Anybody delay fishing opener a few weeks?

[bottomfeeder]

I've been going with the same group of guys on opener for about 20 years now. It's a tradition I guess you could say.

Anyway, a number of us are getting (old??) sick of the seemingly crappy weather on opener every year. We usually go up Friday night to set up tents so there's no cabin or trailer to retreat to. Just getting tired of the rain, sleet, snow, wind, pretty much everything but halfway decent weather. Seems like always a week or two later the weather cooropates a bit more.

Just wondering if anybody delays their own fishing opener and why?

Here's the circus tent we erected last year to get out of the rain.

[LundExplorer]

I delay it a week to not conflict with Mothers Day.

I have become tired of getting my azz handed to me over not paying enough attention to the CP on her day.

I think that the DNR could help save a few marriages by moving it up or back 1 week!

[Scott K]

I dont go on opener just to avoid the crowds! Opener is just one day of fishing, there are 364 days left in the year to fish, opener really doesnt mean a whole lot to me , do to I dont keep fish, c&r most of the time!

[Fish Head]

I love to camp too, but a cabin is really nice on those cold wet days.

[catflisher]

it's just like new years eve...amatuer hour...we wait till mem.day weekend,get a couple extra days with holliday,miss most of the crappy weather,and the bite is usually better.especialy for bullgills and slabs..

[Eric Wettschreck]

Delay opener??? Are you nuts????

It's easy for me. I like to fish a lake that pretty much no one else fishes on. My local lake is GREAT for nice snot rockets. Apparently, the only fish (according to some people) in Minnesota is a Walleye and snot rockets aren't worth going after. To each their own but I'll be dragging spoons through the mud on opener!!!!!

[gunflint]

Amateur hour? I haven't had a stick in my hand since last October. I'll be out there if I have to drill holes. Which after 5 below zero this morning is a distinct possibility.

[LoonASea]

I head to Wi for their opener and then head back for the Mn opener ,,the fish dont know what state they are in and I dont have the hassles at the landing like I have in past Mn openers ,,and with Wi having the possesion limit double the daily limit I can bring home more fish ,,thats if I catch any

Randoid

[Questor]

I don't go anywhere near a lake on the opener because of the crowds.

[BoxMN]

I don't go to popular lakes for opener any more. We have our "main" fishing trip the next weekend, and now we use use the "Opener" at our cabin on tiny lake, and my Dad, and step son, my grandson, and my nephew all head up and fishing from the pontoon. We actually do pretty darn well too! Its our "4 Generation Opener" and all of us "kids" eagerly await it, and only will miss it if someone is in hospital - where my Dad was last year. But he will be there this year!

[Down Deep]

I would not think of missing the opener. This is mostly a tradition thing meeting up with my friends. I gave up tents years ago for exactly the same reason. I got tired of having to live in wet cold weather. For several years we have been going to Vermillion and staying at a friend's cabin. This year that fell apart when his family decided to head up and kicked us freeloaders out. He decided to fish with them. This happened just last week, so I decided to fish locally with a couple of the remaining trip survivors. But, no matter what the weather, I'll heading home in the evening or sooner if the weather is bad.

How come you guys just don't get a cabin somewhere?????

[eyemaster]

Our group has decided to do the opener a week after also, we have been doing this the last 2 years. I still get out on the opener, but the tradition is not the same...I guess we have started a new tradition the week after.

I personally think it is OK. I still can't miss the opener, it is a TRADITION and I let my wife know that we changed the tradition to the following weekend..I am lucky I get to go two weeks in a row this way!! Sometimes breaking tradition is not all that bad!

[DTro]

I can honestly say that the "opener" has no meaning to me anymore. There was a time when I was younger, that I couldn't sleep the night before.

Nowadays, I fish so much before the "opener" that it's just another day, and more than likely one that I'll be catching up on some housework or what not to avoid the mayhem. Maybe even lounging at the public landings for a chuckle.

[widetrack]

I certainly hope I never loose the urge for opening day.

I live by, and fish Lake of the Woods year around, and I still can't sleep the night before opener...

Some of you guys need to seek professional therapy

PS: I do have warm cabin to come home too though... I've done the wet tent thing in my younger days plenty... It seemed pretty easy back then, but I can relate to the getting older part.

[tunrevir]

I love the opener! It decreases the traffic I see down on the St. Croix. By the time our opener rolls around, I have two solid weeks of fishing fun under my belt. Bring on the opener!

Tunrevir~

[traveler]

I'll quit fishing the opener when they pry the rod from my cold dead hands:) Honestly, there is SO much water in MN., if I wanted to avoid the crowds that really isn't a problem. We've done that many times when we've opted to head up to gunflint territory and open on a stocked trout lake. And the tarp setup the original poster pictured is a (newer)MN tradition! We don't head out on any camping trip anymore without the tarps.

[MntkaFishin]

I'll be missing opener this year for the first time in 10 years due to the fact that my wife and I are expecting our first child and he's due that day.

[DancesWithWaves]

Fishing the first two weeks of may far exceeds post opening. The opener is for the novists.

[eyepatrol]

Bring the cell phone and have her give ya a call when her water breaks. You can both head to the hospital trailering the boat behind.

Back to the subject at hand.....I won't miss the opener. Missing the opener for me would be like saying "I don't want to go fishing walleyes because I can". It just doesn't compute and goes against my mental make-up. I think my brain would crash like a computer.

A couple suggestions to avoiding the flurry of crowds:

1) The opener is like a kid on a sugar high. Eveyone wants to get out there right away and play play play. Wait until the afternoon when people have their adrenaline rush come crashing down and pack it in for the day.

2) Have Minnesota be like South Dakota....keep walleye fishing open all season long.

[eyepatrol]

Yeah...leave the opener for us beginners. We don't like seeing you experienced fishermen out there.

[Northland Sportsman]

My first child was born on openr 2 years ago, I missed going ou that day! I told my wife early on that she could have him any day BUT opener! Obviously that didn't work. I am now planning to stay close to home and fish a local lake to avoid missing my son's B-day. We are now expecting our second child, heres the kicker - due end of Oct! Now it looks like it will be close to opening deer season (rifle)! I guess it makes it easy to remember the birthdays!

[196thDLR]

I stopped doing the opener six years ago. Deaths of participants, cold and wet, and the increasing disrespect on the water have taken its' toll on my desire to attend this fantastic Minnesota holiday. I now wait until shortly after to chase finned creatures around the depths of Minnesota waters.

[Long Gray Line]

Froze & fought the crowds like everyone else. Gonna miss the opener for a better reason this year. Besides Mother's Day (see dear, I remembered!), my son graduates from college and gets commissioned a 2LT in the US Army that weekend. I won't be popping a walleye, but I will be popping a button and maybe a cold one with him! While you're on the water, if you would, say a little prayer for the men and women that protect all things American, like "the opener".

[Down Deep]

Novists..............Is that a person to writes books or something?

[bottomfeeder]

Some very interesting responses here.

One thing I forgot to add (and this is a biggie), is that I also have a 5yr old son. As much as I love my friends (is it ok for a guy to say that?) I also need to start a new tradition with my son.

He still doesn't stay in the boat too long so I think we'll load up the ball and glove and reels and sammiches and head down to the St. Louis river and do some shore fishing Saturday afternoon. Talked to the boys and we will do our opener May 18-20. My luck it will be beautiful opener and snow the next weekend.

One note about using tents. As a group, we still love to tent/camp. Tenting up on Rainy being our favorite location. Just sucks when it rains three days straight when it's cold to boot.