I was back out again today with Tim and Mike hoping for, « The Big Bite »! We hit the water shortly after 10 A.M. and were into fish almost immediately. The weather was a little better than the last time we were out but the fog was still quite present. Fortunately, the visibility was more than just a few feet making the running not as dangerous. We weren’t going to see any sun today as there were lots of clouds just drizzling on us the entire day. Air temps were in the low to mid 40’s and the winds were out of the W/SW at around 10 knots giving us a pretty good drift. Ironically, the water temps hadn’t fallen very much and were now holding at 47 degrees. Tim drew first blood as we drifted over deep water and brought a nice 3 pound walleye to the net. Several more drifts later and only a few more smaller bass had us looking elsewhere for the mother load. We jumped around again and found small pods of decent fish in each new area we fished. There were also 3 more walleye caught up to about 4 pounds in between the smallies. With the heavy cloud & fog over us we knew that the afternoon would be rather short and tried many more areas just looking for the bigger ones, only to come up a little short once again. Although there wasn’t anything landed over 5 pounds there were still several others close and everyone had a hand in catching them. Shortly after 3 o’clock we were getting ready to head out and caught several more before we called it a day. The darkness comes early now and without the sun, even earlier! We weren’t able to find the ones we were looking for, but there were still plenty of decent sized ones caught throughout the day. Considering what « Mother Nature » had dealt us, I think we made out pretty good on this not so perfect day!!

Well, Tim & I were back on the water again today but this time without Mike. The weatherman forecasted a sunny day with highs near 50 degrees and we were really looking foreword to seeing it. We drove through an intense fog to get to the launch area and I wasn’t even sure that I would be able to get out. With the aid of GPS we managed to go slowly through the fog taking care not to hit anything. The air was so cold at 34 degrees with all the dampness that the 47 degree water temps were creating a thick fog bank and it felt more like London. With no wind at all I knew we would be having this for quite some time. It didn’t take long for us to hook up once we arrived but it was a really eerie feeling not being able to see anything in any direction. Several smaller bass up to 3 pounds or so were taken in the first few hours but nothing much bigger was even seen. We carefully moved around all the while searching for bigger bites but were still only getting them in the same size range. With the dampness in the air the fog didn’t seem like it was ever going to leave us and it didn’t! We were stuck in this soup bowl the entire fishing day and the air temps never exceeded 38 degrees. Although many bass were caught we were never really able to find anything larger than maybe 4 pounds but considering the conditions, we were satisfied. It was like fishing at dusk for the entire outing and by 3:30 we were contemplating calling it quits. Fortunately by now the fog had opened up just enough to be able to run safely but it was still present. We caught a few more bass in the last 15 minutes or so and then headed back. I didn’t want to be on the water any longer than necessary and definitely didn’t want to leave in the dark. The fog was beginning to gather a little more with the day’s end nearing and another hour would have had us not only in the dark but also fogged in once again. Considering the conditions, we fended fairly well and had plenty of action throughout the day. I still want to know where the weatherman got his forecast from though!!

Well today was a real treat as Tim was back but this time Mike tagged along just to show us how it was done. We began the day in cooler conditions than yesterday and a 10 knot wind from the north. Cloud cover was present all day despite the weather forecast of sunny skies! Air temps only made it up to around 46 degrees and the water was warmer at 47.5. First drift through an area, Mike was locked up and soon landed a beautiful walleye of 4 pounds or better. Looks like he’s caught his dinner for tonight! With the contradicting winds and current I decided to do some casting after only one fish was caught while drifting through. This is where Mike put on a clinic for us as he just pounded them for over an hour. We managed to catch a few of our own but Mike was definitely on fire as he seemed to be locked up on almost every cast. After a painful demonstration of how it was supposed to be done, we relocated to another area nearby and Tim locked up almost instantly. Another beautiful, clone walleye was also brought to net and I thought we were going to crush them once again. Unfortunately, the winds had almost died completely and with them, the bite. Now the bass were acting a little different and bites were more difficult to detect as they were just barely tapping baits. You really had to be on your game to detect some of the hits as it just felt like a weed when they picked up. We moved all over for the rest of the day all the while picking a few fish here & there. As it neared closer to 4 o’clock we were ready to pack it in and roll out of there. Mike’s fishing skills really shined today as he managed to school both of us on this not so perfect day. We had to contend with all sorts of conditions and adjust several times in order to continue to be on fish. Hopefully tomorrow will bring sunshine and a different attitude from the bass as we’ll be back for more smallie action. I think I’ll take the points off of Mike’s hooks this time in order to level the playing field allowing us all an equal chance!!

Tim joined me today for the first of several days of fishing for smallmouth bass. We got a rather later than usual start to the day and were fishing sometime after 11:00 A.M. The weather was unseasonably warm once again with air temps expected to reach almost 50 degrees. Along with clouds and occasional sun we were also blessed with winds from the SW at less than 10 knots too. This had the makings of a really enjoyable day! We started with a drift along a current break in deeper water but weren’t able to pick up anything bigger than a couple of pounds. We did miss a few that felt somewhat larger though and soon relocated hoping for bigger bites. The next location saw more of the same but Tim did manage to get one closer to 4 pounds and missed sever others as well. Due to the short day I was jumping around looking for the bigguns and not holding in any areas longer than needed. I figured that if I hit enough spots and covered plenty of water we would be able to find some larger ones to play with. Unfortunately, the 2 to 4 pound smallies were the active ones today and the best that we could come up with were only around four pounds. There was however a nice walleye of about 4 pounds as well and that was just a bonus! We once again fished till about 4 o’clock and called it a short day. Although we only got to fish for less than 5 hours, it was still a productive day on the water with plenty of nice bass caught. We’ll be back out again tomorrow and hopefully the big ones will be a little more cooperative as we will be spending more time looking for them too!!

Back from N.Y. Norm was ready to hit the water for another kick at a giant smallie. We began fishing in beautiful sunshine, light NE winds and air temps right around the freezing mark. Water temps had dropped slightly once again and were now topping out at 47.5 degrees at best. The fish seemed a little sluggish this morning and we had to work hard for every bite we received. As the sun got higher though and the water temps began to rise, so did the fish’s activity level as well. The bites were more frequent and less spaced out but the best we could come up with were fish in the 4 pound class. We fished deep, mid and shallow areas all the while catching from each zone. The current breaks had to be fished in the soft water seems in order to locate anything aggressive enough to commit. We even managed to catch a bunch of walleye, all the while searching for the bigger bass! At one point in the afternoon after Norm had landed a couple of really nice bass, the bite just shut off like a light switch. I knew something was up when we were bit off a couple of times and then Norm hooked up on something big. It was definitely the culprit and I was sure this wasn’t going to end well. After a few minutes of struggling to get this thing up, it bolted and left us just wondering. Although we never caught even a glimpse of the fish we were pretty sure what it was and decided to try another area after several unsuccessful attempts at catching bass. They just weren’t going to take a chance with a predator lurking around, I guess! The rest of the afternoon was spent jumping all over just looking for a few big fish and unfortunately all we could come up were 4 pounders at best. The fish just weren’t willing to allow Norm the bragging rights of the elusive Holy Grail that he’s been searching for. We ended the day with plenty more bass but not the one we were after and by 4 o’clock we were on our way home. The search for the elusive six is turning out to be a quest much like the one he went through last season for his five. I hope it doesn’t carry over into next year as it will be an awfully long winter for Norm!!