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.