Grouse Hollow Journal for August 11, 2016 by Greg Koelker

Grouse Hollow Journal for August 11, 2016 by Greg Koelker

You've heard of Girls Gone Wild perhaps? Well the Mississippi is going wild. The old girls running high and mighty with rain and floodwater.  We drove down to Potosi on Sunday for the 50th anniversary celebration of Pete and Anne Uppena, Ellen’s cousins.  The river is up in the islands and high along the shores.  Surprisingly one could see sandbars rising out of the Wisconsin at Bridgeport, so maybe the state river isn’t carrying as much runoff as the big muddy just now.  At Lynxville, some of the roller gates at the dam were pulled up - to let more water through I assume.  

There are big doings on the wide flat north of the Lynxville dam.  The dam was originally built in 1937 and refurbished during a decade or more in the 90s and 2000s.  Now the Corps of Engineers continues a three-year habitat restoration project, using heavy construction equipment and dredging to move material to various locations within the pool for island development.  The project is a part of the Upper Mississippi River Restoration Program that included the work at Stoddard and Brownsville and more.  Since 1986, the Corps of Engineers has restored more than 45,000 acres, or 62 square miles, of river and floodplain habitat within the St. Paul District.  From the highway the project looks huge, and the Corps recommends extreme caution while navigating near the construction site.

The high water doesn’t seem to have hurt the fishing.  Vince said he and Monty Gilbertson cleaned 76 nice panfish in two days out last week.  Gotta get back on the river this week.  

This last Saturday Cassville hosted the 30th Annual American Legion Post 352 Tonnage Tournament.  Fishing teams pay an entry fee and head out to fill their boat with as many heavy fish as they can - this year there were 61 teams.  Originally started as a means to help harvest over populating rough fish, Tonnage has grown into a sponsored fundraiser event.  My information was taken from a participant and he told me this year’s winners weighed in 218 pounds of fish!  Now keep in mind, this is not generally bluegills and walleyes; it is sheepshead, carp, buffalo, gar, pike, catfish, and whatever else they can legally land that will add pounds - it might include panfish and walleyes.  I was told the winning team had two buffalo that came in at over 20 pounds each.  El’s cousin said he and his partner weighed in 108 pounds and didn’t even place.  At least two boats didn’t even register a fish.  (Had I participated there would have been one more probably.) The party includes an of excess of fish stories, razzing, sunburn, and family rivalries.  The legion provides food and drink afterwards.  Post 352 uses the funds raised for community projects, scholarships, military funeral honors, and maintaining the Cassville Veterans Memorial site.   The DNR closely monitors the tournament, so these fish don’t go to waste either.

The Journal Sentinel reported this last week about a new virus that was determined to have killed largemouth bass on Pike Lake last year.  The researchers feel that the virus has been contained to that area.  Biologists have determined fish kills near La Crosse on the Mississippi River were caused by lack of oxygen. The story I read says, “Hot weather exacerbates such conditions because hot water holds less oxygen and speeds up decay of vegetation and other organic matter, a process that consumes oxygen.  The news release says oxygen levels near zero have been noted recently in backwaters near La Crosse.  Recent rains have flushed the oxygen-depleted water into other parts of the river. “  From what I can see, the river is really grassed in, so it may be awhile before this problem goes away.

Until next time, get out - Ellen’s tomatoes are making my day lately.  Bacon, lettuce, and tomato sandwiches for all three meals a day.  Tonight I had a chicken, cheese, lettuce, AND tomato sandwich for supper.  Um um.  She picked a huge batch of perfectly formed garlic this last week.  She is getting a few green peppers and she may have to wear a helmet to protect herself from exploding zucchini.  Still, for some reason her cucumbers faded away.  Oh well, we'll just have to rough it with a trip to the farmer’s market.  She baked more zucchini bread the other day.  I suggested zucchini muffins next time.  What a wonderful time to be an epicure such as myself.  Enjoy.