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Ned Kehde

Ned Kehde

Ned Kehde is Outdoors Columnist for the Lawrence Journal-World.

By whatever method, catfish catchable
Sunday, August 11, 2002
By Ned Kehde

Throughout the dog days of summer, the channel catfish is king. During the sultriest spells and when the sun is hot and shiny as a new dime, some of the area's savviest anglers can catch an incredible number of cats.

Too hot to fish? Not for some anglers
Sunday, July 14, 2002
By Ned Kehde

Despite the oppressive heat of July, fishing can be the most fruitful and varied of the year. In fact, some anglers contend July's consistently hot weather is one reason the fishing is so superb.

June means walleye season
Sunday, June 9, 2002
Every June, a flotilla of anglers gathers almost daily on the submerged humps and mud flats of Clinton, Coffey County, Hillsdale and Melvern lakes. They come to prey upon walleye.

Fishing this spring has been fabulous
Saturday, May 18, 2002
By Ned Kehde

Spring's hot-cold bounty can be grand for fishermen. The heat can lead to massive hatches of mayflies and other aquatic insects at the reservoirs. This spring, the fish that gamboled along the reservoirs' rocky and shallow shorelines feasted upon the larvae as they ascended to the surface to hatch.

White bass white hot now
Sunday, April 14, 2002
By Ned Kehde

This is the month when a growing number of fishermen are hot in pursuit of Morone chryspos — the scientific name for white bass. In fact, some anglers begin their quest in March and continue past the first week of May. It's all done in conjunction with the white bass procreation antics.

March is season of twitchbait Rogue
Sunday, March 17, 2002
By Ned Kehde

March is Rogue season in these parts. That doesn't mean a bunch of scamps and scoundrels are on the loose. It means a Smithwick Lures' Rogue is often wreaking havoc with largemouth and smallmouth bass in area lakes.

Ex-KU vaulter keen on Hillsdale crappie
Sunday, February 24, 2002
Jeff Buckingham says this has been the best winter of crappie fishing he's seen in many years at Hillsdale Lake. Buckingham, a former standout Kansas University pole vaulter who lives in Gardner, has been pursuing crappie at Hillsdale and Clinton Lakes since 1980.

Area lakes need limits
Sunday, February 17, 2002
By Ned Kehde

Clinton, Melvern, Perry and Pomona lakes are all shrinking. "Even though it's a natural occurrence," veteran angler Blair Flynn said, "it isn't a good sign for the future of our fishing."

Vassar man expert on rod thread art
Sunday, February 10, 2002
By Ned Kehde

Some fishermen contend the use of expensive, state-of-the-art equipment is an essential ingredient in making an accomplished angler. Ron Lindner of Brainerd, Minn., a consummate angler and cofounder of In-Fisherman, is in this camp. Consequently, he uses the finest fishing reels and superfine custom-made fishing rods. One of his deluxe spinning reels, for example, retails for about $500.

Bivins: from wheel to reel
Sunday, February 3, 2002
By Ned Kehde

Back in 1976, Terry Bivins of Lebo gave Dale Earnhardt, Cale Yarborough and Bobby Allison a run for their money on the NASCAR Winston Cup circuit. Bivins finished eighth at the '76 Daytona 500. He even led the race for one lap. And at a number of other races, he placed high on the leader board. Moreover, he finished second in the balloting for rookie-of-the-year that season.

Fickle LaCygne only option now
Sunday, January 27, 2002
By Ned Kehde

Despite all the concerns about global warming and its manifold effects, most area anglers still relish stealing a day or two from winter's normal agenda. Those occasional spells of unseasonably warm weather are the salve that helps many of us limp through the bone-breaking cold days of January.

Anglers find crappie hot spot at Clinton
Sunday, January 20, 2002
By Ned Kehde

Winter crappie fishing at Clinton Lake commenced in early January, nearly a month behind its traditional schedule. Balmy late fall weather kept the water temperature unseasonably warm and the crappie scattered in small schools in a variety of wooded lairs in 10 to 20 feet of water.

In seeking wipers, look for shad, crappie
Sunday, January 13, 2002
By Ned Kehde

A few weeks ago, I wrote about the trials and tribulations of wiper anglers in these parts last year. It was noted wipers were exceedingly persnickety feeders, making them difficult to find and catch.

December delightful at Lone Star
Sunday, January 6, 2002
By Ned Kehde

This could have been a traditional wintertime crappie-fishing column, detailing how the Schmidtlein family of Topeka caught and released scads of crappie at Pomona and Melvern lakes, or how Terry Bivins of Lebo caught an astronomical number of them at Cedar Valley Lake.

Wipers were perplexing during 2001
Sunday, December 30, 2001
By Ned Kehde

For years, wipers have been one of the most sought after trophy fish in these parts. These pinstriped creatures can weigh up to 22 pounds. Too, when caught on a rod and reel, wipers give anglers a new understanding of the word electrifying.

Anglers have loved mild weather
Sunday, December 23, 2001
By Ned Kehde

Throughout autumn, anglers hereabouts constantly paid homage to nature's gentle hand. Never in recent memory has northeast Kansas been graced with such a long string of Indian summer days. And never in autumns past were there so many anglers at Melvern Lake in pursuit of such a variety of species.

Make-a-Wish suits Baldwin couple
Sunday, December 16, 2001
By Ned Kehde

About seven weeks ago, Ted Madl of Baldwin sat down to read a recent issue of Buckmasters Whitetail Magazine. Part way through his perusal, he came across a story about how the Make-A-Wish Foundation wanted deer hunters across the nation to take children afflicted with life-threatening illnesses hunting.

Bass bustin' Benjamins
Sunday, December 2, 2001
By Ned Kehde

This has been a memorable year for Jason and Jerry Benjamin of Lawrence. In October, Jason won Lawrence Bass Club's angler-of-the-year laurels. Then he and his father Jerry teamed to catch 34.69 pounds of largemouth bass on Oct. 20-21 at Cedar Bluff Lake to win the Kansas B.A.S.S. Chapter Federation Buddy Classic.

Largemouth expert turns to guiding
Sunday, November 25, 2001
By Ned Kehde

Since the 1980s, Larry McGlinn has played a significant role in Lawrence's bass fishing community. Despite all of his contributions, he avoided the limelight. Instead, he merely went fishing or helped others go fishing and catch fish.

Gamebird preserve booming
Sunday, November 18, 2001
By Ned Kehde

Once upon a time, this was a quail hunter's Avalon. Now all that's left of those splendid days are the reveries of old men. Many of those hunters are too afflicted by the ravages of time to hunt anymore, and some are dead.

Top lure tough call, but Shad Rap wins
Sunday, November 11, 2001
By Ned Kehde

When Time magazine started selecting the man of the year in 1927, its editors created a classic. For some unknown reason, annual awards strike the fancy of lots of folks — even in the world of fishing. For nearly a decade, local fishermen and readers of this column have asked that such awards be bestowed upon lakes, fish and lures.

And the winner is …
Sunday, November 4, 2001
By Ned Kehde

After proclaiming Melvern the Lake of the Year in a recent column, several readers suggested a column heralding the Fish of the Year in eastern Kansas. Even though the selection of Melvern selection failed to garner any immediate ire from readers, one must venture into such endeavors with trepidation and much counsel from veteran fishermen.

Teal, pintails abundant, but where are mallards?
Sunday, November 4, 2001
By Ned Kehde

In years past, Andy and Jim Flack of Kansas City hunted ducks all across eastern Kansas. They would start the season near Perry Lake and gradually work south to Elk City Lake. More often than not, however, they spent most of their time in the wetlands surrounding Redmond Lake.

Fear of few blue fin unfounded
Sunday, October 28, 2001
By Ned Kehde

To the relief of a number of local anglers, the blue fin season began in earnest on Oct. 9 at Melvern Lake. Before their magical manifestation, fishermen feared Melvern's blue fin population was so slim that this traditional autumnal affair wouldn't occur.

Lake of Year no contest
Sunday, October 21, 2001
By Ned Kehde

For the last 10 years at the end of the summer fishing season, numerous readers have asked me to select a Lake of the Year in northeast Kansas. Until now a consensus about such a continuous and subjective issue could not be ascertained.

Anglers flock to Lone Star
Sunday, October 14, 2001
By Ned Kehde

After northeast Kansas had weathered several major floods during the 1990s, civil engineers began to fear the dam at Lone Star Lake could be breached if southwest Douglas County was waylaid with another series of deluges.

Anglers hit shorelines this time of year
Sunday, October 7, 2001
By Ned Kehde

For a growing circle of Kansas anglers, the days stretching between Sept. 15 and Oct. 15 are potpourri time. During this spell, fishermen try to see how many different species they can hook and release.

Lawrence angler hasn't lost passion
Sunday, September 30, 2001
By Ned Kehde

Back in the '90s, when Steve Ortiz was a student at Lawrence High and later Haskell Indian Nations University, his angling skills were periodically chronicled in this space. Now Ortiz is 27 years old, owns three college degrees and works as an accountant for a major firm. At the same time, his piscatorial passion and prowess haven't waned.

Despite neglect, white bass OK
Sunday, September 23, 2001
By Ned Kehde

A decade ago scads of northeast Kansas anglers spent many of their summer days plying Perry Lake's offshore hideaways and rocky shorelines. They tangled with untold numbers of spunky and hefty white bass.

Smallmouth strike hauntingly familiar
Sunday, September 16, 2001
By Ned Kehde

On the third cast of the first morning of our annual trek to the north woods, my wife, Pat, caught and released a 211¼2-inch smallmouth bass. That is definitely a grand specimen of the finest species that swims in these northern lakes.

Sultry days at Pomona great for catfish
Sunday, September 9, 2001
By Ned Kehde

There is no single superlative in our language that can adequately describe the channel catfish fishing Ryan Anderson and Alan Geiss enjoyed this summer at Pomona Lake. These two veteran anglers from Lawrence gushed they have never seen anything like it.

Many dove hunters were in quandary
Sunday, September 9, 2001
By Ned Kehde

Dusty and Harold Ensley of Overland Park planned to dove hunt along the Missouri-Kansas border on Sept. 1, but the doves hanging around several fields the Ensleys planned to hunt had moved on after cool rains fell the day before.

Topekan's methods unorthodox
Sunday, September 2, 2001
By Ned Kehde

Topekan David Schmidtlein doesn't look or act like a cat fisherman. For instance, as he probes the steep drop-off of a submerged oxbow at Melvern Lake, operating an electric trolling motor from the front deck of his Ranger boat, it looks like he's in pursuit of crappie or walleye, not channel cats.

Wiper chasers beat path to Pomona
Sunday, August 26, 2001
By Ned Kehde

It's wiper season and that's good news for wiper fans. Many anglers contend this species is the noblest fish that swims in eastern Kansas waterways.

Water too hot? Try using drop-shot rigs
Sunday, August 19, 2001
By Ned Kehde

Between the end of this year's magnificent walleye fishing in early summer and the start of the channel catfish and white bass fishing in mid-summer, there was such a lull that many fishermen didn't know what to do.

Puzzled anglers strike paydirt
Sunday, August 12, 2001
By Ned Kehde

This is a white bass story that almost didn't get written. At 3:15 p.m. on a brutally hot Saturday in late July at Milford Lake, Vic Oertle, a fishing guide and proprietor of FishTech Lures from Manhattan, and a friend had fished for six hours and caught only 14 small white bass.

Lawrence youth guided by genes
Sunday, August 5, 2001
By Ned Kehde

Some of us are born to be anglers and hunters. For some it might be the genes. For others it might be a divine acquisition. But if one doesn't possess the primal proclivities to hunt and fish, it is virtually impossible to cultivate them.

Melvern Pond isn't Walden, but it's close
Sunday, July 29, 2001
By Ned Kehde

Summer weekends at the big lakes in these parts can be an agonizing endeavor for the serious bass angler. Not only is the sun blinding and as hot as a butane flame, but around 11 a.m. a flotilla of jet skis and a cavalcade of recreational boaters begin to launch their lunacy.

Urbanek, Ogburn shine
Sunday, July 22, 2001
Since l990, the angling team of Ray Urbanek of Lawrence and Chris Ogburn of rural Ottawa has been a force on the Kansas Walleye Assn. tournament trail. During each tournament season, which begins in early May and ends in early July, they compete against 90 other teams of walleye anglers. In 1992, Urbanek and Ogburn were the top team, but fell to 13th place in 1993.

Angler longs for Kansas lakes
Sunday, July 15, 2001
By Ned Kehde

There won't be as many largemouth bass caught in northeast Kansas this summer as there were in summers past. It's not because a horrible disease has afflicted our fish. It's because Kevin Davis has left town.

In-Fisherman duo picked wrong time
Sunday, July 8, 2001
By Ned Kehde

In mid-June, Steve Hoffman and Rich Eckholm, both of Brainerd, Minn., arrived in Lawrence with designs of spending four nights on the Kansas River. The plan was for Hoffman to catch several big flathead catfish on a rod and reel and for Eckholm to tape the catches for a segment of In-Fisherman's television program, as well as some footage for a new In-Fisherman how-to videotape.

For some reason, largemouth bass in funk
Sunday, July 1, 2001
By Ned Kehde

This column was supposed to be about the efficacy of a split-shot rig adorned with a four-inch plastic worm. Normally, this simple concoction is the most productive lure a largemouth bass fisherman can wield at the community lakes in northeast Kansas during the last weeks of spring and first weeks of summer.

Group of Lawrence women novelty at Missouri park
Sunday, June 24, 2001
Back in the 1970s, Leta and Dick Ehrman of Lawrence and their children spent many splendid summer days in central Missouri canoeing down the Niangua River flows north past Bennett Spring State Park and into the Lake of the Ozarks.

Opinions vary on top big lake in state
Sunday, June 17, 2001
By Ned Kehde

In angling circles throughout Kansas, a friendly debate occasionally erupts among some of the best fishermen about which is the best big lake in the state. Here is the gist of some of that chatter:

Wabaunsee wise choice for bass quest
Sunday, June 10, 2001
On a cold, blustery day in late May, Terry Bivins of Lebo and a friend tried their darndest to tangle with 50 largemouth and smallmouth bass. Only a fisherman of Bivins' immense talents would attempt such an improbable feat on any of Kansas' public waterways after the passage of a severe cold front.

Big male crappies rare, but worth effort
Sunday, June 3, 2001
By Ned Kehde

On a lovely Saturday in mid-May, Mike Smith of Lawrence could have fished at Coffey County Lake and tangled with scads of big wipers and white bass. Instead he went to Melvern Lake and caught and released 91 spawning crappie.

Try these rods, reels, lures on smallmouth
Sunday, May 27, 2001
By Ned Kehde

During the past three years the virtues of smallmouth bass have been extolled in this space with regularity. Since these acrobatic creatures have begun to abide with escalating numbers in several waterways along U.S. Highway 75, stretching from Holton to Yates Center, they have caught the fancy of an increasing number of anglers.

Remote pond sure cure
Sunday, May 20, 2001
By Ned Kehde

On an unseasonably warm and windy Tuesday early this month, Bob Laskey of Lawrence cured all his fishing woes in one swoop. Laskey is a dedicated bass fisherman who possesses an uncanny knack for catching a lot of fish and an occasional big one to boot. But for the past several years, his new vocation in the golfing business has crimped his time to get afloat.

Fishermen surprised by crappie revival
Sunday, May 13, 2001
By Ned Kehde

For decades anglers in these parts touted the crappie fishing at Pomona, Perry, Melvern and Clinton lakes as some of the best in the world. Fishermen of all stripes eagerly awaited the last days of April and the first weeks of May, when the crappie began gamboling along shallow shorelines in preparation for their season of procreation.

Melvern smallmouth marvelous
Sunday, May 6, 2001
By Ned Kehde

On Tuesday and Thursday afternoons this spring, when the sky looked as dreamy and warm as an Albert Bierstadt painting and the wind refrained from howling, a small coterie of fishermen ventured to Melvern Lake to give chase to a smallmouth bass of grand proportions.