Walleye Fishing Weekend with the Grandpeeps

It's my goal to get Hank out into the elements as much as possible. Kids need to be outside in my opinion. I spent most of my childhood out-of-doors and I want the same for him. Nathan was itching for some walleye fishing and we'd been meaning to spend some time with the folks so we tied all three together by having all four of Henry's grandparents meet us at Stony Point near Walker, MN on Leech Lake for a long weekend. The first morning we were up early and I was able to go fishing with Nathan and Merald and the Grandmoms watched Henry. We caught 5 fish that morning, 2 walleye keepers that were just under the 18" slot. Nathan and Merald caught more the second day, but they were too big too keep as they were in the 20 -22" inch range. Leech Lake regulations currently call for all walleye between 18-26" to be immediately returned to the water in an effort to boost the breeding population of the lake.

Happy Nathan at the helm

Later that day, I took Henry to the beach and let him play in the water for the first time. I was relieved that he liked the water and plan to teach him to swim as soon as possible. As much as I like swimming in lakes, I was a bit put off by the Mayfly stew happening that day. A huge hatch had deposited millions of carcasses in the water and make swimming a little unappetizing.
We also took the boy for his first ride in daddy's boat. He didn't hate wearing the life jacket, but was confused and uncomfortable. He smiled a lot and looked around, especially at the splashing water. He ended up being lulled into a sound sleep by the motion of the boat by the time we got back to camp.

I love sleeping in tents, especially when its raining, and we had a great rain storm on the second night. Henry slept so soundly that we all slept in until 9am, entranced by the sound.

Dinner on Saturday night was memorable as it was more of a disaster than dinner. Just as we were about to sit down to eat the sky grew very dark, there was a single clap of thunder and we had to scramble to get the picnic table, the food, drinks and baby out of the sudden and drenching downpour. Everyone got a little wet, Henry wouldn't eat, Nathan's campfire nearly went out, several drinks were spilled and it was all fairly chaotic and funny. But, the brats were tasty and hot, everyone got enough to eat and we're not likely to forget it.

Overall it was a great weekend. We caught fish, slept well and the grandparents all got plenty of baby time. I think a good time was had by all.