Would you believe that I'm a big fan of crazy old video games? I'd take an Atari 2600 over a modern game system any day. When I was a wee lad in the early 80ies, I used to squander my weekly allowance at the local bowling alley every Saturday and / or Sunday afternoon playing the games of the day, and at one time, the bowling alley's arcade had a table top version of something similar to this. Add a can of Mt. Dew and a Snickers bar, and you've got yourself a perfect day...as far as wasted youth is concerned, anyway. ;-) Click on the image, and use your right, left, and up arrows...and DON'T click on the blasphemous 3D version!
12/26/09
We're comin' in too hot!
Would you believe that I'm a big fan of crazy old video games? I'd take an Atari 2600 over a modern game system any day. When I was a wee lad in the early 80ies, I used to squander my weekly allowance at the local bowling alley every Saturday and / or Sunday afternoon playing the games of the day, and at one time, the bowling alley's arcade had a table top version of something similar to this. Add a can of Mt. Dew and a Snickers bar, and you've got yourself a perfect day...as far as wasted youth is concerned, anyway. ;-) Click on the image, and use your right, left, and up arrows...and DON'T click on the blasphemous 3D version!
12/17/09
Fishing First Ice in Northern Minnesota -On the evening of Saturday Dec. 12, my band Matt Ray and Those Damn Horses played the last set at Beaner’s Central in Duluth MN. After arriving back home in rural Gilbert MN, I scurried about the garage and kitchen for what seemed like hours, and my head didn’t actually hit the pillow until 1:00 a.m. After a solid 2 and a half hours of very restful sleep, the coffee pot clicked on and the alarm went off, and at 3:30 a.m. I headed downstairs to suit up for a day of fun on the ice. My pal Tim, briefly waylaid by “dog issues,” showed up soon after, and by 4:30 we were on the road and heading east towards Isabella MN. My truck’s thermometer read minus 4, and I commented that, “Well, at least it’s going to get up to 10 today.” Tim let fly a borderline evil laugh and said, “Ha, YOU didn’t check for the new weather forecast. THIS is IT.” Several years ago after countless miserable sub-zero trips, I arrived at the “10 /10 rule.” If the forecast low temperature at night is colder than minus 10 or if the high temperature during the day is expected to be less than 10 above, I forgo any serious outdoor activity and stay indoors and lounge about the house instead. We were heading out to spend the day exposed to the elements in violation of that rule.
After a 55 minute drive, we pulled off the highway onto the snow-covered dirt road and made our way to the public landing on our chosen lake (a lake in this general area). We observed a few sets of tire tracks on the road, but there was no evidence of traffic out on the ice. Because it was a smaller lake and since the weather had been favorable for the formation of safe ice, we walked out from the landing with confidence but cautiously followed the shore in a somewhat circuitous route to our fishing spot. The temperature had dropped to minus 8, and the lake was rapidly making ice. From low moans and melodic pops to explosive cracks that shattered pre-dawn silence, the sounds were truly amazing. We sunk our first hole a hundred feet from a rocky point and found a good 4 inches of nice black ice. Our assumption, based on years of Minnesota ice fishing experience, had been proven correct – the ice was safe. For a heart-stopping 3 seconds I clung desperately to that fact when, while kneeling on the ice setting a tip-up, a mile long and half inch wide pressure crack opened up directly under me. The concussion sent a jolt through my body that shook me to the core – an experience I’ll not soon forget! By the time the first hint of day light appeared on the eastern horizon, we were in the right spot with four lines down and fishing quietly…and it was “noon somewhere.” ;-)
Here in northern Minnesota the influx of cold Canadian air is often associated with a low pressure system, and that sort of weather usually has a negative effect on fishing. Tim and I set out on this trip fully realizing that our chances of fishing successfully were lower than usual. By the time the sun started to come up, we hadn’t experienced a single bite, so we quickly moved his portable shelter a hundred or so yards up the bay from 12 feet of water and sand / clay bottom to 9 feet and a muddier bottom. Well, we should have set up in that spot first, because we immediately started to catch fish. Granted, they were small northerns and walleyes, but as we sipped or breakfast beers, the action was a welcomed amusement. True to form, the one nice fish that hit my line – what I estimate to have been a walleye in the 2 pound range – threw my hook almost immediately. Perfect. After a few beers and some good conversation, we decided to try the “plan B” area on the other end of the lake, and within 10 minutes of making the decision to relocate, we were on the move. With the air temperature hanging right around zero and a stiff 15 mph breeze in our faces, we made the 1 mile hike down the lake.
Upon arriving at the new spot, I started to sink holes through the ice while checking the depth, and Tim went to work setting up the portable shelter. His portable was a collapsible Eskimo Quickfish III with a built-in frame, and he’d had some strange problems with it in the past. When he went to set it up on this side of the lake, something went wrong, and one of the frame poles became hyper-extended. Despite the fact the he tried to maneuver the errant pole back into position with great care, a two foot long rip developed in the tent material, and an adjacent frame pole broke. I’ve had nothing but good experiences with my “antiquated” Clam Classic in the past, and I seriously question the design of any piece of outdoor gear that is able to be virtually destroyed by a single minor error in operation. Just before Tim grew irritated with his portable and decided to drag it back to the landing, I had a tip-up flag go up and after a brief fight landed the largest fish of the day – a 4 or 5 pound northern which I released after an unconventional photo op. In my efforts to play, un-hook, and release that fish and then reset the line, my gloveless hands were wet and exposed to the wind for a minute or two, and I froze the tip of one of my fingers. It thawed out again after a short time in my pocket, but it was a powerful reminder of just how dangerous cold weather can be. It was also good supporting evidence of the validity of the “10 / 10 rule” – I should have been napping at home on the couch! I took a quick stroll around the shoreline, inspected a beaver pond on the interior of one of the points on the lake, ate 2 roast beef and Swiss sandwiches, and packed up to join Tim back at the landing.
Although we technically failed to take full advantage of the great fishing potential offered by a “1st ice” angling situation, it was still a great day. Back at the office on Monday, I learned that Tim and I fared a lot better than many other local anglers – it was apparently a slow weekend in our part of the state. With Tim’s messed-up portable laying in a heap at the end of my driveway and my sled and gear sitting in the middle of the garage exactly where it was deposited on Sunday afternoon, the date of my next ice fishing trip is uncertain, but with Christmas Vacation and 5 days off just around the corner, it can’t be too far away – I’ll keep you posted. ;-) I’m happy to be back – thanks for reading! Peace.
After a 55 minute drive, we pulled off the highway onto the snow-covered dirt road and made our way to the public landing on our chosen lake (a lake in this general area). We observed a few sets of tire tracks on the road, but there was no evidence of traffic out on the ice. Because it was a smaller lake and since the weather had been favorable for the formation of safe ice, we walked out from the landing with confidence but cautiously followed the shore in a somewhat circuitous route to our fishing spot. The temperature had dropped to minus 8, and the lake was rapidly making ice. From low moans and melodic pops to explosive cracks that shattered pre-dawn silence, the sounds were truly amazing. We sunk our first hole a hundred feet from a rocky point and found a good 4 inches of nice black ice. Our assumption, based on years of Minnesota ice fishing experience, had been proven correct – the ice was safe. For a heart-stopping 3 seconds I clung desperately to that fact when, while kneeling on the ice setting a tip-up, a mile long and half inch wide pressure crack opened up directly under me. The concussion sent a jolt through my body that shook me to the core – an experience I’ll not soon forget! By the time the first hint of day light appeared on the eastern horizon, we were in the right spot with four lines down and fishing quietly…and it was “noon somewhere.” ;-)
Here in northern Minnesota the influx of cold Canadian air is often associated with a low pressure system, and that sort of weather usually has a negative effect on fishing. Tim and I set out on this trip fully realizing that our chances of fishing successfully were lower than usual. By the time the sun started to come up, we hadn’t experienced a single bite, so we quickly moved his portable shelter a hundred or so yards up the bay from 12 feet of water and sand / clay bottom to 9 feet and a muddier bottom. Well, we should have set up in that spot first, because we immediately started to catch fish. Granted, they were small northerns and walleyes, but as we sipped or breakfast beers, the action was a welcomed amusement. True to form, the one nice fish that hit my line – what I estimate to have been a walleye in the 2 pound range – threw my hook almost immediately. Perfect. After a few beers and some good conversation, we decided to try the “plan B” area on the other end of the lake, and within 10 minutes of making the decision to relocate, we were on the move. With the air temperature hanging right around zero and a stiff 15 mph breeze in our faces, we made the 1 mile hike down the lake.
Upon arriving at the new spot, I started to sink holes through the ice while checking the depth, and Tim went to work setting up the portable shelter. His portable was a collapsible Eskimo Quickfish III with a built-in frame, and he’d had some strange problems with it in the past. When he went to set it up on this side of the lake, something went wrong, and one of the frame poles became hyper-extended. Despite the fact the he tried to maneuver the errant pole back into position with great care, a two foot long rip developed in the tent material, and an adjacent frame pole broke. I’ve had nothing but good experiences with my “antiquated” Clam Classic in the past, and I seriously question the design of any piece of outdoor gear that is able to be virtually destroyed by a single minor error in operation. Just before Tim grew irritated with his portable and decided to drag it back to the landing, I had a tip-up flag go up and after a brief fight landed the largest fish of the day – a 4 or 5 pound northern which I released after an unconventional photo op. In my efforts to play, un-hook, and release that fish and then reset the line, my gloveless hands were wet and exposed to the wind for a minute or two, and I froze the tip of one of my fingers. It thawed out again after a short time in my pocket, but it was a powerful reminder of just how dangerous cold weather can be. It was also good supporting evidence of the validity of the “10 / 10 rule” – I should have been napping at home on the couch! I took a quick stroll around the shoreline, inspected a beaver pond on the interior of one of the points on the lake, ate 2 roast beef and Swiss sandwiches, and packed up to join Tim back at the landing.
Although we technically failed to take full advantage of the great fishing potential offered by a “1st ice” angling situation, it was still a great day. Back at the office on Monday, I learned that Tim and I fared a lot better than many other local anglers – it was apparently a slow weekend in our part of the state. With Tim’s messed-up portable laying in a heap at the end of my driveway and my sled and gear sitting in the middle of the garage exactly where it was deposited on Sunday afternoon, the date of my next ice fishing trip is uncertain, but with Christmas Vacation and 5 days off just around the corner, it can’t be too far away – I’ll keep you posted. ;-) I’m happy to be back – thanks for reading! Peace.12/16/09
Hey. I’m eric and this is my new blog. There was a point in time not too long ago when I had 2 blogs here in addition to a live journal account and a blog on myspace. I also maintained the blog for one of my bands. That’s just silly – no one has that much to say about anything. It started to occur to me that my seasonal entries were all starting to look the same, and I wasn’t about to take up hang gliding or mountain climbing just have something new and interesting to write about. Then, after a couple years of fairly regular posts, I hit sort of a rough spot in life last spring, and by the end of the summer I really didn’t feel like saying much about anything. It also came to my attention that some first class a$$holes were using those pages to cyber stalk me. Beyond all that, I was having technical difficulties with one of those blogs and had started to feel forced to post meaningful content all around, so I deleted all of them in favor of a fresh start. I know that was upsetting to some people, sorry about that! This journal will be different from the others because it will encompass all of my interests, and I will be using tags to help readers navigate though the different subjects. Also, due to a surprising outcry from other Minnesota sportsmen, I will generally not divulge the names of places to which I travel on my fishing and hunting adventures. I’ve stripped down my profile info as well – do you really care what my favorite movie is? – and I’d like to post the following disclaimers based on past experience and my blogging hopes for the future:- I like me. If you don’t, too f'n bad. At least have the courtesy and courage to tell me to my face, and we’ll talk it over. If you’re reading these posts and looking at my photos with some sort of hatred or malevolence in your heart, you might want to step back and take a good hard look at yourself – that is NOT normal or healthy behavior, and you're probably suffering from some sort of mental illness.
- I’ve made some mistakes in the past year, and I spend time each day going over those bad decisions in my mind. I’ve grown and changed considerably over the course of 2009. I’m sorry for those times when I used poor judgment, and I can see a day when I’ll be at peace once again with my life.
- I learned from my previous blogs that a good number of people share my interests, and I will make every effort to provide the readers here with reliable information and high quality content. I am not a “certified expert” on any subject, however, so be sure to cross check any “facts” that you find here with other online sources.
- Yes, I'm the guitarist for a couple different groups – big f’n deal, a LOT of people are. It doesn’t make me any “cooler” than anyone else and, honestly, considering what an easy instrument it is, I’m not very good for having been at it for more than 20 years. I like to post photos of me playing because those are often the times when I’m most happy, and that seems to come through in those pictures - they always seem to represent me well. I’m NOT trying to be a “show off” of whatever. If you have a problem with any of that, here’s a tip – go buy a $90 instrument at Wal-mart, click HERE, and start your own band. It’s THAT easy!
- I love duck hunting (it’s by far my favorite hobby), but I don’t go afield every fall for any love of blood or killing. The appeal for me comes from the experience as a whole; maintaining equipment, painting decoys, scouting, shooting practice, working with my dog, canoeing in the dark, little boats on big water, etc. Plus, the rich history of waterfowling in North America fascinates me to no end, and I love being a part of that long-standing American tradition. You will rarely if ever see a photo of a dead animal posted directly on this blog. Also, I generally practice catch and release fishing. If a fish in a photo wound up in the frying pan, it will be duly noted. Of all the fish I catch in any given year, I usually eat only 3 or 4 of them.
- I may go for weeks without a post – deal with it. I felt sort of trapped by my previous blogging efforts, and I don’t want that to happen again. If I have something interesting to say, you’ll hear about it.
- A fair amount of what I say is tongue in cheek, and I make frequent use of the “winky face.” ;-) I’ve found that a lot of people either have poor senses of humor or just plain like to pounce and fight, and that’s not what I’m looking for here. Stand down and read my posts with a smirk on your face because that’s what I’m doing while I’m writing them.
Ok, good enough. Sorry to sound like a pompous ass. I LIKE to take pictures, I LOVE writing, and blogging just happens to be an activity that fits me well. Oh, and I usually go through all my posts and count the instances of the words “I, me, and mine” in the interest of eliminating as many as possible. This post was particularly bad, so I’ll try again tomorrow. ;-) Peace.
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