BadFisherman. Thank you. Thank you and ALL for their service to our Country. As is often stated, All Gave Some, Some Gave All!!! I never thought we would ever experience what our Country is going through today! Hopefully we will not have to "LOCK and LOAD!" Don.

Zoey and Beth. Women will never understand men and men will never understand women. All branches of the service claim to be the best and their members are trained to believe that. In spite of what it looks/sounds like these two men likely have a deep respect for each other. Just before graduating from High School I attempted to enter the Navy but failed the physical because of the loss of hearing in one ear do to ongoing horrible earaches in my childhood. I did not want to be drafted so I joined the Army Reserve to serve my country for 6 years, consisting of 5 1/2 years of monthly meetings and 2 weeks of annual summer training, and 6 months active duty. I knew that if I liked it I could enlist for longer but did not. I had friends who went into the Navy and Marines and they were ALWAYS friends but competitive due to their training in different branches. We were ALL TOLD that we were the best! As you said we ALL served our Country! I was always called a 90 day wonder by the Regular Army troops and other branches of the military. It did not make sense because I served 180 days active duty, not 90. We knew we would be sent home and discharged 1 day early so we would not receive any medical benefits. This was after 6 months of constantly standing in line, waiting for everything!

I have a deep respect for ALL who served their Country, no matter what branch of service they chose or were drafted into. I will NEVER forget those who came back after the Vietnam war and were spit on and ostracized by Americans. For many years they did not wear their uniforms for fear of being called out. Eventually things did get better and I ALWAYS shook the hands of ANY vet I saw. Now of course with the virus we are told not to shake hands but I still can thank them.

If you know any serviceman and ask them about this they will most likely claim their branch is the best because of their training but should acknowledge the sacrifices by all! Take Care and Good Fishing! Don.

DennyLongley, Spiritof27 and ANY others contemplating ordering a lawnmower through Amazon.
Be VERY CAREFUL!!! I read complaints of people who bought lawnmowers (and other items) and complained their mower arrived with damage or parts missing. When they found out that the warranty is VOID when ordering through Amazon they went on line and vented their anger. I was contemplating ordering a Zero Turn mower and after reading the warnings I contacted the Dealer Headquarters and directly asked if the reports were true and she said "Absolutely!!!" I could have saved $300 and free shipping which is why I checked out Amazon. Also, not in this case, a large mower is shipped in a box, up to 1,000 lbs. and the buyer has to be prepared to unload the box him/themselves, the driver has NO responsibility to unload or even aid in the unloading. Then I also found out that your local dealer has a CHOICE to deal with you if you bypassed them and bought from Home Depot or other box stores that ARE NOT dealers which I did. I do have the 3 year warranty but haven't had an issue which required me to contact my local dealer. Home Depot and others sell the items but do not SERVICE them. Also I learned if your local dealer DOES agree to handle your warranty complaints, they also have the option to service their other customers BEFORE someone like me who did not buy from them. Some sellers on Amazon do offer items from certified dealers so make sure you deal with someone like that. You will still have to deal with unloading a boxed item which requires assembly. I believe if you buy on line from a dealer your local dealer will handle your warrant needs. I did not even know I had a local dealer until after I purchased my mower from Home Depot. I spent 3 months watching YOU TUBE videos comparing lawnmowers, no easy task as there are now about 400 manufacturers of Zero Turn mowers due to their popularity. I shortened my search by concentrating on the 10 best rated models, then later I found videos and comparisons for the 5 Best rated models. When I made my decision I neglected to search for a local dealer (my bad) although I went to dealers for the other top rated mowers as i knew where they were located but as I said I did not know of our local dealer for this Make, Model.
Again, be careful, check your local dealer price also and be sure any on-line purchase is from a authorized dealer BEFORE buying. Good Luck, Don.

Georgio44. If your wives like gambling they can spend time at the Casino on the West (California) side of Lake Havasu. The winds normally blow from the West. There are some coves on the west side of the river upsteam from the lake. If the water is deep enough when you are there you can beach the houseboat there safely. We saw people who had run their boats ashore and were casting out and fishing on the bottom with rod holders pushed into the sand.

We still have the pictures of the thick black smoke rising in the middle of the lake and as we approached we saw a boat fiercely burning to the waterline. A nearby boat had rescued the occupants by the time we arrived on the scene fortunately.

In the spring and summer the lake is alive with the biggest, fanciest and fastest boats I have ever seen and they are virtually racing. Going under the London Bridge was an experience worth a few pictures and the fancy homes and boats were evident non stop on the trip from the lake, under the bridge and back to the lake out the other end. Enjoy! Don.

Georgio44. We fished Lake Havasu in June of 2014 (On our Honeymoon!) The record Redear sunfish of almost 6 pounds was caught in February of 2014. It was caught before the spawn. Unfortunately the spawn was early that year and we missed the good fishing. When we fished in the 3rd week of June we were warned that the hot winds were due in a few days and everyone had better be off the water when it blows.

We knew from research that there was NO LIMIT on the Redear sunfish. People came in droves from neighboring states and did not stop fishing until every container that they had was full! We tried to get information from the local bait shop and they were hesitant to share much and I found out why after fishing 3 days and staying off the water 1 day because of the wind. After stopping at the bait shop for the 4th time they asked me what we really wanted. I told them we wanted 3 or 4 a day to eat and 2 or 3 big ones to take home to Minnesota. Then they explained that the fish were fished hard and most of the fisherman were done already but there were still a few being caught 17 miles up the Colorado River! We had been up about 10 miles and did find a cove where we caught 2 Redear sunfish and saw a few more, which disappear IMMEDIATELY if they see you. We caught many Smallmouth bass and catfish but the good fishing was over. In the lake we did catch some small Stripers but we were there for the sunfish. All the many large beds we saw were abandoned. The water was so clear it was easy to see the beds from a distance in the reeds and sand/gravel bottom. We saw VERY few fish. In 5 days of fishing we only caught the 2 sunfish, one was 3/4 lb. and the other 1 1/4 lb. We were told how good eating they were but we ate the 2 and both agreed we liked the taste of Minnesota sunfish better.

I have always wanted to go back, again for the sunfish. I did read that there was a limit imposed on the sunfish of 25 which hopefully has prevented some of those who kept everything from going there or at least following the limit. I checked this spring, (as I said I would like to go back) and it seems the limit is still 25. We fished with the nightcrawlers that were recommended for the Redear sunfish, we never caught any bluegills and the only small group of SMALL bluegill sunfish we saw were in a vacant nest.

Because of the Covid-19 we did not follow through on going back. I can tell you one thing that I observed and was then told by the helpful people at the Bait Shop. The Redear sunfish are very shy. You may get a glimpse of them but they will disappear immediately! You will have to be stealthy or catch them deep, which we were not able to do. The lake is full of Quagga Mussels which are reported to be the reason that the Redear sunfish have increased so much in size as they supposedly eat them.

The best advice I can give is to CHECK the WEATHER history for the time you will be there! Also we had a tent and were planning to sleep in the campground but when we arrived the CAUTION signs warned to be aware of feral pigs invading the campgrounds during the night! That did it for my wife. We moved everything from our station wagon into the boat and slept on an air mattress in the back of the wagon. Unfortunately the hot wind and blowing sand made it necessary to sleep with the windows open. You should do better in a houseboat if you can find shelter from the FURIOUS wind. My lovely new Filipino wife informed me she NEVER would live in Arizona and would go back to the Philippines first. I have been to the Philippines and it is so hot I would not want to live there either. Unfortunately on our trip to Lake Havasu we encountered high winds in Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona where the sky was blotted out by blowing red dust and the highways disappeared at times from the red clouds of dust. Our trip home was much better and we ventured to the Grand Canyon and through Yellowstone Park and Mount Rushmore before returning to Minnesota after 2 weeks and 4,270 miles. All of these (except the fishing at Lake Havasu) I had been to before and not much had changed but of course everything was new to my new bride. Don.

I fish often with night crawlers and last year found they had added an option. Night crawlers with Garlic! I did try one box but went back to the natural and now have to look at each container before purchase as each are both still carried in our local Fleet Farm Store and sometimes mixed up in the cooler. Don.

Mauwehu. I have used night crawlers for many years. Long ago I read that the reason that night crawlers are so effective is that they supposedly smell like shrimp, which many fish will eat. I have MANY northern pike on crawlers. I NEVER use a leader, just tie the hook or jig on the 6 lb. test Green Trilene in Xtra tough (not Extra limp). The secret to catching and landing northern pike with no leader it not to set the hook until they are traveling AWAY from you. Even if they swallow the hook it the line will not be cut as it works behind the long bone flap on each side of their mouth and is behind the teeth. Bites will usually diminish dramatically with the use of leaders, swivels and other hardware. I have caught many northern, bass, dogfish while fishing with flies for panfish which is my favorite method. I use a Rainbow torpedo float, 6 pound line, 4 pound leader on a spinning outfit. I use a sinking fly and add maggots to the hook for the smell. Yesterday I caught the sunfish in 11 feet of water and that ruled out the flies and maggots for surface, subsurface panfish. Because of the heat and lack of insects the fish were not surfacing.

I catch everything on a short shank eagle claw #6 crappie hook. I don't use the bait keeper hooks. I Use night crawlers most of the time. I have caught a LOT of crappies on night crawlers. Yesterday I caught a 24" walleye, 27" northern and 20 (the limit) large sunfish. I had 2 boats near me, one was a couple from their home on the lake adjacent to the fishing spot. I never saw another fish caught by any of the 4 occupants of the other boats. These big bluegills wanted a whole night crawler and were 8" - 10" long. If I use a jig it is 1/16 ounce with a bait keeper bump on the body near the hook. I can get by with a 1/2 crawler on this jig.

In Minnesota no intentional "snagging" is allowed. All fish "foul hooked" anyplace outside of the mouth during legal angling must be immediately released.

Robert J Samples. Here in St. Cloud, Mn the law prohibits releasing any projectile, even a rock, or face a $300 fine the last I checked years ago. "Just Sayin".

There was a heated ongoing discussion in the local weekly fishing news a few years ago with cat lovers chastising cat haters for eliminating all roaming felines on sight for their deadly carnage on game birds and song birds. After weeks of ongoing fighting a game warden chimed in with the fact there was no law against killing roaming feral cats. He said if it did not have a collar on just shoot it and dispose of it and shut up. I don't have to dispose of them as cats, woodchucks, opossums (in season) disappear over night as the coyotes will eat everything. I can't believe that there is a season on opossums. Season opens around October 25th and they can be harvested from 1/2 hour before sunup to 1/2 hour after sundown, like deer!

My weapon of choice is a bolt action .17 HMR which sends the round downrange at 2,550 ft. per second. This round was developed by Hornady himself to prevent any ricochets as the bullet blows up on impact on water, rocks, trees and of course animals. It has no recoil and is only slightly louder than a .22 long rifle and travels more than twice as fast. With a good scope this rifle is super accurate and deadly.

Perch are definitely good eating! The problem here in Central Minnesota is we have to travel north to get to bigger ones but so many are full of white worms, harmless when properly cooked but not appetizing when it comes to eating them.

In Minnesota all "foul" hooked fish must be immediately released.

Huntm22. You are indeed one of the fortunate ones if you live in a state that does not REQUIRE ethanol for on road use and make it difficult to find neat91 or additives to combat the nasty stuff to prevent damage to off road equipment. As I stated Minnesota requires ethanol for on road use. The industry is kept afloat by the government subsides and the farmers were happy when corn went to $7.50 a bushel but that did not last long. It takes a lot of precious water to process the corn into ethanol and the discharges into our waterways is not conducive to a healthy environment.

I have had first hand experience with the destructive capabilities of ethanol fuel.First they took the lead out of the gas. I operated a VW repair shop for 30 years. The lead was necessary to lubricate the valves and seats on the engines. I settled on Alamite CD-2 Lead additive as one quart for $20 would treat 320 gallons of gas. Then the ethanol was introduced and would melt number 3 cylinder, the driver's side forward cylinder on the air cooled Beetle engines. Number 3 cylinder cooling air was partially blocked by the oil cooler mounted on top of the engine block. Ethanol in Minnesota is mandatory and when the Volkswagen Rabbit and Dasher models came out the ethanol destroyed carburetor floats and on the high pressure fuel injection systems the ethanol cleaned all the accumulated crud out of the fuel tank, plugged the fuel filters, forced dirt through them and affected the injectors. The local dealer was charging $400 (back in the 80's and 90's) to remove the tank and clean it out, replace the fuel filter and clean or replace the injectors. I found a different and much cheaper method for my customers.

I went fishing with my friend in his boat only once before he died. He told me how great his rig was and we headed for the lake. As usual the landing was on the opposite side of the lake as the best fishing spot and he immediately complained as the boat wallowed and plowed through the water no matter what he did. We did make it, caught some fish and even made it back to the landing. The local marine shop worked on his engine and told him his carburetor looked like it was full of oatmeal. After a thorough cleaning it ran fine again. I took him to the station and explained that he should not be using straight ethanol in his engine. Either alcohol free neat 91 (for off road use ONLY) can be purchased for about 50 - 60 cents a gallon more, or Stabil Marine (GREEN, NOT RED) can be purchased for $20 a quart which also treats 320 gallons of gas. In addition to that, IF the engine being treated is old enough, (like my 1950 Johnson short shaft outboard and 1950 Ford Ferguson tractor) the Lead Substitute is also necessary.

Another friend used his ATV and had no problems. His daughter came over to ride it and upon starting gas and oil blew out the exhaust and he shut it down before she drove away. I happened to be at his repair shop when the man repairing it came in and announced his ATV was done and ready for pickup. I asked him if it was going to work now? He said, "Yes, but if he uses the same fuel he will destroy the float in the carburetor again."

Everybody is entitled to their own opinion. As I said I have first hand evidence and have never had any problems with any of my chain saws, weed wacker, ATV, outboard motor, Ferguson tractor or equipment. I just bought a new lawn mower and the directions state it is manufactured to take ethanol with up to 10% alcohol with no additive required. That is what I will follow but now I have to be careful because I read that the % of alcohol is increasing and the warning is that ANY on road vehicle, trucks, cars, etc. from 2000 on back will suffer engine destruction with more than a 10% mixture. I can only believe that any Off Road applications will suffer the same demise if a higher percentage of alcohol is used. Honestly, the ONLY benefit I see is the much decreased incidents of gas line freeze we experienced in Minnesota years ago. The alcohol removed the water from the tanks but at what cost?

How about preventing this in the first place? If you use ethanol, add Stabil MARINE to the fuel. Stabil Marine is green in color, not red like the Stabil for storage! One quart costs less than $20 and treats 320 gallons of gas. The other option is to buy Neat 91 which is alcohol free and for off road use only but costs about $.50 a gallon more. Straight ethanol is causing many problems! If you have any older equipment which required lead to prevent engine damage you should also add a Lead substitute to the gas mixture. I use Alemite CD-2 which also comes in a quart container, also costs under $20 and also treats 320 gallons of gas. Both come in a handy dispenser bottle which has one spout for quantity and another for handily dispensing ounces. The lead substitute is also legal for off road use only.