Kato group gets wet, gets skunked

So my hopes for photos from the Brainerd Jaycees $150,000 Ice Fishing Extravaganza went south quick.

No fish from the Dave Kammerer group, but plenty of fun, he said.

Kammerer says that the rain fell until 10:30 a.m., and then it snowed on them. Twice their group had bites, but nothing came of the nibbles.

As you can see from The Associated Press photo above, it was one wet situation for contest participants.

Above photo: April and Sean Wilkus (back left), Doug Holbrook and David Mausak slogged through the water that had collected on the ice overnight on Hole-in-the-Day Saturday on Gull lake in Nisswa. The anglers were heading for their spot at the Brainerd Jaycees $150,000 Ice Fishing Extravaganza. AP Photo via Steve Kohls, Brainerd Dispatch.

Purple pride in Brainerd

I read yesterday on the official site for the Brainerd Jaycees $150,000 Ice Fishing Extravaganza that contest officials were encouraging participants to wear purple to support the Vikings.

Dave Kammerer of rural Lake Crystal sent in this nice little photo via his cell phone. Hopefully Dave or others from his fishing party will be able to send pictures of fish, but this photo certainly does bring a smile to my face on an otherwise wet, dreary day.

On the eve of the big contest

It's hardly a secret to anyone living in the Midwest, but the Brainerd Jaycees $150,000 Ice Fishing Extravaganza is one serious fishing contest.

Well, somewhat serious. The prizes alone make this tournament well worth the $35 buy-in, even if catching a fish can be somewhat of a task, and often the commraderie is as important as the line in the water.

The weather this year is a complete turnaround from last year's contest, held a day later in January (that's the 24th for those of you unable to do the math at home!).

According to Weather Underground, the high for Jan. 24, 2009, was 2.6 degrees; the low was -12.7 degrees. Of course, having spoken with several people who went last year, this doesn't factor in the windchill, and with nearly 20 mph winds last year, the temperature was sure to feel much colder than 12.7 below.

This year, however, contestants are looking at a wintry mix of snow and rain, with temperatures expected in the low to mid 30s. Now that's more like it.

I hope to be able to share with you a few of the catches and/or stories from some local participants. I will be posting photos here on my blog, and you can also follow DMI026 on Twitter.

If you'd like more information on the Brainerd Jaycees contest, or if you'd like to see the prize list, winner's list and more, check out their official site.

A fishing potluck

There's plenty going on in the world of fishing over the next few weeks, and there has been a steady stream of good weather lately to get out on the lakes.

This Saturday marks the 20th year of the Brainerd Jaycees $150,000 Ice Fishing Extravaganza. I know a few people who make the trek every year, so hopefully we'll get some pictures and or stories to put up here on the blog.

Saturday, Feb. 6, marks the fourth Big Bobber ice fishing contest. As a Minnesota State University alum, I'm inclined to urge people to take part. Not only are the prizes worth it, the money goes to help out the MSU Athletics Scholarship Fund.

Come February, FLW's Fantasy Fishing returns. I'll go into this more as I feel out the 2010 field of anglers, but I do urge participation, mostly because the payouts are huge and you really don't need to know that much about bass fishing. Think of it as a free lottery.

On a more serious note, John Cross interviewed Hugh Valiant, manager of the Waterville Fish Hatchery, and the concern for winterkill is growing. John and I have openly fretted about this in the office, and now it looks like another possible winter storm could cause even more issues. We'll have to wait and see.

I tend to worry about this a lot, because I'm more dedicated to open-water fishing. But whether you're an ice fisherman, or you enjoy the open water, dead fish are never a good thing.