In-Fisherman Musky Show

Hey guys!  If you didn't get a chance to see the episode I filmed with Doug Stange and the In-Fisherman crew here it is.  As I mentioned before I have grown up watching Doug on television and it has always been a dream to fish let along film an actual fish show with him.  On top of the that to catch a pair of the two largest muskies caught on one episode of In-Fisherman television history.  I think my Momma was watching down this day!   I didn't talk much as I was shocked by the big fish and the camera so I let the master take it away.  It's amazing how good Doug can just spit the words out!

Click here to read about the RAPALA X-RAP WALK 13 
(Click after you watch the show.  It will navigate you to
a new page)

I hope you enjoy!

"Make a Memory"
Jeff "Breezer" Andersen

Gull Lake Walleye

So it was going to be a quick trip to Gull Lake in the Brainerd Lakes Area with my friends Tim Hanske and Dan Abear.  The past few days we have been greeted with, what feels like summer like weather, since we are so used to 20 below.  Tim had been out the night before and put the hurt bag on some keeper walleyes so that added to our motivation.  We pulled up to our spot, nobody in sight, and it was game on!  We drilled our holes and started fishing.  It was still pretty early about and hour from sunset and the perch were on the feed bag.  They weren't jumbos but the action was intense!  The sun hit the top of the trees and the perch bit slowed.  Waiting with anticipation I thought the walleyes were going to go nuts but they didn't.  We kept saying 10 more minutes!  So we had enough after catching a few small walleyes and we started to pack things up.  Tim went to pick up a tip up he had set and Dan said, "Well, I'm gong to fish one more hole!" which was right next to Tim and before we knew it fish on.  Dan did battle and landed a dandy Gull Lake Walleye.  Spirits were lifted as we had our tails between our legs prior to Dan's impressive catch.  See photos below......

It's amazing how one fish can turn an O.K. night of fishing into another amazing memory!

I hope everyone is enjoying the winter and looking forward to warmer weather!

Take Care,

Jeff "Breezer" Andersen
"Make a Memory"

A sunset beauty

Dave Genz

Dave Genz and I took the afternoon to go catch a few bluegills and crappies.  We took advantage of the beautiful day and took a few photos.  I'm out the door to go fishing so I thought I would just post a few photos from the day.  Enjoy!

"Make a Memory"

Jeff

(Click on Photo for larger view)

 (Genz's fishing machine)

(A little Funky)

KFAN Radio Interview

I had the pleasure of speaking with Billy Hildebrand on KFAN Outdoors the other day.  What a great guy, an awesome outdoor program and is full of information from fishing to hunting or anything outdoor related. 

The link is below
KFAN Link to Interview
(2.5.2011 Hr 2)

Thanks Billy!

Leech Lake Walleye Lrn2Fish School

I had the pleasure of working with Jim Hudson who is a fishing guide in the Chequamegon Bay and Apostle Island area this past weekend.  Jim and his wife put together ice fishing schools which are called lrn2Fish Ice Roads and they do an amazing job!  Jim asked if I could help out with the event on Leech and of coarse I was down for anything.  So Northbound I headed last Friday morning.  We had several guys out looking for fish for the students and that was my goal, to find the fish!

I met up with friends Scott and Kody Seibert along with Rick Johnson.  These guys are great sticks and fun to hang out with.  We headed out on the main lake basin with our snowmobiles and can you say SNOW!  I can't believe how much snow the Walker Lakes Area has got.  Good thing for snowmobiles as travel on the main lake was pretty good after the first couple hundred yards.  We fished several spots with only catching a few walleyes through out the day.  It was perfect out and they should have been biting but we just couldn't locate a large school of fish.  We did mark some pretty big fish that just were in a "negative" mood.  They would come up on the Vexilar, look at the bait, then go back down.  Frustrating, as I thought the main lake was going to be on!  The best part was there wasn't anybody out fishing where we were so I thought we would have fresh non pressured fish but no go.

Stuck with our tails between our legs we headed back to Horseshoe Bay Lodge where we met up with all the students, had a great dinner and talked fishing.  Jim asked that I put together a presentation on Leech Lake which seemed to go pretty good.  There was also a ton of knowledge in the room with many great anglers giving their two cents how to target these fish.  So we had to come up with a game plan for Saturday morning.  Half of the students only had truck travel and the other half had snowmobiles.  We sent the truck group to fish the Grand Vu Flats area since there are some pretty good roads plowed there and the other half was coming with me.  My plan was to fish Walker Bay since I had caught some walleyes there the other day.

Eager for the first hook set we were all up and at em' early and off we went.  We had a pretty large group of anglers and most of the spots in Walker Bay are fairly small secondary structure so we had to spread out.  We pulled up on our first three humps and started marking fish right away.  Again the big walleyes seemed to just look but we caught some small walleyes, perch and a few bonus tullibees but not the hawg belly we were looking for.  Our mobility was very limited with the amount of slush and snow we encountered.  We were consistently getting stuck!  On a typical day of fishing I would fish over 25 spots but with a large group and the horrid slush we were half way through the day and had only fished three spots.  We moved to one large reef in hopes to find a few fish, eat lunch and make a game plan for the evening bite.  No fish on this reef but the boys cooked up some dangerous brats and they were so good!  All Five of them....

For the evening bite we set up and it didn't take long and we were all marking fish.  As the sun started to fall the bite was on.  We caught several walleyes but most of them were very small.  I was a little bummed as I thought we could find the larger fish through out the day but that just didn't happen.  That is fishing!

It was great for the students to see how finicky these fish can be.  It took the correct presentation, use of electronics, and a sensitive touch to get these fish on the ice.  Lets face it when the walleyes are in a positive or aggressive mode they are easy to catch but when we are dealing with a large cold front and high pressure typically that turns them neutral and for the big fish they were negative.

We were fishing with small spoons and most of the fish came on just a small minnow head.  The key was to get the fish to chase the bait, then play keep away until you could see their mood change and once they looked aggressive you had to pause the bait and wait for the bite.

Thanks to all the students and to all the great anglers I had the chance to meet and fish with.

If you are looking for a great guide in the Chequamegon Bay Area check Jim Hudson out at Hudson's on the Spot Guide Service.

Also you can learn more about the Lrn2Fish Ice Road Schools Here.

"Make a Memory"
Jeff "Breezer" Andersen

Dave Genz, Jason Mitchell, WalleyeDan, and the Clam Corp Team

This past week I had the chance to go out fishing with Dave Genz, Jason Mitchell, Dan Eigen (WalleyeDan) and the team from Clam Corp on Lake Mille Lacs.  Our goal was to capture some images of the guys in action and we did just that!  We only had a day to shoot photos so we had to hit it hard.  The bite on Mille Lacs is day to day and the walleyes seemed to be on the move.  One day you can catch them in one spot and then the next day they are gone.  So mobility is key!  Most of the fish we are catching are on smaller spoons like the Northland Buckshot Rattle Spoon.  This is one of my number one producers.  While out fishing Dan was using another one of my favorites, the Rapala Jigging Rap, and he caught the largest walleye only two minutes into the trip.  

Here are some photos of the boys in action!

 (Click on Image for Larger View) 

 

KFAN Radio Interview

Had the chance to chat with the boys from KFAN Outdoors last night.  A little fish talk, a little Clam New Product Talk and lots of non sense talk!  It was a pleasure and hopefully I get the chance to talk smart again!  You can listen by clicking on this link KFAN Outdoors our conversation starts at 19:25 in the program.

Thanks to the host "The Captain" Billy Hildebrand for giving me the oppertunity.

Lake Mille Lacs Ice Fishing and Ice Conditions

It's a tad bit chilly out there!  My buddy John Hoyer and I took a little ice fishing adventure this past couple of days out on Lake Mille Lacs.  As most of you know Lake Mille Lacs is a monster of a lake so we took it pretty easy the first day out as there wasn't another fish house in site.  The first mile was probably the worst ice as there were several large cracks.  John and I joked as we could have tied up a Rapala and drove down one of the cracks.  Little Ice Trolling!  We had pretty good ice everywhere we went so we felt pretty safe with a four-wheeler.  The fishing was pretty good for size and just ok for eaters.  We had enough each day to clean and take home to eat.  Most of the fish were caught on jigging spoons with just a minnow head.

OK so it was pretty nasty cold the first day with winds up to 30 mph and I had the chance to put my Clam Extreme Black Grey Suit to the test.  All I'm going to say is "WARM".  Didn't get cold once.  If you have ever been cold fishing you know it's not fun even if you are catching them.  So if you are in the market I promise you won't be disapointed with how that suit performs!!!  Check them out at Clam IceArmor Cold Weather Ice Gear

So on with the photos!  Here are just a couple of Hawg Bellies from the trip.

 

 

Ice Fishing is just around the Corner

The ice conditions in the Brainerd Lakes area, like Gull Lake, Round, and North Long are very close to being fish-able or I should say safely fish-able.  The farther you travel north like Leech Lake and Cass Lake should also be making some pretty good ice.  So it's time to get that equipment ready!  I just put together my brand new Clam Voyager TCX and let me tell you this bad boy is awesome!  If you are in the market for a sled style fish house you wouldn't be disappointed with any house from the Clam Corp line up.  I can say that because I have a 10 year old Clam Voyager sitting in my garage that still looks new!  Seriously the thing is in great shape and yes I used it a few times just ask my wife....  Check out the line of fish houses here Clam Corp Fish Houses  If you do have any questions please let me know and I would be happy to help out. 

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone too.  I'm so thankful for a loving family.  This was the first Thanksgiving since my Mom, Suzette, had passed away.  It was hard on all of us but my wife, Kristine, put together an amazing spread of food in Memory of Her.  We know that she wasn't at the dinner table physically but spiritually she was sitting there happy to see her family together. 

I'm looking forward to a great year of ice fishing and guiding this winter.  If you or you know someone who is looking to hop on my snowmobile and take off onto the frozen water of Central and Northern Minnesota lets do it!  I will be guiding on many lakes like Gull Lake, Round Lake, Leech Lake and too many to name.  Send me an email if you would like more details.  My buds WalleyeDan and Tim Hanske also have some sweet sleeper houses and I would love to set you up with those guys too.

So to get you in the spirit here is a little video of my buddy and Bigtooth Pro Staffer Mike Crawford showing you how to set the hook on monster northern pike using Bigtooth Tackles Natural Quick Strike Rigs and Tip ups.  You have to love Mike he is a funny fishing maniac!

Big Buck Story Minnesota Deer Rifle Season

Once in awhile you get to hear a story that is truly what outdoor passion is all about.  My friend Paul, AKA Pablo, called me and I could hear the excitement in his voice.  He said, "Jeff, I just shot a huge buck and the best part is that Braedon was sitting right next to me!"  Oh man I felt the chills go down my spine as I could hear an excited father not only did he shoot a big buck but his five year old son was able to experience that moment with him.  I can tell you that excites me as my little boy Gavin turns two in February and it will only be a few years and I, hopefully, get to share moments like this with him.  I ask Pablo to give me the play by play so he sent me an email with photos!


This is what is all about!!!


"I asked Braedon who is five if he wanted to go deer hunting with me this year and of coarse he said "YES"!!  Opening morning I didn't have to ask him twice to get up and out of bed.  We had a quick bowl of cereal and we were out the door.  As the sun hit the top of the trees we got into my deer stand and we saw squirrels, geese, swans but no deer.  At noon I figured he needed to stretch his legs so we went to the truck for a quick sandwich.  My brother had been seeing deer most of the morning and I thought Braedon would have a better chance of at least seeing a deer if he sat with him.  So, I asked him if he wanted to sit with my brother and he did.  I told my brother that at 2:30 Braedon had to make a decision either to sit with you or come back to my stand to sit till dark.  Well, he chose to sit with my brother.  I was kind of bummed because it was fun sitting with my son, showing him the many things that were taking place around us and just spending time together.  My brother texted me at 3:30 and said Braedon wanted to sit with me and was bringing him back.  Cool, by buddy was back with me and now I was just hoping we would be blessed with seeing a deer.  We were sitting with a lot of anticipation and excitment.  It was down to only about 45 min left of the hunting day and through the corner of my eye I saw some antlers to my left coming through the brush.  After I see it turn it's head all I could see was antlers I knew it was a shooter!! I asked B "theres one...do you see it...do you see it"  OK Daddy was pretty excited at this point but he finally he says, "Yeah I see it I see it!"  We went through this like 5 times while the deer slowly made his way.  My heart was ready to pop right out of my chest!  I could tell the deer started to get antsy (or maybe it was me) so on the last "do you see it" and B says "yes" I drop the hammer down.  The monster deer didn't move an inch and we had a deer of a lifetime down! The two of us went NUTZ!!!!  All I can say is what an experience, and to have done it with my 5 year old son by my side" Priceless"!!"  
Paul Manecke


Holy buckets if that doesn't give you chills I don't know but all I can say is thanks Paul and Braedon for sharing such an amazing story!!!

Minnesota Deer Hunting - Big Buck

Here is a few photos of Joe, my brother, of a buck he shot during the Minnesota Deer Hunting Season.  I will post the story soon.  It's a good one!!!

(click on photo for larger view)