Arvid's Fishing Report » Miscellaneous

Not the year

Arvid — Tue, 24 May 2011 00:26:16 +0000

It appears that this is not the year for morels. This morning Willard and I took a drive and checked a few of our favorite spots and nearly came up with a blank. About a dozen small yellows and four blacks were all that we could find. Other folks that I’ve talked to have not done much either and it’s getting late in the season. Willard said it right; we found more wood ticks that mushrooms.

There is still some fish in the river. Reports are mixed with some bait fishermen doing well; others not so good. Sunday afternoon, in 2-1/2 hours I caught three nice walleyes pulling crank baits. With four other boats in the area, I only saw one fish caught, but that was mid-afternoon. Bait fishing is usually better toward evening. And there are the mosquitoes; some were even out in the middle of the river and they are BIG.

A small yellow morel

Popped up

Arvid — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 00:50:07 +0000

Some morels have popped up within the past couple of days. I found just enough for a nice meal. It’s a little early, but spring has been early this year. We are getting a nice rain today and that could bring a few more up.

Tuesday evening Diane and I rode out to Clementson. The sturgeon are spawning and with the low water it possible this year to see some of them up in the shallow pools. A new bridge is being constructed over the Rapid River and it appears that this is a good year to be doing that; not that much water coming through the rapids for this time of the year.

Sturgeon in the rapids

Low water in the Clementson Rapids

A new morel

Ruffed Grouse Drumming

Arvid — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 21:53:32 +0000

This past weekend I spent some time out by the deer stand looking for the perfect diamond willow stick and also checking to see if any morels are up. The morels are not up, but it’s just about time to cut a few willow sticks; the bark comes off easier at this time of the year. While I was in the woods I heard a ruffed grouse drumming and it reminded me when Topper and I were fishing, he told me that he had been watching a grouse on a drumming log. So when I heard the grouse drumming, I thought that maybe I should see if I could fine him on his log. Down the trail and off through the brush I went in the direction of the drumming. I found him; his two logs and both Saturday and Sunday he was quite active drumming. Monday I took Diane out; we saw him, but he wasn’t drumming. I think it was a little to windy. This afternoon it was beautiful; nice and quiet, so we went out again and this time Diane got to see him and she got some nice pictures. It has been a first for both of us to see a ruffed grouse drumming on a log.

A Ruffed Grouse drumming on his log

Ruffed Grouse on his drumming log

Drumming Log – droppings are on each side of log

Berries

Arvid — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 17:26:00 +0000

It’s that time of the year when we take a short break from fishing and devote a little time to the vegetable garden and berry picking. The garden is doing surprisingly well, but time is running out for tomatoes; they are still green as grass. We have been out looking for blueberries a few times with modest success. Berries on the sand ridges and rock outcroppings could have used a little more rain and the bog berries are so-so, but we have picked plenty to eat and to put in the freezer. The June berries (Saskatoon berries as our Canadian friends call them) were pretty good this year and we picked three five quart pails and canned them for sauce. Thus far we have picked blueberries, June berries, chokecherries, and a few lingonberries. We are looking forward to picking cranberries, both high and low bush, although the low bush crop does not look that great.

Blueberries

Lingonberries. Aka Cowberry, Partridge berry and other names.

Blueberries and Lingonberries

The Gap

Arvid — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 15:01:44 +0000

Not long after I posted the report yesterday I was at meeting and got the word that in the past few days the walleyes have moved from eighteen feet of water outside the Gap into the Gap and Four-Mile Bay. Fishing is supposed to be good in that area. It looks like the fish are on their way up the river. This morning the ground is white with a good frost and that won’t hurt the fishing.

It’s the time of the year to pick Low Bush Cranberries and twice this past week I’ve been out with friends to gather a few. The word is that this is a good year and I’ll vouch for that; it’s the best I’ve ever seen. They are a real treat once made into muffins, sauce, etc.

Low Bush Cranberries

Blueberry Season

Arvid — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 15:46:24 +0000

We are taking a bit of a break from fishing activities and devoting some time to the garden and blueberry season. The blueberries this year are not what we were expecting nor as good as last year. This past week Diane and I went twice with Don and Sue into Canada to what is called the “Split Rock” area northeast of here. We each picked about a five quart pail and got plenty of exercise in the process. Maybe we are just getting old and don’t pick very fast any more.

Nice blueberries, but not that many

Hockey Day Minnesota

Arvid — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 22:37:29 +0000

This coming Saturday, February 9th, Baudette will be part of Hockey Day Minnesota with two high school hockey games to be played on Baudette Bay and televised on FSN North. Game one at 10:00 a.m., central time will be between Lake of the Woods and Eveleth/Gilbert. Game two is at 1:30 p.m. between number one ranked Roseau and number nine, Blaine. There is a Old-timer game at 5:00 p.m. and fireworks at 7:45 p.m. There are many other activities and things to do throughout the day.

Preparing for Hockey Day Minnesota

Fall Colors

Arvid — Thu, 27 Sep 2007 22:18:45 +0000

It’s the season for fall colors and Wednesday Diane and I took a ride. MN hwy 38 north of Grand Rapids was especially colorful with lots of gold, yellow, bronze and red mixed in with the green. If you have the opportunity, check out northern Minnesota’s fall colors.

Fall colors in northern Minnesota

Wild Berries

Arvid — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 17:07:04 +0000

There are many different wild berries in northern Minnesota; probably the most common is the blueberry and chokecherry. There are also wild raspberries, strawberries, juneberries, pincherries and more. One that doesn’t get much attention is the low bush cranberry. It grows in the bog and it’s not real easy to pick because they grow individually. If there is any kind of a crop it’s worth picking a few, because they are nothing like you’d buy in the store. The cranberry sauce made to go with a turkey or wild bird is really special. There is a small bog close to Baudette that I checked the other day and there are not many berries; it may have been to dry this summer.

Low Bush Cranberries

Baudette Bay Hockey Classic

Arvid — Sun, 21 Jan 2007 19:41:28 +0000

About 1500 hockey fans were treated to a good hockey game with acceptable weather in the first Baudette Bay Hockey Classic. It was part of a Saturday proclaimed “Hockey Day Minnesota” by the Minnesota Wild and the Fox Sports Network. Lake of the Woods upset St. Paul Johnson 5-3. Just a week earlier St. Paul Johnson defeated LOW 8-1 in St. Paul.

The teams warming up for the Baudette Bay Hockey Classic