An afternoon trip today with Brian & Troy, turned out to be very productive. They were from Missouri, the show me state and I did just that! They pounded on smallies the entire time out and we ended the day with some of the bigger ones. Both guys landed their personal best brownies, several times over. When the winds picked up big, I switched them over to the blades and Troy landed a couple more before we were done. Overall, a great time with a couple of great guys!!

I had double trips again today and began with Nick and his 2 colleges this morning. Not having fished much before they had a tough time getting started, but they eventually turned it around. A quick walleye spot only saw 1 high end keeper come aboard that was released later in the day. The bass area produced plenty of opportunities for them and they did manage several decent fish in the time we were out. They even called it a little earlier as they had been fishing long enough and decided to end their trip. Overall, a good half day outing!

The afternoon swap out saw a group of people that had been with me before. Peter, Justin and Greg were hoping for a great trip and I wasn’t about to disappoint! The conditions were about as perfect as you could ask for, with zero wind and high temperatures. It felt more like July than October today!

I decided to try a big fish spot first and everyone landed multiple fish, with several of them being personal bests. I had remained in this one area for as long as the fish wanted to bite before moving on. It was on fire with the big ones!

After spending a considerable amount of time in our first area, I finally made a long run to the second spot. This place proved to be even better than the first with high numbers of bass being landed. Although there were plenty of missed fish and others that just came off the hooks, these guys fended quite well. So much so that we never changed locations again! Our next move was back to the docks to take out, as we just ran out of time. Yes, we actually left the fish biting!

Today was a great day to be on the water and I think everyone else felt the same way. There were many other boats out there too! We definitely fended better than most as several of them tried to move in on us in the second place we fished. Peter and his buddies just couldn’t stop talking about the outcome of today all the way back to the ramp. It was surely the best day they had ever spent fishing and the numbers of big fish they caught were just insane. I know for sure that they’ll be talking about this one for a while and have plenty of great pics as proof of their success. Bragging rights all around boys!!

Jim & Marie were back for their annual fall fishing trip and they once again brought the wind. We were going to experience a big north blow for the entire time they were here. I was also going to have to switch puddles and fish!

The first day saw us taking a road trip and heading east. The winds would be much more tolerable where I was going and hopefully there would be fish. First cast by Marie saw a healthy 2-pound bass and I really thought we were going to hammer them. Boy, was I wrong! She had only one more smaller bass hooked on a crank, but it came off before reaching the boat. Our second spot produced nothing and we were on the move again. I was going to have a tough time today by the way it was looking!

Although the day began slowly, we managed to grind it out. There was only one spot that gave up any numbers and we stayed there for the entire time they were biting. Jim did however pick up one nice walleye from the area and it made for our first pic of the day.

The entire afternoon saw us covering water with a fish or two here and there, but no concentrations. The water levels were extremely low and I think this had the fish set up differently. More current was definitely better today! Although it wasn’t what I had expected, they did manage to catch a bunch of fish and that’s all that counts. Hopefully tomorrow will be even better!

Day two saw us heading to the usual body of water that I focus on most of the year. The winds weren’t great, but they seemed doable! I was going to give it a try and hoped for more and bigger today.

We made a long run to get the day started and began shallow to get out of the worst winds. They were blowing pretty good from the N/NE but were somewhat less where we were. As usual, Marie got the day started with the first bass, but it didn’t take Jim long before he too contributed. I had them both dropshotting and plenty of fish were caught and or missed while we were here. When it got slow, I moved offshore a bit and they continued to catch again. Today was the total opposite of what yesterday was, with each place holding numbers. Size was a different story but our next place did have several good ones landed before we almost ran out of time.

With the day passing quickly, they didn’t have much time left in their trip. I thought I would try one last area in the middle of nowhere to complete the day. It was here that they landed quality and I couldn’t leave them biting. I had to extent their time as it was just too good! Both Jim and Marie managed to catch their biggest fish of the trip and we only left when they stopped biting. Talk about a great way to end the day!

Water levels were definitely one of the reasons for tough fishing, but the NE winds were the biggest culprit. Mother Nature made fishing tough, as usual, but we overcame her wrath! It may have been a challenge but adjustments in presentation and moving around gave them the success they had. It’s always a great time when they are here and this trip was no different. I can’t wait for them to come back again next year!!

Nick brought along his son and his wife today for a morning trip on the water. The winds were blowing out of the W/SW and pretty good for the start. Several drifts over a key area for walleye only produced 1 good keeper eye and a bunch of missed strikes, so plan B had to go into effect sooner than expected. We made a long run, in big waves to get to another area for bass and weren’t disappointed! Everyone caught their share of fish but Sophie managed the biggest ones for the day. I was definitely glad we made the run! Gotta love Mother Nature in the fall!!

Luca and his father Tony joined me this morning, hoping for a great day of fishing. It was a birthday gift for Luca from his parents and he was really excited about getting back on the water again this fall. I had plans of trying for sturgeon first and moving on to bass afterwards.

Although we checked out several places for those dinosaurs, we never really saw much on the sonar. I eventually settled in one spot that had some potential, but was only rewarded with a Red Horse Sucker! Eventually we just pulled the plug and went for bass!

The balance of the day was spent fishing for smallies and there were plenty landed by both. With each area they fished, multiple bass were caught. In the end, I left them biting when we ran out of time. There were so many fish in these areas that I wasn’t able to complete all the spots I wanted. Oh well, I guess I’ll just have to come back another day!

Today was another special day for Luca as he not only got to go fishing on his birthday, but he did it with his dad. This surprise trip was told to him only the night before making it even better. He had also landed his personal best bass today making for the icing on the cake! For once, the weather worked out and the winds were light at best. I guess all the stars were aligned for Luca today!!