Big River - February 1996

Page 1

February 1996

Vol. 4 , No. 2

the monthly newsletter for people who live, work or play on the Upper Mississippi River

$2.75

Commercial Fishing Skiing the Backwaters Beneath the Ice By Reggie McLeod For several years I tried to imagine how commercial fishermen use huge nets in the river in the middle of winter. I tried to imagine how they herd fish with snowmobiles. After pestering a couple of fishermen for two mild winters I finally got lucky in February 1988. In fact, we all got lucky. An unusual scene unfolds late on a Saturday afternoon on the frozen Mississippi River about a mile below the Trempealeau darn. A man on a snowmobile and a man on a three-wheel, all-terrain vehicle drive back and forth. Two guys pull rhythmically on ropes that run through holes in the ice. On the end of each rope a heavy chain clanks on the river bottom. Another man smacks the water with an inverted funnel attached to a pole. Another hunches intently over a small black box watching black marks appear on a scroll of paper. If we could peer through a foot and a half of snow-covered ice and the through murky river we would see tight

If they pull up empty nets, their only pay for a long day's work is lots of fresh air, sore muscles and cold bones. schools of frightened carp, gar, sheepshead and buffalo fish being driven into a trap. Over a thousand feet of seine net stretches out in a huge "L" shape under the ice. The short end of the L starts at a hole near the shore of an island and runs west across the channel for about 250 feet, then upriver for about 800 feet. The six men are driving fish into the net from upriver.

(Ice continued on page 2)

By John Sagan From the lower end of Lake Pepin to Trempealeau Mountain, the big river backwaters are a dream for the cross country skier. When the conditions are right (and no one can agree on when the conditions are right), a skier can travel for miles and miles in an afternoon and find plenty of adventures. The endorphins build up as you cruise, and soon you slide into a second childhood. Every peninsula becomes a new country- unexplored and holding secrets. The eagles wheel, dive, swoop and glide above and before you. In the farther reaches, there are otter trails to follow and deer trails become highways through the trees. Mice leave their tiny patterns between the trees on snowy plains, from grassy island to grassy island. And the ancient trees dream of a century past. Ice fishermen watch you glide by, wondering whether to try it themselves one day with a fish box in tow. Snowrnobilers leave a trail of oily fumes as they scream by to avoid the improbable human before them. In a snowstorm, on a bright sunny day or on a moonlit midnight, skiing the backwaters of the big river opens up the heart and makes

(Skiing continued on page 4)

WHAT'S INSIDE ••.

Wintertime Bluegills Where they go and why

4

Current Events Hue and Cry, Move the People

5

Letter to the Editor Phosphorus in Lake Pepin

7

River Calendar & Almanac Grumpy Old Men, Winter Carnivals

8


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Big River - February 1996 by OpenRiver - Digital Repository of Winona State University - Issuu