Great Walleye Bite
July 24, 2020
Dave & his son Mathieu were with me this afternoon for a very interesting trip. We began in deep water where I had found a school of walleye the day before, just hoping to get a limit. Mission accomplished!
We saw overcast skies and a light east wind and I had no trouble holding on the tiny spot. With the aid of the anchor mode on the electric, I was able to park right on top of the fish after marking them. Dropping down to the walleye in the current required a heavy weight and patience, but getting bit wasn’t an issue. In the first 15 minutes there were almost as many walleye caught. Unfortunately only one of them was in the slot though and I knew that they would have to filter through a few more in order to have their 6.
A few smallies were hooked into from the same area making for a nice mix of fish. The walleye however were now being a little finicky and required more patience than I thought they would. Add to that the floating grass like weeds and it was becoming just frustrating. Thoughts of changing locations were tossed around but I knew that if we focussed, we could get the job done.
Dave hooked into a fish right after it showed up on the sonar and I was sure it wasn’t a walleye. I had seen a big mark and was sure that it was a sturgeon. Sure enough, this was her! Let the battle begin!
I was pretty sure this wouldn’t end well but did my best to follow it with the electric motor. Dave was enjoying the fight and actually thought he had a chance. About 4 minutes into the battle the hook pulled free and he was left with an empty line. It’s never easy to land one of these dinosaurs on a tiny hook from a drop shot rig! We headed back to the walleye and fished a little longer, trying for their limit.
Although it took more time than I had expected, a limit was finally brought into the boat by Dave & Mathieu and things were officially done from here. Mathieu even landed the largest one and let everyone know!
I had brought along the big sticks today to make an attempt at sturgeon fishing. I had to run around a lot looking for a concentration, but eventually just settled in an area that showed some life. It would be the first time this season fishing for them but I knew we at least had a shot!
With lines in we waited for our first bite and when it finally came, I thought it was the right species. Disappointment was had when Dave brought the fish to the boat and we saw that it was an eel. I hate snakes and this thing was just that! I unhooked the hideous creature and went right back to fishing.
The next bite came about 15 minutes later and it too turned out to be an eel. I was definitely in the wrong area! We relocated slightly when I saw better marks and re anchored, just hoping for another shot at a sturgeon. Unfortunately when the next bite came and I set into the fish, I knew it was small. I immediately gave the rod to Mathieu to fight. He had a bass on the line and landed it shortly after. We were officially done!
Although we didn’t catch any sturgeon today, the fishing was still great. A good number of walleye were seen and a limit of keepers were taken in the half day outing. I could have done without the eels, but they did make it very interesting! Hopefully the next time I decided to anchor up, the results will be different. It’s only a matter of time before the first dinosaur makes its way into the boat, starting the big fish season for me. In the mean time I’ll just have to remain on the pike, bass & walleye. Tough job but someone’s gotta do it!
