THE OUTDORKSMAN

That’s a question I used to ask myself a lot when we lived in Moorhead for a couple years. I had seen a few portable ice houses out on the Red River in Fargo and asked the folks at the local bait & tackle shop about it. They said that: “Anyone fishing the Red River in January was most likely fishing for Goldeyes, although the occasional Walleye or Northern Pike will also be caught.” “Catfish don’t really have an appetite in the winter.” But, Could it be done? Are the catfish even around? What do they eat?  For these questions I called Brad Durick out of Grand Forks. He’s a professional fishing guide, highly sought after catfishing educator, author of two catfishing books, and the host of the Catfish Best Source Podcast. Brad is truly an expert on channel catfish in the Red River, so when I asked him about ice fishing for catfish, Brad went on to explain how it’s mostly done in the southern parts of the state, for flathead and channel catfish, not not really for channel catfish on t

There's a small, flooded lake on the county line close to where I live. Rumors of fish swimming between the dead standing timber were more than I could handle, and last summer my old boat found its way onto the water. I had only just pushed off from shore and was looking down through the clear, waveless track that the boat leaves behind when I spotted them. Hundreds of small bass followed in the shadow of the boat as I traveled backward off of the shore. Their eager presence pushed the surface of the water around the same way rocks do under a creek.  I committed something of a sin when I fired up the boat motor. That little puff of blue smoke into the air felt like I just cracked a beer in church. I idled the old boat around in that pristine setting checking the depth on my Vexilar and trying to see into the lake, curious about what other mysteries the water contains.  I filleted a few bass later that evening.  Yesterday was completely different. A lot has changed. I have a beautif