16 lb walleye iced, Massive crappie caught, Wheelhouse trip saver

By Ed Green while fishing with Chaumont Masters – believe out of Chaumont Bay (northeast corner of Lake Ontario) in NY:

He took measurements for a replica and the fish was RELEASED to get even more bigger-er. 🙌 That’s all the details I have for now, if I can scrape up more I’ll let you know.

In semi-related news….

I was just sent this pic from capt Burnie Haney (New York Fishing Adventures) of a 32-incher that Tommy Van Deusen iced in Lake Ontario’s Chaumont Bay last weekend. Pic was shared on the Got Fish Facebook page:

Great, another destination added to the fishing bucket-list. 🤑😅 It’s adding up quickly.

Some absolutely ridiculous fish were caught in the annual Clam Trap Attack virtual derby last weekend. I haven’t seen the final results, but as of 5:43pm on Sunday (the contest ran thru midnight) here’s a rundown of the insane fish that were leading each species:

• Walleye: 31″
• Yellow perch: 15.75″
• Lake trout: 39.5″
• Northern pike: 42.75″
• Sunfish: 11.5″

Seriously UNREAL caliber of fish!!

And the crappie? 👀 Well, I’m sure no one topped Anthony Lyon’s nearly 18″ freakazoid in the final hours of the contest LOL….

Can’t. Even. Imagine. 👏👏👏 Congrats on the fish of a lifetime!

If you bought a wheelhouse 5+ years ago you’re basically sitting on a chunk of cryptocurrency.

If you’ve been in the market for one, you know exactly what I’m talking about. Pretty wild to see “toys” like that significantly appreciating in value.

I’ve seen houses that went for $15K brand new in 2015-2016 selling for $23-24K today. And I don’t mean buying the same layout new at today’s prices…I mean the exact house after 7-8 years of use, and then selling used for that kind of profit. Crazy stuff!

I guess if your significant other is on the fence, you can tell them it’s an investment. 😂

The first rule of ice roads is to keep your speed down…. It was always said that driving too fast can ruin them by “blowing them out.”

Now, I’m definitely NOT recommending that you start driving fast on ice roads…but I do think that you’ll find this FB post from Brian of Adrian’s Resort on Lake of the Woods super interesting – he’s a guy who’s been “checking the ice and making safety decisions for 40+ years.”

Basically his findings go against everything we’ve all ever been told about ice roads. It’s too lengthy to excerpt here, so you’ll have to click to read for yourself….

No doubt this is going to be a controversial subject for some!

Episode 33, and you’re seeing it first:

Please drop a comment under the video and let me know what you think!

1. MN: Brainerd Jaycees Ice Fishing Extravaganza is TOMORROW.

The largest charitable ice fishing contest on earth is happening tomorrow (Jan 28) on Gull Lake just 10 miles north of Brainerd, MN.

I’m hoping 🤞 a burbot takes home a free truck this year….

2. Ross Robertson + Rapala = 🤝.

This is going to be a fun duo to watch! 🔥If you aren’t already following Ross on his socials (jump on it!) hit his Instagram and Facebook pages here.

3. WI: Ice fishing season is getting shorter?

> Alex Latzka, WI DNR fisheries systems biologist: “Climate change is increasing air temperatures and then air temperatures are increasing the water temperatures, and warmer water doesn’t freeze as fast, and it thaws more quickly….

> “On average, we’re losing about a month of ice cover per year….”

A MONTH?! I dunno, man…. I just looked at the extended forecast and we are predicted to have below-0 lows for the next 23 days straight here in Brainerd, MN lol.

4. USA: States with the most registered anglers (per capita).

Heads-up this list isn’t in order of how many total registered anglers there are…it’s based on what percentage of the population has a fishing license. Quick glance at the top-10:

1. Alaska: 59.1 for every 100 people (432,758 total)
2. Wyoming: 42.0 for every 100 people (243,367 total)
3. Montana: 37.9 for every 100 people (418,642 total)
4. Idaho: 26.9 for every 100 people (510,593 total)
5. North Dakota: 26.8 for every 100 people (207,806 total)
6. Minnesota: 24.8 for every 100 people (1,417,788 total)
7. South Dakota: 24.8 for every 100 people (221,699 total)
8. Maine: 24.5 for every 100 people (335,955 total)
9. Wisconsin: 22.0 for every 100 people (1,299,834 total)
10. Oklahoma: 17.8 for every 100 people (709,093 total)

And I’ve got to shout-out this one for my buddy Jay Kumar aka BassBlaster…

49. New Jersey: 1.7 for every 100 people (158,834 total)

And here I thought you were 1 in a million, Jay. 🤣👊

5. MN: Lynn Niklasch’s speaking at the TCWU meeting on Thurs, Feb 5.

Everyone is welcome – Twin Cities Walleyes Unlimited meetings are open to the public.

6. Rapala announces pair of personnel changes.

> Rapala VMC is excited to announce the hire of Charlie Davis as Director of Product Development – North America.

> Long-time Rapala VMC employee Bart Rosen has been promoted to the new role of Senior Product Manager.

I don’t believe I have met Bart yet (unless it was very briefly at ICAST = blur) but I can tell by this picture I already like him hahaha. 👊

Congrats all!

7. Daiwa + NPAA = teaming up.

8. KastKing’s new national sales strategist = Eric Knickerbocker.

9. UK: Lack of exhibitors causes top fishing show to be postponed.

Wheelhouse tips: How to get max BTUs during the deep freeze.

Love that a bunch of you are reading this email from a wheelhouse right now!

Did you know that your propane output can drop by 60-70% once temps dip below that -10 to -20°F range? Youch!

This throwback video is loaded with tricks that hardwater guide Brad Hawthorne uses to keep the heater in his Yetti Fish House running at max BTUs.

Few bonus tips to keep other important things from freezing up during the #brrrr too No matter what brand of wheelhouse you’re rocking, the hand-warmer trick can be an absolute trip-saver if you’re running into issues with the regulator freezing up:

“In a world full of walleye fishermen we choose to chase dinosaurs.”

– That’s capt Joe Altwies (aka “Coho Joe”) talking about what he and his Lake of the Woods walleye guide buddies do after work…they set up shop on the Rainy River and ice BIG sturgeon! 😳 They had 4 over 50″ this night alone:

Capt Tommy Powell is another Lake of the Woods guide who has dedicated his after-work hours to dialing-in the hardwater sturgeon bite on the Rainy River – dude puts in the time!!! And it’s paid off with multiple fish over the 60″ mark, and an absolute behemoth (bottom pic) measuring 72″ long x 30.5″ girth:

So…uh…yeah…considering that’s only about 4 hours north of me, I think I need to plan a road-trip 👀 my fishing bucket-list demands it hahaha.

One of the gnarliest snaps I’ve seen! From fishing guide + content creator Matt Duprau 💯 of a big ol’ Bay of Quinte monster – that thing’s head alone is like 10 inches lol:

Thanks SO much for reading! 👊 And good luck this weekend if you’re getting out.

National Professional Anglers Assoc. 

MN-FISH