Every fisherman has a story to tell about the one that got away, even Don Oberg. Chances are, though, you won’t find him swapping tales about the fish he’s lost. Instead, Oberg, who is an officially certified captain by the United States Coast Guard and the state of Wisconsin, would rather spend his time plotting his next big catch. In fact, if you’re willing to climb aboard his boat, he’ll guarantee that you, too, go home with a fish.

Oberg owns and runs a charter fishing service called Leprechaun Fishing. Even though he calls Maple Grove home, his fishing business operates out of Sturgeon Bay, which is in Door County, Wis. Sturgeon Bay is a five-hour drive from Maple Grove, a road trip Oberg is happy to make whenever he has a charter lined up. Since he started the fishing business three years ago, he’s been taking clients out about 50 times each summer.

“The fishing is so much better on Lake Michigan than on Lake Superior. Superior is just such a big, massive piece of cold water,” Oberg says, explaining why he chose to dock his boat one state away rather than closer to home. He adds that Lake Michigan’s king salmon, or Chinook, population is 50 percent stocked. “A lot of people think of Alaska when they think about king salmon fishing,” he says. “But I’ve been to Alaska to go fishing for king salmon, and in most regions they only let you harvest one a day and only five for the entire season. On Lake Michigan, you can harvest two to five king salmon a day with 10 in possession. I don’t think Minnesotans realize the world class king salmon fishing they have within such a short driving distance.”

Oberg’s boat is a 28-foot, 2004 Wellcraft Coastal named the Leprechaun. The boat’s name, along with Oberg’s penchant for hauling in one remarkable catch after another, has resulted in the nickname Leprechaun Don. Oberg, though, doesn’t chalk up his plentiful fish to luck. He credits his captain training, which allows him to run a professional charter operation. “Getting that certification was a process,” he says. “I had to log hundreds of hours on the water, take proficiency tests administered by the Coast Guard and get fingerprinted and background checked by the FBI. But the whole exercise of doing the classes and taking the test forced me to learn so much more about the lake than I’d ever known before. I’m definitely a better fisherman than I was 10 years ago.”