By Dick Herfindahl, sports columnist

Summer is unofficially here. I know it’s not official until the 21st of June, but I guess I’ve always felt it was here when the last school bell rings and another graduating class crosses the stage.

When I was a kid growing up the last day of school was the only calendar I needed to tell me it was summer. Living in the country meant kicking off the shoes and going barefoot.

Now that was always a little risky starting out because I would usually stub one of my big toes extra good the first week into it. After that initial experience I was usually a little more cautious about where I walked. I remembered to watch for things like honeybees and also tried to avoid places that the neighbor’s dog had visited.

Another true sign of summer was the visit to Earl Peterson’s barbershop for the summer flat top. This really meant that the lazy hazy days of summer had started.

No shoes – no hair to comb, I was low maintenance and it just didn’t get any better than that.

I can still remember all the times we went early season crappie fishing and it usually resulted in a nice mess of fish. We fished Beaver and St. Olaf Lakes a lot and would always seem to have pretty good luck.

Now my Dad would have starved to death if he had had to earn a living as a fishing guide. He would make sure we got to the lake but never had any interest in fishing.

Mom on the other hand was a pretty knowledgeable fisherman. She taught me a lot about fishing and really enjoyed the sport.

I think the most important asset you can have is patience &045; if you can approach the game of fishing with the anticipation of a young kid who knows that there’s a lunker lurking just around the next bend or under that overhanging branch then the patience will be there.

I’ve also found that there are so many things to factor in when going on a fishing trip. Weather is probably the major contributor to the success or failure of a fishing outing.

Cold fronts, storm fronts, and in some instances a lake that is dead calm has been known to kill fishing. These are all good and legitimate excuses (if you need one), but I guess the bottom line is being in the right place at the right time and using the right bait presentation.

I have caught fish in all the afore mentioned weather conditions and I also know that no two lakes are exactly the same, and each one seems to have its own personality.

Some lakes are great for walleye and not so good for any other species. This can be good and also bad &045; if the walleye quit biting it can be tough. Don’t become one-dimensional if you want to enjoy a day on the lake.

In all the years that I have fished my favorite lake, (Spider) there always seems to be just a small window of opportunity for the walleye bite to be really exceptional.

It doesn’t matter if its the middle of June or the middle of July, when things are just right the fishing can be fantastic.

The reason I first fished that lake in the mid 70’s was because of the large variety of fish that the lake had.

I’ve talked before about how a lake and the fishing patterns change from early summer to late summer and fall. What works early may be fruitless in another three weeks. Being patient and being versatile can really help. Not being afraid to fish for more than one species will usually result in some fish in the old skillet.

Remember if the walleye are taking a break try for northern or bass. Although my favorite fish to seek out is the muskie, every lake doesn’t hold muskie so whenever I get the opportunity I take advantage of it.

When I can’t fish for them I do like to fish northern. They are a little less finicky and are definitely good to eat.

While growing up I was only aware of two ways to clean fish.

The old gill and gut method or cut the meat off the backbone

cut around the fins and scale it. I never was very fond of picking scales out of my teeth or sifting through all the bones to get to the meat.

There came a day when a new phenomenon hit my outdoors world. It was this new way of cleaning fish someone in my family learned from a guide way up northern Minnesota. It was called filleting.

What a revelation!

It was the slickest thing I’d seen since the time I had seen a group of fishermen cleaning bullheads with pliers

that had a razor blade welded on the jaw. That was really high tech. I wonder what they did when the blade got dull?

Today I remove all the bones when cleaning northern. It’s the only way to go and believe me they are just as tasty as walleye and don’t have any bones unlike some walleye I’ve been served in restaurants.

Here are some area fishing results:

MANKATO &045; Sunfish are hitting mini mites and waxworms under a bobber in the shallow bays on Washington Lake. Crappies can be found using crappie minnows in five feet of water in Baker’s Bay on the north end of Washington. Huge catfish are hitting large suckers and chubs on the Minnesota River. Largemouth bass are active in the weeds of Lake Tetonka. Crappies and walleyes are being caught from shore on Crystal Lake. The best approach has been a spinner rig and nightcrawler trolled on Lura Lake. Large northern pike are being pulled from Little Jeff Lake on rattling raps worked near shore.

For anyone planning a fall moose hunt the application deadline for the 2005 Minnesota moose hunt is Friday, June 17. Applications may be made from any of the 1,800 statewide electronic license terminals or from the DNR License Center at 500 Lafayette Road in St. Paul.

This year, 284 permits are available in 30 zones in the northeastern part of the state. There is no hunting season in northwestern Minnesota. The season dates are Oct. 1 through Oct.16, 2005. Moose hunters must apply in parties from two to four individuals. An application fee of $3 per individual must be included with the application. Only Minnesota residents, at least 16 years old, are eligible for the moose hunt.

Until next time &uot;play safe; enjoy the outdoors and let’s go fishin’.&uot;

Remember to show your support for the troops that are serving our country so that we may enjoy all of the freedoms that we have.