I was back on the lake once again today, with Richard and his son Josh, for more smallmouth action. We met at the ramp around 7:30 and headed out shortly after in pursuit of the bass. My first thoughts were to hit an area that had produced great the day before and let them get into numbers. There was a light chop on the water as we raced towards our first spot with great expectations. At 8:00 the air temps felt a little chilly, but I knew we were headed for another scorcher as they were going to rise into the mid 80’s by days end. Sunny skies and an occasional cloudy period would be expected, according to the weather reports, but you know how that goes! I set them up with spinnerbaits hoping for a quick bite and wasn’t disappointed. Josh unleashed the lure, letting it fly like a veteran angler and began cranking when it just stopped. He locked up to a decent 3 pound smallie while his father was still getting ready! Usually it’s not a good thing to catch a fish on your first cast but that doesn’t apply at his age. It’s the kid factor rule! He managed to get another one soon after and then his dad got in the game as well. We hung in here for a while catching a bunch more then hooked into a big fish that definitely didn’t feel like any bass. As it turned out, it was a sturgeon and Richard was happy to fight his very first dinosaur. While slowly dragging a tube jig, the fish had sucked it in and was now pinned to 10 pound line and a lengthy battle was in progress. I was eventually able to grab the tail and lift the thing aboard for a few pics. At under 10 pounds it was a rather small one but nonetheless a sturgeon! Now Richard had another fish species to add to his list. We hung in here for a little longer catching a few more smallmouth and then headed to another area not too far away for more smallie action. With absolutely no wind, it felt like the current had been shut off and the fishing got a little tougher. Now we had to work for each and every bite and slow was the only way to get bit. Senkos and more tubes had to be almost dead sticked in order for the fish to show any interest at all. A few more smallies were taken before another heavy fish was felt on the tube and ironically another sturgeon was on. This one however had the jig in the side of its head and this made it much more difficult to land. Eventually I was able to grab it once again and Richard now had another one even larger than his first. It would have gone somewhere around 15 pounds or so and just as prehistoric looking as the first. Another couple of pics and back the beast went. We stayed on this area a little longer then decided to try trolling a little as Josh just wanted to drive the boat. It was just as tough to get bit here as everywhere else due to the high heat & humidity and lack of wind under bluebird skies but we managed a few takers. Several pike later one of the rods went off and simultaneously another reel also started to scream as well. We were into a double and they were both walleye. Josh had landed one about 3 pounds and his dad one other slightly smaller. Into the livewell they went for their dinner tonight. By now it was getting on and the heat was starting to get unbearable so we decided to try another area just so we could get the breeze. I thought I would try and finish off a limit for them and immediately went to work setting the rods. The first reel to go off was a board line and soon after another walleye was joining his friends in the well. In the next 45 minutes we managed to finish out the limit and threw back a few smaller ones as well. It was almost 5 o’clock and really unbearable by now so we all decided to pack it in and head back. Plenty of other boats were on the water today and with all the sunshine it was almost as bad as last weeks holiday weekend fiasco. I was glad to get off the lake and all the rollers from every direction from other boats and head home to the air. Without the wind the 85 degree temps made it feel more like 100 and I was drained. Overall a much tougher day on the water but plenty of fish were landed making it a good one!!

Jeff & Mariann were with me today for probably the best bass action outing, so far this season. We met around 7:00 and were on the water soon after, in hot pursuit of smallies! The winds were from the N/W at 5 to 10 knots and the air was a chilly 69 degrees as we made our way to the first spot. Jeff had fished tournaments before so I knew all I had to do was put him on fish and he would catch them. Mariann hadn’t fished since she was a kid and the basics were where she was to start. While I was instructing her on how to handle the rod & reel, we saw a bass go to the air near the boat. Not to my surprise, it was pinned to Jeff’s spinnerbait and only on his second cast. It’s never good luck to hook up on your first and Jeff was aware of that too! I knew right then & there that we were going to have a fantastic day! Immediately after the first, he nailed another on the next cast and several more before Mariann even made her first cast. It didn’t take too long before she was casting on her own and both Jeff & I were amazed at how fast she picked it up. She was throwing a spinnerbait as well but not having the same results as Jeff. Every time I looked over, his rod was doubled over and he was fighting another fish. Now I know why they call him the vacuum back home! It took a while before Mariann got into one of her own and it wasn’t on a spinnerbait but rather a slowly fished senko. She was starting to get the hang of it and we weren’t even an hour into the day. I don’t think she realized just how strong these smallies actually were until she had one on the other end of the line. Although it beat her up pretty good, I was soon able to net her prize and capture a few “Kodak” moments before another release. We stayed in this area until the fish started being too small to enjoy and then shifted to another spot close by for more. Jeff was now on a tube and repeating what he had started in the first place while Mariann was still throwing a senko and getting use to the whole process. Round two was another turkey shoot as the vacuum was running on high and loving every minute of this day. He usually has to fish deep back home with a drop shot rig but was power fishing in shallow water today. Although Mariann wasn’t catching nearly as many, she was still getting into some of her own and enjoying fishing once again. The winds were blowing pretty good where we were, creating quite a chop on the water and I’m sure this had something to do with the activity level of the bass. I knew there were plenty more fish in the area so I shifted directions and Jeff casted a crankbait from a different angle. What a surprise, he locked up several more times, once again! It didn’t seem to matter what he threw, they just ate! Eventually we decided to relocate and run up the lake looking for less windy areas to fish. It was here that Jeff got a topwater bite with a spook and it was a bigun! Of course the fish had to hit at long range making the fight last even longer than it should. Couple that with the second hook pinning her in the side and he had a battle on his hands. Eventually I was able to slip the net under a four pounder and so far the best fish of the day. We fished this area for a while and both Mariann & Jeff were hooking up pretty good on a variety of baits. These fish were just chewing well today! The next three spots were carbon copies of every previous location, as we could do no wrong! When it neared the end of the day, we made one final stop on another spot looking for a few more biters. Well, this lasted about an hour when they just wouldn’t stop biting! Jeff began the ball rolling with several good ones on a spinnerbait and then switched to a tube for the slower biters. Mariann was matching him on a senko with plenty of others as well and it wasn’t time to leave. The cardinal rule is never to leave fish biting and I wasn’t going to break it today! We just stayed on the fish, pounding them right till the end. Even when we did decide to leave, there was a fish caught on the last cast. I think they had filtered through all the large & medium ones and were now into the smaller bass when we headed back. This was Jeff’s first experience with the lake but after today, not his last. Mariann on the other hand, has a whole new outlook on Jeff’s love of the sport and I’m sure will be joining him on future fishing trips. Words cannot explain just how good today actually was, so let’s just say it was insane and leave it at that!!

The lake was like a ghost town this morning as Scott & John joined me on the water. We were going to have a great day and I knew they were both going to have a “Grand Slam” when we were all done. It was like a mirror out there and without the weekend boat traffic, it looked like it would stay that way too! The humidity was still present and with the expected highs to reach the mid 80’s, it would be another scorcher. We began with a troll for walleye in an area that I had good results lately and it didn’t disappoint me again. Within 10 minutes the first reel went off and John was landing a pretty nice walleye of almost 19 inches. Unfortunately that was the only one to make it to the livewell from here and we needed to relocate. Oh we did manage to land several others but they were all just 15 inches and I knew we could do much better. Along with the short ones there was also a bunch of smallies and a few northerns thrown in for good measure! The second area produced a couple more walleye the same size, then nothing. It wasn’t going too good where we were but we were picking at fish about every 10 to 15 minutes. Both walleye and anorexic pike were coming aboard but not at the rate I was so accustomed to and I knew another change was about to occur. I packed up the trolling gear and pulled out the bass rods to change up the species and off we went. I guess this was the right decision as both Scott & John began catching smallies almost instantly. Senkos were once again responsible for the bulk of the fish but several were also taken on jerkbaits, crankbaits and an occasional spinnerbait. They were given the choice to remain on bass or switch back to the walleye trolling and both agreed to hammer the smallies for the remainder of the day. I covered all the best areas in the process and they managed to catch fish from each and every one that we stopped at. It had been several years since John had fished and he was right back in the game and on his “A” game too. Although he missed plenty of bass, he managed to catch more than he lost and in the process developed a love for the sport once more. It won’t be nearly as long the next time before he gets back out to tackle more of these powerful smallies! Scott and John are already making plans to hook up again for another spectacular fishing day and I’m ready for more! What a way to spend “Independence Day”!!

It’s rare that I have a weekend date available, but even rarer that both days are open. Christiane took advantage of this and we pleasure fished on both days for a variety of species. Saturday began with boats already out and it became even more insane as the day went along. Although there wasn’t much wind there were waves in all directions again and not much courtesy on the lake. Sailboats set up courses directly where I was trolling walleye and made it impossible for me to continue fishing the area. I decided to hit an alternate species and headed for smallmouth bass instead. We managed to get into several decent ones but nothing huge and shifted locations once again. With all this boat traffic, it was actually getting dangerous in certain areas and I had to be careful while running from place to place. Cruisers were the worst as they were mostly plowing through the water creating ship like rollers. Multiply this by the hundreds and you have the recipe for disaster! I decided to get away from all this turmoil and fished shallower areas of the lake just to be safe. We spent most of the day trolling flats and weedy areas all the while catching a number of walleye and bass. By 4:00 we had both seen enough and got off the lake while we still had our sanity. Despite the overpopulated waters today we still managed to catch plenty of fish to make this yet another good day to be out. Sunday was a totally different animal as we were practically alone on the lake today, with the weather forecast. They were announcing thunder showers and I think that scared everyone away! I figured we would take advantage of this and dropped the lines in and began the troll. Within 5 minutes the reel fired and Christiane was bringing in the first of many fish of the day. This one however was a real beauty at 26.5 inches and well worth a few pics before being released. What a way to start the day! Several more fish came in and some of the smaller ones were kept for a dinner that evening. Her family was coming over and I had to provide a meal for four, so I only harvested what we could eat. Once we had what we needed, I thought we would switch gears and try for some smallies elsewhere. Before I could bring in the lines, the board went off hard and a big black beauty was attached to the minnow bait. Christiane had a blast with this one and after quite a struggle to get to the board, she was finally able to fight it to the net. This was huge and almost weighed in at 5 pounds! Who says you can’t catch bass trolling? The run to our bass area was actually safe today and with the flat conditions, not rolling 4 footers like yesterday! We once again had a beautifully sunny day with air temps in the mid 80’s and it seemed like a weekday. I was pretty sure we wouldn’t get away with this for too long and tried to take advantage of the situation as long as it lasted. By the afternoon, it could all change! We began hammering smallies on jerkbaits and senkos in every area we fished for the remainder of our stay. With the water temps rising into the low 70’s the fish were active and eagerly eating our offerings. I thought we would try an hour or so of trolling for walleye again and packed up the bass rods for the day. The run this time wasn’t as nice as earlier, as people were now realizing that the weather was too nice to stay home. The “Flight of the Cruisers” were back and churning up the lake once again! I had to take alternate routes just to stay away from the waves and headed to the shallows again. With the jack plate I was able to run through only a few feet of water safely and avoid the afternoon rush hour traffic! We spent the last hour or so catching another 7 walleye before we called it a day. It was just after 3:00 and we thought getting off the lake a little early was wise today. Once again, despite the busy afternoon, we had a great day on the water loaded with plenty of action. Christiane had been able to take advantage of my lack of clients this weekend and catch a few real nice fish in the process. I on the other hand was just grateful to have lived through the long weekend and nobody got hurt!!

Canada Day eh! Well I was on the water anyway, in probably the busiest water traffic day of the year, this season. Rakeen, Herne & Marlin joined me all the way from Jersey. They were in Montreal for a few days and wanted to see what the fishing was like in the city. We hit the water around 7:30 and I wasn’t surprised to see several other boats already fishing where I was heading. It was going to be a beautiful day and as a holiday, a busy one too! Highs in the mid 80’s along with only sunshine & no wind were predicted and every type of boat would be taking advantage today. We began trolling along a series of humps looking for our first walleye and it didn’t take long to find one. As the reel started to scream, so did another and we had doubles! Both Herne & Rakeen were into their first of many fish of the day and it was game on. We were soon landing one northern and a walleye and the livewell was fired up. They were going to eat well tonight! We concentrated in this area for a while and managed to land a few more fish, but it wasn’t up to par for me so we pulled the lines and relocated. The second area had the water temps around 65 degrees and down from several days before. I was sure the fish would be a little lethargic but set the lines and started to troll anyway. Well, it didn’t take long and one of the reels started screaming to the tune of northern pike. It was a good one too and soon on the boga for some picks. This fish was like a celebrity because everyone wanted her picture! We continued to troll varies sections of this area all the while hoping for more action. We managed to pick at them but as with the first place, it was a slow process. While I was prepping the lines for another species, the outside reel went off and Rakeen landed his first walleye ever. At 21.5 inches she was a beauty, but had to be released due to the new slot in Quebec. Several more pics and back she went. Next up was a shot at some bass action and apparently it was the right choice as we began getting them almost immediately. Crankbaits, spinnerbaits and the elusive senko were all playing a role in hooking up and everyone was catching fish. The soft plastics were definitely out performing the other lures but I decided to keep the lineup this way trying to cover all the bases. Rakeen was having a great time up front with me on the senko and just crushing them one after the other. At one point I think he had a fish on for 5 casts in a row! Being use to getting smaller bass in Jersey he was amazed to see all the 3 pounders and just how strong they were. Of the 3 guys, he was the one most experienced and taking advantage of every minute on the lake. The other two had their share of activity and were happy to just look on instead of fishing. I decided to take them back to the dock around 1:30 as Marlin wasn’t feeling well due to the lack of sleep and all the sun on the water. Back out Rakeen & I went after the drop off and I thought we would set the lines and try a little trolling for more walleye. Within 45 minutes we had many reels go off and another bunch of walleye joined their buddies in the well. Pike, bass and walters were coming in regularly so I thought we would go back and see if we could get into more bass action before we called it quits for the day. It was definitely the right choice as Rakeen locked up on a real bruiser soon after we arrived. When it took to the air I knew it was big and another personal best was about to be broken, again! It was a real struggle at the boat as she bull dogged everywhere making it difficult to get in the net. Eventually I was able to scoop her up and Rakeen couldn’t believe his eyes! Although she wasn’t a five, she was surely in the high fours and well worth several pics. Too bad the others weren’t here to see the beast! A quick release after the shots and she bolted to the depths for security. We were both glad we decided to come back and fish for smallies instead of continuing to troll for walleye. After a few more smaller fish in this area I decided to call it a day and headed back to take out. Today had proved to be slow in starting but ended with a bang as Rakeen would remember at least one of his fish for a while. Along with the big bass he had caught his first walleye and a pile of others as well. I’m sure the next time he comes to Montreal he won’t have a hard time convincing his friends to spend another day on the water. I look forward to seeing them again, soon!!