Fishhouse counting

OK, some of you may be wondering about the Mille Lacs Lake fishhouse video that is now appearing on our Mille Lacs Messenger website. I will attach a clip here, on this blogsite, as soon as I can figure out how to do it.

Anyway, here's the play by play — behind the scenes deal on the fly-over.

Every year, the DNR counts the number of fishhouses on Mille Lacs Lake. They use the information as an indication to fishing pressure on the lake. It is just one tool in the toolbox the biologists of the fisheries department use to check their numbers.

The fly-over is scheduled on the same like Saturday every year and usually, two counts are used before the actual fishhouse count is tallied.

The flight was schedule to depart Brainerd Regional Airport at 9 a.m. Saturday, Jan.5. Due to unseasonably warm temperatures, and something to do with a pressure system holding moisture down, no wind, and some other scientific Belinda Jenson type stuff I don't understand, there was fog. Lots of fog.

I got the call from DNR biologist Kevin Martini — who would be doing the counting — at about 7:30 a.m. stating a delay due to fog. He said pilot Tom Pfingsten thought fog would clear by 11.

It did not. (See SIDEBAR below on killing time.) The flight was rescheduled until 12:30, and eventually departed a couple hours after that.

Tom kept checking the weather radar and aviation stuff on the maps waiting for visibility to clear to 7 miles. It was good to go in Brainerd and he knew it was clearing, but still under 7 miles in Aitkin. He figured it would clear by the time we got over the lake.

On the way over, flying was wonderful. Overcast and a bit hazy, but it was a smooth flight. On the way to the lake Tom went to check on an area suspected of possible logging violations. "We just want to check it out," he said. Just so you know, the DNR is in the air almost every day (weather permitting) looking for, and following up on leads relating to violations such as shoreland, wetland, logging and just about everything else. Always an eye in the sky. Tom said they were also involved in searching for the Garrison Bank Robber last year.

It was clear to hazy all the way until right over the lake. Floating over just the lake were clouds. A thick layer of clouds hanging there at about 1,000 feet. We were flying at about 1,500 feet. Needless to say, the clouds were so thick, we did not see a single fishhouse. The unofficial count on Jan. 5 was zero. Well, Kevin saw two on the northside, and that was it. But the count for that day will be thrown out and another count, with yet another flyover will be done on Jan. 26.

So, no numbers to chart and no front page pic for the paper. It was a nice flight. So, thank you Tom, Kevin and the Minnesota DNR for letting me tag along. I am looking forward to the next flight.

That is the way it goes with weather and science, and life in general. Things don't always work out the way we want them to, but if we are patient, the fog will clear in the end.

SIDEBAR: Killing time, waiting for the fog to clear.

I was on my way to the airport to be there by 11 a.m. when Kevin called again saying we would try at 12:30. Since I was already on my way into town, I just kept going.

I had errands to run, so it was really no big deal if I did them before or after the flight.

One stop was to get my oil changed. I usually change my oil pretty close to the 3,000 mile manufacturer's recommendation. If I don't, my Jeep yells at me. However, this time, apparently I was a little farther over the manufacturers recommendation — almost 1,500 miles over, according to the guys at the super speedy oil change place on Washington Ave., across from Westgate Mall.

Because I drive a few miles, I am getting my oil changed about every other month. those guys at the super speedy oil change place know me pretty well. I think they especially like it I always have a coupon and know when to yell, "Oil pressure up!" Of course, they have a tendency to razz me a bit and tell me the tire pressure is off by about a 100 pounds on the spare tire, and my turn signal fluid should be changed, that sort of thing. Of course I am too smart for that. I don't even know where my spare tire is, how are they going to know?

But this time, they were not kidding and I needed a new battery and talked me into the synthetic oil for the winter in case I run over the recommended 3,000 miles — again.

So, a shout out to my pals at the super speedy oil change place in Brainerd/Baxter across from Westgate Mall! Especially, the guy with the same last name as me. Thanks for taking care of my Jeep.