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D&R Sports Center will host its annual Spring Fishing Show Friday and Saturday with a stellar lineup of seminar speakers.

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If Matt Arey’s boat number at this year’s Bassmaster Classic is any indication of good things to come, then #22 might just lead to first place. Arey is the ultimate ‘girl dad’ and his two young daughters love Taylor Swift’s hit song “22”.

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New Gear

The Jitterbug was among Fred Arbogast’s signature creations and now a few iconic anglers are putting their signature on the Jitterbug as part of a collaborative effort to mark Arbogast’s election this year to the Bass Fishing Hall of Fame.

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Clear H2O Tackle
KVD Answers Most Frequently Asked Questions
Quick Tip: How to Replace the Carpet on Your Boat Trailer Bunks
D&R Sports Center

By Louie Stout

There’s reason for optimism over walleye fishing on the St. Joe River and at Lake of the WoodsThere’s reason for optimism over walleye fishing on the St. Joe River and at Lake of the WoodsThe past 365 days have been anything but normal for Michiana sportsmen and here’s hoping that 2016 delivers better results.

Most of the craziness of 2015 was weather related. There was the long winter that pretty much diluted the spring spawning season, a relatively mild summer that had fish scattered all over the inland lakes, and a really mild fall/early winter that had us fishing open water later than ever.

Had it not been for local ducks and geese, there wasn’t much of a waterfowl hunt and deer hunters were leaving their heavy parkas at home. And here it is early January and still no ice.

There were other factors that left us scratching our heads and wondering what next year will bring. Here are some of the leftover issues for outdoorsmen to ponder:

With promising reports of a good walleye population, could Lake of the Woods (Bremen, Ind.) become one of Michiana’s most interesting lakes to fish this year? And don’t forget the big schools of nice catfish swimming in the lake.

Michigan cut its non-resident license fees a paltry $4 down to $68. Will Hoosiers who boycotted Michigan lakes bite the bullet and come back this year or continue to avoid fishing north of the border?

The Michigan DNR bought land for an Eagle Lake boating access in August, 2014 and the land still sits idle 18 months later. Michigan officials say they are trying to work out issues with the Cass County Road Commission, but it sure looks like the DNR is dragging its feet. Could we see the new access functional this year?

Will Webster Lake rebound with better survival of young muskies due to a change in stocking strategy?

Can the Michiana Steelheaders pull the pieces back together and return to being a strong voice on fish and wildlife matters?

Will Indiana ever get its deer biologist position filled? What about all the other vacancies that have left the Division of Fish and Wildlife with a skeleton crew?

Does anyone really think Indiana’s natural resources are in good hands with how the state government handcuffs fish and wildlife management?

What ever happened to the move to put a bag limit on Indiana bluegill?

Shouldn’t we start reaping the benefits biologists expect from the St. Joseph River smallmouth bass slot limit imposed a few years ago?

Does anyone believe that Michigan’s Department of Environmental Quality really pays attention to the chemical weed treatment permits they approve? Seems like a lot of excessive vegetation is getting nuked by lake associations and fish are dying. It’s ridiculous that Michigan’s fisheries division has no say in the weed control permits.

If Lake Michigan’s alewife population doesn’t rebound the trout and salmon program could crash. Or is it already on the verge of that?

On a bright note, thousands of young of the year yellow perch were hanging around Michigan City this fall. Assuming they don’t get devoured by hungry trout and salmon, this could be a sign of better perch fishing in the coming years.

Will Quagga mussels wipe out zebra mussels and cause an even bigger environmental problem on Lake Michigan?

How long before Asian carp invade Lake Michigan?

Isn’t it cool to see so how many women have taken up hunting and have been bagging trophy deer and turkeys?

What ever happened to the bear that immigrated to Indiana and was living around Michigan City? Is it a sign of the times?

Now that Ken McCormack let the cat out of the bag about the quality and abundance of St. Joseph River bluegill, will we see more boats out there dunkin’ for dinner?

After hearing about the monster buck that was hit by a car on a busy street in Mishawaka, one has to wonder how many other trophy deer are roaming Michiana city streets.

This mild winter should accelerate growth of our bass, walleye and bluegill heading into spring. Perhaps that means the St. Joseph River won’t be so stingy with those keeper size (16-inch) walleyes this year.

Can Michigan keep its CWD crisis in check, or will there be other outbreaks around the state?

Let’s hope the Michiana Walleye Club Outdoor Show (Jan. 29-31) gets a better break from the weatherman. Storms have hurt attendance in previous years. We need this show to grow and be successful!

JBLP

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