The Future Looks Good...

I remember when I first started fishing.  It was an addiction from the word go.  I recorded every fishing show on tv and read everything that had the word fish written on it.  When I hit the water, I busted my tail for every bite.  If it was time to leave I would stomp my feet and cry.  I was never ready to go.  Yeah, those were the days.  In the past 24 years, not much has changed.

Last night I was brought back to where it all began.  Meet young Eli Mau.  A future star in the fishing world.  He's the kind of kid that reminds me of me.  A true fishing addict.  If it swims, he wants to catch it.  His favorite television shows all have fish as the star.  Same story goes for his magazines.  If he has his choice, you'll find him at the lake.

When we hit the water last night, he threw on my polarized glasses and it was all business.  He checked my depth finder to make sure I had him on fish.  Next step was to set his bobber according to the sonar.  Where to hook the worm?  He already knew.  When to twich the bait and when to let it sit?  Yep, he made that part look easy.  When that bobber sank, he was ready for action.  A monster hookset would follow that would make any grown angler jealous.  And to think, he's not even 10 years old.

As the night drew on things only got better.  When the action slowed, Eli reminded me that he was after crappies.  Not pesky bluegills.  He said, "I can catch these from shore.  I think we should move."  Without hesitation I followed his command.  A quick boat ride indicated that he was right.

Eli found a new school of fish, and he proceeded to show each of them who was boss.  Bluegills, perch and eventually the motherload of slab crappies!  Some of them pushing a pound.  As darkness fell the action only increased.  Every cast resulted in a new fish and a new fight. 

Some might have called it perfection, but not young Eli.  See, he had school the next day and that part wasn't cool.  We had to leave and he was not a happy camper.  I can't say I blame him.  Truth be told, if it wasn't for his dad, I think we'd still be out there.  Catching one, after another, after another.  I think the future of fishing looks good.  Thanks to one star in the making!  Until next time keep on livin' the dream!

Travis Frank - Travis@mnbound.com

Game On Walleyes!

I'm convinced the season never closes in Minnesota.  There are big fish to be hooked 365 days a year.  In my opinion, the walleye opener in 5 days simply means there are more places to get it done.  If you are a fishin' fool like myself, then you've probably already hooked a few marble eyes.

The Mighty Mississippi has been giving them up all winter and spring.  The only thing that slowed it down was mother nature's flood.  The Rainy River is always a good spring option.  Walleyes and Sturgeon make it a double sweet trip.  The Mississippi is now back in her banks and so is the bite.  Pools 2 through 4 never close.  Adding to the list, our border waters are now fair game.  The season is open my friends, in fact it's in full swing!

This past Saturday I celebrated another 2011 fishing opener.  This time it was my St. Croix river opener.  Funny thing is, I was late to the party.  Walleye dudes had been hammering them for the past week.  This is the 3rd year that I've fished that stretch of water, and every year I walk away more impressed.  When it comes to quality sauger and eyes, it's hard to beat the Croix.  Rumors of the hot bite were true, and it didn't take us long to fill our box.  Our method was simple.  Jigs tipped with minnows or plastics.  Honestly, they both caught 'em well.  The secret was finding the fish.  Judging by all the boats catching fish, it wasn't much of a secret, neither was the bait.

I realize the significance of the Minnesota opener in a few days.  Like you, I am growing restless.  I'm just happy that we never had to stop catching walleyes to wait for it.  If you are looking for a quick fix to your walleye blues, I strongly suggest you head to a border water this week.  The cool water has these fish on a feeding rampage.  Get out there and rub off the dust before the opener hits.  You won't be dissapointed.   Until the next season opens, keep on livin' your dream!

Travis Frank - Travis@mnbound.com

Shadzilla Muskies...

Every angler wants an advantage.  In muskie fishing, this takes on a whole new meaning.  The smallest details make all the difference.  Whether its a longer rod, a high speed reel or particular moon phase, everything comes into play.  As a diehard angler and fishing guide, I am willing to try anything that may put an extra fish or two in my boat.  Anything!

The past few seasons I have been searching for a particular swimbait that would give the fish something they haven't seen.  No blades, no topwater plopping.  I wanted the lure to have good action, and the ability to retrieve at high speeds.  The problem was this.  I kept running into lures that would blow out sideways when I picked up the pace.  They just wouldn't run true.

That was until I found the Shadzilla.  It's a new soft bodied swimbait made up in Canada.  I called the owner directly and asked him if these lures run true at high speeds.  He assured me that they did and I purchased 2.  The rest is history.  On my fourth cast I picked up the speed and ran it past a known fish.  A lage fish.  In the middle of that cast I experienced a strike that I haven't seen in years.  The 50 incher t-boned the bait with such recklessness that it scared me stiff.  There was no follow or advanced notice.  She came out of nowhere and crushed it.  To make the story better, it was high noon on a calm sunny day.  No moon phase sight.  It was a pure reaction strike.

Was it a fluke?  Not a chance.  The next day I hit the water and made two casts on another known fish.  Again, I was scared straight.  She flew out of nowhere and smoked the bait sideways.  These fish were attacking without any hesitation.  I remember looking at my buddy in the boat and his eyes looked like they were ready to explode.  I hadn't seen this kind of response since the cowgirl was introduced.  It was awesome!  The fish had no hesitations and wanted it bad.

The key ingredient was speed.  It's no secret that muskies react to fast moving objects.  The faster the better.  Plus, many of these fish have been conditioned to our bucktails, bulldawgs and topwaters.  I was excited to finally have something to burn that didn't have blades on it.  Swimbaits have been around for years.  This high speed technique was purely something different.  The rest of the fall proved that the muskies were also excited about the bait.  I didn't spill the beans on my new approach last year because I wanted to enjoy it with my clients and buddies.  Truth is, it brought back memories of my first years chasing muskies.  When you found a fish, they would eat.  No follows.  And, we caught fish on it until the ice locked us tight in November.

As this muskie season approaches, you may want to throw this lure into your bag of tricks.  If you have the willpower to burn it, I believe you will put a few more fish in your bag.  I'm not 100% sure, but I think the only place in the US that carries the Shadzilla is Big Wood Musky Lures.  The owner of the company is Kyle Knock.  He's a great guy and will hook you up with what he has.  Just know, that it isn't easy to get your hands on these baits.  The guy doesn't build them fast enough.  So there you have it.  My favorite lure for 2010.  I hope it serves you well as we enter another season of Monster Quest.  Until then, keep on livin' your dream!

Travis Frank - Travis@mnbound.com

One Guess! You get just one!

Okay,  so check out the picture of my front seat and guess where my mind is these days... You get ONE guess.....  C'mon.  You got it yet? 

Gobble! Gobble! Gobble!...............

Last night, son Brady and I got to work on our second real season of turkey scouting. Actually, it's our third, but the first year he was only five months old.  Don't know that that actually counts.  Anyway,  as usual, we checked out the usual spots.  Our evening routine goes something like this.  Right after dinner, I hop up from the table, race through the dishes and then Brady and I both beg Katie to let us sneak away for a half hour.  She normally rolls her eyes and tells us to be back early.   I run to the garage and load a bit of gear into the Jeep, click Brady into his seat in back and then we zip over to three or four of our usual turkey haunts.  Last week, we were out on my hunting ground and found plenty of birds, no sweat.  Four hens, two gobblers and a jake.   In fact, Brady even got to see both gobblers flop up into the roost.  He yells out from the back seat, "Turkeys go to bed Daddy?"  What a cool kid....

Last night, we found turkeys out at EVERY one of our stops.  Right now, the birds are bunched up and I'm just starting to see the Gobblers get a little attitude. In fact, last night was first evening I've seen strutting this year.  They're getting birdy!
 

 Holy Smokes!!!

 

 Over at spot number three, the birds we quite a distance from the road.  With my binocs, I could see a couple of nice gobblers.  In fact, if you look real hard at the shot below, you can just make out a GIANT gobbler on the right.  I wonder if he'll rumble into my calls on opening morning...

 'Tis the season! Three weeks and counting to my Minnesota hunt.  Can't wait!

Gobble, Gobble..........

Meet the Ladies of Strikemaster

Shelly Holland - Holly Chow - Grete Baker - Marianne Huskey : The Ladies of Strikemaster

Our quest to meet great characters with a passion for the outdoors led us High Banks Resort on Lake Winnibigoshish in North Central MN. If you've never been out on Winnie in the winter, you're missing out. Winnie is one of Minnesota's great bodies of water with fantastic fishing all year long. Our hosts, Kim and Rick Leonhardt, went above and beyond to make sure our stay was first class.

Women represent one of, if not the, fastest growing segment in the outdoors. Strikemaster recongizes this and has brought together an eclectic group of female anglers to anchor their prostaff. We made the trek to meet the ladies of Strikemaster and look forward to telling their stories later this year on Minnesota Bound. Here's a little sneak preview of what you're going to see....

Our first outing started with a 5 mile drive on one of the 30 miles of roads Rick and his crew keep plowed for guests....it's a pretty impressive sight if you don't spend much time ice fishing!

Once we hit the ice and punch a few holes, it doesn't take pro-angler Marianne Huskey more than 2 minutes to lay her first jumbo perch on the ice! The weather was a cold zero degrees but the fishing was hot!

Marianne Huskey and her pile of Lake Winne Jumbo Perch

The next morning we set out in the High Banks Snow Bear....it takes about an hour to get to our destination but it was worth the travel time. Holly Chow hooked more than 50 jumbos and kept a limit of fish. Marianne, Shelly and Greta were catching too many fish to keep count. Kim was along as well to personally guarantee that everything was going well with the shoot!

The High Banks Snow Bear

Normally the producer of a story doesn't get to take part in all the fun but with videographer Aaron Achtenberg doing most the work on this story I was able to drop a line for a few minutes and catch my first jumbo!

Mitch Petrie's first Lake Winne Jumbo Perch

Having caught hundreds of fish and kept a 5-gallon pail full, we head back to High Banks and their fantastic fish-cleaning room to carve up our perch and prepare a fish-fry...it was a great way to end a short but sweet MN ice fishing adventure...great food, fishing and friends for life!

For more information on this fantastic yet affordable destination, visit http://www.highbanks.com/

Happy Fishing!

Mitch Petrie
Minnesota Bound