Things we hoard??

If Eric had added empty coffee cans to his list, my list would have been just a copy and paste! Supposed to be for those hardware piles but sadly, the hardware is all on a couple of shelves and the empty coffee cans that dear wife knows to never ever throw out are slowly accumulating on the top shelf to be used “someday”!


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Empty plastic coffee cans - put ice melt, rock salt, or sand in them and keep in your vehicles for the winter season.

 

We do the same

 

• Pellets - but that is to be expected.
• For some reason I am drawn to flashlights, lanterns and other lights for working on things (as others seem to be). Not that I work on things too often, nor need more lighting options (besides permanent lighting in some places in the basement), but I see a lighting gadget in the store and have to fight myself from grabbing another.
• I hoard every drop I cut from wood. I have a bunch of pieces that are only 2" long that I can't convince myself to let go of.
  
• Electrical cords from every device I've ever owned, and the spares I bought for them. Last winter I forced myself to cut back my collection when they overflowed two bins and a desk drawer for files - and I don't just keep them in those places.

 

I didn't even know there was such thing a as "fish spearing decoys". Always learning on here I'm telling ya!

I'm glad I'm not the only one who "keeps" stuff....I don't typically use the word hoard, they have tv shows about "those people" you know....

 

Here is what I am talking about Eckie. It is a big deal around here for some. I use mine to spear pike, but many people also collect them as “folk art.”

Most serious collectors here in Minnesota could name the people who carved each of the decoys from my collection shown below:


Here is one of my decoys and spears, and a northern pike

 

Wow those are freaking awesome! But that's a rush when I big one swims by!

 

I've seen spear fishing on TV, but the person is usually scuba diving, snorkeling or skin diving. I reckon you're not doing any of that! Is it from a boat, or a hole in the ice?? Wow, never knew there was such a thing. And honestly kinda thought you were joking earlier about the decoys..... That's cool!

 

We spear from a dark shanty on the ice after cutting a big hole. Also known as the Scandinavian television…

I should add that this was first practiced the indigenous Ojibwa Indians in this area. They used a smaller t-pee and laid on cedar boughs.

 

So I know how luck can be fishing.....but is that usually productive? The spear...do you just hold and spear like a pitch fork, or does it have the rubber band and a lanyard?

 

There is not much luck involved other than when I try a new lake, the water is clear, and first spot I try ends up being good…but then again I have a pretty good idea what types of spots are likely to be productive. I have numerous good spots on dozens of lakes, but I do like exploring new lakes and spots, so that can be a little more hit and miss some days. When the ice is over 2 feet thick I don’t move after setting up like I used to do more often when I was younger.

I run the decoy down 5-6’ down in 8 to 10’ of water. The spear is delivered with push, like throwing a dart. It is attached to a rope that is affixed to side of the house or tied to my chair.

Sometimes the pike are speared as they are nose to nose with the decoy. Sometimes they rush in, grab on and try to swim off. You have to quick with the spear in this case. Sometimes they hang up just outside the hole, and back out. Somedays they like a lot of movement to the decoy and other days they won’t come in at all unless it is kept perfectly still.

Some days they are moving and I may see up to 10 or 15 a day. A really good day would be seeing 2 or 3 an hour, and maybe even have two in the hole at the same time. A typical “good” day would be seeing an average of 1 an hour. Some days nothing is moving, and may I sit all day and end up seeing none, or maybe one or two. It is really more like deer hunting from a stand than “fishing.” I do angle in the spear house for panfish, walleye or bass that come in. That is really productive some days.

 

This is all very interesting, there’s a wildlife refuge near me that is a popular northern pike destination. Shallow lakes, not sure if the water would be clear enough for this method. I’ve never heard tell of anyone trying it. How big of hole do you use?

 

The only states that I know of which allow this type of activity in the winter are Minnesota, North Dakota, Michigan and Alaska.

The hole size is typically at least 2 feet wide, by 3 feet long. In my permanent house I go 3 X 4.

I have heard of your good pike fishery out there in the Sandhills.

 

My Dad collected old fishing lures, spears, wood duck decoys and just about anything fishing or hunting related.
Still have it all!
Gary

 

That trap makes a pretty good security system. One person loses half a leg will deter any others thinking of trespassing.

 

Would that be a "bar trap"?

 

YUP!

 

Does your spearing involve massive amounts of Busch Lights like the sturgeon spearers here in Wisconsin?