Marine veterans Barry and Henry traveled to northern Wisconsin with USSA’s Vet Coordinator, Darrell Kauth, for an ice fishing trip adventure on Lac Vieux Desert Lake. The lake is on the border between Vilas County, Wisconsin, and Gogebic County, Michigan.
Their insulated ice shack was mounted on a big sled that held their gear, three pails to sit on, a propane heater, depth finder, two augers, and of course fishing poles. After arriving, they drove out on the lake, and they had to fasten the ice shack down by drilling into the ice and screwing the ice anchors in place. Darrell said, “With winds gusting 40-50 MPH, I drilled holes through the sled part and put alligator clamps on the fabric. It was just unbelievably windy, so we hooked it onto the ball of my truck to keep it secure and help block the howling wind.”
Henry said, “we were getting many strikes, but not always catching fish. It seemed like we were always busy and kept warm while checking the tip-ups. We used large shiners for the bigger fish and small shiners too, and they both worked well. I caught some fish with a little jig pole, and it was fun on such a lite rod; fishing is always fun.”
They saw the flag on the tip-up go straight up in the air, and they went over to see if they had a fish on the line. They pulled the line a little bit to see if there was something on there, but a fish had stolen their bait. Barry said, “I noticed another tip moving, we picked up the rod and grabbed hold of the line and could feel there was a fish on the other end, and we gave it a jerk to set the hook in the fish’s mouth. Our rod tip bent as it took out 50 yards of line. We had to be careful bringing it in because I could tell it was a bigger fish, and we didn’t want to lose it. The 27″ fish gave us a battle, but it was a dandy.”
As the day ended, they had to bring all their fishing equipment in to thaw it out, and put it back together for the following morning.
Henry said, “Darrell taught us a lot about fishing. I caught three northern pikes, assorted pan fish, bass, bluegill, and perch. One fish I reeled in weighed only a pound, yet he put up a good fight. I put him back down the hole for another kid or vet to catch someday.”
Barry added, “I caught seven northern pikes from 20″ to 27,” but the best part of the fishing trip was the camaraderie! Two Marines sharing time with their close friend is as good as it gets!
Congratulations to Barry, Henry, and Darrell for their successful fishing trip and the unforgettable memories they shared. God bless!