It’s been a little more than 25 years since I took a college course on ice age geology. It would be easy to say I haven’t forgotten a thing. Proving it, of course, might be a different matter.
Continue reading “Do Something New: Walk Into a Glacier”Do Something New
Pickle me
I like pickled stuff. There’s something satisfying about biting into something that bites back a little with a salty, vinegar flair. It’s great as a snack or part of lunch. And when I’m on a hunting or fishing trip, it’s a great option for getting fiber and vitamins out of vegetables which typically don’t keep well in a cooler.
Continue reading “Pickle me”Hot on the Trail of Michigan’s Wild Elk
When I rolled out of bed this morning, I thought the best thing that could happen was to hear my first in-the-wild elk bugle. I never dreamed I’d get close enough to see elk, let alone smell any.
Continue reading “Hot on the Trail of Michigan’s Wild Elk”Foraging in Minnesota: Sand Cherry
A couple days ago, my daughter found a single cherry. I could not have been more elated.
It was our first Sand cherry. We’d been searching hard for two whole days, covering almost 10 miles on foot, in three distinct parts of Minnesota. The triumph was not so much the harvest (ultimately a couple dozen cherries) as it was the successful conclusion to our foraging quest.
Continue reading “Foraging in Minnesota: Sand Cherry”Do Something New: River Smallmouth Float Trip
I recently took a day trip on the Mississippi to do some fishing. It’s something I hadn’t done before, but had been considering trying on the many fishable rivers in the area.
It’s good I did, because it will probably stand as one of the highlights of the entire summer. To tell the truth, the plan was so simple, it really couldn’t fail: just me, my kayak, the river, and any smallmouth bass that were in the mood for a tussle.
Continue reading “Do Something New: River Smallmouth Float Trip”Do Something New: Hang Out All Night
Truth be told, I’m not sure how it happened. But sometime last year, the allure of hammock camping became too intriguing to resist.
Continue reading “Do Something New: Hang Out All Night”Yellow Bass of the Fairmont Chain
I was on the phone last night with an old Minnesota fisherman. He asked if I’d done anything interesting lately. I said, “See if you can guess. What are yellow with black markings, plentiful, and taste good when they’re battered and fried?”
“Bananas.”
“Yeah, well, okay….here’s another hint: they wiggle and flop when you throw them on the ice next to your sled.”
“Puppies?”
“What? No! I’m talking about yellow bass.”
“Huh. Never heard of ‘em.”
No kidding.
Continue reading “Yellow Bass of the Fairmont Chain”
BWCA Entry Point 25: Winter Camping and Fishing
For years I have dreamed of camping and ice fishing in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. Biting cold and slush-laden lake tops have kept me home the last two winters. That was fine; I’m not one to press my luck. But the warmer-than-average weather we’ve enjoyed lately had me itching to get at it.
Entry Point 25, with walleyes in Newfound Lake and brook trout in Found Lake, was the perfect setting for my introduction into winter adventuring. Little did I know, however, that introduction would come with a sobering peek into my own psyche. Continue reading “BWCA Entry Point 25: Winter Camping and Fishing”
Do Something New: Minnesota State Park Deer Hunt
It all started about two years ago. My deer season had almost passed without a single deer sighting. I’d spent two rainy days in a deer stand on private property, then one especially frigid day hoofing it on state forest land. If it weren’t for the good fortune of my brother and dad, we’d have been short on meat for the year.
Continue reading “Do Something New: Minnesota State Park Deer Hunt”Trip Report: North Dakota Grouse Odyssey
Thursday
I hit the road a little after 6:00 a.m. Fargo was my first real stop, for a PLOTS Guide and hunting license. Then it was a matter of winding through the countryside on the smaller roads, surveying some public parcels with the PLOTS Guide pages showing me the way.
Continue reading “Trip Report: North Dakota Grouse Odyssey”
Do Something New: Hook a Dinosaur
I haven’t had many fun surprises lately. For better or worse, life has been plodding along at its sedated, pandemic pace. Nothing seems to change and there isn’t much to look forward to. Until Thursday, that is.
Continue reading “Do Something New: Hook a Dinosaur”New Year, New Adventures
I’m not a new-year’s-resolution person. Rare are the times I am moved to state such aspirations formally, and rarer yet are the years when they survive to see the next changing of the calendar. Still, I will frequently look back on the past 12 months as that milestone approaches each year. My reflections have been more rewarding than usual this time around. Continue reading “New Year, New Adventures”
Do Something New: Harvest Your Own Christmas Tree
Normally I wouldn’t be thinking about our Christmas tree in October. In fact, we’ve had a hand-me-down artificial tree for about the last 15 years, so it wouldn’t occur to me at all. But some relatives were telling us they’d be at the cabin this year for Christmas, and I suggested they get a permit to take their tree from the woods for the occasion. So in the interest of encouraging others into the outdoors, I snooped around for information from Minnesota DNR and the Forest Service, and emailed them some web links.
What I found actually surprised me. As far as I could tell, the permit for harvesting a tree from Minnesota’s state forest lands would cost $25. That was a higher price than I expected. However, the permit for a tree from Chippewa National Forest costs only $5.
Yes, FIVE DOLLARS. Continue reading “Do Something New: Harvest Your Own Christmas Tree”
Do Something New: Quarter and Pack Out a Deer
I’ve long dreamed of hunting in the mountains, spending days climbing, glassing, and stalking. This kind of trip has always seemed quite accessible to me, except for one aspect: getting the meat out of the woods. It would be impractical to expect to drag a deer back to the truck. Foolish, really, and out of the question with an elk. So that would mean quartering and packing the animal out. This is nothing to the hunter on horseback, or even one who is accustomed to doing it. Continue reading “Do Something New: Quarter and Pack Out a Deer”
BWCA Entry Point 44: Ice-Out Lake Trout
Way up north, in the far reaches of Cook County, hundreds of deep cold lakes lie hidden in the hills and shaggy conifer forests. This is the stronghold of Minnesota’s lake trout population, with dozens of lakes hosting populations of one degree or another.
There is a special place in my heart for lake trout, and an honored place on my table for any of the salmonid family. Since our trip to Crystal Lake last spring in the BWCA, I had been looking for my next opportunity to go after more of these delectable fatty fish. Also since last year, I had developed a deep burning desire to take a solo trip, which I had never done before. A permit for one person for Entry Point 44- with lake trout in Ram Lake and Little Trout Lake- seemed the perfect way to scratch both itches. Continue reading “BWCA Entry Point 44: Ice-Out Lake Trout”