Nattie Up North An Introduction

I found out about Nattie through her being hired by Major League Fishing to work on their Bass Pro Tour Broadcast Team. So naturally, I checked out some of her YouTube videos and came to discover she is a Minnesocold Girl.  I think Major League made a really good hire.  Her enthusiasm for fishing is infectious, has the gift of gab, and she had a million dollar smile.  It will be interesting to see how they use her.  I hope it works out.

She did start a blog in 2017, but it looks like she has given up on that after 4 very promising posts.

Here are a couple of her Youtube videos:


 
Someone is getting added to my list of Dream Fishing Buddies in 2019.

2018 Fishing Goals Achieved (And Not)

Goals achieved in bold green
Goals not achieved in red
Partly achieved in purple
Commentary in blue

Fishing Buddies: Once again in 2018 I did poorly in reaching my fishing buddies goals. However, I did spend more time fishing with my younger brothers and had multiple pre-fishing trips with fellow Snatchers and Pete came up a few different times, so I wasn't fishing by myself all the time.  

1. Fish with Dad multiple times.(Due to dad's sore shoulders he wasn't up for fishing this year.)
2. Take Mike Thompson out frog fishing. (Didn't get out frog fishing with Cyb, but we did fish together once at Eddy's Jetty.)
3. Fish with Jim Bonin
4. Fish with  Mike "Spike" Miller
5. Fish with Jeff and Renee at least once
6. Fish with Todd, Isabelle, and Mallory multiple times
7. Take Peter W. out of the Trophy at least once.
8. Take Matt W. out of the Trophy at least once.
9. Fish with Dave Lindmark
10. Fish with Steve and Devin multiple times.
11. Take Corey Hicks frog fishing.
Dream Fishing Buddies:
1. Fish with Josh Douglas
2. Fish with Al Lindner

Bass Snatcher Goals:
1.  Get "Wood" in at least one tournament. (1st-3rd Place Finish or Lunker) (I was the initial Co-Angler Challenge Winner, so that kind of counts.)
2. Win my 1st tournament. (My best finish to date is 2nd Place.)
3. Get "Lunker" in a tournament. (I got Big Bass at the Mini-Bucks Tournament)
4. Get paired with Chuck Fields. 
5. Finish in the Top 10 at the end of the year.  (Something I haven't done since 2011)(Finished in 9th Place)
6. Catch a limit at every tournament of the year.
7. Pre-fish with at least 3 boaters. (Did with 4 of my boaters this year)
8. List the Rods I'm bringing for each tournament before the tournament.

Technique & Tackle Goals:
0. Blog about the November and December Lucky Tackle Box's
1. Win something in Fantasy Fishing or Facebook giveaways/contests.
Lew's Tournament MB Speed Spool
Lew's Custom Speed Stick
2. Catch a fish on % of Mystery Tackle Box Lures (Hold over from 2017)
    2a. 1st Box 100% (5 Lures, 2 Lures to go)
    2b. 2nd Box 60% (3 out of 5, only more lure and I've got this one)
3. Catch a fish on % of Lucky Tackle Box Lures
   3a. 1st Box 100%  (6 Lures, 3 Lures left to go.)
   3b. 2nd Box 100% (6 Lures)
   3c.  3rd Box 75% (4 Lures)
4. Catch a bass on the Salmo Bass Bug (Hold over from 2017)
5. Get my brother Steve and niece Devin properly outfitted.
6.  Officially Open the Tackle Warehouse this year. (4/26)
7. Catch a fish on the Sprinker Frog
8. Experiment with the Neko rig to see if it something for me.
9. Experiment with the Ned Rig to see if it's something for me. (Used it a little too disappointing results)

Blogging:
1. Blog about anytime I reach a goal. (I missed a few yet again)
2. Record all fishing trips at Fish Swami (I think I got all of them)
3. Fish at least 150 days and blog about them (193 Days Fished in 2018)

Fish Goals:
1. Get Devin and Steve into some bullheads
2. Average 5 fish caught per hour. (3.99 in 2017, 4.08 in 2016, 3.62 in 2015, 3.55 in 2014, 4.41 in 2013, 4.31 in 2012, 2.77 in 2011) (A poor Fall into Winter Bite killed off any chance of me getting to 5 fish per hour)
3. Catch* 3,000 Fish (Fell just a little bit short)
4. Put together a small monetary incentive deal with the nieces this summer. (I decided not to do this.)

Crappie:
1. Catch a new personal best. (Currently 14.25")
2. Catch* over 300 this year. (Caught 515 in 2017) (306, so I got there just barely)
3. Get Steve into some silver bullheads.
4. Get Devin into some silver bullheads. (Silver bullheads were a tough get with the late ice out.  I didn't get many of them myself)

Dogfish:
1. Win my 3rd Minnesota Bowfin Club Grand Championship
2. Catch a MN State Record fish. (11-4  or 35" x 20")
3. Catch a new personal best.

Pike:
1. Catch* over 500 this year. (Caught 798 in 2017) (Caught 804)
2. Catch a 38" or over/personal best.
3. Get Steve into some toothy bullheads (Steve caught a few including his personal best)
4. Get Devin into some toothy bullheads (I think Dev caught a couple off the dock, but I'm not 100% sure on that)

Bass: 
1. Catch a 21plus inch or 6lb Largemouth
2. Catch a 21plus inch or 6lb Smallmouth
3. Catch* over 1,000 bass this year. (Caught 1,238 in 2017) (Caught 1,281)
4. Catch* at least 25 smallies.  (I caught 26 last year) (Not a single smallie caught)
5. Catch a 25lb 6 Fish Bag
6. Get Steve into some jumpin' bullheads.
7. Get Devin into some jumpin' bullheads.

Walleye:
1. Catch at least 30. (Caught 40 in 2017) (Caught 279)
2. Catch 30" or new personal best. (28.5 is current PB)
3. Get Steve into his first ever MN state fish.

* Catch is anything I deem it to be including follows by pike or smallmouth (while pre-fishing), a pike missing my lure, fish viewed on the Aqua View, and fish that get off before I have them in hand that I can positively identify.

Snatchers Meeting Today

The first Snatcher Meeting of the year takes place at 1PM today.  We will be doing the first round of lakes and dates.  Some lakes I wouldn't mind seeing on this year's schedule to fish are Woman Lake, Serpent Lake, Farm Island, Leech, Pokegama, and Alexander.  Will update this post later today.

Update:   Here's what we came up with.  I strongly expect some of the lakes will get changed next month.

June 1st: Whitefish Chain
June 29th: Alexander
July 13th: Le Homme Dieu
July 27th: Big Winni
Aug 17th: Gull River
Sept 28th: Leech Lake

My Top 13 Fishing Highlights of 2018

2018 was the year of Devin and Steve.  Steve and family moved into the lake place in the Fall of 2017 remodeled the place and about a year later moved on to a new adventure in Chicago.  Fishing with Dev and Steve were at the top of my highlights for the year.

#1 Highlight: Catching Bull Bluegills Off the Dock With Devin 

#2 Highlight: Getting Steve His First Ever MN State Fish at Mille Lacs Lake

#3 Highlight: Teaching Devin about Ice Fishing

#4 Highlight: Bass Devin Caught Off the Dock While We Were Eating Dinner

#5 Highlight: Steve's Big Pike

#6 Highlight Fishing With The Brothers.  Steve, Todd and I fished together on a few trips in the Trophy.  And there were quite a few trips with just me and Stever or me and Todd. 

#7 Highlight: Steve's Big Doggo

#8 Highlight: Fishing the Melon Patch.  Many a melon was snatched and quite a few got away as well (Only linking twice doesn't begin to tell the story).

#9 Highlight: The 17" Hole and Big Rice Point.   Another productive area that provided a number of memorable trips as well as my biggest bass of the year.

#10 Highlight: Fishing and Pre-Fishing the Snatcher Minnewawa Tournament with Keith Tuma and his daughter Breanne.

#11 Highlight: Being the 1st Ever Bass Snatcher Co-Angler Challenge Winner at Lake Edward.

#12 Highlight:  The Hot Fall Bite Off  Of Eddy's Jetty In October and November.  It's a shame winter came early this year.

#13 Highlight (Because I "Make My Own Luck") Catching Big Bass at the Mission Lakes Mini-Bucks.

You can read about pretty much every trip I took in 2018 at the Fishing Log Blog.

Who's Guy Was Kirk?

A lot of unhappy fans here in Vikings country right now.  The peanut gallery is calling for General Manager Rick Spielman and Mike Zimmer's head.  I believe those are foolish opinion's as that the Vikings team culture is very good.  Sure a 8.5 win team is a disappointment, but with the offensive line as currently constructed that is what we were.  And what we were was a missed field goal in Lambert away from making the playoffs in which the team didn't stand much of a chance anyway.

Anyway, back to what I was writing this blog about.  I believe the Kirk Cousins hire was a decision made at the very top of the organization.  I believe Kirk Cousins was the Wilf's guy first and foremost. Blame Ziggy if you think bringing Cousins in was a mistake.

The 20% Chance I Gave To The Bears Comes To Fruition, Vikes Bounced

What a disappointing performance!  First by the Vikings O-line.  Second by the Referees.

I am giving Kirk Cousins a break on this game. The Vikings Offense Line played like they didn't believe they were good enough.  That was some uninspired football by them.  They didn't step up the challenge at all.  I expect major changes on this unit next year.

I wonder how the game would have turned out had the Ref. done the right thing and kept the flag in his pocket on that roughing the passer call on Weatherly on third down when the Bears were deep in our territory.  That was a ticky tack call that was a gut punch to the Defense and deflated the crowd.  Had the Bears kicked the ball in that spot the game might have turned out differently.  The ref's made a number of questionable calls this game going against both sides, but this the call that led directly to Bears going up by two scores and was the most critical play of the game in my mind.  It's a shame that the outcome of the game very well may have hinged on a poor call.

I think the Bears are gonna have their hands full if Foles is able to go next week.  I think they made a huge mistake by putting up a fight against us this week.  Their offense played a lot of snaps against our D and played very impressively.  I think it is going to be tough for them to duplicate next week.

     

Why? I Don't Get It

This is comment a Vikings fan wrote on an article I read today.  Sure it's a guy giving his opinion that the Vikes aren't a Super Bowl team this year.  I get that.  But why rule out the Vikings chances all together? 

I don't know if they are a Super Bowl worthy team or not.  I place no faith in anyone's predictions about how this Vikings team will perform because these Vikings are a very talented team that has only put things together this season in fits and starts.  I would say it's a 55% chance the Vikes continue to play this way and get bounced from the playoffs, a 30% chance the Vikes play well but get bounced anyway which leaves me believing the Vikes have a 15% chance of making the Super Bowl as of right now.  In my opinion, the playoff's started last week for the Vikes.  Here's how I think they can continue on:

Keys to Vikings making a Super Bowl run:
1. Offensive Line getting it's act together. (run, Dalvin run)
2. Cousin's playing inspired turnover-free football
3. Shut Down D not allowing more than 20 pts a game
4. Kicker making his kicks

My outlook for this week:

Trubitsky isn't going to come into U.S. Bank and bounce us.  20% Chance of that happening.

Where Do The Vikes Go From Here?

The Vikes victory over the Dolphins was able to get my mind off how bad I suck at ice fishing for a few hours anyway.  Here is what I'm thinking about the team right now.  I don't trust them.  I don't know if they will be able to beat the Lions next week.  I think they probably will win, but this team has been so erratic with it's play this year.  The Rams didn't do us any favors by losing to the Eagles.  And the way this weekend has gone I wouldn't put it past the Panthers to down the Saints tomorrow to make it a three horse race for the final wildcard spot.  The Vikes may need to win out to make it. One positive is that the team seems to be as healthy as they have been all year.  Come on Vikes, turn that Zimmer thumb up the next two weeks.  That would actually give me a great deal of optimism for the lads in purple.  Let's find a winning formula.  It's not too late yet.

 

Flip Flopped, Now He Gone

My reaction:

Stefanski elevated to O.C..  After last night's debacle, I am all for the change.  In retrospect, Stefanski should have been the original hire.  Maybe this move will get our offense on track.  SKOL! 

I Didn't Suck Tonight, But Fishing Wasn't That Good Again

A Few Fish At Bulldog

9" VMC Fly/Maggot

4:30-7:00PM Bulldog Lake
27-22℉, Clear, Calm

When I got out there, three guys were fishing in the area I wanted to be. They packed up at about 4:40, so I moved over. I didn't get the first couple of marks to move through.  Not a whole lot of fish marked tonight.  Only 1 took the minnow and I missed it.  I ended up with 8 crappies caught half of which were 5-inchers.  I had an 11-incher come off in the hole.  I threw all the fish back tonight.

8 Crappies

I Pretty Much Suck!

Late Bulldog Trip

7" Glow Demon/Minnow

My new rechargeable light $14 on eBay

7:45-10:00PM Bulldog Lake
17-15℉, Clear, Calm

I decided to go out fishing tonight because there was no wind.  I forgot maggies and wax worms, Doh!  I drilled holes in the general area I was last time.  Nobody else was out and I didn't see any other houses.  The light I bought on eBay lights up the interior really well. There were fish down there, but funky.  I tried minnow heads unsuccessfully for the most part.  I got two bites on a minnow catching one.  And at the very end of the night, I got a 7-incher on the Glow Demon Spoon with a minnow head and Power Wax Worm.  I really suck at ice fishing this year.

2 Crip 

My Opinion, Zim Is The Man For The Foreseeable Future

I swear some Vikings fans are out of their minds.  Sure the teams' play has been all over the place this year and the teams' performance at Foxboro was a disappointment, but calling for Zimmer's head, really. C'mon Man!  Zim is a very good head coach and a defensive wizard.  It's not Zim's fault Rhodes and Waynes were injured in the game.  The lack of offensive production versus the Pats is all on Flip, Cousins, and Belichick who is also a defensive wizard.  Winning in Foxboro in December is a tough draw.  I expected the Vikes to play a bit better, but I didn't think they played as badly as the final score and stats indicated.  We weren't very far off from giving the Pat's a scare.  

I think Seattle is a much more beatable team.  I'm sure Zim wants some revenge against the Seachickens.  Cousin's gets another primetime opportunity to prove the critics wrong and the whole offensive unit has something to prove. 

A final word on Zim.  His record versus the Packers the last 7 times we have played says it all:  

Bass Pundit Turns 14 Years Old Today

That's right today begins my 15th year as a blogger.  My blogging frequency here at Bass Pundit has been down a slight tic this past year.  I could easily rectify that situation by just publishing a few more of my fishing report blogs here instead of only posting them at the Fishing Log Blog.  Maybe, I'll get in the habit of doing that come ice season.  If you are interested, you can easily check out every blog I have ever posted here at Bass Pundit by checking the Blog Archive on the right-hand sidebar.

Cheers to 14 years!!!

Captain Kirk Crashes the Starship

I see that I didn't blog my thought's on Vikings QB's after last season.  I was one who believed we should have re-signed Keenum and Teddy rather than spend the big money on Kirk Cousins.  Both Keenum and Teddy proved to me that they had an "it" factor that makes them tough QBs to beat in big games.  Cousin's had the opportunity to justify the huge contract tonight in Soldiers Field and came up woefully short.  He missed fired on a sure touchdown to Stephon Diggs.  He threw a lousy interception at the end of the first half when we had an opportunity to put points on the board. And with a chance to lead a long game tieing drive in the fourth quarter immediately threw a Bears game-clinching pick 6.  This doesn't mean the season is over, but that was a troubling performance to me, to say the least.

The pressure is now ramped up for next weeks game versus Team Cheese and you know who thrives on pressure?  Aaron Rodgers.  You know who has rep for folding under pressure?  You do Captain Kirk and you failed your first major test.

I'm officially hitting it.

   

Vikes Season Comes Down to the Next Two Games

I haven't Vikings blogged a whole lot this year. In fact, this is only my second post for this season.  The Vikes have at times played well this season and had some serious "what the.." heck moments and games as well.  I believe the Vikes are primed to take the division lead and not let go.  All they have to do is beat Da Bears in Chicago this week and crush the Packers playoff hopes next week.  If Zim's team shows up both weeks I like our chances.

SKOL Vikes!!!