Eelpout Festival 2012

And so continues the worlds most unproductive week! With Eelpout right around the corner, I am accomplishing next to nothing in anticipation of leaving Friday morning! Aside from the wandering around from encampment to encampment drinking, here is the itinerary for what all is happening this weekend.

______________________

THURSDAY

- Opening Ceremonies - 5 - 10 PM - City Park
- Torch Lighting 7PM - City Park
- Coors Light Keg Castle - 5 - 10 PM - City Park
- Festival Goer's Appreciates - 6-7 PM - Coors Light Keg Castle
- LIVE BAND - Shirt N Skins - 8:30-12:30 AM - The 502 - Chase on the Lake

_______________________

Friday

- Official Scale Times - 9 - 5 PM - City Park
- Coors Light Keg Castle Open - 10AM - Midnight - City Park
- Miller Lite Ice Palace - 10AM - Midnight - Chase on the Lake
- Mechanical Bull Riding Competition - 3 PM -7 PM - Miller Lite Ice Palace
- LAPHROAIG Tasting with Master Ambassador Simon Brookings - 5:30 pm - LAPHROAIG Lounge - Miller Lite Ice Palace
- Live Band – Rock Bottom - 8-Midnight - Coors Light Keg Castle
- Live Band – Billy D and the Crystals - 8-Midnight - Miller Lite Ice Palace
- EAT ‘TILL 2 at the 502 - 11am-2am - Chase on the Lake

_______________________

Saturday

- Official Scale Times - 9 - 5 PM - City Park
- Coors Light Keg Castle Open - 10AM - Midnight - City Park
- Miller Lite Ice Palace - 10AM - Midnight - Chase on the Lake
- Eelpout Fishing Show - 10:30 AM - Coors Light Castle
- UV Party Parade - 11:30 AM - In front of Chase on the Lake
- Eel Pout 500 “on-ice” Auto Race - Noon - Garfield Lake, Laporte
- Ice Auger Races - Noon - City Park
- Eelpout Rugby - Noon - City Park
- Polar Pout Plunge - 1PM - In Front of Chase on the Lake
- Eel Pout Derby - 1PM - City Park
- Miller Lite Bar Stool Ski Races - 2:30pm - In Front of the Chase
- LAPHROAIG Peat Parade and Bonfire - 3PM - Starts out in Front of the Chase, Ends...."on the rocks"
- Mechanical Bull Riding Competition - 3PM-7PM - Miller Lite Ice Palace
- Bikini Ice Fishing Team Fashion show - 4PM - Coors Light Keg Castle
- Bikini Ice Fishing Teams Main Show - 6PM - Northern Lights Casino
- KISS THE POUT - 7-8pm - Miller Lite Ice Palace
- Live Band - 8-midnight - Coor Light Keg Castle
- Live Band – FUZE - 8-midnight - Miller Lite Ice Palace
- EAT ‘TILL 2 at the 502 - 11am-2am - Chase on the Lake

__________________________

Sunday

- Award's Ceremony - 10:30 - City Park

____________________________

This list doesn't include all of all the side parties going on, the different events all of the bars have and everything else going on. Until you go to Eelpout Festival, I can't really describe it. If you go, you'll get it! Hope to see you there!

Eelpout Festival! My Favorite Time Of Year!!

Well, its almost that time of year! The International Eelpout Festival is almost upon us. For those of you who don't know what A) a Eelpout is, or B) what Eelpout Festival is, let me fill you in. The eelpout is a fresh water fish that closely resembles a Eel. They are very slimy, and anyone who has caught a big one will tell you that they will wrap around your arm if you give them the chance. Super gross fish. Eelpout Festival is a magical celebration that celebrates this super gross fish. It is held in Walker MN on Leech Lake. Leech is one of MN biggest lakes. Eelpout Festival has grown in popularity so much that even Jay Leno did a segment from Eelpout Festival last year. You can find more info about Eelpout Festival here and they also have the Late show clips on the homepage

http://www.eelpoutfestival.com/


This will be my eighth year attending and I don't ever want to miss it. It started out on a whim. While we were at a friends cabin fishing only about a hour away, we decided to grab our gear and head over and try and catch us some Pout. Once we got there and saw what was happening, we quickly realized that our fishing gear would do us no good. One problem, my lonely case of beer was not going to be enough for the day.


The first thing we witnessed was the Polar Plunge. A giant hole cut into the lake, where people throw on some crazy outfits and jump in the freezing water for a chance to raise some cash for charity. There was also, helicopter rides, a rugby game happening on the lake, a ice fishing bikini show, lots of vendors selling Winter gear, and the official Eelpout weigh center. Once we saw the mild stuff, it was time to see where everyone else was going.


We headed onto the lake and around the point and the first thing we saw on the ice was a 30 foot tall inflatable Gorrilla. I knew it was going to be a good day. Everything is set up similar to Vegas is the best way to describe it. There is a giant road on the ice, and on each side are themed encampments. These encampments are usually around 30' x 30' big and inside they have dance floors, fully stocked bars, couches, beer pong tables, flip cup tables, hot tubs, you name. All you do is walk up and down the row and go encampment to encampment to party.



There really is no way to accurately describe Eelpout festival besides some of the most fun you could ever have on a frozen lake! Everyone we have ever brought has loved it and come back with us. I think our group was around 30 people last year! Maybe we will make our own encampment next year! Check It Out!!

This Weird Winter

So, the temp today is 0, -8 with the windchill. Just 38 hours ago, it was 52 degrees. In a Minnesota Winter where anything can happen, a 60 degree turnaround in 2 days is just another one of those odd quirks we are finding this Winter. Along with the crazy temp, we are still snowless. At the almost middle of January, it makes me a little worried. A few years ago, our first snowfall was on my birthday (Jan 21st).

This bad Winter makes me worry for a bunch of things. Eelpout Festival which is only a month away. A giant party held on the ice. Last year no cars could drive on the lake because of ice conditions. This year may be no different. I am worried about all the fishing contests coming up. A lot of these non profit organizations really rely on these in order to support their causes. Further out, I am worried for the farmers. No snow could equal a severe drought this Spring. Lakes and Rivers will be down majorly, poor fishing, poor Summer recreation. Come on Winter, lets get going!

The #1 Tip For Sealing Your Home For Winter

When prepping for the Winter chill, you always want to keep your home protected. You want to keep your family warm and you want to keep your heat bill down, but if you have a big home, it is a long and pain staking process to plastic seal all of your windows and unused doors. Is there a better solution you may ask yourself, I am here to tell you I may have seen the most genius thing ever. Instead of wrapping the windows, why not wrap the entire house in plastic, and then just cut out a door! These people are innovators!

A Brown Christmas

So aside from the fact that there is no snow this year to make the Christmas lights look a little more brilliant, there is also no snow for me to continue working on my sweet snow fort. Well, it wasn't sweet yet, but it was going to be. I bought a Toro Power Shovel from Target a few weeks ago with the plan of building a super awesome snow fort. I was also basing my hopes and dreams off of the snowfall we got last year! It was awesome. But, I should of guessed that since I spent some money on a cool Winter toy, that it wouldn't snow.

Secondly, my big plan was to make a snowman, and then pack its head with mortars left over from the 4th of July. We love packing fireworks in things, and snowman has been one of those things on my fireworks bucket list. I want to make some fake blood packs and stick them in the snowman with the fireworks. But, it is still early in the Winter season, so we should have plenty of snow. Hopefully! Maybe there will be a Christmas miracle and it will snow before the big day this weekend! '


Merry Christmas Everyone!!