Lots of Weeds Again

Fished with Captain Daryl. Temperature this morning was in the lower 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 70s. The wind in the morning was out of the north northeast 14 to 17 knots with waves 2 to 3 feet. After a couple of hours the wind laid down and so did the waves. The water temp is 72 degrees. We headed towards Brest Bay (right into the waves) looking for some fish. Once we were past the River Raisin channel the lake was full of floating weeds. We kept heading northeast hoping to get past all the weeds but they were every where. We headed back to the E-Buoy and set lines with wiggle warts and hot and tots set at 75 feet behind the boards. We caught the first fish in the Michigan Dumping grounds. Made another pass through the same area and we caught 1 more walleye. We made one more pass through the same area and caught only a couple of silver bass so we called it a day. Kept 2 walleye.

Lot's of Weeds

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 southwest in the morning around 10 knots with waves about 1 foot. As the day went on the wind laid down and then there were no waves. We lost our good walleye chop. The water temp is 72 degrees. Started fishing by the water intake (41 43 150 / 083 13 450) trolling with wiggle warts set at 100 feet on one side of the boat and hot and tots set at 115 feet on the other side of the boat. Caught the first walleye off the hot and tot pretty quick and then the weeds started to get on the lures. We spent most of the day cleaning the weeds off the lures. We just stayed in this area catching a few walleye and very few junk fish. When the wind quit blowing and the lake went flat the walleye catching came to a halt. Kept 5 walleye on a weedy day so we were pretty happy.

What a Difference a Day Makes

Fished with Captain Daryl and his brother Dwayne. Temperature this morning was in the lower 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 80s. The wind was light out of the southwest and there was a little chop on the lake. The water temp is 72 degrees. Started fishing by the water intake with wiggle warts set at 90 and 100 feet behind the boards. The catching was pretty slow but at least we were catching some walleye. After a couple hours of fishing Daryl decided to put hot and tots on one side of the boat set at 115 feet behind the boards. It only took a couple of minutes and we had a fish on. We caught one more walleye off the hot and tot setup so we switched both sides to the hot and tots. That helped us put a few more walleye in the cooler. Kept 14 walleye and 1 perch. The silver bass were not too bad and there were no weeds floating on the water.

A Tough One Today

Fished with Captain Daryl and his brother Dwayne. 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 southwest 8 to 15 knots with waves around a foot. The water temp is 71 degrees. Started fishing by the water intake trolling with wiggle warts set at 100 feet behind the boards. Trolled around here for 2 1/2 hours and we caught only 1 walleye and a few silver bass. Decided to head towards the Michigan dumping grounds and give that a try. Set up with wiggle warts set at 50 and 70 feet behind the boards. Fished here for a short time and then we pulled lines and headed into the swamp. Set wiggle warts at 25 and 30 feet behind the boards. Trolled around the swamp for a while and we only caught 1 more walleye. After a tough day of fishing we threw in the towel and called it a day. Kept 2 walleye and caught 1 little walleye that we put back.

Fishing is Slowing Down

Fished with Joe and Daryl. Temperature this morning was in the lower 70s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 80s. The wind was light and there was just a little chop on the lake. The water temp is 75 degrees. The little flies were pretty bad this morning with the light winds. Started fishing in the swamp with wiggle warts set at 30 feet behind the boards. Caught the first walleye right out of the gate so we thought we were in the right spot. After trolling around for 1 1/2 hours and no more fish we decided to pull lines and head towards the water intake. As we were pulling lines we caught a throw back walleye. Set lines by the water intake with wiggle warts set at 100 feet on one side of the boat and mini disk and spoons set at 90 feet back on the other side. Started to catch a few walleye off the wiggle warts so we switched both sides to wiggle warts. The catching was slow but we just stayed here (41 43 125 / 083 15 150) and picked away at the fish. Caught most of the fish on the east troll. Caught quite a few silver bass and 2 very large sheep head. Kept 12 walleye, cleaned them up and went to Trapper's for a walleye dinner.

A Nice Day on the Water

Fished with Joe and Doug. Temperature this morning was in the lower 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 70s. The wind was light and variable with just a little chop on the lake. The water temp is 75 degrees. No wind, no waves and no bugs-Wow- what a great day to be on the lake. Started fishing in the swamp trolling wiggle warts 30 feet behind the boards. The only thing that we caught were some weeds. Stayed here a while and then we pulled lines and headed back to where we left off on the last trip, just past the light house. Set up on the 18 1/2 line trolling towards the water intake. Did not mark very many fish and did not catch a fish. Got a call from Norm and he was fishing the 46/16 line and had some fish so we headed over there. Set wiggle warts back to 90 feet on the one side of the boat and 120 feet back on the other side. Caught a couple of walleye but we also caught a lot of silver bass and weeds. Decided to head back into the swamp and ran wiggle warts set at 30 feet back and 40 feet back. Started to catch some walleye off the 30 foot setup so we switched everything back to 30 feet. We just trolled around picking away at the walleye. Not very fast action but at least we were catching some fish. Kept 15 walleye and had 2 under size walleye that we put back.

Another Muskie

Fished with Daryl after his therapy session. Temperature when we started fishing was in the upper 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 80s. The wind was out of the west southwest less than 10 knots with waves less than a foot. The water temp is 76 degrees. Started fishing right in front of the harbor trolling wiggle warts 28 and 32 feet behind the boards. We set on a troll heading into the swamp and we were marking a lot of fish but not catching anything. Finally caught our first fish and it was a walleye. We stayed in this area for a while and we would catch a walleye but we caught too many silver bass. We also caught another muskie, that makes 2 so far this year. After only 4 walleye in the cooler we moved out just past the Toledo Light House (41 44 200 / 083 14 125) and set up with wiggle warts set at 90 and 100 feet behind the boards. We were on the walleye right out of the gate and the catching was steady until we needed 1 more fish. We trolled around close to an hour trying to catch that last fish, why this happens once in a while I don't know. Finished the day with 12 walleye.

A Little Muskie

Fished with Captain Daryl after his therapy. Temperature when we started fishing was in the lower 60s and when we quit fishing ti was in the middle 70s. The wind was out of the west 10 to 15 knots with waves less than a foot. The water temp is 73 degrees. Came out of the harbor and set up in 14 feet of water trolling wiggle warts 45 and 50 feet back. Caught the first walleye pretty fast. We made a few more passes in this area (41 49 250 / 083 23 200) and caught a few more. Trolled a little closer to shore and we only caught 2 more walleye. Had to deal with a lot of small junk fish and quit a few weeds. We stayed busy keeping the lines clear. Kept 6 walleye and caught 1 muskie that was 24 inches that we put back.

Rockin and Rollin

Fished with Daryl after his therapy session. Temperature when we started fishing was in the lower 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 60s. The wind was out of the west 15 to 22 knots and the waves were 2 to 3 feet. The water temp is 75 degrees. Started trolling at the S Buoy with wiggle warts heading towards the E Buoy. Did not mark very many fish and caught nothing so we pulled lines and headed past the Toledo Light House and set up at (41 43 450 / 083 17 525) trolling with the waves. Ran wiggle warts set at 85 and 90 feet back. Started catching some walleye off the 90 foot set up. On the first pass we caught 6 walleye and lost one behind the boat so we pulled lines and made another pass. On this pass we only caught 3 walleye so we pulled lines and we figured that this would be are last pass no matter how many fish we caught, it was starting to get pretty bumpy on the lake. Set lines and we caught the last 3 fish real quick. Kept 12 walleye and only caught 1 silver bass. The water was a little stained and there were a few weeds floating but they did not cause any problems.

Algae is Starting to Form

Fished with Captain Daryl and Jim after the therapy session. Temperature when we started fishing was in the lower 70s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 80s. The wind was out of the northeast less than 10 knots with waves less than a foot. The water temp is 75 degrees and the algae is starting to appear on the water. Started fishing at (41 49 250 / 083 23 150) trolling with wiggle warts set at 65 feet back trolling at 3 mph. Started catching walleye right out of the gate and it only slowed down one time for us. Towards the end of the trip we caught the last 6 fish at the 49 / 22 line. This was Jim's first time walleye fishing on the great lakes and he did great and caught a lot of walleye. Kept 18 walleye and only had a few junk fish to deal with.

Just Missed the Storms Again

Fished with Daryl and Mark after the therapy session. Temperature when we started to fish was in the middle 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 70s. The wind was out of the east southeast less than 10 knots most of the day and the waves were less than a foot. The water temp is 71 degrees. The flies were terrible today. We sprayed with bug spray and 45 minutes later you had to spray yourself again. Started fishing on the northeast side of the dump trolling with wiggle warts set at 75 feet back. Made a pass through here and we caught no fish so we headed towards the Michigan / Ohio border. Nothing but a few junk fish. Switched to dipsy's and spoons set at 60 feet back on one side and that did not help. We were marking some fish but not catching any walleye. Made a swing towards the E- Buoy and we took off the wiggle warts and put on crawlers set at 50 feet back. Finally caught a fish off that set up but then it went dead. Took off the crawlers and put on jet 20s and spoons set at 50 feet back and we started to catch a few walleye. We caught all of the walleye just south of the E- Buoy. The dipsy set up probably caught a few more fish than the jet 20s. A huge storm started to roll in so we pulled lines and headed for port. This time we beat the rain putting the boat away and cleaning the fish but when we went to dump the guts it started to rain. Kept 6 walleye and had 3 walleye that were under size that we put back.

Just Missed the Storms

Fished with Captain Daryl and Mark after Daryl's therapy appointment. Temperature when we started fishing was in the middle 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 70s. The wind was out of the south when we started to fish and then it switched to the southeast 6 to 15 knots. The waves were anywhere from 1 to 2 feet and the water temp is 69 degrees. We decided to try and stay in Michigan waters to find some fish. We stopped short of the E-buoy and looked for some fish, then we motored through the Michigan dumping grounds and there were very few marks. We moved towards walleye ally where we marked a few fish so we set lines here (41 49 050 / 083 18 700). We trolled up and down the Michigan / Ohio border fishing in Michigan waters. We set up with wiggle warts set at 75 feet back on one side of the boat and 85 feet back on the other side of the boat. After a while of trolling we caught more fish off the 75 foot set up so we switched all the poles to 75 feet back. The best color wiggle warts were the metallic green or light green with a red bill. We also caught some fish off the large dipsy's set at 30 feet back with purple spoons. We started to troll back down the border when Daryl noticed some dark clouds back by Toledo Beach Marina. It was a good thing that we were only 4 1/2 miles out from the marina. We made a mad dash pulling lines and headed back to port, got the boat put away, cleaned the fish and dumped the guts all before the rain started. Kept 16 walleye and we missed the rain.

Just Too Far to go Walleye Fishing

Fished with Joe and John. Temperature this morning was in the middle 50s and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 60s. The wind was out of the east around 10 knots and then it started to rotate to the north less than 10 knots. The waves in the morning were about a foot and then laid down to less than a foot. The water temp is 68 degrees. We had a major blow yesterday so I was not sure what was going on with the fishing. We headed out to where we fished on the last trip hoping the fish would still be there. We set up about 1 mile short of where we were last trip with dipsy's and spoons set at 90 feet back and jet 40s and spoons set at 65 feet back. Did not mark a lot of fish so we headed northeast hoping to find some fish. Finally started to catch some walleye around the 41 45 325 / 083 04 750 line so we just stayed here and pecked away at the walleye. Caught a few junk fish but it wasn't too bad and Joe caught a couple of plastic bags. One of them had a life vest in it. He would not hold them up for the pictures, that little wimp. Kept 15 walleye and a couple of plastic bags.

The Mayfly Hatch has Started

Fished with Daryl. Been working on the boat with Daryl over the last 9 days and we finally got it all put back together with the help of Derek. Temperature this morning was in the lower 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 70s. The wind was out of the southwest 12 to 18 knots with waves 2 to 3 feet. The water temp is 69 degrees and the mayfly hatch is under way. Started fishing where we left off on the last trip and we caught 2 walleye and a few silver bass. We trolled towards the pack of boats to the northeast of us and when we got there we caught a couple more walleye and some junk fish. We decided to head back to our original location and we only caught a few junk fish. We pulled lines and went back towards the pack of boats (41 45 600 / 083 06 550) and set up with mini disk and spoons set at 90 feet back and jet 40s and spoons set at 70 feet back. Once we did that we were on the fish. We just stayed right in this area and caught our 12 walleye. By this time we had solid 3 foot waves which made for a tough ride back to port.

Close to West Sister

Fished with Captain Daryl and Mark after the therapy session which is turning out to be a good thing. This is the third trip that we missed out on the large waves in the morning. Temperature when we started fishing was in the upper 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 70s. The wind was light and variable with no waves. The water temp is 68 degrees. Started fishing by McDonald's trolling wiggle warts. We were marking some fish but we only caught one walleye. Pulled lines and headed to the east and set up in 28 feet of water. Started fishing again with wiggle warts set at 75 and 85 feet back. After a half hour of fishing with out a hit we decided to put mini disk and spoons on one side of the boat. As we were doing that we caught a fish off the wiggle warts. Just got the mini disk in the water and they started to catch some fish. Made the decision to pull the wiggle warts and put jet 40s with spoons out. Once we did that it was game on for us. We caught most of the fish around 41 45 300 / 083 09 000 with the disk set at 90 feet back (which caught most of the fish) and the jet 40s set at 65 feet back. Kept 18 walleye and caught very few junk fish.

Hook Em Mark

Fished with Captain Daryl and Mark after Daryl's therapy. Temperature at mid day was in the upper 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 70s. The wind was light out of the east and the waves were less than a foot. The water temp is 68 degrees. Got a report that the fish were not in the swamp anymore so we headed out to the Michigan dumping grounds and set lines. We had wiggle warts set at 75 feet on one side of the boat and spoons and mini disk set at 65 feet back on the other side of the boat. The wiggle warts started to out produce the spoons so we put wiggle warts on both sides of the boat. We were fishing the Michigan/Ohio border on the Michigan side (41 50 000 / 083 17 500) in 22 feet of water. The catch was not very fast but we just picked away at the fish. Caught very few junk fish and we kept 18 walleye. About half way through the trip Mark put a hook in his finger trying to remove the lure from the fish. We did the fishing line trick to remove it, put on a little peroxide and he was good to go.

Wiggle Warts

Fished with Captain Daryl. Temperature this morning was in the lower 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 60s. When we arrived at the marina this morning there were no hi lo drivers. Come to find out Amy scheduled the drivers for 8:00 AM, even though the marina opens at 7:00 AM. The winds were out of the northeast 10 to 15 knots. When we started fishing the waves were about a foot and when we quit fishing they were 2 to 3 feet. The water temp is 65 degrees. Started fishing just past the S-Buoy trolling towards Turtle Island. We were running wiggle warts anywhere from 25 to 50 feet behind the boards without much luck. Once we were north of Turtle Island we started to catch some fish with the wiggle warts set at 40 feet back. Caught very few junk fish and we would have had our limit but it started getting pretty rough. Kept 11 walleye for the trip. When I got home they told me it rained all day around here. We never had a drop of rain on the water, go figure.

Last Trip Using Worms

Fished with Joe and Doug. 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 southwest early and then it switched to the southeast.  Waves were less than a foot and the water temp is 64 degrees. We started fishing in 12 feet of water by the N buoy in front of Bolles Harbor and trolled towards the C-buoy. We used crawlers 35 and 40 feet behind the boards. We started setting lines and we had 3 fish on real quick. Decided to pull lines and make another pass through the same area. Picked up a few more walleye but then we ran into silver bass and sheep head. We decided to just stay and work this area and pick away at the walleye and put up with the junk fish. Not sure why but we lost a lot of fish today. Had them on for a while and they would just get off. Kept 13 walleye for the trip.

Ran The Crawlers Again Today

Fished with Daryl after his therapy session. Temperature was in the lower 60s when we started fishing and it was in the upper 60s when we quit. The wind was out of the northwest about 10 knots with waves less than a foot. The water temp is 60 degrees. We decided to stay fishing with the night crawlers. We fished the northwest side of the dumping grounds trolling crawlers 40 feet behind the boards with 2 ounce weights. Pink and purple blades worked the best. Trolling speed was around 1.5 MPH. We trolled with the waves and it only took a couple of passes and we were done. Kept 12 walleye and 1 nice perch. Caught about 6 silver bass and 1 large catfish. Just another nice day on the water.

First Trolling Trip

Fished with Daryl. Temperature this afternoon was in the lower 50's and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 50s. The wind was light and variable with waves less than a foot. The water temp is 59 Degrees. Started fishing at the mud line which was a half mile West of the E buoy. We were trolling worms with 2 ounce weights. One side of the boat was set at 35 feet back and the other side of the boat was set at 50 feet back. The side set at 50 back started to catch more fish so we switched them all to 50 feet back. On the first pass we caught 8 walleye and a few silver bass and on the second pass we caught our other 4 walleye. The best area was 41 49 000 / 083 21 240. We caught all the fish in clean water. Kept 12 walleye and we put back 2 walleye that were 15 inches. Just a nice day on the lake with very little boat traffic.

Felt Like Summer

Fished with Daryl after his therapy appointment.  Temperature midday was in the lower 70's and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 80's. The wind was out of the east at 10 knots when we started fishing and about 1:30 it switched to the south about 10 knots. Waves were around a foot. The water temp is 54 Degrees. When we came out of the harbor there was a pack of boats about 1/2 mile east of the S buoy so we headed out that way. When we got there the water was very dirty and we did not see any action so we headed towards Turtle Island. When we arrived at Turtle Island there were only about 6 boats fishing. The water was a little cleaner but it was still dirty. Caught the first fish in a couple of minutes so that gave us some confidence fishing the dirty water. We had a lot of hits today but we just could not hook them up. Kept 5 walleye and we also caught some white perch. Check out the new link I just added for the wind conditions at Toledo Light.

Maiden Voyage

Fished with Daryl. Temperature this afternoon was in the lower 50's and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 50's. The wind was out of the northeast 10 to 12 knots with waves about 1 foot. The water temp is 52 Degrees. We went fishing after Daryl's therapy appointment. The game plan was to get my boat ready for fishing and hit the lake for a couple of hours and then put the batteries in Daryl's boat. We got my boat ready and the lake did not look too bad so away we went. Headed out to Turtle Island and there were only 3 boats fishing. We set up on some old way points and started drifting. Made a long drift and we had no hits. Made another move towards some more old way points and started another drift. About halfway through the drift Daryl caught the first fish of the year using a blade bait. Went back up for another drift and we caught two more fish off the blade baits. Tried two more drifts and we only had a couple of hits so we called it a day. The water was stained, water temp was good and the wave action was good, so I was surprised that we only caught 3 fish. We planned on fishing tomorrow but the weather is not looking very good.

Trout Fishing 2014

Headed up north with Joe and John on Thursday morning (4/24) to set up camp on the Boardman River. When we arrived the river was just over the bank and flowing pretty good. On Friday we made a trip to the Jorden River to check it out. It was flowing pretty good and the camp site looked nice but we decided to stay and fish the Boardman River.

On Saturday morning the temp was in the lower 30s with a light rain. By the time we got dressed and ready for fishing the rain had quit. Joe fished his hot spot from last year, John fished around the camp and I headed to the closed camp ground. When we all met back at camp we had the same report. No fish and no bites. Not a good start for trout fishing. We had a light breakfast and headed back out. When we came back for dinner we had the same results again. Went back out for the evening fish and John caught 1 Brown Trout, so at least we were not skunked for the opener.

 Sunday we fished Mill Pond and John caught 3 Brown Trout so we had enough fish for a trout dinner. After dinner we headed back out and Joe caught no fish, I caught no fish and John had a nice fish on that he lost.

We made the decision to fish Monday morning, then pack up to head home because the weather forecast called for rain Monday night and Tuesday morning. We headed out Monday morning to our favorite spots. I caught no fish and Joe also caught no fish but John had his best morning ever trout fishing. He caught the fish that he lost on Sunday and then he caught his biggest Brown Trout ever - 19.25 inches. So John wins the trophy and is our Trout King for 2014. Congratulations John! All the fish caught this year came off night crawlers.

Lot's of Ice Yet

Fished with Doug, Dave and Dave. Fished a small lake in Bridge Water. Temperature for most of the day was in the middle 30s with no sunshine. The wind was out of the north 5 to 10 knots. The ice is close to 20 inches thick. Started fishing midday and we caught a few fish but the action was pretty slow. We started moving in and out from the shore line in 14 to 18 feet of water and that did not seem to help either. A couple of the guys had fish finders and they were marking very few fish. We fished until after dark and the catching never did improve, it was just a slow pick all day. Kept 12 crappie and 10 bluegill.

The evening fish

Fished with Doug E. and Jack. Jack showed up for the last hour of fishing. Fished from 1 1/2 hours before sunset to 1 1/12 hours after sunset. Fished in a small lake in Bridge Water. When we started fishing the temp was in the upper 20s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 20s and starting to snow. The wind was out of the southeast about 10 knots. The walk to the lake was terrible, most of the time we were walking through a foot of snow. Once we got on the lake it was still bad. There was at least 6 inches of snow on the ice and below the snow was about 4 inches of slush. The ice is about 15 inches thick. The bite was slow to start but right before dark the bluegill started hitting. Once the sun went down the crappie started to bite. We were using small jigs tipped with mousies, wax worms and spikes. Kept 24 fish, a mixture of crappies and gills.

2014 Lake Simcoe Fishing Trip

We left Michigan for Lake Simcoe, Ontario on Friday, January 17, 2014. Fished with Dwayne, Fred and Dan. This year we stayed at the Whispering Pines Bed and Breakfast in Sutton,Ontario. Cost was $50.00 per person per night and included breakfast and coffee for the thermos. Temperature Saturday morning was in the lower 20s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 30s, pretty nice for this time of year. It got so hot in the hut that we opened both windows and had the door propped open. We were fishing in 14 feet of water and you could see the fish cruising along the bottom of the lake. It sure makes it fun to sight fish for jumbo perch. Our best setup was jigging a slab grabber about a foot off the bottom. The fishing was slow but we just pecked away at them. Sunday was a different story. The temp in the morning was in the lower teens and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 20s. The wind was blowing 20 to 25 knots and we had a few snow storms during the day. I started off with a slab grabber and Dan used a new jig called a Williams spoon tipped with a Jensen egg. I did not catch a fish off the slab grabber while Dan was doing pretty good using the new spoon. Dwayne was fishing by himself because Fred was sick with the flu. He did real well using a small jig tipped with a plastic body and a spike. For the weekend we kept 102 perch and 2 bluegill. The largest perch was 13 1/2 inches and we caught quit a few jumbos.

Last Trip for 2013

Fished Bolles Harbor with John. Temperature this morning was in the upper 20s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 30s and sunny. The wind was out of the west 10 to 15 knots but we were in the harbor so it did not affect us. The ice is 3 to 4 inches thick and the water was dirty from all the rain we had last week. We only had two bites and caught no fish. Talked to some other fisherman and the only one's that had any fish were fishing further up the harbor and they were catching bluegills. It was nice to be on the water again!!!

The End Has Arrived

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 wind in the morning was out of the west northwest 15 to 20 knots with waves 2 to 3 feet.
Around 11:00 am the wind and the waves laid down. On the boat ride back in the waves were less than a foot. The water temp is 64 degrees. Started fishing at 41 48 200 / 083 08 150 which is between Sputnik and West Sister Island. We set up and only caught 1 perch so made some moves in this area. After 3 or 4 moves with only 4 perch in the cooler we moved out to another pack of boats just to the southeast of us and the water was a lot cleaner. Stayed there and only caught a couple of fish so we moved back to the mud line and started to catch some perch. Stayed here for the rest of the trip catching a lot of small perch and a few keeper perch. Finally we started to catch some nice perch to make the trip a success. Kept 76 perch, cleaned them up and went to Trappers for a perch dinner. Always a good way to end the season.

It Doesn't Get Any Better

Fished with Norm. Temperature this morning was in the middle 40s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 60s. The wind was light out of the east with waves less than a foot. The water temp is 65 degrees. Headed back to where we have been fishing and the water was dirty so we kept going to the east. We set up at 41 49 800 / 083 11 650 which is just north of Sputnik and we never had to move. We were catching some nice perch so we decided that we would not keep anything under 8 1/2 inches. The catching was fast and furious and the majority of the fish were in the 10 inch range. Only caught a handful of white perch and 1 smallmouth bass. Kept 62 perch. We were fishing for about 20 minutes and it got so nice out that we had to take off our coats. Just a great day to be on the lake.

Just Another Nice One

Fished with Milan. Temperature this morning was in the lower 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 70s. Just a perfect day to be on the water. The wind in the morning was out of the west southwest around 10 knots with waves about a foot and after a couple of hours the wind laid down and so did the lake. The water temp is 66 degrees. Headed back to where we have been fishing and the water was dirty and there were no fish. Started making some moves to the east and we finally found some clean water. Moved back to the dirty water and we started to catch some white perch. Made a few more moves in this area and we finally found some perch(41 49 950 / 083 13 750). Once we found the fish the catching was pretty steady and we caught some nice fish. Kept 65 perch and a lot of them were about 10 inches.

Just a Great Day to be on the Lake

Fished with Joe. 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 west southwest less than 10 knots and the waves were less than a foot. The water temp is 66 degrees. Started fishing where we left off on the last trip and we caught nothing. Marked a lot of fish but the water was very dirty. Made a move to the east about 1/2 mile (41 49 650 / 083 14 950) and the lake was a little cleaner but still no fish. Made a couple of moves around here and we only had 1 perch. We pulled the anchor and were heading for Sputnik when Captain Bob called on the radio and said he was on some perch in the area we were leaving. Made the U turn and headed back to where he was fishing and dropped the anchor. Started to catch some perch and everything was going good until we caught a smallmouth bass and then the perch fishing quit. Made a move to the west about 300 feet and we were on the perch again. The fishing was good until we caught another smallmouth bass and then nothing. Hard to believe that this happened 2 times. We caught mostly perch today and a lot of them were just under 8 inches that we put back. Kept 45 perch between 8 and 10 1/2 inches.

The Fish are There

Fished with Norm. Temperature this morning was in the lower 50s and when we quit fishing it was in the middle 60s. The wind was out of the north northeast all morning around 10 knots. The waves were just over a foot. The water temp is 66 degrees. Started fishing about 2 miles east of the E buoy 41 49 325 / 083 18 100 (Michigan waters) and we were catching some perch but we also caught a lot of white perch. We made the decision to move further out and fish at 41 49 300 / 083 16 225 (Ohio waters). We ran into the same problem, to many white perch but the perch that we caught were nice size. We probably should have stayed at the first location because we caught most of our fish there. Kept 41 perch. One of the problems today was we had very small shiners.

Did the Impossible

Fished with Doug E. Temperature this morning was in the upper 40s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 60s. The wind in the morning was out of the south less than 10 knots but the waves were still coming out of the east around 1 foot. As the day went on the wind and waves laid down. The water temp is 67 degrees. Headed back to where I have been fishing but we did not mark any fish. We still dropped the anchor and tried anyways. No bites so we moved around a couple of times and still nothing. Made a move to the #1 buoy off the River Raisin and again nothing. Went back out to the Michigan/Ohio boarder and tried again but the same results. Made one more move here but nothing again. Packed up and headed for the swamp to try a different area. Caught 1 catfish and that was it for the trip. One of the rare times that we did not catch a perch on Lake Erie. One of the boats came back from fishing and he had about a dozen perch fishing by the E buoy. Just after that another boat came back from fishing and they had a cooler full of perch. They were fishing between Sputnik and the #1 buoy off the River Raisin.

Nice Day on the Lake

Temperature this morning was in the middle 40s and when I quit fishing it was in the lower 60s. The wind in the morning was out of the south less than 10 knots with waves around a foot and by 10:00 am the wind started to come out of the east less than 10 knots with waves less than a foot. The water temp is 68 degrees. Headed towards the #1 buoy off the River Raisin until I saw a small pack of boats just south of the buoys. Made a pass through the pack off boats and did not see very much activity so I kept heading south until I came to an old perch waypoint about 1 1/4 mile south of the #1 buoy (41 50 900 / 083 14 925). Dropped the anchor and spent the whole trip right here. Had to sort threw a lot of fish but at least some of the perch were pretty nice size. Kept 25 perch between 8 and 11 inches.

Unexpected Call from Daryl

Got a call from Captain Daryl and he had the weekend off so we went fishing. Temperature this morning was in the lower 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 70s. The wind in the morning was out of the south 15 to 18 knots with waves around 2 feet. When we quit fishing the wind was out of the southwest less than 10 knots with waves less than a foot, which made for a nice boat ride back to port. The water temp is 73 degrees. The fish finder and GPS did not work so we fished like the old days. Started fishing about 1 mile south of buoy #1 off the River Raisin. Caught nothing but junk fish. Made a move further out and we caught a lot of junk fish and 1 perch. With the wind blowing we did not want to pull anchor too many times. Once the anchor grabs its hard to break loose. Made another  move to the pack of boats fishing east of the # 1 buoy and we caught a few perch. Made one last move about 200 feet and that was it for moving. Kept 18 perch with the largest one 10 inches long. Tough day of fishing for us.

First Perch Trip of the Year

Woke up this morning and the winds were light out of the east but the waves were around 2 feet so I did not go fishing. Checked the computer again around 8:00 AM and the winds were still light but the waves were starting to lay down so I packed up and went fishing. The temperature this morning was in the middle 60s and when I quit fishing it was in the upper 60s. The wind was light and variable and the waves were less than 1 foot. The water temp is 74 degrees. Called Huey on the radio and they were fishing by the Toledo Light House and not doing very well, so I headed towards the #1 Buoy off the Raisin River. Started to mark some fish on the graph so I dropped anchor .8 miles due south of the #1 Buoy. First fish was a catfish, then I caught about 6 white perch, then 2 small perch and I thought about moving. Finally caught a perch just over 8 inches. The catching was slow and the large pack of boats by the #1 Buoy were starting to break up so I just stayed put and pecked away at the fish. Had to do a lot of sorting and threw back a lot of sheep head and white perch but I was catching some keeper perch. Pulled lines around 12:30 and headed for port. Kept 22 perch and most of them were between 8 to 9 inches, the largest was 11 inches.

Manistee - The Final Tally

This years trip will be remembered as the year of very few fish but large fish. We put in a lot of hours fishing for the few fish that we caught. We hooked 33 fish and landed 28 of them which gave us a catch rate of 85%, which is very good. We lost one fish at the net and 2 broke the line and the rest just got off the lure. We caught 25 king salmon and 3 coho. We caught 14 fish in the morning and 14 fish in the evening. Of the 13 sessions we could have made it out fishing we made it out 11 times, some of which were in 2 to 4 foot seas. Wednesday was a blow day. We totaled 51 hours of fishing and landed 28 fish for an average of .54 fish per hour, which is slow fishing. The 28 fish weighed 452.25 lbs. for an average of 16.15 lbs. per fish, which is very good. The largest fish weighed just over 26 lbs. and the smallest fish weighed 6 lbs. We had 11 fish that weighed over 20 lbs. Below is a list of lures that caught the fish.

Silver Horde - Green Splatter Back..............................................6 hits
John J Meat Rig............................................................................5 hits
Black Mamba Meat Rig with a Red Head....................................4 hits
J Plug - Grey Ghost.......................................................................4 hits
Scare Pace Meat Plug....................................................................4 hits
J Plug - Light Pink and Green(lost)...............................................1 hit
Silver Streak Spoon - Light Purple(slider)....................................1 hit
Mountain Dew Meat Rig with Green Head...................................1 hit
J Plug - Glow Wonder Bread.........................................................1 hit
J Plug - Bloody Nose Glow...........................................................1 hit

End of the Trip

Well, the week went by too quickly. Daryl showed up on Wednesday and was able to fish on Thursday and Friday. After the blow on Wednesday the fishing was very tough on Thursday morning. We only caught 1 king in the morning. We were hoping the lake would stabilize for the afternoon fish. We headed back out and the first 2 fish we lost and then we finally caught some nice fish. We only caught 3 fish but they weighed 71 lbs. Friday morning the harbor water temp was 68 degrees so we headed south and the catching was pretty good. We kept 6 fish and 4 of them were over 20 lbs. On the way back to port the big motor quit about 4 miles from port, it sounded like the same problem that I had last year. We got it running and made it back safely. We made an adjustment to the gas line and were hoping that would solve the problem. Went out fishing for the afternoon fish and we headed right back to the location we fished in the morning. There were very few boats around and things were not looking good so we started to troll north towards the harbor. Well as my luck goes the kicker motor quit running and we could not get it started again (figured out it was a broken gas line) so we trolled with the main motor. Right before dark we started to catch some fish and we ended up with 3 nice kings for the trip. Over all the catching was bad but the fish were large. I should have a final tally in a few days.

Salmon Fishing, Part 2

Fishing with Joe and John. The temp was in the upper 40s Monday morning but the winds were light. The surface temp at the harbor is 65 degrees so we decided to fish in front of the harbor long lining silver hordes and J plugs. The fishing was pretty good until the sun came up and then it shut right down. Caught 4 kings and 2 of them were pretty nice size. The wind was starting to pick up out of the southwest and the water is starting to warm up. For the afternoon trip we decided to run south and make one long troll back towards the harbor with the waves at our back. It makes for easy fishing and an easy ride back to the harbor in 2 to 4 foot waves. The dipsy's were hot with the meat rigs on them set at 150 feet back. We caught 5 kings and 4 of them were pretty nice. We had 82 lbs. of fish in the cooler which made for a good evening.

Tuesday Morning the wind was still blowing but fishable and the water temp at the harbor is 69 degrees. We headed to the shelf and dropped the probe down and got water temp at 70 feet so we thought we were in for a great morning. We only caught 2 kings but they were nice sized again. For the afternoon fish the lake was still bumpy and we were on some fish, but we also had some bad luck. On the first fish the line broke right in front of the second treble hook so we lost that fish and another fish broke the line. We caught 1 coho and one small king around 12 lbs.

Wednesday the waves were 4 to 5 feet, so we had a blow day. We went up to Manistee Lake and tried jigging for salmon but we had no luck.

Salmon Fishing Manistee

Fishing out of the Port of Manistee for salmon with Joe and John for the first four days and then Daryl is going to show up on Wednesday. When we arrived at the harbor the lake was calm and we were eager to go fishing. As we were getting the boat ready we talked to the DNR person taking surveys of the boats coming back from fishing and he said most boats are catching 1 to 2 fish and a lot of boats are coming back with no fish. Not what we wanted to hear. Got the boat ready and checked into the motel and away we went fishing. We headed south to start fishing because that is where we had our best luck in the past. We caught 1 king Saturday night. Monday morning we went straight out and fished the shelf with no hits so we pulled lines and headed for the shallow water. Caught 1 nice king (25.5 lb.) and that was it for the morning fish. This afternoon we went back out to the shelf and fished until dark and caught only 1 king. Things are not looking good. At our marina the boats are coming back with 0 to 2 fish. Hopefully the lake will started to stabilize as the week goes on. So far we have in 3 trips and 3 fish.

Weather Person did it Again Today

Fished with Captain Daryl. Temperature this morning was in the middle 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 70s. The wind was out of the northeast 10 to 14 knots with waves 1 to 3 feet. The forecast was for winds out of the northwest 5 to 10 knots with waves less than a foot. That makes back to back trips with bad weather reports. The water temp is 73 degrees. We made the run to the other side of the Toledo Light House (41 43 125 / 083 16 600) and started trolling with wiggle warts set at 90 to 100 feet back. We started to catch some walleye at the 90 foot setting so we put all the poles to 90 feet. We caught the first 9 fish pretty fast and then the catching slowed down. We started to switch some of the poles back to the  100 feet setting and we caught the rest of our fish. Kept 12 walleye and had 1 walleye that was undersize that we put back. We caught nothing but walleye and most of them were pretty nice fish.

The Weather Person Got it Wrong Today

Fished with Norm. Temperature this morning was in the middle 60s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 70s. The wind was out of the north northeast 16 to 22 knots with waves over 3 feet. The weather report for today was light winds out of the northwest 5 to 10 knots with waves less than a foot. The water temp is 73 degrees. Our game plan was to walleye fish for about 2 hours and then perch fish for a couple of hours. When we arrived at the bait store this morning to buy some minnows the wind was blowing pretty good so we decided to go just walleye fishing. We made it out to the E Buoy and trolled with the waves running wiggle warts set at 75 feet back. We had a tough time setting lines with the wind and the waves so after one short pass we called it a day. One of the few trips on Lake Erie that we caught no fish.

Flat as a Pancake

Fished with Norm. Temperature this morning was in the lower 50s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 70s. There was no wind today so we had no waves and surprisingly there were no bugs. The water temp is 75 degrees. Started fishing north of the E Buoy trolling towards the Toledo Light House running wiggle warts 70 and 80 feet behind the boards. When we got to the E Buoy the weeds were very bad. Once we were past the E Buoy by about 1/4 mile there were not very many weeds so we cleaned the lures and kept on fishing. We found a small school of fish and we tried to stay on them but the boat traffic was getting bad. We would try and make some passes to our waypoint, but we could never get back to where we wanted to fish. The boat traffic started to clear out a little so we were able to get back on our spot and pick away at the walleye. Kept 12 walleye on a flat lake fishing on the dumping grounds.

Tough One Today

Fished with Captain Daryl and Joe. Temperature this morning was 51 degrees and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 60s, and yes, it is the end of July. We all wore long pants and coats. The wind was out of the southwest 17 to 24 knots with waves 2 to 3 feet. The water temp is 74 degrees. We decided to go fishing because the wind was off shore and the waves would not be too bad. We ran towards the Toledo Light House and made a pass to the E Buoy. We ran wiggle warts 75 and 85 feet behind the boards and 2 large dipsy's set on number 3 - 25 feet back with spoons. The dipsy's caught the first 2 walleye and that was all that they caught. On the first pass we caught 2 walleye and on the second pass we caught 5 walleye. We went and made a 3rd pass and the wind was picking up. It was hard to control the boat with the wind and waves and we only caught 1 walleye so we decided to call it a day. Kept 8 walleye and 1 nice perch. We caught most of the fish by the E Buoy.

Turned Out to be a Nice Day

Fished with Norm. Temperature this morning was in the middle 50s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 70s. The wind in the morning was out of the northwest 12 to 15 knots with waves around 2 feet and about 10:00 AM the wind laid down and so did the waves. The water temp is 78 degrees and the algae bloom is getting worse. Started fishing by the E Buoy trolling with the waves with wiggle warts set at 75 feet back and 80 feet back. The first fish we caught was a muskie 18 inches long. It jumped out of the water as soon as it was hooked and then it jumped about 3 more times. With the 2 foot waves we would troll with the waves through the dump, pull the lines and run back into the waves and make that same pass again. On the second pass we changed all the leads to 80 feet back. The plan worked good until the lake calmed down and all the boats came out, then we had to dodge all the boats. Kept 12 walleye and only caught a few junk fish. The weed problem is starting to get a little worse but it is still fishable. Just need to check the lines frequently.

Still Having Boat Problems!!!

Fished with Willie, Mike and Rick. 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 south 10 to 18 knots with waves 1 to 2 feet. The water temp is 78 degrees. I started the kicker motor and was doing other things to get ready for the trip and the kicker motor quit running. When I would prime the bulb the motor would run for a couple of minutes and then quit. Tried to work on it for a while with no luck so I figured we would use the main motor for trolling today. Well, the main motor would not start. I went a got a can of starting fluid and gave it a squirt and it started right up, so away we went. Started fishing in the dumping grounds trolling wiggle warts 75 feet back and we were on fish pretty fast. Around 9:00 AM a huge storm was on shore heading to the north. The wind picked up and we got a little rain and then it finally moved on. The walleye were in small schools so we would just ride around and pick away at them. Kept 15 walleye and we lost about 5 other walleye. When we got back to port I worked on the kicker motor and found a split gas line where it was connected to the fuel filter. Hopefully this will solve all my problems.

Fishing in Close Yet

Fished with Daryl. Temperature this morning was in the upper 70's and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 80's. The wind was light and variable with waves less than a foot. The water temp is 82 Degrees and an algae bloom is beginning. The last hour of the fishing trip it began to get pretty warm. Started fishing just this side of the E Buoy trolling wiggle warts 75 feet behind the boards. We stayed in this area for the whole trip. After a couple of passes we switched one side of the boat to mini disks with spoons set at 65 feet back. Both sides were catching walleye but we also caught a lot of junk fish. We stayed busy the whole trip. As we were pulling lines Daryl caught this 20 inch small mouth bass. Kept 12 walleye and only had 1 walleye that was under size that we put back.

Still Good Fishing

Fished with Daryl and Chris. Temperature this morning was in the lower 70s and when we quit fishing it was in the upper 70s. The wind was out of the southwest 13 to 18 knots with waves around 2 feet. The water temp is 73 degrees. Started fishing where we left off yesterday and we had the same results. Ran wiggle warts with any kind of orange on it back 75 feet. Only caught a few junk fish and we only lost a few walleye behind the boat. The water was a lot cleaner than yesterday and there were very few weeds. With the southwest winds predicted for the next couple of days the fish should stay here for a while. Kept 18 walleye and only had 1 throwback walleye.

Still Having Boat Problems

Fished with Joe. Temperature this morning was in the lower 70s and when we quit fishing it was in the lower 80s. The wind was out of the south less than 10 knots and the waves were less than a foot. The water temp is 72 degrees. We were trying to figure out where to fish, make the long run to the 04s or just stay out in front of the marina. As we pulled away from the dock the motor quit. Got it running again, adjusted the throttle screw and away we went. When we made it to the lake we decided to fish in close because of the motor problems. We only went about 3 miles and the motor acted up 4 times. Started fishing the south end of the dumping grounds trolling crawlers set at 50 feet back and wiggle warts set at 75 feet back. Picked up the first walleye off the night crawler and the next fish came off the wiggle wart. Made the change to all wiggle warts, bumped up the speed to 2.8 MPH and that seemed to help. We were fishing by ourselves at (41 47 800 / 083 20 100) which is right on the Michigan/Ohio border. We made about 3 passes trolling with the wind then we would pull lines and head back to our starting spot. Every time we would run back using the big motor it ran great. We got done fishing and ran back to port and it ran great, so I do not have a clue as to what is wrong with the motor. Maybe I will figure out something tomorrow. Kept 12 walleye, lost 7 behind the boat and had 2 under size walleye that we put back. Only caught a few junk fish. The best color wiggle warts were anything with orange.