Prelude to The Main Event

Several months ago Tavis got in touch with me to organize a fishing day with 11 of his buddies. It was a prelude to a bachelor party they were coming to Montreal for and they all wanted to spend a day on the water before. Today was the day and with the help of Mike, Brian and Don, we were going to make sure everyone had a good time! I needed 3 additional boats to make this happen and these guys were definitely the right choice to guide the group to success. With one of the larger rigs, I decided that Travis and 3 others would join me for a morning of sturgeon fishing. We were all scheduled to meet in the middle of the lake around noon for pre made hamburgers and I had a little over 4 hours to get it done! I would be happy with a couple of sturgeon but really wanted to have each of them tangle with one apiece. With absolutely no wind I knew anchoring up would be a breeze and got everything set up. Three lines in and the waiting game began. After sever false alarms from the fish bumping into the lines we finally hooked into a good one. I think it was Adam that got first up but being terrible with names, I’m probably wrong! Either way, someone was fighting a quality fish and loving every minute of it. I don’t think anyone actually realized just how hard they pulled, but he did right now! The battle lasted almost ten minutes before I slid the net under his catch. Several quick pics later and a release & we were hard at it again, anticipating bigger & better results. With flat calm and high sun, I decided to raise the roof for a little shade. What a difference it made! Tavis was up next and unfortunately he was to land a much smaller fish and not even what we were looking for. A channel cat had eaten the bait and although a nice one, not the right species. After resetting the lines and waiting a while, I pulled anchor and made a slight move looking for a fresh start. Well it didn’t take long and we were on for the second time! The rod was passed off and the battle began. As the line started to rise in the water it signalled a leap was about to happen and sure enough, a larger sturgeon took to the air. I love when they do this because you know exactly what you are dealing with on the end of the line. This fight took over 20 minutes and lots of pain for the guy fighting it before I was able to net the second beast of the morning. It was quite a bit larger than our first fish and everyone had a good laugh watching him pick it up for the pics. Back she went and back in we went as well. Hoping for another, I didn’t wait as long in this location and moved once more. The relocation was obviously the right move as it didn’t take long before our third fish was on the line. Although considerably smaller, it was still the right species and someone else got his turn too. We had seen everyone land a fish so far but I still wasn’t satisfied and wanted one more before the lunch break. Pressed for time I reset the lines in a new area again and 5 minutes in we got bit. Perfect! Tavis was going to have a go at what may have been the largest one so far and definitely stronger than the cat he caught earlier. This battle lasted well over 20 minutes and as with all the others, was being filmed on their Go Pro camera. It took to the air at the beginning of the fight and then proceeded to beat him up good. Gotta love the big battles! I was finally able to get the net under his catch and this completed the full circle of sturgeon for the boys. Several shots were taken and the fish was returned back into the lake, where she belonged. I can never understand how someone can kill one of these things for consumption! I packed everything up and with the cover still erected, ran back for their lunch break. I located a relatively shallow spot on the sand bar and dropped anchor awaiting the others. They eventually all arrived and most of them took advantage of the swim while they ate. We remained here till about 1:30 and split up again for our afternoon of fishing. I had decided earlier that I was going to take them out for some walleye and ran to where I knew they were. We would be returning to the dock by 3:00 and I had a short time to get it done. Once I located what I needed, I began the drift with all 4 drop shotting. Well apparently I was in the right place as fish were getting caught! They managed to boat all kinds of eyes and most of them were well over the slot size making for great pics. They even managed to get a few double headers that required the second net to be used. This day was a success all around as once back at the ramp, we found out how everyone had done. Each boat had caught good fish and numbers as well. I guess all the stars aligned today with this large group! Hats off to Mike, Brian and Don for making this fishing trip one of the best everyone had ever experienced. Tavis, Cody, Jarrett, Dwight, David, Greg, Jordy, Adam, Tyler, Scott, Rodney & James would be leaving completely satisfied with their trip of a lifetime, before the main event. I know they will be talking about this fishing trip for a long time. We did our part to make sure it was memorable and I’m sure the rest of their stay in Montreal will be as well. Let the partying begin!!