Articles

WILTZ: You’ve never seen a hearse pulling a U-haul

You don’t need to know about the internal problems in our marriage, the most common bones of contention, and the things about me that cause Betsy some real stress, but I’ll tell you anyway. After all, you readers are kind of like family.

WILTZ: An update on Kocer’s ND elk hunt

I know you’re all waiting for a report on Tom Kocer’s management elk hunt in North Dakota’s Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Unfortunately, Tom failed to qualify with his rifle.

Opinion: ROGER WILTZ: No need for a holiday to remember dad

A few evenings ago, Betsy and I walked down to the Randall spillway from the visitor’s center to watch the discharge.

Opinion: ROGER WILTZ: Northern pike can rebound

In this column two weeks ago, I was very upbeat about fishing conditions on our Lake Francis Case Reservoir. This related mostly to the phenomenal growth I’d observed in walleyes and smallmouth bass since last year. Now, I’m even more enthusiastic than I was two weeks ago. This relates to the appearance of a healthy northern pike population. I feel like a kid with a new toy.

Opinion: ROGER WILTZ: Uncle Bob is expert tuber

On the morning of April 6, Jerry and I were fishing in the boat ramp basin beneath the dam at Pickstown with 16 other nearby boats. I don’t mind not catching fish, but when all the other boats are enjoying success with nice walleyes, it bothers me. Such was the case that morning.

SD lawmakers give extra tourism tax second life; will run into 2013

PIERRE — South Dakota’s additional one-half percent of sales tax on tourism-related purchases won’t expire June 30 as previously scheduled. It also won’t become permanent as Gov. Dennis Daugaard wanted — at least not yet.

Don’t combine stubborn with stupid

The last thing Betsy said as I went out the door was, “Do you want to take the GPS?” I told her I didn’t need it. That stroke of genius cost Doug and me about four hours not to mention the extra gas and a $20 cab fare.

Opinion: Preserve hunts can have many outcomes

Later this month friends and I are going on an Idaho elk hunt. We will hunt with Rulon Jones, the former Denver Broncos defensive end. Rulon owns property in both Idaho and Utah. Check his website at utahelkhunt.com. We can hunt 70,000 acres of unfenced land , or 10,000 acres of fenced land – what Rulon calls “the largest hunting preserve in the world.” These horseback hunts are guided one-on-one, and we may choose either a spike camp with tents or the comfort of a lodge.

Opinion: Daley opposes our Second Amendment

Political corruption is synonymous with Illinois. While I was a kid living my high school years in Chicago during the 1950s, Mayor Richard J. Daley’s political machine dictated every Illinois politician’s next move. It included the neighborhood alderman as well as a string of governors who spent time behind bars. Today, we have another arrogant ex-governor who will hopefully spend time behind bars.

Opinion: Flooding’s effect on the fish

My fishing boat, though Spartan in nature, has a live well under the center seat. There are no pumps or batteries. When I want to keep a fish, I lift the lid on the center seat, pull the plug in the bottom of the chamber, and watch it fill with water to the same level as the waterline outside the boat. The water constantly circulates. At the end of the outing, the live well drains when I crank the boat onto the trailer. I remove the fish and replace the plug. It is pure simplicity that does nothing but work!

Columns

Controlled burns play key role in land management

While controlled burns are a useful part of land management, we don’t often see it in South Dakota. On April 11, a good friend and I were fishing in the White Swan area of the Francis Case Reservoir when we began to notice significant smoke coming from the Gregory County side of the river.

What’s on your table — any unusual meat?

When I was a little kid, my brother and I would tag along on the heels of our mother in the supermarket. When we would get to the meat counter, mom would ask for a pound or two of ground horse meat. I’d whine that I wouldn’t eat horse, but she would tell me that it was a dime a pound cheaper than ground beef, and by supper time I’d forget about it.

A new season has been added to our list of things to do — paddlefishing

It was a major hoot! With the Big Bend powerhouse looming in the background, I’d anchor my feet in the jagged rocks at the tailrace water’s edge, sit back on a sofa-sized boulder, and launch hooks and sinker with a rod as stiff as a pool cue. An 8-ounce sinker was tied beneath two menacing, tennis ball-sized treble hooks. My braided nylon line was 100-pound test. The paddlefish I sought averaged 50-65 pounds. My biggest ever went 94 pounds.

Grandkids — The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

It seems like just yesterday I became Grandpa Roger. Now Sam, the oldest, is 15. I well remember the pre-grandpa days. Friends would dig photos out of a purse or billfold and brag about these precocious urchins. I’d think to myself, “Get a life!” Since then times have changed. Now these photos are stored on cell phones.

WILTZ: Of late, my duck hunting has been on the back burner, and here’s why

The early April fishing on Francis Case Reservoir has been phenomenal. I firmly believe that years from now, we’ll be talking about the fishing in 2011 and 2012. While the window for walleyes thus far has been open for the 15-20 minutes that follow sundown, smallmouth bass and northern pike have hit with abandon all day.

WILTZ: Are you familiar with H.R. 822?

Have you ever considered obtaining a concealed handgun carry permit? The time is certainly relevant for talking about it.

WILTZ: Our ancestors needed their guns

Because so many anglers have successfully fished open water throughout our mild winter, I can’t go into my usual “the fishing season will soon be upon us” mode.

If you are not into plastics, consider changing your ways

The fishing season is upon us. If you haven’t mastered the use of modern plastics, it’s time you did. Walleye, bass, pike and even catfish, find them irresistible. Unfortunately, I dragged my feet on plastic concepts for too long a time. I think it is safe to say that as we age, we tend to become set in our ways. I believe that older men are more resistant to change than women.

There have definitely been times where I’ve been scared

A few months ago, I was shopping in Mitchell when a reader asked if I was Roger. We had chatted for a minute when the lady asked, “In all your adventures, have any situations every struck fear or apprehension into your heart?”

WILTZ: Trying to make my life healthier

It is a fairly common practice for hunting outfitters to rank their hunts on a 1 through 5 scale with regard to physical exertion, stamina and strength.