William and his father Daniel were with me today, for one to remember! Last fall Daniel had purchased a gift certificate from me for his son’s birthday and today was the day. He even tagged along, not aware of what was in store for them. William had always wanted to land a big sturgeon and I was going to try to make it happen. We headed out from the ramp shortly after 7:00 in the coldest morning in a while. It felt more like November than late September! The NW winds that blew in three days before had brought an incredible cold front with morning temps in the single digits. It also dropped the water temps significantly causing the fish to readjust to the shock. I wasn’t sure what the sturgeon bite was going to be like but had to try. We set everything up and had to hold the rods again with the big NW winds blowing 10 to 15 knots. I informed them what to feel for and despite all our early efforts, it took a while to get bit. I had relocated 3 or 4 times and only had one walleye to show for our time. A couple of possible biters may or may not have taken our baits but who knows? I did finally feel a take and loaded the rod for William to fight. Our wait was not in vain! We cleared everything for him to fight the fish and just watched. I could see by the way the line was rising that we were going to get a jump and  gave them  heads up to watch. When it breached, it was giant! I don’t think William had ever thought in his wildest dreams that he would be battling something this large today. For the next 20 minutes he endured plenty of pain while trying to tame this beast. Although it didn’t really make any long runs, it’s overall mass & weight just dogged all over. Each time he reeled the fish up, it went right back down and he had to start all over again. When he finally did bring it up for me to net, it looked even bigger than before. William had officially landed his first ever sturgeon and it was a gorilla! I prepped everything for the pics and heaved it into the boat, with a little help, placing it on the tarp for protection. Now it really looked giant! I showed him how to hold the fish and shot multiple pics before he released her back to fight again. What an absolutely great starter fish to have landed! They were still in awe at what had just happened but I got the lines back in as quickly as possible to try and lock his father up too. Within 5 minutes, I was able to set into another monster and Daniel was locked up. This battle was a little different as his fish took plenty of line. It may have lasted 5 minutes less, but it wasn’t any easier! I finally netted her and we went through all the same instructions on what to do for the pics. It was so big that he had to bear hug the thing just to get a grip on it. Multiple angled shots were quickly taken and the fish was released again. Now they had both landed an absolute giant of a sturgeon, but I wanted more! I reset all the lines and it didn’t take long to get a third bite. Unfortunately after a couple of minutes of fighting the fish, it came unpinned from William’s line. Oh well, let’s get another! Once again, it didn’t take long for another bite and this time I locked up on her good! William was into his second big sturgeon and I could see the line rising behind the motors. I informed both of them to look back and we all saw the spectacular leap from the fish. He fought it with ease, after battling his previous monster and had it to the net in under 10 minutes. There was no need to get the lines back in as I wanted to get them some walleye for a BBQ dinner tonight. Cedar plank fish was on their menu and I was determined to fulfill the request. We spent the remainder of the afternoon hammering walleye & smallies on a variety of soft plastics. They would be keeping 3 walleye and all the others were released. By the time we were done, they were both amazed at how many fish they had landed not to mention their size. It was definitely the best day they had ever experienced fishing and it won’t be the last time we meet. Talk of coming back soon is already brewing in their minds! We parted shortly after 4:00 as they had fish to clean and dinner to prepare. For once it wasn’t me! This day couldn’t have gone better if we had planned it. For once it seemed like all the stars aligned and the fish gods were kind. Happy belated birthday William!!

Another road trip today had me meeting up with Don & Andy by 8:30 for some smallmouth action. We hit the water and were fishing shortly after 9:00. The lake was flat but the weather was forecasting huge winds near mid day and I wanted to get started fast. It seemed like for some reason or another with these guys that each day was a challenge and I was always pressed for time. The weather was definitely tough to say the least! They began throwing blades and Andy hit several decent smallies before Don finally connected with one of his own. They were officially both on the board! Although the air was quite chilly, the lack of a breeze made the temps quite comfortable and it wasn’t long before layers were being shed by everyone. With the conditions like this, I thought I’d see if a top water bite might be happening. Well it didn’t take long as my first cast got the attention of an aggressive smallmouth. I quickly changed Don over to the surface and he also got hit on the very first cast. He was now in his glory with the fish attacking his pop r. Andy was also catching fish on the blades and at one point while untangling the line from his rod, the lure got hit while lying on the bottom with 4 feet of line out. He caught that one too! Don was just happy to be fishing for bass his favourite way and having blow ups about every other cast. Seeing this gave me an idea and I changed Andy to another soft plastic that he could fish somewhat slower. Almost immediately he was into fish again and now they were both taking advantage of everything swimming in the area. It didn’t even matter how big the fish were as the action was just on fire for the time being. I covered plenty of water having them focus on all the hard bottom areas and monopolized on all the feeders. Once things slowed down, we relocated to another section of the lake in hopes of repeating this again. Unfortunately with the winds now blowing from the NW the air temps dropped, clothes were re layered and the fish stopped biting. I hit offshore areas in deeper water without even a touch when the shallows went dead and began the scramble to find fish. With all the action before, everyone had skipped lunch and now we decided to eat after 1:30. The winds were officially blowing 15 to 20 knots out of the NW and creating quite a roll on the water. I thought I’d try some other areas using the land as a blocker from the worst winds, but with the low water I soon found that I couldn’t get close enough to take advantage. We were still being blown around but they managed to catch a few more smaller bass in the process. It picked up pretty big and I decided to head further off shore and re rig for fishing in the deeper weeds. This too proved useless as they could barely feel their baits let alone anything that might eat them! We tried one last attempt at fishing the same areas that had produced for us earlier in the morning and soon found that it was next to impossible in this wind. Shortly after 3:00, it was a unanimous decision to pull the plug and head in. No sense fighting “Mother Nature” and her fury! Because we had launched on the SE side of the lake due to it being the only boat ramp with any water, we were going to have a tough time getting out. I let them off the boat in a protected area and put the boat on the trailer in 3 to 4 footers, crashing on the ramp. I also had a few rogue waves just roll over the back while loading. I was just glad to get off the water! They had seen all  types of terrible conditions in the three days they were here and managed to catch fish throughout it all. The temperatures had dropped significantly from when they had arrived as the first major cold front greeted them. Fall had rolled in like a lion and tried to take us out! Fortunately with a little adjustment and relocation we were able to make the best of a bad situation and actually catch some fish in the process. Once this weather stabilizes and the fish settle in, the fishing will become even better. I know Don & Andy will be back next year, but I will be out again tomorrow hoping for a little less wind from the north. With any luck, even catching fish too!!

Don and Andy were with me again today but this time we fished locally. By the time they figured out how to get here, it was 11:30 and once again I was under the gun to produce. I really wanted to get them into some sturgeon and started out giving it a try. The winds were pretty big and out of the NE, blowing 15 to 20 knots with stronger gusts at times. We managed to get the anchor to hold and I realized quickly that the rod holders would be useless. The boat was surging with the wind against the current, making it impossible to detect bites. We immediately went to holding them and it didn’t take long before I had the first one locked up. Andy received the rod and landed a smaller than usual sturgeon but was happy to have caught his very first one. Although the fight was good, I told him it was nothing compared to what he would have if he hooked into a big one. We got the lines back in and waited a little while before I detected another bite and immediately was tight to a larger fish. I passed the rod to Don and he had about a one minute battle before the hooks just pulled out and the fish was gone. Too bad too as it felt heavy! We regrouped and got the lines in once again and about 10 minutes later after contemplating a move, I reared back on another one. I gave the rod to Don again, in hopes of him landing his first sturgeon. This time it stayed pinned and he had a battle! Lots of line peeled from the reel and about one minute in, the fish showed itself with a great leap that we all got to see. Although the fight lasted about ten minutes, Don was able to bring it to net only a little exhausted. I was glad, because the hard part was next! We got everything prepped and I helped him lift it for the pics. Several good ones were taken and a quick release right back afterwards. One down, one to go! I really wanted both of them to fight a big one and reset the lines in hopes of getting Andy a larger one to play with too. Despite all our efforts to hook up, we waited a long time and were pulling out before 3:00 to fish the remainder of the day for walleye & bass. Right when I was about to tell them to reel in, I once again felt a bite and loaded the rod up on another big fish. Andy was about to get his chance at fighting something large! Talk about a “Hail Mary”! He couldn’t believe how strong this one was and once it took to the air, realized why. It was definitely a good one and larger than the previous one Don had landed. He fought it great with a little coaching and had to do the sturgeon shuffle a few times when the fish changed direction below the boat. In under ten minutes he had the beast alongside and I was able to finally net her. It wasn’t as long as Don’s but it was definitely fatter. We set everything up and shot several pics before setting her free. I still don’t know why anyone would want to kill one of these creatures! Mission accomplished! Now we were off to see what we could do about catching Andy his very first walleye. Although the winds were terrible and from the NE, I was sure I would be able to get them into some good fish. Once I located what I needed, they began casting lures to try and entice some of the fish I was marking. Don had no trouble getting the hang of it and boated several before Andy started hooking up too. It may have taken him a little longer but once he caught a couple, he knew what to feel for and was boating plenty on his own. I had stayed out a little longer than usual due to their late arrival and ended the day with a few more fish just before 6:00. I think this day was a successful one with both of them getting sturgeon and finishing with many walleye at the end. Tomorrow is their last day here and I will be heading back in the morning to hook up with them. This time I have the road trip but at least I know where I’m going and should be arriving by 8:30 to hopefully have another great day of fishing. I’m sure that if the winds allow, they will be catching plenty of small & largemouth bass to complete their three day trip. Who knows, maybe even a large northern or two!!

A long road trip and a short afternoon of fishing with Don & Andy saw some fast action today. Don caught the largest bass on his second cast signaling that the fish were active. Flat calm waters and high heat & humidity greeted us and the bass were on fire. They both managed to get into some really nice smallies by just covering water with search baits. Oh yeah, some northerns too! We had only gotten started at 3:30 and were under the gun for time as a huge pressure system was about to move in. I wasn’t sure what it was going to do to the fish, but I knew it wouldn’t be good! After several more bass, it finally arrived around 5:30, with high winds. Along with the winds, the air temps started to plummet and we had to start adding layers just to keep warm. In 30 minutes it went from 80 degrees, to 65 degrees! Although the lake was still flat calm, it didn’t take long for the waves to build and by 6:30 we were heading back to take out. The fishing had died completely and I would have had to make major adjustments in order to compensate for the change. It was almost like a light switch had been turned off! We ran back in two & three footers and called it quits. Although only a short time was spent on the water, it was well worth it with the fish that were caught. I wish we could have gotten on a few hours earlier as I know they would have just crushed them before the cold front arrived. We may need to reconsider our options for tomorrow and relocate if the winds and weather remain the same. Only time will tell. Either way, they will have a full day of fishing, with hopefully even better results!!

Phil & his son Ari were my guests today. Our schedules had clashed several times in the last month or so, postponing our fishing until now. We met up at 7:30 and ventured out in waves already in the two foot range. Although they were from the SW, it wouldn’t allow me any shot at anchoring and they were going to intensify during the day. We would be fishing for walleye & bass instead and hopefully catching plenty. I started them off with a drop shot as we drifted over some deep water looking for the eyes. Last year it took Ari a while to get the hang of it and he just watched Phil pound on them, hand over fist. Not this time however as he boated the three first fish! He managed one bass and two walleye before his dad even hooked his first. The fish really weren’t active and they both had to work hard to get their bites. I decided to try something else and landed two fish in just a couple of minutes, changing Phil to the same presentation. He required a little coaching on how to work it properly but got the hang of it  quickly. First fish for him was a smallie and with the waves, it fought great! A little while later he boated a couple more eyes and another smallie while Ari also managed fish of his own. I livewelled a few of the walleye as Ari would be taking some of them home with him tonight. We made several drifts over lots of areas, each time managing to hook fish, but the action was very slow. The moon was high in the sky and only falling after noon causing mostly negative moods from the fish. I know there were more missed strikes than hooked fish but we worked through the non eating period regardless. Once the moon was under foot, everything changed. The winds intensified and the waves became 3 footers on average. This had us drifting faster than before and an adjustment was needed once again in order to feel the bites. Although it was tough they still managed to catch fish, but light bites were now even harder to detect. I had to concentrate on the sonar more in order to give them a heads up when we were coming over fish. The winds were blowing so hard now that slack was present more than not, We needed all the help we could get! Each time I went back to drift again, I used the main engine in order to get enough bow lift, not to swamp the boat. It didn’t matter though as they were catching fish! The last hour or so of the day saw schooling fish finally active in the wind and if attention to detail was paid, they hooked up. They even had a couple of double headers! As soon as I marked fish, someone got bit and rods were bent. It was too bad the fish only turned on towards the end of the day and we had to work through such a long, slow period because many more fish would have been caught. We pulled the plug before four and rock & rolled our way to the ramp! I guess we hadn’t really noticed how bad it actually was while fishing. The waves were more like four footers and definitely big on our way back. Really glad to be in the Ranger! We stayed dry the entire way despite going with the waves. Phil & Ari had seen many adjustments today and by refining some of the techniques, they monopolized on more fish. Not every day goes the way we’d like, but by paying attention to details, they can all be successful. Phil & Ari had to work harder in order to get the results they got, but they definitely caught plenty of fish. Mother Nature may have thrown us a curve, but we hit it out of the park regardless!!