It takes Bassmaster Elite Series pro Jeff Gustafson 7 hours just to get to Minneapolis but he makes the long drives to tournaments because it’s worth it to live on Lake of the Woods — one of the best freshwater multispecies fisheries in the world.

On her latest trip to Anglers Inn Lake Picachos, Tennessee’s Lisa Skelley brought not only her perma-smile, but also her boyfriend Dwayne to celebrate a couple of life milestones. As always, it was an amazing adventure.

Lodge Owner Gary Moeller is a fisherman at heart, and loves to check out new places. We met when he took a large group to Anglers Inn’s Lake Picachos operation, and I circled back to find out what he thought – both professionally and personally – about the experience.

Gary Moeller, a partner in Ballard’s Resorts on Lake of the Woods, shares his story and explains why you should visit this summer if you want to catch walleyes, muskies, northerns or smallmouth — or ALL OF THE ABOVE.

The true test of a guide or captain is how hard they commit when everything seems to be working against them. Capt. Nicho Alvarenga worked hard to help us end our trip to Guatemala on a high note.

Our 12 year-old niece Isabel was born in Japan and lives a truly international lifestyle. That extends to her taste if food and cooking opportunities, but you might be surprised to learn that her “last meal” would be distinctly American.

Kentucky’s Kevin Baxter is a fishing industry lifer, but more importantly he’s a tackle junkie just like us. Here we talk about some of his favorite tackle shops and some of his most coveted discontinued bass lures.

Turnabout is fair play — and now Hanna gets to grade Pete’s fishing. Learn what is solid, what could be better, and which attributes are lost causes.

Christie Bradley competes and excels in the Bassmaster Opens, but she’s especially well-known for her success on the Potomac River. Read the Virginia pro’s thoughts on what makes the Potomac great and how to fish it.

For someone who had never picked up a rod and reel until her mid-30s, except to catch a few summer camp bluegills, Hanna has evolved into a remarkable angler. I’ve watched her evolve as a bass angler over the course of 17 years and here’s a report card.

Alabama’s Donald Howell is a serious angler, aviation enthusiast, and pillar of the business community. Here are his insights into how and why to fly private on your next fishing or hunting trip.

We get asked all the time whether an Alabama Rig works at Lake El Salto. Our friend Dave Mansell cracked the code and now he’ll share his strategies to make your next trip a success.

Get to know Casa Vieja Lodge’s excellent Captain Nicho Alvarenga of The Finest Kind (and occasionally other boats) — one of the top billfish producers in the fleet and in the world.

On the first day of his first trip to Anglers Inn at Lake El Salto in Mexico, Chris Sharas caught….a walleye through the ice. Think you can duplicate that achievement?

Big Dreams, Big Expectations, No Disappointments. That’s the El Salto promise. I’ve already detailed how two of our lady anglers notched new personal bests on our recent trip, but now it’s the guys’ turn. Jimmy Keller, Brian Saari and Adam Cherry, three Wisconsin tournament anglers, all crushed their previous PBs.

Fourth year Elite Series pro Derek Hudnall was at Anglers Inn Lake El Salto, just a week after Hanna and I were there. I was anxious to hear about his experience and to compare it to ours. He was gracious enough to spend some time on the phone with me as he drove toward the St. Johns River in Florida for the season-opener.

Two new female friends from Wisconsin caught their personal best largemouths on our recent trip to Anglers Inn Lake El Salto. Read how they did it — and why they’re coming back.

I must be getting mellower in my old age – either that or Hanna is increasingly good at picking out travel partners – because I really enjoyed the group we recently hosted at El Salto. Most of them hail from Wisconsin, which further solidifies our plan to spend at least part of the year up that way after we retire.

Besides lose weight and make sure I don’t get COVID, the same goals I have had for the last two years, I’ve added a few more to my list 2022. I think they’re obtainable, but not easy, so bear with me as I try to make them happen. Here are six that I’ll try to fulfill.

My 2021 was mostly good. We took calculated risks several times this year to explore our passion for travel. Half Past First Cast helped us enhance that effort, bringing likeminded people together virtually and to travel to places they might not have even known existed.