On Monday morning, March 28th, Tom, my son-in-law, and I headed to Genoa, Wisconsin, a very small town on the east bank of the Mississippi River. Genoa lies 17 miles south of La Crosse, just above Lock and Dam #8. We were going to fish from the Clements Fishing Barge as reports indicated that the perch were hitting. It would be a totally new experience for both of us.

We couldn’t miss Captain Hook’s Bait & Tackle shop on Main Street where we bought minnows and night crawlers. The captain also offers cabins, licenses, snacks, and refreshments. It appeared that the Captain and Clements Fishing Barge are one and the same. Check Facebook or his website www.clementsfishing.com, or call 608-689-2800. Their brochure featured photos of men, women, and children with giant walleyes, northern pike, and bass as well as hefty stringers. After parking in a spacious lot, we crossed Hwy 35 as well as some busy railroad tracks and climbed down to the riverbank on a winding staircase. Here we found many anglers bank fishing. We raised the orange flag to let the pilot of the

We couldn’t miss Captain Hook’s Bait & Tackle shop on Main Street where we bought minnows and night crawlers. The captain also offers cabins, licenses, snacks, and refreshments. It appeared that the Captain and Clements Fishing Barge are one and the same. Check Facebook or his website www.clementsfishing.com, or call 608-689-2800. Their brochure featured photos of men, women, and children with giant walleyes, northern pike, and bass as well as hefty stringers. covered, 20 passenger shuttle boat know we were awaiting transportation to the barge, and were soon picked up. It was a five minute ride through the turbulent tailrace to the fishing barge.

The so-called “barge” was not what I expected. Rather than the flat specious vessels one sees being pushed up and down the Mississippi by tugboats, it was a series of pontoon rafts, perhaps 18’ wide by 30’ feet in length, and connected by chains. These rafts, laid out in a big “U” shape, had handrails on both sides with adjoining benches. They offered 1200 feet of fishing space, and Tom told me that anglers were sometimes lined up shoulder to shoulder. There were two porta-potties or commodes as well as a small enclosure where one could warmup or buy a snack. This barge facility was anchored in a bay area near the west bank, relatively close to the dam.

The bait shop lady told us that the water level had been raised, and hinted that this condition slowed down the fishing action. Her prognosis was right on. We neither caught a fish nor saw a fish caught from the barge. Downstream boat anglers were catching a few fish. While motoring back to the bank, overheard conversation indicated that the water would be lowered tomorrow. The same flat fee, $23, entitled one to fish all day or as long as he/she wished. Kids 6-15 cost five dollars. During our stay, there were approximately 40 anglers on the barge as well as a few dogs.

I would guess that the fishing action will stabilize as the season progresses, and it was readily apparent that many anglers had faith in this operation that had been in business since 1936. I could see where this barge could be very attractive and affordable to families. Bored children could easily find others with which to play. I wondered whether Clements needed some sort of lease agreement with the Army Corp of Engineers.

If I had it to do over again, I’d go to the south section of the barge and toss a half-ounce minnow-tipped jig toward the nearby boats that were catching fish.

Could such a business work in South Dakota? Is our Missouri River as fertile fish-wise as the Mississippi? Our water is certainly clearer than that of the Mississippi. Genoa proves that a population center is not necessary although La Crosse with its 53,000 people is only 17 miles upstream. Such an attraction at Ft. Thompson could be a boon to both the Crow Creek and Lower Brule reservations. The same could be said for the Yankton Sioux at Pickstown.

You might want to mark June 29th through July 4th on your calendar. The Parkston community is going to honor those who served, and pay respect to those who made the ultimate sacrifice in Vietnam. The event will feature the Vietnam War Memorial in the east city park as well as speakers and entertainment. Bring lawn chairs as seating is limited.

On Friday evening, July 1st, I will address the audience at 6:30 p.m. I will be preceded at 5:30 by Mel Olson, host of KMIT’s Morning Show, and followed at 7:30 by Mogen’s Heroes, the well-known Hall of Fame rock & roll band. Honoring our Vietnam vets has been too long in coming.

See you next week.