Getting Ready for May 5th

Fishing season reopens here in WI on May 5th. We are getting ready, along with everyone else. Recently, folks we hired to put our roll-in dock and boat lift back into the lake appeared. We were glad not to do this ourselves. These guys were wearing chest waders, and I know from other projects I've done around here recently that the water is still quite chilly.





In addition to getting the dock ready, we must have our boat ready. This year we decided to trade in our old boat for one with a slightly bigger and more environmentally friendly motor, a steering console instead of the tiller bar (that old tiller bar was giving my shoulder fits last year), and a better seating configuration. We have a new 16' Smokercraft boat (made in Indiana) with a new 40HP Suzuki motor (4 stroke; hydraulic lift and trim). It is rated for up to five passengers, and there are four comfortable seats in it. There is a livewell and some nice equipment storage compartments, a trolling motor, and a depth finder/fish locator. The whole package came with a new trailer too, which has a simpler loading system and a collapsible tongue for better space use in the garage.

The boat was delivered to us today, and we have already taken it for a test drive or two. It is much quieter and moves quite nicely with the 40HP motor. There is quite a story associated with our getting it. When we went to pick it up on the promised delivery date (April 28th), the dealer "couldn't find it." This was embarrassing for us, as we had taken neighbors up on their offer to pull our trade-in to Minong and pull the new one home. The bottom line is that the salesman had not followed through on insuring that it was ready. So, he delivered it today free of charge. Here are a few shots of it already in the water.




We have hired a guide to take us out on May 8th so that we can learn how to properly fish this lake. Walleye and crappie are supposed to be good this time of year. Bass will be good in June and July, and we should be able to catch panfish and muskie most anytime. We hope to learn the proper riggings, how to use our depth finder properly, and more about the various areas of the lake. With luck, we will have stories to tell and fish pictures to share in the future.

P.S. We have another "toy" in process as well. Tune in here for information on that acquisition in a day or so.