Rich, Kristine & Chabil joined me this morning for a full day of fishing! We would be doing a bunch of different things including deep drop shotting. I expected better results than the last couple of days, with this one being a longer trip!

I decided to try trolling once again at the start, hoping to get them a few walleye to bring home. Well, it didn’t go as planned though, with only one being caught. Kristine boated a real big one and we had to settle for only the pics. There weren’t even many northerns from the area and I pulled the plug earlier than usual. We were heading to the deep!

After making a long run to a smallmouth area, I instructed them on how to fish the rig, vertical. Not having ever fished this way before, I knew it would be a learning curve for them but felt confident that they would fend well.

Kristine was expected to be the first one to hook up and she didn’t disappoint. We hadn’t gone 100 yards and she was into a smallie. In fact she boated three fish before any of the others even had a bite! They were having a tough time figuring out if they were on bottom or not and not remaining vertical. Once I corrected the problem, they began to get bit!

Our first drift produced over 10 bass and Chabil even managed to land a nice keeper walleye that immediately went in the box. Kristine was doing most of the damage however as she caught over 75% of the fish! Plenty of others were missed or lost as well. including a real giant that Chabil had on his line. Although we never really saw the fish, I knew it was big by the way it was digging. In the end, he snapped the line and was left with only the swivel. You really need to play these big ones and he tried to bring it in way to fast! Inexperience also caused him to snap one of my rods earlier, when he tried to bring another bass to the net. Instead of using the entire rod to drag the fish over he accidently reached out and grabbed the middle of the rod to pull it to me. Instantly I heard the snap and he lost the fish too!

Once the deeper bite slowed, I thought we’d try a little shallower and headed to another area to fish. They would be tossing soft plastics and hopefully the guys would have better results!

Rich was feeling more at home with this method and within the first 5 minutes, boated 3 bass. They were all good ones but two of them were bigger than anything he had caught so far today! He was in the zone as many more followed!

Both Kristine and Chabil weren’t having as much luck but they were hooking into plenty. Unfortunately their landing percentage wasn’t great, as most of them were coming off before the net. Rich however was putting on a clinic, boating bass after bass. I really don’t know how many he caught but it was a lot!

After scouring the area for quite some time, I decided to move out slightly deeper and Rich hooked into a real giant. Not being overly familiar with fighting a fish this big, he tried to land it way too fast. In the end, the hooks just pulled out and all he was left with was memories of the one that got away!

Time had passed by so fast while they were catching fish and I realized that I needed to make a move if they were to have any chance at getting more fish to bring home. I began sliding out to deeper water as they ate and managed to put a couple more walleye in the boat. Too bad that was all she wrote!

One more stop in open water for a last 15 minute shot at fish had them swimming instead. It was so damn hot that even with the roof up for most of the day, they needed to cool off again! I packed everything up while they were in the water and readied the boat for the run back.

Today was a much better one filled with plenty of action. By having the full day, I was able to make the necessary adjustments that kept them on fish throughout. We fished deep and we fished shallow when the time was right and the results showed. They had learned a few new techniques that hopefully will aid them in their future shore fishing. If nothing else, at least have them losing less lures to the rocks! Overall it was a great day for fishing!

Mark & his son Owen, along with John & his son Noa, were with me this morning for a difficult bite. I probably should have gone deep like yesterday but with all the bodies I had, boat control would have been difficult. We opted for plan B and started out with a troll!

The first fish went to Noa when the reel went off and he soon had a big walleye under his belt. Obviously the fish wasn’t really aggressive as the hooks just fell out while in the net! Owen was up next and not long after and his first fish turned out to be a decent northern.

With both kids having caught fish, it was the parents turn next and a couple more pike were boated. I had to cover plenty of water to find the fish and despite the almost perfect conditions of overcast and wind, they just weren’t eating. It seemed like every time a fish was netted, the hooks weren’t staying in. I was actually surprised that we hadn’t seen a few drive byes!

The numbers were definitely not there this morning but we did manage to catch several more fish including a nice double that consisted of a keeper walleye and a pike. After a couple of hours of this pain, I just pulled the plug and headed elsewhere to try a little drifting with the drop shot.

Although it would have been difficult to fish deep like yesterday, with 4 people, I found another area where I was able to drift sideways. This would allow all 4 to fish effectively!

Our first spot only seemed to be having perch biting, despite seeing a lot of walleye on the bottom. We finished up the morning on another location with a few more smaller walleye and one bass before we were done. I had an afternoon booking and needed to be back to pick him up! I knew that the better fishing was taking place in deeper water and couldn’t wait to get back out!

Val joined me for the afternoon trip and we experienced more difficult fishing. I probably could have found some better fish in the deep water, but after dropshotting a bunch of areas unsuccessfully, I switched it up to the shallows. Unfortunately there was only one fish landed and another one missed from here! The bass was a giant however, but it came from my rod while showing Val where to cast. It figures!

With Val wanting to bring some fish home again tonight, we decided to try a different place and drop shotted the area for walleye. In about an hour, we managed to put two keepers and a handful of small bass in the boat. Not great, but at least he had something to take home!

The half day trips are always tougher when searching for active fish and today was no different. Limited time in both halves pass quickly when the fish aren’t biting, causing you to make many quick moves.

We ended the afternoon in big waves, in open water, trying to get a few more bites. Drop shotting midrange depths for walleye wasn’t as productive as I would have liked. Although I marked plenty of them, their jaws seemed to be locked. We would have to end the afternoon with what we had!

Today wasn’t what I had expected but there were still fish caught. Tomorrow I will have plenty more time with a single trip and hopefully be able to focus my attention longer in areas that I feel confident. I know we will be fishing deep for most of the trip! Better fishing ahead!

Mike joined me today along with his two kids. Ryan & Chloe are all grown up now and look quite a bit different than they did some 10 years ago. Time surely flies!

We hit several areas at the start hoping for quick bites, but the lack of wind and current wasn’t helping. Both Chloe & Ryan managed to get into some bass at the first place, during the tough bite. I knew it was going to be a grind today with intense heat & humidity, along with absolutely zero wind!

It didn’t take long before I realized that deep was the place to be. With surface water temps closing in on 80 degrees, the bigger bass would definitely be relating to cooler water. I quickly relocated offshore, setting them up with the drop shot rods.

Within a few minutes after starting the drift, they began to understand, as everyone was now catching fish. Mike had struggled in the first few places but quickly rebounded with some quality bass. Both Ryan & Chloe also had multiple bass attack their baits and managed to land over half of the ones they hooked. Not a bad average for someone never having fished deep!

With the heat becoming almost unbearable, I decided to raise the roof for a little relief. These over 90 degree days always make it a challenge to stay cool and I needed some shade. Ryan on the other hand took a different approach, by jumping in multiple times throughout the day. Not a bad idea!

We continued the deep water fishing for a few hours making several long drifts until the wind began. Unfortunately when it started, it was coming from the SE and the fish just shut down! I was also having a hard time keeping them vertical with the cross current winds. Time to relocate!

After fishing deep for so long, it was going to be a nice change to try a little shallow casting with soft plastics. It would also be much easier fishing, if the fish were there!

I think Ryan hooked up on his very first cast and it was big! Too bad he wasn’t ready and lost the fish when it took to the air in a spectacular jump. Mike was into several others afterwards and Ryan rebounded with more of his own. Chloe however was having a hard time getting bit and ended up without a strike. I tried to help her out by passing the rod when something hit, but unfortunately it didn’t stay on long enough for her to get a hook set.

After a while fishing shallow, the winds finally began to blow a bit harder. They were also coming from the SW and visions of walleye fishing once again crossed my mind! We were going back to where we had started in hopes of getting a few fish for them tonight!

In the last hour or so, they managed to catch a couple of decent walleye and miss a few others. It wasn’t what I had hoped for but at least they had some fish for dinner!

I’m glad I made the change to deep water early today, allowing everyone to have plenty of action. These dead calm, hot days are never easy to fish. After the early morning bite, fish just seem to shut down and nothing moves. Deep water at least gives you plenty more options!

It was nice to have Mike and his family back out again today and see them all grown up. Hopefully they will be back later this fall for another kick at the can when the smallies move back shallow. Plans are already being made!

Sabrina treated her boyfriend Andre to a day on the water, for a birthday gift and this was the day. We headed out at the usual time and directly to another area to troll. I wanted to get them into good fish as quickly as I could!

With the lines in, only minutes passed before the first pike appeared. Andre brought to net a small northern, but it was only the start. Surely they would get bigger!

The next pike was also on the small side, but at least the fish were biting where we were. I knew it was only a matter of time before they would be into some walleye and covered the water in anticipation.

Sabrina was up again when the down rod screamed and I could tell by the way it was fighting, this was the one! It was staying down and did so, all the way to the boat! I netted her fish and also knew that it was going to be too long to keep. After a few pics, she was released unharmed to fight another day!

Many more pike were caught by both, including a nice double, before Andre was into his first walleye. It was while Sabrina was doing battle with another fish, but unfortunately the hooks pulled out before I could net it. Too bad too, because it was big!

We continued the troll and picked at the fish for a few hours, before it finally it happened! Andre was officially into a nice walleye that fought him all the way to the boat. Once in the net, the hooks just fell out. I guess I netted it just in time!

When the action died where we were I decided to make a long run to see if they could get into some bass. I wasn’t sure if I was going to go shallow or deep, but opted for the shallow waters fist.

I had both of them throwing soft plastics and they had many bites in the time we spent here. Although new to them, the presentation was working and eventually they got into the rhythm. They both missed and lost plenty of fish, but they still managed to bring many decent bass into the boat. Andre even landed a small sturgeon from this area as well.

With only a couple of hours remaining in the day, I decided to try for a few more walleye before we were done. Drop shotting was up next and although we didn’t catch anything on our first spot, I definitely marked plenty of fish. The high sun and flat calm conditions seemed to have these fish in a really negative mood and it was showing. The perch were hitting our offerings but the baits were too big for them to even get in their mouths. Time to make another move!

I had brought the sturgeon rods in hopes of anchoring up somewhere, but never really found a good looking spot to fish. In fact, very few of them were even jumping, anywhere on the lake! I had to eventually settle for a deep reef and hope to get into a few more bass or walleye.

Andre was tight to a big bass almost as fast as we stopped, but it threw the hook when taking to the air. Too bad as it was definitely the best one of the day! He quickly followed it up with another bass loss when the second one pulled free during the battle. His luck continued too as the next couple of fish did exactly the same! Sabrina managed to catch a couple of smallies on one of the many drifts we made and we brought another good keeper walleye and a couple of unders in the boat as well. At least they had two in the livewell now, making for a great meal tonight!

The time had passed by so fast today with all the running around we did but they had caught fish. They had also learned a few new techniques that hopefully would come in handy when fishing on their own. Without realizing it, both had slammed as well with the three species they caught! All in all, it was a pretty good day!

Steph & his boys, George & Michael were with me this morning, for another banner day. Although tough at times, the kids managed to catch their fair share of fish by trolling. For a change, the conditions were just perfect!

A slightly later than usual start had me setting lines by 8:00 and shortly after, into the first fish. With a good chop on the water from the SW, we were able to fish in relatively weed free water, or so I thought!

The boys were excited to be catching, but the bites weren’t great. Plenty of the fish were short striking the lures and getting off before we ever had a chance! Even the ones that were being landed weren’t hooked well. Many of them were just falling off in the net!

I managed to pick at the pike & walleye throughout the morning with both George & Michael reeling in good numbers. Although it could have been more, the fish just didn’t seem to be all that active and I was just happy to get the ones we did. They even had a couple of walleye in the box for dinner tonight!

The floating weeds were starting to become a problem and constant cleaning of the lines was required. Eventually I just tried trolling out of the area I was fishing, but found everywhere to be the same. Weekend boat traffic sucks! Time for a change!

Early in the afternoon I pulled the plug on the troll and ran to some open water areas to try a little drop shotting. With 4 lines in the water, we surely could catch a few more!

The first spot yielded nada but not for lack of fish. The sonar was loaded and they didn’t want to bite! A couple of passes later, we moved to another area, hoping for better results.

The kids were now wanting to leave, but Steph wasn’t ready just yet. He hoped to be able to catch a few more fish before we were done! Schooling walleye were showing at times on the sonar and we were drifting right through them without even a bite. Eventually we just held on top of the fish and dropped right on their heads. This only produced a couple of missed fish when they bit and came off almost immediately after. Except for one perch, we weren’t having much luck! Eventually after several drifts, they called it a day!

The boys lasted longer than Steph had expected and with over 5 hours of fishing, he was fine with leaving. I know that if we had more time, I would have been able to pick some fish from the reluctant schools of walleye. Oh well, they’ll still be there, for the next guests to catch!

I think we got off the water at the perfect time as rain clouds were beginning to move in as we pulled out. For a change, I was able to get the boat covered at home before the skis let loose. Wow, I’ll have a dry boat to start tomorrow’s trip!