Birthday Shore Lunch
August 11, 2018
August 10th 2018
I had another full boat again today with Jeffrey and his family. Two of them were visiting all the way from China and were hoping to get a chance to fish. They would not be disappointed!
A quick run on the water had me setting up in another area that I hoped would be holding some pike and walleye. I covered the water looking for what I wanted and once I found it, the reels began to fire. These fish are really locked in on specific areas due to this and I am having no trouble getting both, once I find it. Sorry, can’t say what!
The first few fish were all pike but I knew we would get into the eyes as well and kept at the troll. Everyone was reeling in their fair share of these fish but it was Mack, the youngest, that was having the most fun. Every time a reel screamed, he was always there waiting for the rod! It paid off too as he managed to land most of the walleye. A couple of them were the giants I was searching for and made for some great pics!
We had been at the troll for most of the morning and closing in on lunch when Jeffrey requested we break. I had the perfect place for them as they wanted to go ashore and sit down to eat. It was his birthday and they had brought a bunch of stuff to celebrate, including a cake. I headed to a nearby island and let them off, giving them a nice relaxing lunch. There was a picnic table and plenty of shade that they would be able to enjoy and best of all, no bugs!
We resumed our fishing by 1:00 and decided to try something different for the afternoon. I would be taking them drop shotting as the wind had picked up enough to get a good drift. There would be 4 people fishing and this would allow me to cover the water effectively without anyone getting hurt.
I made multiple drifts over various hard bottom flats with very little to show for our efforts. Oh they had plenty of bites, but they just couldn’t hook up! These fish were acting a little strange, but eventually one of them locked up on smallie. This gave them the confidence that they needed and several more fish were hooked soon after. Unfortunately they almost all came off but at least they had them on, if only briefly!
I made one last move to another area in hoped of putting more fish in the boat before we had to leave. On the first drift they had a few fish and some of them even came to the net. Too bad the largest walleye was lost before I could get a shot at her! Three of them had tangled lines and it just came unpinned while trying to reel it in. A couple more bass and several small walleye were landed before I eventually called it a day. We were nearing 4:00 and it was time to go. Fortunately we weren’t too far from the dock and I didn’t have a long run. It had gotten quite a bit windier while we were fishing and so did the waves!
This day was definitely another good one filled with lots of quality fish. Not only had they landed plenty of pike & walleye but they even had a few keepers for their dinner tonight. I think the highlight of the day was the shore lunch though. It was the first time I had done this but something tells me that it won’t be the last. Who says you can’t have your cake and eat it too? We definitely did!!