An Outdoorsman’s Journal

By: Mark Walters

The Turtle Flambeau Flowage/Three Days in Paradise

Hello friends: So, life is crazy, lots of bad came my way, I’m heading to the Flambeau to heal! This past week I loaded the canoe on the old Chevy and packed the truck with camping and fishing gear as well as my pup Ruby, who is in the end stages of a false pregnancy. She keeps burying her football in a nest that she made. My goal was to camp on the Flambeau Flowage, not hear any news, paddle-troll for musky, and stare at the sky, the water, and a campfire to heal my brain from a very nasty infection that just kicked my butt!

Friday, August 13 High 81, low 55

I began my journey at remote Murrays Landing and most people you see are in a canoe or a kayak. I lucked out after only paddling about a mile when Campsite 40 was available and I would find out that was the only open site on the flowage.

My first executive decision was that I was not going to set up my tent. I would just sleep on the ground, look at the sky both at night and in the morning, and a big red dog would steal my pillow both nights. On the Ruby no-babies deal, I assumed she was pregnant and for 60 days I cooked up rice and meat for her and she consumed large quantities and gained 14-pounds. I now have Ruby on a diet, and she is not particularly happy about that.

So camp was complete in midday. I tried taking a snooze but just stared at things, which was very good, and then the last three hours of daylight paddled about six miles pulling two musky crankbaits behind me. The only thing that I caught was weeds but I did not care. I got back to camp at dark, started a fire, drank two beers, and went to the ground, I mean bed. The no-tent plan was not flawless as this thing called the mosquito decided it wanted my blood. I would listen, kill it, and within 15 minutes its friend would come on the same suicide mission. If you listen and let them relax, you can kill them in the dark. The problem is that if you are killing at least 30 mosquitoes during the sleeping period of your day in this manner, you are not sleeping. At 4:30 a.m., it became a bit lighter outside, and I watched the sky through branches of the white and red pines and killed skeets. At 6:30 the skeets vanished, and I slept.

I have camped at this site many times. One time in late September I was here for a week of bowhunting, musky fishing, and duck hunting. I used a boat and a canoe and one late afternoon I took my boat with my hunting gear for a 2-mile ride to where I would hike in to hunt. I decided to throw a couple of casts with a Suick at a spot that I had caught a 41inch musky the day before.

A big fish hit the Suick and I eventually landed a 47-inch musky. I tried to revive that fish. I even got in the water with it. When it was obvious it was a goner, I headed back to my truck, left my camp for the night and went to Mercer. I went in a tavern and told the bartender I would give him 5 bucks if I could put the musky in his freezer and proceeded to have a very memorable evening. That musky is directly above the desk I am sitting at.

So, this afternoon I go for a six-hour paddle trolling expedition but today I chose to toss a chrome-bladed bucktail half the time after the trolling was landing me nothing but weeded-up cranks. I missed a dandy smallmouth but was super surprised when what would be a 23-inch walleye hit the bucktail, hit my net, hit my cooler and hit my belly. I like to catch and release but since Ruby did not have any pups and my Etec went to heaven, this poor dirt farmer is hitting the poor house and thus the walleye hit the skillet.

I paddled back to camp in the dark and the next morning went for an 8-mile round trip expedition to my duck hunting spot -- lots of wildlife, lots of ducks. I worked with Ruby all weekend playing fetch in the water and on land and this is where I will be for the northern Wisconsin opener.

Fifty-one years ago my dad took me here for the first time. If I had the time, I could write a book about the 51 years of fun that I have had here.

Quit whining, start playing! Sunset P.S. The poor dirt farmer is leaving for a fishing trip as soon as he hits “end” on this column.

Sunsets are free and beautiful on the Turtle Flambeau Flowage.

Canoe camping is popular on the Turtle Flambeau Flowage.

The old Chevy Hotel got the job done once again!