Just to catch people up that might not be familiar with the Dream Trip Give Away promotion we ran this past season I’ll start with some background. With some very gracious support from Brandl GMC in Aitkin, MN we put together a promotion for season #12 that would give viewers to our TV show the chance to enter to win a chance to film an episode of In-Depth Outdoors. The winner names the species, we put together an all-expenses paid “Dream Trip” for the winner and a guest.
This year’s winner was Grant Kannegiesser. Grant recently graduated from Bemidji State and had accepted a position with NRG Energy so we were able to get him out on the water back in late May with his guest, Tucker Swanson, between graduation and the start date for his new job. Talk about a busy schedule!!
When planning for our trip Grant told me his favorite species is smallmouth bass but he wouldn’t turn his nose up at some multi-species action if the opportunity presented itself. Sturgeon Bay, WI ended up getting the nod for its trophy sizes smallmouth and ability to kick out some bonus walleye or pike if we wanted to shift gears.
Grant and his guest, Tucker, are both serious anglers that spend a lot of time on the water so we had plenty to talk about as we made the drive east. Both of these young guys have their heads in the right place and it was a pleasure to get to know them, if only a little, during our time together. Part of the Dream Trip Giveaway that I enjoyed the most was doing my best to spoil these young guys as much as possible. We covered all expenses, from fishing licenses, to lodging, to food and drinks from start to finish!
Our plan was to fish and film a minimum of two days in the hopes that two long days on the water would give us enough time to pin down a really good bite. And Sturgeon Bay reminded us that she can be a fickle lady when the lake lays flat calm and the sun is high in the sky. Our bite was essentially a classic hot and cold affair. When the lake laid calm, you could see all the nice smallmouth you wanted in shallow water… but good luck catching them! Sure, we ground out fish but when you pull up on a flat and you can see dozens of them and you’re able to catch two or three at the most… that’s a tough bite.
But, on the flip side, when the wind did blow… Sturgeon Bay did not disappoint! The fish went from a foul mood into a feeding frenzy almost immediately after the wind started to blow. Doubles and even triples were the norm when we had a nice chop with both Grant and Tucker catching their fill of bass over a three hour period that I’ll not soon forget!
Our top producing presentation was a basic tube on a 1/8 oz head. We did catch some fish on light hair jigs and I did throw jerkbaits from time to time but nothing outproduced a “baby-poo” brown tube fished tight to the bottom.
One our final afternoon, after the boys had their fill with the smallmouth, we did break out the trolling rods to see if we could get some walleye in the boat. With about an hour to fish before the sun set we weren’t able to get anything dialed in but we were able to hook up on a decent walleye and a solid pike to add a little multi-species flair.
Overall I’d say it was a very successful trip with a couple very nice young men that demonstrated a true passion for the sport of fishing. I personally had a fantastic time and look forward to doing more Dream Trip Giveaways next season. Right now we’re tossing around the idea of multiple giveaways, one ice fishing, one open water, but nothing’s written in stone at this time.
To Grant and Tucker… it was my sincerely pleasure to fishing with you guys and I hope the rest of your summer has been treating you well!
I want to thank Brandl GMC for helping to make this promotion possible! I also want to thank Striker Brands for providing both Grant and Tucker with rain gear and Rapala for providing a $250 pre-paid debit card for each of these guys so they can fill up their tackle boxes as they prep for their next trip!
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