More Monsters

Bram, Neil & Jamie were with me this morning after a rescheduling from the day before. The winds were just too big and from the wrong direction to get out on the lake we wanted, so we postponed the outing. Today was a little better but the ramp had 2 footers blowing in on it due to the east winds and it was a little tricky launching & keeping the boat dry. Once we were away from the shore, the ride was a whole lot better and everyone was ready for the hunt for big fish. We started out trolling for a few hours in search of the elusive musky and that’s exactly what it was, elusive! I likely marked several, but they just wouldn’t take our offerings and we changed up in hopes of a different species. Next on the list were the sturgeon and although skeptical, they agreed to giving them a try. I set up where I marked plenty of large fish and anchored the boat in this horrible wind direction. In fact, instead of having the rods all pointing out the back, I had them all out one side. With the east winds and the SW current, it was twisting me around making it more complicated than usual. We fished the area for about 45 minutes, all the while having a hard time with boat control. I believe that we may have had a few bites but with the boat rocking and bouncing it was almost impossible to detect. I eventually changed up locations and not long after, Jamie was into the first fish. He had never fought anything this big and with a little coaching was able to bring it boat side, after a lengthy battle. Once in the net, everyone was in awe with the overall mass. At over 50 inches, I estimated it to be in the 35 pound range and Jamie posed for a few pics. Once we were done, it was returned to the water and immediately bolted to the depths. All three of them had never seen anything the likes of this before and they all wanted more. Back in the lines went and a little while later Jamie had another one on, but it was short lived. He wasn’t able to keep it pinned and it was off as fast as it was on. We set up once again and the next rod to get hit was Neil and he was locked! Unfortunately mishap occurred when the other two crossed his line while trying to clear theirs. A little slack while I was untangling them and this fish was also gone. Disappointed, they regrouped and were back in the water again. It must have been about 15 minutes, when Bram finally hooked one of his own and it was game on! Now he was going to have to land this one for bragging rights! By the way it was fighting it was considerably larger than the one Jamie had landed earlier. This battle lasted a long time before we were to get a look at her and she was big. In fact she looked like "Medusa" when she came to the surface as there were a few lampreys attached to her back. I think Bram was relieved to see her on top, figuring that the battle was over. Apparently it wasn’t as she sounded once more and kept him in pain for a little longer. I know he was hurting by the way he was double fisting the rod and just laughed! Eventually she did come back to the surface and I was able to get the net under her. It took a couple of attempts as she wouldn’t curl when in the net and 62 inches straight just doesn’t fit. This fish was over 5 feet long and Bram was unable to hold her alone for the pics. The three of them decided to handle this beast making everything go much easier. We released her immediately after and she disappeared back down to the abyss. Although we did attempt to hook up Neil afterwards, it wasn’t going to happen today. Along with the two big sturgeon, they landed a nice walleye and several other smallies later. By 5:00, they were all ready to call it and we headed back to take out. This day may have been a little difficult by weather standards, but we stuck it out and made the best of it. I know this family will remember today for a long time with the dinosaurs they battled and have sore muscles to remind them as well. Targeting big fish isn’t for everyone but the rewards are definitely worth it. Today was a perfect example of patience and perseverance!!