Manistee Gold

Norland you can keep your secret society Mennonite Gypsy Roe...I got my Manistee Gold...
Now if I could just escape from work...

Newsprint Steel

Cold Steel Therapy




Medicine for the Soul

 



 


  

Who Rolls Harder than Norland?

Norland…International man of mystery, guardian of the nation, scourge to middle management, and genuine POS… There are not a lot of nice things I can say about him other than he likes his Scotch, Beer and imported cheeses and oh ya… that Mf’er rolls hard.
I’ll even go out on a limb to say I know no one that rolls harder. LOL!

Point of note:

1. Snowmageddon… while the rest of Ontario hunkered down cowering at what was pitched as the snowstorm to end the world we took the Tercel across the barren Ontario hi ways in search of chrome. What… we did bring a plastic shovel with us. You know…just in case. And we did put the beat down on a few before we even came to our senses.

2. Norland takes Tercel down gigantic snow covered hill to river valley access. Upon retreat from river discovers snow now frozen over and road iced up. After numerous attemps and the risk of sliding off of a cliff he abandons the vehicle and calls his wife to come and pick him up. He returns days later with a pallet of salt and sand to discover ice has melted and rescues the vehicle by driving it out.

3. Last winter’s Freak Snowstorm that shut down hi ways and international border crossings stranding hundreds on the 402 for days and employing the services of the Canadian military...remember that one???Well we took the Tercel down barren and deserted MI hi ways to meet up with a Guide and fished the lower Muskegon under hurricane force winds and blinding snow. We certainly drew some looks of concern from the 4x4 crews that day. Oh ya… and we put a few in the boat as well. I still remember the look on the faces of the snowmobile guys when we pulled back to the boat launch.

4. Ice Breaker SS Norland hooks a chromer in a very narrow slot of open water on a well frozen over run after a long unsuccessful outing. With no regard for his personal well-being he refuses to lose the fish and proceeds to bust up and set free a sheet of Ice no smaller than a pickup truck…He landed the fish!

5. Another colder than Hell mid-December outing whilst fishing back in the sticks Norland decides to cross an unfamiliar piece of raging water. Part way in and on the edge of no return he commits to find himself swimming the remainder of the crossing with one arm in the air holding his rod and the other paddling for dear life while bobbing off the bottom. He is completely soaked and fishes the remainder of the sub-arctic day out fishing me…POS!

6. We learn of “secret access” road back to holy water believed only accessible via 4x4. Norland throws caution to the wind and drivesTercel back where no Tercel has gone before. New shit-rat precedent set!  Great moment in Steelheading History!

7. Under explicit instruction from the mother of his children to be home no later than 4pm Norland rolls in the drive way at 6 tired and beat down from a long day of inhumanly possible fishing antics. As a bargaing tool he bares gifts of smoked back bacon and sausage. Now that right there is hard core sh*t!



Fueled by nothing more than Bud Light and Bologna sandwiches the man is truly unstoppable. Nobody rolls harder than Norland and I’m glad he is my friend and fishing partner.  "F*cking GPS"

Friends of the Night

A little while back I had the urge to purchase one of those Trail/Game cameras that seem to be the rage in the hunting world.  For me it was an idea fueled by a desire to captures some images of critters frequenting our bird feeders at the cabin in the winter months as well as any two legged "Red-necked Critters" that may be sniffing around.

Well along came an awesome deal through Cabela's and low and behold we had our own motion activated Infra-red camera.

When I was up at the cabin on the "Roe-Run" we decided to set it up on the salt licks and bait pile we have out back for the deer.

A week later my wife was up at the cabin and pulled the camera to download the picks.  We were quite astonished to learn there is a great deal of activity that goes on back there after dark.

I can see this thing is going to be a tonne of fun in the years to come.  Enjoy.

5 Years

Well, well, well...Time certainly flies doesn't it?  One blinks their eyes and before they know it 5 years have slipped through the cracks.  I started this blog on a whim and never really expected it to be anything short of a passing fad but here I am some 270 posts later typing number 271 with some 44K+ hits to my record .  I never really expected it to turn into what it has...a venue for creativity and a means of capturing meaningful memories of a thing I am so very passionate about.

It certainly has been nice to have a venue to share my adventures through photography and the written word.  More so, it has been even nicer to have had a journal to go back in time and re-live the adventures of past.  One can also re-live external events unrelated to fishing through the mindset experienced in the writings of that time.

A lot of things have happened over the past 5 years and I suspect many more will continue to unfold as I work my way toward another 5.  If  for nothing more than a journal of ones adventures I highly encourage anyone considering embarking on this effort to take the leap.  For me it has opened up a venue for creativity.  It has challenged my mental being and challenged my creative efforts. Subsequently, it has led me down a road that I may not have even considered possible or achievable...namely publication.

I have learned anything is achievable and never to sell ones self short.  If you are truly passionate about something and are willing to share it there are others that will enjoy and appreciate the efforts.
Looking forward to sharing future adventures and creative endeavours.  Keep checking back and offering any comments and feedback.

Wild Huron Chrome

There is no comparison...

Black and White

They say a picture speaks a thousand words.  If this is indeed true then a well selected Black and White speaks a million.

October Chrome

Here in the Great Lakes there is nothing that compares to the power and grace of October Chrome.  The hunt is on...

Roe Run

The 2011 fall season has been pretty much nonexistent for me so far. With a regional role at work and 3 three major plant Shutdowns underway my leisure time has been put on hold. With these types of Industrial work events everything in one’s personal life comes to a grinding halt. Every ounce of me wants to complain about my situation but common sense and direct exposure to the 180 degree alternatives have rendered my big mouth shut. I have a great job and am fortunate for where I am in life. The current economic status of the US, and my direct exposure to it via family and community, has really put things into perspective for me.

So having been away from the cabin and the river since early September we decided to make a break for it in the form of a whirl wind tour up to Manistee County after Saturday’s 10 hr shift. I wanted to make sure things were in order at the property and make one decent attempt at the kings while there was still Roe to be had. Barbaric as this may sound it is actually the lesser of all evils for me as one single Hen Chinook will fill my fishing needs for a year or more. This subsequently renders me a catch and release fisherman for the remainder of my outings. This accompanied with the fact that the Big Manistee is a Salmon Factory pretty much clears my conscience.

The King season had been well on it's way for several weeks now and arriving I wasn't sure what to expect. Much to my surprise the river was teeming with fish. Literally everywhere you looked there were Salmon. Kings and Coho were stacked. Earlier reports were indictive of an epic season and from what I witnessed I would agree. It wasn't long and I was hooked up with a few different freight trains only to exchange farewells at 50mph. I poked around the river long enough to find my "golden egg" and decided to get out of there while the getting was good. I spent the remainder of my day off at the cabin completing some much overdue chores all the while wishing I was staying for a few more days. Back to work Monday for another set of 6-10's or 12’s. Oh ya and I just found out that my outage commitments may extend into mid November. :O.

Part II

Steelhead Dreams Part 2 - by Todd Moen from Todd Moen Creative on Vimeo.

Steelhead Dreams

No matter the method or the location... the passion, desire, and obsession live within us all.

Hanna Belford...living the dream. WOW!




Steelhead Dreams by Todd Moen from Todd Moen Creative on Vimeo.

Week 5

All work and no play for me lately.  Work..Grrrrr.. well I'll leave it at that.  Make hay when the sun shines!  That saying is getting old.  The rivers are spilling over their banks with Anadromous adversaries and I am embarking on week 5 of an 8 week shutdown.  I know when it's all said and done and the money is in the bank it'll all be good but right now it stings.  I had some time this morning to start getting ready.  The efforts were surprisingly healing and I can't wait to put them to the test.  Who wants to float the river in 80 degree temps anyways?  :O.