March 2016 Newsletter

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "March 2016 Newsletter"

Tyrone Jones
5 years ago
Views:

1 March 2016 Newsletter Introduction This is the month to get the biggest fish, weight wise, before the spawn. Water temperatures will be climbing and the fish will be in the spawning grounds. Areas such as the water treatment plant and areas in the no wake zone toward Ava will be the main areas where most of the fish will try to spawn. But do not overlook any of the bays. They could be in the back of any of them. In fact, they may be the best place to find them when the pressure is on in the other areas. Don t be afraid to check some of them out. Recent Events February 20th was our awards dinner. We had 35 members and guests that attended this fun event. Renee and Dan Johnson did another fine job of putting this event together. John Wright and Ray Wheelock had a very good menu of chicken, beef brisket, pulled pork and ribs as the meats. The sides and deserts were all very good and if you went away from the meeting other than very full, it was your fault. The various awards for Lunker of the Month, winners of the various divisions and Muskie Hunter of the Year were handed out. The major awards were as follows: Junior s Division Points Champion: Luke Hopkins Women s Division Points Champion: Cheryl Ford Men s Division Points Champion: Travis Smith Men s Masters Division Points Champion: Walt Krause Muskie Hunter of the Year: Ray Wheelock. Congratulations Ray and thank you for your continued support! We also added a new award this year to honor those members who took a plunge out of the boat, The Swim Team Award! This year s recipient was Jerry Ford! Upcoming Events We did not schedule any club events in March due to the Muskies Inc. Symposium. This event is March 11 th through the 15 th in the Twin Cities. Our president, Jim Beaty, and Shannon Beaty-Dingus will be attending to represent Chapter 28. For more information about this event check out the Muskies Inc. website here: We will be providing more information as the event draws closer. Look for an update from Jim and Shannon in our May newsletter.

2 There will be an IMTT tournament on Kinkaid March 19th and 20th. Entry fee is membership of $30 and $150 per person for a 2-day tournament. Contact Kyle Kroening; kpkroening@yahoo.com; if you want to fish this tournament. Future Events April 9th is the 13th annual lake clean up. We will divide up the lake between 7:30 and 8 AM at the Mount Joy boat ramp. Large heavy weight garbage bags will be handed out at that time. The cleanup is from 8 to noon. Bring your bags in at the ramp where the IDNR will haul it away. There will be a free lunch at the marina restaurant at noon for those that worked on the cleanup. April 9th at 1 PM, the Iron Man competition will begin. It will run from 1 PM to 11 AM on Sunday. You can fish any or all the hours you want. At 7 PM we will have pizzas at the Paul Ice boat ramp. At that time, we will also have the boat dress up competition. Prizes will be awarded for best boat and at 11 am we will have awards for big fish and other prizes. Contact Renee Johnson or Shannon Beaty-Dingus for more details. The $25 fee will be used to cover expenses for prizes and pizzas. The Bunk House is rented for Friday and Saturday night for this event. April 23rd and 24th are our Guide for the Day events this Spring. We will meet our clients at 7:30 at the Paul Ice boat ramp. As always, we need guides and boats to take out our clients. This is our clubs largest fundraiser. This is one event that we need your help. The money raised goes to support the IDNR, Kids Fishing Day and Veteran s day events. Sunday was added to allow more clients to enjoy this event. We usually only need a couple of boats on Sunday. The Bunkhouse is rented for Friday and Saturday night for guides to stay. April 30th/May 1st is our Spring Fling Tournament. The entry fee is $100 per person. Teams are of 1 or 2 persons. A $50 fee for youth under 18 and first time entries (first time that you have ever fish one of our tournaments) is also $50. This includes the Saturday night dinner. Bring food items for the local pantry and you will be put in the drawing for a new muskie rod. This is a very fun event. We have all men teams, all women teams, father son teams, husband and wife teams, grandfather and grandson teams. Friday night registration is at the America s Best Value Inn in Murphysboro. For more information go to our website or contact any of the officers listed. The 10th Annual Border War Chapter Challenge with the Pomme Chapter will be on May 21st on Kinkaid. We have the Bunkhouse reserve for the weekend. There is more information in the attachment to the newsletter . July 29 th and 30 th we will heading out of Detroit, MI for our Lake St Clair trolling outing. The date has changed from the 3 rd week of July to the end of July at the suggestion of Captain Jason with Fins and Grins Muskie Charters. The water temperatures on the lake have been cooler the last two years and the number and size of fish have been down. The colder than normal water temperatures made finding

3 fish tougher. There are 18 spots open in the three boats we reserved with potentially a 4 th boat if we get more entrees this year. Due to the anticipated higher demand, those interested will need to send a $100 deposit check to Ken Snagger Ryder, SMH #28 Treasurer, 3 E. Elm St, Alton, IL Chapter members can reserve a space thru the end of March. Then April 1 st open to chapter friends and guests. Deposits for cancelations will be returned if notified by July 1 st. The next date is the Gil Hamm Chapter Challenge. It will be on Lake of the Woods August 20 th to the 27 th. Red Wing lodge will again be the host. Both these trips will give you a good chance to catch a 50+ inch muskie. The more waters you fish with the potential to catch a 50 the better. These trips also are very affordable when you go with the group. Let Jim Beaty know if you are interested in this chapter trip. Lodging has to be reserved in advance. Tidbits The club, again, has a raffle going for a trip with Captain Jason Quantano of Fins and Grins Muskie Charters on Lake St. Clair. The trip is for either 2 anglers casting or a trolling trip for up to 6. It must be used on a weekday. The tickets are $5 each or 5 for $20. Contact Ol Snagger (Ken Ryder) ( ) if you are interested. The drawing will occur during the January 2017 club meeting. This year s raffle was won by Ken Ryder at the Cabela s meeting. The Shawnee Muskie Hunters participates in escrip, a fundraising program where participating business partners contribute a percentage of your purchases to our club. If you are interested there is more information on our website here: We still have Shawnee Muskie Hunter Challenge coins for sale. Contact John Wright if you would like on. His contact information is at the end of this letter. Kinkaid Area Watershed Project (KAWP) is trying to clean up the silt in the north end of Kinkaid lake. The more members they have the more likely it is they will receive grants to get this work done. Membership is only $10.00 for 10 years for individual members. Please consider joining. There is a membership form included in the newsletter . The 2016 annual meeting of the Kinkaid Area Watershed Project will be Thursday, March 31st, at the H.B Vancil community building at Power Park, 400 S 3rd St, Ava, IL. (Meeting is normally around 7 PM). The Forestry Service will be doing the presentation. For more information contact Chuck Novara, KAWP Director,

4 Muskie Q&A This is a new section for the newsletter devoted to answers questions posed by members. If you have a question submit it to Dan Johnson (djohns16@gmail.com) and our panel of experts will provide an answer in the newsletter. Hopefully this will help all of us gain some information. You can also submit questions to our Facebook page. Here is a sample provided by Ray Wheelock and answered by Walt Krause. Q. I wish to fish smaller glide baits in the spring on Kinkaid and Spring Lake but am having problems finding these baits in the smaller sizes less than 6 or 7". Do you know of a manufacturer that produces an appropriate bait in the 4-5" range?" -Ray A. The answer to your question is: Phantom makes a small 4 inch model in the soft tail series. Tony Grant makes one called the Fat Belly Rattler and I think Rapala has a small model that I could never get to work. There is another small glide bait made by Mirror Lures that are used for red fish. If I do more research I might find some more. One thing to remember is you need a rod with a fast tip. A bass rod would work better than the normal Muskie rod (Muskie rods are too heavy to get them to glide right). You would have to try different actions of rods to get the right one. -Walt Trip Report This new section is devoted to summaries of fishing trips. We will eventually have a standard form to make submitting trip reports easy. This month our trip report was submitted by Larry Owens. Last September, my wife Carrie and I enjoyed a weeklong stay Bent s Camp Resort ( S Helen Creek Rd, Land O Lakes, WI (715) ). We liked it so much that we have booked again this fall. Bent s Camp is located on the southern shore of Mamie Lake, one of fourteen individual lakes that make up the Cisco Chain. Even though the resort is in Wisconsin, most of the Cisco Chain is actually in the state of Michigan. The resort has eleven cabins, a boat ramp, dock space for your boat, small bait shop, gift shop and a full service lodge. Carrie and I prefer to not do much cooking while on vacation, so most days we had lunch and dinner at the lodge. The food was excellent and each night they offered a different feature item. The fish fry, huge ribeye steaks and fried chicken were some of our favorites. They also serve pizza, wings, sandwiches and a bunch of other good stuff. There are always a bunch of characters around the bar to entertain you with their stories. Fair warning to my fellow Chicago Bears fans though, be prepared to do battle with the Packer Cheeseheads. The resort is located about 20 miles northeast of Boulder Junction which is a nice quaint tourist town. One day during a little rainy weather, we spent the afternoon going through the stores. There is everything from simple antique and pottery shops to some really nice art galleries. It gave us a nice break from tossing Muskie lures. There are also several bars and restaurants in town along with a

grocery store, tackle shop and gas station. Everything you need. On the way up, we also drove through Minocqua and stopped in at Rollie and Helen s Musky Shop.

As I noted earlier, there are fourteen individual lakes that are connected by short channels that make up the chain.

5 grocery store, tackle shop and gas station. Everything you need. On the way up, we also drove through Minocqua and stopped in at Rollie and Helen s Musky Shop. I have been buying stuff from them for years but this was my first chance to actually visit the store. The Chain of Lakes is a lot of fun to fish. As I noted earlier, there are fourteen individual lakes that are connected by short channels that make up the chain. The largest of the fourteen is Thousand Island lake at a little over 1,000 acres and the total surface area of all of the water in the chain is around 4,000 acres. This gives you plenty to explore during a weeklong vacation. The GPS map chips do an excellent job of covering the lake. If you pay attention, you should have no worries of wrecking your lower unit. During our trip, we had action from Muskies every day, we hooked several and caught a few. We also caught smallmouth bass, perch and northern pike. The Muskies had just recently vacated the thick cabbage weedbeds in favor of the shallow rock bars during our visit. It took us a couple of days to figure that out but once we did, we started seeing a lot more fish. If you go, I recommend purchasing a Michigan fishing license. With a Michigan license, you can fish in all fourteen lakes. If you buy a Wisconsin license, you are only allowed to fish in the three southernmost lakes that are located partially in Wisconsin. To help us learn our way around and get started, we hired local guide Rob Manthei for a half-day trip. If you read Musky Hunter magazine, you will recognize Rob s name. He has frequent articles there. I recommend giving him a call if you are up that way on vacation. I have fished with many different guides over the years and he is one of the best. Carrie with an Indian Lake Northern Pike Larry with a Lindsley Lake Muskie

6 Joke of the Month If you have a good fishing joke you think the rest of the club would enjoy send them to Dan Johnson at djohns16@gmail.com. This month s joke was submitted by Ray Wheelock Long ago lived a seaman named Captain Bravo. He was a manly man who showed no fear in facing his enemies. One day, while sailing the seven seas, a look-out spotted a pirate ship and the crew became frantic. Captain Bravo bellowed "Bring me my Red Shirt." The First Mate quickly retrieved the captain's red shirt and while wearing the bright frock he led his mates into battle and defeated the pirates. Later on, the look-out again spotted not one, but two pirate ships. The captain again howled for his red shirt and once again vanquished the pirates. That evening, all the men sat around on the deck recounting the day's triumphs and one of the them asked the captain: "Sir, why did you call for your red shirt before battle?" The captain replied: "If I am wounded in the attack, the shirt will not show my blood, and thus, you men will continue to resist, unafraid." All of the men sat in silence and marveled at the courage of such a manly man. As dawn came the next morning, the look-out once again spotted not one, not two, but TEN pirates ships approaching. The rank and file all stared at the captain and waited for his usual reply. Captain Bravo calmly shouted: "Get me my brown pants." Member Profile Name- Jake Beyer Home Town- Waukesha, Wisconsin Current Town- Mascoutah, Illinois Occupation or how you spend the day- Air Traffic Controller in the US Air Force How did you get started Muskie fishing- I really got hooked on muskies while fishing a multi species tournament. I was throwing a bass worm towards a pier and just as I was about to pull in the bait for another cast a musky grabbed a hold of it. After two massive head shakes it cut my line and swam off. How long have you been Muskie fishing- 5 years How often do you target muskies when fishing- As long as the water temperatures are safe and the lake contains muskies, I will have a musky bait tied on. What interests you most about Muskie fishing- The challenge of trying to learn the fish and the constant inconstancy is the big draw but you can t beat the adrenaline rush of a boat side strike Favorite lake(s)- Pewaukee Lake in Wisconsin (My Home Lake) and Kinkaid (My New Home Lake)

Favorite Lure(s)- What do you like most about our chapter- The comradery of the group is awesome. I learn something new about musky fishing every activity I attend.

Any interesting fishing stories you would like to share- For those who remember my first club event was guide for a day back in spring 2012.

7 Favorite Lure(s)- What do you like most about our chapter- The comradery of the group is awesome. I learn something new about musky fishing every activity I attend. Everyone is very open to helping you find and catch fish as well which I think is rare especially in our sport. Any interesting fishing stories you would like to share- For those who remember my first club event was guide for a day back in spring I pulled up and backed the boat into the Paul Ice Ramp with no problems. I park the truck and head for the boat and realize my boats keys were missing. After at least 20 minutes of searching I located the keys on a beam under the dock literally inches from falling into the water. Someone from the club gave me a musky shaped floating key chain so I would never lose my keys again. I was pretty embarrassed but I made up for it by catching a musky on the trip! (Whoever you are who gave me the floating key chain thank you again! I owe you a new one and a cold one) Lost Key Musky

8 Don t forget, our website is: There is a lot of good information there. If you haven t checked out the Members Only section you should. If you don t have a username and password for the Members Only section contact Renee at renee.g.johnson@gmail.com and she ll hook you up.

9 2016 Officers President Jim Beaty (618) Vice President Larry Owens (812) Treasurer Ken Ryder (618) Secretary Dan Johnson (618) Chapter #4 Representative Newsletter Editor Magazine Reporter Walt Krause (618) Membership Director Ray Wheelock (618) Youth Director Jake Beyer (262) Habitat Director Kyle Kroening (505) Web Master Media Director Renee Johnson (618)

10 2016 Committees Fund Raising: Ken Ryder (Chair), Walt Krause, John Wright Tournaments: John Wright (Chair), Ray Wheelock, Mike Jacob, Steve Krakowieki, Jerry Ford, Brian Paasch Youth: Jake Beyer (Chair), Ray & Katie Wheelock, Shannon Beaty-Dingus Sport Shows: Walt Krause (Chair), Ken Ryder, Kyle and Lucas Kroening Lake Cleanup: Kyle Kroening (Chair), Walt Krause, Shannon Beaty-Dingus Social Events: Shannon Beaty-Dingus, Renee Johnson (Co-chairs) Lake St Clair Outing: Ken Ryder (Chair) High School Tournament: Jim Beaty (Chair), Kyle Kroening, Jake Beyer, Shannon Beaty- Dingus Iron Man: Shannon Beaty-Dingus, Renee Johnson (Co-chairs) Guide for a Day: Ken Ryder (Chair), Larry Owens Veterans Day: Ken Ryder (Chair), Larry Owens Chapter Challenge: Jim Beaty (Chair), Mike Jacob, Steve Krakowiecki Border Wars: Jim Beaty (Chair), Mike Jacob, Steve Krakowiecki

11 2016 Calendar March 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, Muskies Inc. Hugh Becker Muskie Symposium, Minnetonka, MN March 19, 20 IMTT Spring Classic, Kinkaid Lake April 9, Kinkaid Lake Cleanup (Bunkhouse 8, 9) 8:00 AM Noon (Free Lunch at Marina) April 9 and 10, Shawnee Muskie Hunters Ironman Challunge, Kinkaid Lake, 1:00 PM 11:00 AM April 16, 17, IMTT Jake Wolf Memorial, Spring Lake April 23 and 24, Shawnee Muskie Hunters Guide for Day, Kinkaid Lake (Bunkhouse 22, 23) April 30 and May 1, Shawnee Muskie Hunters Spring Fling Tournament, Kinkaid Lake May 21, Shawnee Pomme Chapter Challunge, Kinkaid Lake (Bunkhouse 20, 21) June 11, Shawnee Muskie Hunters Kid's Fishing Day, Murphysboro Lake (Bunkhouse 10) July 16, Shawnee Muskie Hunters Boat & Float Outing, Kinkaid Lake (Bunkhouse 16) July 29, 30, Shawnee Muskie Hunters Trolling Outing, Lake St Clair, Ontario August 20 to 27, Gil Hamm Outing, Lake of the Woods, Ontario September TBD, Shawnee Muskie Hunters Salmon Outing, Ludington, MI September 10, Shawnee Muskie Hunters 2017 Planning Meeting 7:00 PM 9:00 PM (Bunkhouse 10) Sept 16, 17, and 18, Shawnee Muskie Hunters Prairie Lake Outing September 24, 25 - Shawnee Muskie Hunters Guide for Day, Kinkaid Lake (Bunkhouse 23, 24) October 1, 2, IMTT Fall Classic, Prairie Lake October 8, Shawnee Muskie Hunters Annual Veterans Outing, Kinkaid Lake (Bunkhouse 7, 8) October 9, IL High School Muskie Tournament, Kinkaid Lake October 22 and 23, Shawnee Muskie Hunters Fall Brawl Tournament, Kinkaid Lake November 5, 6, IMTT Championship, Kinkaid Lake December 10, 11 Shawnee Muskie Hunters Winter Trolling Outing

June 2016 Newsletter. Introduction. Recent Events

June 2016 Newsletter. Introduction. Recent Events June 2016 Newsletter Introduction Hopes of fishing Kinkaid well into June are no more. As of June 2nd the water temperatures were reaching the mid 80 s by early evening. It s time to find your way up north