Dick Herfindahl, Woods & Water

It’s funny how the mind works. Just when I have made the decision to temporarily shift my mindset out of the fishing mode and move on I run into someone who wants to talk fishing. One of the parents on the hockey team that I coach started talking to me about muskie fishing and going to Eagle Lake in Canada. This ordinarily would not have been any big deal, but this was a lake that I had read about years ago and in the back of my mind was one that I always thought I’d like to fish. He has also fished muskies in Wisconsin and Minnesota. Nothing gets me more fired up about fishing than a few good fish stories.

I have never really had much desire to fish in Canada simply because of all the lakes we have in Minnesota that I have yet to wet a line in. Maybe in some little part of my mind I am afraid that going to Canada and catching a walleye on every cast along with numerous big pike will sour me on Minnesota. I really don’t think that would be possible, but I’ve talked to too many people that say “I only fish in Canada because it has spoiled me on Minnesota fishing.” If fishing a week or two a year satisfies your desire to fish then good for you! I can always find a lake with the solitude and enjoyment that I look for in a fishing experience and actually not have to venture very far from home.

I spoke with another person just the other day who told me that he had not fished muskies that often but has joined the Southern Minnesota Chapter of Muskies, Inc. This person is an avid outdoorsman who likes to hunt as well as fish. He does not limit his fishing to just one species or for that matter one area of the state. He is someone that I consider a true outdoorsman, and I do think most Minnesota outdoorsmen fall into that category. Everyone that enjoys the outdoors doesn’t necessarily do both hunting and fishing. I would say however, that the majority of outdoors folks do tend to do a little bird hunting as well as deer hunting and fishing.

It seems like every time I talk to someone about fishing I get the urge to head to a lake and do a little casting just to get it out of my system, so to speak. Catching is not important as long as I can make a few casts culminated with that one more. One more cast that I always seem to make last longer than I should. After talking to these two about muskie fishing I had all I could do to keep from jumping in the truck and heading to Cabela’s to add to my collection of muskie lures. Luckily I came to my senses and realized that I already have enough! Or do I?

Yes, life is good in our great state for anyone that loves the outdoors. We have so many opportunities to enjoy it and we also are getting more public land on which to enjoy our favorite sports. The Lessard-Sams bill is working and as long as the politicians can keep from trying to “tweak” it like they did (unsuccessfully) in the first year we outdoorsmen will reap the benefits of it in the coming years. With that in mind, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has released the following newsletter for public input on some important issues regarding the outdoors in years to come.

DNR seeks citizen input on Parks and Trails Legacy Plan

A draft of the State and Regional Parks and Trails Legacy Plan will be available for review and comment, starting in December. This legislatively mandated plan establishes a vision and guides funding for the next 25 years of state and regional park and trail efforts in Minnesota.

The legislation directs the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources to participate in a collaborative project to help direct how the park and trail portion of the Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment funding, as well as other traditional sources of funding, should be spent for state and regional parks and trails over the next quarter century.

The plan identifies gaps and needs in the current regional and state system and recommends how to address them. In addition to establishing a vision and providing funding criteria, it outlines priorities.

The DNR is partnering with the Citizens League, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization, to offer a variety of opportunities for citizens to provide input on the plan before it is presented to the Minnesota Legislature by Feb. 15, 2011.

Until next time, good luck to all the hunters, have a safe hunting season and above all enjoy the great outdoors!

Remember our brothers and sisters who are proudly serving our country so that we can enjoy the freedoms that we have today.

Dick Herfindahl’s outdoors column appears in Friday’s Tribune.