From Rain and Rough to Calm and Sunny

John H. and Dan P.

Fished with John and Dan. Temperature this morning was in the upper 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 80s. A rain storm came through this morning with winds out of the south up to 26 knots and waves up to 3 feet. After a couple of hours the wind laid down and the sun came out and it turned out to be a nice day. The water temp is 74 degrees. Our goal was to fish the dumping grounds so we set up a troll 1/2 mile south of the dumping grounds with jet 40s set at 35 feet and wiggle warts set at 65 feet. We made that downwind troll and picked up 6 walleye so we pulled lines and headed back to our starting spot. Set up this time with jet 40s at 30 feet back and wiggle warts set at 70 feet. By this time the lake was calming down and we were able to troll where ever we wanted. Caught most of the fish around (41 48 100 / 083 21 800). Had very few junk fish, only 1 small walleye and 1 walleye that was 15 1/2 inches that we put back. Kept 18 walleye and I think the guys had a great time. This last week has been some of the best walleye fishing all year. Again, we were done early.

Too Fast and Too Quick

Fished with Daryl. Temperature this morning was in the lower 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 70s. The wind was out of the west northwest 10 to 15 knots with waves 1 to 2 feet. The water temp is 76 degrees. We started fishing southeast of the E-Buoy at (41 49 500 / 083 19 500) and we never left this area. Ran jet 40s set at 45 feet on one side of the boat and wiggle warts set at 80 feet on the other side of the boat. Both set ups were producing fish so we left them alone. The catching was very good and we only caught 1 silver bass and 3 throw back walleyes. Kept 12 walleye and 1 perch and we were done fishing by 9:15 AM. It sure makes it nice when the junk fish are not biting!!

Fishing in Front of TBM

Captain Doug

Fished with Uncle Dan. Temperature this morning was in the upper 50s and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 70s. The wind was out of the north east 10 knots or less and the waves were around a foot. The water temp is 73 degrees. Started fishing east of the dumping grounds (41 49 450 / 083 19 200) and we never left this area. We set up with jet 40s set at 45 feet on one side of the boat and 55 feet on the other side of the boat. The side with the 55 foot set up was working better so we switched the side with the 45 foot setup to 60 feet. We caught a lot of fish which kept the both of us very busy. We did not have any time to eat or drink while we were on the water, which is not a good thing. Kept 12 walleye and had at least 15 under size walleye that we put back and countless number of silver bass and white perch. The weather was great and the catching was great so we went to Trappers and had a fresh walleye dinner which was awesome.

92 Degrees, That Says It All

Fished with Captain Daryl and Mark. Temperature this morning was in the middle 70s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 90s, and it's only the middle of June. The wind was out of the south at 10 knots when we started fishing and it laid down to 5 knots after a couple of hours. The waves were a foot or less. The water temp is 71 degrees and that helped cool things off a little. Started fishing in front of Bolles Harbor by a pack of boats (41 51 250 / 083 17 175) trolling with jet 20s set at 60 feet back and jet 40s set at 35 feet back. Made 3 or 4 passes here and we caught a lot of silver bass and only 1 walleye so we pulled lines and headed past Sputnik to (41 48 375 / 083 09 100). Set up on an east troll with jet 20s at 80 feet back and jet 40s at 65 feet back. It did not take too long and we were into some fish. We trolled around the 48/08 line for the rest of the trip. We lost at least 7 fish behind the boat that we thought were walleye, kept 16 walleye and 3 perch and had 3 little walleye that we put back. Daryl hooked up the mister again like last year and that helped cool things off a lot. When we were cleaning the fish another fisherman was cleaning his fish and they caught all their fish at the first spot we stopped at, we just did not fish deep enough. They ran jet 40s back 60 to 70 feet in 21 feet of water.

Another Tough Day of Fishing

Fished with Daryl, Uncle Dan could not make it. Temperature this morning was in the lower 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 80s. The wind was out of the south east 10 to 15 knots with waves around 2 feet. The water temp is 69 degrees.Started fishing at (41 51 600 / 083 17 200) which is where we have been fishing the last two trips. Started setting the lines and we noticed all the weeds. Stayed here about 15 minutes and we caught 2 silver bass and a lot of weeds. Made a move to the east and set up at (41 52 300 / 083 12 100) with jet 20s set at 80 feet and jet 40s set at 60 feet. We were out of the weeds but we were catching a lot of junk fish, silver bass and sheep head. Again we would catch a walleye every so often just to keep us in this area.. We put the jet 20s back to 100 feet and that was the only change we made. Kept 5 walleye and we had to work hard to catch those. I broke the e z steer connecting rod for the engines when we first set up for trolling so we trolled with the main motor all day, which worked out OK because it was pretty hard to steer into the waves.

Windy and Rainy

Eric, Dan and Booth

Fished with Joe, Booth, Dan and Eric. Temperature this morning was in the upper 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 70s. When we started fishing the wind was out of the south at 10 knots with waves less than a foot and around 8:30 the wind started to blow out of the southwest around 20 knots with waves 2 to 3 feet and it was raining. Not a good start for the morning. Started fishing where we were yesterday with jet 20's set at 60 feet back and we caught a lot of sheep head and again the occasional walleye. When the wind started to pick up the walleye action was getting better. Started to catch a few walleye and then the wind, waves and rain just got to be too bad so we pulled lines at 9:15 to head back to port. It was a good call because when we started to clean the fish the rain just started to pour down and the sirens were going off indicting bad weather coming. Kept 10 walleye and 1 perch and caught a ton of sheep head and a few silver bass.  

It Was a Hot One!

Daryl and Doug

Fished with Captain Daryl and Uncle Dan. Temperature this morning was in the lower 60's and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 80's. The wind was light and variable which made for hardly any waves. The water temp is 68 Degrees.

Had a report that they were catching some fish in front of the Two Stacks so we made a pass through there this morning looking for fish on the fish finder. Did not mark any fish so we headed out to Sputnik. Fished just west of Sputnik with junior thunder sticks set at 80 feet and jet 40's set at 60 feet. Picked up a few fish here, but the weeds were terrible. Got tired of fighting the weeds so we headed to (41 51 200 / 083 17 500). Set up here with jet 40's at 30 feet and junior thunder sticks at 50 feet. Caught a few fish but every time we brought in a thunder stick it had weeds on it so we put on mini dipsy's set at 50 feet. Decided to put jet 20's on one side set at 60 feet and started to catch some fish. Picked up a few walleye this way so we set the other side of the boat with jet 20's also.

Caught a lot of sheephead but we were still catching walleye. Kept 18 walleye and had one throwback.

Missing Bag

Fished with Daryl and Mark. Temperature this morning was in the upper 50s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 70s. The wind was out of the west around 10 knots with waves less than a foot. Calm sea's, cool breeze and no bugs, just a great day on the lake. The water temp is 65 degrees. Started fishing by the Turn Around Buoy heading southeast trolling mini dipsy's and spoons set at 80 feet back and jet 40s and spoons set at 60 feet back. Picked up our first walleye at (41 49 850 / 083 09 070) off the mini dipsy and the next 4 fish came off the jets. We fished in this general area for the rest of the morning but we put jet 40s on both sides of the boat. There were a few weeds floating and quit a few May Fly Larva floating but it did not cause too much of a problem. The silver bass are still around but we did not catch a lot of them. Kept 15 walleye and had one throw back walleye(14 1/2 inches). I'll post a picture when I get my fishing bag and camera back from Daryl, Mark thought it was Daryl's bag and took it with him. Picked up the camera today and posted the picture.

The Day After the Big Blow

Fished with Captain Daryl and Joe. Temperature this morning was in the lower 50s and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 60s. The wind was out of the northwest 10 knots and less. We just had 3 days of the winds blowing out of the west and northwest 25 to 30 knots so the lake was in pretty bad shape. We did not find any clean water until we got past the shipping channel then we saw a pack of boats so that was our starting spot (41 46 630 / 083 09 450). We set up with deep diving Jr. thunder sticks set at 90 feet and dipsy's and spoons set at 75 feet. We caught a lot of silver bass off the dipsy's so we pulled off the thunder sticks and put on jet 20s and spoons set at 80 feet. Started catching more silver bass and then we finally caught a walleye. After we trolled around through the pack of boats and not seeing any fish being caught we started a troll towards sputnik. Picked up another walleye and then the catching slowed down. We pulled lines and headed for the Turn Around Buoy and set up a troll heading towards Sputnik. Got close to Sputnik and the lines started to pop and the catching was on, for big sheep head. Continued the troll down the channel and we caught 1 more walleye and decided to call it a day. Kept 3 walleye and all of them came off a spoon called confusion. 

Back to the Tough Times Again

Fished with Joe and John. Temperature this morning was in the middle 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 80s. The wind this morning was out of the northeast 15 to 17 knots which made for a long boat ride out to our fishing spot. Around mid morning the wind died down a little which made for better conditions. For the last hour the wind picked up again but at least the waves were to our back for the ride in. Waves were 2 to 3 feet for most of the day and the water temp is 68 degrees. After a long boat ride to our fishing spot (41 48 275 / 083 11 600) we set up with deep diving Jr. thunder sticks set at 75 feet back on one side of the boat and jet 20s and spoons set at 60 feet back on the other side of the boat. We were trolling around catching silver bass and then we heard a report on the radio that the hot set up was jet 20s set at 90 feet back. We pulled all the lines and set up this way. I'm sure it helped a little because we would catch a walleye every once in a while but the fishing was terrible. We tried different colors and different combos but nothing really seemed to make a difference. Kept 5 walleye, cleaned them up, stopped at the restaurant at Bolles Harbor and had a walleye dinner. All the walleye were between 15 and 16 inches.

Sticky Situation

Fished with Captain Daryl and Mark. Temperature this morning was in the upper 40s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 70s. The wind was variable this morning and by the afternoon it was out of the east about 10 knots. With the light wind this morning the bugs were just terrible, probably the worst I have ever seen. It was even hard to breath. On the ride out the channel we were setting up the poles when one of them broke at the tip, not a good start for the day. Started fishing about 3 miles past McDonald's trolling southeast ( 41 46 250 / 083 13 150). We ran Jr. Thundersticks back 75 feet on one side of the boat and 95 feet on the other side of the boat. Caught a walleye off each side of the boat and then we had a double on the side set at 75 feet. We got the fish in and on the last walleye the fish jumped just when Mark put his hand in the net and he buried the hook in his left thumb. We talked about pulling out the hook right there but Mark did not feel comfortable with that so we pulled lines and headed in. On the ride in we talked about the emergency room and then Mark mentioned the urgent care centers, which sounded good. When we arrived back at the harbor we went and talked to Captain Eddie McMillion from Fish On II and he said he could pull the hook out with no problem. After a couple of minutes of calming down Mark the hook was out, we thanked Captain Eddie and out we went fishing again. We set up right where we left off but by now the wind was steady out of the east just over 10 knots which helped with the bug problem, which made us very happy. We set both sides at 75 feet and we just picked away at the fish. We were still catching silver bass but not as many as the last couple of trips. We lost at least 4 walleye halfway to the boat and we threw one back because it was too small. Kept 13 walleye which means it is fishing time. Just a little side note, I took the picture on the ride back in and that is the only time Mark smiled for a hour.

Still Slow Catching

Fished with Daryl. Temperature this morning was in the upper 40s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 70s. The wind was out of the east 10 to 14 knots with 1 to 2 foot rollers. After an hour of fishing the wind started to lay down and it became pretty nice on the water. The water temp is 62 degrees. Started fishing in the dumping grounds drifting with crawler harnesses. We only caught a couple of silver bass so we started trolling with deep diving thunder sticks set at 40 feet back on one side of the boat and 50 feet back on the other side of the boat. Picked up two fish real quick and we thought we had a good program but the catching slowed down. We stayed in this area for the whole trip catching a few silver bass and the occasional walleye, just like the last trip. Kept 5 walleye.

Non Stop Action, of Silver Bass



Joe with a Double

Fished with Joe and Daryl. Temperature this morning was in the upper 50s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 70s. The water temp is 61 degrees. The wind was out of the north east around 5 knots with hardly any waves. Just a great day to be on the water!! Started fishing by the C Buoy trolling towards the E Buoy with bottom bouncers and crawlers set at 45 feet on one side  and bombers and jet 20s set at 55 feet on the other side of the boat. The silver bass were so thick that you could not keep them off the lines. We actually caught 2 silver bass on one crawler harness 2 times today. We stayed here for about 2 hours trying different set ups and we only caught silver bass and 1 Smallmouth Bass. We finally made a move to the other side of the River Raisin Channel (41 53 600 / 083 17 100). We set crawlers on one side set at 75 feet back and deep diver Junior Thunder sticks set at 120 feet on the other side. Caught the first walleye off the crawler so we switched the other side to crawlers. We still caught a lot of silver bass but we would catch the occasional walleye. Trolled around here for a couple of hours and we ended up keeping 5 walleye and lost one right at the net. Good day of fishing but a bad day of catching. 

Captain's Mistake

Fished with Daryl, Doug S. had to work. Temperature this morning was in the lower 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 70s. The wind was out of the south less than 10 knots with waves less than a foot. The water temp is 55 degrees and the water is very clean for this time of year. The game plan was to start fishing at the E Buoy and head northeast until we found some fish. We ran dipsy's set at 50 feet with spoons on one side of the boat and jet 20's with spoons set at 55 feet on the other side of the boat. We were catching a lot of silver bass and Daryl said lets set the lines further back. We did that and it only took about 15 minutes and we had the first walleye on off the jet 20 set at 70 feet back. Trolled around for a while catching silver bass and no walleye so we made a move towards Turtle Island. All the boats fishing there were anchored fishing for perch so we headed towards the Toledo Light House and set up a troll heading for the dumping grounds. The reports on the radio said they were catching fish trolling with crawlers. We had the crawlers but no bottom bouncers to fish with. My mistake. We trolled towards the dumping grounds only catching silver bass so we decided to call it a day. Kept one walleye!!

2012 Trout Fishing Results

The 2012 trout fishing season started pretty good and then it went down hill from there, but not from lack of trying. The weather was pretty nice. Cold temps at night (25 to 35) and the day was just about average or a little above average (50 to 65). We had a rain storm blow through on Monday morning around 1:30 AM and it was gone by Monday morning around 8:30 AM. We did all of our fishing on the Pine River at 2 locations, Walker Bridge and Skookum Bridge. For bait we used salted shiners, large trout worms and spawn sacks. Most of the fish were caught off the shiners and 2 were caught using the worms. We had quite a few bites but we did not catch very many fish. We were told that the Pine River is the fastest flowing river in Southern Michigan and that could be the reason for so many missed fish. All the locals use fresh steelhead spawn for bait and next year we will have some also. We were able to have two trout dinners which are always excellent. We all had a great time, told a lot of stories, some sad and some very funny. We caught 10 trout and kept 9 of them, six Brown Trout and 4 Rainbow Trout. Joe is the Trout King this year with a brown trout that measured 16 1/4 inches.

Trout Season Opening Day on the Pine River



Pine River Trout - Opening Day

Opening Day for Trout Season here on the Pine River, just north of Luther, MI, began with temperatures in the 30's that warmed up to the mid 50's. The weather has been pretty nice so far. The river is in good shape this year. The campground is not nearly as full as it was last year, in fact, the tent area is empty.
We left home around noon on Thursday so we could get a good spot at the campground. We didn't get our first choice, but we got the next best.
As of Sunday, we have caught 6 fish, 5 Browns and 1 Rainbow. All of our fish were caught using shiners on Saturday. As it stands right now, Joe caught BIG FISH, measuring in at 16 inches. Our Opening Day Trout Dinner was excellent!!

Nice Day But Very Few Fish

Uncle Dan & Walleye

Fished with Uncle Dan. Temperature this morning was in the lower 40s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 50s. When we started fishing there was no wind and the lake was flat. Around 10:00 AM the wind started to blow out of the east about 10 knots with waves around a foot. The water temp is 51 degrees and after the blow we had for the last 4 days out of the west, the lake is very clean. We headed out to Turtle Island and there were only a few boats, but there was a larger pack of boats by the Toledo Light House. Made a pass through there and we saw no fish being caught so we went across the ditch and fished the humps off Little Cedar Point. Picked up the first fish after 5 minutes of jigging and had the second fish on 10 minutes later, things were looking good. Made about 5 more drifts through this area and we had no more bites. We packed up and went back toward the Lighthouse and started drifting again. Caught some sheephead, silver bass and one throw back walleye (14 1/2 inches) and that was it. All the fish came off the blue and silver blade baits. Kept 2 walleye for the day. The Charter Captains picked up around the cleaning station and power washed and reorganized the cleaning tables - it looks great!!

The Boat is Finally Ready

Was going to fish with Uncle Dan but he called this morning and said he was not feeling very well. Since I was awake I decided to go and do some work on the boat. Got every thing done that I wanted to and the last thing was to start the engine for the first time this year. The motor was running and the sun came out and I just could not stand it any longer, so I decided to go fishing. The temp this morning was in the upper 50s and when I quit fishing it was in the upper 60s. The wind was out of the south around 15 knots and after an hour or so it started to switch and come out of the south  southwest. The waves were between 1 and 2 feet to start and then it laid down to less than a foot. The water temp is 58 degrees. Made my way out to Turtle Island and set up in 10 foot of water using an old way point. Made the first drift jigging a clown blade bait with out a hit. Made another drift and put on a fire tiger blade bait and still nothing. I saw a few nets going so I knew there were fish in the area. Made another  drift and put on a blue and silver blade bait and it was game on. For the next 1 1/2 hours it was pretty steady fishing. I lost 3 fish at the net and had at least 8 other fish on. Fishing in shallow water every thing happens very fast but it sure is fun. Kept 3 walleye and 1 perch.

On the River Again

Nice River Walleye

Fished with Captain Dwayne on the Detroit River. We launched out of Wyandotte Harbor. Today we timed it perfect. When we arrived at the harbor there were only 3 boats in front of us. After we launched and I was parking the trailer there were at least 15 boats in line. Off to a good start!! Temperature this morning was in the lower 30s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 50s, just a beautiful day on the water. The sun was out all morning and the wind was light out of the north. We started fishing by Mud Island and the bite was pretty good for the first half  hour and then it slowed down. The last 1 1/2 hours of fishing we went in front of the steel mill and picked up a couple more fish. The best set up was a 3/4 ounce jig with a Wyandotte Worm. Kept 7 walleye and Dwayne was on fire today.

First Boat Trip for 2012

Detroit River Walleye

Finally, back on the water!! Fished with Captain Dwayne, his son could not make it today. Temperature this morning was 40 degrees with a south wind around 10 knots. As the day progressed the temp made it to the mid 40's and the wind picked up a little. We launched out of Wyandotte Marina where the wait was only about 15 minutes to launch the boat. We caught most of the fish in front of Mud Island and we caught the last one in front of the steel mill. The fish were caught in as little as 16 feet of water and as deep as 32 feet of water. Though the water was stained, the Captain said it was still good enough to jig and not use the hand lines. The best setup was a jig tipped with a black worm with a bright green tail. The Captain likes to cut off half of the green tail because it creates less tangles with the stinger hook. The bite was very tough today but we managed to keep 6 walleye.
P.S. to Doug B. - Thinking of you and hope you're doing better!

Long Time Coming

Fished with Daryl on Mud Bay off Portage Lake. Temperature this morning was 18 degrees and when we quit fishing it was 28 degrees. The wind was out of the southwest 10 to 15 knots which made for a little wind chill. This was my first ice fishing trip this year because of all the warm weather so far this winter. The ice is 4 to 5 inches thick and it was good hard ice. Started fishing the east side of the bay and we only caught a few small blue gills. Made a move towards the center of the bay and we caught a lot more fish but very few keepers. Daryl caught the smallest perch I have ever seen with a hook and line. The only time I have seen a smaller perch was in the minnow bucket!! Around 9:30 AM we looked up and saw a bald eagle flying over head, pretty cool. The fishing was slow and Daryl had to get ready for work so we quit early. Only kept 6 blue gill for the day but it sure was great to be on the water again.

Baby it's Cold Outside

Fished with Captain Dan. Temperature this morning was in the upper 20s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 40s. The wind was out of the south 10 to 15 knots( which made for a wind chill) with waves around a foot. The water temp is 50 degrees. We had a report that some fish were caught by the dumping grounds yesterday so that is where we headed, (41 48 150 / 083 20 850). We dropped the hook and fished for 30 minutes without a bite so we pulled anchor and moved about 200 feet. The bite started off very slow (maybe the fish were cold too) and then the catching started to pick up. It never got to be steady action but we caught enough fish to keep us here and we also caught some of the biggest perch so far this year. Kept 46 perch.

Fishing Season is Almost Over

Fished with Captain Dan. Temperature this morning was in the upper 30s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 60s. The wind was out of the southwest about 10 knots for the first 3 hours and then it switched to the south 15 to 17 knots. The waves were not to bad early and then they started to build to 2 to 3 footers. The water temp is 51 degrees. We went to leave the dock and the engine quit. We drifted to the other side of the marina and the boat would not go into gear without stalling the engine. We made our way back to the ramp and the mechanic (Steve) checked it out and fixed everything and a way we went. Started fishing by the W Buoy and we only caught 1 small perch so we started moving further out. After several more stops and no fish we made a move into the swamp. The water was very dirty here so we headed towards the mansion and fished in 10 feet of water. Still nothing so we moved into 8 feet of water and still nothing. We finally pulled out the GPS and we headed out to one of our hot spots which is 1 3/4 miles east of the E Buoy. We started to catch some fish but now it was late in the day and the lake was starting to get rough. Caught 20 fish and then we called it a day.

WOW, What Great Weather

Fished with Uncle Dan. Temperature this morning was in the middle 50s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 70s. The wind was out of the east less than 10 knots with waves less than a foot. The water temp is 60 degrees. What a week of beautiful weather, perfect temps and low winds. Started fishing 1 3/4 miles due east of the E Buoy and we never had to move. We started off catching perch 8 to 9 inches so I told Dan we would stay here for a while and then move into the swamp for some bigger fish. Well, after a while the bigger fish came in so we just stayed put. We caught mostly perch but we had to sort through them to keep 8 1/2 inch fish and up. Kept 84 perch and you could not ask for a better trip.

Could Not Find the Fish Today

Fished with Uncle Dan. Temperature this morning was in the lower 50s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 70s. The great weather continues. The wind was out of the southeast 10 to 15 knots with waves around a foot. The water temp is 60 degrees. Started fishing by McDonald's because we had a good report from last night. Caught only 1 keeper so we left the pack of boats and went to Sputnik. Fished 3 miles northeast of Sputnik and we started to catch some fish, even though they were on the small side. Fished here close to an hour and then the bite slowed down so we then went to our hot spot, 52/08 numbers. Caught only 1 small fish here so on the way back to the marina we stopped at another hot spot from 3 years ago, and again nothing. Decided to go back to where we wanted to start fishing which was 1 1/2 miles east of the E-Buoy and we started to catch some bigger fish but the action was still slow. Finished out the day here and we kept 41 perch.

Slow Pickings Today

Fished with Uncle Dan. Temperature this morning was in the lower 50s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 70s. The wind was out of the southeast less than 10 knots with rolling waves around a foot. The water temp is 62 degrees. Got a report from Huey that he caught some nice fish by the W-Buoy on Wednesday so that is where we started off fishing. We started catching some fish so we just stayed put. The catching was pretty steady until 10:15 AM and it was like some one turned off the switch because the fish just quit biting. Made a couple of moves in this area and we only caught 1 more fish. Went to Trappers for another fish dinner and, as usual, it was good. Kept 33 perch today and it was another beautiful day on the water.

Summer is Back, at Least for a Week

Fished with uncle Dan. Temperature this morning was in the lower 50s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 70s. The wind was out of the northwest less than 10 knots and the waves were less than a foot. The water temp is 62 degrees. It was just a beautiful day on the water. Started fishing by the W Buoy and we had no hits so we moved about 3/4 mile south of the E Buoy and we started to get some bites. Stayed put here and we waited out the fish. The water was dirty but we were on some fish. Had one 20 minute flurry about 10:45 AM where all the fish were over 10 inches and then it went back to catching the 8 and 9 inchers. Kept 63 perch.

One of Those Tough Days of Fishing

Fished with Uncle Dan. Temperature this morning was in the upper 50s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 60s. The wind was out of the southwest 15 to 20 knots with waves from 1 foot in close and 2 to 3 feet out by the E Buoy. The water temp is 63 degrees. Started fishing where we caught our fish yesterday and we only caught 2 perch. We made about 3 or 4 moves in this area and it did not produce any fish. Made a move out to the 48/18 line where we have been fishing and we caught no fish and it was pretty rough. Came back to the dumping grounds and tried a few spots there and we picked up a few fish. Made a move to the S Buoy and caught a couple of fish so we decided to make one last move back to the W Buoy and again we caught no fish. Kept 7 perch. I heard a report that they caught some perch in front of the mansion in 8 feet of water.

Almost a Skunk

Fished with Mike. The temperature this morning was in the upper 50s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 60s. The wind was out of the southeast 12 to 17 knots with waves 1 to 3 feet. The water temp is 63 degrees. The weatherman called for on and off showers but we had no rain. Started fishing where we left off on our last trip and we had no bites. We marked a lot of fish on the bottom but the water was very dirty from the barge dumping the dredging from the Maumee Channel about 1/2 mile to the southeast of us. We moved about a mile to the east and the water cleaned up but we only caught 1 large sheephead. Made a move towards the E-Buoy and again no fish. Made another move about 1/4 mile east of the E-Buoy and still nothing. On the way back to the marina we said we would try to fish by the W-Buoy for one last try and that is where we found the fish. Most of the fish we caught were perch and only 2 of them had to be thrown back. Only got to fish here for a little over a hour but it saved our day. Kept 49 perch.

Fall is Here

Fished with Joe. Temperature this morning was in the upper 40s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 50s. The wind was out of the east southeast around 10 knots with waves about a foot. The water temp is 64 degrees. We started fishing just outside the harbor by the W Buoy and picked up 3 perch. The catching was slow so we made a move to our old spot 1/2 mile southeast of the E Buoy. We did not mark any fish so we headed towards a pack of boats about 1/2 mile to the east. Dropped the hook and we started to catch some fish until a boat blew by us and the anchor broke lose. We moved back about 50 feet to our spot and started to catch some fish, but after a while the fish moved out. About 20 minutes with out a perch we moved to the south (41 48 760 / 083 18 100) and started to catch some fish. It was slow fishing but we were catching all perch and most of them were keepers. Kept 49 perch. We cleaned the fish and then we went to Trappers to watch the Michigan game and have a fresh perch dinner, fries, onion rings and some Turtle soup.

Nice Day to Be on the Water

Fished with Norm. Temperature this morning was in the upper 50s and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 60s. The wind this morning was out of the northwest around 10 knots and then it started to slow down to less than 5 knots. The fog was pretty bad leaving the harbor this morning but we found an opening about 400 feet wide where you could see all the way out to the fishing grounds, which made it kind of nice. There were no waves today and the water temp is 64 degrees. Started fishing southeast of the E-Buoy and we never moved. Caught a lot of junk fish again and the perch were not very large but at least we were on some fish. About 10:00 AM the catching slowed down but we stayed put and picked away at the fish. Kept 48 perch. The weather was perfect for fishing.

Check, Check and Check Again

Fished with Joe. Temperature this morning was in the lower 60s and it was raining when we left the house. About half way to the marina the rain quit and we never saw it again. When we quit fishing the temp was in the lower 70s. There was no wind today so we had no waves. It was so calm that we floated around the anchor most of the trip. Started fishing where we left off on the last trip and we had no bites. We watched the boats around us and they were not catching anything so we moved out to 41 52 450 / 083 08 300. The catching was not fast and furious but we were on some perch. We caught a lot of nice perch and only caught 4 junk fish, 3 sheep head and 1 silver bass. Around noon the Ohio DNR came by and checked us for our licenses and asked how the fishing was. We showed them our licenses and told them we had 52 perch. They asked how accurate our count was and we said very close. We talked for awhile and again they asked about our fish count. We caught one more fish when they showed up and again they asked about our fish count and we said it was very close. Just before they left they asked again about our count and told us that we were almost done for the day. Kept 60 perch and 24 of them were over 10 inches. Just a great day on the water.

Just Missed the Heat!!!

Fished with Captain Daryl. Temperature this morning was in the lower 70s and when we quit fishing it hit 90. It is supposed to get to the upper 90s today, too hot for September. The wind was out of the southeast about 10 knots and then it started to switch to the southwest just over 10 knots so we had a nice breeze the whole time we were fishing. Started fishing 1 mile southeast of the E Buoy (47 49 100 / 083 18 440) and we never had to move. We really had to sort through the fish. We caught sheep head, perch, white perch and silver bass. It was not uncommon to have a triple header of silver bass. We just stayed put, caught a lot of fish and enjoyed the day. We quit fishing at 10:45 AM and started cleaning Daryl's boat to get it ready for winterizing. Kept 64 perch that weighed 17.5 lbs. and after we cleaned them the fillets weighed 7.1 lbs.

A Very Bad Day of Perching

Fished with Daryl. Temperature this morning was in the lower 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 70s. The wind was very light so we had no waves. We headed out towards the Toledo Light House but we did not mark any fish. Started to move up the channel stopping at every buoy looking for fish and the fish finder showed no marks. When we arrived at McDonald's we marked a few fish on the Michigan side of the channel. Dropped the hook and we started to fish. Only caught some white perch so we moved to the other side of McDonald's. Started to mark some fish so we dropped the hook again and we started to catch some small perch. The action was very slow and the perch were not very large but at least we were on some perch. We caught some of the largest sheep head that I have ever seen. Stayed here for about 45 minutes and then we decided to head toward the gravel pits where we saw some boats fishing. It was a waste of time fishing here so we pulled lines and headed home. We only caught 17 perch for the day.

Final Tally for 2011

This year the report is not as accurate because when we got into fish it was fast and furious so we were not sure what set up some of the fish came off.  We hooked 63 fish and landed 44 of them which gave us a 70% catch rate. We caught a mix of Steelhead, Lake Trout, Coho and King Salmon. We caught 28 fish in the morning and 16 fish in the evening. Of the 13 sessions we could have made it out fishing we made it out 10 times, which is very good. We totaled 40.5 hours of fishing and landed 44 fish for an average of 1.1 fish per hour. The 44 fished weighed 547.1 lbs. for an average of 12.4 lbs per fish. The largest fish was 23.5 lbs and the smallest that we kept weighed 3.5 lbs. We put back 2 Lake Trout and 3 small Salmon, so we kep 39 fish for the trip. The best setup was the Black Mamba Meat rig with a red head off the dipsy divers. We caught fish from 20 feet of water all the way out to 450 feet of water. Below is a list of lures that caught fish and the set ups used to catch them.

Black Mamba Meat Rig with a Red Head.................14 hits
J Plug Meat Rig.........................................................11 hits
Green Splatter Back Silver Horde...............................5 hits
White Spin Doctor with a Red Meat Head...................4 hits
SUV Meat Rig.............................................................4 hits
Blue Dolphin Spoon....................................................4 hits
Green Ladder Back J Plug...........................................3 hits
Moonshine Happy Meal...............................................2 hits
White Spin Doctor and Blue Sparkle Fly......................1 hit
Green Spin Doctor with Blue Glow Fly.........................1 hit
Green Spin Doctor with Glow Frog Squid....................1 hit
White Spin Doctor with Blue Meat ..............................1 hit
Water Melon Spoon.....................................................1 hit


The Dipsy's had 27 hits.
The lead core had 14 hits.
The planner boards had 8 hits.
The copper line had 1 hit.

Down Rigger # 1 had 2 hits.
Down Rigger # 2 had 6 hits.
Down Rigger # 3 had 2 hits.
Down Rigger #4 had 3 hits.

Double,Double

Fished with Joe and John. Temperature this morning was in the upper 50s and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 70s. The wind was light out of the south with waves less than a foot. The action last night was fantastic so we thought the fishing would be great today. Well, the water temp is now at 70 feet and when we started this week it was at 20 feet. We ran south to the 08 line and set lines in 80 feet of water. Caught a few fish early and then it shut down. We moved out to deeper water and raised our bait up to the 40 foot area and we started to hit some fish. Again our best bait was the meat rigs. We ended up 6 for 11 and threw 1 lake trout back. Todays Blog Title is due to landing two double hits. When I get home I will tally up the results for this years trip.

Another Good Weather Day for Fishing

Fished with Joe and John, Daryl had to go home. Temperature this morning was in the middle 50s and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 70s. The wind was out of the southwest 10 knots or less. The waves were 1 to 3 feet but most were left over from last night. We ran down to the 9 line and set lines. Our plan was like last night to troll north with the waves to our back. Started fishing in 100 feet of water with a temp break at 40 feet down. Hit fish pretty quick but we could not hook them up. Our catch rate was pretty poor. We finally started to net some fish with the best set up being the dipsy's set at 100 to 125 feet back with meat rigs. The hottest was the black mamba with a red head. Went 5 for 10 this morning with the largest fish at 21 pounds.

Another Flat Day

Fished with Joe, John and Daryl. Temperature this morning was in the middle 50s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 70s. There was no wind again today so we had no waves. Started fishing in close where we left off last night and we had only one hit. Made a move to the south, back to the 11 line and trolled around here for a while without a hit. Things were not looking good. Started trolling out to deep water and we hit a fish at 25 feet down off a rigger in 450 feet of water. We went through a little flurry of hits and went 5 for 6 with 2 throw backs. All the fish came in the top 20 foot of water except one that came off a meat rig with the dipsy set at 3 1/2 at 90 feet back.

Flat as a Pancake

Fished with Joe and John. Temperature this morning was in  the lower 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 70s. There was no wind this morning so the lake was flat. Started fishing south of the harbor in 40 to70 feet of water. Had a few releases, but no fish. Made a move out to deeper water (100 to140) and we started to catch some fish. The water temp is in the top 15 feet of the water, so everything we are catching is in the top of the water column. We went 3 for 5 this morning. This afternoon Daryl showed up and fished with us. Started fishing north of the harbor in shallow. Had no hits so we moved out to the deeper water. After a hour of fishing we moved back into the shallows. Started to catch some fish long lining silver hordes 100 feet behind the boards. Went 4 for 5 with the largest king of the day weighing 23.5 lbs.

Rough and Tough

Made it out fishing this afternoon. The temperature was in the lower 70s and the wind was out of the northeast 10 to 20 knots. The waves were 2 to 4 feet when we started and after a half hour of fishing the waves were building 3 to 5 feet. We set up south of the harbor in 150 feet of water fishing at the 11 line.The water temp was 52 degrees at 48 feet down. Caught 1 king off the downrigger 42 feet down using a hoochi and a blue fly. The waves got to be to tough so after 45 minutes of fishing we had enough. We pulled lines and had a hour ride back to port in very rough seas. Went 1 for 1 last night. There will be no fishing today because of the weather.

Manistee Salmon Day 1

Left home at 7:30 a.m. with John and Joe for our annual Salmon Fishing Trip in Manistee, MI. It doesn't sound like the weather will be very good this weekend. Hoping to get in an afternoon/evening trip on the lake today. Will keep you posted.

Half of What We Wanted

Fished with Captain Daryl. Temperature this morning was in the middle 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 80s. The wind was out of the east 10 to 15 knots with waves around 2 feet. The water temp is 81 degrees. Our game plan was to perch fish but after we arrived at the marina Daryl changed his mind and we started off walleye fishing. Started fishing at 41 48 300 /083 17 500. We trolled with wiggle warts set at 100 feet on one side of the boat and headed into the waves. After 45 minutes of fishing and not marking any fish we pulled lines and headed east to the turn around bouy. We slowed down to try and mark some fish and we marked a large school of perch. It was too weedy to walleye fish so we tried to perch fish. Only caught a few small perch so we pulled the hook and headed to the Toledo Light House. We fished east of the light house at the first set of buoys. Started to catch some fish right out of the gate so we just stayed put. We had to sort through the fish but at least we had some keepers. Kept 58 perch with the largest at 10 1/2 inches but most of the fish were around 8 inches. When we got back to the harbor we heard that the walleye turned on at the location we were at.

Could be the Last Trip for Walleye

Fished with Joe, Booth and Uncle Dan could not make it. Temperature this morning was in the lower 70s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 90s. The wind was out of the southwest 10 to 15 knots for most of the trip with waves less than 2 feet. The water temp is 82 degrees and the majority of the algae has moved out. We started fishing on the edge of the dumping grounds and we caught only silver bass so we made a move to the turn around buoy. We stayed in this area going between the turn around and Sputnik buoys. We trolled with wiggle warts set at 110 feet back on one side of the boat and jet 40s set at 55 feet back on the other side. The jets started to catch some walleye so we put jets on both sides of the boat. I could not find all my jet 40s so we had to mix some jet 30s with some jet 40s. The catching was slow and it was hot but we just picked away at the fish. Kept 9 walleye and we had 2 throw back walleye.

Found the Fish Too Late

Fished with Daryl and Chico. Temperature this morning was in the lower 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 70s. The water temp is 81 degrees. The west wind the last few days pushed out most of the algae. The wind was out of the west today 10 to 15 knots and after a couple of hours it started to lay down. The waves were about 2 feet. Around 12:30 the wind started blowing up to 25 knots which made the fishing terrible. Started fishing at 41 51 200 / 083 17 000 trolling east with the waves to our back. Picked up 2 walleye right out of the gate and then it went down hill from there. Trolled for about 3 miles without any fish so we pulled lines and made the same troll again but we went a little further to the west to start our troll. Set lines and this time we put jet 40s set at 50 feet back on one side and  wiggle warts set at 90 feet back on the other side. Trolled for 3 miles again with out any walleye. Pulled lines and headed to the northeast corner of the dumping grounds and set the troll to the east again. Started to catch some fish at 41 48 240 / 083 18 450 and then the wind picked up. We were on some active fish but the wind was just too much to troll so we called it quits for the day. Kept 7 walleye and 1 perch.

The Heat is Still On

Fished with Joe and John. Temperature this morning was in the lower 70s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 90s. The heat wave continues. The wind was variable less than 10 knots with waves less than a foot. The water temp is 81 degrees. The west wind we had the last few days pushed most of the algae out to deeper water but we still had to fish in some light algae. Started fishing just past the E buoy and we caught 1 walleye right out of the gate but after 45 minutes of fishing that was all that we had. Made a move to 41 51 300 / 083 14 625, which is front of the 2 stacks in 22 feet of water and we started to catch some fish. We ran wiggle warts 100 feet behind the boards and the best colors were the metallic. We trolled in and out from the 12 line to the 14 line and just picked away at the fish. Kept 18 walleye and we had 2 throw back walleye.

Hot Days of Summer

Fished with Captain Daryl and Mark. Temperature this morning was in the lower 70s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 90s. The wind was out of the south less than 10 knots and the waves were less than a foot. The algae is blooming but there are no weeds. Started fishing at 41 51 220 / 083 11 450 and we stayed in this general area. Started off with jet 20s set at 60 feet back and wiggle warts set at 70 feet back. We also ran the large dipsy's set on number 3 at 30 to 40 feet back and they pulled a few fish. After a while of fishing the warts were catching more walleye so we put out warts on both sides set at 100 feet back. Caught a lot of fish so we had to sort through them and it kept everyone busy. Kept 13 walleye and we had 3 small walleye that we put back.

Just Pecked Away

Fished with Daryl and Uncle Dan. Temperature this morning was in the upper 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 90s. The wind was out of the southwest less than 10 knots with waves around a foot. The water temp is 78 degrees. Had another late start today because we had to wait 50 minutes for a hilo driver, second time this year. The lake was in very good shape, no weeds and no mayflies.  Our game plan was to start trolling at the C buoy heading east with wiggle warts set at 70 feet behind the planer boards. After 45 minutes and only one fish we pulled lines and headed towards the swamp. Only saw a few boats there so we went back towards the E buoy and started fishing 1 mile past the buoy running the same program. Started to catch some walleye at 41 52 040 / 083 16 360. We just worked this area for the rest of the trip and caught mostly walleye. The catching was pretty slow but the majority of the fish we caught were walleye.  Best warts were anything with metallic paint on them. Kept 12 walleye for the day.

Bumpy and Weedy

Fished with Captain Daryl and Mark. Temperature this morning was in the middle 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 70s. The wind was out of the northeast 16 to 19 knots with waves 2 to 4 feet. After 3 hours of fishing the wind started to lay down and so did the waves. The water temp is 76 degrees. Started fishing in front of the two stacks heading into the waves. We ran jet 20s at 55 and 65 feet back. With the wind and the waves it was hard to set lines but we managed. Picked up about four fish and then we turned around and went with the waves to our backs. Picked up some more fish this way, so we made the turn and headed back into the waves. Picked up most of the fish around 41 52 040 / 083 16 360. The next thing we knew the weeds started arriving and the fishing went down hill. At one point every line had some weeds on it. Once that happened we called it a day. Kept 9 walleye.

Another Tough One

Fished with Uncle Dan. Temperature this morning was in the lower 70s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 80s. The wind this morning was out of the north 10 to 14 knots with waves around 2 feet. As the day went on the wind died down and started to switch so the lake laid down. The water temp is 72 degrees. The mayfly hatch is starting to wind down but there is still some larvae on the surface of the water. We started fishing at 41 08 250 / 083 07 400. Caught a lot of sheephead and silver bass but no walleye. Started trolling towards Middle sister Island and we still had no fish so we pulled lines and made the run in between the islands. Started trolling again and now we were catching small silver bass, just a pain in the butt. We caught a walleye off the jet 30s set at 85 feet back and that was just by luck. Fished around here for a couple of hours and then we headed towards Stoney Point. Found a lot of weeds and debris floating around so we called it a day. On the way out to our fishing spot this morning the engine quit a couple of times and then it was alright. On the way back to the harbor it started acting up again 6 miles from port. We limped our way back but we did make it. Sounds like a carburetor problem so I picked up a filter on the way home and will install it tomorrow. Kept 1 walleye for a long day of fishing.

Finally, a Nice Day for Fishing

Fished with Uncle Dan and Joe. Temperature this morning was in the lower 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 70s. The wind was variable less than 10 knots with waves less than a foot. The water temp is 71 degrees. The mayfly hatch is happening and that made the catching tough for us. We had to check the lines a lot for mayfly larva building up on the jet divers. We started fishing at 41 45 240 / 083 14 175, which is off of Stoney Point. We ran jet 30s set at 60 feet back and jet 40s set at 50 feet back. As we were setting lines we got the first fish and we thought we were in for a great day. After an hour of fishing with only the one fish we pulled lines and headed to 41 48 170 / 083 09 350. Again, we just got the lines set and we caught a walleye. Well, we trolled around here for a while picking up a fish or two and that was how our day was. We left the pack of boats and started trolling towards port and that is when we caught the steelhead. Kept 8 walleye and 1 steelhead.