Breaking the Ice on Spring
3-21-2013
Hey snowmobilers! Executive Director Michelle Voight has a message for you from the Washburn County Tourism Association. Don’t put those sleds away yet. More snow is on the ground and in the forecast; great conditions and beautiful country. Connect with “Explore Wisconsin-Washburn County” on this site to get the scoop right from Michelle.
All right then. So spring refuses to come in, despite the open door. Last year, this week, we were basking in the 70s and 80s, hacking up the golf course and trying to force the steelhead issue. This year, I look out of my office window, and watch the wind-painted, rifted snow piled high as the radio spits talk of wind chill temperatures and high-wind warnings over much of Wisconsin.
So, March doesn’t want to give way? We’ll force the issue, using Guide Dave Hraychuck, serving Polk, Barron, Washburn and select waters in surrounding counties, to talk about turkey hunting and open water fishing. Preparation, Dave says, starts with shutting down and storing the ice gear properly and readying the open water gear. Dave doesn’t adhere to my method of hanging the lures hook to hook and bound together with old line, just like they come out of the tackle box in 8-foot strands.
Dave just returned from North Dakota, again, this week when we talked on the phone. Since his photos are always head-turning, and he is not fishing Devils Lake, I thought we would start here so that you can start thinking about your own different kind of trip west next winter. It’s obviously worth it.
Dave headed to McIntosh County near Lehr, North Dakota with five other anglers focused on targeting perch in pothole country over three days. The “lake” they fished was 180 acres and 12 feet deep.
“I have local contacts and the DNR in North Dakota that keep us up on the northern, walleye and perch fishing, even trout, including where they’ve stocked,” Hraychuck said. “I’ve fished the area for five years. We kept 180 perch from 12 to15-1/2 inches. They move in and out but the action was pretty continuous. We fished two guys each in three portable shacks. We used small rat finkies and shrimpos by Custom Jigs & Spins and Demon Spoons like a Buckshot lure with waxies on each treble hook. The perch just rapped it.”
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Polk County Super Guide Dave Hraychuck and friends find North Dakota pothole perch to their liking. The fish kept ranged from 12 to 15-1/2 inches.
But Hraychuck doesn’t mind coming home again when home means Wisconsin great northwest. Trust me. I fish with the guide and like so many other OWO pros that allow me to shut off even the best bite; he knows what he’s doing on the water and in the field. Connect with him at 715-553-0578 or hraychuck@centurytel.net.
Back to shutting down the ice gear. Dave checks his tip-ups, including hooks and leaders and the shaft that he says have a tendency to leak grease.
“When they do leak, they pull hard,” he said. “Most guys store their tip-ups in a bucket upright. If you can, it’s better to stack them flat. Also start your augur and fog it with Sea-foam or Sta-bil. I use good spinning reels ice fishing so I get rid of the line, grease the reels and add new line depending on what species I will be using it for on open water.”
He cleans his portable shacks, including getting rid of any food remains and eliminating any smells by spraying with a lite bleach cleaner. He drops a few moth balls to discourage rodents, examines the tent for damage and fixes any holes found.
Hraychuck’s attention is also on the turkey season and trapping. His Tom season begins April 17, although today he said he is looking at a blizzard warning in Polk County.
“I’ll make sure I have the right ammo and the gun is sited-in and my decoys are in good shape because it takes a little while for a folded up bird to regain a more natural shape,” he said. “I practice my calls and try to pre-scout. The beaver prices re running good. I’ve already marked out the Douglas County forests for beaver during last season’s grouse hunt. The trapping season will run until the end of April and the beavers will keep they’re prime through winter because they’re in the water. Other animals’ fur will get kind of beat up by winter’s end.”
Last but not least Hraychuck will be getting his boat out of storage and getting it ready for the first time it slips into the open water. The boats are already in as they have been all winter on the Milwaukee Harbor and you can expect our guides and anglers to be filing reports next week. The lake trout and browns are going nuts. And it’s a balmy zero degrees here today. Who wouldn’t want to be out there?
Let’s talk deer hunting. Jordan Senf tells the tale of tagging one beautiful whitetail in a story he calls, The Blanchardville Buck. A young hunter bagging a buck like that should be outlawed until us old guys get one. Find the good read under “Deer Hunting”. While you’re there, the DNR is looking for help on two deer surveys.
One survey, called the Deer Management Unit Survey will provide the valuable local perspective the DNR and the Natural Resources Board will consider for the 2013 hunting seasons. Survey participants will be asked to choose their preferred deer management unit for which they will provide input. It can be the unit the participant hunts in, lives in or is the most familiar with.
The second survey, called the Deer Trustee Implementation Survey, focuses on broader long-term deer management in Wisconsin and ways that it can be enhanced. Connect with “Deer Hunting” for the whole story.
Are you ready to shed hunt? Me either. But, when you receive a note from a non-hunting sister with a photo taken in Wisconsin in a non-hunting neighborhood with a photo taken with my brother-in-laws’ trail cam, you will start to hope even more for snow-melt. I don’t know how wide this buck is, but I would say he’s a shooter yes?
Even if I have to use my camera…which I do. And which I am trying to do. I think he’s a future cover for OWO.
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Allow me the pleasure to introduce you to top-notch archer Jenna Heil. The 11 year old Prostaffer with Whale-Tales Archery in Dousman knows a little about winning shooting tournaments. You might think a young lady would announce her love for heart throbs like Justin Beaver or whatever his name is. Jenna expresses her love for Archery, and if you happen to be in the market for a bow or want some quality advice on shooting for your own kids, I would tap into Jenna’s introductory column that we’re posting with photos here under “Archery”. Jenna says that archery has literally changed her life. And that’s why we will feature her column and photos with On Wisconsin Outdoors as often as she cares to send them.
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| “Jenna Heil, Prostaffer, Whale-Tales Archery, Dousman, Wisconsin.” |
Read columnist Robb Manning's stories on Concealed Carry and Military Specs under “Firearms”, columnists John Luthens’ Fencerows and Jerry Kiesow’ s Putzing column under “Inland Fishing”, and guide reports with photos including Phil Schweik and Kurt Justice under “Fishing Reports”. I would also recommend that you check in with “Firearms” to read the media releases we receive from the gun industry and others.
On a daily basis, you should also be checking “Outdoor News” and sifting through what’s of interest to you. We’re posting every day.
Thanks for connecting with On Wisconsin Outdoors. Shoot straight.
Dick Ellis