The Learning Curve

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July 16th 2018

 

Patrick was with me today, hoping to learn about different species of fish. He hoped to catch them on a variety of techniques and I knew he would. The last time we fished together was winter and he learned how to use a flasher to increase his chances. Today he would understand a whole new concept in open water success!

We hit the water just about 7:00 and I decided to check an area not too far away for walleye. We would be trolling in order to cover the water quickly, searching for the fish. Unfortunately this didn’t work out as I had hoped and all we received for our efforts was one pike.

The next area wasn’t much better but at least it put one small walleye in the boat that never even fired the reel. I found it while checking the lines! After seeing this, I immediately pulled the plug on trolling and decided to have him drop shot a slightly deeper area nearby.

A quick demonstration had me hooked up on my very first cast and a keeper walleye went in the well for him to take home. The next cast I was also locked, but this time I gave the rod to him to fight the fish. It was a nice smallie and he was now starting to understand this technique. Patrick’s first few casts were a little quick but eventually he began to work his presentation much better. It’s all about the feel with tight line and not being too quick on the hook set! After slamming a few and not landing them, he was coached again into what was needed and he finally started to keep them pinned.

We remained in this spot for quite a while as Patrick was hooking fish on almost every cast. He landed a limit of walleye and several smaller ones that we released along with a few really nice bass. I think he finally got the hang of this technique! Unfortunately the area eventually went quiet and we were working way too hard for very few bites. It was finally time to move!

With the sun high and the heat & humidity almost unbearable, I thought we would give trolling another try. I headed to an area that I was sure would produce and we began fishing. This time however, I raised the top for a little more comfort! There was virtually zero wind when we started but at least it felt nice with the roof above us and we were now in the shade.

It didn’t take long for the first reel to fire and Patrick was now getting to see how effective the trolling could be. He landed a pretty nice northern and was just happy to see action so quickly. Several more reels also screamed in the next 15 minutes as well and they were also pike. I was hoping to get him into a big walleye and was now covering water, in search of something large!

Several more pike were taken before we finally had a good rip on one of the reels. I could tell by the way the fish was staying down that this was the right species. By the looks of the fight, it was also large! As Patrick brought it closer to the boat I realized just how big it really was. It was a giant! Fortunately it had eaten the lure good and stayed pinned all the way into the net. I told him that this was without a doubt the largest walleye brought aboard my boat this season! It was also his personal best making it that much sweeter! Needless to say, we were going to take several pics before releasing her and I took shots from a few different angles. He had the pleasure of putting this sow back and she swam away unharmed! We had finally gotten the one fish I was searching for and I was glad we made the move!

I reset the lines and kept trolling a little longer, adding a few more pike and another over to the numbers. I was covering the same area that had produced the big eye when one of the reels fired and Patrick was back into something heavy again. Just as I thought, another nice walleye! It wasn’t as large as the first one, but it was definitely a quality fish! More pics and another release and back to the troll. I didn’t want to stay much longer, but had hoped for a big pike to give him a great slam. The next fish that hit was a surprise as it went airborne before the reel even went off. It was a big smallie and unfortunately jumped the hooks on its next leap. Oh well, crap happens! He did finally manage to land a really good northern however adding to all the other big fish he had caught today. Time for something new!

I told him that he was going to learn patience while fishing soft plastics for smallies and he was all for it. I stopped on an open water flat & rigged the rods, demonstrating the proper way to fish the baits. Well I kind of knew what was about to happen next! As soon as he got bit, he slammed the hooks, coming up with air. I had told him to wait and count to five before setting but instinct took over. The next fish was the same thing and he was losing them as fast as they were biting. I actually had to show him an example when I got picked up and demonstrated patience and proper rod positioning before pulling back on the hook set. Hopefully he would now understand! A couple more missed fish later due to quick sets and he finally calmed down. He was now aware that if he continued, he would never land anything!

This place had a lot of fish and at least he was getting plenty of chances. He finally waited on the next fish and when he slammed the hooks home, it stayed pinned. The remaining fish were no different as he was landing every one of them now! He had learned patience and was rewarded with several good battles from aggressive smallies. He couldn’t have asked for a better way to end the day. One more fish and we were done!

Today was a great learning experience with Patrick seeing some new techniques. He had caught fish a variety of ways and some really big ones too! He also had a limit of walleye to bring home with him, for dinner tonight. I don’t think he could have had a better, educational day!!