Duran Martinez - AM Outdoors Radio Show

On this weeks show, I mentioned the fine folks in St. Louis, Michigan will be going for a World Record for their event on June 13th. As luck would have it, the world record attempt has been scrubbed.

 It seems that in their effort to make this happen, there were a few factors involved that could have made them change the date. Not for lack of involvement or will.

 Now to a brighter note on the same subject. I would love to have this become the single largest fishing event in the state! Click on the following link to find out how to get involved: www.stlouismi.com. I will be on hanging out for the event and would love to have everyone participate. This is a fun, family event that brings awareness to our natural resources here in Michigan. See ya there!

-Duran

THIS WEEKS SHOW 

Join us this week as we talk to my good friend and mentor, Tom Nelson. Tom along with good friend and Martin Archery Factory Rep., Bob Miles are responsible for my passion for archery hunting.

Tom will speak on summertime bow tips, and getting ready for October.

We are half way to the opener on October 1st. Are you ready? Do you think it’s to early to scout? Is it too early to hang treestands? Those questions and more. www.wolfcreekinc.com

Dan Kimmel is a Michigan bass pro that offers a few tips on early season bass angling. Tips for big smallies and largemouth. www.greatlakesbass.com

We also take a step outside of Michigan and talk with Dave Gannaway from the Illinois High School Association.

Dave has just finished up a bass tournament that features high-school kids from almost 200 different schools in Illinois. Find out who participated and how they finished up. www.thefuturefisheshere.org

 If you have a topic for the show or a guest you would like to hear, drop me a line. duran.martinez@citcomm.com

As the weekend draws to a close, I look back with some sense of both accomplishment and pride.

The first from the extensive amount of yard-work that I had accomplished after a morning of late season turkey hunting. The second, a sense of pride I get after sharing a day of fishing with my 10 year old daughter, Eryn.

As for turkey hunting, it has been a strange year for sure. I was able to get out the first time with my daughter for her fist ever turkey hunt. We headed out for the woods early one Sunday morning and had a few gobble back to my attempt at calling to no avail. I almost thought that the birds I had started to call in were taken by other nearby hunters.  At least that’s what I wanted to believe. I am sure there was not an ounce of truth to that one though.

 On Saturday, the 23rd, I had the opportunity to hunt some friends property with my buddy Phil just north of Wacousta. Phil did the calling when he got out there. We managed to see 1 hen and about 6 different Toms. No interest though. They gobbled back a little but seemed more interested in wallowing in the dirt and eating. Even the nearby hen had to feel some sort of neglect form these Toms that came out of the woods to our calling.  We thought we had a chance when they started moving closer to our location, but someone on neighboring property driving a golf cart seemed to send the pack of Toms to an area of woods that were out of our reach. To make matters worse, they popped out even farther away not paying any attention to some soft calling. Oh well, still a week left.

Sunday was a day of old fashioned no plans driving. Get the family in the car and see where we go. About Mt. Pleasant it was decided that the Doherty Hotel in Clare would be the stopping place for lunch.  A stop that was made by my wife’s family back in the day of family trips to their trailer up north. 

With satisfied appetites we headed to who knows where again. But then again, we were five minutes from Jays and I figured it wouldn’t hurt to see what kind of puppies were up for sale in the parking lot, and I do need new boots. No puppies, no boots back on the road. This time, it was off to Beaverton to visit her family. I will bore you no further. But I will say this. Never trust a GPS that is built in to your phone. Use the phone and talk to a human. It’s better! The point I took three counties to get to is try a trip like we used to do when we were kids. No direction, no hurry. It’s a great way to see Michigan.

Memorial Day -

Refusing to do yard work, and having already been to the radio station for a couple hours of making sure the week was ready to go off without a hitch, I called home to check on the availability of my favorite fishing partner. After warning her of the potential for ravenous Michigan mosquitoes, tall weeds and a long walk with no fish, she agreed to accompany me on our next adventure.

This time, we would try the waters of Prairie Creek  for some light tackle trout fishing . A little stretch of water that runs under M-21 and along through Ionia.

The reason for this particular stretch of water was for it’s ease of catching willing trout. With a ten year old in tow, it’s a good idea to know where the fish are and when the fun is over, it’s time to call it a day.

We hit the creek bank armed with a couple of 1/4 oz. Panther Martin spinners. One all gold and my favorite, yellow body with red dots and a hunter orange blade. A few casts in I landed my first small rainbow. A few casts later it was a small brook trout with the acrobatics of a high wire act. I passed the fishing pole off  to the rookie for to land her first trout in the wild.

We proceeded up he banks looking for some fast water where they might hide waiting for unsuspecting food. But the farther we walked it all looked the same. Overhanging trees, deep holes and small fish. Too small to keep. But it was well worth it. Time spent being a dad and a friend.

By the time we were through, we had landed a mix of about five brookies and rainbows.  All too small, but every one big enough to raise a huge smile and a memory to keep forever.

On the way home, my daughter had commented on the irony of a passing billboard that read “take time to be a dad today.” I could hear the pride in her voice and I could feel it in my heart, that that is exactly what I had done and hope to do again, and again.

-Duran 

Make sure you visit the Thermacell website for your chance at one of there great new lanterns.

Michigan is going to be a mosquito haven this year with all the rain we’ve had. This is a great product that actually works!

Happy hunitng and fishing!

http://www.thermacelllanternsweepstakes.com/