Signed, Wisconsin

Certain things come to mind when you think Wisconsin. I would say people first think Green Bay Packers, Vince Lombardi, Harley Davidson, Cheese, Wisconsin Badgers and America’s Dairy Land . But how does Wisconsin sign its name? What puts the ink in the stamp of Wisconsin .There are countless ways Wisconsinites punctuate their existence and sign their names.  Here’s one of the best I’ve seen in a long time! How about Monty’s Blue Plate Diner, 2089 Atwood Avenue, Madison, WI. A Bloody Mary served with a cheese curd! Here’s a link http://www.montysblueplatediner.com 

First times a Charm

When his dad called  and quizzed me about my plans to take his boy out ice fishing I could hear the  hesitation in his voice.  The recent accidental  drowning  of  Packers coach , Joe Philbin’s  son and several other deaths  related to the  ice,  safety has been brought to the forefront for most fisherman.  I assured him we would be on our best behavior for his first outing.  Right now  Lake Winnebago has a few bays on the West 

side  that have ice but the main lake  basin is still looking like Swiss cheese.The bays have ice varying from 3 to 7 inches. I felt pretty honored that someone put enough faith in my  outdoor talents  to release their child to me for his very  first ice  outing.Its really the ultimate complement  for a guide or just a person in general . 

 Although fishing was slow Peter Streblow managed his very first perch through the ice. Ice fishing is as safe as you make it and taking chances usually ends up getting people in trouble fast. The recent cold snap is great for making ice but don’t get a false sense of security.Last week ,there was open patches on the lake  that now are iced over and covered by a layer of snow.  Who knows how much ice is under that snow so we still need to use caution . The fish are biting on  Lake Winnebago  and most can come up and enjoy it  if they use common sense and extreme caution . 

Contact the sport shops, talk to a guide or other local fisherman before you venture out. Go in a group and don’t be the great explorer . If you  have questions pertaining to Lake Winnebago I can be reached at fdloutdoors@gmail.com or visit our site www. fonddulacoutdoors.com to see updated reports. We didn’t catch a lot today but the boys had fun .

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A first of sorts

Can you remember your first fly rod?

 After years of fishing walleye and bass tournaments and having three kids I knew the pace of my fishing was going to come to a screeching halt. There wasn't a weekend that went by and I was off on some pre fishing trip or at home fishing Lake Winnebago fine tuning my tournament approach. Often friends would ask how I got started fishing and my mind always
shot back to trout fishing on the Mecan River in Wisconsin when I was eleven.   To this day I can remember the very hole and that first "thump" on my pole. I'll never forget throwing that trout on the bank and looking at the colors and thinking how beautiful it was. It was cold that day and my fingers were froze and my toes were so cold in my rubber boots. I also remember the guides freezing up and how good the sun felt on my face when it finally shined on the river bank. 
  I trout fished on and off over the next thirty or so years but it was never anything meaningful and it always felt like a race to the stream and back home again. One Christmas a few years back my 8 year old son so proudly gave me a neatly wrapped package that he bought at a school charity event. Every year his school ran a "Elf's are Us" event where the children bought presents for their
moms and dads and proceeds would go to help cut cost of tuition. So I unwrapped my gift and low and behold my first fly rod...... a seven dollar fly rod. I looked it over, hugs and kisses where exchanged and Christmas went on and a new tournament of sorts was on my mind.  I needed to catch a fish on that fly rod. 
 Well come spring, our annual trips to the Driftless area of Wisconsin was the perfect place to give my new fly rod a whirl .So it was packed among other spinning gear and I made halfhearted efforts over the next five or six trips to catch a trout and I was unsuccessful . What I didn't realize was happening as time went by was that I was finally slowing down and soaking things in. I stumbled onto a fly shop in Virouqa WI called the Driftless Angler. I knew in my mind if I was going to catch a fish on this rod I needed to seek "Professional Help", so to speak. So I talked to Mat and Geri, the shop owners, and they hooked me up with a few basics, They fixed this thing you call a leader and tippet and asked if I had a thermometer at which point I held up  my index finger . A few pink squirrels, blue wing olives and a midge or three later out the door I went with more confidence than ever. Map in hand, I headed to the north fork of the Bad Axe. After working out a few casting issues I proceeded to catch my first brook trout on that  fly rod.
 Since then, I make even more trips to the driftless area with my two sons and always have my fly rod along. I  have moved on from the seven dollar version and I will never buy one of those thousand dollar sabers. I still am very frugal and just like that trout I caught when I was eleven, I will never forget my first fly rod. 

http://www.cofisher.blogspot.com/2011/12/windknots-fishing-timeline-contest.html

LUMIX DMC-TS3 A Camera for the Outdoors

After destroying two inexpensive point and shoots this year it was time to invest in a little better outdoor camera. My camera is almost like my wallet and  I usually have it with me or near me all the time. This means it sees tree stands,trout streams, ATV rides and every condition mother nature wants to throw at it . Outdoor photography   is dirty work and the camera falls in the snow,lays on stream banks and is handled with fish slimy hands .I took some  great photos  in the past with  my point and shoots but It was time to search out a camera  that was shock proof and water proof.  I chose the LUMIX DMC-TS3(FT3) by Panasonic. Quad Protection-waterproof, dustproof, freezeproof and shockproof, this should have me covered wherever Wisconsin takes me this year.  The built-in GPS function, compass, altimeter and barometer are  some of the extra bells and whistles  of the camera. Did I forget to say  WATERPROOF ? If you think you’ll  be seeing blog posts  of underwater walleyes and beatitful brown  trout from  Wisconsin FINtastic Outdoors you’ll have to wait awhile . I like the notion of having a little extra protection if I drop my camera into my favorite trout stream or lake  BUT that’s as far as it goes for now.You can get a mountain of information off the internet about buying a camera but I almost found it annoying .  Its SO much information to sort through it left me feeling exhausted after a night of research  .  Go to the stores,talk to other outdoor bloggers and photographers , and ask the camera experts to explain the features and it will help you . WWW.Fonddulacoutdoors.com

Almost Nuts

America's Mental Health, State By State

The report shows 24.2 percent of Rhode Island residents experienced some form of mental illness.Worst in the Country

The report shows 16.7 percent of Maryland residents experienced some form of mental illness.The Best in the country!

The report shows 21.2 percent of Wisconsin residents experienced some form of mental illness which is number 11 on the list.

That means I'm only three percentage points away from being certifiable !

What can I say, I'm crazy about fishing!

If you haven't heard, Hank has a new song.....

If it doesn't get your foot tapping, I do have a defibrillator.

Don't Forget to Charge!

Every 3 months or so when your in the down season, make sure to charge your Vexilar and camera batteries. The worst thing for a vex battery is non use or sitting there for months dead.  I charge them at the end of ice fishing season and maybe twice in the summer.  Now is the time to take the battery out and make sure your contacts are clean . The small connectors can be replaced if needed and just go over the whole unit . You can wash the outer case in mild detergent and the same goes for the unit itself. Even though its 80 degrees ice fishing is right around the corner. If you follow these simple steps it will increase your battery life substantially .There is  nothing  worse than hitting the ice with a dead battery or having to invest in a new one to kick off the season. Work on the shanty starts Monday and I’ll post some tips for shanty upkeep later in the week. Until then get out and enjoy our Indian summer.

Hank Williams Jr. Ditched By ESPN Over Obama Hitler Comments

‎"Hank Williams Jr. Ditched By ESPN Over Obama Hitler Comments"

Hey ESPN, its the other way around!
“After reading hundreds of e-mails, I have made MY decision. By pulling my opening Oct 3rd, You (ESPN) stepped on the Toes of The First Amendment Freedom of Speech, so therefore Me, My Song, and All My Rowdy Friends are OUT OF HERE. It’s been a great run.” 

 I encourage all bloggers to repost this in their own 

blog!

  ESPN can't sensor the bloggers!


please pass it on....

That's Life

Twenty five years  ago we had:


Ronald Regan
Johnny Cash
Bob Hope

Today

OBAMA

NO CASH

&

NO HOPE!

What a Year! 2011 trout Season

Male Brown Trout

The 2011 trout season is in the books and for me it was filled with many  events that will make for great campfire tales for years to come.Wading through chest high snow to get to the stream, I started the season with a grand 20 inch male brown trout on my third cast and proceeded to land at least another 30 trout that day.  It was a great day on the river, tucked away in the pines, the wind howled on that day and the fish were really biting .The celebration would be  short lived ,for on my  way home my foot was heavy which landed me a nice speeding ticket.  It kind of brought me into the cellar for the day  but I was still excited and looked  forward to  my next trip to the stream . The very next outing in the same area I wound up driving into a four foot ditch that was marked as a road to the parking area .We ended up needing a wrecker to winch us out and adding  insult to injury ,we never caught a fish all day. Revisiting my  recent trout fishing memories,  I was very alert obeying all traffic signs on the way home and thank goodness because officer friendly was waiting at the same intersection for me .I smiled and waved with all my fingers extended as I passed.

Opening weekend went fine with many trout  caught and it was fairly uneventful. The boys and I camped and we were greeted with sunshine and mild temps the entire weekend. Between us, we must have caught over 200 trout over a three day span and my son landed his first fish on a fly rod at the ripe age of twelve .Both my sons have become very savvy trout anglers and I always look forward sharing a piece of the stream  with them .
 That brings us to Fathers day  weekend. Fathers day weekend started low key but by Saturday night, after 5 inches of rain , we ended up in the middle of a flash flood in Vernon county . It was a near panic situation for me and two boys as we abandoned the tent and sleepng bags as the river rose to a trechorus level in a matter of minutes. We ended up sleeping the night in a parking lot in Virouqa, Wi and traveled home the next day .

Flash flood

As  I sit here and recount my tale of trout I realize that it was a fairly wild year for me .No broken bones or horrific accidents but enough added stress to put a few more gray hairs atop my head.  I'll consider myself lucky but I will do it again and again until every last hair on my head is silver .  So how do you put a exclamation point on a year as such?One last trip and  a quad super slam of course! A rainbow,brown, brook and a tiger trout all in the same day,Saturday September 24.

 It has been a year of great highs and lows but as I put my gear away tonight I can't help but think what stream I will hit first come February.