What do I do on my day off, “Go Fishing” of course! Christiane & I decided to head on the water for a few hours and just pleasure fish today. Despite that it was the weekend; it was too nice a day to stay home. There would be plenty of time to work around the house tomorrow! We got to the lake around 9:00 and proceeded to troll for eyes. Catching them wasn’t an issue and she actually landed a bunch up to 7 pounds. We would keep a couple of smaller ones for dinner and release the rest. After having our fill of Walters, I switched gears and took her bass fishing. This was a picture perfect day for the shallows as wind was non existent. Tossing spinnerbaits got her crushed several times and she even landed one over 5 pounds on the blades. We jumped around all over, all the while catching more big bass on everything we threw. One last stop and a few more bruisers over four pounds and we called it a day. We left on a high when she managed another giant in the 5 pound range. We didn’t know what to expect at the ramp and allowed a little extra time just in case. To our amazement it wasn’t bad at all. I must have missed the chaos as I just slid in and right out immediately after. We were on the road in no time and relaxed from a great day of fishing. We would be having walleye for dinner and looking forward to eating, our “Catch of the Day”. All in all a terrific day on the lake and nobody even got hurt!!

Jason had contacted me a few days earlier to take him and his two kids, Noah & Jordan out fishing. We were scheduled for today and met up about 7:30 for a day on the water. Bass was what we were after and drop shotting was what we were going to do. It was a little bumpy getting to where we wanted but once there, it was fishable. I instructed everyone on what to do and they dropped down. It took a while before the first fish actually was landed but there were many lost & missed prior. The conditions weren’t exactly perfect and feeling the bottom and any hits was the reason why. With each run back up the waves got bigger and the drifts became harder to keep vertical. With these winds, casting the shallows wasn’t even an option and I knew it well. Although I did try to get something going mid lake, it was just too difficult for them to do anything. By mid day the waves were easily threes and some even bigger. The W/SW direction practically took me out but I was determined to make something work. Trolling wouldn’t be easy but it was our only option now as threes became fours in no time. The closer we got back to the ramp the bigger they got. I set the lines and had to go with the waves for the troll. Even in neutral, I was doing 2.5 to 3 knots. The only consolation was that the fish didn’t care. The walleye were crushing the baits and fish were getting caught. Finally, something working! Unfortunately we were going to have to cut the day short as Jordan was looking a little green. She was up front and watching the rollers as we trolled with the waves. It actually felt more like Lake Ontario than the lake we were on! One more fish and we pulled the plug on this day. I secured everything and carefully tried surfing the crests and valleys towards the ramp. Let’s just say that these were less than perfect for a couple of youngsters to be out in. Thankfully we made it back with only a few splashes in the process. She was definitely happy to get her feet back on solid ground. When I looked back out in the waves I realized just how big they actually were. Most were threes & fours with an occasional rogue over 5 feet just for fun. On our way in we actually passed three guys in a smaller boat heading out without a cowling on their motor. I informed them that they were insane but they just laughed. Hopefully we won’t hear about them on the evening news! Despite all that Mother Nature threw at us, we still managed to overcome. I took the fish back with me for a later pickup and Jason was glad. I would fillet them and ready their “Catch of the Day” for dinner tonight. Who could ask for anything more? They would be having fish for dinner!!

The gang from Monday was back with me this morning but less one body. Nate opted to remain at camp with his mother while Jonathan, Carson & Robert drove in to fish. Due to the traffic getting back on Monday, they decided to fish only a half day, but it would be worthwhile! We weren’t as lucky this morning with the weather as a light rain was falling for the start. Fortunately I had multiple sets of rain gear and they needed all of them! With a shortened day scheduled, we decided to focus our attention on muskie & bass. They had eaten walleye two nights in a row and didn’t need any more! Along with the rain, we had a good wind from the south west as we ventured to the first location to fish. I set the rods and tried trolling for lunge in hopes of a quick bite. There was quite a chill in the air this morning with all the dampness and I thought we could get bit. Somewhere around the 45 minute mark, the wire went off and the reel was screaming. As soon as I yanked it out of the holder, the fish went airborne and threw the hooks. We had all witnessed why they are hated and sought after as four foot of misery waved good bye! Unfortunately we trolled for a while longer without another hit and finally decided to call it quits on the lunge. Off we went for bass, an easier target to catch! A bunch of decent ones were taken along with a few really good ones too. They even got to play with a couple of sturgeon up to about 20 pounds or so. I’m sure that if we could have kept the muskie on long enough, it would have been an excellent day. Instead it turned out to be just great. Plenty of smallies on soft plastics were landed with a few bonus fish thrown in for laughs. Overall, the day ended better than it began as we ran back in sunshine and a light breeze. I trust their drive back was better too!!

I had a full boat this morning with Jonathan, Carson, Robert & Nate. They were vacationing in the Eastern Townships and wanted to fish. For whatever reason, the winds were blowing hard again this morning and visions of Saturday were back! I tried an alternate route to get out of the rollers and fortunately it wasn’t too painful. We arrived at the first location and were fishing shortly after in deep water. Drop shots were sent down with a little instruction and it wasn’t long before fish were coming aboard. Despite the strong winds and two to three footers where we were, they were biting. Multiple drifts were made and bass from one pound to over four pounds were landed by all. Several doubles were taken in the few hours we did this before we decided to try casting in shallower water. With the winds from the west, I was able to tuck into a sheltered spot with only a light breeze. Soft plastics were thrown here, to entice many a smallie. As in the deep water, fish from one to over 4 pounds were caught. Once they had their fill of this, I offered them a change of pace and a different species. They were hoping to take a few fish home to eat and the walleye were eager to commit suicide. We fished for the remainder of the day for them and landed several as well as a few decent northerns. By the time it was all over, they had enough fish for a couple of meals. We finished the day with a bang and they were taking dinner home with them too! All in all a very productive day of fishing!!

After yesterday’s outing, Hassan, Sam & Dave just had to sample it for themselves. They had all hooked up for dinner Saturday night and the talk of fishing was just too much to handle. Today was their turn to “Rip Some Lips”! We got on the water shortly after 9:00 and proceeded directly to an area to drop shot. Within minutes, they were locked up and well on their way to many more throughout the day. Water temps were still over 73 degrees and the air temps would be above 80 degrees under sunny skies. Winds were quite light and I knew we would be having a ton of boats on the water, under these conditions. After catching many fish from the deep, we decided to hit a few shallow spots and get into casting for the bass. Unfortunately these ones were on the smaller side and after an hour or so, we were back out in the deep again. Although we had some slow periods, they managed to stay hooked up for most of the day. At one point, Sam locked up on a real giant and the battle was tremendous. I had thoughts of a lunge due to a bite off just the day before but eventually we got a glimpse and knew different. To all our amazement it turned out to be a drum and a first for Sam. He had seen these before but never tangled with one of his own. Several pics were taken and the fish was released immediately afterwards, unharmed. This was to be the highlight of the day, but not before many more smallies were caught. Somewhere around 4:30 we pulled the plug and headed back to take out. It may not have been the easiest of days with all the traffic on the water but we had managed to catch plenty of quality bass anyway. Sam on the other hand will definitely remember the battle he had with his very first drum on the line. Overall a great day to be fishing!!