At least he picked an appropriate handle! I’m betting he won’t be around long.

Before fixing the problem, do what I did and use it to your advantage. I took the wife out in my 16′ flat and locked thru with a bunch of those freshwater whales. By the time we were 30′ out of the locks most of them had passed and almost swamped us. She looked at me and said, “I think we need a bigger boat”. So, just to make her happy, I went out and bought a Pro-V! Sometimes I think I’m just too sensitive to her needs. And the congestion at the landings isn’t being caused by the number of boaters using the ramps, it’s the number of boaters “that don’t know what they’re” doing using the ramps.

If you can get those eagles when they’re young, they taste just as good as Loon.

Don, O.K. I’m with you now. Since I don’t see anything in the regs on inland waters, I’ll stand corrected on that and say Schmidtty is right there. But on the boundary waters (MN-WI, & MN-SD) where the regs read, “It is illegal to cull fish that have been reduced to possession.”, that once a fish hits the livewell, it’s yours and you are not allowed to cull.

“You can upgrade but you are not culling because you are still
within the legal limit of the state.”

I don’t think that’s correct. Once it hits the livewell, it’s yours forever! Unless you decide to release it, but then it can’t be replaced. Upgrading is the same as culling whether you have a limit or only two fish.

“Shallow-Clear water” and “carp shooting” are two phrases I’ve never heard put together in one sentence, unless it was somebody making a wish. When carp are working in the spring, the water is usually high and the fish have the water so muddied up that more often than not, all you can see is a fin sticking out of the water or shadows an inch or two down. I’m not saying that you get a walleye or slimer for every two carp you shoot, but it does happen on rare occasions. If the season were open earlier, would it happen more often? Maybe. Would the number of game fish taken by accident be enough to bring a fishery to it’s knees? I doubt it! But, it’s a law. You have to learn to live with it or bang your head against a wall trying to change it.

It comes down to what could be referred to as ‘Collateral Damage’. Early in the year you have a lot of other fish, mainly pike, frequenting the same areas as the carp. Even during the season I’ve seen and heard of numerous northerns and even a 6# walleye shot by accident. I also guarantee you that the season dates are enforced. It’s very common to have WI residents written up while shooting on the wrong side of the channel in the early season.

The Mississippi doesn’t open till May 3rd for MN residents. Wisconsin usually opens about a week or two before that and during that time WI residents are limited to their half of the river. There are some good fun tournaments in May & June put on by several of the archery clubs between Winona and Lacrosse. Trempealeau, Arcadia, Whitehall and a few others. I can get more specific info if anybody’s interested.

“Guest” brand seem to be the top choice. I’ve had one of their 3 bank chargers for about 3 years now with no problems. And they have a super reputation for service if you ever do have a problem. An on board charger is the best toy you can add to your boat!

Does that apply if the motor isn’t running? If it does my kid will flip out. He hates trying to cast with a jacket on!

How about a vote for a 6’3″ extra fast?

In the cold I put the motor in position then just let the latch freeze and leave it there. Then I pull the motor straight up if I’m going to run with the big one. The safety rope is still a good idea in case the shaft would slip down while running.

If you’re looking for a little courtesy and respect, that’s exactly what you’ll find, “Very Little”. Especially if you’re fishing near the/any dam. From the jigger’s point of view, it’s common to have a line of boats taking turns drifting and vertical jigging an area and then have some clown drive up and plunk down an anchor right in the middle of “the-spot-on-the-spot” and start throwing lines out to all sides. It’s something that drives you nuts, but there’s not much you can do. I’d be happy if they could at least let you pass by on a drift before horning in on a spot, rather than anchor right in your path so you have to start your motor to avoid them. I’m sure this won’t be the last post here. C’mon guys, vent a little!

Ch 16 is the international distress and call channel. Everyone is required to monitor 16 but the corps uses 14 for everyday communication with barges and boat traffic.

I hate neoprene also. I used a pair of these Cabela’s gloves last year and was pretty pleased with ’em. I wore them all day on one of the coldest Rainy River trips I’ve ever been on and I was able to reach right into the minnow bucket and bait up without taking them off. The Goretex liner is loose inside (no sewing to make holes) so they can be a pain to get on sometimes if the liner gets twisted or turned inside out. But once you get them on, who cares, you don’t have to take them off and on to re-bait or handle fish. After a long day they seemed to get a little damp inside so I’ll have an extra pair along from now on.
http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/pod/horizontal-pod.jhtml?id=0012916&navAction=jump

When I went to a 24v system I broke down and bought a Guest, 3 bank on-board charger. Best money I ever spent! Whenever the boat’s in the garage the charger stays plugged in. No dead batteries and better yet, no boiled-out batteries. You’ll wonder how you ever got by without one. Cabela’s has ’em.

I hold ’em with my thumb on the belly with the dorsal fin between my index and middle fingers. Or if you use a net style minnow scoop, they’re pretty easy to hold if you leave ’em in the netting while you hook up.

Look on the bright side, at least you got off easy 50% of the time. Most of us would have been ridden hard by both.

I know Cabela’s has had the “High Vis” stuff for a while and I’ve heard West End Bait in Winona has it now too. I’ve used the green stuff for a couple years but really like the “High Vis” stuff. I use the 2/10 for jigging and casting and it seems to have the right balance of toughness and limpness, yet still allows you to break it off when you have to. It’s biggest advantage over stuff like Spider wire is that your usual knots will work and not slip.

Inland waters open May 1st for spearing and shooting. MN/WI boundaries are May 4th.

There were buffalo working in pool #6 on Tuesday. Just a reminder: Minnesota’s season doesn’t open till May 4th. We usually miss the good buffalo shooting.

Thanks Beav, that’s what I wanted to know.

Beav, I never intended to say sonars were made only for snagging. But they do work well for that if you want them to. A sonar is one of the first things my son grabs from the box when we’re out for ‘eyes and he doesn’t snag many fish. A quick lift and slow drop, not a 4’ sweep of the rod tip. I would like to read for myself where “the regs are black and white…..all foul hooked fish must be returned.” Is that the WI or IA regs? The only thing I find in the MN regs has to do with tributaries of Lake Superior. I’m not a snagger and I’m not trying to justify it, I’d just like to know what the rules really are.

From the 2002 MN regulations, pg. 28 “It is unlawful to intentionally take a fish by snagging.” I’ve often wondered about this question. What is meant by “intentionally”? Intentionally taking the fish, or intentionally snagging it in the first place. I usually use a very laid back jigging motion, just a slow lift and drop. But many times (especially with new super-lines) you’ll feel a small bump, set the hook, and find yourself with a fish attached where he shouldn’t be. Many times you’ll catch them under the jaw or the side of the face. In those instances you could justify it as a missed strike, but “close enough”. If a fish makes a quick dash at a jig and misses, and the angler is a little slow on reaction time, you might get a tail or a belly, was that “intentionally” snagging? Is that the same as a guy aggressively pumping two sonars from the end of his musky rods? What do WI regs say?

I have yet to catch a fish, (any fish), on a Frenzy. I’ve never trolled one but I have tried casting them. They just can’t beat a Rattlin’ Fat Rap on a wingdam. For trolling I’ve gotta go with the Craw colored Bomber (the short fat ones).

I just wanna say, “This has been fun!” Way back about 30 posts ago James mentioned the fact that nobody had been verbaly attacked yet. I never would have believed it would go to the finish without happening. Way ta go guys! Gianni, how about putting your original post out on another board so we can sit back and watch the fireworks?

Minnesota’s permit is “a permit to carry a handgun”. It can be concealed or not. Some states require concealment and permits can be pulled for noncompliance.

Jon’s right, you are able to go to the Sheriff or Chief of Police, depending on where you live, and apply for a permit. But they alone decide if you get one or not. What the MPPA would change is that unless there is a valid reason to deny that application, they would have to issue the permit. Right now they can deny it if they feel that you simply don’t need one. Like I said earlier, in most of out-state MN few permits are denied but most people don’t apply because the the application states that you need to show an occupational or safety hazard. All it takes for things to change is to have a new sheriff voted in with a different opinion. A guy that’s had a permit for many years with no problems could be denied for no reason.

Anyone looking for info on the MN issue should check out “www.mnccrn.org”

Gianni, you are right on. I was pretty surprised at the blind acceptance some of the FTR crew has shown for the gun control crowd’s misinformation. I started to pull stuff together but I don’t think I can do much to improve on your post.

Anybody remember when criminals in Florida were targeting tourists in rental cars from the airport? That’s was shortly after Florida legalized “CCW”. The criminals no longer knew who was armed and who wasn’t. Their “jobs” had just become too dangerous. But the chances of anybody coming through the airport being armed was almost none.

How about Columbine? Sept. 11? There are a ton more.

You guys are right, you don’t shoot someone for stealing your tackle box or CD player. I do remember posts here where guys were itching to run into the low-lifes that broke into their vehicles at the landings. O.K., you happen to catch these guys, you take off at a dead run ready to kick some lawbreaking booty, you grab the guy and throw him against the truck and threaten him a little. Now he pulls a knife, or his buddy steps out from behind the truck with a gun, “OH $@it”. A wise man once said, “The best thing to bring to a knife fight is a gun, and the best way to win a gun fight is to not be there.” Well, we can’t always choose to not be there.

I’m gonna bet 90% of you guys own a gun. Tonight about 8:30 when you’re kicked back back on the couch with mamma, watching some TV, with Jr. playing with his toy truck and boat on the floor, three guys kick in your door and storm in. Can you get to any of ’em? Fast? Don’t say you’d tell ’em to take anything they want. They want you money, your guns, and your wife, you’ve seen their faces, they aren’t going to jail……

No, you may have never been in the above situations, but do you want to wait and hope there’s a second time to be prepared. Permit holders aren’t out looking for crimes to stop. Most that I’ve talked to feel that they are much cooler headed than ever before for the simple reason they don’t want to do something stupid over something minor and lose their permit. Which would be unfortunate if and when something major ever came along. As for the “wild west”, watch the history channel guys, most of the wild west was invented in Hollywood.

Another quote: “An armed society is a polite society.”