They're doing good.
Yes, they are.
All right.
So give me a sense of how the
fishing dynamic works.
Obviously, this afternoon we saw
you with the pole and you with
a comfy lawn chair.
How do you guys work that out?
We've summed it up perfect right
there. For the last couple of days,
that's what the dynamic has been
with the sunlight and
the high sky and it's
been tough.
So I got a lot of color,
caught a few fish here and there.
He has the eye, he has patience.
She dabbles in and out, yeah.
I'll fish and
after a while I'm like okay, too
many snacks,
lost too many, you know, jigs.
I'm gonna just sit here and
have her a long winter, you know.
This is lovely weather.
If we were fishing with lures, it
would be real expensive.
It's just jigs.
Jigging a minnow.
Yeah, jigging a crawler.
So we hear a lot about the
wives who lose husbands to fishing.
What's your advice for the women
who complain my husband's always
gone?
Oh, I mean, well, I just enjoy being
outside. I mean if
I could just sit there and just
watch them.
If you don't like to fish, bring a
book. You know, there's
so many things you could do, but
just to be outside, especially
after a long winter.
I mean this is amazing, this
weather,
and he could fish
and I'll just enjoy the outside.
She, uh...
I grew up fishing though.
Yeah, it uses minnows, worms, it
doesn't make a difference.
Yeah, I do my own bait.
I take them on and off unless
they're really, they swallow it,
but you know when you're raised from
a little kid, you know fishing,
it doesn't bother you the worms
and I'm even up to leeches.
That's good, that's good.
So anyway, real quick, I'll tell you
that we've both been coming up since
the mid-60s around
there.
I would come up to Woodroof to go to
Brandy Lake with my family,
and it's on our annual vacation.
Natalie was down in Lake Tomahawk
area.
Ralph has had the Bydewee Resort,
so a lot of fun,
a lot of memories.
So, if you would compare the
fishing from your youth or over
the years to where it is now,
especially with walleye, because
that is one of the concerns up here,
right? Right.
Right.
Yeah. Well, um,
I had a real nice night two
nights ago and it's
a rarity. It was, uh,
Yeah, a rarity.
But it was fun.
So I think it was six all
day.
But three would have been keepers.
You know, they were legal.
So.
I know it's a concern because it was
overfished everywhere.
Everyone was taking them.
And, you know,
they put limits on. Hopefully people
abide by that.
So the lakes are going to
be plentiful.
Because it is.
I mean, you hear even about panfish
on different lakes that
used to be unlimited.
Now they're trying to...
Everything's being overfishing.
I mean it's so popular up here.
You know, a lot of congestion.
On the lakes too, so...
We were just talking to two locals
that
live up here yesterday.
We've run into them several times
here, and they're
not happy with the congestion
up here.
We only deal with it a
week or so at a time,
but when
you're living it, I guess.
So, another interesting thing is,
obviously you guys are traveling
from a long way and a lot of people
are coming up with $70,000
boats and the whole fancy reel
and you're catching fish right
from the shore.
Do you look out there and think,
just laugh or, you know, I'm sure
there's people thinking, oh, you get
stuck on shore.
Well, it's hit or miss, and
it's good and bad.
I do have a friend up here that has
a place in Woodruff, and on occasion
we'll drag that boat around
and hit different lakes,
but as far as Natalie and
I, yeah,
this dam here, it's accessible.
I sound like an old man.
I've had both of my knees replaced
and it's...
It's easy. It's not great, but
Like I said,
my siblings, my parents, everyone in
this house is up here.
Relatives live here.
They're just not up here yet.
But it's, you know,
Pontoom, Little Spider Lake,
or my siblings are
on Cassbrook in Lake Tomahawk.
So we have an outboard, but you
know just take out the fishing boat.
But this is nice.
I mean, this is actually, you can
walk around.
You know, when you're on a boat,
you're kind of stuck, but,
you Google.
Get something to eat now.
Yeah.
So, just one last thing, I want
you to describe what's
the excitement for you when you
catch a walleye.
Oh
Oh my god.
I guess this
harkens back to what you just asked
me. It's a pretty rare occurrence,
yeah, but the other night was an
exception, like I said, it was five
or six walleyes.
But yeah, it's pretty cool.
He's tickled pink.
He is so excited
when it's a walleye,
you know, he gets the big other fish
and a lot of bass and
you know monster crappies
or crappie's but
Always going for walleye per se,
but yeah, an occasional musky,
nice northern every once in a while.
But the walleyes make you the
happiest. Walleyes are, yeah,
walleyies are.
Does he smile bigger when it's
a wall? Oh gosh!
Like I said,
Get the net, get the net!
I know.
I gotta be more patient.
Oh.
But it is exciting.
Thank you. Can I get you to say and
spell your name just so I have it
correct?
Natalie, N-A-T-A,
L-I-E, Jurek,
J-U-R-E-K.
And Richard Bake, R-I-C-H-A-R-D-E-A
K-E.
Thank you so much.
Thank you.