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."