‘Family fish feud’ leads to entertaining trip

STATE # 8 - NEBRASKA

JANUARY 2018 - DOC LAKE

SPECIES CAUGHT - Yellow Perch

If you get on the internet to search fishing guides in NE you will probably immediately be staring right at Chad Richardson’s Fish The Plains website like I did. Before coming to the Corn Husker state for the second stop on my two-state trip, I ended my research where it started booking 2 days fishing with him along with each of us a room at the historic Hyannis Hotel. Although Chad lives on the beautiful Lake McConaughy near Ogallala, he advised me that was not the place to go after my desired catch the Yellow Perch. This easy going, well prepared fishing guide that I found much in common with had a complete plan in place when I arrived in the tiny town of Hyannis - population 182. A cargo type trailer converted to fishing trailer Chad pulled had all the equipment and rigging an ice fishing outing needed and more. Scheduled to fish on the 19th and 20th we both arrived earlier than expected on the 18th and after checking in we got our luggage up to the second floor of this two story hotel which was dedicated for all it’s hotel rooms. We then headed out to Doc Lake arriving in a just a few minutes. Just two days removed from a 17 below morning in SD, the upper teens seemed warm and balmy comparably speaking.

I am an open-minded student when it comes to a new technique. I have to be, for every fish is different and I am Mr. Different targeting something unlike what I’ve done before every time I can. So after the short hike to our fishing spot and quick setup we drilled holes and I baited my hook with a wax worm. I asked, what’s the method Chad? He said, here I can show you easier than I can tell you. As he started speaking and dropping the line in, a perch hit it about one second after it dropped in and he started laughing as he pulled him out saying, Paul that was fast - I didn’t even get to tell you anything.

I didn’t need any more tutoring and the bite was on. This fish is pretty easy to set the hook in very similar to a bluegill. Chad had us set up in the right spot. We caught several, staying with them while the bite was on and when it slowed we drilled some satellite holes in the 6 to 8” thick ice covering on this approximately 20 acre lake that had a railroad running through the backside of it. I had told Chad immediately he may as well fish with me because I didn’t need much help with anything mostly because it was all set up so good and we had a fish that behaved like one of my home native fish.

So we fished together catching near 30 of these fish that are a small species. Before dark Chad landed his personal best ever at 14.” My 13” was my best. Before this day I had only caught one Yellow Perch which was an accident out of season on my WI summer trip. I knew we were doing good remembering the world record Yellow Perch from ID in researching was less than 3 pounds. Instead of traditional fish finding Sonar we used an underwater camera enabling us to see the actual fish instead of a digital blip on a screen. That was really cool.

So after the quick dose of getting this stop broke in properly, dark found us in Chad’s trailer filleting fish on the purpose designed cleaning station. Chad filleted them as I bagged the meat and discarded the skeletons with heads still attached in a trash can. Little did I know I was about to witness a good old fashioned family quarrel over, of all things a fish skeleton. You see Chad is not the only member of his family that loves to fish.

His wife Carin held the family record on the Yellow Perch at 13” before this very day that I witnessed it be broken. About the time I was sealing that bag of fillets he called Carin to report that her record had been overtaken. I could hear her response to his announcement coming out of his phone as she said, how do you know he was 14?” He said, “I measured him.” Then he said, “I also have a witness.” “She said, did you take a picture?” He said, “yes I had Paul take a picture.” She then asked, “are you through filleting?” He replied, “yes”. “Did you put the tape measure on the fish in the picture?” “No.” Then she said it, “you have no proof.”

He told her he would call her back regarding this family fish feud. Chad quickly scrambled hunting the remains of the big yellow that now looked like Sylvester the cat had got a hold of it. I laughed and started hunting the tape measure. When he retrieved his treasure from the trash I photographed him with the skeletal remains of but fully intact 14” yellow perch against a tape measure to serve as proof of his family record. As I try to avoid being involved in domestic disputes I kept my role very silent but could not hold back my laughter as once again I was getting the bonus of free entertainment with my fishing. I told him, I’ll check on you in a week or so to see how breaking this family record works out for you. So with proof of catch in his smart-phone we went to the hotel restaurant and enjoyed a really great steak dinner. I was really tired and looking forward to that hot shower. We had the entire second floor to ourselves which meant it was just us total in the whole hotel that only had rooms on the second (top) floor. So after exchanging my room for another on account of issues, I was granted the token of picking whichever room I wanted and so after scrutinizing this property and trying to obtain the best one I finally had to pick one.

So upon entering the shower I tried to solve the mystery of making the water come on. There are only so many ways to operate shower head controls. It finally came on without the mystery being solved. I can take no credit here. It just happened. I did not question what seemed like a miracle when it came on. I just took the shower. So I got in the bed. The hotel bar and restaurant which took the entire bottom floor was so loud there was no sleeping for me to have. I planned to drown this rowdy noise out with the TV but the TV remote was a bigger mystery than the shower. I don’t know how I got it on that one channel but it had annoying stuff on it so after realizing it was stuck on this channel I turned it off. I called downstairs and complained it was too loud. She said, oh it’s just the train it will be gone in a few minutes. I said, a train? Are you kidding me? I couldn’t hear a train if it was running through my room. So they got quiet for 5 minutes and then right back on. I called them again and asked them if they could turn down the jukebox and the crowd and they did just that - at closing time. It seemed like I was having to get up about the time I went to sleep. I’m okay at this but I knew what I was in for because that was a Thursday night crowd. That means next time is Friday night. So I thought I will take this as it comes.

I got a bottle of hot coffee at the store next door Friday morning and hit the ice with my new Nebraska friend. The temperature started out at 46 degrees peaking in the low 50s giving us melting ice on a thin sheet. I asked Chad as we hiked again to near the same spot if he guaranteed the ice to not give under us. He laughed and said, no but the good news is the water will only be about 3 or 4 foot deep. I could feel it give a little in places but it was good and that afternoon the temperature dropped sharply back into the upper 20s. We set up again and the bite was as hot as that steaming coffee. I didn’t need more than that to get the sleep out of my eyes. That pair of hots done the trick. Chad had a heater that doubled as a cooker by turning it up on it’s side. He cooked lunch and man those Brat-Dogs were so good. Something about that kind of meal on the ice. So satisfying. We just tore em up catching more than 130 Yellow Perch that day. Same drill-back to the hotel for a great meal and really good visit with Chad.

Back in my room I skeptically approached the shower and thought I got away with something when the water came right on only to find another problem and found myself having to choose between scalding hot and ice cold. Didn’t those plumbers read about the spirit of moderation. I tried my best Indian tricks and holding my mouth in different positions and all to no benefit. It was very fitting that this shower seemed haunted because I sounded like Scooby Doo talking to it.

I did not want or need a cold shower but I needed to be clean so I took one. I must have resembled poor old Wile E. Coyote coming out cold, wet, and trembling. I thought as tired as I am there ain’t a corn husker in the state of Nebraska loud and rowdy enough to keep me up tonight. I was mistaken. They all had the Friday night blues. I struggled with the TV and I found a channel that had something on I recognized but the moderate volume I could sleep to would not drown out the wild bunch downstairs that were just cranking up.

After a little while I called and pleaded with them to turn it down asking myself at the same time, how do you turn down a crowd that don’t have a knob. I can’t even turn on a shower and it has one. They actually lowered the volume for about 10 minutes. I think one of them reminded all present that it was Friday night about the time they got their second wind and bottle. I accepted the reality and then entered the last morning of my ice fishing outing as a zombie would. I felt like Joe Pesci in my cousin Vinny and might have agreed to even sleep in a jail if one was offered. Now I was sleep deprived twice in a row but once again the excitement over ruled. It was cold again stiffening the shallow ice back up. The bite was not as hot but we still caught a lot of fish.

But what was hot was fajitas for lunch on the heater cooker. We cut out early about 2 p.m. and took our last catch back to Chad’s house on the bank of the gorgeous Lake McConaughy where he has his own private dock and boat slip. I wanted to visit longer but a winter storm was headed our way from the west so I headed to Kansas to stay in my so longed for Comfort Inn on my way home. I will give the Hyannis Hotel credit where it’s due. The restaurant was very good and seemed to be what primarily paid their bills. As for that they may have been bringing in the income but they were not thinking about the overhead.

Chad primarily offers Walleye fishing for limit catch or trophy fishing either one on Lake McConaughy. I highly recommend Chad’s ice fishing guide service. With his fishing experience, equipment and 25 years of being employed as a USDA wildlife biologist he is the real deal. He is on the internet at www.fishtheplains.com. The yellow perch is a very coveted and an awesome tasting fish and I rank it above Black Crappie.

I fried almost all of them and it don’t get much better. I grilled them for one lunch and that was also very good. Thanks Chad for the care and effort you put into your service that made my stop in Nebraska most enjoyable while Fishing America. And also thanks for the hot lunch cooked on the ice.