Eight retired teachers started taking fishing trips together in 1976
By Bill Vossler
When eight St. Cloud teachers decided to go fishing when the school year ended in 1976, none could have predicted the trip would be the first of many. Nor could they have predicted how much they would bond, and become close friends.
“At first,” said Ty Hamerlik, “we took one trip a year. Later two trips a year, and now, sometimes three.”
“So we figure during the 48 years,” Mike Fossum said, “we’ve gone on at least 100 trips. Always with eight or nine of us.”
Those “fishing expeditions” mean the real thing: spending several days together at mostly-Minnesota lakes, fishing, cooking, telling jokes, and talking. They quickly built a tight bond.
Kid Fishing
Both Ty and Mike began fishing young. Ty said, “I was eight when my grandparents started taking me fishing at a rented cabin overnight on a lake. It was fun being with my grandparents, but the real highlight was lunch on the boat that we rowed way out there, and with Nesbitt’s pop. My grandparents were secretive when they caught a fish, usually a panfish, but when I did I was so excited.”
As a teen Ty fished the Red River. “We caught suckers and bullheads. I didn’t know how to clean bullheads until our pastor came to our place one time and showed me how to secure the bullheads on a board and strip the skin off.”
Mike began fishing young too. “Probably seven when dad and mom took me fishing on a small local stream where we caught bullheads and suckers. Did we keep them or release them? I don’t remember. But I learned more about fishing from my father-in-law. He loved to fish, and I went with him. He loved to just troll along the shoreline of a lake catching fish.”
Trip Beginning
The trip began because the music department was across from Ty’s industrial arts area in one wing of the school. “We all knew each other, so the music guys decided to invite me,” Ty said, “because they thought I could fix things that broke,” he laughed. “We all finished at noon that last day, and thought going fishing would help us decompress, and celebrate the summer break.”
Their first trip was to a cabin belonging to Marv Pearson’s relatives on Lake of the Woods, Mike said. “With the lake half in Canada, we had to watch that we didn’t stray into Canadian waters. No GPS at the time.”
“We were very cautious,” Ty said, “that we might stray into Canadian waters, be caught, and lose our rods and reels and boats.”
Changes
Many things have changed since that first time, both men said. Ty said, “In the early days we slept on the ground in tents. We were younger and didn’t have money for a resort or cabin.”
Mike said, “Mel Hauck’s 8 x 16-foot tent slept most of the guys. But one guy whose snore sounded like a bear had to bring a one-man pup tent after the first year. Usually we’d fish early in the morning, come back and have a light lunch, and the snorer would nap. We bet on how long before his snoring started. Now he uses a CPAP, so you don’t hear him.”
“So we camped, using Coleman stoves, pots and pans, and a tarp over the eating area of our campsite,” said Mike. “We also told stories around the campsite, mostly jokes.”
Ty added, “Marv and Mike Burgoyne were great joke tellers. Over the years, some jokes were repeated several times.”
Camping created some problems, Mike said. “One year probably a bear dragged a cooler out into the woods. Another year raccoons caused problems, and we had to throw tent stakes to drive them away. Chipmunks were pests too.”
Ty didn’t like sleeping on the ground, “So I bought a popup camper for the back of my pickup, and so did Mel Hauck and Mike Burgoyne, and others had vans.”
“Sleeping on ground lost its appeal,” said Mike.
Another change is in the equipment. “The rods and reels are much improved,” Mike said, “and we use a depth finder and trolling motors on the boats.”
Fishing changed too, Mike added. “We’ve usually fished for walleye, crappies, and northerns. But size limits and number of fish allowed all changed over the years, so we fished at different lakes depending on size and limit restrictions. Boats and motors changed too, from smaller to larger. As gas prices increased, distant lakes were less appealing considering many hours in the vehicles, so we chose places closer to home.”
Another change was the number of fishermen, from nine at first, or three in a boat. “Too crowded,” Mike said. “Now we have four boats and eight people, so two per boat, which makes for easier fishing.” Though eight still fish each trip, over the years others have developed health problems, just stopped going, or died.
Bait changed too, depending on what they are fishing for. Mike said, “I think walleye bite best on shiner minnows, leeches, or crawlers, while crappies work on Mr. Twisty or other artificial lures.”
Even the color of the lures made a difference. “You couldn’t predict which colors would work. But when you found one that worked, everybody used that color.”
The number of trips changed too, Ty said. “First one spring trip a year, but after retirement we started ice fishing at Ballard’s Resort on Lake of the Woods, where we had a dry warm bed, and sponsored trips. There we travel in a Bombadier with flat tracks so you don’t get stuck out to the fishing spot.”
“That’s a pampered trip,” Mike said. “You bring only your clothes. They can provide bait, rod, reel, and lunch out on the lake. It’s all-inclusive.”
Another recent change is renting a cabin on a lake. “Then we fish at that lake,” Mike said, “and then drive to other area lakes and fish there.”
They all share work responsibilities, Mike said. “Three or four clean the fish, and two or three prepare meals.”
Ty said, “I don’t like to clean fish so I’m happy when others clean and I start the meal. Much more enjoyable for me.”
Mike said they always had enough fish to eat, and some to bring home. “But that’s harder now, with some lakes getting fished out, like at Big Pine where walleyes stopped biting, so we switched over to crappies and did very well.”
Northerns seem to bite no matter where you go,” Ty said, “so we always have northern to eat, and guys cleaning them and taking them home. We’ve also caught some odd fish, like a big muskie at Mille Lacs. Another boat broke their net, so we quickly passed our net to them, and they caught it. We also caught a dogfish, which is unusual.”
“And a sturgeon,” Mike said, “at the Lake of the Woods. That was the first live one I’d ever seen. We never kept any of these fish.”
No Changes
The trips have always remained clean, Ty said. “That appealed to me. No overuse of liquor or a bunch of swearing.”
Mike said, “That was always appealing to me too.”
Ty said, “I always said the guys knew a different side of me than my wife did. When with only men, you kind of let your hair down, so much conversation and stories, men bonding with other men. We all know anyone would help another one with a dilemma or trouble, because we’ve become good friends.”
“Another thing that didn’t change,” Mike said, “is having fun together and fishing.”
Mostly they fish on the lakes, unless weather prevents it. “One trip it kept raining,” Ty said, “by Warroad, and because I had some connections at Marvin Windows Co., we decided to tour the Marvin Mill.”
But surprise. “They said they were not giving tours,” Ty said, “because a worker was having a birthday party, which we knew by 50 black balloons with her name on all over the parking lot. When we said we wanted to sing happy birthday to her, which we did in four part harmony, they said, ‘Aw heck, let’s give them a tour.’”
Love of Fishing—And Camaraderie
“I enjoy the camaraderie the most,” Ty said. “Most of us really love fishing, but we also have conversations with the guys already mentioned, plus Ray Pontinen, Harlan Jopp, Dale Pullis, and Bob Anderson, while eating peanuts at night, and telling jokes.”
Or playing tricks, as Ty discovered. “I have the nicest lawn chair of all, and I think some guys thought ‘Who does he think he is?’ So they hide my chair. Once I locked it to the cooler, figuring they couldn’t drag it away. A nap an hour later the chair was gone. I saw it hanging in a tree limb over the lake, so I had to climb up and get it. On the last day of our trip my chair disappeared. Nobody had seen it. On the way home one car had gone on ahead, and in St. Cloud my chair was where we parked our cars.”
Ty said the trips taught him how busy he was with life. “On these trips I sat down and relaxed and talked, and realized how enjoyable it was to sit around and be unproductive as a good thing.”
Mike agreed. “It’s a nice change of pace, especially after the go go go of teaching, and a few hours later you’re sitting around a campsite unwinding.”
Ty said, “Take time to make it a priority. Fishing or hunting or hiking and so on. It’s good to get away for a while, even from your spouse at times is healthy and good for your marriage.”
“Just do it,” Mike said.