When I first moved to the Lake Superior area I was really looking forward to trying this. Basically what you use is a spool with wire line wrapped(about 300 ft should do) around it, with a leader of mono about four feet long . The wire line is necessary due to the extreme depth of the water these fish are located in. There is to much stretch in monofilament for this depth of fishing-you would not be able to set the hook. Also just getting the line down where it has to be would be a challenge.

Bobbing for Lake Trout can be a little tricky at first. The first time I tried it I felt really stupid. I kept trying to feel for the bottom and before I new it I had all 300 yards of line off my spool and still hadn’t found it. Their was an older guy next to me on the ice, “How many feet you got on their” he asked. 300 I said. Not bad he replied “you are only in 220 ft of water”. I pulled the line up and started from scratch. I fed the line down several feet at a time jigging it on the way down waiting to feel the bottom-and their it was. After a little bit of practice you will get real good at it. The same thing applies to feeling the fish strike. Its kind of hard, but after awhile you will be able to tell even the slightest nudge or bite on your line.In this article I refer to ice fishing mainly due to the time of year it is, but this type of fishing is also done in open water on a calm day from an anchored boat.Mainly heavy jigs are used (3/4or1oz) tipped with a cut bait of smelt or suckers. The fresher the bait the better. I have used frozen bait successfully but it is never as good as fresh. I have fished next to other fisherman using bait I caught the night before. They were using frozen bait and I was using fresh-they got skunked and I left the ice with my limit. I have seen this happen many times.

OUCH, hurts to be on the wrong side of this!

Equipment you will need.

Bobbing Stick

Wire Line

¾ 0r 1 oz jigs-variety of colors

Monofilament for leader line

 Bait to cut fresh or frozen smelt or suckers

Also having a fish locator to find the fish is a big asset along with a tent so you can stay warm. This is a lot of fun and you can bring home some very nice fish.

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Please welcome guest poster Bobby from Free Online Recipes - Larry

I don’t know about you but I love the taste of grilled fish, which brings us to tonight’s recipe of grilled salmon with Maitre D’ Hotel sauce. This is actually a combination of two recipes I came across last summer. With your typical Maitre D’ Hotel sauce the fillets would be breaded and then dipped in the sauce, but instead we are brushing the fillets in the sauce and putting them on the grill. The best part is there’s a good chance you have all the ingredients in your home to make the sauce. This recipe could be made with many different types of fish such as Bass or trout. This is a fast and easy fish recipe that everyone is sure to enjoy. 

Ingredients:
4 1-lb bass fillets (dressed and skinned)
Maitre D’ Hotel Sauce-
1 garlic clove (smashed)
½ cup butter (melted)
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons lemon juice
¼ teaspoon pepper
fresh parsley (for garnish)

Cooking Instructions:

Step 1: combine melted butter, garlic clove, lemon juice, salt and pepper to make the sauce. (In the picture I just fluffed the butter with a fork and mixed the ingredients in before melting it)
Step 2: Brush your salmon fillets on both sides with the sauce.
Step 3: Put fillets on the grill and cook until done (when the fillets flake easily). Garnish with minced fresh parsley.

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The ice is thick enough now to get into the deeper water in the Bay. We are seeing some real nice lake trout being caught off the park on the Lanse side in about 240 ft of water. Thier is also some fishing activity out as far as Pequaming. Be careful the farther out you get the thinner it gets.

Their are still some nice fish being caught at the head of the Bay. Lake trout,  salmon and some pearch.  

Be sure to read my up coming article on bobbing for Lake Trout. 

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If you like mushrooms this has to be one of the most rewarding outdoor activities you can engage in. Foraging for mushrooms depending on the time of year and conditions,  you can be rewarded with pounds of this delightful and edible entrée. But beware along with the delightful and edible comes deadly. Make it a practice and a rule-know your deadly mushrooms as well as the edible along with the species that can make you very ill. Know what you are picking. If you are new to mushroom hunting consult an expert for a positive identification before eating them. Confirm your identification. Save a specimen in your fridge for a period of time incase you should become ill, this will give the physician something go by, and don’t over eat. Remember even edible mushrooms may make you ill. If something in your system doesn’t agree with them. Start by eating a small quantity. There are many edible mushrooms though out the season that are easy to positively identify. Purchase yourself a good book on the subject. There are many good resources out their. One very good source for information is your local state agricultural extension service. They often have booklets on this subject at little or no cost. Many of the state universities offer seminars along with field trips that have the experts on hand to confirm your identification. There is usually a charge for this but well worth your investment. I have listed below a couple of the books I use. They are very useful for the beginner or advanced mushroom hunter.

A Guide to North American Mushrooms

Mushrooms and Other Fungi of North America

This section of Hunt Fish & Explore will be dedicated to foraging for wild mushrooms. This is to be used for educational purposes only. Remember if you don’t know, don’t eat. If you are new to mushroom foraging consult an expert to confirm your identification.

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It is a really cold day here. To cold to do a whole lot outside including ice fishing for this guy. Tent or not. While sitting here thinking about ice fishing and looking at my equipment my mind started wondering back to my younger days. Some times you can have all the right equipment, do all the right things and that one thing happens that makes you question your sanity. While I guess that’s fishing.The moral of this story I am about to tell is, there is none, I guess I’m just in the mood to ramble on!

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If you are going pan fishing and plan on staying into the evening to do some crappie fishing take a minnow trap with you. Put the minnow trap out while you are fishing gills and by evening you should have enough small minnows for your nights fishing. (be sure to check the laws for your area that this is legal).Jig fishing in weed beds can be a real challenge. Try using a bobber to hold the jig above the weed line.

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This is the first in our Believe it or not Series.Have you had an outdoor experience so amazing or life saving no one will believe you?Share it with us and let our readers decide.

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Hi, I hope you are all having a great week. With ice just forming here on the bay we are seeing some fishing activity. There is about 4-5 inches of ice at the head of the bay. Fishing is kind of slow but some salmon are being caught. There is not enough ice yet further out to do any lake trout fishing.

Bay in Lanse These 3 salmon caught Tuesday -on a Swedish pimple-not real big but some great eating.

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Once in while I will buy fish in the store. I really prefer my own caught but if it is a good price I will get it just for something different. Our local store ran an ad for salmon and tilapia and it was a pretty good price. When I went to purchase, to my surprise I found it was grown and packaged in China . The first thought  that came to my mind was ya right am I crazy -these people not to long ago poisoned our pets with their pet food and now they want me to eat their fish. Needless to say I did not buy and decided to do a little research on this subject.

According to the New York Times China has transferred into one of the biggest producers and exporters of seafood to the United States-Their environmental conditions for these fish are just horrid-they include pesticides, illegal veterinary drugs that are mixed into the fish feed which leaves carcinogenic residues in the seafood. According to one Chinese fish farmer the New York times quoted Him as saying “Our waters here are filthy,” Steps are being taken to tighten up the regulations on Chinese fish farmers/Would you trust your Life with this? You decide.

If you would like to know more on this subject the New York Times has run an eight part series on this.

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Hi all,

We  are into it here in the UP. The ice has finally formed here on the bay, mostly shallow water ice fishing at this point at the head of the bay- but we should see enough ice later in the week to start venturing into the deeper water for some lake trout fishing. I will keep you posted. Stay tuned much more to come!

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