Loveland Fishing Club Blog

One problem with being retired. Is, you kind of lose track of time, even holidays. Linda just asked me, “ Fishing Wednesday? We have to be at the neighbor’s party...” sorry gang, go as planned. If you can, but I’m having to wait till Thursday. Same time and place, 8:30 a.m. in northwest corner of Marina Inlet. Join me if you can.

The ice is solid, and the Marina Inlet is a zoo today with anglers who must have gotten ice fishing gear for Christmas. Fish are biting. Let's meet at the northwest corner of the inlet about 8:30 a.m. Wednesday. If you don't have an annual pass and want to save $9, drop me a note and we can drive in from my house. Click here . I just have a hand auger, which ought to work fine, but gas or electric welcome.

The Loveland Fishing Club Board has approved funding of CPR training for club members whose dues are paid for 2020. Non-members may also attend at a cost of $10. Following is a list of attendees for the two classes. Others wishing to attend should contact Ray Park, rapark63@comcast.net Thursday January 16, 2020        9 a.m. to 11 a.m. John Gwinnup  Charlie Higgs Dick Hunsake  Wayne Baranczyk  Dave Johnson  Steve Cadler  Ray Park  Tom Boesch  Don Knudsen  Terry Gibbons Rick Golz Vicki Tesar  Kathleen Barker Karol Stroschein  A rnie Stroschein  Dan Barker  George Mayes         Harlyn Ripley  Thursday February 12, 2020         9 a.m. to 11 a.m. George Kral Skip Kral Ken Kesterke  Terry Kinyon Bill Prater Doug Money  Gene Speidel Norm Engelbrecht Dennis Carder...

For the second trip in a row, the wind stayed calm and the ice stayed solid on Lake John for Loveland Fishing Club stalwarts. Pat Weller notched this fat female.

Well, good luck with that around here. On the other hand, there are a few spots with open water around here and at least a few trout to merit your attention. The dock on the marina inlet of Boyd Lake is still standing in open water, and the lake was heavily stocked a month or so ago in anticipation of a January ice fishing derby. You might also want to look at the Recycle Pond in Loveland, where aerators keep the water open longer than other local waters. Also, Charles Piche reports having good luck with good-size trout on the south end of Carter Lake, which seldom freezes over. He's thinking the water on that end is a bit warmer than elsewhere. Good luck and good fishing.

We'll have coffee and cookies, and a limited agenda. Plan on bringing a new, wrapped gift valued at around $10 for the gift exchange. Our January meeting will be a week earlier than normal, 2 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 14.

We don’t talk politics in the Loveland Fishing Club. You won’t find this rule in our bylaws, but it is a guideline that has allowed our randomly chosen, wildly opinionated seniors to harmonize for nearly two decades. With an average age approaching 80, it’s not that we lack strong opinions. It’s just that we collectively choose not to air them in situations where discussion should be on trout, bass, or scheduled hip replacements. Tom, Dennis, Jim and I have known each other well enough, long enough, to realize we don’t agree a damned bit about most things political. But in nearly 20 years of really close acquaintance, I don’t recall a single cross word between us. Like a couple celebrating their 50th anniversary, we know exactly which buttons to push to annoy one another; we just choose not to push them. Similarly, I just returned from a harrowing one-day ice fishing expedition to Colorado’s North Park, involving a snowy, six-hour round trip through the mountains.  On that m...

Monday, December 9, 2019 at 6 PM – 8 PM MST Johnstown SCHEELS Ice Fishing 101 Seminar New to ice fishing?  Just because the water freezes over doesn’t mean your fishing season is over. Some would say it just gets better. Join Colorado Parks and Wildlife at the Scheels store in Johnstown to learn how to get started ice fishing. We will cover gear, safety, tips, and some place to go. This is a free seminar . Sign up for this Ice Fishing 101 seminar led by Colorado Parks and Wildlife at SCHEELS to to get started ice fishing! We will cover gear, safety, tips, and some place to go. SCHEELS Training Center Cost: FREE Please register at:   https://www.register-ed.com/events/view/135717 All ages welcome.   Saturday, December 14, 2019 at 10 AM – 4 PM MST Johnstown Scheels Ice Fest Come join us for an Ice Fishing Fest! Learn new techniques from local ice fishing experts, build your fishing network, and enter for a chance to win great prizes! ***SEMIN...

Things got a bit dramatic Thursday on Lake John, when Rick Palmieri and Bill Prater's blissful pursuit of a few fat trout was interrupted for a good 10 minutes by Norm Englebrecht's battle with an obese 21-inch cutbow. Everyone ended the day on a high note, with a few fat, healthy fish to talk about at breakfast or to eat at dinner. Norm's cutbow For a  Youtube video on Norm's cutbow, click here. Rick and friends

Howdy, This trip is only a month away so if you're wanting to go call Norm (970-685-0566) or see him at Friday breakfast.  There's room for ten people and we have five for sure and maybe eight already signed up to go. Club members get preference. We'll leave Friday, Jan 10 and return on Sunday, Jan 12. Once we know who's going for sure we can all meet and figure out the logistics and go from there. If the ice is not good or if weather does not permit safe travel the trip will be canceled or rescheduled.  From Loveland (287 and I-25) it's about 250 mile away. (See map below) More than a few club members have been at this place before and caught some large Northern Pike. It's a fun trip. Photos are not club members but you get the idea. You have to bring all of your own food, the closest place to eat is about 30-35 miles away. That's a long round trip. Everything you need to cook is available where we stay. Cost is $50, which includes both nights lod...

For those of you interested in tournaments there are two for Ice Fishing in North Park. January 11-12, 2020, which is Saturday and Sunday, at Lake John and Cowdrey Lake. $75 for largest fish taken every hour. $1000 grand prize. Entry fee is $30 On February 1, 2020, Saturday, there will be a tournament on North, South and East Delaney Buttes Lakes. That will also have $75 for largest fish every hour and a $1000 grand prize. Entry fee is $30 as well. Prior registration by email, northparkchamber@centurytel.net , or register at Moose Creek Cafe.

Since breaking her right pelvis a month or so ago, Dee Mikulak is making steady progress toward recovery. Pat reports she is now getting around with a cane. We all wish her a speedy recovery.

For those of you that want to extend your geographic fishing area and want to include Wyoming a Nonresident Annual Fishing License costs $114.00. The daily fee is $14. That means if you go more than 8 times or do a few multi day trips you should buy an annual license. You can also purchase a Nonresident Five (5) Day license for $56.00. Anyone under the age of 14 can fish for free. One nice thing about the annual license is that it is good for a calendar year from the date you purchase it just like a Colorado State Parks Pass. My license for this year expires on 31 Dec 2019. The annual one I purchased today has a start date of Jan 1 2020 and expires on 31 Dec 2020 so they basically appended the current one which is exactly what the Laramie Fly Shop told me would happen when I spoke with them last week. Happy fishing, Rick

The way this fall is going we could have a blizzard by Thursday. So let’s hit Rivers Edge on Monday. The bite has been good early, so think about sucking it up and be on the water around 8:30. Take your choice, Dragonfly, Bass Sandpiper, Jayhawker, on the bank or in your float tube. I for one will be on Jayhawker. T

So there I was, on a peaceful unnamed pond showing Wayne Baranczyk how it's done, landing and of course bragging about my huge 21-inch rainbow. Unfortunately, he countered an hour later with a whopping 23 inch rainbow, after a fight from a float tube that went on about 10 minutes. I've not posted a video here before, but let's see how it looks. https://youtu.be/dPZ_RIvBzEc

Dennis Kelsey hauled a 4-inch bluegill out of Loveland's Dragonfly Pond on Oct. 25 - which doesn't sound like such a big deal until you hear he traded that little panfish for a 22 1/2-inch largemouth bass. "I hooked the bluegill behind the dorsal, dropped it in and waited," Dennis recalls. "I didn't have a landing net, so I had to get down on my back and finally landed it." If my math is correct, that big bass measured 114 percent of the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Master Angler criteria for a largemouth, 18 inches, which puts Dennis in contention for a finish near the top of this year's Loveland Fishing Club Angler of the Year award. It may also put him in contention for recognition as Loveland's Toughest Angler. I for one would have given a bag of Gulp Minnows to watch him gamely thrash around and then return to fishing getting back to that walker of his...

Time magazine this week has an intriguing article on ways to acclimate your body to the arrival of cold weather. Back in the 1960s, Time reporter Markham Heim says, Army researchers found that naked men who spent eight hours a day in a 50 degree chamber became habituated to the cold. They had mostly stopped shivering after two weeks. (It didn't say what happens to naked women, but presumably it works for them, too.) Another study in 2014 persuaded another group of healthy men to spend up to three hours a day sitting in baths filled with 57 degree water. At the beginning of a 20-day study, they did a lot of shivering and complaining, like  Dan Barker when the Loveland Fishing Club persuaded him to try ice fishing. But by Day 20, the men's shivering had pretty much stopped. While their metabolisms and heart rates still sped up in response to the cold water, their blood vessels no longer constricted and their skin temperature didn't drop the way it had at first. Apparently...

Okay, we know the following things about this week's Loveland weather: Most of the ponds around here have at least a thin ice cap. I went by Rivers Edge ponds today. They do not. All 3 are open, and I for one have cabin fever.  The cold snap appears to have finally killed off most of the algae that's plagued all 3 ponds this summer and fall. Visibility is better than it's been since June. It's supposed to be sunny tomorrow, with temps rising to a scorching upper 30s, winds a measly 3-4 mph. So let's go fishing! I suggest Dragonfly, around 11, bring your Gulp minnows and maybe a few Ned rigs. I'd also wear boots; there's going to be a quick meltdown, and it'll be muddy.

Howdy, Boats are put away and cleaned up and Ice fishing will start soon. I've been looking for Electronics to use through the ice this year and being a real fishing novice I look to others in the club and do my own research as well using the internet. As often is the case there are too many choices and information overload is a real possibility.  In one of my journeys I discovered ICAST, the  " International Convention of Allied Sportfishing Trades ".  ICAST, the world’s largest sportfishing trade show, is the premier showcase for the latest innovations in fishing gear, accessories and apparel. ICAST is the cornerstone of the sportfishing industry, helping to drive recreational fishing product sales year round. Every year there are hundreds of exhibitors and like SEMA (have to be a car guy to know what that is) there are best of show winners and runner ups for multiple categories each year. Here are the 2019 winners that you can review during the cold weather....

Trolling for walleye at Boyd Lake a few weeks ago, Dan Barker felt a tug and then hauled in the butterball white bass below, a whopping 19 3/4 inches.My math may be faulty, but I think that's 116.2 percent of the Colorado Master Angler criteria for white bass.  Too bad he didn't have a scale, as this is one obese fish. The catch should put him at the top of the heap in competition for this year's Angler of the Year award.

SEADOO FISH PRO, https://www.sea-doo.com/watercraft/sport-fishing/fish-pro.html