sausageheavenoutdoors Enjoy making homemade sausage, Tasty way's to BBQ, smoking meats and poultry. See how northern Minnesota was settled and the life early homesteader's lived their lives and more!!

Betty Lessard, who started one of the North Shore’s best-known restaurants, has died at age 90. Carl Ehlenz, the current owner of Betty’s Pies, said the family called him Friday morning to deliver the news that Lessard had died Thursday night. Scott Storms, a nephew of Lessard, said she had broken her hip a while back and had a hard time recovering.

Lessard started selling pies at her dad’s fish shack on the Stewart River in 1956. Soon the pies became more popular than the fish, and Betty’s Pies was born. Betty’s Pies became a landmark between Duluth and Two Harbors, and a must-visit location for many tourists. She watched as the original restaurant was torn down in 2002 to make way for an expansion of State Highway 61.

“The fondest memories…all of the wonderful people I’ve met, all of the friends that I’ve made that I wouldn’t have gotten to know,” she said while watching the demolition. “And I had people from all over coming here.”

Lessard sold her iconic restaurant years ago, but was still a presence at the shop. Her recipes were even published in a cookbook. A memorial service is planned for Monday, April 6, at 11 a.m. at Sunrise Memorial Funeral Home in Hermantown. This is from http://www.WDIO.com .

So why do deer shed their antlers each year? Annual cycles in deer antlers are related to the changing seasons. Deer have adapted their physiology and behavior to respond to seasonal changes, including antler growth and shedding. The environmental cue that regulates antler growth is the amount of day length; the physiological cue is the hormone testosterone.

Simply put, the changing day lengths are sensed by the eyes, which send this message through the optic nerve to the pineal gland located at the base of the brain. The declining day length in late fall and early winter causes a decrease in testosterone, which results in antler shedding.

The actual process of antler shedding involves ta thin layer of tissue destruction that forms between the antler and the pedicle, called the abscission layer. The degeneration of the bone-to-bone bond between the antler and the pedicle is considered to be the fastest deterioration of living tissue known in the animal kingdom. Michelle Carstensen, DNR wildlife health program supervisor.

All this nice weather sure get’s me in the spirit for sausage making. Well it doesn’t take much for that to happen regardless but the nice weather get’s it a notch higher. I wanted to try this recipe I got from a guy in Canada. This called for pork and chicken for the mix so that meant some extra flavor, along with the spices he used. Check out what I made in the Homemade Sausage page [Tasty Chicken and Pork Brats]. You can make these smoked, in the oven, or fresh for the grill.

Surplus Spring Turkey Hunt Licenses Go On Sale

Hunters who applied for a spring wild turkey hunting license but were not selected in the recent lottery are eligible to purchase a surplus license on a first-come, first-served basis beginning at 5 p.m., Monday, March 16. A total of 2,789 surplus licenses are available. People who did not participate in the lottery may purchase any remaining surplus licenses starting noon on Wednesday, March 18, when all remaining licenses are made available to anyone. Unlimited over-the-counter licenses for time periods D-H also go on sale at this time.

Surplus licenses will be available at any statewide Electronic License System agent or online at http://www.mndnr.gov/buyalicense. A list of hunting dates, permit areas and the number of surplus permits available in each area is available at http://www.mndnr.gov/hunting/turkey.

Which Fish Species Are The First To Spawn Here In Minnesota In The Spring

Northern pike usually spawn first when water temperatures are in the low 40’s. There is often still ice on the main lakes when pike run into tributary streams, rivers or wetlands to spawn. Walleye spawn a bit later, followed by yellow perch, muskellunge, bass and crappie/bluegill. Henry Drewes, DNR regional fisheries manager.

Anglers will have more opportunities to fish for bass, sturgeon and trout this year thanks to changes in Minnesota’s fishing regulations. Fishing regulations changes are summarized on page six on the 2015 Minnesota Fishing Regulations booklet, which will be available by Sunday March 1, at any license agent or online at http://www.mndnr.gov/fishmn and http://www.mndnr.gov/regulations/fishing.

Bass fishing expands

Beginning Saturday, May 9th, anglers in most of the state can catch and release bass until the regular harvest season opens Saturday, May 23. Meanwhile, anglers in northeast Minnesota can continue to catch and keep bass during these two weeks. Northeast Minnesota is defined as essentially north and east of U.S. Highway 53. In another bass season change, the fall closure on harvest of smallmouth bass has been lifted in the northeast. Interested in ddoing more bass fishing in Minnesota this year? Learn more at http://www.mndnr.gov/fishmn/bass.

Sturgeon Fishing Opportunities Expand

Anglers will have more opportunities to fish for lake sturgeon starting March 1. However, season dates differ depending on location. On inland waters and Minnesota waters bordering North Dakota, South Dakota and Iowa, a new catch-and-release season will allow anglers to fish for lake sturgeon from June 16 until April 14, a season lasting nearly 10 months. Anglers here cannot fish for lake sturgeon from April 15 to June 15, a closure intended to protect the fish during their spawning season.

On Minnesota waters bordering Canada there are harvest, catch-and-release and closed seasons for lake sturgeon. On waters bordering Wisconsin, there is a lake sturgeon harvest season in the St. Croix River south of Taylors Falls including Lake St. Croix, but otherwise all waters have catch-and release lake sturgeon seasons that differ depending on date and location. Season details can be found in the border waters section of the fishing regulations at http://www.mndnr.gov/fishmn or on page 43 of the 2015 Fishing Regulations booklet, which will be available online at http://www.mndnr.gov/regulations/fishing on March 1.

Muskie Minimum Length Increased

This year, the minimum length limit to keep a muskie is 54 inches. The previous limit was 48 inches. Various muskie angling organizations supported the change. Exceptions to the new 54 inch minimum length limit apply for muskie-northern pike hybrids, also called tiger muskie, in the seven-county metro area, where the minimum length limit remains 40 inches on certain lakes.

2015 Fishing Regulation Booklet

Anglers are encouraged to read the 2015 fishing regulations booklet to review these and other changes, including:

Expanded seasons for stream trout, both in streams and winter fishing in lakes.

New limits and seasons on Minnesota waters bordering Canada, including a new size restriction for walleye that becomes effective March 1 [only one walleye will be allowed in possession over 20 inches, where previously there was no size restriction].

The flathead catfish season will close in winter.

Anglers are also reminded to check online at http://www.mndnr.gov/fishmn and http://www.mndnr.gov/regulations/fishing for the latest additions or corrections. In addition, changes to special or experimental regulations may be in effect, and are listed by lake online and in the special regulations section of the printed booklet.

Mark Koehnen caught this giant crappie on Lake Waconia. The tape measure showed an incredible 19 inches length and it tipped the scales at 3.26, but the official weighing didn’t take place until at least a day after since the bait shop, In Towne Marina, was closed when he came off the lake. Congratulation Mark!! Should look great on your wall.

Nicholas Colangelo and Luke Wholey were out fishing on the Pymatuning Reservoir when Colangelo reeled in a fish that stunned both of them. “The weight was unbelievable, I’ve caught a lot of muskies, but never felt anything like this,” Colangelo said. The giant Musky, which was suspected of being about 30 years old, measured an astounding 53 inches in length and took about 30 minutes to reel in.

“We brought it in through a 10-inch hole in the ice, and it barely fit through the hole,” Colangelo said. After taking a few photographs, the duo decided to release the fish back into the water. “These big fish are so rare, and so old, it’s really important that we let them go,” Colangelo said.

This is a great site from the DNR. Take a virtual tour of Minnesota’s state parks, recreation areas, state trails, and even some of the state water trails. Panoramic, video, and snapshot tours are available for many locations. Take a peek and plan your trip!!! http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/state_parks/virtual_tours.html.

What is a good day of fishing anyway. Just being out there fishing that’s what it is. I was out with Tony yesterday on one of my favorite lakes, Grindstone Lake, near Sandstone Minnesota. [See more on Grindstone Lake in the Where To Go page]. I have fished this lake for many years, both on hard water and open water. Yesterday was kind of a unexpected day as far as lake trout.

I usually fish for lakers in deeper water, and was targeting rainbows, fishing in about 5 feet of water. Rainbows like to cruise these shallow depth, but I sure didn’t expect small groups of lake trout to cruise by as well. We spotted some rainbows here and there, and one 13 incher nailed my teardrop with a waxie attached. Then about 15 minutes later a large lake trout swam right under our holes. We tried to entice the laker into biting but he wasn’t fooled [ or just not hungry].

Then a little later two or three more lakers came by to visit us, with again no takers. I put a fresh waxie on my teardrop panfish jig since it’s been in the water for some time. Few minutes later as I was twitching the jig about a foot under the ice, a big head appeared and inhaled the jig. It was one of the lakers, a nice 4 pounder. Couple of fist bumps and a cold one to celebrate the catch. I was using 2 pound test florocarbon mono. We were limited for time so we packed up with a few rainbows and that nice laker to keep that smoker busy soon. Any day is a good day to be out in the outdoors. Here are a couple of pictures of the lake trout and one of the rainbows that Tony caught.

There are many lakes in Canada as we all know. One lake was always very special to me. White Otter Lake near Atikokan Canada. My dad, brother, and I fished this lake for over 15 years back years ago. This lake is known for it’s great walleye and lake trout fishing. It also has lot’s of smallmouth and some nice pike. For those who have fished this lake a number of times they probably discovered that White Otter is also known for it’s White Otter Castle. Really a fascinating structure built by one man many years ago all by his lonesome. I think I will let the video tell the story of this man in the wilderness and the castle he built. Thanks to Dan who sent me the link. Brings me many memories of the years I spent on this lake. I have some pictures of the times we had on the lake in the Fishing Up North page. Enjoy the video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SueKFSvJRDE.