WINTER PROJECTS

Somehow, a tiny bit each year over the last 12 years that I've owned Brother Nature and its trailer, the rear axle on the trailer became bent to the new tire I put on the trailer last spring was worn out by late August. I bought a new tire and made the last few trips of the year in September.

Once the boat was winterized, I put the boat and trailer on jack stands, removed the tires then removed the 4 U-bolts that fasten the axle to the trailer.

The new axle is in position, held tight by Jeep bolts and ready for the bearing hub and wheel.

Sidebar, here. Some of the nuts on the U-bolts came free quite easily, others had to be wrenched free the entire length of the threads. Dreading having to replacing the tight nuts when reassembling, I took the U-bolts to a friend who had a tap and die set. Running a tap through the nuts and a die down the bolt threads usually shapes them up like new.

This was when I learned there was a 3rd configuration of bolt threads used on U.S. bolts. Most standard (not metric) bolts are NC (National Course). Many hardened bolts used in heavy duty applications are fitted with NF (National Fine) threads. I ran the fine threaded die down the threads on one of the U-bolts.

When done, I noticed a large number of filings came off the bolt. “Wow!” I thought. “That’s unusual.” No, that’s what happens when a NF thread bolt gets re-threaded with a NS die.

There is another thread configuration called “National Special” and that’s the die I used to ruin the U-bolt. The die set had been passed down to my friend from his machinist father. Evidently, machinists have a need for “special” threaded bolts.

So off to the NAPA store. I showed them a U-bolt, no match. Ditto at Autozone. How about eBay? Guess what? The axle bolts for an ‘83 Jeep Wrangler are exactly the size I needed for the boat trailer - and only $16 for a set of four.

Back to the axle. I took it to a local blacksmith to see about bending it straight. He sized up the job and decided it could be done, but he questioned if the axle actually started perfectly straight or was built with a camber in it. The axle had a sticker with the manufacturer ’s phone number so I called and asked for someone in the engineering or parts department and was connected with Ross. I explained my project and asked about the camber.

Before Ross answered my question, he suggested, “Why don’t you just buy a new axle?” On the Eagle Trailer website, new axles were listed for $285 each, plus freight. Then Ross said, “We sell that particular axle for $85 and freight from Elkhart, IN to most places in Indiana is about $40.”

I did one better. I bought the axle and the next time my friend, Captain Mark Johnson, came down to Jasper County from his Elkhart home to deer hunt, it was delivered for free. The new axle is on, held firmly by the Jeep bolts. I’ll have a new tire on it in the spring and be ready to fish.

MY ALTER EGO BLOG

Most people know me as Brother Nature - Captain Mike - the charter boat fisherman and rightly so. This blog has been mostly oriented to my boat, my customers, the fishing and the enjoyment of Lake Michigan. Rightly so.

But now, the fishing season is over and I'm off to other activities.

Among them, is writing another blog detailing the things I do when I'm not being Captain Mike. If you'd like to follow me down this trail, feel free. I invite you along and welcome your comments. Go to http://www.bronature.com/. Be a part of Mike's Outdoor World.

SEGWAY

What a hoot! I was at Dogwood Canyon Nature Park near Branson, Missouri a few days ago for a variety of planned activities. One of the activities not on the list for us were Segway tours of the facility--new to Dogwood Canyon.
You know, Segways, -- those goofy looking motorized, 2-wheel carts used by security guards in malls and airports.
I have always been intrigued by those things. How do they work? Why don’t the riders fall flat on their face or bum?
At the end of my planned ATV tour on the rugged trails through the Ozarks, one of the Segway guides was putting away the machines after his last tour of the day. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
"How long does it take to learn to ride one of those things?" I asked, then added, "I only want to ride from here to that tree (about 20 yards away) and back."
"Only a couple of minutes," said the guide. "Here, put on a helmut."
"First, we’ll turn it on and let it get running." Evidently there are gyroscopes or something in the foot platform that help keep the gizmo from tipping over. Once the "go" lights came on, all I had to do was step onboard. To make the Segway move ahead all you did was tranfer your weight to the front part of your feet. To stop, rock your weight back on your heel. To turn, just move the handlebar to the left or right.
It was very unsettling for the first 15 yards or so, but it didn’t take much farther than that to become comfortable. Is a Segway in my future? Probably not...but I’ve now done it and it was fun!

WEIRD WALLEYE

I was in Iowa last week at the Association of Great Lakes Outdoor Writers meeting at Honey Creek Resort and spent an enjoyable morning on Lake Rathbun fishing for walleyes. Weird experience!
I recently wrote a story for Indiana Outdoor News about the many ways to fish for walleyes–using anecdotes from my first experience with them in northern Wisconsin, subsequent walleye successes in Canada, Lake Erie, rivers and reservoirs–finally, ending up in an August outing on Lake Winnebago where we fished walleyes in pea-soup-green water which was almost pea-soup-warm! Fished and caught!
I thought that was the weirdest walleye fishing I’d ever do, but no! My Iowa experience outdid my Fond du Lac experience.
My fishing partner, Jim Gaston handed me a bottom-bouncer set-up, then slow trolled over a pair of 2-foot deep humps about 15 yards apart. I was incredulous.
You can catch bluegills in 24-inches of water, bass–for sure. Surely not walleyes in an Iowa reservoir with plenty of deep water nearby–especially after a cold night chilled the surface. Wrong, fish-blog-readers! And it wasn’t a fluke. The other, more conventional areas we tried produced one skimpy white bass. The fish in the picture and the rest of our morning catch came off that shallow rubble. Wow! Who’d a thunk?
The equipment Gaston used was great. The Lund boat was powered by a 150 hp Mercury engine and had a MinnKota troller on the bow. For electronics we had an X-15 Lowrance and a stand alone Lowrance GPS. I used a 6-foot, medium action, Johnny Morris rod and reel combo from Bass Pro Shops.

TYPE V SENSE

I’ll be the first to admit to not being "religious" when it comes to wearing a life jacket. I’ve never been in a situation where I had to put one on due to an emergency. I’ve worn them due to legal requirements, such as when water skiing, or when it seemed a good idea, such as in a kayak. I’ve worn them at the request of the captain of the boat–their personal safety rule while underway–usually guys with high-speed bass boats. I’ve got plenty of life jackets on my boat. They are big, clunky Type I styles adorned with reflective tape, luminescent lights and whistles. Forget stylish and they are about as comfortable as a body cast. Required by law, they’ll do the job if ever needed.
The way my boat is set up, it’s almost impossible to fall out. Most of my boating is in the daytime. I was never overly-concerned except in late summer when we start fishing long before dawn. In the dark, you can’t see the waves, you can’t see wakes from passing boats, you can’t see any floating objects in the water ahead, it’s tough enough to see the other boats around you and judge the direction and distance to them.
Murphey’s Law says if something can happen, it will happen--and I can imagine situations requiring a life jackets being more likely in the dark than in the day. Much about life jackets are simple common sense so I let common sense prevail.
This year, when the pre-dawn bite got underway, I put another bundle of life jackets on my boat and asked all on board to use them. No one has objected. It never took more than a few seconds to get them on and adjusted.
I did have to remind a few people to take them off at the end of the trip. They weren’t trying to steal them. They’d just forgotten they were wearing them.
My fishing partners were all wearing Type V PFDs which are the inflatable kind. Uninflated, they are a simple belt and fanny pack. Once activated, they balloon into an "over the head" configuration with all the flotation of a Type 1.
There are several brands and models from which to choose. These, from Mustand Survival are terrific! After all, it's plain common sense.

SEPTEMBER SALMON

It’s September and the Lake Michigan season is winding down. I close-up shop on October 1^st.
But the season doesn’t always end with a whimper. September features the peak of the king salmon run and the early stages of the coho salmon run.
These are not whimpy fish! The kings are at the end of their 4-year lifespan, the cohos at the end of their 3-years and both species are bulked up as big as they will ever be. I’ve already taken a couple of trips for the spawners and this year’s crop looks big.
The kings being hooked on the Brother Nature are averaging over 15 pounds so far and several were at the 20-pound mark.

Here's one of the upper-teen kings caught the first weekend in September by Bill Keaton.

There are plenty of weekdays available for morning trips and, since we are fishing very near shore, 4 or 5 hour excursions are possible which will save you a few dollars as well as put some salmon in your freezer. Check out my website for exact prices and contact information:http://www.bronature.com.

RESCUED!

There are a several sounds you don’t want to hear when you are in a boat. An unaccounted for splash is one of them, or the sound of silence as your motor shuts down unexpectedly. I can think of others, as well, but the most recent unwelcome sound was

The Coast Guard towing us towards shore was a happy, if unwelcome, sight!

the Brother Nature's motor unexpectedly revving up to high rpms as the boat slowed to a quick stop.


Motor going faster, boat going slower–something is amiss! Eventually, I learned a gear had given way or the propellor shaft had broken in the lower unit.

The immediate problem was we were drifting with the wind approximately 5 miles offshore of Ludington, MI.
I switched to channel 16 on the radio and hailed the US Coast Guard Station at Ludington. Once contact was made, we switched to channel 22 and I explained the situation. No immediate danger, no medical problems, just a no-go boat.
The Coast Guard attempted to call local firms with tow boats but none were available so they launched their fast response vessel and came to our aid. Thanks to GPS technology and marine radios, finding us was no problem and soon we were hooked up and underway.
We were safe, but our Ludington fishing trip became more an adventure and less a fishing trip than we’d hoped.
A new "bottom-end" will be on the Brother Nature’s outdrive early in the week so we’ll be back for fishing adventures by Labor Day weekend.