlier, both from Birch Ridge Resort. They were probably vacationers and today is their last day at the resort so they were determined to go fishing regardless of the conditions. The guys in the boat were bundled up in warm rain gear and from the little I watched them through the binoculars, no one watching catching any fish. I do admire their determination, however.

About 5:00 p.m. I was coming back from taking the garbage to the waste bins at the community center when I saw Don Poage and his son-in-law Marty. They asked if I wanted to join them on the lake for some fishing. I said sure, grabbed my rod/reel, some extra jigs (which would come in handy), and a cooler with some drinks.

We left Poage's boat lift at 5:20 p.m. and motored out to 14 feet of water. The water temperature according to Poage's electronics had dropped to 63.4 degrees. The wind was still out of the NW at 8-15 mph and the air temperature was 56 degrees.

I was using a Fire-Ball jig tipped with a leech. I caught a few perch and rock bass, and then something big hit my line. It was one of those fishing moments when you know something big is on the other end of your line, but almost as fast as you recognize it’s there, it’s bitten through the line and is gone.

I retied with a Bass Pro Shops 1/8 oz. XPS Walleye Angler jig in red/black (one of the spare jigs I had brought with me), put on a new leech and went back to fishing. I caught a few more perch, but no walleye. By this time Don Poage was ready to go ashore so we headed back to his boat lift.
It’s now 8:30 p.m. and the wind is still blowing at 15+ mph out of the north. If it dies down a little I may go out trolling tonight. For now, it’s wait and see.

I decided to go fishing at 9:20 p.m. even though the wind was still blowing at 10-15 mph out of the north. The air temperature was 52 degrees and the water temperature was between 62.4 and 63.0 degrees depending on my location and depth. The sun set tonight at 9:10 p.m., and the moon was 25 percent waning.

I trolled The Alley in 8-10 feet of water using my #9 hot-steel colored Minnow Rap. Right at 10:00 p.m., I hooked a fish and I could tell it was a big fish because it had, as they say, shoulders. As I got it up to the boat I could see it was a good-sized walleye. I netted it and then measured the fish. It was a full 23”. A good fish for this time of year.

I made one more pass but caught no more fish. At 10:45 p.m. I came ashore. By the time I was making my way to the boat lift, the wind had died down to a gentle breeze out of the north at maybe 5 mph. It turned out to be a very nice night on Leech Lake.

I Could Have Been A Surgeon

I Could Have Been A Surgeon

I could have been a surgeon
I have small hands for a man 6 feet one inch tall
But I decided to play sports instead
Baseball, Basketball, Football
I broke every finger on each hand
The ring finger on my left hand has been broken three times
The knuckles on my index and middle fingers on my right hand have been broken
I even managed to break the back of my right hand
I’ve had so many cuts on each hand I can’t even begin to count them
More than fifty stitches criss cross my two hands
I could have been a surgeon

July 16, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

According to the online weather reports I saw yesterday the wind was supposed to subside after midnight and be no more than 5-8 mph this morning. Well, the reports were wrong.

At 10:00 a.m., the wind is out of the WNW at 20-25 mph, with gusts as strong as 30+ mph, there are white caps on the lake, the sky is gray and the temperature is 49 degrees! Is this really mid-July? I had to shut all of the windows in the house and turn on the furnace because the temperature inside the house was down to 60 degrees. At least the furnace worked, thank God.

As of now, there is no way I'd go fishing. I may even need to get a fire going in the fireplace. Yesterday when I visited the Malays they had a fire going in their fireplace. We laughed that it was another perfect summer day in Northern Minnesota.

I told the Malays that in California earlier in the week the temperature was in the 90s. It just doesn't seem possible it could be that hot anywhere when the temperature is so cool here at Leech Lake.

Throughout the day the wind refused to die down. Finally at 7:00 p.m. the wind did slow down. But as a long-time observer of the third biggest lake in Minnesota, I knew that a lull in the wind often means that the wind is simply changing direction.

Sure enough, by 8:00 p.m. the wind had shifted to the NW and was blowing at least 20 mph, with gusts pushing 30 mph.

There was no way I was going out fishing tonight, and with the temperature dropping to near 50 degrees, I decided to light the fire in the fireplace that Rick had built way back during his stay at the end of May. And Rick, in your honor, I decided to play nothing but Canterbury music tonight. Here’s the play list from this evening:

Caravan – In The Land of Grey and Pink
Matching Mole – Matching Mole
Hatfield And The North – Hatfield And The North
Gong – Radio Gnome Invisible Part 1, The Flying Teapot
Daevid Allen – Banana Moon
Steve Hillage – Fish Rising
Robert Wyatt -- Rock Bottom

Until tomorrow, good night from Leech Lake.

July 15, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

The wooden dock extension before I applied the water sealant.

This morning at 9:00 a.m. the temperature was 54 degrees, the sky was gray, the threat of rain was present in the wind, which was blowing hard at 17-25 mph out of the west. The lake was covered in waves and white caps, and I couldn't see any boats out on Sucker Bay.

As the day progressed, the sky remained gray, although it still hasn't rained, and the wind continued to blow at near 20 mph out of the west, with gusts well over 25 mph. It was actually kind of nice to be outside in the wind. The temperature warmed to 62 degrees, but with the wind blowing so hard it felt much cooler. It reminded me of a gray late-September day.

After lunch I went next door to the cabin and applied a water sealant to the wooden dock extension (photo above). I had enough sealant to cover the top of the dock extension, and some of the sides, but ran out before I could complete the entire project. The next time I go into town I'll have to pick some up at the hardware store.

I got a call from Tom and Lainey Malay this evening about 5:30 p.m. Tom asked me if I wanted to stop by to fill them in on the status of the water level issue on Leech Lake. I got on the ATV and rode down to the Malay's house.

I filled them in on my conversations with the Ottertail Peninsula Township board, the Leech Lake Association and the Army Corps of Engineers. Lainey filled me in on some of her health issues and the fact that she is going to Bemidji Hospital tomorrow to have an electric shock to her heart in an attempt to get its rhythm back to normal.

I hung out at the Malay's for about an hour, and I was leaving Lainey gave me some leftover casserole she had made for dinner last night. I brought it home and ate that for dinner tonight. It was tasty and it was very nice of her to give it to me.

At 9:30 p.m. this evening the wind was still blowing at 15 mph out of the west and while the waves had subsided somewhat, I still decided it was too rough to go out trolling for walleye tonight. So unfortunately, I did not go out fishing today on Leech Lake.

July 14, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

The temperature at 9:00 a.m. this morning was 62 degrees, the sky was overcast and gray and it looked like it might rain. The wind was out of the SE at 8-12 mph. The forecast for the rest of the day calls for the winds to pick up to around 20 mph out of the SE by 1:00 p.m., a high temperature of 68 degrees and a 60 percent of thunderstorms, possibly severe, starting around 4:00 p.m.

I've got a few things to do around the house this morning, but I'm hoping to get out on the water for some fishing by 11:30 a.m. With the wind out of the SE, I should be able to get the boat off the lift, and then back on again, with little difficulty. Then once on the water, I'll deploy the drift sock to control my drift in the wind.

Later this evening I'm going to go over to my neighbor's (John Newman) house for dinner and to watch the Major League Baseball All-Star Game which is being played in St. Louis this year.

Noel Hancock and Jerry Schiebe stopped by at 11:15 a.m. to continue the discussion about the Army Corps of Engineers plan to lower the water levels in Leech Lake. While we were talking I received a phone call from Dave Laursen, secretary of the Leech Lake Association (LLA), and he filled me in on the discussion that took place at the LLA meeting last evening.

Dave said that the representative from the Corps of Engineers was at the meeting and stated that all public comment was closed as of November 3, 2008. The representative added that nearly all public comments on the proposal were negative, and that at this time the plan was "being reviewed, but on hold."

After discussing the matter with Dave we agreed that I would contact Steve Clark, the project manager for the ROPE/DEIS at the Army Corps of Engineers, to determine the current status of the proposal. I would then report back to the LLA as well as the Ottertail Peninsula Township board.

Ironically, during my meeting with Noel and Jerry, and my phone call with Dave, it was raining very hard, putting much needed water back into the lake.

After Noel and Jerry left, I put a call into Steve Clark, project manager for the Mississippi River Headwaters ROPE/DEIS. Clark answered on the first ring of his phone and after my introduction I asked him the status of the project. I was told that the project is being revised and that the revised proposal will be released to the public in early August.

Once the proposal is public, the Army Corps of Engineers will take comments for 30 days. Clark told me that the original proposal was met with such violent opposition that the Corps of Engineers decided to drop its plans for an early-summer draw down of the lakes in question. One thing that remained in the plan, however, was the increase in the minimum flow out of the dam for Leech Lake -- from 100 cfs to 120 cfs.

Clark tried to down play the minimum flow increase saying that on a lake as big as Leech Lake the increase in flow would amount to no more than a day's worth of evaporation. I pointed out to Clark that if you take into a account that the average evaporation out of Leech Lake on a hot August day is roughly 1/4", and add to that the 1/4" that the increase minimum flow from the dam would take out of the lake, you end up with a total decrease of 1/2" of water per day. Over a two week period that's 7", which is by no means insignificant.

Despite my efforts, Clark remained committed to the newly revised plan, including the provision for the increase minimum flow out of Leech Lake. I told Clark that he could likely expect opposition from the Leech Lake Association, the Leech Lake Band of Objiwe and various area townships around the issue of the proposed increase in minimum flow. His response was that the public is free to submit any comments to the Corps of Engineers once the ROPE is distributed publicly.

After my discussion with Clark, I called the Dave Laursen of the LLA and my Ottertail Peninsula Township board representative Jerry Schiebe to give them the new information. I was surprised that the LLA was not aware of the plan to increase the minimum flow out of Leech Lake. Apparently the Army Corps of Engineers representative who attends the monthly LLA meetings had failed to mention that element of the proposal for nearly a year now.

The LLA will take up the issue again as soon as the revised plan becomes publicly available in early August. In addition, the Ottertail Peninsula Township board will also oppose the new Corps plan and will attend the LLA meeting in August to lend its support in opposition to the plan.

After finishing my work to keep the water levels stable in Leech Lake, I decided to go out onto the large body of water to do some fishing.

Despite gray skies and a slight rain, I left the boat lift at 1:30 p.m. and took the boat out into 12 feet of water in front of our house and put out the drift sock. Near shore the effects of the 15-20 mph SSE winds aren't felt much, but out on the water the wind produced some sizable waves and was pushing the boat along at .75 mph ground speed, even with the drift sock deployed. The water temperature had cooled to 69.7 degrees.

All of my fathead minnows had perished, so I was using a 1/8 oz. Lindy Max-Gap jig tipped with a Northland Slurpies Swin'N Grub. I caught a couple of nice sized perch, including a solid 12" jumbo; all fish went back into the lake.

As I fished, the rain continued to fall harder and harder until there was a virtual downpour. There were also some flashes of lightening off in the distance accompanied by some rumbling thunder, but it was the lack of catching fish that ultimately got me off the lake. I came ashore around 2:45 p.m.

This evening I went over to John's house for a dinner of beer-can chicken, fried potatoes and green beans. Then we watched the MLB All-Star Game, won by the American League 4-3. Curtis Granderson of the Detroit Tigers scored the winning run.

The rain and wind, as well as the All-Star Game, kept me off of Leech Lake tonight. But I hope to get out for some fishing tomorrow, both during the day and for an evening troll.

July 13, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

The temperature at 9:00 a.m. was 66 degrees on a way to a high of 74 degrees. The water temperature had warmed to 72 degrees. The wind initially was out of the north at 8-12 mph, but shifted just after noon to the south at 5-8 mph. The skies fluctuated throughout the day from sunny to cloudy to hazy back to sunny.

At 2:00 p.m. I went out fishing with John Newman. We tried a few spots he knew of -- where earlier in the day he had caught three keeper-sized perch and a 17 3/4" walleye -- but we only caught some small perch.

We moved to a couple of spots I knew of, but again, caught only some small perch. I was using a Fire-Ball jig tipped with Leech Lake minnows (which John had caught while seining at the bottom of my boat ramp) and John was using a "beetle spin" like jig with no minnow. Neither approach seemed to be very effective today.

At 4:00 p.m. we had to come ashore because John was expecting a visit from an excavating company from Federal Dam which was coming out to assess some work John is contemplating for his harbor.

Tonight I went to the Ottertail Peninsula Community Center at 7:00 p.m. to speak to the Ottertail Peninsula Township board about the issue of water level in Leech Lake and the Army Corps of Engineers' plan to lower it. I stated my case and asked the board to join forces with the Leech Lake Association (LLA) and other area township boards in opposition to the Army Corps of Engineers plan. They agreed to do so.

The next steps are that I am going to contact the LLA (which has more "clout" that our township board, according to our township board) to determine its position on the issue and what, if anything, they plan to do about the Corps' plan.

If the LLA is opposed to the proposed drop in the water level in Leech Lake, which I know they will be, I will inform them that the Ottertail Peninsula Township will join them in their opposition, including any formal documentation or communication that would be sent to the St. Paul and Washington D.C. offices of the Army Corps of Engineers.

After performing my civic duty for the day, I came home and got ready for a night of trolling for walleye.

I pushed off my boat lift at 9:15 p.m. and made my way to 10 feet of water to begin trolling my hot steel colored #9 Minnow Rap. The wind this evening was slight, at 5 mph out of the south. The water temperature was 73 degrees, and the air temperature had dropped to the high 50s. The mosquitoes were out in full force.

There was an interesting sunset tonight. To the south of the setting sun the sky was slate gray. To the north of the sun the sky was bright pink. As the sun sank lower into the western sky, the sky over the lake split in two -- the southern half gray the northern half pink. Which reminded me of one of my favorite albums In The Land of Grey and Pink by Caravan.

Just before 10:00 p.m. I caught a beautiful 23" walleye, and it put up quite a fight. That would turn out to be the only walleye I would catch tonight, although I did catch a tiny rock bass (that was for you Rick).

I came ashore at 11:00 p.m. It was another peaceful night on Leech Lake.

July 12, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

This morning at 9:00 a.m. the temperature was only 58 degrees on a way to a high of 71 degrees. The sky was mostly sunny, the wind was out of the north at 8-12 mph and the water temperature was 70.8 degrees.

Last night I caught a 17 1/2" walleye and I plan to clean and cook for dinner tonight. I asked John Newman to join me. When I prepare a Leech Lake fish fry I like to serve french fries and cole slaw along with the fish. I had neither side dish at home, so just after noon I drove into Cass Lake to the grocery store to pick up the few items I needed for dinner.

Once home, I decided to go fishing. I was out on the water by 2:15 p.m. and returned to shore at 3:45 p.m. My relatively short 1 1/2 hour trip was due primarily to the lack of fish I was catching. I was using both nightcrawlers and fathead minnows on the end of my Northland Fire-Ball jig. I was fishing in 10-14 feet of water in front of the Malay's and drifting toward Second Duck Point.

I was able to catch a number of perch, including a very chunky 11 1/4" perch, but I put all of them back into the lake. I caught no walleye.

John stopped by at 5:15 p.m. and we ate our very tasty Leech Lake fish fry dinner about an hour later. John then went home to prep for our evening troll.

At 9:15 p.m. John and I left the boat lift for a night of trolling for walleye on Sucker Bay. As was the case last night, we were both using #9 Minnows Raps tonight. John was using one in a firetiger color and I used my favorite color, hot steel.

We fished in 8-12 feet of water through The Alley, and with the wind still out of the north at 10 mph, I had to rev the Mercury Verado up to 610 rpm when heading into the wind, and took it down to 580 rpm when we were moving with the wind.

Just before 10:00 p.m. I caught a very nice 21" walleye, and a short time later, John caught a 16" walleye, which he kept. We came ashore at 11:15 p.m.

It was beautiful and starry night of walleye fishing on Leech Lake.

July 11, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

I woke up early this morning and heard the furnace running. I got out of bed, checked the thermostat and found out the temperature in the house was around 60 degrees. I checked the thermometer outside and the temperature was just under 50 degrees. I shut the windows, turned down the thermostat and went back to bed.

When I got up for good this morning, the wind was blowing hard from the west at 15-20 mph, the sky was sunny and the temperature was 60 degrees on its way to a high of only 66 degrees. So much for a hot mid-July day.

Today was the big "White Goods Trash" day on Otter Tail Peninsula where area residents can bring out any old trash they may have -- from old washing machines to TVs to PCs to sofas -- and throw them out in large metal waste bins.

Some old-timers on the peninsula refer to today's event as the "Swap Meet," because of the old guys show up at the community center with empty trailers hoping to haul home some newly discovered treasure.

I went down to the community center to check out the scene, but no one was there dropping anything off, and only Ron Geppert and Ron Newstrand were there, waiting to help people unload their trash.

I came home, and found a message from my neighbor John Newman inviting me over for lunch. He was also hosting Clarence T., the man from whom Kathleen and I bought our house. Clarence, or Clancy as he is better known, John and I sat in John's driveway, drank beer, chatted, ate some lunch, and then we helped John fix his garage door.

I came home around 5:00 p.m. and did something I'd done very little since being here at the lake -- I laid in the hammock. Usually the mosquitoes would eat me alive if I tried laying in the hammock, but because of the strong wind today, the mosquitoes on the lake-side of the house were no where to be seen. I have to say, laying in the hammock with a nice wind blowing off the lake with the sun warming your body is a very relaxing way to spend a half an hour or so.

At 9:15 p.m. this evening John Newman stopped by and we decided to go out trolling for walleye. We each were using a #9 Minnow Rap, me in a hot steel color and John was using a firetiger color. We trolled "The Alley" in 8-12 feet of water, but the shallower water seemed to be producing better tonight.

The water temperature was 70 degrees, the air temperature was 52 degrees, the wind was light out of the west at 5-8 mph. At 11:00 p.m., the clouds started to roll in, but until then the sky was clear and the stars were visible, as was the Milky Way.

John caught two walleyes tonight, both measuring 20 1/2". I caught three walleyes, one measuring 18 1/2", the second was 19" and the third was 17 1/2". I kept the 17 1/2" fish and John and I plan to have a walleye fish fry tomorrow evening.

We came in at 11:30 p.m. after another wonderful night of fishing for walleye on Leech Lake.

July 10, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

The wind today is the dominant factor on the weather scene. The wind is out of the west at 15-20 mph, with gusts pushing 25+ mph. There are white caps on the lake, and I've only seen a boat or two willing to battle the rough waters of Leech Lake today.

The temperature this morning was 66 degrees and it warmed to a high of 70 degrees by 4:00 p.m. The sky was mostly cloudy, with only little patches of blue here and there for most of the day, but after 4:00 p.m. there was more blue sky than clouds.

A couple of days ago I had left a message for Minnesota state senator Mary Olson, from District 04, which includes Leech Lake, regarding the issue of the Army Corps of Engineers Reservoir Operating Plan Evaluation (ROPE) and corresponding Draft Environmental Impact Study (DEIS). Today, Sen. Olson returned my call.

The long and short of our 30 minute conversation was that she agrees with me that we all want to do what's best for the Leech Lake, the surrounding water shed and the Mississippi River Headwaters. But we also want to ensure that no decisions are made about the water levels in any of the area lakes without feedback from property owners, lake associations, resort owners, the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe.

From the stand point of many of the concerned parties around Leech Lake, the Army Corps of Engineers is moving forward aggressively with its ROPE/DEIS without much input from anyone outside the Corps. Sen. Olson suggested that I contact other township associations around the lake, as well as the Leech Lake Association, to ask for a meeting with representatives from the Corps of Engineers.

After speaking with Sen. Olson, I spoke with Jason Hauser who is a member of the Federal Dam Army Corps of Engineers. He did his best to put the ROPE/DEIS in a good light, saying that the proposed drop in water level is necessary for the health of the water shed (which it may very well be), and that the proposed lower water levels wouldn't be much lower than they are currently.

Unfortunately, the water level in Leech Lake as of July 10, is low enough to where my neighbor can't get his boat on or off his boat lift. In addition to suggesting that the current low water mark be the norm for years to come, the ROPE/DEIS also proposes an increase in the minimum discharge flow; meaning that even if the Corps of Engineers isn't actively draining water out of Leech Lake, the normal minimum flow out of the lake would be increased.

Again, all of this may make perfect sense, but so far, no one I've talked to other than the Army Corps of Engineers seems to understand why this proposal is a good idea. Simply put, the Corps of Engineers has not done a good job of stating its case.

I continued on my mission by contacting Dave Laursen, secretary of the Leech Lake Association. Dave told me that he had heard the Army Corps of Engineers had put the ROPE/DEIS on hold because of lack of funds. I told Dave that that never came up in my conversation with Jason at the Army Corp of Engineers. That news troubled Dave and he promised to address the issue at the next Association meeting, which is Monday, July 13, and get back to me.

Dave went on to tell me that other lake associations -- such as the one on Big Sandy Lake -- were also opposed to the ROPE/DEIS and had filed formal complaints with the Corps of Engineers. I also know that the Cass Lake Association is opposed the plan.

It appears to me that no one is happy with what is outlined in the ROPE/DEIS. And worse still, no one is happy at the lack of communication from the Corps of Engineers. This is an issue of great importance to all who live on area lakes and to those who rely on area lakes for their livelihood.

I'm going to be making a presentation to the Otter Tail Peninsula township board on Monday evening and I'm going to urge them to contact other Leech Lake township boards and the Leech Lake Association so we can band together to ask for a meeting with the Army Corps of Engineers so that can explain to us the details of the ROPE/DEIS, if the project is moving forward, and if it is, what we as concerned individuals can do to modify its content.

Whew. As for fishing today, the strong wind has kept me on shore. I may go out later today if the wind dies down some.

John Newman arrived at the lake late this afternoon, and he and I plan to get together later this evening over a cold malted beverage to solve all the problems we're facing here on the lake, and around the world.

At 9:00 p.m. this evening the wind picked up considerably, to about 20 mph, and shifted from the west to the north. And for about 20 minutes it rained fairly hard. Then as the light faded from the sky the rain stopped and the wind began to slow. But because of the inclimate weather (primarily the wind), I didn't go fishing tonight.

Hopefully the weather will be better tomorrow, and I can get out onto Leech Lake to do some fishing.

July 9, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

The edge of the storm that made its way up the western shore of Otter Tail Peninsula

The temperature this morning at 9:00 a.m. was 63 degrees. The sky was gray and a light rain was falling off and on. The wind was at 8-12 mph out of the WSW. The forecast for the rest of the morning and into the afternoon is a chance of thunderstorms, possibly severe, with heavy rain and hail.

By 1:00 p.m. the temperature had warmed to 68 degrees, the wind had picked up slightly, the sky was still overcast, but it hadn't rained much, and there certainly were no thunderstorms.

At 4:45 p.m., with still no thunderstorms in the area, I decided to go out fishing. The wind was blowing at 12-15 mph from the SSW and there were 2-3 foot waves on the lake, but no white caps. I thought it looked like a good "walleye chop." The water temperature was 71 degrees, having cooled due the lower air temperature and the wind.

I motored my Lund Pro-V 1800 into 12 feet of water in front of Giza's cabin, just north of Second Duck Point, and tossed out the drift sock. The wind pushed my boat along at .75 mph in a northerly direction.

I was using a Fireball jig in parakeet color tipped with fathead minnow. I caught a few perch, but the overall fishing was poor. The thunderstorms may not have materialized, but the cold front was real enough, and that shut down the fishing. After two passes I came ashore at 6:15 p.m.

By 7:00 p.m. the wind had slowed significantly and was out of the WSW at 5-8 mph. The sky was mostly overcast with just a spot or two of blue sky peeking through the clouds. If these conditions hold, I'll probably go out trolling this evening at 9:15 p.m., which is the time the sun sets on this date.

For now, I'll retire to the living room to continue working my way through Part 2 of William Faulkner's The Sound and the Fury. I have to say, Faulkner's stream-of-consciousness style of writing makes the book difficult to read, if not impossible to follow in certain sections.

At 9:00 p.m. the wind had actually picked up a bit and I could see a storm moving north. However, it appeared that the western edge of the storm would move over Portage Bay and miss Sucker Bay, making it safe, by my estimation, to go out trolling.

I left the boat lift at 9:15 p.m., as I had planned earlier, and moved out into 10 feet of water. After securing the stern light, putting in my rod holder and getting the landing net ready, I dropped my #9 Minnow Rap into the water and began trolling.

When I was headed in a southerly direction I had to set the Mercury SmartCraft control for 630 rpm to compensate for the wind. At 630 rpm the boat was moving at roughly 2 mph ground speed. With the wind at my back, I could adjust the controls down to 570 rpm and the boat would still be moving at ground speed of 2.5 mph or greater.

The cold front that kept the fishing slow this afternoon made this evening's bite tough as well. I caught one 3-4 lb. northern pike, but no walleye. At 10:30 p.m. I came ashore. Despite the wind, the mosquitoes were particularly voracious tonight.

Tomorrow the wind is supposed to shift and come out of the west at 10 mph. If that is indeed the case, then the bait fish, such and minnows and shiners, should be blown toward my boat ramp making them perfect targets for my seining net. I may be donning the waders tomorrow in pursuit of Leech Lake minnows.

Until tomorrow...

July 8, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

The temperature this morning at 9:00 a.m. was 65 degrees, on its way to a high of 74 degrees. The wind was out of the ESE at 5-10 mph, the sky was mostly sunny and the water temperature was 74 degrees.

Yesterday while fishing, I used the last of the Leech Lake minnows that I had captured in my seining net. With the wind blowing away from shore today, there were no bait fish to be seen near my dock or boat ramp, so I couldn't seine any Leech Lake minnows myself. Therefore, if I wanted to use live bait, which I did, I had to buy minnows from someone.

At 11:00 a.m. I drove up to Birch Ridge Resort to buy a couple of scoops of fathead minnows from Frank (the owner of the resort). While chatting with Frank about various things, the topic of the ever dropping water level in the lake came up.

After complaining about it for some time, I suggested to Frank that we -- lake property owners, resort owners, various lake associations, etc. -- band together to complain directly to the Army Corps of Engineers which is responsible for the maintenance the Federal Dam water flow out of Leech Lake.

Frank said he thought it was a great idea and gave me the name of the clerk on the Otter Tail Peninsula Township governing board whom he said could help me get the ball rolling. When I got home, I called her, and long story short, I'm on the agenda at the next township meeting, which is Monday, July 13.

I figure that a few years ago when the walleye fishing tanked on Leech Lake, numerous groups of concerned individuals got together to put pressure on the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe and the Minnesota Dept. of Natural Resources to do something about the decline in walleye fishing.

The result was that the Ojibwe and MN DNR began culling thousands of double breasted cormorants (which eat a pound of fish per day), instituted a new slot limit on Leech Lake for walleye, began an aggressive stocking program, and reduced the legal number of walleye each fisherman could keep. As a result of these measures, in just 3 years time the walleye fishing is back, and in many cases, is better than ever.

I hope to be able to put the same kind of pressure on the right government organizations so that they decide to release less water from Leech Lake into the Mississippi River. As it is today, by July and August of each year the water level in the lake drops to a point where it is often impossible to get boats off of boat lifts, many docks at resorts around the lake are unusable (which causes a drop in revenue for resorts), and it is increasingly difficult for boaters to use public access boat ramps.

This is an issue I plan to push on as long, and as hard, as I can to affect change. I realize I'm fighting the government and that I have little chance for success, but the fight should be fun. Plus, it's better than just complaining about the problem, or doing nothing about it. I'll post updates here as they occur.

At 1:30 p.m. I made it out onto the lake to do some fishing. I went out to "the point," in 14 feet of water. I was using a Northland Fireball jig tipped with a fathead minnow. I caught dozens of perch, but no walleye. At 4:00 p.m. I came ashore.

Tom and Lainey Malay invited me over for dinner tonight because Rosie Frigge, the former owner of the now-closed Bay Shore Resort, was visiting from Phoenix. I went over to the Malay's at 6:45 p.m., we had a nice turkey dinner, chatted, and then called it a night.

By the time I got home it was nearing 10:00 p.m., so I decided not to go out trolling tonight. Before I left the Malay's, Tom mentioned to me that he heard we were supposed to have severe thunderstorms tonight with the possibility of some hail. I did a quick check on the Internet and it looks to me that any storms we might have will not occur until tomorrow morning and afternoon.

That's the latest update from my little slice of Leech Lake.

Ode to George W. Bush

Ode to George W. Bush

Hanging chads
Supreme court decision
Squandered 9/11 momentum
WMDs
Yellow cake
Saddam Hussein
Iraq
Mission Accomplished
Gitmo
Abu Ghraib
Swift boat tactics
Fear
Waterboarding
Torture
TSA
The Patriot Act
Wiretapping US citizens
Valerie Plame
Walter Reed
Katerina
FEMA
"Heck of a job, Brownie."
$4.00 gallon of gas
Rove, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Rice
Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac
$10 trillion deficit
Illegal justice department firings
Deregulation
Sub-prime mortgages
Layoffs
Foreclosures
Bailout
Recession
Depression
GOP collapse
W.

Sew-'em-up bugs

Sew-'em-up bugs

Squadrons of blue and black sew-'em-up bugs,
as my Grandma used to call 'em,
Dart and fly and soar above
the pool where the spot-tails swim

Black-red flake Senko lands near the rushes
three-ought hook, rigged Texas style
Sinking, wiggling slowly in the water
Bam! A four-pound bass makes me smile

Fire up the Merc Verado motor
moving to a different spot
Rod bends in half with the walleye's weight
The battle under the bright sun, hot

Later catching perch on Fireball jigs
ambushing them where they lay
I spend the afternoon on Leech Lake, another
multi-species fishing day

July 7, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

Lon Chaney, Jr. in the 1941 Universal Pictures movie, The Wolfman.

I had invited Noel Hancock, one of our Otter Tail Peninsula neighbors, to stop by for coffee this morning, and at about 10:15 a.m. he arrived.

As we drank our coffee I began to ask Noel his advice on how to repair some damage that had been done this past winter to one of the retaining walls in our harbor. After a couple of cups of java, we were adequately charged to take our discussion on site and headed down to the harbor.

We discussed numerous options, but I think we have one that should work. As for next steps, I need to locate some low-priced concrete and weather-treated 2X6 wood.

When Noel left, I did some chores around the house, ate some lunch, and then at 1:15 p.m. I decided to go fishing. I started my afternoon adventure in "the flats," a stretch of sand and gravel with little depth change between Duck and Second Duck Points. I positioned the boat in 14-18 feet of water and started fishing.

On this afternoon my initial method of fishing for walleye was the use of a baitcasting reel, an in-line keel weight and the snell on the end of which I'd tied a Mustad Slow-Death hook. Above the hook I had added a few beads and a willow blade for extra flash. On the end of the Slow-Death hook I put a fat and juicy nightcrawler. I lowered the rig into the water, set my electric trolling motor on 25, which moved the boat at just under 1 mph.

The temperature today on the lake was 76 degrees, the wind was from the SSE at 5-8 mph, the sky was mostly sunny and the water temperature was 75 degrees.

I caught a few perch on my Slow-Death rig, but no walleye. I decided to change tactics, targeted species, and location. I started up my Mercury Verado motor and sped off toward the reeds in front of Norm's cabin.

Once there, I took out another baitcasting rod and reel, this one had a double-bladed spinner bait tied on. I started casting the spinner bait into 5 feet of water along the edge of the reeds. I moved slowly north, letting the south wind push my boat. I used my electric trolling motor only to keep the boat positioned correctly.

From Norm's to Schiebe's I casted my spinner bait, and on three different occasions I hooked into largemouth bass. The second fish I caught skied out of the water at least 2 feet before landing with a splash, and not once did it let up the fight.

Content with a nice battle with largemouth bass, I decided to relocate to "The Point," a spot in 14 feet of water that stretches from Malay's house to our cabin. I had brought with me the Leech Lake minnows that I had captured in my seining net a couple of days ago, and planned to use them in my pursuit of walleye.

My Northland Fireball jig and minnow attracted numerous perch, three northern pike, all of which were more than 20", and one nice walleye. The walleye, as is typical of that breed of fish, took the bait in so slowly that I felt only a small weight on the end of the line. I let out a little line so that the walleye would take the bait completely into its mouth, and then I set the hook.

Immediately I knew I had a good fish on the line because my St. Croix rod bent in half. I battled with the fish for a minute or two before getting to the side of the boat. I spotted the walleye, and it must have spotted the boat because it made a run for the bottom of the lake.

The time it took to reel the fish back to the surface gave me enough of a window to step to the front of the boat, grab my landing net, and then move back to the back of the boat where I planned to net the fish. With rod in one hand and net in the other, I scooped up the fish and brought it aboard.

I easily removed the jig from the side of its mouth and placed the fish on the ruler for a quick measurement. The fish stretched out to 20 1/2". A beautiful Leech Lake walleye, but in the slot requiring that I put it back into the lake.

I admired the fish for a moment, then gently released it back into the water unharmed. I marked the spot with a waypoint on my Lowrance electronics because I have a feeling that that particular fish is not the only walleye in this area.

I came ashore at 5:15 p.m. after nearly 4 hours on the lake. I had caught numerous perch, several pike, 3 big largemouth bass and one beautiful walleye. Truly an afternoon of multi-species fishing.

At 9:15 p.m., I went back out onto Sucker Bay to do some evening trolling for walleye.

By 10:00 p.m. the full moon had risen high enough in the sky to clear the tree line and shine its bright white light onto the dark waters of Leech Lake.

I was making a big, slow turn off Second Duck Point when I felt the familiar tug of fish on the end of my line. I put the motor in neutral and began reeling in the fish. The wind was coming from the north this evening at 8 mph, so with the motor idling, the boat began to turn.

My line became momentarily caught around the motor and I thought I would lose the fish. But after freeing my line from the cover of the Verado motor, I felt that weight of the fish still there. I reeled it up to the side of the boat, lowered the net into the water, and scooped up a beautiful walleye.

I could right away it was close to being a keeper for me -- between 16 1/2" and 17 1/2". As often happens with walleye once they are netted, this fish spit the hook and was free in the net. I picked it up, laid it down on the ruler and found that it was indeed 17 1/2". I measured it a second time just make sure, then carefully put it in the livewell.

I fished for another 45 minutes, and while I had 3 hit and misses, I was unable to catch any other fish.

Once back at the boat lift, I again measured the walleye and it was still 17 1/2". I debated if I should keep it or not, and in the end decided to put it back into the lake. I am not a meat-hunting FIB who keeps every walleye possible (like the guy at Birch Ridge Resort who kept the 9" walleye the other day).

One 17 1/2" walleye is more fish than one person could, or should, eat in one meal. With luck, that walleye will be in the slot by the end of the year and will grow to be in excess of 26".

After staring at the full moon all evening long, I decided to come inside and watch the old 1941 Universal Pictures version of The Wolfman, starring Lon Chaney Jr. What better way to end another great day, and night, at Leech Lake.

July 6, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

The temperature today was a near perfect 75 degrees, the wind varied from 8-15 mph from the north, the sky was mostly sunny and the water temperature fluctuated between 73 and 74 degrees depending on location and depth.

I had some business calls from morning until early afternoon, and then I spent most of the rest of the afternoon washing the windows in our living room. We have wonderful floor to ceiling windows that look out onto Leech Lake, but they are a chore to clean.

I wrapped up cleaning around 4:00 p.m. and hit the water soon after. I used the minnows I had captured during my seining expedition yesterday on the hook end of a Northland Fireball jig in parakeet color. I fished in front of Malay's in 14 feet of water and drifted south toward Second Duck Point.

There is a spot between Malay's cabin and our house in 14-15 feet of water where the floor of the lake comes up a couple of feet creating an underwater point that extends some 200 yards north to south. I've found that fish congregate on either side of the point, so that's where I fished.

I caught numerous small- to medium-sized perch but no walleye. I came in for dinner around 5:45 p.m.

At 9:00 p.m. I went out trolling. The wind had died down and was very slight out of the north. The water temperature was 74 degrees.

I was on the water for no more than 15 minutes when my cell phone rang. It was Tom Malay asking if he could join me. I told him sure, and swung by his dock to pick him up.

For the next hour and a half we trolled The Alley in 8-12 feet of water. I was using a #9 Minnow Rap in hot steel, and Tom was using a #7 Minnow Rap in the same color. The moon was full tonight, so just as the sunlight began to fade, the bright light of the moon illuminated the lake.

A half an hour after moon rise I caught a small northern pike. Then at 10:15 p.m. I felt the pull of something much bigger. I put the motor in neutral and began reeling the fish toward the boat. Just as the fish came up along side the boat it made a run for deeper water. I let the fish pull off a good amount of line and then began reeling it back in again.

Tom grabbed the net, and when I got the fish to the surface, Tom slid the net under the fish and got it into the boat. It was a big walleye. After removing the trailing treble hook from its lip, I measured the big 'eye and it was a full 25" long. The fish was healthy and had a good girth to it. Tom and I marveled at the big fish for a minute or two before I released it back into the dark water.

On the last pass of the night through The Alley, I hooked an 18" walleye which was just a little too big to keep. My ideal fish to keep and eat is between 16 1/2" and 17 1/2". Of course on Leech Lake, all walleye between 18" and 26" must be immediately released back into the lake according to MN DNR regulations.

At 11:15 p.m. we put the boat on the lift and came ashore. It was another great night of fishing on Leech Lake.

July 5, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

I arrived home at Leech Lake from St. Cloud today at 2:00 p.m. After unloading the truck, putting away some groceries and having lunch, I decided to go fishing.

The temperature at 4:00 p.m. was 72 degrees, the wind was out of the north at 8-12 mph, the sky was filled with big white billowy clouds that made it half cloudy and half sunny, and the water temperature was 73 degrees.

As I stepped onto the dock and began walking to the boat lift, I noticed schools of minnows swimming in the shallow water at the end of the boat ramp and underneath the dock. I decided that before I would go fishing, I'd get out the seining net and try to catch some native Leech Lake minnows to use as bait.

I got on my waders, and with seining net in hand, I wadded out into 3 feet of water. My first few attempts at netting the minnows failed miserably; I was simply too slow in closing the net. But after some trial and error, I began to get the hang of it, and within 10 minutes I managed to net several dozen minnows.

I did a thorough check of the minnows to ensure that what I had netted were indeed minnows. With the exception of one tiny walleye fry, which I carefully put back into the lake, I had nothing but minnows. Content with my catch, I put the minnows into my Frabill Flow Troll Bucket, grabbed what few live shiners were left from those Poage gave me, and got into my boat.

I motored the boat out to 14 feet of water directly in front of the Malay's cabin and deployed the drift sock. With the wind blowing at 12 mph from the north, the current would push the boat south toward Second Duck Point and put me in about 13 feet of water as I passed in front of our house and cabin -- which was my desired position.

When using the Leech Lake minnows, I caught numerous perch, and had a solid bite from something bigger (I could tell that whatever it was it had teeth because my minnow was cleaved off just below the head).

I tried using a shiner on a couple of occasions, but didn't get a single bite. When I switched back to the Leech Lake minnows, I again started catching perch. Unfortunately, I was unable to hook a walleye.

I came ashore around 6:30 p.m. It was nice to spend some time out on the water. I love how peaceful it is being rocked by the waves and slowly propelled by wind.

I contemplated going out trolling this evening, but I was hungry and decided to make dinner at 9:00 p.m., which is the time I would have gone trolling. After eating I sat on the dock with cold Leinenkugel and watched the last of the sunlight disappear behind the horizon. Another beautiful evening on Leech Lake.

A Review of the July 4th Broadcast of A Prairie Home Companion

Garrison Keillor on stage (in the white sport coat) during the July 4th broadcast of A Prairie Home Companion from Avon, MN


Garrison Keillor during rehearsal before the start of the special 4th of July broadcast of A Prairie Home Companion from Avon, MN, "as close to Lake Wobegon as we could get."

Here is my review of the July 4th, and 35th anniversary, broadcast of Garrison Keillor's A Prairie Home Companion from little Avon, MN.

I've seen APHC on several occasions, the first of which was also on July 4th. That show was broadcast from the football field of St. John's University in Collegeville, MN back in 1982.

It was a fantastic show, and afterward, my mother-in-law Marge took me up on stage to meet Keillor, who is a friend of her sister's family. I had always enjoyed listening to the Saturday evening broadcast of APHC before seeing him in 1982, but after that show I was hooked.

So I was especially looking forward to seeing him in tiny (pop. 1242) Avon, MN, which is on the Lake Wobegon Trail. Not only was the show yesterday a July 4th show, but it was also the 35th anniversary of A Prairie Home Companion which first broadcast on July 6, 1974. Unfortunately, the performance did not live up to my expectations.

First, a bit about the venue. It took place in Lake Wobegon Park, which is located in the center of town. Avon is a small town, and I'm sure its citizens and city employees did the best they could to accommodate the crowds of roughly 10,000 people, but it was painfully obvious they had no idea how to handle a large group of people.

There were not nearly enough portable bathrooms in place, so the lines to use them were always very long. There was limited access to food and water. And it was clear the police on traffic duty had never had to direct that many cars before in their lives because getting into and out of town was a horrendous mess.

Once situated in the park (on our own lawn chairs) we waited for more than 2 hours for the broadcast to begin. Usually at concerts and such outdoor events, the organizers will play recorded music or provide some other type of entertainment for the crowd. But yesterday, there was no pre-show entertainment.

Heck, they could have had the local high school band on stage playing patriotic songs for a couple of hours, it was the 4th of July afterall, but there was nothing. It was a missed opportunity for the city of Avon.

At last the show started. Keillor sang his usual opening tune "Hello Love," and then began to run through the cast of performers that would be joining him on stage throughout the evening. As a long-time listener, I realized that many of the regulars on APHC were absent from this evening's broadcast, which I found odd since it was his 35th anniversary special.

The guests included: The Guy's All-Star Shoe Band, Jerry Bierschbach, Father Steve Binsfeld, Senator Amy Klobuchar, World War II veterans Clarence Fischbach and Ralph Lauer, Pastor Steve Hilde, sound effects man Tom Keith, guitarist and St. John's alum John McCutcheon, Avon Mayor John Grutsch, Bud Heidgerken, Minnesota state senator Tarryl Clark, Leigh Lenzmeier, the St. John's Boys Choir, vocalist Andra Suchy, and Vern Sutton (a performer with Garrison on his very first show in 1974).

I won't review each and every segment of the show, but I will say that from 1 to 10, with 10 being the best show possible, I'd rate this show a 4.

The Guy Noir segment was average at best. The interviews with the WW II vets were a nice idea on July 4th, but it was nearly impossible to understand what one of the gentlemen was saying.

The musical guests were OK, but not nearly as good as the acts Keillor usually has on his show. There were no "surprise" special guests, such as Meryl Streep or Martin Sheen (both of whom have appeared as guests before for special occasions). And even the News from Lake Wobegon segment seemed uninspired.

I suppose that after 35 years it gets hard to get excited about doing the show week after week, but this was billed as a coming home party; the place where it all began 35 years earlier. Plus, it was the 4th of July show, usually a big deal for Keillor. But this show lacked anything special.

Still, it was nice to be outside on a bright sunny day, enjoying the company of family, eating good food (which we brought with us), and listening to an average A Prairie Home Companion broadcast.

On my drive north to Leech Lake today I tuned in to the rebroadcast of yesterday's show, and while it might have been a tad better than my initial impression (maybe a 5 out of 10), it still struck me as a flat performance.

I've seen the Grateful Dead on more occasions than I can count (or even remember) and while some of the shows were absolutely incredible -- with Jerry Garcia reaching levels of musicianship never seen anywhere before or since -- other shows were out and out clunkers.

So I guess if the Grateful Dead can have off days (and can be forgiven), I suppose Garrison Keillor can be excused if he can't hit it out of the park with every show either. Still, it would have been nice to see him rev it up like I know he still can.

"And that's the news from Lake Wobegon, where all the women are strong, all the men are good looking, and all of the children are above average."