Mille Lacs on opener- there are some weirdo's out there~

[Walleye_king]

So my dad comes here from Colorado to hit the big lake on opener with me. We get to Myr Mar at about 6:30 am and there is a pretty decent line of trucks waiting to be put in from the east side and 2 on the west- naturally we go to the west lane and are in the water in 20 minutes.

We fished the n end sand break line and has our limit of 16-19" before 8 am and headed back to the ramp. We were lucky enough to get out in no time and were napping by 10 after I cleaned the fish.

We decide to head back down for the afternoon for a little c and r fishing just because that's where they were biting.

we got 15 Walleyes from about 14" - one 25 1/2" and headed out right after all the lighted bobbers came out, and this is where it got interesting.

I pulled into the harbor and there were quite a few boats in there already so my dad dropped me off on a dock and he held the boat there while I got into line- and waited...

More than one hour later I backed into the water and we loaded up but only after witnessing:

1) some dude kept lifting his Force motor completly out of the water while it was running. When he finally loaded it there was steam everywhere.

2) Some other expert loaded his boat onto the trailer then pulled away with his motor still running!!!!! Yes, on the trailer, out of the water, still running!!!

3) 2 felony terroristic threats on some guy who was parked in someone elses slip. I understand that the guy pays 600 per year but you could say hey, that's my slip and you need to leave. not get the ^^^^ out before I gdet over tehre or I'm gonna $@#$@# #@$@#$#@ Q#$@$@!

There are some serious nut jobs out there and many decided to fish the big lake this weekend!

by the way, can we make it a rule that you need to run your boat bfore opening weekend, rather than decide to see if it works where tehre are more than 100 people behind you???

michael

[9joey1]

I drove past mille lacs on Saturday afternoon on the way home from my cabin. I can't believe people actually enjoy fishing on Mille Lacs. The access parking was out of control and it was complete bumper boats out on the lake. I do not care how good the fishing is, I could not handle that stress. Oh well to each their own.........

[crappeyeslayer]

It is amazing to witness the guys at the landing that look like they have never seen a boat b4 in thier life! With 2 guys you should be able to put the boat in the water in 2 min., get everything ready while waiting and have one guy in the boat so as soon as it floats he can start the motor and the other can unhook the boat and push off. 2 Min. tops!

[HuntFishDude]

You know this was my first opener and my first time on Mille Lacs. I am so glad I made the decision to stay at Appledorn's and have Paul drop me into the water with the tractor. No wait, no mess, no shallow water issues! Can't say enough about it and not to mention if you happen to be alone, using this service is a must...

[Deitz Dittrich]

Huntfish- I bet that made fishing all that much more fun... Bet you didn't even have to wait in much of a line.

[united jigsticker]

People driving away while the boat engine idles and melts down the water pump....So funny, I laugh everytime.

Some people actually don't know that it will hurt anything.

I knew a guy who pulled his pontoon out of the lake in the fall, and then proceeded to "run out the rest of the gas", about a gallon's worth, while it sat on blocks in his cabin lot.

I asked him if he knew he was destroying his water pump, and potentially, his engine.

His response: "I know it's not too good for it, that's why I don't run it for more then about 5 minutes at a time"

Don't ask me how, but the thing still pumped water the next spring.

I told him, "You can run your engine out of water about as long as you'd want to hold a lit torch to your beanbags."

The guy with the Force engine, well, uh...I better not say.

And for the filthy potty mouth tough guy naughty talk, that's some people expressing themselves constructively....

[Shack]

united jigsticker,

I do not know what this could do to your water pump, but I sure would be concerned about the lack of water cooling eng. and over heating. I do not know why people do this, must be lack of experience. I am sure it keeps local economy up (small eng. repair shops) . This thread should be in Boat and motor forum. They had a great thread going about this same thing a week ago. The power loaders should worry about water pumps. The sand and muck can not help water pumps. At least they load quick.

[Team Otter]

It doesn't have to be bumper boats. It's a big lake. Go exploring.

[united jigsticker]

Power brake your truck on dry tar and smoke the tires for 5 minutes....They'll be in the same condition as your water pump after running dry for 5 minutes.

[harvey lee]

Thats why I quit fishing the opener on Mille lacs. The landing was almost always a mess. One would then start fishing and after a few fish, 10 boats were on top of you.

I personally would rather go to a smaller lake and enjoy every part of the day. Thisd year I spent the day on the Minnesota river without all the traffic.

[Paul Waldowski]

Gene,

Thanks so much for the kind words. It was a pleasure having you and your significant other stay with us for the weekend.

Wish I hadn't been so busy I would have liked to chat with you a bit more and get some pics of those fish I promise not to tell her that you knocked her fish of a lifetime off with the net

[fishntinner]

OK, ya got me. Ran about 45 seconds. Damaged, anyone???

I must have been in too much of a hurry to get out of that circus. Which, by the way, if there are that many trailers in the ditch.... should have known better.

How many passes do you suppose where sold? That was insane.

But, will be back for more. With my boat by the way. You know how it is when your in someone else's boat, you forget what to check....like the frickin key. Funny, but not really.

[raven1]

i think any thing can and does happen when loading or unloading a boat when you have a-- holes telling you. you can do this in two mins tops . i think it will take me as long as it take to load or unland so i dont for get to turn off motor or something the fish will be in the lake like they were the day before i love to fish but i like to fish because it is a way to destress and have fun RIGHT

[brady_d]

Quote:

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Thats why I quit fishing the opener on Mille lacs. The landing was almost always a mess. One would then start fishing and after a few fish, 10 boats were on top of you.

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I have never fished Mille Lacs on opener but fished a small southern MN lake this year. And I hear ya on the 10 boats on top of you. We had a little fun with some boats this weekend. We weren't catching anything and then my buddy catches a bullhead. Well I start hootin and hollerin that we got one and before you know it there are a couple of boats right next to us. Then my buddy catches another one and I say to him good and loud "You got another one" and he holds it up long enough for the boats to see it. Well we were by ourselves a couple minutes later!

[DUCKJ]

This year was my first time and my last. What a zooooooooo!

Ill stick to the river. I was the only one there when I got there after leaving the pond and boated a ton of fish.

[crappeyeslayer]

Sorry that I am an A-- hole for being able to load and unload quickly, safely, and efficiantly! All that I was trying to say is that ppl should not test out thier new boats and loading skills on opener with 20 others waiting in line behind you. If I get bashed for asking for that much than so be it!

[HuntFishDude]

Hey you know I couldn't let her catch a bigger fish than me!

Thanks for all your help and I may be back up this weekend, still figuring out...

Pic of my 26" I released and her 19" we kept and ate up!

[papabear]

If your life is so wonderful that the greatest thing you have to complain about is someone who takes to long to get themselves out of your way then you must be living a charmed life. The same complaint comes up again and again that "people do not know what they are doing and are slowing the rest of us down." Or they are getting in my way and wont leave me fish all by myself on the lake. What if we have a test added to our fishing license like on our drivers license. Then if you are not as good at launching and loading a boat or do not know the unwritten rules of fishing within 50 yds of someone you can not get a license. And if you break any of these unwritten rules you loose your license.

What happened to the notion that fisherman and women are part of a community that likes to help each other and enjoys the community created by the love of fishing. Lately Im getting the impression that it is a contest and there is no room for amateurs that may get in the real fishermens way.

[Shack]

Papabear,

It is a sign of the times. I really do not care how long it takes for someone to load up, I take my time and do things correct. If someone is getting very frustrated with what I am doing (Does not happen that much) and voices their opinion at me, I just wave and smile. This seems to help and it does not raise my blood pressure. I try to speed things up to the point were I am not rushing, but hurrying up. My trailer had a light houseing crushed by boat that was in a hurry a couple of weeks ago. While my trailer was in water and I was motoring up to it, a run about zoomed in trying to beach next to my trailer. Instead, it hit my trailer light houseing. I did get mad and person speed off (they were just dropping people off at shore), so no matter how slow or fast you go problems seem to occur. You just have to go home and put on a new light houseing and head to another lake, like I did a couple of weeks ago.

[Dances with Walleye]

Quote:

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If your life is so wonderful that the greatest thing you have to complain about is someone who takes to long to get themselves out of your way then you must be living a charmed life. The same complaint comes up again and again that "people do not know what they are doing and are slowing the rest of us down." Or they are getting in my way and wont leave me fish all by myself on the lake. What if we have a test added to our fishing license like on our drivers license. Then if you are not as good at launching and loading a boat or do not know the unwritten rules of fishing within 50 yds of someone you can not get a license. And if you break any of these unwritten rules you loose your license.

What happened to the notion that fisherman and women are part of a community that likes to help each other and enjoys the community created by the love of fishing. Lately Im getting the impression that it is a contest and there is no room for amateurs that may get in the real fishermens way.

---

Since buying my new truck this past spring I'm now the primary tow vehicle for the boat...

I'm a rookie at backing up... I've done it before, so I'm at the head of the rookie class so to speak...

I've done a pretty admirable job of keeping my cool in the face of impatient wierdo's...

You take a tale of two backings...

Backing #1... I didn't take a good look at the launch before getting myself ready to back up... As such the dock was more left than I originally thought... So I had to back up at an angle, and correct myself...

As a result I over corrected... Then pulled forward for a second try... Kind of made the same mistake...

The guy waiting next in line saw my troubles... Got out, came over, and gave me some pointers and tips... Things went smoothly and it really helped me take my backing game to the next level.

****

Backing #2... It was a tight landing that I had to sort of back around a corner to launch... Wind was coming in pretty harsh, so I was concerned about the boat bashing into the dock, when it reached that "Floating but still on the trailer" stage. And I was making sure my buddy at the dock was prepared to keep the boat out of a nasty dock Bash & Rash.

So I took my time... Was doing a pretty good job...

Apparently the next guy in line had too many cups of coffee... He rolled down his window, and said "What the H@ll is taking you so long!" (It had only been like 2-3 mins.)

Then he sat there flipping me off, and kept creeping up on me so I had less room to correct...

Whole thing pushed on my nerves, and it ended up taking much longer.

****

I think in the end it all goes back to what your Mom told you when you were a little kid...

"If you don't have something good to say (Like lending a hand) then it's best to keep your mouth shut!"

****

As such I won't go to Mille Lacs with me behind the wheel this season... I made a pact with my buddy who is a well seasoned truck driver, that he and I would go to ML together, with him behind the wheel or not at all...

[Dave]

Dances and others,

Don't let some people get on your nerves. There's plenty around who will wait patiently or lend a hand. If YOU want to fish and enjoy Mille Lacs, go. Sad to hear the attitude of others will dictate where you'll fish.

[rodmaker]

Don't let that keep you from going!!!!! Too bad some have to be that way. Have someone go down to the ramp and help quide you down the ramp. Just take your time backing up.

Hopefully you will go again this weekend!!!! and catch a ton of Eyes!!!!

[jerk bait]

The problem I have with people taking time at landings are not the people having problems, we've all been there. It's the jerks who take their own sweet time while loading or unloading the boat. I was on Mille Lacs a few years ago and the wind came up suddenly. I had dropped in at Wealthwood which is not very protected. I motored in and a guy was loading his boat while I bobbed around in the waves. He had his boat on the trailer on the ramp. He unloaded all his gear from the boat into the back of his pickup.This took about fifteen minutes. In the mean time the wind is really starting to howl. The last straw was when he walked to the end of the dock and washed his hands.

[minniwinni91]

Hey don't get discouraged everything takes practice before it becomes perfect. thought I'll admit that it is nice to keep it under 3min Landing/Loading because everyone wants to get out as quick as they can so they can have a nice long day of fishing a head of them.

[CrappieAttitude]

This made me think of the lyrics to one of my early chidhood church songs.

I went something like this..

Have patience...Have patience....Don't be in such a hurry,

When you get, impatient, you only start to worry!

Remember, Remember, that God is patient to

So think of all the times that others had to wait for you!!!

CA

[Meat-Run]

Hey good one CA.

I'll take that one to heart.

[FL SNIPER]

Mille Lacs is too good of a lake not to fish!!!

If you're concerned or uncomfortable with your current launching abilities, practicing can cure that. Pick a lake near your house and go there during unbusy times and launch and load your boat a few times. You could also try practicing backing up your trailer in a big, empty parking lot. You'll be amazed how your confidence will grow and you'll learn exactly how far to put your trailer in, etc.

Also know that the majority of the fishermen out there are on your side. Most have no problem waiting, or helping, a person who appears to be doing the best they can. Don't let a few wise guys bring you down or keep you off the big pond.

[archer59]

I believe is someone behind me was flipping me off ... they would be waiting much much longer.

[crappeyeslayer]

I am all for helping ppl and waiting as long as it takes...when there are 4 or less ppl waiting behind you! I am not the guy that flips anyone off or even says anything negative...just kinda fume to myself. I think that most guys are fairly forgiving as far as backing goes b/c we have all been there

[river rat316]

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I believe is someone behind me was flipping me off ... they would be waiting much much longer.

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I was thinking the same thing I drive truck for a living so backing ain't a big deal for me, I can usually load/unload in a couple minutes by myself. If someones having trouble I usually try and help or just keep my mouth shut, its when someones loading/unloading gear and just generally being a nimrod that I dont like and have to say something