Zigging & Zagging

Nick & his son Dominic were with me today for a very interesting one, to say the least! Mother Nature showed her fury as we dodged some really nasty weather, multiple times. Good job the fishing was better than the conditions!

We headed out in a real good chop that had me rethinking my original plan to troll. I also wanted to drift & drop shot the deeper water as the wind direction would have made it perfect for the areas I fish. In the end though, we bypassed the spots and decided to troll!

With the lines in, it didn’t take long to get the first hookup. One of the outside rods had a good bend and I knew it wasn’t just from the troll. I passed the rod to Dominic and he fought what was his biggest walleye, ever! Not a bad starter fish! A few pics later she was released to fight another day and we were right back at it, looking for more.

Our next fish was also a silent striker as this one never made a sound. Fortunately the rod bent enough to show them that there was something on the line. This too was another walleye and in the slot, so Into the livewell it went, with anticipation of more!

We fished all over this area, picking a fish here & there but I was determined to find more active fish, somewhere. Several pike and walleye were landed in the hours we trolled with a couple of walleye added to the box. More overs were released too!

I had decided to switch it up a bit and pulled out a couple of the spinning rods. Our next location would have them throwing soft plastics for smallies and I was sure they would be able to get a few.

Once set up, I instructed both Nick & his son on how to fish the area and it was game on. Nick had brought a couple of rods with him that he wanted to try and I rigged one of his with the same lure. I also had my rod ready so that he could do a comparison test between the two. His both had mono and I knew he would prefer the braid! Several casts later and a few nasty tangles with the mono, I handed him my rod and he was sold, after just one cast!

Although we weren’t here long, Dominic did manage to hook into a nice fish that gave him quite the battle. It was a quality smallie and fought all the way to the boat, before I slid the net under his catch. A couple of quick pics and back she went!

I had noticed that the weather wasn’t looking too good and prepped the roof for the rain. Along with the precipitation, there would also be thunder & lightning and I decided to make a run to safety when I heard the first rumble. We stopped in a sheltered area close to shore where it would be safe and raised the roof. For a change, I did all of this before it got too bad and we remained dry. I usually end up doing it too late and get wet in the process, but not this time!

After waiting it out for a while, I decided to relocate and try some drop shotting. Most of the system had passed and it wasn’t long before we were in sunshine!

I had wanted to try an area that I hadn’t fished this season and apparently it proved to be a good choice. Dominic lost a fish on his very first drop and his father managed to land a couple of keeper walleye from here as well. Unfortunately we had little to no wind and the drifts were almost like being anchored. Time to hit another spot!

Our next place was working out alright and a few more walleye made it into the box when I saw more lightning nearby. We packed it up and raced back to the dock to seek refuge in our vehicles. The radar showed that it would pass and I wanted to get back out to complete the day.

Once the heavy rain was over, we attempted a return to where we had last fished. Within minutes I realized it wasn’t a good choice as the winds switched and the heavy rain returned. We raced back to the ramp once again and this time we were done!

I pulled the boat out in a downpour and minutes later we were in complete sunshine. Go figure! Despite all the issues from Mother Nature, they still had a great day with plenty of fish caught. I just wish we were able to fish a bit more as they were finally getting use to the drop shot technique and catching. Oh well, there will be other days ahead!