It has been extremely cold the last few days but that has not kept me off the ice.  Over the last few days I got out to do some Tip-up fishing for pike, angling bluegill and even a little spearing.  I took this picture in my truck on the way out to the lake Sunday AM.  The ironic thing is it said the same thing Saturday AM.  Maybe -24 is all the lower my thermometer goes.  Either way, it was cold out but without any wind it really wasn't that bad out.

So, how about that weather?  This cold front must have those fish shut down, right?  Wrong!  This kind of cold weather is the good kind of cold weather.  This is stable cold weather.  The fish don't know it is cold out.  They know the pressure is stable and there have not been any major changes or fronts since Christmas and the fish are biting.  Both the Bluegill bite and tip-up fishing have been been excellent and the spearing, well that has been fun too.

I haven't speared for about 20 years but since Minnesota has allowed angling while spearing I decided to get back into spearing this year.  The nice thing about spearing for me is not actually spearing fish, as I rarely even throw the spear but rather getting to see how fish react to certain things.

You can learn a lot by watching fish on underwater camera but you get to see everything while looking down a spear hole.  Plus, fish act much different while in shallow water then they do while they are in the deep, dark depths of the lake.  So, this year I am back at it spearing and having a lot of fun watching fish up close and learning lots.  Pike are very predictable but some of those huge bluegill that come in and take over a minute to size up your bait before they bite really test your patients.

Speaking of bluegill, I am still using the same Gill Pill, the White Tiger that I wrote about a couple weeks ago.  That same gill pill has caught me hundreds of Bluegill, plus an abundance of bass, pike, crappie and perch.  One would think the paint would be wore off but it is not.  I honestly have not changed ice jigs all season yet.  Hopefully it makes it the entire season....ok.....wishful thinking.  Actually, I just ordered a new supply from Custom Jigs and Spins online store which works out slick.  If you are looking for the best ice jigs, you can order them online right here

http://www.customjigsandspins.com/

and they will be at your house in no time.  Trying to find them in a store now is darn near impossible as I found out last week.

How is the ice?  Well, it is getting better fast.  There is about 3 inches of slush on most area lakes that is freezing up slowly.  Yesterday I was able to drive over the top of the slush without breaking through on many lakes.  Three days ago I was just about stuck on all those lakes.  The conditions are improving very fast with these cold temps.  Ice is about 14-16 inches in good spots with many thin areas still.  I heard two trucks went through in the Alexandria area, so proceed with caution.  That is it for now, back again soon with more.

Over the weekend I put a wrap to the hunting season with a great trip to SD.  As always with late season rooster hunting the birds were bunched up and when they decided to bust and fly it all happed at once.  Fortunately the area we were hunting between Mitchell and Chamberlain has tons of birds.

I was really surprised with the lack of snow in the area.  For those of you that are planning a late season rooster hunt yet there is more snow in the Southern part of the state and less as you get North.  Of course, the snow is drifted heavily in some areas but for the most part we could drive anywhere. Most of the birds seemed to be held up in the heavy grass and cattail areas.  If you found a low area to hunt, odds are it was full of birds.

You have to really appreciate the bird hunting SD has to offer.  I know every time I come home I really appreciate how good the hunting is out there.  This weekend Matt Carlander and I along with a group that ranged in size from 10-17 guys depending on the day were able to shoot our limit of birds two out of the three days we hunted and a great time was had by all.  Equally impressive is the tens of thousands of hen pheasants you see in a day while driving around and hunting that will ensure good hunts for years to come.

So, this is officially the close of my hunting season.  As always I got to enjoy a couple months of great hunting with family and friends and I am very thankful for that.  My hunting dog Jewels is due to have puppies within a week so I have a lot going on over the holidays.  But, for now it is time to focus on ice fishing, tis the season.

Time for a weekend update and an Ice Report.  I spent the weekend finishing up the Muzzleloader season here in MN and got to spend 3 days on the ice also.  With temps around zero to start the weekend and falling to -12 by Sunday I knew at least the deer should be on the move. Although I did not end up seeing that monster buck I have been after, I did fill my doe tag and got to see many smaller bucks that should be around next year.

As for the ice fishing, well that was really good  despite the conditions.  All the lakes I checked had 7-9 inches of clear solid ice.  Most of the lakes I checked were in the Park Rapids and Walker areas.  As I said earlier, when I left Sunday evening it was -12 with and making ice fast.  I will not be surprised to see vehicles on the ice by this coming weekend.

The fishing, well that was very good.  It was really nice to watch that first Bluegill come chasing up on the Humminbird after my jig.  That first fish through the ice is really exciting for me as it is the official kick-off of ice season.  I went light on the gear this weekend as I was expecting about 4-5 inches of ice.  So, that meant no house and just my glide-lite packed with gear.  Thankfully there is very little snow in the area so getting around on the ice was easy by foot although everyone else was smarter and brought their ATVs.

Each day I fished I was able to find nice bluegill and crappie in 12-14 feet of water relating to the weeds.  With little snow and high pressure above I was able to see down in 12 feet of water and actually sight fish.  As long as we don't get a huge snowfall the bluegill should remain shallow. 

That is my weekend report.  I still have a lot of gear to get ready for when I start hitting the ice hard, which will happen after Christmas.  It was indeed nice to get out, and tonight, I will be enjoying what is left of the fish I kept.  I am already looking forward to getting back on the ice, which hopefully is in the next few days and quite possibly could be with my truck.

Finally as I look ahead to the near future it appears we are going to be making some ice soon.  This is that time of year that I am nomally venturing out on the ice for the first time.  Getting in a couple quick trips before the official ice season kicks off with the St. Paul ice show.  But, with the weather we have had over the last month I am still working on harvesting a big buck.  I guess I should say my son Cole and I are both working on harvesting a big bucks.

Since I lasted wrote I have been to South Dakota deer hunting and back again for the Minnesota Muzzleloader season.  The South Dakota trip was a lot of fun as I got to hunt with  my dad on some excellent land owned by my good friend Matt Carlander.  I was able to harvest two nice doe for the freezer and got to see the biggest 8 pointer of my life.  In fact, I got to see this same buck twice.  Unfortately for me, he is still chasing does across the open praries of South Dakota.

That brought me back to MN for the Muzzleloader opener.  Once again we were greeted by temperatures well above normal and very little deer activity.  I saw a total of 4 bucks and two does on the weekend.  The good late season  hunting we are accustomed to just has not kicked into high gear yet.  We need some cool temps, those same temps that make us ice hear in Minnesota.

This weekend is the St. Paul Ice show so I will not be hunting.  I have several other meeting besides the ice show this weekend so the busy ice season is officially under way.  Just because it is officially ice season now does not mean I am done hunting.  I am hoping to hunt hard the last week of Muzzleloader season and mix in some ice fishing.  After all, last year I was driving on the ice by the last week of Muzzleloader season.  Right now I could still get my boat on the same lake I was driving my truck on last year.

The good thing is Cole and I are not giving up.  We have bucks to harvest yet and and as Matt Carlander says, "Time Equals Opportunity"!  I will continue to put in my time, but bring on the ice.  I have a feeling when the ice shows up so will the big bucks.

This week I received countless emails asking what my thoughts were for next years walleye tours.  I have been quietly holding out hope that the professional level circuits would come out with a professional level circuits for 2010.  This week the FLW released their schedule for 2010 which is outlined below.

The FLW is going to an East/West format for next year and increasing the number over events to 6 with a championship.  I applaud the increase in events as that is a step in the right direction but unfortunately with the increase in events they are decreasing entry fees to $750 per event and severely decreasing the payouts offered.  In addition, the tournaments have been shortened by a day and are now three day tournaments.  I am sure over the next couple weeks there will be a lot more to come out in regards to the format but to say this is a little discouraging is an understatement.

I decided to take a closer look at the numbers to see just how these decreased payouts would effect me individually.  In 2009 my tournament winnings were $117,729 on the FLW tour.  I was fortunate enough to finish in the money in every event including winning the championship, it was a good year.

If I were to have the exact same finishes in 4 events in 2010 plus the championship my winnings would equal $22,600 for the year.  It is not hard to see there is a problem here.  The main problem lies in the fact that essentially lowering the entry fee does nothing to reduce the average touring pros expenses because they are not paying the entry fees.  My travel costs still remain the same as they are predicated on the number events I fish not the entry fee.

In 2008 my tournament winnings on the FLW tour were $109,651.  If I were to fish the same tournaments next year with the exact same finishes my winnings would be $26,700 under the current pay structure outlined for 2010 and that is assuming the fields would be full for next year, otherwise it would be significantly less.  Yes, there are not contigencies included in the 2010 payouts, but as of yet we have not heard that there will be any contingencies.  The bottom line is the cash, and it is significantly lower for 2010.

I understand that in these tough economic times we all have to do what we need to do to survive.  I am hoping the angler owned circuit, AIM (Anglers Insight Marketing) comes out with a true professional level circuit, as there are many of us who need a this type of platform to work on.  For now all I can do is sit back and wait to see how things unfold over the next month but right now things are not looking good for competitive walleye fishing for 2010.  AIM is having their owners meeting October 31st to decide on their direction for 2010.  I have completed my survey and given my input. 

Many of you have emailed me, especially from the Bismark area that wanted me to talk about the fishing.  Specifically what I was doing, what I was using and what my thoughts were going into each day.  I have to say, I am amazed by the interest in fishing from the people in Bismark, ND.  I have been fortunate enough to fish in a lot of different areas, but there are not many places where the local residents have as much interest in fishing.

On Day one we were greeted with 40 MPH winds from the Southeast which was holding back a lot of water in the river.  Upon arriving at my first spot near Fort Rice South of the Hazelton access I was greeted by very little current.  The good thing was the conditions were exactly the same the day before for prefishing and I knew the fish were going to be in the deep troughs.  I set up my Leadcore trolling rods with 4 Berkley Flicker Shads and set our trolling speed at 1.2 MPH into the current in 26 feet of water.  I could see on my Humminbird 1197 C SI that the fish were all laying in the trough.  There were 10 other boats in this area but most were focusing on the East Sand edge versus the trough I was fishing.

We went approximately 50 yards and had our first 20 inch walleye in the box.  This was a good start and just the size fish I was looking for.  By the end of our 1/4 mile troll upriver we had boxed 3 fish in the 20 inch range.  We pulled up our lines and decided to set up for a shorter troll just to got over the area the fish were holding, at the main bend in the channel.  We set our lines and got the speed set using my Minn Kota engine mount trolling motor.  It didn't take long for the action to begin and in the next short pass we caught 3 more fish, of which we kept a 19 incher and a 18.5 incher.  It was 9 AM and we had our 5 weigh fish, so I decided to head North to our next spot a few miles North of Hazelton at Eckroths Corner.

We pulled into Eckroth's corner and there were approximately 15 boats working this area.  This area was our big fish area but the bites were not as frequent.  In our first trolling pass we boated 3 fish of which we kept one 22 incher.  We now had our 5 fish that average 20 inches or better.  This was my goal for each day of the tournament and we had it done by 10 AM.  We spent the rest of the day looking for upgrades for a 20 incher and went through 21 fish over 17 inches but couldn't find what we were looking for.

In the end I weighed 14.7 pounds which was good enough for a tie for 4th place.  My teammate Tony Renner weighed 15.13 and that was good enough for 2nd place.  It was a good start to the tournament as we both were in the hunt and in that ever important top 10.  Todd Riley set the bar very high with a weight over 23 pounds.  Todd showed everyone what the right bites can do for you on a system like this and that would come into play later in the tournament. 

The keys to success for the day were having several spots within 7 miles of each other and being able to jump between them as the bites changed.  Also, speed control!  This was my first year running a Minn Kota Engine Mount Trolling motor and it alone has made me a better fisherman.  I can control my speed and set it exactly where I need it based on the conditions and current.  It was a huge benefit on day one as we fishing areas where the current changed constantly.  Also, my Humminbird 1197 C SI does not lie, when I got to my spot I marked the fish deep and I caught them deep.   Lastly, confidence.  I was very confident going into day one that we were on the right program and the right fish, it was just a matter of executing and Tony and I both did what we said we would.  Everything worked according to plan! 

Got the opportunity to fish Leech Lake for a couple of days while the MN bow opener was going on.  The fishing on Leech Lake can best be summed up as tough right now in my opinion.  Typically this time of year we are in a fall type of pattern but that is not the case right now. Yes, fish are starting to show up in typical fall areas but water temps in the mid 70's are not idea for getting those fall fish to go.

The best walleye bite seems to be in the early AM while the shallow water is still cool from overnight temps that have been in the 50's.  By noon the bite seems to really fall off if you don't have a wind to break up the light penetration as the water temps rise.  So far this fall has been more like mid summer and the fish seem to be somewhat confused by these warm temps.  Pictured here is AJ with is personal best walleye, caught early in the morning while the bite was still good.  It won't be long before the morning bite lasts well into the day.

The good news is this warm calm weather can't last much longer and the full fall bite should be peaking in a few weeks as the days are getting much shorter very fast. Also, the bluegill bite remains excellent with many bluegill in the 10 inch range being caught.  Last Friday and Saturday I fished Bluegill and walleye and the bluegill bite on Friday was fast and furious but the size was not near what it had been.  Despite catching a lot fish we only had one that broke the 10 inch mark.  On Saturday the Bluegill bite was much slower but the overall size was excellent with several fish at the 10 inch mark.  The guys in the boat commented the Bluegill we were catching were bigger than the keeper walleye in our livewell, which kind of makes me laugh, as I love to fish Big Bluegill.

So, that is my Leech Lake update.  In my opinion the bite is tough right now.  It will get better and it shouldn't be much longer.  The fish are still very skinny for this time of year so there is a lot of feeding to be done yet before ice up.  Now time to leave for Bismark ND for the FLW Tour Championship.  Check back for a tour update from North Dakota.

After a month of getting caught up with things around the yard and garden I finally got the boat out to do some fishing.  Our destination was Leech Lake but the target species was going to be up to the kids.  They prefer the action of panfish but love to catch big walleye also so I wasn't sure what the choice was going to be.  No matter what, I was prepared to enjoy a nice day on the water with the family.

The kids decided they wanted action and then wanted to go swimming.  So, Lisa and the kids went to the beach in Walker to swim and I put the Ranger in the water to go look for some Bluegill.  I told the kids I would be back in an hour to pick them up.  Good thing I gave myself and hour because just before I was ready to quit I ran into a nice school of Bluegill and the size was impressive!  These were the kind of Bluegill that felt like you were pulling up a garbage can lid out of deep water.  The ones that circle and circle and pull drag but you don't make any ground on.  I knew the kids were going to have fun with these.

I picked up the kids at the beach and we headed back to Agency Bay where I was fishing.  We were targeting large bluegill in 12-19 feet of water.  The action was not extremely fast but we easily caught a limit and a half to eat and released a few giants like the 1 pound 5 ounce, 11 inch Bluegill Cole is pictured with here.  The two biggest Bluegill on the day went 1.5 and 1.3 pounds, with several more at the 10 inch/ 1-pound mark.  It has been quite a while since I got into nice bluegill like this.  What can I say, Leech Lake continues to impress me this year and I can't wait to get back.

Speaking of getting back, hopefully that means in the next couple days.  I am really looking forward to getting back and hitting the big walleye hard again.  However, with Bluegill action like we had it will be tough to break out the walleye gear.  It was certainly nice to get back on the water and I look forward to many more days on the water with the family before I leave for the FLW Championship in Bismark.

Sitting in 38th place after day two I knew I needed a big weight and I felt confident if I stuck to my prefishing plan I could get 6 bites again.  The weather had changed some and we again had wind and rain, which during prefishing made the bite a little better.  To make the top ten I was going to need a basket of fish around 15 pounds which was proving to be a huge task on Lake Winnebago.

Once again, my first spot proved to be a good one.  We quickly boated a 17 inch walleye and then trolled another mile without a fish.  We decided to run back up shallower and make a pull through all my waypoints and see if we could connect with more than just that one fish.  We set up and instantly caught a couple sheep head and white bass, not what we were looking for.  As we approached my first group of waypoints we hooked up a nice fish.  After a long battle we netted a nice 22 inch walleye.  These were the type of fish we needed but unfortunately that would be the last really nice fish of the day from that spot.

We quickly pulled up the boards and set up for another troll.  It was evident that the bite was on again in the morning but we all knew it was just a matter of time before they shut down.  So, we moved quickly and were able to catch two more fish just short of 20 inches.  Things were looking real good, as these were the type of fish we needed.  With 4 fish in the box by 9:30 we still had over an hour before the bite would shut off so we kept at.

We were working an area that was basically 1/2 mile by 1/2 mile, so the area was big and the each trolling pass took a lot of time.  If you could get one fish in an area you could usually get a couple more and this held true as we ran into an area of small fish.  We caught 3 more walleye in a matter of 5 minutes that were all under the 14 inch minimum and then finally hooked a 14 1/2 incher.  This is not the size fish I needed but it was number 5 for the day and that got us our limit before the bite shut off, and it did!

In the end, that was all I was able to catch on the day.  We still had room for 2 more fish to upgrade the two smaller fish in our livewell but once again the bite shut down and we were forced to weigh what we had.  Fortunately today that was a limit of 5 that once again were tough to come by on Lake Winnebago.  In the end that was good enough for 31st in the tournament and 7th overall for Angler of the Year.

Now it is time to start thinking about getting things caught up at home.  I have a busy promotional schedule this summer as well as lots of gardening and yard work to do.  In addition to that I have to start thinking about the FLW Tour Championship in Bismark at the end of September.  That fishery has changed a lot since we were there last year and I am anxious to make a better showing there this year now that I am a little more familiar with the system.

After getting six bites on day one, two of which were very nice fish I was sitting in 5th place.  Not a bad place to be on a lake I have never fished before.  So, you would think my anticipation was high to go out and put another big weight, well, not really.  I have been doing this long enough to know that when you only get a few bites a day, you are gambling and it is very hard to do each day.  My only real hope for a big day was that the bite was picking up some and I would be able to get 7-8 bites a day.

When I arrived at my first spot I was surprised as the first Off Shore Planer Board went back after only 10 minutes of fishing.  This was a good sign, as I said earlier, half the battle was finding biting fish early in the AM when they were actually willing to bite.  So, having a small school of fish located and no boats in site I ran back up to set up again and make another troll across the same spot I got that fish.  On the next troll we had a planer board go back but were unable to get the fish to the boat.  We decided we better make another troll across that spot so we ran back up and made another pull through that area, and wouldn't you know it, we lost another fish just after we had the planer board off.  This was not going according to plan, but at least the bites were encouraging.  So, we set up for a forth troll across that area and the fish were gone, just what I figured would happen,    We now had one fish in the box after 4 pulls over a school of fish and were losing valuable time.  It was time to make a quick move.

We made the move to spot two and it was evident the bite had ended at that spot also as the few boats that were there soon scattered.  So, we made pulls on all my remaining spots and could only scratch up one more little walleye.  Missing those two fish in the morning really hurt as the bite window was short and you have to make each bite count.  Unfortuately today we did not.

In the end we only could weigh two fish on day two.  This is not the type of day that I had planned, but one I certainly knew could happen.  Missing those fish during the bite window was the recipe for disaster and I had to deal with it.  That pretty much took care of any chance I had at making a run at Anger or the Year, but tomorrow was another day and I certainly wasn't going to give up without a fight. All I could do is smile and go home and get ready for tomorrow and hope for better results.