Weis & Hadia were with me today on one of the biggest howls of this season. Winds were so bad at the start that I gave them the option to cancel. Three to four footers from the west were what we launched in and I realized quickly that I would have to run them differently. By taking a sailors approach, I was able to keep the boat safe & dry. Tacking was the only way to get to where we wanted to go and I took the time to get there! Once we arrived, I got to work explaining the technique required for how they would be fishing. Drop shotting was on the list and a beginners approach was what they needed. Hadia hadn’t fished much before so a little more detail was needed for her. Weis had been with me before, so he didn’t need much before they got started. I wasn’t surprised to see that she was the first to boat a bass and we were on the board. In the next few hours, both of them managed to land several good fish up to 4 pounds. Although the winds were terrible for the run, they were quite acceptable where we were fishing. Drifts were rough but completely doable! Eventually we moved to another area and switched it up completely to shallower casting. It was here that they got into some great action on soft plastics and Weis managed to land his first sturgeon also. With winds beginning to lay down some, we decided to try the deep bite again and weren’t disappointed. They quickly went right back where they had left off and more bass were coming aboard. Even a couple of small walleye were taken before we called it a day. The ride back was so much better than the start as the winds had diminished considerably. Overall it was a great day with high numbers of fish landed. Hadia had caught plenty of fish to catch the bug and Weis was glad she enjoyed the day. Something tells me that this won’t be the last time I see her!!

Pat, Jake & Sam accompanied me today on this beautiful summertime outing. Although the air was cool in the morning for the run, it soon warmed up and eventually reached into the 80’s by afternoon. We immediately went to a deep water drop shot bite and weren’t disappointed when rods were bent. I don’t remember who locked up first but soon everyone was catching their share of feisty smallies. With water temps around 73 degrees, the fish were positioned where they were suppose to be and we took advantage of the bite. Several drifts were made at various depths and bass were caught in all. This was a great day for the three as bass up to 4 pounds were taken. Who could ask for anything more!!

Darren was looking for a few big bass today and I knew just the place. We took a road trip to another lake in hopes of some action in deep water. I had the ministry out just a week ago and knew we would get into a similar bite from the abyss! The conditions were almost perfect with a light SW wind of around 5 knots and sunshine scheduled for the day. Boat traffic should be light, I thought, with this being a Monday. Unfortunately we both forgot that a holiday for most of the country was taking place and it felt like the weekend traffic was back! We started in an area with some sign of life and it didn’t take long before Darren was locked up. Although not the size we expected, 3.5 pounds was still nice to see! Immediately after the release, he was tight lined again and another fish slightly smaller was brought to the net. I needed to gain boat control and also had a line down just to judge the drift but wasn’t fending as well. I was zero for two so far before I finally locked up on a beauty. Somewhere along the way up, this one too came unpinned and the zero was back. I did however redeem myself on the next drop with a healthy 4 ponder and the skunk was off of my back! We made several attempts at finding the biggest fish in the area and managed to get into a bunch of fish along the way. The numbers were there but not the caliber that I was hoping for and then it happened. A double header and both bruisers! I got the first one to the net but when Darren’s fish decided to take to the air, it got off. Wow, that could have been ten pounds of smallies instantly! Fortunately he also redeemed himself almost immediately with one pushing 5 on the next drop and all was forgotten. We both missed our share of quality bass and landed a few, but the better ones were hard to keep on this morning. We decided to try another area considerably shallower with a different presentation. For the next couple of hours, we attempted to catch fish from different places on a variety of lures and soft plastics. The results were much smaller bass and not any numbers either. Knowing that our best chances were in the depths, we pulled the plug here and relocated to slightly similar spots as the morning. Apparently it was the right decision as immediate hookups were had. Fish of all sizes were being taken now and after catching a bunch of medium sized smallies, a big one or two was taken. This lasted until the end of the day with a lot of water being covered. Every time we had a rise from the bottom, some action was had. Although we didn’t see high numbers today, we were definitely into quality bass from the places we fished. Despite all the traffic on the lake, the day ended with satisfaction all around. By concentrating deep we were able to get the big bites while fishing over the non pressured bass. A quality day all around!!

Chris & Betty were back with me again today for their second round of bass fishing. They had fished with me about 10 days earlier and left wanting more! Would this day be as good as their last? I picked them up at the hotel at 7:00 and proceeded to the ramp for more “lip ripping”! With another beautiful day in the forecast, I was sure we’d get em! Water temps were around 74 degrees and the air was to reach into the 80’s with mostly sunshine. A light wind from the SW went 10 to 20 by afternoon causing a slight change in technique. The morning bite was slow but they caught regardless on a variety of baits. Soft plastics, cranks and spinners did the trick, but I wasn’t satisfied. We soon switched gears and went much deeper. A quick demonstration on how to drop shot and they were in the game. Numbers of fish were getting caught but mostly of average size. I repositioned the boat in a different zone and they began getting into some of the larger ones. Although there wasn’t anything over 5 pounds, there were several high fours brought to net. As the afternoon got later, we saw more & more cruisers coming out for the weekend. They were setting up positions in all the usual areas and not caring about who was in their path, getting there. Quite a few of their rollers bounced us around and some splashing actually came over the back. Weekend warriors on a Friday, lucky us! Regardless of this, they still kept catching and that was all that mattered. With each drift, rods were bent and fish were landed. By 4:00, after landing a few more decent fish, we called it a day. The action may not have been like their first trip, but the numbers were there. We just had to change techniques in order to get the fish to bite today. With summertime comes relocation and this was definitely a perfect example of how they move. Solid action was had all day with just a slight adjustment in both location and presentation. Enough to keep anyone happy, as Chris & Betty both left satisfied. I hope some of the techniques used here will allow them to increase their catches when they get back home. Overall a very successful day, again!!

After a couple of postponements this season, Hughes was finally out with me today. He brought his son Olivier and his girlfriend Stephanie as well, for some smallmouth bass fishing. Winds were light for the start and air temps were hot & humid. We began on a flat, throwing a mix of baits and hooked up almost immediately. Hughes tossed a spinnerbait for aggressive biters and was rewarded with several violent hits. Both Olivier & Stephanie tossed soft plastics and unfortunately missed several fish before finally connecting with a few of their own. Stephanie wasn’t too familiar with fishing but after a little coaching she was able to hook into some decent fish too. We fished a series of places, both shallow and deep but managed to get more bites shallow. Boat traffic was usual for the weekend with people running all over, without any idea of what was below. We even saw a big “Scarab” run through water as shallow as 3 feet & covered with a hard rock bottom. Still don’t know how he didn’t hit! To make matters worse, he ran back through the same area about 20 minutes later and never touched a rock again. I think he should buy a lotto ticket! Later on in the day, the skies darkened and the winds picked up considerably causing us to make a dash for the boat ramp. After checking the radar I realized that we were going to get hit before 2:00 and we unanimously called the day. Although it could have been longer, they still managed to get into plenty of bass up to almost 4 pounds. Overall a good day regardless of what “Mother Nature” had to say!!