Spiel

Well, belated anniversary guys. Congrats on two succesful trips out on the ice, I know I could sure use some time out there. Little tip for you Joey, learn to use that shiny new sonar with the "fish ID" feature turned off! Good to see you up and about Paul.

Ditto, though I don't shop Walmart. I actually have a $25 Timmies gift card in my wallet (Christmas gift) that I haven't used and Lord knows if I ever will? Praps on some wayward trip to Nipigon or something.

That's "totally awesome" Wayne. I could easily enjoy a day (or lifetime) of doing stuff like that! Could I get started with a few hundred.

Sweet jump'n Jesus, that's one big ling. I've only seen one comparable in my life, a buddy caught it off the mouth of the Bighead river and it was as long as his leg. It sure looked old with all sorts of battle scars (possibly from gill nets encounters?), anyhow we realeased it without any measurements taken. Congrats, it's truly a hog!

All the best my friend. I was going to send you a package but Brook wouldn't let me seal her up in the box.

Did anybody notice where I said the $600.00 repair for a five minute job was a Toyota dealer?

Welcome.

This is not good and may have an impact on many other harbours around the lake. Story in the OFC News

Ice fishing to get the hook February 26, 2009 PETE FISHER / northumberlandtoday.com Ice fishing in Cobourg harbour will likely be outlawed in the next few weeks by Cobourg council, and could be on the agenda as soon as Monday, chief administrative officer Steve Robinson says. On Sunday, two fishermen were seen augering holes at various locations in the middle of the inner harbour. The two men also set up a portable ice hut. Robinson said marina manager Phil Fardella told him the same two fishermen had been fishing on the ice a few weeks earlier. They were told at least twice it wasn't safe to be on the ice in the harbour, Robinson said, but they ignored the warnings. Fardella gave the anglers Cobourg's current fishing bylaw passed in June, 1991 stating: "No person shall engage in the activity of fishing in the areas of the Cobourg Harbour describes as follows: "· the centre pier of the harbour "· the marina berthing slips located in the harbour east basin "· the marina fuel dock extending from the north wall of the harbour to the centre pier "· the pedestrian walk way along the north wall of the harbour between Division Street and Third Street." Robinson said the fishing bylaw was not written with ice fishing in mind, as people have rarely, if ever, done it in the harbour. "The story in the newspaper obviously raised the profile and staff is looking at how we can incorporate into the fishing bylaw something that would cover ice fishing in the inner harbour," he said. Robinson said the proposed bylaw would be to ban ice fishing in the harbour. "We're concerned how there are creeks and storm drains entering into the inner harbour and we're really concerned about safety (of the ice fishermen). We're not only concerned about the safety, but then there is liability for the town as well," he said. He expects the amended bylaw would be presented to council in the next few weeks.

Existing protocols not halting invasive species spread into Great Lakes February 25, 2009 Jim Moodie / www.manitoulin.ca CHICAGO-A recent report from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) warns that the current regime in place to catch invasive species won't prevent dozens of new exotic pests from entering the Great Lakes. The study, titled Predicting Future Introductions of Nonindigenous Species to the Great Lakes, identifies 30 non-native species that pose a medium or high risk of reaching the lakes and 28 others that have already gained a toehold and could proliferate more widely. They include such ominous-sounding critters as the monkey goby, the fishhook waterflea, and the doctor fish (technically called a tench fish). These 58 newcomers would join the 185 invaders that are known to have already found a niche in the Great Lakes. Not all, it should be noted, are wreaking utter havoc: according to the EPA, only 13 of the existing intruders, such as the zebra mussel and sea lamprey, have done extensive harm to the aquatic environment and the regional economy. Still, the report recommends prompt action to nip the ingress of more unwanted species, and points to a number of high-traffic ports as areas where tougher monitoring should be implemented. These include Duluth, Minnesota; Superior, Wisconsin; and Toledo, Ohio. Each is a site that receives a high concentration of discharged ballast water, a medium that accounts for over two-thirds of the invasive species that have entered the lakes. Both Canada and the US now require ocean-going vessels to flush their ballast at sea, and have recently enacted requirements for ships to rinse empty tanks with saltwater in hopes of killing organisms that can lurk in residual pools at the bottom. Still, even with such measures in place, "it is likely that nonindigenous species will continue to arrive in the Great Lakes," the report predicts, as some saltwater-tolerant species may survive ballast-water exchange and tank flushing. "Despite these ballast-water regulations, at least 13 new (invasive species) are believed to have entered the Great Lakes from ballast water since 1993," the report notes. Hugh MacIsaac, a University of Windsor biologist and director of the Canadian Aquatic Invasive Species Network, believes the ballast regulations are quite effective, however, and that the picture painted by the EPA is unreasonably alarmist. Flushing and ballast-water exchange should kill 99 percent of organisms, he told the Associated Press, adding, "I would be very surprised if their prediction comes true." Canada implemented voluntary ballast-water guidelines to stem the spread of invaders in 1990, with tougher rules introduced in 2006 that now require all ships entering Canada's waters to manage their ballast water. The law, through the Canada Shipping Act, states that cargo ships must: exchange their ballast water in open ocean; treat their ballast water while in transit; discharge their ballast water to a reception facility; and retain their ballast water on board ship. According to Environment Canada, a mid-ocean exchange of freshwater for seawater in a ship's ballast tanks will take care of most invaders, as the high salt content of the latter tends to kill off the freshwater organisms, while the number of salt-tolerant creatures are relatively few. When this ballast is discharged at the port of destination, "the very small number of organisms that would be taken in from the high seas would not survive in the port's waters," the department states in an article at EnviroZine, its online newsmagazine. However, there is growing evidence that this approach is far from foolproof, and a more effective way to stem the alien tide is to treat the ballast water during a ship's voyage with organism-zapping agents or by depriving these aquatic nasties of oxygen. There are about 30 treatment systems being developed around the world, four of which are being tested in Canada. Two of the more promising methods that Environment Canada has been studying are The Peraclean Ocean treatment, which uses peracetic acid and hydrogen peroxide to eliminate aquatic hitchhikers; and Ballaclean, which employs deoxygenation technology to choke the life out of the little stowaways. Neither is perfect: the former leaves toxic residues in the treated water that may take up to a week or more to dissipate; the latter requires a long period of time for the process to be effective, and can cause increases in ammonia and other byproducts that render the discharged water hazardous for the environment. While ballast-water discharge is the most prevalent pathway for invaders, the EPA report notes that a high rate of this activity in one area of the basin does not necessarily translate to more species invasions. It points to the example of Lake Superior, which counts the most discharges of ballast water in the Great Lakes, yet has fewer invasive species than the other lakes. "The low nonindigenous species colonization rate in Lake Superior may be due to any of several factors including cooler temperatures, a high ratio of deeper waters, low food availability due to low productivity, and low calcium concentrations," the report states. The US environmental agency attributes 65 percent of invasive species in the Great Lakes to shipping and ballast water. The remainder come through a variety of conduits, including canals, bait transfers, fish farms and aquarium releases. The study employs a type of ecological modelling, combined with remote sensing data, in order to predict which areas of the Great Lakes would become suitable habitats for the next round of invasive species. Lake Huron, for instance, is considered an area of "high suitability" for the blueback herring, a medium-sized fish very similar to an alewife. Indeed, most of the Great Lakes, save for the deeper parts of Lake Superior and all of Lake St. Clair, are considered a promising habitat for this newcomer. By contrast, Lake Huron is an unlikely home for the rudd, whereas circumstances on Lakes Erie and Ontario are ripe to receive these hardy, thick-bodied fish. We're also, thankfully, a zone of "low suitability" for the roach, a member of the carp family. (Again, Erie and Ontario are most apt to host this type of invader.) According to Jennifer Nalbone, invasive species director for the advocacy group Great Lakes United, the EPA report acts as a wake-up call for tougher legislation and monitoring. She told the Associated Press that it "reinforces the need for further measures to keep foreign species out, including requiring onboard technology to sterilize ballast tanks."

State of fishery topic of meetings in Dunnville, Six Nations February 23, 2009 The results of a 10-year plan to improve the Grand River watershed fishery will be discussed at two public meetings in the lower Grand area. Thursday, March 5 at the Dunnville District Hunters and Anglers Club House, 237 McLauglin Side Road, Dunnville (Originally scheduled for Feb. 16 but postponed due to flooding.) Wednesday, March 18 at the Six Nations Tourism Center, 2498 Chiefswood Rd., Ohsweken The meetings, which will run from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. will outline the work that has been done to implement the Grand River Fisheries Management Plan and give those attending an opportunity to talk about future directions for the fishery. Over the past 10 years the Grand River system has enjoyed a rebirth as a great place for anglers. Much of the improvement has come about as a result of the implementation of the recommendations of the plan. It was released in 1998 by the GRCA and the Ministry of Natural Resources after extensive consultation with anglers, fishing groups and residents of the Grand River watershed. The meeting will include these presentations: - Overview of the Grand River Fisheries Management Plan - MNR projects in the Lower Grand - Volunteer projects in the Lower Grand - Water quality conditions - Management of the GRCA reservoir system In addition to the presentations, there will be a variety of displays on fishery and environmental issues. More information on the plan and the Grand River fishery is available in the Fisheries section of the GRCA website. These meetings are part of a series of five to take information to the public and gather comments on the 10th anniversary of the fishery plan. Earlier meetings were held in Elora, Cambridge and Dunnville.

Lakair in the beginning, just a handful of us.... these days it's considerably bigger....

Thanks for the heads up TG. I know it's an older vehicle but I'll pass the word along.

It's not just GM. My GF's dad needed to replace the gas shocks that hold up the rear hatch door on his Toyata van, dealership told him $600.00, he declined. I told him to go and purchase two new ones (cost was about $50-$60 apiece?) and I would replace them for him. I did this in his driveway with my pocket knife (small C clip) and 10 minutes of my time, keep in mind it was January (bitter cold) and I had no experience with this.

Well there you have it, I guess "we" are to blame. "We" provided modern day boats and motors, monofilament netting, GPS and sonar and all the other technology and means now available to deplete the wild fish stocks of any body of water we choose, the oceans included. So yes "we" are ultimately responsible.

Video shows ice anglers how to preserve bait MADISON – Ice fishermen and women, particularly those who target pike, will want to watch a new video online to learn how to properly preserve dead bait to meet state rules to prevent the spread of VHS fish disease. Video - "Preserving Your Bait" "Preserving Your Bait" shows Ted Treska, a Department of Natural Resources fisheries biologist and VHS rules specialist, demonstrating two different bait preservation techniques. VHS, or viral hemorrhagic septicemia, was detected in fish from the Lake Winnebago and Lake Michigan systems in 2007, and in Lake Michigan in 2008, but DNR monitoring has not found it elsewhere. While state fisheries officials are encouraged by those results, they say that VHS remains a serious health threat for Wisconsin fish that can be spread at any time of the year and is most active when water temperatures are below 60 degrees. VHS, or viral hemorrhagic septicemia, does not affect humans but it can infect dozens of species of game fish, panfish and bait fish, instead of a single species or related species, which is more typical of most fish diseases. VHS can spread rapidly, fish-to-fish and through the water, and it caused large fish kills in 2005 and 2006 in the lower Great Lakes.

The new look of Outdoor life magazine Unveils new PRINT AND ONLINE Design February 23, 2009 / www.outdoorlife.com New York, NY—Outdoor Life, The Source for Hunting and Fishing Adventure, debuted a bold new design, both online and in print this month. Outdoor Life’s new print look will hit newsstands this week with the February issue. This print design follows closely on the heels of the announcement earlier this week of the launch of the brand’s redesigned website, www.OutdoorLife.com. “Outdoor Life has thrived for more than a century because we’ve remained dedicated to delivering the best content in the most innovative and entertaining format,” says Todd Smith, Editor-in-Chief of Outdoor Life. “Our readers invest their time and trust in us, and we wanted to repay that by investing in and improving the products they love.” The new print design, spearheaded by Smith and his staff, took more than a year to implement from inception to completion. The process involved a complete reimagining of magazine’s layout that resulted in the introduction of four new front-of-the-book sections: Hunting, Fishing, Shooting and Gear. The new look offers a cleaner, sharper design as well as a new graphics package that showcases more of the eye-catching outdoor images the magazine is famous for. According to Smith, the new sections will give the magazine greater flexibility in the types of stories they run. “Readers will still find all the gear, survival, and hunting and fishing adventure stories they love in Outdoor Life,” says Smith, “but now we’ll be covering even more of the great outdoor world they love. In the February issue we cover hunting dogs, wild-game recipes, the best Hollywood shootouts, interviews with outdoor heroes and more. And with each issue and according to the season, the topics we include in these four sections will change.” Titled “The Predator Issue” the February issue of Outdoor Life includes three feature stories highlighting coyotes, cougars and Alaskan grizzlies, continuing the magazine’s tradition of delivering original photography coupled with in-depth and entertaining coverage. “Cat Men” profiles a tight-knit group of young mountain-lion hunters who embody the spirit of the 21st-century mountain man; “Grizzly Country” chronicles the adventures of a Virginia country-boy who travels to Alaska in search of the world’s greatest game; and “The Howling” offers a glimpse into the world of coyotes. Earlier this week Outdoor Life announced the official relaunch of its online home, www.OutdoorLife.com. The newly designed website offers online users a daily updated dose of outdoor entertainment, news, advice and tips. In addition to new hunting and fishing video galleries, the site also offers users the ability to create unique online profiles and participate in and lead outdoor discussions. “We’ve had great feedback from our online community,’ says Smith. “In fact the only complaint we’ve gotten is that the site is too good. Apparently it’s a bit harder for some people to tear themselves away now.” Outdoor Life (www.OutdoorLife.com) is the source for hunting and fishing adventure. Outdoor Life provides technical information and insight to the more experienced outdoorsman, including field reports and gear guides to supply hands-on hunters and anglers with the most current knowledge about their passion, supplemented with the latest techniques, tactics and tips. Outdoor Life achieves this by featuring how-to articles written by the experts in the field, the best and most captivating adventure stories from the woods or on the water, comprehensive regional coverage of the best hunting and fishing opportunities in specific areas and annual gear tests conducted by the Outdoor Life editors. Outdoor Life is published 10 times a year by the Bonnier Corporation.

Amazing Story Behind the Global Warming Scam February 23, 2009 / John Coleman The key players are now all in place in Washington and in state governments across America to officially label carbon dioxide as a pollutant and enact laws that tax we citizens for our carbon footprints. Only two details stand in the way, the faltering economic times and a dramatic turn toward a colder climate. The last two bitter winters have led to a rise in public awareness that there is no runaway global warming. The public is now becoming skeptical of the claim that our carbon footprints from the use of fossil fuels is going to lead to climatic calamities. How did we ever get to this point where bad science is driving big government to punish the citizens for living the good life that fossil fuels provide for us? The story begins with an Oceanographer named Roger Revelle. He served with the Navy in World War II. After the war he became the Director of the Scripps Oceanographic Institute in La Jolla in San Diego, California. Revelle saw the opportunity to obtain major funding from the Navy for doing measurements and research on the ocean around the Pacific Atolls where the US military was conducting atomic bomb tests. He greatly expanded the Institute's areas of interest and among others hired Hans Suess, a noted Chemist from the University of Chicago, who was very interested in the traces of carbon in the environment from the burning of fossil fuels. Revelle tagged on to Suess studies and co-authored a paper with him in 1957. The paper raises the possibility that the carbon dioxide might be creating a greenhouse effect and causing atmospheric warming. It seems to be a plea for funding for more studies. Funding, frankly, is where Revelle's mind was most of the time. Next Revelle hired a Geochemist named David Keeling to devise a way to measure the atmospheric content of Carbon dioxide. In 1960 Keeling published his first paper showing the increase in carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and linking the increase to the burning of fossil fuels. These two research papers became the bedrock of the science of global warming, even though they offered no proof that carbon dioxide was in fact a greenhouse gas. In addition they failed to explain how this trace gas, only a tiny fraction of the atmosphere, could have any significant impact on temperatures. Now let me take you back to the 1950s when this was going on. Our cities were entrapped in a pall of pollution from the crude internal combustion engines that powered cars and trucks back then and from the uncontrolled emissions from power plants and factories. Cars and factories and power plants were filling the air with all sorts of pollutants. There was a valid and serious concern about the health consequences of this pollution and a strong environmental movement was developing to demand action. Government accepted this challenge and new environmental standards were set. Scientists and engineers came to the rescue. New reformulated fuels were developed for cars, as were new high tech, computer controlled engines and catalytic converters. By the mid seventies cars were no longer big time polluters, emitting only some carbon dioxide and water vapor from their tail pipes. Likewise, new fuel processing and smoke stack scrubbers were added to industrial and power plants and their emissions were greatly reduced, as well. But an environmental movement had been established and its funding and very existence depended on having a continuing crisis issue. So the research papers from Scripps came at just the right moment. And, with them came the birth of an issue; man-made global warming from the carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels. Revelle and Keeling used this new alarmism to keep their funding growing. Other researchers with environmental motivations and a hunger for funding saw this developing and climbed aboard as well. The research grants began to flow and alarming hypothesis began to show up everywhere. The Keeling curve showed a steady rise in CO2 in atmosphere during the period since oil and coal were discovered and used by man. As of today, carbon dioxide has increased from 215 to 385 parts per million. But, despite the increases, it is still only a trace gas in the atmosphere. While the increase is real, the percentage of the atmosphere that is CO2 remains tiny, about 41 hundredths of one percent. Several hypotheses emerged in the 70s and 80s about how this tiny atmospheric component of CO2 might cause a significant warming. But they remained unproven. Years have passed and the scientists kept reaching out for evidence of the warming and proof of their theories. And, the money and environmental claims kept on building up. Back in the 1960s, this global warming research came to the attention of a Canadian born United Nation's bureaucrat named Maurice Strong. He was looking for issues he could use to fulfill his dream of one-world government. Strong organized a World Earth Day event in Stockholm, Sweden in 1970. From this he developed a committee of scientists, environmentalists and political operatives from the UN to continue a series of meeting. Strong developed the concept that the UN could demand payments from the advanced nations for the climatic damage from their burning of fossil fuels to benefit the underdeveloped nations, a sort of CO2 tax that would be the funding for his one-world government. But, he needed more scientific evidence to support his primary thesis. So Strong championed the establishment of the United Nation's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. This was not a pure climate study scientific organization, as we have been led to believe. It was an organization of one-world government UN bureaucrats, environmental activists and environmentalist scientists who craved the UN funding so they could produce the science they needed to stop the burning of fossil fuels. Over the last 25 years they have been very effective. Hundreds of scientific papers, four major international meetings and reams of news stories about climatic Armageddon later, the UN IPCC has made its points to the satisfaction of most and even shared a Nobel Peace Prize with Al Gore. At the same time, that Maurice Strong was busy at the UN, things were getting a bit out of hand for the man who is now called the grandfather of global warming, Roger Revelle. He had been very politically active in the late 1950's as he worked to have the University of California locate a San Diego campus adjacent to Scripps Institute in La Jolla. He won that major war, but lost an all important battle afterward when he was passed over in the selection of the first Chancellor of the new campus. He left Scripps finally in 1963 and moved to Harvard University to establish a Center for Population Studies. It was there that Revelle inspired one of his students to become a major global warming activist. This student would say later, "It felt like such a privilege to be able to hear about the readouts from some of those measurements in a group of no more than a dozen undergraduates. Here was this teacher presenting something not years old but fresh out of the lab, with profound implications for our future!" The student described him as "a wonderful, visionary professor" who was "one of the first people in the academic community to sound the alarm on global warming," That student was Al Gore. He thought of Dr. Revelle as his mentor and referred to him frequently, relaying his experiences as a student in his book Earth in the Balance, published in 1992. So there it is, Roger Revelle was indeed the grandfather of global warming. His work had laid the foundation for the UN IPCC, provided the anti-fossil fuel ammunition to the environmental movement and sent Al Gore on his road to his books, his move, his Nobel Peace Prize and a hundred million dollars from the carbon credits business. What happened next is amazing. The global warming frenzy was becoming the cause celeb of the media. After all the media is mostly liberal, loves Al Gore, loves to warn us of impending disasters and tell us "the sky is falling, the sky is falling". The politicians and the environmentalist loved it, too. But the tide was turning with Roger Revelle. He was forced out at Harvard at 65 and returned to California and a semi retirement position at UCSD. There he had time to rethink Carbon Dioxide and the greenhouse effect. The man who had inspired Al Gore and given the UN the basic research it needed to launch its Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change was having second thoughts. In 1988 he wrote two cautionary letters to members of Congress. He wrote, "My own personal belief is that we should wait another 10 or 20 years to really be convinced that the greenhouse effect is going to be important for human beings, in both positive and negative ways." He added, "…we should be careful not to arouse too much alarm until the rate and amount of warming becomes clearer." And in 1991 Revelle teamed up with Chauncey Starr, founding director of the Electric Power Research Institute and Fred Singer, the first director of the U.S. Weather Satellite Service, to write an article for Cosmos magazine. They urged more research and begged scientists and governments not to move too fast to curb greenhouse CO2 emissions because the true impact of carbon dioxide was not at all certain and curbing the use of fossil fuels could have a huge negative impact on the economy and jobs and our standard of living. I have discussed this collaboration with Dr. Singer. He assures me that Revelle was considerably more certain than he was at the time that carbon dioxide was not a problem. Did Roger Revelle attend the Summer enclave at the Bohemian Grove in Northern California in the Summer of 1990 while working on that article? Did he deliver a lakeside speech there to the assembled movers and shakers from Washington and Wall Street in which he apologized for sending the UN IPCC and Al Gore onto this wild goose chase about global warming? Did he say that the key scientific conjecture of his lifetime had turned out wrong? The answer to those questions is, "I think so, but I do not know it for certain". I have not managed to get it confirmed as of this moment. It’s a little like Las Vegas; what is said at the Bohemian Grove stays at the Bohemian Grove. There are no transcripts or recordings and people who attend are encouraged not to talk. Yet, the topic is so important, that some people have shared with me on an informal basis. Roger Revelle died of a heart attack three months after the Cosmos story was printed. Oh, how I wish he were still alive today. He might be able to stop this scientific silliness and end the global warming scam. Al Gore has dismissed Roger Revelle’s Mea culpa as the actions of senile old man. And, the next year, while running for Vice President, he said the science behind global warming is settled and there will be no more debate, From 1992 until today, he and his cohorts have refused to debate global warming and when ask about we skeptics they simply insult us and call us names. So today we have the acceptance of carbon dioxide as the culprit of global warming. It is concluded that when we burn fossil fuels we are leaving a dastardly carbon footprint which we must pay Al Gore or the environmentalists to offset. Our governments on all levels are considering taxing the use of fossil fuels. The Federal Environmental Protection Agency is on the verge of naming CO2 as a pollutant and strictly regulating its use to protect our climate. The new President and the US congress are on board. Many state governments are moving on the same course. We are already suffering from this CO2 silliness in many ways. Our energy policy has been strictly hobbled by no drilling and no new refineries for decades. We pay for the shortage this has created every time we buy gas. On top of that the whole thing about corn based ethanol costs us millions of tax dollars in subsidies. That also has driven up food prices. And, all of this is a long way from over. And, I am totally convinced there is no scientific basis for any of it. Global Warming; It is the hoax; It is bad science; It is a highjacking of public policy. It is no joke. It is the greatest scam in history. email John Coleman / [email protected] For more info on the global warming scam, check out Coleman's Corner.

Contest-winning fish smuggled in sweatshirt 2/25/2009 Theresa Schneider / Leader-Telegram Something smelled fishy at Saturday's Somerset Youth Athletic Association Ice Fishing Contest at Bass Lake: the former winner's sweatshirt. Lee Shehow of New Richmond, crowned the winner of the contest Saturday, may face criminal charges after admitting to smuggling in the fish to win the contest, keeping it alive in his sweatshirt during the tournament. Shehow, 38, won Saturday's contest with a 2.42-pound northern pike. Suspicions were raised about Shehow's fish, leading to an investigation, said SYAA spokesman John Montpetit. Shehow later disqualified himself and gave up the keys to the contest's grand prize, a $27,000 Dodge Dakota pickup truck. The contest began at noon Saturday. At about 2:30 p.m. Shehow went to the weigh station with his pike. Undercover investigators at the tournament questioned Shehow's actions. Montpetit said a primary concern was that Shehow bought water at a pace that was inconsistent with what a normal person would drink on a 14-degree day. Shehow's sweatshirt also was soaked when he turned in his fish to the weigh station. During the investigation Shehow admitted he hid the pike in his sweatshirt, keeping it alive and later registering it at the weigh station. Montpetit said he could not discuss where the fish came from, but said Shehow admitted to having aquariums in his house. While no criminal charges have been filed, the case still is under investigation, Montpetit said. The truck was given Tuesday afternoon to the second-place winner, 26-year-old Monica Slimmen of La Crosse, who caught a 1.72-pound northern pike. Efforts to contact Shehow on Tuesday night were unsuccessful.

Sturgeon spearing science despite spectacle WED., FEB 18, 2009 PATRICK DURKIN / Wisconsin State Journal STOCKBRIDGE -- The waiting line behind the Harbor Bar in Stockbridge on Valentine's Day resembled curbside check-in at airports, but these were successful sturgeon spearers, not frazzled travelers, so they waited contentedly with cold beer in hand and prized fish at foot. Success tends to inspire tolerance and brotherhood. It even offers a taste of celebrity on opening weekend of sturgeon season on the Winnebago System in east-central Wisconsin. That's because spearers often become centers of attention, surrounded as they are by curious onlookers. They talk and joke with well-wishers, pausing only to pull or nudge their fish toward the state's check-in station. Their success even inspires respect and appreciation for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, whose biologists scan each sturgeon for coded microchip tags, and then weigh the fish, determine its sex and remove caviar from females. This agency might overestimate deer and underestimate wolves, but somehow it's all-knowing in managing lake sturgeon. Imagine that. And imagine hundreds, perhaps thousands, of spectators showing up at 12 taverns around lakes Winnebago, Butte des Morts, Winneconne and Poygan just to see big, bloody fish registered and gutted. Like it or not, most folks have no problem with fishing and hunting as long as the creatures killed end up as food. For me, there's no greater proof of this acceptance than sturgeon-registration stations. People stop on their way home from shopping on Saturdays or church on Sundays to ogle freshly killed fish. Perhaps they stop because this process is a part of life. They certainly don't come for staged entertainment. Unlike bass or walleye tournaments, there's no grand prize, stage, bleachers, side shows, strobe lights or famous emcees. Nope. Sturgeon are the sole, powerful attraction, however homely they might appear. Many spectators park a half-mile from the Stockbridge bar and then dodge bottlenecked traffic to reach its parking lot and impromptu tailgate party. Everyone gathers to see these prehistoric fish, hear how they were speared from inside darkened shacks, and check the purple spear holes in their backs and sides. Young mothers hold babies and pose for family photos with leviathans speared by strangers. Pre-schoolers squat to pet and inspect each fish, flick the barbels under their snouts and prod the firehose-like mouth inches behind. The only suspense might be guessing the fish's weight before the DNR's digital scale renders a verdict. After that, DNR staffers lift the fish onto a measuring table, slice its white belly and inspect its innards to determine its sex. Whenever possible, biologists explain their work and its purpose to everyone within earshot. "Who wants a science lesson?" asks Kendall Kamke, a DNR fisheries biologist from Oshkosh. As Kamke slices open a female sturgeon atop a blood-stained snow bank, a student from the UW-Milwaukee's Great Lakes Water Institute opens a sturdy plastic bag to catch its eggs. Kamke then plunges both hands into the fish's belly, excavates a mass of caviar and dumps it into the bag. He repeats the process while explaining that they'll weigh the eggs and match the weight to the fish's size. They hope to analyze enough data to judge how many eggs a female carries simply by knowing her weight and length. Through all the blood, guts and slime, no man, woman or child winces or sets aside their drink or bratwurst. They're watching hardcore science — and they realize the more the biologists learn from these fish, the more the sturgeon and their own recreation benefits. The onlookers come to see sturgeon and maybe learn more about the fish. And themselves. It's not just morbid curiosity. In April, many folks also drive to New London and beyond to watch sturgeon spawn in the Wolf River. Some even spend nights along the water to protect the fish from poachers. Meanwhile, the Winnebago System's sturgeon population grows steadily stronger. These lakes and rivers hold about 60,000 adult sturgeon — and the DNR will allow about 1,600 to be speared before closing the scheduled 16-day season early, likely in the next few days. What these folks witness at both ends of the sturgeon's life cycle — from Shawano to Stockbridge — is the overwhelming success of Wisconsin's most unique natural resource. • Harvest caps on the Upriver Lakes were reached Tuesday, halting spearing there on Wednesday. The season on Lake Winnebago, meanwhile, will be halted once caps are reached. Keep up with daily totals at www.madison.com/wsj/home/sports/outdoors.

Not sure if you saw this Stoty, might help.

Stop for a java or beat T.O. traffic, you made the right choice. Congrats on the success!

I'm sooooooo envious!

Uno, I'm knot interested in seeing how this unfolds....