BAUDETTE, Minn. – It was another smoky day in the border country, but on this early August afternoon, the haze above didn’t matter – the focus lurked somewhere beneath the surface of the Rainy River.

For Kevin Hinrichs of Baudette and two 13-year-olds – son Jeffrey and nephew Alex Vadner, who was visiting from Wanamingo, Minnesota – the plan was both simple and relaxing: Drop anchor, spend a few hours on the river and soak some bait in hopes of enticing a lake sturgeon or two into biting.

In between, there’d be ample opportunity to shoot the breeze, ponder the meaning of life and burn through nightcrawlers and frozen shiners while catching a mixed bag of fish that might include walleyes, saugers, redhorse, mooneyes and suckers.

This time of year on the Rainy River, you never know what y

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