Craig & Herm were back again for the second day and wondering what it would bring. It seems like every time we get together, something interesting occurs and this time would be no different! We hit the water before 8 under a heavy overcast sky that made day feel more like evening. With no wind present, the already 54 degree air temps were a welcomed treat. So much so that there were plenty of other boats thinking the same thing and out fishing as well! We rolled into our first area with high expectations and it didn’t take long before Herm was locked up. He managed to get a decent bass of 3 pounds or better on the third cast and started the day off with a bang. After boating another of equal size Craig finally got in the game as well. His fish looked to be over four pounds when it took to the air and suddenly, it got a whole lot heavier. He had thought that maybe the fish had buried itself into either rocks or weeds because he could barely move it. Right away I had a bad feeling and it was quickly confirmed as I slid the boat over towards his line. Yuup, there lies the problem! We were witnessing why these things are the apex predator as a huge muskie had the bass crossways and locked in its jaws. It was like a scene out of the movies without all the scary music! That poor bass didn’t see it coming and instantly became bait! This cat & mouse game went on for almost 10 minutes as we stayed right on top of the show. I followed the fight as Craig carefully tried to keep pressure on the two fish. If I could have gotten a shot at the lunge with the boga we may have had some incredible pictures. I guess she just got tired of being pulled around and finally let the bass go. What a mess the bass was too as it looked like someone had tried to scale the poor thing. Scars and scrapes all over and a couple of open wounds as well. I took a few quick pics and released it back to the water and amazingly it bolted to the bottom. I don’t know if this 4.5 pound smallie will survive, but you just never know. I have caught bass before that looked like they had escaped the grips of muskie and healed over, so maybe this one would too. We regrouped after this shit show and went back to the task at hand. Although a couple of smaller fish were taken from here afterwards, it had slowed considerably and we relocated. Too many fish too little time! The next place had hookups almost immediately as well but nothing of any size. We covered water with both Craig & Herm catching on different lures but we wanted bigger. With all the other boats around I knew I would have to try something different and headed out to deeper water. I had some small areas that should hold fish and if they did, they would be good ones. I finally located exactly what I wanted and Craig was locked almost immediately! It was definitely a quality bass and soon came to the net. Another boat nearby saw us and casually started to move towards where we had hooked it. I love these guys!! I immediately went into tournament mode and placed the boat in between, so as they couldn’t hone in. It was a difficult spot in heavy current and I was sure they would just drift by but heard the beeping sound of a waypoint being punched in as they did. These %$#&@ guys make me sick!! I guess he’ll be checking it out the next time they’re on the water now that he knows where we were. After all, it’s definitely easier to find fish when others have done the work for you!! We held here for a little longer so as not to have them swing around and Craig managed to get a couple of other big bass in the process. Eventually we shifted areas once again and went back to just covering water with search baits. They managed to catch several other fish with a few decent ones in the mix before I pulled the plug entirely and headed for boat free waters. I really wanted to be alone and was glad to see no others nearby when we arrived. Almost instantly Craig hooked up on what should have been the biggest fish of the day only to have it come unpinned on the jump. Although upset, he went right back at it and soon afterwards, was locked again. This would be the largest one of the day as I slid the net under a bloated pumpkin! Instead of taking a pic, I released it into the livewell and had them right back in the game. Craig managed to get one other decent bass from here, but that was all she wrote! We took a few pictures of his trophy, put her back from where she came and ran to another area for more action. In the last couple of hours of the day there were plenty more quality bass caught. On our final stop, Herm hooked into his best fish of the day before we called it quits. They had both tangled with more bass today than the previous one and some surprises to boot! I think the earlier attack will be a story that we will remember for quite some time. Although not the first encounter that I’ve seen like this before, it was surely the most entertaining. I only wish I had gotten some sort of underwater footage as it would have been something to watch over & over again. In a few weeks Craig will be back again and who knows what surprises lie ahead? Maybe this time we will have more stories to tell and possibly pics to show as well. We both can’t wait to see what’s in store!!

Craig & Herm were back again for the weekend and Herm was hoping to get into a good walleye bite this time around. We dropped the boat in shortly after 7:30 and headed straight to work at fulfilling his wish. With a light wind still out of the NE, we had a 1 foot chop and I was fine with that! The winds were expected to swing around to the SE sometime during the day and that would probably flatten the water out completely. With all the lines in, the waiting game began! We trolled over good hooks and bait and had a rip pretty quickly, but it just went silent and I knew it was gone. The first walleye to get hooked up was a good one and once in the net I knew it wouldn’t be legal. It measured over 22 inched and was released immediately. After resetting the line, we trolled for a while before the next reel fired and this time it went off hard. By the weight of the fish that Herm was battling, I knew it wasn’t what we were after. Locked up on another lunge and once more on light tackle! It may not have been what we were wanting, but it definitely made for an exciting moment. At one point, it took to the air right in the rising sun and the leap was just spectacular. We all thought it was a giant! After several minutes of battling her, she finally showed and I realized that she wasn’t as big as all of our eyes thought. Still a nice fish and well worthy of a few pics, should we be able to land her. I finally managed to clamp the boga on her jaw and removed the hooks before bringing her aboard. A few quick shots and a measurement and off she went no worse for wear. I reset the first rod and was about to drop the second one in when the reel went off again. Talk about a quick bite! Craig grabbed the rod from the holder and I threw the kicker into neutral as that was the only line out. It was acting a little strange and I knew it wasn’t an eye but rather another lunge once again. It wasn’t as big as Herm’s just minutes before but none the less, it was a lunge. This fight was over a little quicker and I was able to boga the fish in just a few minutes. After more pics, back she went and so did we. Lines all in and we were on our way to more activity on the screen as I marked a big fish down deep. I called the next rod and immediately the reel started to scream. At this point I really thought we had another muskie but as it turned out, it was just a big pike. Still toothy but not as angry! We were well on our way to another grand slam and only needed one more species in order to accomplish this. We kept at the troll for a while longer and had one other pike and a few short strikes to show for it before I pulled the plug. Time to switch gears and break out the casting rods! Off we went for smallies and Craig nailed a couple of good ones in the first area we stopped. Too bad that was all she wrote and we moved again. This time I thought that I would hit a walleye spot and try some casting for them instead of the not so effective troll earlier. It was apparently the right choice as we were able to put 5 nice eyes in the boat and released a few bonus bass as well. Herm would have the fish he wanted to take home and we still had plenty of time to get even more. With the lake practically flat calm now, we decided to try more areas for smallmouth. Although it wasn’t like I had expected, they did manage several nice ones and plenty of misses throughout the afternoon. With the sun getting a little lower I thought I would give the walleye troll another shot as the moon was rising. With the rise also came a better chop from the SE and this was enough to get them somewhat activated. I continued to mark fish and quickly, we had a reel go off. As Craig began to bring in the fish, I realized there was another one on the other deep line too. Wow, a double! We managed to get both fish in and they joined their buddies from earlier in the day. Too bad this was the only two bites we were to have though and eventually I called it quits. It was definitely a mix of a day today. Herm even landed a sturgeon that had eaten a slowly dragged tube to go with the other species. I think we counted 6 different types with the fat perch added as well. We may not have had the walleye day that I had hoped for but there were plenty of fish of all different styles to keep it interesting. I think tomorrow I will see if we can get a little more action and hopefully some real big bass in the process. After all, this is the time of year for pumpkins!!

This was Brian’s lat day with me and he was hoping for some walleye to take back home. We decided that they would be the priority today and went directly to work, trying to fill his limit. It wouldn’t be an easy task as the winds were blowing once again from the east and this time they had a little north in them as well. In fact at 10 to 15 knots from that direction, we were in 3 footers! The water temps had fallen to 52 degrees, along with the air temps and we could feel the chill running to the area to fish. I set the first line in and it fired before I could even get the second one in the water. Wow, now that’s a quick bite! This would be an easy day, or so I thought! Brian reeled in a very nice starter fish that was just shy of 20 inches and on his way to a quick limit of eyes. After releasing it into the livewell, I reset the lines and went back to work. We trolled through the area uncomfortably with the waves occasionally rolling over the bow. They were big and I had to be careful to watch for the rogue ones, not to fill the boat. I did manage to find a few more biters but some of them were short striking and coming off before we could even reach the rods. Fortunately though, there were a couple of others that weren’t so lucky and we now had 3 in the livewell for Brian to take home. I was marking all kinds of fish up high and plenty of bait and knew it was just a matter of time before we would score a big one. The next fish to strike was that one and now Brian was into a real beauty. We weren’t sure exactly what it was as the waves were surging and more pressure was added to the already heavy weight at the end of the line. When we finally caught a glimpse, I saw the white tip and knew it was the right species. This one turned out to be just shy of 26 inches and weighed in at 6 pounds on the nose. She was fat and definitely well worth a few photos before the release. We went back to the troll and managed only one more for the livewell, along with a pretty skinny northern. I was still marking plenty of fish but for some reason, they weren’t really active anymore. It almost felt like they were digesting after a big meal and had no interest in any of our offerings. After plenty of painful attempts at getting another fish or two, we pulled the plug here and decided to try for bass instead. With the winds having calmed down considerably, I figured we could at least get a bunch of smallies before resuming our quest for the walleye. Off we went for a long run and once we arrived, I realized that the water color wasn’t what it should be. This area had obviously taken a pounding from yesterdays gale force winds from the east and today’s blow as well. It was almost gray in appearance and I wasn’t sure what the outcome would be when Brian made his first cast. He had a couple of follows and a few fish on, but they all came off before they could reach the net. I relocated once again to another area nearby with similar results. The next place was a little better as it produced a few nice fish up to 4.5 pounds, but not the numbers I had expected. We switched gears, covered more water and managed several other smallies that were quality ones before leaving all together. I searched deep water with the electronics trying to find where the schools might have gone but was never able to find the mother load. I think they were still there, but not eating! Water clarity was below par and a few fish were taken exactly where they should have been, signaling their presence. It was time to relocate and maybe even change species once more! A failed attempt at this for a while had us resuming our quest for the walters afterwards. Back to the troll and hopefully a few more bites! This wasn’t to be however as we marked loads of fish almost everywhere we went along with plenty of baitfish as well. I switched areas a few times and had the same results in all. With the full moon approaching, it may have had a hand in the inactivity as the early morning bite was the best. I have had similar results before during this period and wasn’t surprised at the results today. One of these times I will have to get out and fish the dark part of the day just to see what happens. Although we may not have had another banner day on the water, it was still a pretty good one. It started off with a bang and Brian had fish going home with him. He had endured 4 days of fishing without any two being the same. Weather patterns were so inconsistent, each and every day! Fortunately, we made the best of it and managed to boat plenty of quality fish, giving him many photos and memories to take back home to Alaska. Hopefully he’ll be back next year for more of this incredible smallmouth action. Worst case scenario, I may have to pay him a visit and fish for trout & salmon in the “Great White North”!!

Brian & I headed back out this morning for another round of bass beating. We hit the water around 8:30 in a serious east wind and some of the biggest waves this fall. With a relatively long run ahead of us to our first location, it wasn’t pretty! I’m sure there were three & four footers in some areas, but we made it. After yesterday’s success, Brian was ready for whatever “Mother Nature” threw our way. We had gone from mirror calm to hurricane like overnight but it wouldn’t stop us from another successful day. Boat control would be the issue today in the current against wind conflict, but I was use to that and well prepared. Brian wasted no time getting into the first big fish as he brought a high four to the net in the first 5 minutes. We slowly fished this area hoping for more and he was rewarded once again with another of about the same size. His next fish would be one we would both remember as the fight was just unbelievable. Once hooked, this smallie decided that deep water was the place to be and smoked the line from the reel. I’ve never seen one take so much line and head so deep as the abyss was where she went. We actually thought that he might have foul hooked this fish! After a lengthy battle and plenty of boat positioning, I finally slid the net under the beast. This was as fat as she was long and was definitely the largest smallie he had ever caught, so far! We placed her in the livewell along with the others for some later pics and resumed fishing. It would definitely be a tough act to follow but he was in for the challenge. In the next hour or so there were a few shots at some other big bass but unfortunately only one more made it to the net. I decided that a move was in order when these fish shut off & relocated right after releasing the bass. I didn’t want to be travelling all day with them in the well and preferred returning them back to the same area after the pics. With many islands all around, I tried to find some sheltered sections to get to our next spot. I wanted to make it as painless as possible and succeeded in finding the right routes. This next place would have Brian hooking fish on almost every cast for quite a while. They were all sizes and he was into them good! When the bite slowed, I adjusted his presentation and he was back into them once again. We moved around hitting small areas with concentrations and kept pounding on more & more fish throughout the afternoon. A variety of baits were used to entice some of the fattest fish of the fall today. I wanted to fish a few more spots before we called it quits and each & every one held active bass. Brian managed to up his numbers as well as his personal bests a few more times before we ended. One of the last fish of the day was to be the biggest of the day as well and we were both glad to have stopped in a few more places. To say he ended on a high would have been an understatement, he was in awe! As we headed back to the ramp, all he could talk about was the fish that tried to spool him and the beast at the end. I wonder what tomorrow will have in store for us? I just hope he gets some more great weather so that we can end on another high. Maybe we’ll be able to get him another “Grand Slam” filled only with big fish catches!!

Brian & I decided to try another body of water today in hopes of a variety of fish. He really wanted to get some walleye and I knew just the place! I think we were on the lake and had the lines in the water just around 8:00, trolling for the eyes. There was barely a ripple on the water and the temps were right around 56 degrees. Sunshine and a little cloud surrounded us with air temps hovering at 53 degrees and expected to climb into the mid 60’s. The first rip happened in less than 5 minutes but unfortunately didn’t stay pinned. Shortly after, another reel fired and he was locked up. I was marking all kinds of fish in this area and knew it was just a matter of time before we were into them. After a good little battle on light tackle, I slid the net under his first walleye. It fell right into the slot at just over 19 inches and was going to be dinner tonight. I reset the line and trolled around the same area when another reel fired. This time however it turned out to be a northern of about 8 pounds and released immediately. A couple more drive byes & the other reel fires. This one was acting like a big fish and I really thought he had a good photo Walter. To both our surprise, it ended up being a lunge and really took him for a ride. After a lengthy battle on the light line, I got a boga locked on it and brought him into the boat. Several pics later, it was released and bolted to the depths. Wow, a slam in less than an hour! I was sure he wouldn’t have a hard time getting a “Grand Slam” as we were going to spend most of the day fishing for smallies. When the next reel went off, another walleye locked up and was also in the slot, so it joined its buddy in the live well too. Right after resetting the line, we had a strong fish attached and I thought it might be another lunge. When he finally got it close, I realized he had another species and an official Grand Slam. This was a smallie and had us both fooled as it never even jumped once. I continued trolling the area and he picked up one other walleye and missed a few rips before pulling the plug entirely. The water had gone completely flat and the bite had died when the sun rose high in the sky. Off to another place where we tried for walleye for a bit, with only a few smallies to show for our efforts. I decided it was finally time to go to the cream cheese and ran to an area that I knew was loaded with bass. It didn’t take him long to lock up and it was a real beauty. When it went to the air we had visions of a five, but once in the net, it ended up in the mid fours. He continued casting the area after a few pics and was immediately into another bruiser. This went on for almost an hour as he picked at them regularly. When the action slowed, I relocated and he was into them once again. I think he had 5 or 6 straight casts with quality bass ranging from 3.5 to 4.5 pounds. It was a feeding frenzy and we were right on them. It seemed like he could do no wrong! I don’t know exactly how many he nailed but it was plenty. As with the previous area it eventually died and we moved on. The same thing happened on the next spot and several more fish were brought to net once more. For the remainder of the day, we just kept moving and he just kept catching. Somewhere after 4:30 we decided to call it a day. I had a few fish to clean and we had reservations for 6:00. He would be trying walleye for dinner and bringing the rest home to the great white north. Being from Alaska, he has plenty of salmon & trout, but the walleye scene is pretty scarce. I’m sure we’ll get into them again in the next couple of days and fill him out a good limit to take back. The worst that could happen is he has to catch many more bass instead. I’m sure he can handle that too!!