Wisconsin may not have Brett Favre anymore, but they certainly seem to be growing some big muskies in those chilly lakes and rivers, and fly-rodders are snapping up some monsters.

A few years ago, Yellowstone Lake  gave up a 57-inch monster, along with a Field & Stream story that gave us this great quote: “Lou’s knees were shaking too, so bad he would have easily broken Suzanne Somer’s ThighMaster.”

This week came word that fly-rodder Brad Bohen’s 51.25-inch gator was certified as a world record for a released fish on 36-pound tippet. He took the fish on the Chippewa River near Lake Holcombe, according to the Associated Press. That’s the third world record for muskies on a fly-rod in Wisconsin in 2008.

Quite a performance from the Badger State and something to think about when you go for that mid-summer dip in the lake.

That pic of Bohen, who’s clearly on to something, comes from the Pierce County Herald. The other fish was 45 minutes and caught almost simultaneously with the lunker. The Herald has some nice details on Bohen and the other record-setters for ‘08.

Watch out baby ducks!

That’s Wisconsin.  Specifically, Beaver Lake, just southeast of Hayward- also home to the Lumberjack World Championships and the National Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame/60’s time warp/2-story tall fiberglass Muskellunge.  My father’s grandfather built a cabin on this lake in 1940, and every summer when I was a kid, we’d go up for a couple of weeks to live out of a tent, get introduced to relatives, swim, run around, read, nap, eat…

It’s the most wonderful spot on Earth.

I’m headed up for the big three-year reunion this weekend (complete with a who’s-this-relative? quiz), with the Gentleman Friend, a tent, and a box of books in my car.  Even with gas at $4.-, it’s cheaper to drive 1120 miles than fly, or take a bus or a train.  Go go Honda Civic Hybrid!

So here’s the way I see the themes:  We’ve got use of gas/travel to discuss, some major water/lake quality issues, the Magic of the Great Outdoors (this qualifies, since it hasn’t got a bathroom) (just a nicely-decorated hut with a board with a hole) to wax eloquent about, the issues of connectivity/computer hiatii to praise, and probably more.  See, Wisconsin has everything!  Especially cheese!  Which reminds me.

I’m pretty stoked that the month of being a very good occasional vegetarian is up, since the family culinary traditions involve a) fantastic cooks and b) meat.  I’ll do my very best to eat animal sparingly and vegetables like whoa, but let it be known that falling off the meat wagon is a distinct possibility at this camp.  Though, what with a few loved ones favoring bizarre diets, alternatives won’t be impossible to find.  I am not eating their fake cheese, though.  It is not just as good as real.

So, I’ll spend the next few days exploring those ideas- it’s getting me more and more excited for this trip as I think it through- starting with a monthly goal wrap-up and new goal next time.

There’s the cabin itself- one room and a porch, and can’t you just hear the crickets and feel the peace?