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Closing the book on a memorable opener
Outdoors Columnist The 2008 fishing season officially opened last weekend, and I had the honor of hosting the governor and the first lady at Breezy Point on Pelican Lake. What a great event and experience.
Tom Whitehead, another local fisherman, was chosen to host the lieutenant governor, and Toby Kvalevog, one of our regular fishing guides, was chosen to host Sen. Norm Coleman.
Most of the hype surrounded the governor and the lieutenant governor because of their rivalry in the event in recent years.
That Friday morning, Tom and I were supposed to be to Breezy by 6 a.m. so we could talk to the media. I think there were 10 or 12 different radio stations there. We hopped from one to the other, and by the time we were finished, it was time to check out the boats we were to use Saturday. My boat ran well, but it sure would have been nice to spend more time out searching for fish.
After that, it was time to get home and put the finishing touches on my rods so I could be back for the community picnic around 5 p.m. And wow, what a showing. People were everywhere and we were given a beautiful evening.
After the picnic, it was off to Breezy again, this time for the host/participant pairings in which everyone got to meet their fishing partners for the next day. There were people from everywhere, and some big names in the crowd - Marv Koep, Dan Gapen, Steve Penanz, Steve Quinn and many other fine fishing folks.
I had everything packed into my pickup, and thankfully, we were able to get some spottail shiners from Tutt's Bait and Tackle in Garrison. Shiners weren't easy to come by and I was relieved when we got the word that shiners were being trapped over on the big lake and that there were plenty to go around. I was thinking of using Berkley Gulp Alive, but having spottail shiners was a must.
I got some sleep, then it was off to our shop and then to Breezy to see all the cameras and media and everyone else waiting for takeoff.
After a short ceremony, we headed to the south end of the lake, a good starting spot. I pulled in and threw the marker. The first lady was flipping a jig and the governor was rigging with a Lindy. We worked the break in shallow water, and after 15 minutes or so, we picked up and went back to our marker.
A friend, Dave Sapletal, was fishing nearby, and of course, they caught a nice fish just minutes earlier. What do you do? Keep on fishing.
We moved to spot No. 2, which is where the lieutenant governor would pick up her first fish. Boy, did she rub that one in our faces. It felt like she paraded it around for 10 minutes. Now the pressure was even greater.
We got word from Toby that the walleye bite was good on the north end. We pulled up to "the spot" - along with the rest of our followers. I'm sure the anglers on that spot were excited to see us, and I'm sure they had heard we were yet to catch a fish. We needed to break the ice and catch a walleye.
Then it happened. The governor reeled up, set the hook, and the fish was on. I grabbed the net and dipped the walleye into the boat. I let out a yip, releasing the pressure.
The photo boats came motoring in, and as far as I was concerned, the trip was over. It was 11 a.m. and the shore lunch was at 11:30 a.m.
Not long after we boated that fish, I looked over at Toby's boat and saw Senator Coleman's rod bending - fish on. He boated a beauty, a few inches larger than ours, but Governor Pawlenty protested because of the time element. It was just some serious grief, not legit.
Tom, Toby and I had done what we needed to do - land a fish. Tom's boat had a couple of walleyes, Toby's boat had a northern and a walleye and we had a walleye. Good enough. The first lady had one halfway up, but it popped off before we got it in the boat. We also were close to landing a gull, but thankfully, we didn't have to take the heat for that.
We headed in and agreed that we would be done as the sky started to spit. The party was over - almost.
We closed out the event on Saturday night with the celebration dinner. Members of the Minnesota Office of Tourism along with DNR Commissioner Mark Holsten, the governor, first lady, lieutenant governor, Lisa Paxton with the Brainerd Lakes Chamber, event organizers Ryan and Patti Buehl and a number of servicemen from the National Guard all had some words.
My overall experience was fantastic, and I could go on and on about it, but for now, I have to get the kids to school - and move on with life.
WALLEYEDAN Eigen may be reached at (218) 839-5598, walleyedan@brainerd. com or www.walleyedan.com
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