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A morning trip cancellation due to unforeseen circumstances by my client had me spending some time on the water with a friend instead. We fished an area for smallies for a few hours and hammered several on soft plastics. The lake was an absolute mirror this morning!

The afternoon guests wanted to fish for sturgeon so we headed out to an area to anchor up & wait. Cedric & John had never caught or ever really seen one close up, but hoped to today. I wasn’t sure how it would go but decided to give it a try. I usually start fishing them around the end of the month but with the high heat we had been receiving lately, it might have grouped them up where I wanted to fish.

I idled around for a bit searching for signs of these dinosaurs but never really found much concentration. Eventually I found a few in one area and decided to give it a try. Everything was ready and I casted the lines back for the big, long wait! I decided that we would give it 15 minutes and make a move if nothing bit here and that we did. I made a move!

The sun was high and the heat was intense once again making me want to raise the roof for a little shade. Unfortunately the winds had picked up considerably as forecasted and this would make it more difficult to remain positioned. We relocated and endured the punishment instead!

Once again we remained for another 15 or 20 minutes after relocation but never had a nibble. Time for another move! This time however I did mark a few more fish close to where we originally set up and stopped there to fish. I was seeing life under the boat periodically and eventually set into a small fish. I knew it was the right species but it wasn’t very big. John took the rod and reeled in his first ever sturgeon. It was a juvenile but it was what we were looking for and he held it for a few pics before the release.

The winds had picked up quite a bit more, making it tough to see the rods with all the bouncing. We held in this area for a while and only managed one more fish, but it was just a perch. With time not on our side I made one more attempt at relocating and stopped on one last spot. This too produced another perch for Cedric to reel in. Not feeling like we were going to get it done I was getting ready to pull the lines when I saw one of the rods take a strange bounce. I grabbed it and felt another tug before realizing it was an actual bite. I set into some weight and passed it over to Cedric to reel in. I told him that it was larger than the first one but not a true giant that we had hoped for.

This fish fought line he was 50 pounds but I knew better. It dogged under the boat and took drag from the reel a few times giving him a great fight. A few minutes later, it was laying in the net waiting for the photo shoot!

Today was a little difficult to say the least with the conditions. The sturgeon weren’t plentiful but at least some of them were starting to group up. We managed to catch a couple of smaller ones but did get to see some giants go airborne around the boat. Overall it was a success as both guest got to land their first ever sturgeon. I call that a win!!

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With two trips scheduled for today, Jonathan & John joined me for the morning outing. We began with a troll and despite one quick bite from a pike, I had to cover plenty of water to get the second fish. Although John had a few on the line, they somehow let go before we could even tell what they were!

After about an hour or more, I finally found some active fish and the rods started to load. For over two hours they had multiple hookups from both pike & walleye. They even had a few double headers too!

Once the action slowed, I decided to switch gears and try for bass. A demo cast had me locked up instantly and I knew there would be more. They were both throwing soft plastics and despite losing several good smallies they managed to catch a few in the remaining time. Too bad the larger ones got off the line!

A quick turnaround saw the morning guys leaving and Ryan joining me for hopefully a great afternoon. The winds had built up pretty good and were blowing out of the SW at 15 to over 20 knots. It was going to be interesting indeed!

I ran slowly to an area and was in constant 2 & 3 footers almost the entire way. Once we arrived the waters almost looked calm as they were sheltered from most of the wind and I knew it would be easier to fish here.

I decided to teach Ryan how to cast a drop shot and it didn’t take long before we were hooked up. Both walleye and bass were caught and Ryan almost had his first musky when one decided to attack his walleye while reeling in. Although not giant, it was cool to see!

Once we had covered the area thoroughly, I decided to run to another place and try a little trolling. I had a technique that would benefit him on his upcoming fishing trip. As I neared the spot I was liking the wind and direction as we would be fishing in a good 1 to 2 foot roll. This is always better for what I was about to do!

With both lines in, it only took about 3 minutes for the first fish to fire a reel and Ryan was convinced with this technique. He boated a decent northern but it wouldn’t be his last!

I hadn’t planned on staying with the troll but we were catching fish. With each pass over the area multiple pike & walleye were being caught. You never leave fish to find fish! We ended up trolling till the end and he consistently landed one after the other.

Today was a great day all around with both trips being a success. Everyone left satisfied and Ryan even had several walleye to take home from the morning and afternoon catch. Great day for fishing!

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Gilles & his father Neil had another banner day with me today catching several different species of fish. Although we began in torrential rain, it eventually cleared and they were able to fish comfortably.

The trolling bite was slow at first but we managed to get on the fish eventually. They boated plenty of northerns and one walleye from the first spot including a couple of double headers.

Our second area produced plenty of fish but the bite was also slow at first. I kept at the troll and eventually found a small section that produced the bulk of the fish, including a couple of big eyes. They even managed to put a couple more high end keepers in the box for dinner tonight!

By midday the sun was shining and the heat was upon us too. It was going to be another scorcher! Fortunately we had a strong wind from the W/SW hat helped keep us cool, sort of! I hit several places for smallies and they managed to catch fish from every one. Although not giant like the previous day, they were definitely quality fish and fought like champs!

Time passed quickly today and before we knew it, the day was done. They had both managed to get another grand slam as well and even had a few fish to go home with in the end. I know they had a great time and I expect to see them back next year for round two. Who knows, maybe even sooner!

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Peter, Michael & Amanda joined me today on what was supposed to be the hottest day so far this year. Temperatures were going to reach into the 90’s and even higher with the humidex. It was going to be a real scorcher!

We began with the usual troll, in hopes of getting into some quick fish and after a couple of adjustments, managed to put the first walleye in the well. A few pike were also landed along with several missed strikes too. I only hoped that the fish wouldn’t be acting like they did yesterday, with way too many misses!

After covering plenty of water I decided to move to another area and it was here that Peter managed to bring a few big walleye aboard. It was a struggle to keep the fish on the hooks but both Amanda & Michael reeled in several other pike as well. I wasn’t happy about all the short rips and missed fish from this place and realized that with the lack of wind I was going to have to work even harder if we were to continue. After one last walleye by Peter, I decided to pull the plug and go casting for bass!

We were already near 11:00 when I made the move and set up the rods for everyone to use. I slid into shallow water and it didn’t take long before Michael was into the first bass of the day. When it jumped I knew that it was a giant and coached him on what to do to land this beast. Once in the net I think we were all in shock at exactly how big it really was and I had him hold it for a few pics. It had a strange color pattern on the body but it was in great shape as he released it back to the water, in hopes of another bite.

I had decided to try something different on one of the rods and made a cast to see if I could draw a few fish out. Immediately I was slammed and brought an even bigger bass to the net. This place seemed loaded and I was going to remain here until they stopped biting! Michael followed up with his second bass and although not quite as large as his previous one, it was still a giant! In just a few short casts he had managed to bring two absolute beauties into the boat. His father and sister were amazed at their overall size and wondered when they would get theirs. They may not have gotten the big ones like Michael but soon after, everyone was getting into fish of their own. Plenty of quality bass were taken from this area before things slowed and I had to move.

Our next location wasn’t nearly as good as the previous one but we did manage to get a few more fish from here. With the temperatures insane I only hit a couple of other spots briefly before I brought them somewhere to swim. Without the top up it felt like we were baking in an oven!

We headed to a shallower sandy place that they could take advantage of cooling off and even try fishing from chest high water at the same time. Amanda was the last to get in and casted from the boat before going in. She almost had a good bass from the deck but unfortunately it came off too quickly. I think it had surprised her and she pulled back too soon!

We remained in this area and they swam for almost an hour before we decided to resume fishing. With under an hour left in the day I wanted more! I knew they could get into a few more fish before we were done and moved to another shallow rock pike to try and get a few more bites.

Amanda wasted no time hooking into yet another beast of a bass when I heard the drag go from her reel. When it jumped I realized that it was a monster and guided her around the motors to land it. What a surprise she had when I finally netted her catch! These fish today were absolutely huge and would have been impressive at any tournament weigh in! Several pics were taken and the fish was released immediately after. Both Peter and Michael also got in the game adding a few more bass to the total but none the likes of the one Amanda had just caught.

I kept trying different areas and other sections of where we were and Amanda was locked up quickly once again. It was another giant! This time she fought it far from the boat and eventually I slid the net under her biggest bass of the day. I don’t even want to guess what kind of weight we would have had as a total for the five biggest bass today!

We fished for a little while longer and they managed to bring in several more bass and a couple of walleye before we were done. I don’t think they could have had a better day for big fish that what we had today as everyone landed personal bests. In fact without even knowing it, they all had slammed today as well. A combination of pike, walleye & bass made for the triple fish species they needed for their Grand Slams! Who could ask for anything more!

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Angelo brought his two sons, Alex & Damian out this morning for a half day trip. They were young and loved fishing but hadn’t really caught much in the past. Hopefully this was all about to change!

I decided that a troll would be the best thing for everyone and stopped in an area that I had confidence. With the lines in, we covered water searching for our first bite and hopefully before the rain began. The skies were pretty bad and by the looks of the radar, we were going to get something soon. I raised the roof quickly and minutes later a light rain started to fall. At least everyone would stay dry!

I had made a couple of passes in an area before one of the rods bent and Alex was into his first ever northern pike. Unfortunately this was the only one from here, so I moved on! I knew one section that had been holding good fish and began trolling over to it, hoping for another hit along the way. As I neared the area another reel fired and this time Damian took the rod and landed his first walleye. It was a nice one, but definitely an over that would only receive a few pics before being released. Both kids were now on the board and after a couple more pike each, their father took a turn catching one of his own.

We covered plenty of water searching for active fish but despite catching many pike, the walleye were almost nonexistent ! In fact, the fish we were catching weren’t really very active either with several of them falling off in the net. A bunch of short strikes were also had from many other fish before I could even get to the rods!

After making several passes in the same area, Alex finally managed to bring another walleye aboard and this time it was a high end keeper. We were also still catching pike but working hard to get them to stay on the hooks! All I could do was go through the motions and remain on the fish.

Time passed quickly this morning and with the end nearing they managed to land a bunch more good fish. Another walleye was brought in and I’m pretty sure an even bigger one was lost while reeling in the fish. It was definitely not a banner day for active fish but they still managed to catch a good number of them before we were done.

It was nice seeing the two boys with a passion for fishing and with any luck they will continue to enjoy it as they grow up. Hopefully they will be back out again with their father and maybe the fish will actually be active for them the next time. Either way, I’m sure they will enjoy spending time on the boat, just catching anything that bites!