Worse Conditions Ever
October 29, 2018
October 27th 2018
Ed & Dan booked today for sturgeon, a couple of months back, but it wasn’t looking good. The winds were out of the NE, supposedly and they were giant! To make matters even worse, they were wrong again! These winds were straight east and three to four footers were on the lake. It was just ugly out there! Add to that a below freezing temperature and most would have bailed. We on the other hand, were heading out regardless. We might not be able to anchor up for the beasts but we were going fishing!
The run across the lake was just insane with the wind and I had to really pay attention to the waves. Fortunately the Ranger made it without spearing any of the rollers, but sturgeon was definitely out. There was no way we were going to be able to hold in these conditions. Plan B was our only choice! We were going to try trolling for bass & walleye!
Dan didn’t take long to hook up and we soon had the first keeper eye in the livewell. Hopefully there would be more! Ed was next to hook up but his was over the slot and only worth a quick pic. They were even having a hard time standing, while trolling in the roller coaster like waves! I had picked an area that should have been protected in a NE, but we weren’t. Straight east it was! Dumbass weathermen!
We had fished one particular area for a while now and they had caught several fish, including another keeper eye. I decided to try a little shallower and instantly they were doubled. Two big smallies were what they were into and it looked like the fish were surfing when they fought them to the boat. A few shots later we were making the same pass and instantly Dan was locked up again! This one small area had a good number of fish by the looks of it and I planned on catching every one we could! For the next half dozen or so passes, someone was always hooked up. When it slowed down, I went back to the first spot and we battled more hell like conditions again.
Sometime around mid day they started getting into more fish, or at least Ed did! It took me three or four fish to realize that he had the color of lure the fish wanted more. Dan had watched his uncle land a bunch of walleye & bass without even getting a strike. As soon as Ed switched rods with Dan, he was tight to a fish of his own. I immediately changed the non catching lure to the same one that was producing. From this point on, they were both into fish. Although not fast and furious, we had to work hard for each and every bite. By trolling a break line carefully, I took advantage of the, sort of active fish in the area. As much as I would have liked to stop and have them drop shot, it wasn’t in the cards. There was no way we would have been able to hold our position, even with the electric motor in anchor mode. Trolling was all we could do!
I jumped back & forth from one shallow area to the deeper water close by and grinded out a few bites here & there. We were all surprised that we had lasted as long as we had with the afternoon winds predicted to get worse. We were still fishing and that was a good thing! In fact, the next fish made it even more worthwhile when Ed stuck what we thought was a good walleye. As it turned out, it was a good lunge instead! After a lengthy battle, I slid the beast into the musky net that I had brought for sturgeon. It was really nice to have a big net for this fish. It definitely made it a whole lot easier to land!
After the pics and release, we resumed fishing for about another hour or so managing a few more fish. They had a limit of walleye in the livewell now and had released a whole lot of smallies too. Considering the conditions, they had fended quite well, but now the winds were intensifying and it was time to go! I packed everything up and readied for the long ride back to the ramp. Luckily I had left a set of keys with Don this morning when he dropped us in and texted him that we were on our way. He immediately texted back and I knew he would be waiting.
In the time we had stopped fishing and began heading back, the winds had increased and switched more to E/SE. There was almost no easy path to take but I headed closer to the shore across the open ocean, hoping for smaller rollers. It was insane out in the middle of the lake and I was happy to be near the mainland! Once I got going into the wind, I was able to run on top of the waves better and in no time we were back at ramp. I could see the waves crashing on the shore and was glad Don had the trailer ready and waiting. The only water we took in the boat was when we were pulling out and the waves rolled over the back deck, swamping us with gallons of the lakes finest. I was just happy to be on land by this point and didn’t really care! We had endured probably the worst conditions I have ever fished in and succeeded! Hats off to people crazier than me as I had offered them to cancel before we ever hit the water. In the end though, I was glad that they hadn’t and really happy with the outcome. Almost as glad as having the Valet service from Don! He definitely made it a whole lot easier!!
