kgeary

Great fish Really big head That shows she will get even bigger before she is done. Congrats

Oh this is fun, brought out some great memories. I can recall catching a line attached to a daredevle in a 44 inch pikes mouth. I removed the hook and released the fish. A stringer of walleye. Lots of rod and reel combos The strangest was when I actually watched a guy lose his rod, caught it a yr later, gave to my sister in law, watched her throw it overboard when she hooked a fish and had a glass of wine in one hand. (she said she didn't want to spill her wine) . Then I caught that rod for the second time the following yr. ( I let her use it again this summer). Watched a guy fishing off the dock and a pike take all his line "spooled him" jumped in a boat went out and scooped the line up with my rod tip and tied it to my line reeled in a forty something pike for him. released it. A stringer of walleye with a pike that swallowed one of the walleye on the stringer. had pike eat walleye on stringers tied to the the dock or the boat back in the days before livewells. (guess that says something for using a stringer aye! ) rocks that I've actually landed (many times). The best was a 6 foot balsam tree Had me very excited for a while it moved slowly with slow head shakes and moved in a semi circle I was sure it was a huge walleye for a few minutes. a 12-14 foot wide Manta Ray ( in the bahamas) on a hand line. It came out of the water and did a barrel roll. Didn't land it. I've had pike jump into the boat One time from the opposite side from where I was casting. Had a pike do a head stand on the gunwale of the boat. A pair of sunglasses. various clothing. an anchor rope with an anchor attached. Watched a guy lose a 40 something pike with a Johnson silver minnow on which he had paintes little smiley facesand then caught that fish with the same spoon 4 miles away a few hours later. Have caught Pike with lures in their mouths many times but that was impressive. A 48 inch silver pike ( world line class record) A pike with an exact muskie stripe pattern but in reverse Thanks for the thread

You are correct sir great name

July 24-31 7/24 Clear skies in the am and afternoon until about 4pm. Strong winds came in with out warning from the north east. Winds died down after about 20 minutes. Scattered showers for a moment, then clear and beautiful evening. Water temperature was at about 66 F. 7/25 I fished with Al and Alex Krupa I showed them a few spots to fish for the week. Then stopped at Ferrit island sat in 14 feet and cast jig and minnows up to the edge of the rock bar. caught a bunch of walleye the walleye quit biting I saw the big pike on the graph I suggested Alex get out his casting gear. On his third or fourth cast bang a rather nice pike. I took Deb and Seanna over to the back side of Wolf Island We sat on a mud/sand bar coming off the island near the tip where it dropped into 28 on the side and 22 off the tip we sat in 14 foot Had 4 pike grab walleye. biggest one was in her mid 40s lots of fun. Would have stayed out longer but Belinda called and sold us on the Prime ribe dinner. It was awesome, maybe even better than catching a few more big pike or walleye. (did I actually say that?) Bret Hodne and the guys are in camp they said for a few hours they literally could not touch bottom with their jig and minnow or jig and worm. They were fishing 12-16 feet mostly in big bay and that area. "probably about 800 for our group, today" Domonic Cosgrove said they caught hundreds all around the mid lake basin, biggest was 26.5 Tom Chaladak and his son did very well yesterday with their first walleye being 25 1/2 but were a little off today. I'm sure they will do well tommorrow. 7/26 Scattered clouds throughout the day with strong winds coming from the north. Water temperature at 65 F. Some sprinkles later on in the day. Everyone was catching fish everywhere today. weather was perfect southwest wind a bit strong at times but felt good with temps in the hi 80s Beautiful full moon last night. The Hodne group caught "about 1500 today" "couldn't even touch bottom most of the morning and it was even better in the afternoon. The usual stuff , put your bait down , catch a fish" After 37 years they pretty much expect it but at the same time are not dissapointed if the fish aren't jumping in the boat. The used jigs and minnows or worms in 12-18 feet. Mostly in big bay and the east end. Domonic Cosgrove and his family caught hundreds all over the main basin east of the sand flats and had some big pike in north bay. Allen and Alex Krupa caught 60 or so walleye while chasing Pike Had several good pike and missed a couple of really nice ones. Roger Hagan "did very very well" but didn't expand on that. I know Roger and I have a feeling that means several hundred fish with plenty of big ones mixed in. I took the family and Belinda and Gage down to big bay. Fished on one of Brets spots ( could have been any one of a dozen places down in that area) We anchored up in 12-14 foot and commneced a catchin we fished from 2.30 to 4.30 We had several quads a bunch of triples and countless doubles. Thanks goodness Seanna and Hayden can bait their own lines and take their fish off or I woldn't have fished at all. Now if I could just get Deb to do the same. Deb caught about 30-40 Hayden and Seanna each caught about the same. Belinda and Gage must have had 20 each. I caught about 60 So we were pretty close to 200 in about 2 hours. We went thru 6 dozen worms and 8 dozen minnows. Hayden was thrilled to bring in this Giant Pike to round out the afternoon. 7/27 Clear skies in the am, heavy showers in the afternoon and calm by the evening with clearer skies. Winds blowing from the north with water temperature at 63 F. Bret Hodne and his group had the usual good day, hauling in a total of about 800 with plenty of eaters and some size with the biggest at 26 and a few pike. They fished out of north bay using a variety of jigs, minnows, and crawlers. Tom and his son John went out to pike alley and had a good day with about 130 the largest at 23". Mainly using crawlers. Al and his son Alex went over to the wall and big hump. Brought in about 87 the largest at 24 and a few pike using crawlers. The Cosgrove group went out towards big bay and brought in about 190 the largest at 25". The Hagen group fished out of jacks hump and the wall bringing in about 150 using spinner rigs and minnows. 7/28 Scattered clouds throughout the day, with mild winds from the north west, with water temperature at 67 F. The Cosgrove group went out strictly for pike today fishing various weed beds and reefs towards pike alley, and had some nice ones including a 40 and a 38, fished mainly with spoons and bulldogs. Al and his son Alex were "exhausted" from all the fish they were catching. They decided to come in around 4pm for a little siesta. Then headed back out to the hump for a little evening fishing. They brought in about 120 for the day with a few pike. The Hagen group had a good morning, but then slowed down for them in the afternoon. They still managed to haul in a good number including the biggest at 25". They used mainly gulp minnows. Bret Hodne and his group had a great day, bringing in about 1000 with some good size fish including a 27" walleye caught in north bay and plenty of eaters. They used crawlers for a greater part of the day as well as minnows and suckers that brought in a few pike. Tom and his son had a good day as well, bringing in about 80 with the biggest at 25. His son John had a pike come up and take a swipe at a walleye he was reeling up. 7/29 Clear skies in the am, and throughout the day, with a beautiful evening. It was a beautiful day throughout. Mild winds to cool off. Some of the kids in Hodne group went tubing to cool of a bit. The Hodne group had success today, breaking the thousand mark before lunch, with a total of about 2000 for the day. However, they will have to leave tomorrow due to the death of a family friend. Let us send prayers their way in this difficult time. We will miss this group indeed. See ya next year. Tom and his son John had an ok day, bringing in about 80 for the day the biggest at 24, using crawlers. The Hagen group had close to 200 with the biggest at 23" with a few pike. They mainly trolled using spinner rigs and minnows. The Cosgrove had a good day with about 150 and later went out after supper. They used jigs with crawlers. Al and his son Alex had a rather slow day and fished mainly for pike, the lake was dead calm, so that may of played a role in the slow day. 7/30 Beautiful day today, dead calm "glass lake". Water temperature at 68 F. Slow day for most. Mild winds from the north Tom and his son John, had about 54 with the biggest being a 38" pike, using a gold spoon and crawlers. The Cosgrove group caught about 50 the largest at 22" walleye using crawlers on a spinner rig.

Dennis Kellner caught this massive walleye in 19 feet of water about 400 yards from camp. Will post further details and last weeks full report asap

This is getting ridiculous Yes I also have horns on my head and eat small children for breakfast HOWEVER I am still certain that readers are able to see what is really happening.

Hi David I'm not suggesting anything about you. I am sure you take no pleasure in trashing me and have no reason to lie. Yes I will take extra good care of OFNers. One person (twilight) says I'm not making it clear who I am and that is not right. I say I'm not hiding my name because I dont' want to mislead anyone. Someone else says that is self promotion. Both must be right. Nipfisher Yes I will take good care of you. If you want to find a problem, you probably will. If you want to have a great trip you definitely will. But let me know what your expectations are and I'll do my best Obviously I can't guarantee you fish You expect 801 fish for a group of how many? Seriously let me know tcioz Thanks I think your right except I have been around for a lot longer that 6 years My family has been in the industry since 1949 Luc G thanks for your kind words I'm glad you enjoy my reports. Chugger and the rest thanks , glad you enjoy them. FisH The Hodne group reported to me that they caught at least 800 walleye. that is a FACT and I don't doubt them at all . In fact I bet they caught more than that. I can't find where I said 30 walleye were attacked by pike I did mention 12 that I could recall. FisH Nobody can control what others choose to say about them. Many people reading this thread are surprised by the forcefullness with which non- stakeholders express their opinions. I just keep reporting things as they happen. Some believe that I shouldn't. Some belive that I should and thank me for doing it. Does it help my busines or hurt it??? Apparently it makes you not want to visit my camp at any price. Others think it is a great offer. Some camp owners say I should never offer a discount are they right or wrong? It is a lot easier to sit in the weeds and take pot shots. That is why Pike are so successful. I'm not going to get all Zen or anything but- There is a reason for everything. There is a reason my family has been successful in this indutry for over 50 years. When things don't make sense- there is a reason. People will make up their own minds. If you choose to visit AK great - you will have a great time, if not then my family a lot of fish will miss you. Just a quick note on staff I have developed a great staff It took a few years unfortunately a great employee and dear friend passed away a few years ago and left a gaping hole. His performance has not been easy to replace. Have you ever heard of anyone working at a factory, as store or ________ who complains about their boss, the company, their job, how much they get paid,how hard they work, how much they want to quit etc etc. Consider this!! Why would it be any different at a fishing camp, especially where workers are seasonal???? I don't know anyone in business with employees that aren't complaining about their lot. Am I surprised that I'm a target here, of course not. Heck it makes me a target in my hometown. I'm just a guy who took a huge risk and made a huge investment in a business that I love trying to make it work during the worst economy in our lifetime. Am I enjoying it? Mostly Yesterday one of my friends and guest asked my son what he was gonna do when he grew up Hayden said "I'm going to run a camp and play hockey". Am I glad I started it? you bet. Am I going to get bullied off this board? Not as long as there are people out there who enjoy what i take the time to write about Hey gotta go I have guests and friends to fish with tommorrow. Oh and I will still try to get those pics on here tommrorrow.

I agree somewhat However I don't expect my guests to print brochures and attend sportshows for me. This is a new type of advertising. But even in the old types of advertising negative talk about competitors never worked in the long run. You don't have to wonder who I am and what I'm doing (also I'm a dad and just can't help myself when it comes to my kids big fish or big adventure) I try to make every post informative. Today was dead calm , the lake was flat. It was an absolutley gorgeous day but mile high skies ( you know) I knew some of my guests would have a difficult time So I went out and spent a bit of time with a few that were not doing as well. Others were just fine, Like the Hodnes who were well over 1000 by lunch. I had Hayden and Dennis with me Dennis doesn't need much help but still appreciated it. I also had our cleaning lady Belinda, she loves to fish. The biggest change I mentioned to people was to cover a little bit more area. I mostly simply anchor up and cast the areas even if it is 14-20 feet. Use 1/4 oz or lighter and let it fall on a tight line. The lack of wind makes it much easier. I spent a lot less time vertical jigging under the boat. Can move the boat a bit but not a lot and keep it slow. The nice thing about that is that the pike get spread out and you have more active walleye. If the walleye are laying flat to the bottom then there is likely a pike active right there. a good time to anchor up and work it for 30 minutes or so. Most people would give up when the lake is like glass all day. I'm not sure how many we boated in 4 hours but I caught 70 and their were 4 of us, so? Belinda had this nice walleye Hayden had several nice ones I managed this Giant walleye before we headed in for supper. Which was unfortunate because we were just on top of a bunch of big active walleye. oh well. Sorry i will have to post photos later have some things to take care of kg

a few photos of my shacks

Hi Headhunter Thanks for the advice however I do need to point out. I HAVE BEEN ADVERTISING WITH TJ for 6 years. I have banner ads on this site and 5 or 6 others of TJ's I receive a lot of traffic from TJs sites to mine and I appreciate that. I've spoken and emailed with TJ many times. TJ has never had any issue with anything that I've posted and appreciates whatever I bring to the board. All is well

Thanks sketty55 and weedline I try to make it very clear who I am with my name and my signature. I used to be a minnow now I'm a NET ATTENDANT Darsky yes we can do it in 2011 I can't do it in June of course. but the same time frame Yes of course all negative issues are resolved quickly.

Hi twilight I'm not sure about you but Lew - you know very well there is no point in my addressing those comments. I've been thru this type of thing before. fish 4 eyes - In January and February I've posted non fishing related items on here that were extremely unique and of great interest to ourdoor lovers and had nothing whatsoever to do with my business and I still received negative comments. I must add that I also received a lot of positive comments and emails. Hi Darsky I'll give all OFNers a 40% discount on trips between august 14 and sept 15 I've had a bunch of OFNers visit and they had glowing reports.

Hi Dan Good to hear your enjoying Red Lake and Catching lot of nice fish. It really is a great place to spend the summer.

Well 'm grateful that I'm doing some things right. It has been very rewarding developing the business and the many friendships that come as part of it. I've grown the business thru this recession. I have a good base of guests who have become friends and repeat customers Many come twice a year. Most of the groups in camp right now are here for the second visit of 2010 One group comes for 10 weeks. One is planning their third trip of 2010 for early September. I was out with the kids for a few hours again today. Caught about 40 walleye in 90 minutes We fished in 11-14 feet. using jigs with minnows and worms worms seemed to have the edge. Seanna caught this nice walleye Dennis caught a Monster Walleye in 26 feet of water on an orange jig tipped with a minnow. Right after he released that monster I set the hook on a small Walleye and within a few seconds a huge pike grabbed it. I played with it for about 30 minutes but it wouldn't come off the bottom and finally spit the walleye out. Al and Alex caught a "bunch of walleye several 23-24 a 25 , 26, 27 and had about a dozen big pike grab their walleye. One grabbed a 31 inch pike. they were fishing near the wall on a hump in about 14 feet of water. "We're starting the get the hang of this lake - awesome" The Hodne group has been coming twice a year since our second season. One young man they call Snowball caught his first 40 inch pike today, the rest of the kids caught about 800 walleye including a few 27's and several 25-26 worms on jigs were the rule in north bay today. "It's just crawling with em as usual" Domonic and his sons are up for their third visit. they caught so many walleye yesterday they needed a break and went strictly pike fishing. Haven't got their report but will do so tommorrow. Roger hagan and his son and friends have been doing extremely well on their third visit. 27 inch walleye the biggest so far. they were fishing big hump most of the day varying from 14 -22 feet. I will get photos from everybody when I do the weekly report. Here is Hayden with a happy look on his face. Can't see how anyone would not want to see that. "priceless"

I just read it again I think it has some very good fishing information. Most people enjoy other peoples success especially childrens success. ???? oh well It sounds like several people enjoyed it. If you don't like it or don't want to read it that's fine why the need for a personal attack on me. "shacks, brutal" why so rude. regardless I like sharing little bits of fishing info that might help others catch a few more fish. Have you noticed that the weather stays the way it is during a full moon????? Maybe it's not such a mystery after all? stable weather of whatever kind has always been good to me. The reality is whatever the weather whatever the fishing success, it is always a good time to be fishing. As years go by I enjoy teaching and sharing what I've learned over a lifetime in the outdoors especially with kids and even more so with my own children. Seeing them learn and enjoy all aspects of the outdoors makes the best of memories. I have no problem admitting that I'm proud of all of their successes. Seanna can finesse a jig with the best of em. Hayden can drive a boat 16 miles down the lake and back without a problem. I try to share just a few bits of info each time on the water. It is amazing how much they have learned.