2008 fishing blog

	Alex - Who controls the past now controls the future 05/25/2008 @ 10:35:14 PM
Went fishing in the condo pond today. Some decent sized bass on their nests, but I couldn't even get them to acknowledge my presence even through I tried at least 6 or 7 presentations. Caught some fish that I don't really know what it was, some roughfish or minnow family type maybe, could've been a little carp? Anyway, it laid it's eggs on the bank so I had a caviar snack. Not really, that would be gross. Kind of like the bluegills I caught that I think were sperming all over the place. Saw some sort of eel like thingy hiding in mossy weeds. Probably should've checked that out closer since I'm not sure anything like would really be native to these waters. Unless it was just a huge tadpole, but I saw tadpole later and its tail was way smaller. There was another guy bass fishing, he didn't catch anything either. Tried a couple different rigs trying to find something I could use to fish in the relatively shallow and yet weedy water. I think my new go-to lure here will be a 2 inch Berkley Powerbait grub on a hook. I can cast it decently far with my 4lb test and it sinks but it sinks slowly and I can hop it over the weeds. Also it is big enough to keep some of the wimpy little fish off my hook. The bass on their beds weren't too impressed, but I did catch a 9" one by the "dam" (it's like a foot high). Also caught a bullhead, white crappie, black crappie, bluegill, and perch on it even after the stinker black crappie ripped off half the tail. Then right after that a muskrat got all up in my face before he realized it and made a big splashy fuss. The other guy that was bass fishing ended up getting in the water later and manually culled the weeds for a while. Don't think I've ever seen that move before. Apparently he was clearing out an area so he could fish there later with nightcrawlers. He hadn't come back yet by the time I left though so I don't know how that went for him. At any rate, a successful day in that I explored the dam area for the first time and I did manage to catch at least one largemouth bass which was my original goal. And the 10$ polarized sunglasses I picked up from Walmart were acceptably useful.		Rate this comment Yours: Total: Rated 1 times.

	PackOne - She's got the whole wide world singing baby's song. 05/25/2008 @ 10:43:50 PM
Been nailing nice gills close to shore, with simple red worms and slip bobber. The bass were also hitting nightcrawlers and a floating neon green rapalla. Two seventeens and several 13-14-15's. Limited out on gills in three hours. I caught one of those minnow things on Otter Lake this winter. The one I caught had a gold tint to it, almost a sucker like mouth, but not really. Get yourself a Moss Boss if you have to fish weeds all the time. Do you tip your powerbait with a slip sinker? Nice action that way. If you don't, google Carolina or Texas rig.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.
PackOne edited this at 05/25/2008 10:44:34 pm

	Jeremy - 9475 Posts 05/25/2008 @ 11:12:17 PM
Sarah and I went to the cabin with her Dad, we caught very little. A thought occurred to me while out on the lake though. Name another facet of life where a person would touch a soggy, already been in the water maggot or worm, already been chewed on, almost inside out, haphazardly wipe their hands off on their pants, and go back to snacking.		Rate this comment Yours: Total: Rated 1 times.

	Alex - 3619 Posts 05/25/2008 @ 11:23:18 PM
PackOne Wrote - 05/25/2008 @ 10:43:50 PM Been nailing nice gills close to shore, with simple red worms and slip bobber. The bass were also hitting nightcrawlers and a floating neon green rapalla. Two seventeens and several 13-14-15's. Limited out on gills in three hours. I caught one of those minnow things on Otter Lake this winter. The one I caught had a gold tint to it, almost a sucker like mouth, but not really. Get yourself a Moss Boss if you have to fish weeds all the time. Do you tip your powerbait with a slip sinker? Nice action that way. If you don't, google Carolina or Texas rig. Yeah, it was very gold. I should try to look it up and figure out what it was. I'm not sure if it's really deep enough here for a slip bobber. The water is fairly clear so I don't know if that will spook the fish or not. Plus if the fish aren't biting bobber fishing gets kind of boring ;) I was trying to keep the powerbait up so I didn't use any sinkers. Where do you fish at (not that I'm asking for your secret hot spots, just wondering what bodies of water)?		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Alex - Who controls the past now controls the future 05/25/2008 @ 11:25:33 PM
Jeremy Wrote - 05/25/2008 @ 11:12:17 PM Sarah and I went to the cabin with her Dad, we caught very little. A thought occurred to me while out on the lake though. Name another facet of life where a person would touch a soggy, already been in the water maggot or worm, already been chewed on, almost inside out, haphazardly wipe their hands off on their pants, and go back to snacking. I love that. Or you wipe your hands off with a little green lake water and it's like your hands are all clean. Simpler times.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	PackOne - 1528 Posts 05/26/2008 @ 09:05:51 AM
Before the seond week of June, Lake Hallie. Weeds overtake it about then. I go to Otter Lake in Stanley, or MarshMiller in Bloomer most of the time. I will travel south to Stoddard, Wisconsin and hit the Mississippi backwater a couple times a year as well. Secondly, the slip sinker will keep the powerbait up while the slip itself falls, kind of it's purpose. I tried to figure out the gold thing as well. No luck so far.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Alex - I don't need to get steady I know just how I feel 05/29/2008 @ 12:20:36 AM
Fished in the condo pond on Monday, not too much action. Pulled some crappies and gills out from around some trees and explored farther down the shore I think into some other apartment area's land. Which I think is still legal right? I should have access within 5 yards of the edge of the water or whatever that law is. Anyway, I don't really plan on fishing that area anyway, it was pretty blah. But it did make me realize that there were a couple bays back that way that I didn't know where there. One item of note is that I'm pretty sure a duck and a muskrat had a royal rumble. I had seen a muskrat swimming around in the area and then there is an island kind of in a narrow spot of the pond and I was maybe 20-30 yards away from the island bank. On the bank was a momma duck and I'll say upwards of 10 ducklings with here. All of a sudden momma duck goes berserk and is thrashing the water and clearly fighting with something, which I never really saw but I'm guessing it was the muskrat. They had a fairly lengthy tussle, I want to say for a good 20 seconds at least. She must've been quacking out the call to action as well because about 15 males came flying in from every direction and took up posts on both sides of her. Then I noticed that one duckling seemed to emerge from the splashing, so I don't if it just got caught up in the mix or if the muskrat got a hankering for some duck and tried to make off with it (I was not really aware that muskrats are omnivorous, but Wikipedia says they are, although it doesn't list baby ducks as normal fare). The whole thing was kind of crazy. Probably the other most interesting thing was when it got to be about 8 pm, the wind from a 5mph north wind to a 35mph east wind and the temperature dropped at least 10 degrees in about 30 seconds. I went from comfortable in shorts, tshirt, and sandals, to shivering cold. It was super lame. I wanted to throw some dusk time topwater baits (small Jitterbug and a Rapala husky floater) for bass but I was cold and figured the front would pretty well shut the fish down anyway.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Alex - 3619 Posts 05/29/2008 @ 12:33:35 AM
Looks like I'm probably going camping with my parents at Lake Wissota this weekend, so hopefully this is the year that I finally stop being the worst muskie fisherman in the history of muskie fisherman. Wissota is where I caught my only muskie, a whopping 18" monster. And that's in probably the last 8 years of about 5 or so semi-serious muskie outings a year, plus all the other time I've spent on the water without ever accidentally catching one. I hit up some Ebay auctions for more lures though this spring and also copped a new rod & reel so maybe that will even the playing field a bit.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Alex - You've got to trust your instinct, and let go of regret 05/29/2008 @ 12:36:56 AM
I fished Lake Hallie a few times from shore and in a boat a couple times too. Never did much from shore because I was usually too late and playing in the weeds then, but caught some bass and pike and bluegills when in the boat. Actually last year I think it was my father and I were up there and he caught a 34" pike way back in there (meaning opposite end of the lake from the boat landing).		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	PackOne - Non-Creator 05/29/2008 @ 08:46:56 AM
I fish the opposite side of Hallie as well, you can still fish late in the year but you have to have a Moss Boss or a floating frog to cast the shore and stay on top of the slime. This method has produced results such as a 24 inch bass in the past. I have the best luck off the far point before the left hand bend about halfway across the lake. I find the far end of the lack gets way to shallow as July and August roll around. Hallie fish tastes terrible, although I 95 percent of the time catch and release regardless. Fishing blogs are cool. I have a picture of a thirteen inch gill I caught on my phone (with a pole), I wish I had the download cord.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Jon - 3375 Posts 05/29/2008 @ 05:47:34 PM
Alex Wrote - 05/29/2008 @ 12:20:36 AM One item of note is that I'm pretty sure a duck and a muskrat had a royal rumble. I had seen a muskrat swimming around in the area and then there is an island kind of in a narrow spot of the pond and I was maybe 20-30 yards away from the island bank. On the bank was a momma duck and I'll say upwards of 10 ducklings with here. All of a sudden momma duck goes berserk and is thrashing the water and clearly fighting with something, which I never really saw but I'm guessing it was the muskrat. They had a fairly lengthy tussle, I want to say for a good 20 seconds at least. She must've been quacking out the call to action as well because about 15 males came flying in from every direction and took up posts on both sides of her. Then I noticed that one duckling seemed to emerge from the splashing, so I don't if it just got caught up in the mix or if the muskrat got a hankering for some duck and tried to make off with it (I was not really aware that muskrats are omnivorous, but Wikipedia says they are, although it doesn't list baby ducks as normal fare). The whole thing was kind of crazy. I could be wrong, but I think this is easily the most interesting wildlife fight story on nutcan.com. Apart from the interesting happenings, I liked it because I learned something: Muskrats swim. Personally, I couldn't identify a muskrat if it was wearing a nametag, so I just assumed they were land animals. I now know one thing about muskrats. Well, plus what you noted from the wikipedia thing, but we all know that's just a bunch of lies.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.
Jon edited this at 05/29/2008 5:47:47 pm

	Sarah - So's your face 05/29/2008 @ 06:42:13 PM
Jon Wrote - 05/29/2008 @ 05:47:34 PM Alex Wrote - 05/29/2008 @ 12:20:36 AM One item of note is that I'm pretty sure a duck and a muskrat had a royal rumble. I had seen a muskrat swimming around in the area and then there is an island kind of in a narrow spot of the pond and I was maybe 20-30 yards away from the island bank. On the bank was a momma duck and I'll say upwards of 10 ducklings with here. All of a sudden momma duck goes berserk and is thrashing the water and clearly fighting with something, which I never really saw but I'm guessing it was the muskrat. They had a fairly lengthy tussle, I want to say for a good 20 seconds at least. She must've been quacking out the call to action as well because about 15 males came flying in from every direction and took up posts on both sides of her. Then I noticed that one duckling seemed to emerge from the splashing, so I don't if it just got caught up in the mix or if the muskrat got a hankering for some duck and tried to make off with it (I was not really aware that muskrats are omnivorous, but Wikipedia says they are, although it doesn't list baby ducks as normal fare). The whole thing was kind of crazy. I could be wrong, but I think this is easily the most interesting wildlife fight story on nutcan.com. Apart from the interesting happenings, I liked it because I learned something: Muskrats swim. Personally, I couldn't identify a muskrat if it was wearing a nametag, so I just assumed they were land animals. I now know one thing about muskrats. Well, plus what you noted from the wikipedia thing, but we all know that's just a bunch of lies. Muskrats do swim, and swim a lot. There are 2 that live by our cabin and our constantly swimming around and freakin' me out! They like to hide under docks and then when you walk on them, make a loud noise and swim out from under them.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	PackOne - 1528 Posts 06/02/2008 @ 09:44:15 PM
I have nothing to add to the fishing blog this week. I didn't get to go. My buddy and his friend caught 100 crappie on Otter though.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Alex - 3619 Posts 06/02/2008 @ 11:21:47 PM
Well, fishing on Wissota was not too good. No muskie sightings, a 24" northern, couple walleye, crappie, and rock bass. I did see a huge carp get a clear foot out of the water. 12" crappie, self portrait because my dad was busy being snagged [Click to Enlarge]		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.
Alex perfected this at 06/02/2008 11:22:52 pm

	Alex - 3619 Posts 06/02/2008 @ 11:22:34 PM
This was pretty interesting. We fished right through this spot and then all of sudden these fish were flopping on the surface. We left them there since it wouldn't have been a legal catch, but I'm guessing they died anyway. They were pretty well stuck together. [Click to Enlarge]		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.
Alex screwed with this at 06/02/2008 11:23:07 pm

	Alex - 3619 Posts 06/02/2008 @ 11:23:09 PM
Saturday evening [Click to Enlarge]		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	PackOne - 1528 Posts 06/03/2008 @ 09:55:41 AM
Alex Wrote - 06/02/2008 @ 11:22:34 PM This was pretty interesting. We fished right through this spot and then all of sudden these fish were flopping on the surface. We left them there since it wouldn't have been a legal catch, but I'm guessing they died anyway. They were pretty well stuck together. [Click to Enlarge] That's messed up.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Jon - infinity + 1 posts 06/03/2008 @ 02:34:43 PM
Alex Wrote - 06/02/2008 @ 11:21:47 PM I did see a huge carp get a clear foot out of the water. Carp have feet? I'm learning something new every day!		Rate this comment Yours: Total: Rated 1 times.

	Alex - 3619 Posts 06/07/2008 @ 03:18:38 PM
Hit the pond at sunset last night. It looked quite a bit weedier with higher water clarity, and I had one like 9" bass on topwater lure. Going to check it out in the daylight now and see what it really looks like before the tornadoes get here.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Alex - 3619 Posts 06/07/2008 @ 07:17:48 PM
Fished for an hour, caught a 10" bass, a bullhead, baby bluegills, and crappie.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Alex - 3619 Posts 06/08/2008 @ 08:12:16 PM
Had some good action for a while today, water was up probably a foot which I think helped. I didn't know bullheads liked 2" powerbait and 3" plastic grubs so much but I caught 4 or 5 of them. [Click to Enlarge] [Click to Enlarge] [Click to Enlarge] Edit: I forgot to tell the story that goes with the 12". I had seen him swimming around once and wasn't sure if he was just patroling or giving my lure a look. Cast to the spot a couple more times, nothing doing. Casted to a different spot for a bit, then realized I had a loop of line hanging off my spinning reel. So I decided to get that out and my method for that involved trying to cast out as far as could and then go from there. I wip my bait out there and start trying to untangle the line. About 2 seconds later I feel a tug on the line and so I hand set the hook on the fish and then hand reeled him in.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.
Alex screwed with this 2 times, last at 06/08/2008 9:51:52 pm

	PackOne - 1528 Posts 06/08/2008 @ 10:50:53 PM
That is the largest post ever. In related fishing news, a fifteen pound catfish and a 17 inch walleye were caught today. Only went for two hours, at the Chippewa dam. First non boat experience in awhile. Had to throw the walleye back of course, and the cat got given away to someone who wanted to deal with it. Catfish was caught on a piece of hotdog and salami, while the walleye took a leach. Overall pretty lame. Alex, do you use your quickcast? I hate them and always take them off.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Alex - 3619 Posts 06/09/2008 @ 12:51:47 PM
Quickcast is the bomb. How else are you supposed to cast with one hand and drink a beer with the over? Oh wait, you're not a big beer guy. Still I love being able to quickly cast with one hand. My first spinning reel had one too so I guess I've always been used to it and now I won't buy one that doesn't have it. Were you fishing with your lunch leftovers?		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	PackOne - 1528 Posts 06/09/2008 @ 02:46:49 PM
Some dude told me to use a hotdog and some salami, then he left, I guess he knew what he was talking about.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Jeremy - 9475 Posts 06/09/2008 @ 03:42:51 PM
So he gave you some and left, or you just happened to be carrying around assorted meats?		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	PackOne - No matter how many MC's I eat up ... oh, it's never enough. 06/09/2008 @ 04:56:56 PM
He had some, said put it on a treble hook with fifty pound test. I had no meat.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	PackOne - If you got a problem ... yo i'll solve it. 06/10/2008 @ 05:10:56 PM
This is my new favorite thread. In today's fishing news I got up at 5 am and went to Marsh Miller with two friends. We left the water at 1130 with our limit (75) bluegills from 7"-11". Red worms and slip bobbers at about two foot in ten foot of water.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Scott - No, I did not change your screen saver settings 06/10/2008 @ 07:02:01 PM
Sarah Wrote - 05/29/2008 @ 06:42:13 PM Jon Wrote - 05/29/2008 @ 05:47:34 PM Alex Wrote - 05/29/2008 @ 12:20:36 AM One item of note is that I'm pretty sure a duck and a muskrat had a royal rumble. I had seen a muskrat swimming around in the area and then there is an island kind of in a narrow spot of the pond and I was maybe 20-30 yards away from the island bank. On the bank was a momma duck and I'll say upwards of 10 ducklings with here. All of a sudden momma duck goes berserk and is thrashing the water and clearly fighting with something, which I never really saw but I'm guessing it was the muskrat. They had a fairly lengthy tussle, I want to say for a good 20 seconds at least. She must've been quacking out the call to action as well because about 15 males came flying in from every direction and took up posts on both sides of her. Then I noticed that one duckling seemed to emerge from the splashing, so I don't if it just got caught up in the mix or if the muskrat got a hankering for some duck and tried to make off with it (I was not really aware that muskrats are omnivorous, but Wikipedia says they are, although it doesn't list baby ducks as normal fare). The whole thing was kind of crazy. I could be wrong, but I think this is easily the most interesting wildlife fight story on nutcan.com. Apart from the interesting happenings, I liked it because I learned something: Muskrats swim. Personally, I couldn't identify a muskrat if it was wearing a nametag, so I just assumed they were land animals. I now know one thing about muskrats. Well, plus what you noted from the wikipedia thing, but we all know that's just a bunch of lies. Muskrats do swim, and swim a lot. There are 2 that live by our cabin and our constantly swimming around and freakin' me out! They like to hide under docks and then when you walk on them, make a loud noise and swim out from under them. Muskrats are basically a poor man's beaver. They swim, they make dams, they can destroy shorelines (to a human's view, anyway), but they don't have the giant tail. Some people even think muskrats can love!		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Alex - 3619 Posts 06/10/2008 @ 09:50:00 PM
Well, at least now I've caught the biggest one I've seen in the pond. This fellow hangs out right around the dam and he decided a 5" pumpkin colored worm looked tasty after ignoring smaller, brighter lures in the past. I'm calling him 16.5". [Click to Enlarge] Also in case anyone ever comes face to face with giant bullfrogs sitting in a weed patch in the water, I suggest not trying to scare them off by dropping your lure on their heads. Luckily it only grabbed the bottom 2" of my worm and didn't get the hook in his mouth. These guys didn't care in the least that I was standing a foot away on the shore and fishing right over them, including bringing about a 10" bass through the weeds.		Rate this comment Yours: Total: Rated 1 times.

	PackOne - 1528 Posts 06/10/2008 @ 09:54:11 PM
Alex Wrote - 06/10/2008 @ 09:50:00 PM Also in case anyone ever comes face to face with giant bullfrogs sitting in a weed patch in the water, I suggest not trying to scare them off by dropping your lure on their heads. Luckily it only grabbed the bottom 2" of my worm and didn't get the hook in his mouth. These guys didn't care in the least that I was standing a foot away on the shore and fishing right over them, including bringing about a 10" bass through the weeds. That is a first in my fishing stories I have heard department.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Alex - 3619 Posts 06/24/2008 @ 08:59:34 PM
Was up north last weekend, not really so much to fish but fished from shore a bit and caught rock bass on powerbait and largemouths on my pumpkinseed worm. Took a walk today and local pond is looking pretty weedy so I'm not sure how much more fishing I'll do there.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Alex - 3619 Posts 06/30/2008 @ 09:25:00 PM
With nothing much better to do while on call, I tried fishing for keeps in the local water. Final tally of 10 bluegills and 2 crappie. I didn't measure any of them but they weren't huge except for one pretty nice bluegill. Threw back a lot of little bluegills and there just doesn't seem to be any eater size perch in there but threw some small ones back. Also I had on another 16"ish bass but instead of going for the instant landing like a crazed tournament fisherman I played him out a little and he spit the hook. I fished 2 shifts and instead of cleaning fish twice I froze the first batch: [Click to Enlarge]		Rate this comment Yours: Total: Rated 1 times.

	Alex - 3619 Posts 06/30/2008 @ 09:30:50 PM
I think VHS is in the lake though, saw some lesions on the bluegills, didn't notice anything on any other species: [Click to Enlarge] [Click to Enlarge]		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Alex - 3619 Posts 06/30/2008 @ 09:32:33 PM
Had my basic fish dinner last night, little oil (bacon grease works too) plus green peppers and some onion fried up on the stove. I addded in some eggs and toast for good measure. [Click to Enlarge] Edit: Working on a baked dish that I just made up. Put fillets in casserole dish, splash on some italian dressing, toss in some green peppers (90% of my recipes for anything include green peppers), then add a layer of crunched up tortilla chips with cheese on top. Edit: Well, it was a little scary looking and I over-cooked it just a tad, but it was actually quite tasty.		Rate this comment Yours: Total: Rated 1 times.
Alex messed with this 2 times, last at 06/30/2008 10:09:12 pm

	PackOne - If you got a problem ... yo i'll solve it. 07/01/2008 @ 12:39:05 AM
Bluegill Chowder Man it's where it's at. PackOne's Wisconsin Bluegill Chowder 4 ounces meaty salt pork, rind removed and cut into 1/3-inch dice 2 tablespoons unsalted butter 2 medium onions (14 ounces), cut into 3/4-inch dice 6 to 8 sprigs fresh summer savory or thyme, leaves removed and chopped (1 tablespoon) 2 dried bay leaves 2 pounds Baby Reds 5 cups CHicken Stock Salt and freshly ground black pepper 3 pounds fresh bluegill, best if caught ice fishing that morning. 1 1/2 cups heavy cream (or up to 2 cups if desired) For garnish 2 tablespoons minced fresh chives Preparation1. Heat a 4- to 6-quart heavy pot over low heat and add the diced salt pork. Once it has rendered a few tablespoons of fat, increase the heat to medium and cook until the pork is a crisp golden brown. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the cracklings to a small ovenproof dish, leaving the fat in the pot, and reserve until later. 2. Add the butter, onions, savory or thyme, and bay leaves to the pot and sauté, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, for about 8 minutes, until the onions and softened but not browned. 3. Add the potatoes and stock. If the stock doesn’t cover the potatoes, add just enough water to cover them. Turn up the heat and bring to a boil, cover, and cook the potatoes vigorously for about 10 minutes, until they are soft on the outside but still firm in the center. If the stock hasn’t thickened lightly, smash a few of the potato slices against the side of the pot and cook for a minute or two longer to release their starch. Reduce the heat to low and season heavily with salt and pepper (you want to almost overseason the chowder at this point to avoid having to stir it much once the fish is added). Add the fish fillets and cook over low heat for 5 minutes, then remove the pot from the heat and allow the chowder to sit for 10 minutes (the fish will finish cooking during this time). 4. Gently stir in the cream and taste for salt and pepper. If you are not serving the chowder within the hour, let it cool a bit, then refrigerate; cover the chowder after it has chilled completely. Otherwise, let it sit for up to an hour at room temperature, allowing the flavors to meld. 5. When ready to serve, reheat the chowder over low heat; DONT let it boil. Warm the cracklings in a low oven (200 °F) for a few minutes. 6. Use a slotted spoon to mound the chunks of fish, the onions, and potatoes in the center of large soup plates or shallow bowls, and ladle the creamy broth around. Scatter the cracklings over the individual servings and finish each with a sprinkling of chopped parsley and minced chives. Notes Simply add the whole fillets to the chowder, cook it a few minutes longer, and remove it from the heat, without stirring it again. When you reheat the chowder, the fillets will break into lovely big chunks of tender white fish. Most fish can be used.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Carlos44ec - "The tallest blade of grass is the first to be cut by the lawnmower." 07/01/2008 @ 07:48:27 PM
I went up to Meagen's family cabin up by Webster WI, where we caught a gang of fishes. We caught one of every type in the lake- northern, small and large bass, crappies, sunnies, bluegills, bullhead (ugly jerks). Well, one of all but perch. They eluded us. We didn't keep any, and I don't have pictures yet. Oh, and I forgot to mention- free season fishing license!		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.
Carlos44ec screwed with this at 07/01/2008 7:49:28 pm

	Jon - 3375 Posts 07/02/2008 @ 12:24:55 PM
Carlos44ec Wrote - 07/01/2008 @ 07:48:27 PM I went up to Meagen's family cabin up by Webster WI, where we caught a gang of fishes.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Carlos44ec - A Vote for me is a Vote against Terrorism! ...or atleast just wasted. 07/02/2008 @ 05:32:25 PM
not them fishes		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	PackOne - 1528 Posts 07/03/2008 @ 05:48:23 PM
I hope I have fishing blog news by Sunday.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	PackOne - 1528 Posts 07/05/2008 @ 10:49:19 PM
There was some fishing blog action today. It was of a different type than usual. Today, we decided in advance that we were not keeping any fish, with this in mind, we cruised out and really didn't try all that much. Who toured the lake, and chilled out enjoying nature at its finest. We caught a couple, but nothing special. In the water by seven and out by ten.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Alex - I don't need to get steady I know just how I feel 07/06/2008 @ 10:38:17 PM
Slacker. Fished something like 4-9 on Winnebago on Saturday evening with my parents and brother and kept 3 walleye and a perch. Fished 8-4 today with my dad and limited out on walleye. Had 2 in the first 1.5 hours, it got kind of wavy so went in closer to shore and killed a few hours not catching much, then some clouds rolled in and the wind died a little bit so we went out farther again and probably caught the last 8 and some smaller ones in 1 or 2 hours. Yellow/orange jigs were hot with most coming on crawlers but it think the 2 biggest were on leeches, one each day on my powerbait grubs. 21", 18, 15.5, 15.5, 15, 14.5, 14, 14, 13.5, 12 [Click to Enlarge] The big ones had gobs of fat on them. Next time they're going on the treadmill for a few weeks before being cleaned.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Carlos44ec - "Always remember that you are unique. Just like everybody else." 07/07/2008 @ 11:14:47 AM
They do look a little pot-bellied. Are you sure you weren't fishing were I was last? They ate tons of worm, but never got the hook. Oh well.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	PackOne - 1528 Posts 07/07/2008 @ 07:32:22 PM
That's a nice lineup.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Carlos44ec - Tag This 07/10/2008 @ 07:45:16 AM
I'd like to start a petition. Can we hold off on posting actual pictures? It gets annoying to wait for the page to sort out the data, and let's face it- the server that hosts Y'all is kinda lame and slow.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Sarah - So's your face 07/10/2008 @ 08:03:45 AM
I think it's your computer, because I don't have that issue.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Jeremy - Robots don't say 'ye' 07/10/2008 @ 09:10:11 AM
Yeah, I'm not sure what your deal is. Everything is lickety split except for the really really huge threads.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Carlos44ec - 2079 Posts 07/10/2008 @ 10:07:56 AM
Should I upgrade to IE 3 finally?		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Jeremy - The pig says "My wife is a slut?" 07/10/2008 @ 10:17:23 AM
IE 7 wouldn't hurt, though I doubt that's your main problem. Is it just this website?		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Jeremy - 9475 Posts 07/10/2008 @ 10:26:20 AM
I guess this page is like 1.7 megs, which is decently sized. Perhaps I'll come up with an alternative for displaying pictures.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	PackOne - 1528 Posts 07/10/2008 @ 10:44:05 AM
I have no problem with load time.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Carlos44ec - A Vote for me is a Vote against Terrorism! ...or atleast just wasted. 07/10/2008 @ 02:00:43 PM
I don't have a problem with load time on my other boxes, just this one at work. And even here, it's only on this site. BTW, I got a sweet new Toshiba X205-SLi5 last saturday at the 'Buy. Niiiiiice.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Jeremy - Pie Racist 07/10/2008 @ 02:38:46 PM
Woah, nice. How much was that bad boy? It's 2g's on Toshiba's site. It's definitely putting up some numbers. (Though I suppose you could have less ram, and whatnot.)		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.
Jeremy screwed with this at 07/10/2008 2:39:41 pm

	Carlos44ec - ...and Bob's your Uncle! 07/10/2008 @ 03:42:23 PM
I got it for a lot less than what they MSRP it for. Also, I saw it at one store in Woodbury, it was $X there (shelf model) but $X + 300 (new in box) in EC. Talked them into matching Woodbury's price, so I picked it up. I got this instead of building an XPS from Dell.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Jeremy - Pie Racist 07/10/2008 @ 03:51:18 PM
Same specs? That thing's a beast.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Alex - 3619 Posts 07/10/2008 @ 04:11:36 PM
I'd like to start a petition. Get off my blog with your non-fishing talk!!!		Rate this comment Yours: Total: Rated 1 times.

	PackOne - From your first cigarette to your last dyin' day. 07/10/2008 @ 07:01:38 PM
+1		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Jeremy - No one's gay for Moleman 07/10/2008 @ 11:42:26 PM
Jeremy Wrote - Yesterday @ 10:26:20 AM I guess this page is like 1.7 megs, which is decently sized. Perhaps I'll come up with an alternative for displaying pictures. Tada. Clear your cache for best results.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.
Jeremy perfected this at 07/11/2008 12:16:21 am

	Carlos44ec - "If at first you don't succeed, failure may be your style." 07/11/2008 @ 07:33:55 AM
anybody know anything about fishing in New Jersey? That's where I'm headed tomorrow, might get some fishing done. Then again, probably not.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	PackOne - 1528 Posts 07/11/2008 @ 05:31:29 PM
Fishing rules.		Rate this comment Yours: Total: Rated 1 times.

	Alex - 3619 Posts 07/13/2008 @ 12:47:34 PM
Fished Bago yesterday with my Dad and brother, 17.5" to 15" and 9" perch: [Click to Enlarge] then went to Fox lake, my brother with 35.5" muskie: [Click to Enlarge] I missed a muskie in the first 15 minutes of fishing, my consolation prize was this 30" northern: [Click to Enlarge] caught a few bass and a 26" northern and my dad had a muskie on for a while but it threw the hook too.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	PackOne - 1528 Posts 07/13/2008 @ 05:16:53 PM
What were you throwing?		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Alex - Ignorance is bliss to those uneducated 07/13/2008 @ 10:33:48 PM
My brother's muskie was on a bucktail. I caught the northern on a Bucher slop master, single big blade spinnerbait. It was a pretty weedy area so needed something to keep up above/through the weeds. The bucktail caught the muskie on its first cast and 10 minutes later he switched baits because he was getting too many weeds. I threw some topwater baits too and had something of decent size on for a bit but it got off a ways out.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	PackOne - 1528 Posts 07/14/2008 @ 11:41:22 AM
That's a good day - in my book anyway.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Alex - 3619 Posts 07/16/2008 @ 09:33:21 PM
Hit the pond tonight to relax and clear my mind a bit and the bass played their part. 8 fish in 1.5 hours, all on my pumpkinseed worm which is just about torn to shreds now. Plus lost 2 in the weeds, which isn't a bad convervsion rate since I had to drag most of them through some thick slop on 4 lb test. Biggest was about 15". Got this turtle interested enough in the worm to come in for a pic: [Click to Enlarge] Edit: props on the pic thing Jeremy, it's pretty sweet to be able to scroll through all of them in the thread		Rate this comment Yours: Total: Rated 1 times.
Alex perfected this at 07/16/2008 9:35:31 pm

	Jeremy - 9475 Posts 07/16/2008 @ 10:32:45 PM
We should plan a nutcan fishing trip sometime and you guys can show me what I'm doing wrong. A five inch bluegill is a biggie by my standards.		Rate this comment Yours: Total: Rated 1 times.

	PackOne - No matter how many MC's I eat up ... oh, it's never enough. 07/16/2008 @ 10:46:34 PM
Dude, that's the best idea I've ever heard.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Alex - I was too weak to give in Too strong to lose 07/20/2008 @ 10:13:24 PM
Winner!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! [Click to Enlarge] 43", Fox Lake, Friday, July 18, 2008, sometime between 12 and 12:30, single small silver colorado blade on black spinnerbait with a little yellow mixed in the skirt (much more bass bait than muskie), and she launched clear of the water once at which point I believe my heart stopped beating for a few seconds.		Rate this comment Yours: Total: Rated 1 times.

	Jon - 3375 Posts 07/20/2008 @ 11:31:30 PM
Alex this is a family website! Put some clothes on.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	PackOne - 1528 Posts 07/21/2008 @ 10:19:59 AM
Nice fish.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	PackOne - 1528 Posts 08/05/2008 @ 11:29:04 PM
Had to put this here before bed. http://www.weau.com/home/headlines/26322224.html		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Carlos44ec - 2079 Posts 08/06/2008 @ 07:43:25 AM
Wish I could fish more. Stupid work.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Alex - You've got to trust your instinct, and let go of regret 08/12/2008 @ 01:07:58 PM
Fished the pond on Sunday evening, started fishing small and caught a couple panfish, then the bass started getting active and I upsized my lure and caught 5 of them, biggest was about 14.5". Water was kind of low and not as warm as I'd expected.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Carlos44ec - Knuckle Sammich 08/12/2008 @ 08:34:29 PM
i thought bass liked colder water? At our cabin when the water is up we fish by the dam because it's typically colder. Am I missing something, or are we after different critters? At the Mrs. cabin we fish the weeds at dusk and catch every-darn-thing.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	PackOne - 1528 Posts 08/13/2008 @ 12:09:05 AM
I'm ready for ice fishing again.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Alex - 3619 Posts 08/13/2008 @ 12:55:52 PM
I just meant the water was colder than I expected it to be in early August.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Alex - You've got to trust your instinct, and let go of regret 10/02/2008 @ 10:05:46 PM
Need to wrap this up. Went camping by Miller Dam Lake on weekend of 8/16. Was hoping for good pike action with some bonus largemouths. Ended not fishing real hard anyway, plus had some motor issues, and in the end I caught the only northern on Sunday on a gulp minnow and jig. A whopping 22". Bass action wasn't much better, but a fair amount of decent bluegills were caught and released because no one wanted to clean them. On the way home from that the boat trailer blew a tire. So at that point it needed 2 new tires and a motor inspection. It was either 2 or 3 weeks until my dad got that done. Ended up there was some arcing between some wires and some plastic thingy was melted and some gas hoses were worn out etc. So I went to Fondy on a Sat to see how things were going and we got the garden hose hooked up and started the motor and it was not good. Timing was off and/or it's pretty much just had enough (from the 70s), I don't really know (computer nerd not gear head). So the last 7 weeks of prime fall musky action I haven't been on the water once. A coworker keeps teasing me saying he wants to go out after work someday but he hasn't been able to swing that yet I guess. I haven't even been out to check on the pond, which maybe I'll get around to that once or twice yet and that will probably be it. Also, I hate winter again already. I don't like having to wear a coat, ever, even just a zip up hoodie, at least during the day, at night it's ok. Edit: If anyone has an extra 60-90 horse outboard they need to get rid of, let me know. Preferably something somewhat newer like 90s at least.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.
Alex messed with this 3 times, last at 10/02/2008 10:08:32 pm

	PackOne - Push the little daisy's and make em come up. 10/02/2008 @ 10:38:26 PM
You know what's great about nutcan? Just when you have about had it with the idiots on the intraweb your RSS feeds shows up with fishing blog news. Not that the news was that great, but it is always refreshing to come here. I like winter. Getting out the Frabill soon.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.
PackOne edited this at 10/02/2008 10:38:44 pm

	Alex - 3619 Posts 10/11/2008 @ 08:13:54 PM
Couldn't end the year on that note, so fished the pond from 2:30-6:30 today. Water was very clear, sunny, most of the weeds were dead/dying but moss persisted still. Saw a pretty big fish early on, I think maybe it was a carp though and not a bass? Found some bass in the usual spots but they were completely indifferent to anything I threw at them. Caught some bluegills and sunfish but couldn't find any with any size. But I did manage to catch my biggest perch out of there up to that point, around 7". Kept moving down the shore, some spots that had held fish in the summer didn't have any cover now that the weeds were gone. Went all the way down to where there is a foot bridge over a channel and was fishing off the bridge cause I could see into the water pretty good. Then I saw what appeared to be a sickly bullhead, and of course I had to try and catch it, and of course it readily obliged and then I was like, great now I have to touch this nasty fool. His fins were pinkish almost, I just got it off as quick as I could and dropped it back. Saw a couple decent bass from up there but they were pretty content to just sit there or cruise around, anything but chase my lure. Went back into a bay were there isn't much cover even in summer but I had still caught bass there before. Threw my 3 inch grub and managed to get a maybe 10" bass to take it in his mouth but when I tried to set the hook there was even the slightest resistance as he spit it, which wasn't too surprising because I really need a bigger hook with that lure for largemouths. Sun started getting lower, and there was a place that I knew I wanted to hit. In the dead of summer it was a pretty solid weed patch, running right along what I assume to be somewhat deeper water that runs up to the dam. I caught a couple bass before on the edge of the weeds. When I first went by today I noted that the thick weeds were pretty much gone but there was almost a second bloom of short weeds and when I tossed little gulp red worms out there, there were still little fish in the area. I wanted to hit this area at dusk because I figured bass would be patrolling the area in the low light conditions. Got over to that spot and started throwing a mini-jitterbug, which is a top water lure that makes a wake and kind of bubbling brook type noise. I think it was this one: http://www.lurenet.com/productdetail.aspx?id=3718 Anyway, I hadn't caught a bass all day and I thought to myself, "If I can just get one topwater strike to end the day, I'll be happy". And so my fate was sealed. On my 2nd or 3rd cast, half-way through my retrieve there was a splash and I set the hook and my line snapped. But I got what I asked for so I couldn't be mad. I sat down and stared at the water for a couple minutes hoping the monster would at least spit out the lure, which floats, so that I could try and snag it or just jump in and go get it. Nothing. My only hope was to tie on something else and try to catch the same fish. I went with a little perch spoon, and cast the same area for a couple minutes unsuccessfully before moving on. Thus began my 2009 fishing shopping list. Yet, that was not the end of the trip. Moved down the shore a little way, still throwing the spoon. Got what seemed to be strike and I was thinking, finally got 1 bass anyway. Or not. Cranked in a 9" perch, easily out sizing my previous best from earlier in the day. On top of that, quite literally, was the hook set, just above its left eye. So I'm not sure if he struck and missed or if I just straight snagged him. Hook came out pretty easily and didn't seem to have actually damaged the eye so I put him back in, but he promptly began swimming in circles. Now I'm thinking maybe the hook went up into its brain or something, so I kept fishing while keeping 1 eye on the perch who normally should've swam back out to deeper water. After a couple minutes I decided to try and snag him again and eat him, but he was still lively enough to not fall prey to that scheme. I moved on and hoped for the best. But then I went back 10 minutes later and didn't seem him so hopefully he's ok. I did manage to catch one bass finally, kind of smallish, but still. Fished until I needed to take the sunglasses off and until I worked my way back into the bay so far that I was spearing leaves on every cast and couldn't get the stupid treble hook into the water cleanly. The leaves were floating on the surface by the way. Thinking about going to a lake with muskie and a public fishing pier tomorrow, but I don't know how crowded that place gets.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.
Alex edited this at 10/11/2008 8:14:36 pm

	PackOne - Push the little daisy's and make em come up. 10/13/2008 @ 04:38:43 PM
Finished my year as well yesterday, until the ice comes anyway. Three bass and a couple of gills. Then my buddy got sick and we had to leave.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Alex - 3619 Posts 11/16/2008 @ 09:18:51 PM
Finally uploaded some pics from my camera, this is from camping in August [Click to Enlarge]		Rate this comment Yours: Total: Rated 1 times.

	PackOne - 1528 Posts 11/18/2008 @ 06:47:55 PM
Guys seem to think December 1st might start ice season. I don't know about that, but I hope so.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.