Fishing

Have you ever noticed that only a couple people get all the attention in a group? The Prom King and Queen in high school, the lead singer and guitarist in every band, your flamboyant aunt, and that outspoken cousin at Thanksgiving—certain folks just seem to get all the attention no matter how many...

In the beginning of September, which qualifies as fall in Minnesota, I spent some time targeting smallies on a good-sized lake. The fish were just starting to school up, and the conditions were right. It almost wasn’t fair. The competition of schooling fish, along with the pressing need to consume...

Every kid loves those stories about knights slaying dragons—the bold warrior venturing into a dark cave to face a mighty beast in combat. It’s about honor, bravery, and overcoming challenges. To me, those tales carried right through to adulthood. Many of us took those stories literally and are...

Neither trout nor trout anglers are big fans of heat. When water temperatures rise during the summer, trout become sluggish and very hesitant to rise or to react at all to a lure, bait, or fly. So, during the dog days of summer, most trout anglers scratch their fishy itch by chasing trout at night...

I’d never seen a dead body before. So, when I pulled one up on the trotline, I reacted like any normal 8-year-old would. I screamed, dropped the line, and slid across the catfish-strewn floor of the boat to hide behind my Uncle Dwight. He killed the engine and looked down at me hiding behind his...

When walleye fishing in less than thirty feet of water, it’s reasonable to say that nearly all of a walleye fisherman’s tools are at your disposal. Once you get deeper, many of the standard techniques aren’t as practical or even feasible. On larger bodies of water or those that have a significant...

Last weekend, a Maryland boat’s 640-pound blue marlin earned its anglers the biggest cash prize of any fish in history. Over $10 million was up for grabs at the 50th Annual White Marlin Open in Ocean City, Maryland, but anglers were having a tough time landing fish that met the 114-inch minimum...

In the heat of summer, the preferred walleye baits often are much different than those used in the cooler water periods. In some cases, it’s as simple as needing to use smaller baits to get bit during the dog days of summer. In other scenarios, you just may need lures that’ll get deeper in the water...

When it comes to getting kids interested in the outdoors, fishing is high on the list of pursuits that can create a lifelong interest. The mystery of a bobber slipping below the surface is something that speaks to youngsters, and it can be such a simple gateway drug. Fishing is also something that...

I’m just going to say it—Michael Jordan was a bit of a ball hog, Muhammed Ali had some padded victories, and Tom Brady wouldn’t have been Tom Brady without the Patriots’ offensive line. The fact is, no matter how great, legendary, or perfect we think an athlete is, there is always a reason to call...

I’ve always been a big fan of fusion. The idea of combining two or more things to create something new is a testament to the creativity of the human mind. Just look at steel, nuclear energy, Neapolitan ice cream, or walleye and cucumber sushi. There’s a certain beauty and satisfaction in synergy and...

I’m a self-taught fly caster, and there’s a certain amount of pride baked into that statement, me being the “self-made man” and all. Other than about 15 minutes of instruction when I bought my first rod, I learned my way through feel and research, which got me up and running in short order. That...