The Big Blow

Louis was back with me today and this time he brought a couple of friends from France. They didn’t have much experience fishing but I was sure I could get them into some fish. Hopefully I was right as the conditions weren’t looking great. Winds were out of the east to start and were going to swing to the SE and blow quite big during the day. It was going to be a challenge!

Our first stop saw Laurence hooked up quickly as she boated her first walleye. Unfortunately, it was an over and wouldn’t be getting eaten tonight! Ther were hoping to bring some fish home for dinner, but this wasn’t going to be one of them. The east wind made it difficult to get a drift going causing me to use the electric motor. I needed it in order to move the boat into the wind, as it was against the current flow and slightly angled. This made it much harder with three people fishing.

We had made several passes over the area I wanted to fish and only managed the one walleye so far. Despite marking all kinds of fish here, they just didn’t seem to want to bite! Eventually though, Alain hooked up and finally got one to eat. It was even larger than the previous one and also had to be released, after a few pics. I stayed a little longer hoping for more but a few missed fish and one perch was all we had to show for our efforts.

I made a move to another spot after the dismal fishing on the previous one and immediately hooked up. I passed the rod to Alain and he fought another species. This time it was a nice smallmouth and after a short battle he landed his first bass. Laurence also hooked up and she too fought her first ever smallie. Several shots were taken of both catches and we continued drifting the area in hopes of a few more. As luck would have it, Louis also managed to catch one of his own and he also lost another beside the boat. It didn’t take long before these fish got educated and shut down completely. Time for another move!

I made a long run and checked out a different area in hopes of finding some sturgeon to catch. Although a bit early in the year, they were around and some have already been caught. It didn’t look great, but I did manage to see a few and decided to give it a try. After about ten minutes, I set into a small fish and passed the rod to Alain to fight. As it turned out, it was a sturgeon, but a juvenile one! We tried for a while longer but never had another bite. Between those damn goby minnows and floating weeds due to the wind, it was next to impossible to fish. I pulled the plug and headed back to fishing for smaller fish.

I slid up on a shallower reef and they began casting the dropshot rigs. It had been holding both bass and walleye and I was hoping to get a few Walters for them to eat. It was tough with the weeds but everyone managed to catch a few fish from this area. Too bad they were all bass and released!

I shifted over to another spot close by and decided to give it a try. Similar results were had here too and they decided that they would eat instead, as it was already past noon. While they were eating, I thought I’d try for a bit and within 10 minutes, landed several bass & walleye. Unfortunately, only one of them was legal and made it into the box. Once they were done, Louis also got in the game and put another small keeper into the boat for them tonight. Despite all our efforts, this was the last fish to come aboard and we were forced to move again. The winds had picked up significantly now and it was time to go. These were the big SE winds that they had predicted and it was about to get even tougher to fish!

Our next spot may have been somewhat less rough, but it also only put out one small walleye for Louis. He had managed to catch it while I was drifting, due to a little line tangle in the electric motor. It was at this moment that I decided to return to our starting spot and fish it for the remainder of the day. It was holding good fish and I knew that if I concentrated there that they should be able to catch more fish.

We arrived on the spot and a change was needed in order to fish it effectively. I was going to make shorter drifts, crossways, over the flat and hopefully it would work. We were now facing 2 & 3 footers, but I was marking some fish. With hopes high, we started drifting!

As usual, Laurence hooked up first and managed to bring a 20 incher into the boat. This was a great keeper and we hoped for more. Many drifts were made and despite our efforts, only one more keeper was landed by Louis. A bunch of perch were also caught, along with one crazy battle from a sturgeon that Louis finessed into eating. This was definitely the highlight of the day!

I had left a set of keys with Don in the morning, expecting the ramp to be a disaster for take-out and I was right. The winds were blowing 3 footers directly into it and he had the trailer waiting when we arrived. I quickly drove it on and the Drotto did the rest. Despite the quick removal, there was still a couple of big waves that rolled over the back when he pulled out. It would have been much worse if I had to do it on my own!

Today was full of surprises but we got the job done. Everyone managed to catch fish and several different species too! Mother Nature could have been a little nicer to us however, but that’s just the way it goes. At least they will have enough fish for an appetizer tonight!!