Dirty Water and Tough Fishing

Fished with Daryl. Temperature this morning was in the lower 50s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 70s. The wind was out of the southwest 5 to 10 knots and the waves were less than a foot. The water temp is 61 degrees. The water in front of Toledo Beach is very dirty so we headed back to where we were fishing on Saturday. Started trolling with crawlers and gulp worms at 1.5 mph and we could not keep the white perch off the lines. After a couple hours of doing this with no walleye we pulled lines and headed to the International Buoy. The water was very clean so we trolled here with jet 20s and dipsy's without any luck. Pulled lines and made a move towards Sputnik and did not see any boats so we headed back to our original location, set lines and headed towards Stoney Point. Trolled jet 20s 75 feet back and dipsy's 105 feet back with spoons, anything with orange on it. Started to catch a few walleye this way at 41 55 200 / 083 14 800 and then it was time to call it a day. Kept only 3 walleye and we released 2, one at 13 inches and one at 14 inches.

Nice Day Fishing, Slow Day Catching

Fished with Joe, John had to cancel to do yard work. Temperature this morning was in the upper 40s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 60s. The wind in the morning was out of the northwest at 5 to 10 knots and then around 11:00 AM it switched to the south at 5 to 10 knots. The waves were less than a foot and the water temp is 56 degrees. Started fishing on the east side of the dumping grounds where the water started to clear up. Trolled here heading northeast with wiggle warts and spoons. Caught nothing but silver bass so we pulled lines and headed to Breast Bay (41 53 900 / 083 13 800). Trolled with spoons and body baits and caught nothing so we put on bottom bouncers and crawlers on one side of the boat. Caught a small mouth bass and then we finally caught a walleye trolling at 1.5 MPH. Switched over to bottom bouncers and crawlers on one side of the boat and bottom bouncers and artificial bait on the other side of the boat because we were short on crawlers. We used 2 oz. bottom bouncers set 75 to 85 feet behind the boards. The crawlers caught most of the fish and we caught one gator using a glub worm. Kept 6 walleye for the day.

Time to Start Trolling

Fished with Captain Daryl. Temperature this morning was in the upper 50s and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 60s. The wind was out of the southwest at 10 to 15 knots with waves around a foot. The water temp is 56 degrees. Started fishing on the humps in the dumping grounds jigging hair jigs tipped with a minnow and caught a white perch. Made a move to the flats by Turtle Island and the water was very dirty. Fished here for a half hour and then we made our way back towards the dumping grounds. Caught nothing but white perch so we moved to the west side of the dumping grounds and drifted with crawler harnesses and also jigged. Picked up one walleye off the harness and that was it for us. Saw some other boats catch some walleye in this area so the fish are there.

Detroit River Fishing

Fished with Captain Dwayne out of Belanger Park. Temperature this morning was 67 degrees and when we quit fishing 20 minutes later it was still 67 degrees. The wind was out of the south at 10 knots and the river was in good shape. Made a couple of drifts in front of the steel plant by Belanger Park and the sky started to get dark and nasty. After one more drift the lightning started on the horizon so we called it quits. We just got the boat out of the water and the rain started. That's my second trip on the river this year without any luck. This picture was taken during the storm in the daylight, that's how dark it was during the storm!!

Nice Walleyes and Jumbo Perch

Fished with captain Daryl on his maiden trip. Temperature this morning was in the lower 30 and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 50s. The wind was out of the west around 7 knots with waves less than a foot. The water temp is 53 degrees. We started to head towards Turtle Island and the water was very dirty so we turned around and went to the dumping grounds (41 48 700 / 083 24 800). We were jigging with blade baits and jigs tipped with a minnow. Caught no fish off the blade baits. We had a lot of bites and lost a few fish because they were hitting so lightly. Kept 5 walleye and 3 jumbo perch.

Bubba

Trout fishing 2010 is over. The fishing was very good on opening day and then it just went down hill. Joe caught this hog on Monday and it was the only keeper that we had today. The brown trout was 21 inches long, the largest fish that we have ever caught on opening weekend. Good job Joe!! The weather was pretty nice for the opening weekend, since it was the earliest it could ever be. It rained for 4 hours on Sunday and it was dry for the rest of the trip. We were able to have trout dinners for 3 nights, and they were excellent. For the weekend we kept 12 brown trout.

Sunday's Catch From Grayling

Photo on the left is from Sunday, April 25, 2010. More trout - 1 per person???

Photo on the right is another pic from Saturday's Catch.

Opening Day of Trout Season

Well, it took us a while to get to Grayling Friday due to getting two flat tires on the camper.
Today the weather began with temps in the upper 20's, which was cold enough to form ice on the eyelets. Throughout the day the temps warmed up to the upper 50's. With the overcast skies, it was a good day for fishing. We fished using minnows and worms - the worms were better in the afternoon. We caught a lot of 8" to 10" fish which should make for good fishing next year. The largest fish we caught today was 14" (all were brown trout).
We had a trout dinner tonight which was fantastic, and we have enough fish for dinner the next two nights also!
There are not very many people on the river and we are the only occupants at the campground!

Trout Season Opener !!

John, Joe, and I are off this morning for Grayling, MI, for our Annual Trout Season Fishing Trip! The season opens Saturday morning. We'll set up the camper today and scout out some of our fishing holes. Doesn't sound like the weather will be too great (rain and cool/cold) but hopefully we'll have a good time and catch some fish! Will report more later.

Jigging By The Island

Fished with Daryl and Doug. Temperature this morning was in the upper 30s and by the time we quit fishing it was in the middle 50s. The wind was out of the northeast at 5 knots and the waves were less than a foot. The water was very clean compared to the last two trips. Started fishing where we left off on the last trip and we picked up a few fish. Stayed in this area for quite awhile and then the bite slowed down. Made a move across the channel and we caught one more fish. All the fish except for one were caught off the jig and minnow, the other one came off the blade bait. Kept 8 walleye for the trip and lost about 5 other fish.

Brutal Day of Fishing

Fished with Joe and John H. for the afternoon fish. We only had two hours to fish because Toledo Beach Marina closed at 5:00 PM, instead of 8:00 PM like they should. Temperature this afternoon was in the upper 50s for the whole trip. The wind was out of the west 20 to 25 knots and the waves were 2 to 3 feet, not the best of conditions. It rained for the first hour and then the sun came out. We ran two drift bags and could have used another one. We fished by Turtle Island on the mud line (41 45 500 / 083 21 360). We were able to make about 5 passes before we had to call it a day. I started off using the blade baits and Joe and John were using a jig and Minnow. Nothing was working so I switched to a jig and minnow and then we started to catch some fish. We kept 8 walleye and lost only one. We finished off the trip by going to Trappers and having a fresh walleye dinner.

Maiden Voyage

Fished with Daryl, Doug cancelled last night. Temperature this morning was in the lower 50s and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 70s. The wind was out of the southwest 5 to 18 knots with waves less than a foot, probably the best April 15 ever. We started fishing where we left off last Monday and the water was very dirty. We used the blade baits for the first 45 minutes and had no hits so we switched over to jigs and minnows. Started getting a few hits off the minnows but we could not land the fish. For the next couple of hours we switched between the blades and the jigs - the blades had no hits. We kept one walleye and lost about 8 others. The fish are still there but it was not our day.

Turtle Island

Went down to work on the boat today and I ran into Captain Eddie (Hollywood) and his first mate, Rob. I helped them launch his boat and then they asked me to go fishing with them, so away we went. Temperature this afternoon was in the upper 50s with a northeast wind 5 to 10 knots. The waves were about a foot and the skies were blue. Our first stop was the humps in Michigan waters not to far from Toledo Light house, where Rob caught his fish yesterday. Fished there for 45 minutes and we only had one hit so we moved half way between the light house and Turtle Island in 9 feet of water. Caught a couple of fish there and then we moved closer towards Turtle Island and we found the fish. It did not take long to get our limit once we were on the fish. We kept 12 walleye and 1 nice perch and had about 8 other fish on that we lost. All the fish were caught using blade baits, either casting or jigging.

Detroit River Fishing

Fished with Captain Dwayne and his brother Uncle Dan. I was working around the house this afternoon when Dwayne called and asked if I wanted to go fishing, so away we went. Temperature this afternoon was in the mid 60s with a light wind out of the southeast. When we got to Belanger Park to launch the boat the temperature dropped about 20 degrees and the wind was blowing out of the southeast 10 to 15 knots. We talked to some guys at the dock and the reports were bad. We headed off to Mud Island and fished around it for a while with no luck. Made a move to the matchstick and did not catch anything. Moved again to the water intake and again caught nothing. Went back to Mud Island and tried it again and had the same results, no fish. Headed back up river to Belanger Park and fished in front of the steel plant and caught nothing, again. For the day we had no hits and no fish, but it sure felt nice to be back on the water again.

Spring Fishing???

Fished with Doug S. and Joe P. on Grosse Ile. Temperature this morning was 26 degrees and when we quit fishing it was only in the upper 30s. The wind was out of the southeast 5 to 10 knots and the sky was clear. When we got to the canal to start fishing it was covered with a light sheet of ice, the first bad sign of the day. We started fishing the far east side of the canal where there was some open water and the fishing was very slow. As the ice started to break up Doug moved towards the west end of the canal without any luck. After we decided we stayed too long here we headed to Hoovers and fished the canal there. We did not have any luck there so we started the Grosse Ile tour. After it was all said and done we only had 2 perch that we kept, maybe enough for my mom to have a little dinner.

First Day of Spring

Fished on this cold first day of spring on Grosse Ile with Doug S. Temperature this morning was 36 degrees and when we quit fishing it was only 41 degrees. The wind was out of the northeast 15 to 20 knots and the sky was mainly overcast. We tried dipping our own minnows and had no luck so we headed back to the main land and bought some. With the strong wind the water was pretty high in all the canals and the water temp is 42 degrees(some guys came into the canal with a boat to fish and told us the water temp). The fishing was slow again today. We had around a dozen perch that we threw back and only kept 5.

Fishing the Soft Water

Fished with Doug S. We made the Grosse Ile tour today. Temperature this afternoon was 64 degrees and when we quit fishing it was 52 degrees. The temp was a lot warmer on the main land then it was on the island. The sun was shining bright and the wind was light out of the east. We hit all our usual spots and the fishing was slow. The Trenton Channel had high water and a lot of ice floating down it but there were still 4 boats out walleye fishing. The canals were very shallow but they all had a lot of shiners, so the fishing should pick up any day now. We caught a few perch but they were all small ones.

The Official Last Day

Got a call from Doug S. and he just had to go ice fishing one more time, so away we went. Temperature this afternoon was 59 degrees and when we quit fishing it was 42 degrees. The skies were blue and the wind was very light, just like yesterday. The shore ice is getting worse (on the way out Doug fell through up to his knees) and the ice on the lake is less than a foot thick and very sloppy on top. Doug got a report that they were catching some fish out of the DNR launch by Crocker, so that was going to be our destination. On the way to fishing Doug got a phone call and his friend caught his limit of perch at Metro Beach in 3 feet of water in front of the flag pole. So the game plan was changed and off we went to Metro Beach. We get to the beach and there is no one fishing in front of the flag pole, they were all at the point, where I fished last night. At the Point, we caught 6 perch and the largest was 5 inches. The guy in the picture caught this nice pike fishing right by us using his perch pole with 4 lb. test line and a small jig. On the way home we drove by the DNR launch and all the guys that we talked to had no fish either, so we did not feel too bad.

Sunset on the End of 2010 Ice Fishing

Sitting around the house today knowing that the end of ice fishing is close, I decided to go one more time. So off I went to Metro Beach for the evening fish. Temperature this afternoon was 55 degrees and when I quit fishing it was 48 degrees. The sun was shining bright and the wind was less than 5 knots out of the west. The ice on the lake is at least a foot thick but around the shore line it is getting soft. The report that we received yesterday as we left the ice was they caught some nice fish at the point in shallow water right before dark. My game plan was to stay in the shallow water and not leave it. I set up in 1 foot of water and I could see the fish coming in. The bite did not start until after sunset and it was over in a hurry. I had three hogs come through the hole and I only caught one of them. I caught some smaller fish but it was not the trip I had planned. Had only 2 keeper perch so I let them go.

Getting Close to Last Ice

Fished out of Metro Beach on Lake St. Clair with Doug S. Temperature this afternoon was 52 degrees and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 40s. The wind was out of the southwest 5 to 10 knots and the sky was blue. The shore ice at the Day Sail Ramp is getting a little iffy but on the lake there is 14 inches of ice. We started fishing in front of the flag pole in 7 feet of water. When we got there the guys were just leaving and they had some fish that they caught in the morning. We fished there for 1 1/2 hours and caught a lot of dinks and only a few keepers and then we noticed a group of guys over by the point in shallow water. We picked up and headed out that way to talk to the guys and they said the morning bite was pretty good in 1 foot of water but the last 2 hours the fish moved out. We fished there for 45 minutes and then we went back to our old spot. For every 15 fish we would have one keeper so we thought that was better than nothing. Around the last hour of light the bigger fish turned on and then we started to have some fun. Doug used his new Slab Grabber spoon today and I have to admit it worked very well. We kept 30 perch and lost half a dozen large one's at the hole.

Gino's Surf

Fished with Doug S. out of Gino's on Lake St. Clair. Temperature this morning was 25 degrees and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 30s. The sun was shining bright and the wind was out of the northwest 5 to 10 knots. The ice is about 14 inches thick and some fool drove his mini van on the lake today. We started off fishing to the right of Gino's in front of the willow tree in 4 feet of water. Made a half dozen moves there and all that we caught were small fish. Kept an eye on other people fishing in closer and did not see any action. Started moving out to deeper water and we finally found some fish. We just stayed in this general area hole hopping and sorting out the small fish for the rest of the day. Kept 10 perch for a long day of fishing. The one good thing today was Selfridge Air National Base put on a nice air show.

The Coast Line Tour

Fished with Doug S. Temperature this morning was 34 degrees and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 30s. The wind was out of the northwest 5 to 10 knots and the skies were overcast for the first hour and then the sun came out. Turned out to be a nice day. We started fishing at Bolles Harbor and never had a bite. Jumped in the car and went to the Trenton Channel on Grosse Ille and never had a bite. Made one last stop at Bellanger Park and had the same results, no bites. All three locations the water was pretty low. Might try and go ice fishing this week on Lake St. Clair.

Airport Bay, Done for the Year

Fished Airport Bay with Doug S. and Daryl. Temperature this morning was 25 degrees and when we quit fishing it was in the low 30s. The wind was light out of the southeast and we had sleet and snow for most of the trip. On the way to the canal Doug S. slipped on some ice and fell on the sidewalk, not a good start for the day. Walked down the canal to the bay and the ice looked pretty iffy in the center of the canal. Started fishing where we left off on Saturday and we caught no fish. Made about 4 moves and still nothing. Talked to some other fisherman and they had no fish. After a couple of hours we decided to call it a day on the bay and try to fish the Trenton Channel. On the way up the canal the ice looked even worse so we were hugging the east side of the canal. About half the way back I fell through up to my knees. Another 50 feet down the canal and Doug fell through with one leg up to his knee. We had to walk the shore line back for a while and the branches and underbrush are very thick on shore, which made for a tough go. This will be the last trip in that canal this year. After all this we came home with no fish, and we thought it was going to be a great day!!

Fishing the Big Pond

Fished with Joe out of Lake St. Clair. Temperature this morning was 26 degrees and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 30s. There was no wind today and the skies were partly sunny, just the perfect day for ice fishing. The ice is at least 16 inches thick. Had a report that they were catching some fish between the day sail ramp out from the Metro Park and Geno's, so that is where we headed. Started fishing in 3 foot of water and we only caught dinks. Made some moves further out and we caught a lot more dinks and 1 keeper perch (8 inches). Kept on moving towards Geno's and it did not help. Ended up having 2 perch that we kept, one that we gave away and one that we put back. I made the wrong choice today, we should have went back to Airport Bay.

Gander Mountain Tournament

Fished the tournament with Doug S. on Airport Bay. Temperature this morning was 25 degrees and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 30s. The wind was light out of the west and we had sunshine again today. We were hoping to fish from the same holes that we used yesterday but someone beat us to them so we set up right next to him. Lesson learned, next time we will cover our holes up so no one can find them. We caught a few fish here and then I decided to hole hop for a while. Hit about 25 holes without any luck so I came back to our original spot and spent the rest of the day there. Changed lures a few times and then we started to catch some nice fish. The best setup was a chartreuse Ken's spoon tipped with a minnow head. From the reports we had, the fishing was slow for everyone except one kid who had about 20 fish. We just stayed put and pecked away at the fish. At the weigh-in we held first place for biggest perch and heaviest catch for about 8 minutes and then we were eliminated from both categories. Our biggest perch was 15 ounces and our total catch was 5 lbs. 12 oz. When I get the final results I will post it.

The Day Before

Fished Airport Bay off Grosse Ile with Doug S. Temperature this morning was 22 degrees and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 20s. The wind was out of the west at 10 knots and the sky was pretty blue. The ice is about 10 inches thick. We decided to fish the Gander Mountain Tournament that is going to be held on Airport Bay tomorrow and so today we thought we would pre fish the area and figure out where we would start fishing in the morning. The water on the east side of the bay was dirty and towards the airport it was shallow. We moved around a lot and the fishing was slow. Everyone that we talked to had no fish, so it should be interesting tomorrow. We kept 3 perch and the largest was almost 13 inches. Today we parked at the airport and walked to the bay from there, almost a 1 1/2 mile walk. Tomorrow we can park by the bay and hopefully catch some more fish. I went to Florida for almost a week hoping to get some deep sea fishing in but the weather was windy and cold everyday. Talked to a lot of fisherman down there and the fishing is just terrible for this time of year. The water temp in the Gulf Coast is 57 degrees!!

Cold/Warm Day at Bolles

Fished with Doug S. at Bolles Harbor. Temperature this morning was 12 degrees and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 20s. The sun was shining bright and there was no wind. After a couple of hours of fishing I took off my hat and coat and enjoyed the sunshine, just a nice day to be on the ice. We started fishing where we left off on the last trip. Caught a few small fish but no keepers. We moved up and down the canal and we ended up not keeping any fish. There were only about 12 guys fishing and we talked to at least 7 of them and they had no fish. We decided to head out towards the lake and fish in front of the park, but as we were walking down the canal we noticed all the ice was gone in front of the park. We fished in front of the boat launch for a half an hour and then called it a day. Down by the Monroe Boat Club the ice is 12 inches thick but up by the boat launch the ice is only 2 to 3 inches thick.

Bolles Harbor Again

Fished with Doug S. out of Bolles Harbor. Temperature this morning was in the upper 20s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 30s. The sky was overcast and the wind was out of the northeast 5 to 10 knots. We started fishing at O Dark Thirty, roughly 7:00 AM. I don't think it made a difference that we were there so early today, because once the wind started to blow off the lake the bite slowed down. We started fishing in front of Monroe Boat Club and had no bites. Made a move towards the far end of the boat club and we started catching some fish. We had the camera again today and it showed fish for most of the trip. The only problem was, we both missed quite a few large fish - just could not keep them on the hook. Kept 11 perch today and we had a great time. We caught a lot of perch but most of them were small. Doug's Dad surprised us by coming out to see how the fishing was going - it was great to see him and I know he's looking forward to fishing with Doug next week!

Slow Day at Bolles

Fished with Doug S. out of Bolles Harbor. Temperature this morning was 30 degrees and it was snowing very lightly for the whole trip. The ice is about 10 inches thick and the water is very clear. The wind was out of the west 5 to 10 knots. Lake Erie Party Store was not open so we had to buy our bait from Jeff's on Dixie Highway. We started fishing in front of Monroe Boat Club and only caught a few small fish. Started hole hopping for the rest of the morning and we still only caught small perch. On the way out to fishing this morning we made a comment how we never catch any small perch out of Bolles, well, today changed that story. Everyone that we talked to either had a couple of small perch or nothing at all. We caught 8 perch and the largest was only 4 inches, and that's the one in the picture!!! Saw John A. heading out fishing as we were heading in.

2010 C.R.G.C. Derby

Fished the 2010 Chelsea Rod and Gun Club Derby hosted by Rick Monier on West Lake. Temperature this afternoon was in the middle 20s and the wind was gusting 15 to 20 knots, which made for tough fishing conditions. The skies were partly cloudy which made it feel a little bit warmer. The ice is 10 inches thick and very slippery. We had a crowd of over 20 people and they were scattered all over the lake. The fishing was very slow for the first couple of hours. As the sun started to set, some of guys started to catch a few fish. I do not have an exact fish count but I think it was close to 20 fish that were kept. When I get the correct number I will post it. Everyone had a great time and when we were done fishing Rick had a nice fire going by his house that kept everyone warm. I think there were more fishing stories told than fish caught today! I took a week off from fishing because I fell on the basement steps last Sunday and hurt my back. My back feels good tonight so I should be OK for the rest of ice fishing season.

Watching The Fish at Bolles Harbor

Fished with Doug S. out of Bolles Harbor. Temperature this morning was 32 degrees and when we quit fishing it was 35 degrees. The wind was out of the east at 10 knots and the skies were overcast. The ice is about 8 inches thick. Started fishing just past the Monroe Boat Club and we did not catch anything. Moved towards the beginning of the boat club and we caught a few fish. Doug brought his Aqua Vu camera today. The camera showed fish almost all the time but they just would not bite. We were jigging with spoons tipped with a shiner. The dead poles did not catch any fish. Kept 9 perch for the day, 3 of which were over 11.5 inches. Ran into Dwayne on the ice, nice talking to him. When we were leaving there was a large crowd fishing in front of Trout's gas dock. Did not see any action so I don't know how the fishing was there.

Dink City

Fished Metro Beach on Lake St. Clair with Doug S. Temperature this morning was 22 degrees and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 30s. The skies were overcast for the first couple of hours and then the sun came out. The wind was out of the northeast 10 to 15 knots. The ice is 12 inches thick. We took the 2 way radios along so we could split up and stay in touch. He fished in front of the flag pole in 2 feet of water and I headed out to the point and fished in 2 to 6 feet of water. I took along the shanty so I could do some sight fishing in the shallow water. I set up in 5 foot of water and put the first pole in the hole and was just starting to set up the second pole when I started to get some bites. Caught a 7 inch perch (released) and thought we were in for a great day. Set the pole back in the water and another fish hit, about 6 inches long. For the next 2 1/2 hours I moved in and out and could not get rid of the small perch. When you dropped the bait in the water 10 to 12 perch would attack it before it got close to the bottom. I know that I caught more than one hundred fish but none were keepers. Called Doug on the radio and he had 4 fish he kept. I headed back to where Doug was fishing and he caught one more fish and another fisherman gave him 5 fish so we came home with 10 perch.

Bolles Again

Fished with Doug S. and Daryl at Bolles Harbor. Temperature this morning was 27 degrees and when we quit fishing it was 32 degrees. The wind was light out of the west and the skies were overcast. The ice is still about 8 inches thick. With the warmer temperatures the past several days (mid to upper 30's), the snow and ice is starting to melt and causing the water to be a little dirty. Started fishing the same area as the last trip and we only caught a few fish so we headed up the channel about another 200 feet. Picked up a few fish in this area and then it was time to go home. We were using minnows and jigs. I tried using wigglers for an hour and had no luck whatsoever. We kept 12 perch.

Back at Bolles

Fished at Bolles Harbor with Doug S. Temperature this morning was in the lower 30s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 30s. The wind was out of the west less than 10 knots and the skies were overcast. The ice is 8 inches thick and all the snow on the ice is starting to melt. Just a great day to be on the ice. We fished with minnows and spikes but after a while we took off the spikes because all that they caught were sunfish. I caught most of my fish jigging a Kastmaster tipped with a minnow and Doug caught most of his fish using a large silver spoon with a minnow. We fished the same area as the last trip. We caught 27 perch and kept 20 of them. The largest fish was 12 inches.

Perch'n at Bolles

Fished Bolles Harbor with John A. We picked up our bait at Lake Erie Party Store and Joe gave us a good count of shiners again. Temperature this morning was in the upper 20s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 30s. The sun was shining all morning and the wind was out of the southwest about 10 knots. Because we were in the harbor the weather was pretty nice. The ice is around 7 inches thick and the water we were fishing is 6 to 7 feet deep. We started fishing in front of Monroe Boat Club and we stayed there the whole time. The bite was very slow for us and the fish that hit the minnows were just sucking on them. I tried fishing with mousies and Rat Finkies but never had a bite so I switched to all minnows. We caught 5 perch but only 3 of them were keepers.

Sunshine, Blue Skies and a Few Gills

Fished with Daryl, at a little lake in Unadilla. Dale was a no show today. Temperature this morning was in the middle 20s and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 20s. The wind started to blow out of the southwest at 15 knots but because we were fishing a canal we were out of harms way. The ice is 8 inches thick and the lake has a little snow cover. We used small jigs tipped with spikes and mousies. The water was only 3 feet deep and we were fishing about 1 foot off the bottom. One jerk and the fish are out of the hole, pretty nice way to fish. The fishing was pretty steady all morning until about 10:00 AM, and then we had fewer bites and the fish that we caught were smaller. I had a lot of bites but just could not catch them, though I caught at least 2 dozen cisco. We kept 18 gills between the two of us.

Great Day for the Gills

Fished in Bridgewater with Doug E. Temperature this afternoon was in the upper 20s with a northwest wind of 10 knots. We fished an area called Rattle Snake Bay, which protected us from any wind and made for a beautiful evening on the lake. The water was 12 feet deep and we were fishing 1 foot off the bottom. He was using Rat Finkes with mousies and I had glow jigs with spikes. Doug likes to fish this lake in the afternoon because it produces the best fishing then. Today was no let down. About 3:45 PM the fish started to bite and by the time it got dark we had a nice pile of fish on the ice. We kept 50 bluegill, 2 perch and 1 crappie. I would like to say that I caught my share of fish but Doug out fished me 3 to 1.

First Trip to Lake St. Clair

Got a report last night that they were catching some nice fish at South River Rd. in Campau Bay so I decided to make a trip out there. The temperature this morning was in the lower 20s with the wind blowing 10 knots out of the northwest. The ice is 5 to 6 inches thick. When I arrived at the boat launch a guy was walking off the ice so I asked how he did fishing and he said he only caught a few dink perch fishing in front of the bar. I was heading towards the center of the bay so I figured his report did not matter. Made my way across the bay where there were 4 guys fishing. Stopped and talked to all 4 guys and between them they had 1 perch. Not a good sign. I started fishing and they all left so I was by myself. Made a lot of moves in this area and only caught 1 fish and as I was getting ready to leave two other fisherman were coming out. Talked to them and they had been fishing the spillway and Gino's where they only caught a couple of small perch. I explained how the fishing was out here and we all left together. On the way back to the car I stopped and talked to 2 guys fishing in front of the bar and they had about 10 perch between 4 and 6 inches in their bucket.

No Hits,No Runs

Fished with John H. Temperature this morning was 17 degrees and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 20s. The wind was out of the south 5 to 10 knots which made for very little wind chill. We decided to try steelhead fishing in Ohio and I think we picked the wrong day. When we arrived at the river (8:15 AM) they had already caught 3 nice fish off the docks so we were pumped up. We got dressed and headed towards the falls and we had the whole river to ourselves. Fished with spawn sacs and minnows below in-line bobbers. Neither one of us had a bite but we both had a great time. All I can say is we gave it our best, we tried like hell and we survived the cold weather. A great trip but no fish.

Start of Ice Fishing

Fished with Doug S. Temperature this morning was 28 degrees and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 30s. The wind was light out of the west at 5 knots which made for a nice day fishing. The ice is 4 inches thick. We started fishing at Lake Erie Metro Park and only caught a few small perch. After a couple of hours we decided to try Grosse Ille. Fished the Trenton channel without a bite and then we went to Smitty's and figured the ice was unsafe so we headed to the apartments to fish the channel and the ice was unsafe there also. So the first trip of the year was a bust.

Fall Steelhead

Went steelhead fishing in Ohio with Daryl and Mark. The weather was over cast with a little rain and the temp was around 50 degrees. The wind was out of the northeast at 14 knots but that did not affect us today. We had wax worms and spawn sacs for bait and all the fish we had on came off the spawn sacs. All the guys that had shiners did very well. Another lesson learned. We were 2 for 5 for the day and the fish were not very large.

Nothing but Fog

Fished with Captain Dan. Temperature this morning was in the middle 40s and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 40s. The fog was so thick that the visibility was only 50 feet for the whole day. We heard that it was a nice day on land (sunny and in the upper 50s). The wind was out of the east northeast 10 to 14 knots with waves 1 to 2 feet. The water temp is 48 degrees. We started fishing just out side of Bolles Harbor in 14 feet of water, just wasting time waiting for the fog to lift. Caught a few small perch and we realized the fog was going to hang around for a while so we decided to head for the E buoy area. Fished there for 15 to 20 minutes without a bite so we made some moves into shallower water, without any luck. By this time we were close to the swamp so that is where we ended up for the day. The bite was slow but at least we caught some nice fish. Kept 16 perch for the day. The fog made for an interesting ride back to port and after a few attempts we made it back OK. This should be the last trip from a boat for this year.

Slooow Day on the Water

Fished with Captain Dan. Temperature this morning was in the middle 50s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 60s. The wind was out of the southwest 5 to 10 knots with waves around a foot. The water temp is 48 degrees. We started out fishing in the swamp where we have been fishing the last couple of weeks. Made 7 moves in there and we caught some fish but not enough to keep us there. From there we headed out to the Toledo Light House where we found dirty water so we made a move towards the E buoy. Did not do any good in this area so we moved into shallower water in front of Toledo Beach Marina. Nothing to report from there so we moved in front of Bolles Harbor and caught nothing, again. Kept 5 perch for the day.

This Is It

Fished with Captain Daryl. Temperature this morning was in the mid 40s and when we quit it was in the upper 40s. The wind was out of the northwest 20 to 25 knots and the waves were less than a foot. It sure is nice fishing close to shore. We fished in 10 feet of water in front of the marina. We started catching some nice fish but after an hour the bite just quit. We stayed there a little while and then we moved to the point at Toledo Beach Marina in 10 ft. of water and finished out the day there. Kept 50 perch for our last trip of the year. The largest fish was 11 1/2 inches and we had 21 over 10 inches. Another nice catch and a great way to finish off the fishing season. We now have to winterize the boats and wait for next year. After it's all said and done, we had a pretty good year on the water. Now it's a matter of fishing off docks or hard water, unless I can find a small boat to use for a couple of weeks.

The October Chill

Fished with Daryl and John H. Temperature this morning was 31 degrees and by the time we quit fishing it was in the middle 40s, it felt like December weather. The wind was out of the west northwest at 10 knots (which made for a wind chill) and the waves were less than a foot. The water temp is 54 degrees. Fished the same area that we have been fishing. The bite was steady but the only problem was keeping our hands warm, one of the coldest perch fishing trips from a boat that I can ever remember. We kept 90 perch today with the largest being 12 1/2 inches. It was cold even in the fish cleaning station.

Doug's Birthday Trip

Fished with Captain Doug Sowa and Daryl. Temperature this morning was in the lower 40s and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 50s. The wind was out of the southwest 10 to 15 knots and the waves were 1 to 2 feet. Started fishing where we left off Tuesday and we caught some fish but the anchor would not hold. After a hour of fighting the anchor we decided to head back to marina and get the anchor off Daryl's boat, that did the trick. Went back to where we left off and were catching some nice fish but not very many so we made a move closer into shore. Fished in 7 feet of water for a half hour and only caught one fish so we made another move towards deeper water. That did not work out so we moved to where we fished 10 days ago. Very few fish there so we went back to our original spot, the spot that we should have never left. The catching was good but not what we expected. Kept 53 perch between 7 1/2 inches and 12 1/2 inches.

Cold and Windy Again

Fished with Uncle Dan. Temperature this morning was in the middle 40s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 50s. The wind was out of the south 10 to 15 knots with waves 1 to 2 feet. The water temp is 57 degrees. Started fishing where we left off yesterday. Caught a lot of fish but we had to sort through them today and they were not as large as yesterday. As long as we were catching fish I was not going to move. Never leave fish to try and catch larger fish. Kept 60 perch between 8 and 11 1/2 inches but only 4 of them were over 10 inches.

Best Catch of the Year

Fished with Daryl. Temperature this morning was in the middle 40s and by the time we quit fishing it was in the upper 50s. The wind was out of the west around 15 knots with waves less than a foot because we were less than a mile off shore. When we arrived at Toledo Beach Marina this morning there was no hi-lo driver to put the boat in the water. We had to wait 1 1/2 hours for someone to show up so we were off to a slow start. Once we were on our way we headed back to where we fished yesterday. Today the fish were a little bit larger and a lot more aggressive. Every time I would start the motor and let it run the fish would just turn on and it was non stop action. We both had a lot of fun today. Kept 97 perch between 8 and 11 1/2 inches.

Cold and Windy Again

Fished with Joe. John H. could not make it today. Temperature this morning was in the lower 50s and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 50s. The wind was out of the west southwest around 20 knots. Because we were fishing only a mile off shore the waves were around a foot. Fished close to where we were the last trip but only a little closer to shore, in 9 feet of water. The water was a little dirty from all the high winds from this last week. Caught a lot of fish but we had to sort through them today. Kept 52 perch between 7 3/4 and 11 1/2 inches.

Felt Like Winter

Fished with Captain Daryl and Dale. Temperature this morning was in the lower 30s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 60s. The wind was out of the west southwest around 10 knots with waves less than a foot. With the cool temps and the wind it made for a very cold morning. Started fishing right out in front of the beach. We caught a few fish but not enough to keep us in this area. After a few moves here we headed out to our hot spot, which is a 10 mile ride. When we arrived there the water was very dirty. After half an hour and only 1 perch we decided to head back to the beach and finish out the day. Got a report from a good friend that they were catching fish on the Michigan side of Turtle Island so we headed out there. The fishing was steady and the fish were all about the same size so it made for an enjoyable day on the water. Kept 79 perch between 8 and 10 1/2 inches with most of the fish around 8 1/2 inches.