Fishing Opener

Gunflint Green Up last weekend was a rousing success. About 325 people planted 25,000 trees. That’s just over 75 trees per person. In our rocky soil, planting trees is a project. Add to that the fact that burned trees, fallen trees, soot and loose rocks are all over. I went out for a few minutes to meet some of the planters. Many of them were like Mary Indritz and her daughter Paige, shown in this picture.



They live in Roseville, Minnesota, and have a cabin on Poplar Lake. Son Jack was also planting with them. The Gunflint community has really come together to help give our forest as helping hand.

This weekend brings the Minnesota fishing opener. Gunflint Lake is totally clear of ice as is Magnetic. Although I haven’t been down there, North Lake and Little Gunflint should also be open. Loon Lake went out yesterday. Saganaga and Seagull should be open. The lakes in the mid-trail vary but if you started blowing from the proper direction, they would go out. It should be a great opening weekend.

We are getting ready to jump into the season. Jason is bringing over the first dock as I write this. I can see him coming across the lake. It is a perfectly calm day which is what we need to get the docks in place. In fact here is a picture of the dock coming in to be attached to the main cribbing.

Friday night people will start checking into the lodge for fishing. Bonnie says that our first outfitting groups will be going out next week. I don’t know how another winter passed so quickly.

We went out to dinner with friends last night. Some of you may remember our neighbor on Tucker Lake who burned part of his favorite hat last winter while burning a brush fire. A spark landed on his hat and eventually started burning hat and head. A couple days ago, Tom received a package with this letter in it:

Dear Mr. Schank
We understand you had a head fire causing some discomfort to your melon. We are enclosing a special fire hat to prevent any more fires of the same nature.
These are special hats for use on small fires only, if your needs are larger save the aluminum pan from Thanksgiving and punch a center hole in it.
Replacement pans can be purchased at your local grocery store.
Thanking you
Mr. Bill Spark
G.M. Fire Dep
Here is a picture of Tom modeling his new hat.

Tuesday Bruce and I went out to put in minnow traps. He carried the traps and I walked along. This is Bruce looking at a trap he has just placed on a hidden pond about ½ mile in.

He was worried about getting enough minnows because the water in the ponds was quite low. Yesterday he checked the three traps for minnows. I couldn’t go but Bruce said he couldn’t even carry out all the minnows. These native dace minnows that he traps are the best ones of fishing in our area.

Some blogs I really struggle to get pictures for. Then there are others like this one that just seem to overflow with pictures.