Well I gotta say work really sucks! It always gets in the way of my free time as you may have noticed as I have not updated TGO lately. The good news is I found some time and I have some good stuff to add. Hunting season started off running on all 12 cylinders, the first weekend presented a vast increase of the deer population at our hunting grounds. I guess Barney, Mr. Magabagoo and Mongo’s deer management is paying off. Just be thankful that Magabagoo and Mongo didn’t burn the hunting grounds down during their slash and burn campaign while preparing a clover field!

OK, here is the story. Wanting to plant clover fields and not having any heavy machinery we have come up with several alternatives, well Mongo has. Number one was the labor intensive spray vegetation killer all over and try to hand rake it as much as possible. This produce some small plots, which are still there I am glad to say. Number 2 was, spray more veggie killer and rake… Hell no I will just use this rental car and do donuts over the areas we killed! I gotta say those all season radials did a pretty decent job and got us a good start on our main clover field. Number 3, now this had the makings of a good inexpensive idea, mind you I said had. Mongo found a cheap homemade disc online and decided lets try it. Well it arrived and Mongo rented a pickup truck to pull it with. He attached the disc to the hitch with a chain, that’s right it did not have a ball mount, and off he went. Pulling this homemade piece of metal around and around, not really doing much to till the land, until the chain broke. Having not paid much for this device he thought to himself “Oh well that was a CHEAP lesson learned”. So Mongo gave up and returned the truck. Well it was not a cheap lesson, as Mongo found out when the rental agency checked the truck and asked about the giant dent on the tailgate. Wouldn’t you know it, when that chain broke it did a number on the rental truck and ended up being quite a bit of money out of Mongo’s pocket since insurance did not cover it. The last idea came as Mongo and Mr. Magabagoo were out raking up more killed vegetation when Mongo said “Hey why don’t we just burn it!” Seemed like a good idea so off they go to get matches, gas and rakes to help manage the flames. All went well they got a good area cleared out and were confident in their abilities so Mr. Magabagoo goes off to start another area on his own. You know if you split up you can get twice as much done. Well as they burned away and not being able to see each other, Mongo yelled to Magabagoo if he was do OK. A yes was heard but not sure how well it was given up. Mongo, with his fire under control, rounds the bend to check on Magabagoo only to see him using a plastic leaf rake, you know, the big fan like type, trying to put out the blaze. After getting control of his laughter Mongo helped put the flames out just in time to save the grounds. If only we had it on video! But I gotta say their effort helped get us closer to a rather good clover field. Of course a real tiller will be the key but until then the mind of Mongo will continue to supply us with the story creating alternatives.

All right, back to hunting…

The first few weeks we saw lots of deer, Mongo and Magabagoo tried different stands while Barney stuck with the same one. You see, I was on a mission. Starting with Mongo, he recoded lots of deer but no shoots. Mongo and I have started to document all the info about our deer sightings but I will talk about that later. So even though he had no shots it was very productive and satisfying. Mr. Magabagoo on the other hand let an arrow fly for the first time, CRACK! Unfortunately in his sheer excitement about shooting his first deer he exited his stand too quickly to track it down. Remember boys and girls you want to give the deer time to bed down and die before exiting your stand to track it. Magabagoo found the blood trail rather quickly confirming he had struck the doe but in his excited haste he stirred the doe from her death bed and filled her with enough adrenaline to allow her to run, run, run like the wind. We tried tracking her at night but lost the blood trail. When we tried again the next day we found that there was no more blood trail to be found and she was gone. I am confident he will get his first deer in the coming weeks though. Now for me, Barney. Well old trusty, an ancient PSE lighting II, failed me miserably. I now know how Mongo has been feeling every year, shooting and missing, 5 times to be exact. I was on a mission to get a deer from this stand and was very, very confident since I saw deer every time in it. After the last miss I headed home and bought myself a new bow, a Martin Cougar III. The bow rocks and yes I am now dating one of the Martin girls! With a whole new setup I was ready to go, almost. I had not had time to properly set up the bow or to buy my new arrows but I went out anyways and wouldn’t you know it, I shoot and miss again from the same stand. Well that week I got in and barley found the time to get my arrows and setup. I had all the confidence in the world now; my new Top Pin sight was good from 0-25 on the first pin and 30 to 40 on the second. Out I go back to my mission. I am getting a deer today! Damn squirrels make sooooo much noise. I have seen a few deer but off in the distance, but I still have faith in the stand. As night approaches I hear that damn squirrel again and as I turn to mockingly shoot him surprise, surprise, surprise it is a big ‘O doe walking right into a nice shooting lane. I draw, aim and TWHACK! After waiting a bit I got down to look for blood and found a trail. It was dark and I needed better light so I got the boys and back into the woods with flashlights we go. There she lies! It turned out not to be the best placed shot but it did the trick. She was a big one too; dress out to about 140 lbs. I am going to have to buy a freezer if I get another deer as this girl has filled mine up. Now all of this was during bow season, October 1 st to the 31 st which has been great to have so much activity so early in the season. Last week was the opener of gun and I, Mongo and Tard worked hard for a tri-fecta. I again trying a muzzle loader for the first time bought a cheap one and found out you get what you pay for. My sight didn’t like to stay put and the 8 pointer I shot at, twice, went right underneath him. Oh well I bought a scope and am ready for the next time. I heard a shot early from Mongo’s stand which turned out to be a decent sized doe. Later in the afternoon I had a 7 pointer walk under me but we have a rule for bucks, if you are not going to mount it don’t shoot it. That way we can help them grow big and strong. Besides you know how you get a big trophy buck? Don’t soot the small ones. Well since I already have a nice Pope and Young 8 pointer I let him pass with his does. A grin did cross my face knowing that he was heading right for Tard’s stand. Well it was not but 10 minutes when a gun shot rang out from that direction. I got out of my stand to go check on both Mongo and Tard to offer my help and that is when I saw my buck. After missing him I found the boys and load up their booty. This time though Tard was unable to con anyone into gutting his deer for him. Being his first time it was ugly but he did it. OK enough chat here are some pictures from the season so far.

How Not To Hold A Northern...

After you pull that trophy Northern into the boat have you ever thought about the proper way to hold them? The larger the fish the more important it is to properly hold him as you are displaying him to your friends and other fishermen around you.  When holding your trophy, use both hands to ensure that you are supporting its weight and not the fish’s spine. Position your hands to prevent the spine from bending, if you are holding the fish incorrectly the tail will hang down or the middle of the back will dip. This causes pressure on the spine which can cause it to separate or even break, either way the Northern will be in a bad way. A slightly separated spine or a small fracture may heal but it will still leave its mark. Even when hold the fish vertical by the gill with your hand or when weighing, the weight of the fish will pull on the spine so get the weight or the picture quickly and then use both hands to support it. Pay close attention to the larger pike you catch for deformities of the back, if you find one it was most likely caused by improper handling than from a natural cause. I caught myself handling one wrong on film and I do have to say it left a big post it note on my mind for the next one I catch to ensure I handle it properly. The pictures below show the wrong and the right way to hold a Northern or a Musky for that matter.

FISH STORY FROM WICHITA EAGLE NEWSPAPER

This was a pretty interesting story from The Sunday Wichita Eagle Newspaper a couple of weeks ago. Was in a housing development around 119th st. South and Maple. Anyhow a resident in the area saw a ball bouncing around kind of strange like in the developments pond and when he went to investigate, it was a flathead catfish who had obviously tried to swallow a child's basketball which became stuck in its mouth. The fish was totally exhausted from trying to dive but unable to because the ball would always bring him back up to the surface. The resident tried numerous times to get the ball out but was unsuccessful. He finally had his wife cut the ball in order to deflate the ball and release the catfish.

Hey Barney Look What We Caught!

Poor Barney has been out of town for an extended time with no return in sight and has missed many a weekends of fishing. It is only with the tall tales of the “Big One” that got away and some pictures of some nice bass that he can join his buddies. I have high hopes that all this success and fun of fishing for bass in Indiana will wet their appetite to join Mongo and I next year in Canada fishing for Pike and Walleye. Keep the pictures coming boys, I just home I am home before deer season starts!

Mongos Trophy Bass

After months and months of anticipation Mongo's prize catch was returned to him.  It looks like he picked a great taxidermist to do the mounting; I do believe that fish looks just as good as it did when I pulled it out of the water for mongo. 

Congratulations again Mongo on your prize!

2004 Canadian Fishing Trip

On May 14th Mongo and I picked up our Grand Marquis from Hertz loaded it up with fishing gear and headed up to visit our Canadian neighbors. Assisted by “Christy” we made it to Red Lake in a brief 18 hours. We stayed at Five Lakes Lodge located on Gullrock Lake.

Pictures

Cubans Catch Walleye!

TGO Wear! Check It Out.

Barney's New "Toy"-ota

Barney's Toyota

Barney And Mongo Head To Canada

Mongo and I are readying ourselves for our next Canadian fishing trip. This year we are heading to Five Lakes Lodge up in Red Lake, Ontario for 7 days of pike, walleye, small mouth bass and lake trout. I have already gotten a bad bug that forced me into buying some new lures and a new rod and reel. You can never have to much tackle as you never know what is going to be the hot bait. As for the number of rods, well, the more you have the less time you have to spend changing bait or line. I will be taking 3 with me this year, 1 spinning and 2 bait casters. The spinning rod has 2 spools, one with 8lb test and the other with 12. This is my walleye and smallie setup. Depending on the size of the fish we are catching will help me decide on the line to use. My baitcasters are a Shimano Calcutta 250 and a Quantum Energy PT. One will be lined with 20lb test the other with 12 lb test. These bad boys are going to bring Barney a trophy pike and laker. Photos of our week will be posted the last week of May so be prepared to be awed by the quantity and quality of fish!

Fishing For Lake Trout

Lake Trout prefer water temperatures in the high 40’s to low 50’s. Knowing this you can use the surface temperature to help you determine the depth you will want to fish at:

Early spring just after ice: Between 10 feet and the surface
Mid Spring: About 35 to 45 feet deep
Late Spring: About 50 to 65 feet deep
Summer: Summer is the tricky part. Many believe that the Lake Trout go to the deepest part of the lake and stay dormant. In actual fact, the Lake Trout stay suspended in 53° thermal layers. Why are they there? That's where all the bait fish are. Lake Trout feed on White Fish and Suckers which they find suspended in schools. There will be trout on the bottom but they are not feeding. When they do feed, they come shallower to feed on suspended bait fish....

Read on...

Spring Time Bass Fishing

The time is now boys and girls to start looking for those trophy bass. As the temperature starts to rise and spring is in the air the spawning season is upon us. Bass will start to move their way up from the deep recesses of your favorite fishing holes to the shallow spawning grounds. These now frisky fish have lots of desire to attack your bait and send you home with a bass to be mounted on your wall. Now these bass are not just going to throw themselves at you no matter how active they are there is still a lot of knowledge, equipment and skill needed to ensure success.

What are these tricks you need for success? Click here for the rest...

Top Water Retrieving Techniques

Walking the Dog
keeping the rod tip pointed down toward the water at a 45 degree twitch or jerk the rod tip down toward the surface to approximately 90 degree angle. Create a rhythm that will have the bait dancing back and forth or “walking”, making sure to turn the reel handle about one revolution for every other twitch of the rod. Start out slowly, which will give the lure a wider back and forth action, then speed up the pace to cause the bait to jump, mimicking fleeing bait fish!

Deadsticking
This technique drives bass crazy! With a top water lure cast it out and let it sit until the ripples die out, count to ten and twitch the rod tip, moving the lure in place. Let it sit a while longer, then twitch it again moving...

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Tips For Your Walleye Fishing

What type of Rod to use:
Walleyes weigh in at average 1 to 4 pounds which asks for a medium to medium-light tackle and should 5'6" to 7" in length.

Jig Heads, what to use:
I prefer a 3/8 oz. but then I have done my walleye fishing in the spring time. During the summer you may want to consider a 1/4 oz. jig head as walleye go deeper to escape the sun and heat....

Continue Tips Here

What Fishing Line Should I use?

Fishing line can often be the difference between landing that 12lb bass or having your friends laugh at you as they watch it swim away. Choosing the right line will greatly reduce your chances of that kind of embarrassment.

Diameter determines the line's test strength and improves a line's durability. Typically the bigger the diameter the stronger the line, but nowadays technology has created thinner diameters with incredible strength and durability. A thinner line is more...

See full article here

Mongos Rendition of The Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald

Well here it is everyone the long awaited cantor of Mongo. 

Taken while weathering a massive storm on the great Eagle Lake.  Right after this video was taken the ship went down and we gave our lives to feed to plentiful fishes.

Ok, actually we made it back in one piece with only this video to show. 

The video on the left is a large file for high speed connections, the video on the right is smaller and appropriate for even dialup.  Enjoy!