Ice Out Update for April 10, 2017 and a looming confrontation!

Well, it seems as though the ice fishing gear has been put away for the summer.  Not saying some foolhardy souls might be drilling the odd hole, but it’s been at least a week since I’ve seen any activity from my vantage point overlooking Vermilion Bay.  Here’s some shots of what it looks like now….

You may recall that last fall we started on adding a porch to cabin 3.  Things were stalled when the weather turned nasty, but with the good weather some further progress has been made.  Getting the siding done…..

Lastly a rather disturbing development regarding the upcoming “Perch Rodeo” for 2017.  As you may know, this will be the third year for this competition.

Paul Fulka has taken the competition for two year’s running….in 2015 with a 11 3/4″ perch and last year with a 12 1/4″ slob-o-sore-ass.  Let’s see this Perch King…

As in many things, when you are at the top there will always be those that want to steal your glory.  Things began to heat up once Paul announced he was once again returning to VBL.  Over the past few weeks, the VBL lines of communication have been abuzz with “trash talk” concerning who will take this year’s Perch Rodeo.  Some have even gone as far as predicting their own success.  Who are these “young guns”, these perch wannabe’s and why does their behavior border on shameless self promotion?  Let’s start with Andy Lewis and his sidekick, “The Professor”…

One can easily see from this photo the “cockiness” of these two challengers.  Don’t be fooled though.  A team is only as strong as the weakest link…..and here the Professor has been known to drop the ball on occasion…

Can he remain sober long enough to successfully challenge Paul?  Time will tell….but there is further developments.  After many years of self exile, the self proclaimed “Perch Queen”, Kurt Hebecker, and associate “Bamboo Room” Mark will be back in May to challenge all comers.  Kurt has gone so far as to claim the title as his, and his alone.  From the archives I present one of the few know photos in existence of the “Perch Queen” back in his hay day……

With 16 years and many bottles of Bud Light under their belts, how will these two perform in today’s real perch world?  2017 is shaping up to be a perch-fest of chest beating egocentric anglers pulling out all stops on the way to glory.  Join in the fray, one and all.  The gauntlet has been dropped, and the trash talk has heated up.  Now’s the time for results.  I will await you in the fish house, ruler in one hand, and an OV in the other….till then, good luck!