The Dakotan: This is Outdoor Issues with Neil Roberts and North Dakota Game and fish outreach biologist Greg Gullickson. Neil Roberts: I hope we can finally say that it's that time of year Greg when we can get our boats ready for spring and summer fishing. Your thoughts? Greg Gullickson: Yeah, I hope so, too, Neal. You know, ours is still tucked away, but one of these days I'm going to have to bring it up in the garage and start getting stuff ready. And when I do it, I start with safety first. I'm not playing with my garage for making sure the rods are ready to go first. I want to make sure that boat is safe and ready to go. So first of all, I start with on the road safety, and that's checking your ball hitch, making sure that that's functioning properly. Your safety chains are in good shape. Let your tie downs are good on the boat, not frayed that your tailgates work on the boat, just making sure that all those electrical components looping up those bearings on the trailer so making sure that it's ready to be safe for the road. And then the next step for me is usually making sure it's safe to be on the water check and make sure that my fire extinguisher is still in good service, making sure that my lifejackets are ready to go. My throw ball is ready to go. My horn works on the boat. A lot of times I'll fish right up until sunset and after. So making sure that my navigation lights are ready and then moving in and checking on your GPS is in your depth finders. Just making sure that all the wiring, you've made it through the season in good shape. Neil Roberts: All right. Good stuff, Greg. And hey, we'll talk more on fishing when we come back. The Dakotan: You're listening to Outdoor Issues with Neil Roberts on the Dakotan Network. Neil Roberts: Talking fishing today. An outdoor issue is a great we talked about getting our boats ready to roll before the break, but we should not forget about the other gear as well. Greg Gullickson: Yeah, that's right. You know, and you don't need a boat to fish in North Dakota. You don't need a boat to catch fish. And one thing that everyone can be getting ready right now would be your fishing rods. You maybe you got snapped islets that you need to replace. Maybe you need to re spool or realign it. Lube up those reels go through your tackle boxes just making sure that everything's ready to go. Neil Roberts: Good stuff, Craig. And that will bring this report to a close. If you missed one, check us on the website. Outdoor issues dot com It's all next time. I'm Neil Roberts. The Dakotan: You're listening to the Dakotan Network. Real, Honest, Local News.
