Classic Minnesota

Maybe it's something in me (I was born in the Twin Cities), but the more I fish in Minnesota the more I enjoy fishing in Minnesota. I even had fun pulling fish through holes in the ice earlier this year.

Yesterday was a great day of classic Minnesota fishing - Lindy-rigging for walleyes on beautiful Rainy Lake along the US-Canada border. The day on Rainy followed two days of down-rigging on Lake of the Woods, which also straddles the border.

I must not be the only person who likes fishing in the Land of 10,000 Lakes, because I'm sitting in the Minneapolis airport now, and I don't recall another day when I've seen more travelers in an airport with rod tubes in their carry-ons.

I'm blogging from my phone since we're about to board, so I'll have to add a photo of yesterday's fun after I get home.

Rockin' Lake of the Woods

Today rocked, in more ways than one. For starters, the wind started at about 20 mph and got stronger throughout the day. Trolling the open water of Lake of the Woods, it's safe to say that we rocked more than a little. We also caught almost all our fish on Lindy's new River Rocker crankbait. We tried some other stuff, but the River Rocker was the top producer, by far. The catch of the day was a genuine jumbo perch. It was 13 1/2 inches long and seriously chunky. River Rocker color? Perch.

FLW, Favorite Waters & Walleye World

The Forrest Wood Cup begins this morning on Arkansas' Lake Ouachita. It's the FLW Tour's championship event, and the winner takes home both the title of champion and a half a million dollars. A beautiful mountain-bounded lake, Ouachita reportedly has been stingy during practice. Someone will figure them out, though, and it will be fun to see what patterns and which anglers will emerge during the course of the next few days.

Closer to home, Nathaniel and I will meet a friend at my favorite trout stream tomorrow. Nathaniel title a recent blog "Anticipation," and I agree with him. He's looking forward to exploring the West Fork for the first time, and I'm looking forward to sharing it with him. A trip down this river is a rugged full-day adventure that starts with a mile-long hike and then a creek and ridge crossing and includes a couple of miles of wading down a sometimes-steep mountain river. The scenery is the some of the most spectacular I've seen in Georgia, though, and we seldom see anywhere else.

Next week I head north -- way north -- to Lake of the Woods on the Minnesota/Canada border to spend a few days walleye fishing and taking photos. Mid-60s in Mid-August sure will be nice, and of course I'm looking forward to eating some fresh walleye!