Test Drive For the Boat

Fished with Daryl. The object for today was to check out the big motor and make sure it ran OK. Ran it for 2 hours(20 minutes run time and 1 hour and 40 minutes trolling time) and everything checked out perfect. Temperature this morning was in the upper 50s and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 70s. The wind in the morning was out of the northwest 10 to 15 knots with waves around 2 feet and after a couple of hours the wind switched to the west less than 5 knots with a light chop on the water. The water temp is 78 degrees and there is sign of an algae bloom. Started trolling just past the E Buoy heading into the waves with wiggle warts set at 80 feet on one side of the boat and 100 feet on the other side. Made a long pass towards the River Raisin Channel and turned around and headed back towards the E Buoy. On the pass back we put dipsy's and spoons on one side of the boat set at 50 feet back. When we got close to the E Buoy (41 49 540 / 083 19 625) we caught our first walleye. Once we found the fish the catching was easy. Trolled in this area and we only caught 3 junk fish. Kept 12 walleye, lost one behind the boat and had 3 walleye that were under size that we put back. Turned out to be a great day on the water.

2012 Salmon Results

This years trip will be remembered as the year the boat broke down. Met a lot of great people from Manistee that went out of their way to get us back on the water. We hooked 47 fish and landed 39 of them which gave us a catch rate of 83%, which is very good. We lost 1 fish at the net, 1 fish got caught in the prop of the kicker motor and 1 fish broke the line because we did not check the fishing line after each hook up. We caught 37 king salmon, 1 coho and 1 lake trout that we released. We caught 21 fish in the morning and 18 fish in the evening. Of the 13 sessions we could have made it out, we made it 10 times, some of which were in 4 to 5 foot seas. The 3 missed sessions happened because the boat had electrical problems. We totaled 39.5 hours of fishing and landed 39 fish for an average of .99 fish per hour. The 39 fish weighed 469 lb. for an average of 12.02 lb per fish. Below is a list of the lures that caught the fish.

 

 

• Scarpace...........................................15 hits
• Black Mamba meat with red head....10 hits
• White Spin Doctor with glow squid...6 hits
• Splatter Back,green Silver Horde.......6 hits
• Happy Meal spoon.............................4 hits
• Ace High Silver Horde.......................3 hits
• John J meat rig...................................2 hits
• Purple Haze meat rig .........................1 hit



Last Trip on Lake Michigan

Fished with Joe and John. Temperature this morning was in the lower 70s and the wind was out of the southwest 15 to 18 knots. Waves were 4 to 5 feet. Started fishing straight out just of the shelf in 125 feet of water trolling with the waves. It was difficult to just stand up in the boat. We fished for about 3 1/2 hours and called it a day. It looks like we will not make it out to the big lake tonight so we might fish Little Manistee lake. On the way back to the harbor this morning the boat quit again. Got it running  and we made it back OK. Kept 3 fish and John caught the biggest fish of the trip.

No Fishing, Broken Boat

Fished with Joe and John on Wednesday morning and on the ride back to the harbor the boat broke down 3 1/2 miles from the harbor. Had to use the kicker motor to make it in. Worked on the boat Wednesday night and Thursday morning and we think we have it fixed. Going to try it out right now.

Tough Fishing for Us

 Fished with Joe, John and Daryl. Temperature was in the upper 40s this morning with a light breeze. We headed south to fish again and we did OK in the morning but only caught 1 for the evening trip. The fishing has been very slow up here so far. Had to work on the boat and a downrigger today so we stayed busy all day. Caught 7 fish today.



First Night of Salmon Fishing

Fished with Joe and John. Temperature was in the upper 60s with a light breeze. We fished south of the harbor around the 10 and 11 line. Caught most of the fish off the dipsy's set at 125 back with meat rigs. Went 5 for 8. More details later,I'm tired.

Long Boat Ride

The weather man called for a nice day so I went fishing. Temperature this morning was in the upper 60s and when I quit fishing it was in the upper 70s. The wind this morning was out of the north at 5 knots and when I quit fishing it was out of the northeast 15 to 18 knots. The lake was flat this morning and when I quit fishing at 10:00 AM the waves were 2 to 3 feet. The water temp is 78 degrees and still no sign of the algae bloom. Made a giant circle around the lake with the first stop just past the S Buoy fishing off the humps. Only caught a couple of white perch so I moved to the Toledo Light House. Fished for about 15 minutes with out a bite so the next stop was Buoys 17 and 18. Again no bites so the next stop was up the channel to McDonald's. Caught some perch but caught just too many white perch. By this time the waves were stating to build. Moved around here a couple of times with the same results so the next stop was to the dumping grounds just west of McDonald's. Caught a couple more perch but by now the waves were 2 to 3 feet. Decided to pull the anchor and head back to port. Kept 6 perch which will be just enough for mom to have for dinner.

Long Boat Ride and Big Perch

Fished with Captain Daryl and Mark. Temperature this morning was in the middle 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 80s. The wind was out of the south around 10 knots with waves about a foot. The water temp is 76 Degrees. Decided to make the long boat run (41 48 000 / 083 13 000) and fish by the International Buoy, which is a 15 mile boat ride one way. Had good reports that some nice perch were caught in this area. Set up right on these numbers and within the first 5 minutes we had a 10 inch perch on. We picked away at them for a while and then the action just quit. Made a move to the east about 300 feet and caught 7 fish real quick and then the bite stopped again. Moved around this area for an hour without any luck so we headed to the Turn Around Buoy. Fished here for about 20 minutes and only caught a couple of small perch so we headed to one of our old hot spots from 5 years ago that was nearby. Dropped the anchor and fished here for 20 minutes and we had one small perch for our effort so we pulled lines and called it a day. Kept 21 perch and most of them were pretty nice but the boat ride is just too far.

Tough Day Perching

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 in the morning was out of the northeast about 10 knots and then it switched to the north about 5 knots. The waves in the morning were about 2 feet and on the way back to the marina they were less than 6 inches. The water temp is 78 Degrees and there is no sign of algae yet. Started fishing by the 17 and 18 buoys and the catching was slow but at least we were on some perch. The reports from a fellow fisherman from TBM was the fishing was terrible by the W and C buoys. We were picking away at the perch when a couple of boats anchored about 30 feet from us and the catching just stopped. Made one move in this area to avoid the boats but it did not help. Pulled the anchor and headed to the 13 and 14 buoys. We caught a couple of perch here but there were just too many white perch. Decided to head towards the dumping grounds and troll for walleye to see if we could locate some. Trolled here for about 45 minutes with jet 20s set at 50 to 60 feet back and only caught a couple of silver bass so we called it a day. Kept 23 perch.

Back to Back Perching

Fished with Joe and Daryl. Temperature this morning was in the upper 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 80s and starting to get warm. The winds were out of the south southeast from 10 to 15 knots this morning with waves about 2 feet and by 9:00 AM the wind switched to the south around 5 knots with a very light chop on the lake. The water temp is 77 Degrees. Started out fishing near the shipping channel by the 17 and 18 buoy right where I was yesterday. The catching was not as fast as yesterday but at least we were on some perch. Stayed here until the bite slowed down and then we made a move back to our old spot off the dumping grounds. It was a repeat from yesterday, all white perch. Joe even caught a triple header of white perch. Stayed here only a few minutes and made a move to the C buoy and dropped the anchor. Caught a couple of junk fish so we just called it a day. Kept 67 perch and threw back a lot of small fish again. 

Great Day to be on the Water

Went perch fishing by myself. My scheduled partner forgot to call me back early enough and by the time he did call, it was too late to call someone else. Temperature this morning was in the lower 60s and when I quit fishing it was in the lower 70s. The wind was light out of the north with no waves on the lake. The water temp is 78 degrees. Started fishing where we left off on the last trip and caught mostly white perch. Made a few moves in this area without any luck, just more white perch. Made a move out to the shipping channel by buoys 17 and 18 and started to catch some perch. Had to sort through them because most of the fish were too small to keep. Kept 27 perch and enjoyed a beautiful day on the lake.

First Perch Trip of the Year

Fished with Daryl and Joe. Temperature this morning was in the mid 70s and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 80s. The wind was light and variable with no waves and no bugs.Our goal was to perch fish in close to shore so that was where we started. Dropped the anchor at the W Buoy and fished there for about 15 minutes and we had no fish but a few bites. Made a move out past the dumping grounds and slowed down to try and mark some fish. We had some nice fish suspended so we set up for walleye fishing. Trolled with crawlers with 2 oz. bottom bouncers set at 25 feet back and mini dipsy's set at 50 feet back. Only caught a white perch off the mini dipsy but marked a lot of fish on the bottom. Went back to where we marked the fish on the bottom (41 48 900 / 083 19 125) and set up for perch fishing. Started to catch a few perch and some of them were pretty nice so we stayed put and caught perch until it got too hot and the fishing started to slow down. Kept 68 perch. The heat wave still continues but the good news is the algae bloom has not started yet, probably from the lack of rain.

John's Crew

 Fished with John, Branden and Kevin. Temperature this morning was in the lower 70s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 80s. The water temp is 76 degrees. On the boat ride out this morning the wind was out of the South 15 to 17 knots with waves up to 3 feet. Around 9:30 a.m. the wind started to come out of the South, Southeast less than 10 knots with waves about a foot, which made it a lot more comfortable. Started fishing at (41 48 300 / 083 06 200) which is 15 miles from port, just too far to go and chase walleye. Set up with jet 40s set at 60 feet on one side of the boat and 80 feet on the other side. The fishing was slow and it stayed that way all day. Made a few down wind trolls and only caught 1 walleye so we pulled lines and started one last down wind troll. We changed the set ups to 80 feet and 90 feet back with the jets and that did not help either. Picked up one more walleye and a few perch and then we called it a day. Kept 2 walleye and 2 perch. The guys on the other boat had 11 walleye and a perch so they cleaned the fish and went to Trapper's for lunch.

Big Fish

Fished with Joe and Uncle Dan. 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 northeast 5 to 12 knots with waves 1 to 2 feet. The water temp is 79 Degrees. Started fishing where we were on the last trip, set up with wiggle warts at 6o feet on one side of the boat and 80 feet on the other side. The catching was very slow but we were marking a lot of fish so we tried to work this area. Caught a couple of fish off the 80 foot side so we tried jet 40s set at 40 feet to replace the wiggle warts that were at 60 feet. Caught nothing but junk fish off the jets so we put wiggle warts back on and set them at 110 feet.It seemed to help but the catching was very slow. With about an hour to go in the trip Joe caught a 42 inch muskie. It took some time to bring it in but he did manage. Dan went to net the fish and only half of it would fit in the net. Some how he manged to get it all into the net and into the boat. According to the muskie charts the average weight of a 42 inch muskie is 20 lb. Kept 6 walleye, cleaned them up and then went to Trapper's for a walleye lunch.

No Wind, No Waves and No Bugs, But HOT

Fished with Captain Daryl. Temperature this morning was in the lower 70s and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 80s. There was no wind today so we had no waves. The water temp is 78 degrees. Started fishing where we have been the last couple of trips with wiggle warts set at 65 feet back and 80 feet back. Trolled around and we caught a few walleye but the action was kind of slow. We were marking most of the fish on the bottom so we set the lines at 100 feet back and 120 feet back. Started to catch some fish at (41 48 350 / 083 19 450). We stayed in this area and picked up our limit of walleye. There are some weeds floating so we had to check the lines quite often but it was not too bad. The temperature was starting to get very hot so it was a good thing we got done early. Kept 12 walleye and 1 perch. As I'm writing this post the temperature outside is 99 degrees and the heat index is 115.3,  just too hot.

Too Bad the Fishing Wasn't as Hot as the Temperature

Uncle Dan an Dwayne

Fished with Uncle Dan and Dwayne. Temperature this morning was in the lower 70s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 90s. It was HOT. The wind was out of the southwest around 10 knots with waves less than a foot. The water temp is 78 degrees. Started fishing where we have been the last couple of trips, with wiggle warts set at 70 feet on one side of the boat and rebel crawfish set at 60 feet on the other side. Both sides were catching fish and then it just slowed down. We started changing the setups but nothing seemed to work. Caught a few throw back walleye and 2 nice small mouth bass but it was hard to catch a walleye. Kept 9 walleye and they were just of legal size. The reports back at the harbor was the catching was very slow. Could have been from the storms that blew through last night! On a side note, Dr. Doug was in attendance today when Uncle Dan managed to hook himself. Surgery went well.

Bugging Out

Fished with Joe. Temperature this morning was in the middle 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 80s, and that was at 9:30 AM. The water temp is 76 degrees. The weather person called for an East wind 10 to 15 knots with waves up to 3 feet. The lake was flat with no waves, but a whole lot of bugs. Without any headgear on you would breath in bugs through your mouth and nose, just terrible. Started fishing where we were on Saturday and we never left this area. Trolled with jet 40s set at 35 feet back and wiggle warts set at 65 feet back. Today the jet 40s out fished the wiggle warts 2 to 1. Caught mostly walleye but most of them were just of legal size, 15 1/4 inches. The fishing was great but the bugs were hard to put up with. I told Joe it took longer to wash out the bugs from the boat than it did to catch the fish. Kept 12 walleye and we were glad to get off the water. Just in case you cannot tell from the picture, Joe has a smile on his face!  

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.