Quality Time

Scott & his son Tristan joined me this morning for another multi species fishing day. Scott has been a long time client from almost as long as his son is old and wanted Tristan to experience a great day of fishing. They came to the right place as they were about to find out! Although the air temps were cool at 60 degrees this morning, it was expected to warm up a little later. Unfortunately the water temps had fallen overnight and went to a chilly 65 degrees where we began. I knew a slow troll was going to be necessary and dropped it down to under 2mph in order to get bit. A bunch of pike were landed in the first hour along with a couple of walleye and one rather heavy fish left with a lure. I knew exactly what that was as I had been encountering several large toothy critters lately! In fact a little later Tristan was handed the rod from his dad and had the pleasure of fighting his first ever lunge. It wasn’t a giant, just a perfect size for him to catch. Several pics were taken before the release and right back to trolling we went. Although we began with flat water, the winds had now started blowing from the NW creating a pretty good chop on the lake. We just can’t seem to get away from the cold blowing air lately! I wanted to give them a variety of fish today and later in the morning decided to switch to smallies and another technique. I opted for a semi sheltered section of the lake in order for them to be able to cast. Once again however, the water temps were cold and the fish were like ghosts. Tristan managed to hook & land a few smaller bass while his dad struggled to even get a hit. We could see a bunch of quality ones swimming in certain areas but they didn’t want to know anything about us. I hit a few spots along the way and they finally picked up several decent bass. Although not what I had expected, at least there were enough fish to keep us interested. I had one other place I wanted to fish before resuming the trolling and made the long run to the spot. We were now out in the open water and the winds were blowing pretty good making presentation difficult. After about an hour and only a few fish I pulled the plug and headed elsewhere! Scott had never been successful with the drop shot so we decided to give it a try in deeper water. I instructed them on what to do and told both of them not to set the hook when they got bit. Almost immediately Scott got bit and hammered the fish with a solid hook set. He came up completely empty when the fish bit him off. I reinstructed him again on just reeling to load the rod and raise it high with pressure. It’s hard to teach an old dog new tricks! After this, Tristan managed to get a couple of smallies and we boated a few walleye as well. Scott was coming up a little short as he missed several bites from setting hooks too quick. Once he figured out the technique properly, he finally hooked a couple of bass himself and his skunk was gone! I’s all about technique & confidence! Hopefully now he’ll be able to apply this to areas back home where he fishes, successfully. As the time was getting on we decided to get a couple more fish and pull the plug. Scott had a long drive home and at 12 years old, Tristan would only be sleeping. I couldn’t believe the boat ramp when I got back. Middle of the week and a freaking zoo! I really wish people would be a little more courteous and learn that 20 or more minutes to take a boat out isn’t normal. Blocking docks for extended periods of time while you screw around isn’t great either. I waited over 20 minutes while one person occupied the ramp and three other boats waited to launch. Unbelievable! By the time it was all over I had been at the dock for almost 30 minutes but it only took me 1 minute to get out. It’s really hard to be patient when shit like this is going on. I guess « You Can’t Fix Stupid »! Almost a perfect end to a perfect day!!