Ed & his niece Angie were with me today and looking to get into some sturgeon. I just hoped that with the beautiful day forecasted, they would bite. Add to that the number of people taking advantage of the nice weather too and traffic might also be an issue.

We set up shortly after 8:00 and unfortunately never had a bite for the first 3 hours. Multiple moves were made but the results were still the same until I searched much shallower. I had marked some fish there and thought I’d give it a try.

It didn’t take long for the first bite and Angie landed a juvenile sturgeon. Ed followed up almost immediately with another small fish and I thought I was in the day care! After two more small sturgeon, I decided to get the hell out of the area and move back out to deeper water once again.

I soon marked a few decent fish and spot locked with the electric, hoping to get bit. Well we did get a quick fish but Angie reeled in another small sturgeon and things weren’t looking too good. About 15 minutes later, I was making another move to an area that had been producing big fish recently. A bunch of boats had cleared out, unsuccessful with their morning and I was finally able to fish where I wanted.

I don’t think the lines were in for more than 15 minutes when I saw a light bite on one of the rods. As soon as I set into the fish, I knew it was a good one. Ed quickly took the rod while Angie & I reeled in the other two lines, clearing room for the fight.

It was nice to finally see a decent fish on the end of the line and Ed enjoyed the battle too. A couple of minutes in, his fish breached in the distance and we saw that it was quality. The rest of the time the fish remained on the bottom and made multiple runs in all kinds of directions. Somewhere around ten minutes later, he managed to bring it up close enough for me to net. It was definitely long but a little on the thin side! Still, it was the biggest one so far for today and definitely worthy of a few pics before being released.

Angie was up next and the bite came pretty quick. I had managed to get two of the three lines back in and was re baiting the last one when we were hit. I immediately set into weight and knew she was about to do battle with a good one. I guess the last move was the right one as we were finally into quality fish!

Angie had caught a few small ones so far, but this one was the real deal. It took her all over the place with long runs, but never jumped. Just like the previous one, this fish remained on the bottom to the very end. In fact every time she started to bring it up, the fish just sounded again. She was on the sturgeon for almost 20 minutes before I was finally able to net it and bring her aboard. It was definitely bigger than Ed’s fish and a whole lot heavier!

After we had shot a bunch of good pics and returned the fish to the water, we resumed fishing once again. Unfortunately we weren’t as lucky with another quick bite, but did get one about 45 minutes later. I had been contemplating a move and was glad I had stayed! When I set into this fish, it didn’t budge. I knew right then that Ed was about to fight a really good one!

It took a little while but eventually the fish realized it was hooked and it just went nuts. Long runs and a nice jump were had before she settled on the bottom for the balance of the battle. Each time Ed tried to bring the fish up, it peeled line from the reel with another blistering run. This show was to last about 20 minutes before Ed was able to start gaining on his fish. Soon after, it was up near the surface and I carefully slid it into the net. The easy part was officially over. Time for the pics!

I don’t think Ed realized just how big his fish was until he had to hold the beast. It wasn’t pretty but we got the job done and he released her back to the depths. It’s always cool to watch on the sonar as the fish swims right back to the bottom!

Although we attempted another, it just wasn’t in the cards. After almost 45 minutes with no bites, we called it a day. It may have started out a little slow but it ended with a bang. Both Ed and Angie had landed several fish and a few of them were quality too. As for the gorgeous day on the water, well that was just a bonus! We couldn’t have asked for anything more after enduring the previous year. That was just living hell with big winds and giant waves!

Before they left, Ed made it a point to reserve the same time for next year. He may have to wait 12 months before he gets into another dinosaur but as for me, it’ll be much sooner. With the season drawing to an end quickly, I will be targeting sturgeon as many days as I can before it closes. With any luck there will be many more of these beasts boated before I switch to much smaller fish like bass & walleye. I can hardly wait for the next monster!

After a week of pounding on crappie, I was back out once again today for sturgeon. Phil wanted one more shot at his personal best and I aimed to please!

I had decided to devote the entire day, trying for only big fish and although it was slow, we made it happen. The first one to get hooked put up a great battle and remained on the bottom for almost the entire fight. Each time Phil tried to bring it up, the fish wanted no part of that and took off again. This fight lasted about 15 minutes and once it was near the boat, we realized why. It was really long and quite large too!

Although it was a big fish, it was also a male and had very little girth. Despite its size, we were still happy to have gotten a bite and even happier that it topped his previous largest. Several pics and a quick release later, we were right back in the water, looking for more!

The area wasn’t really looking great, with very few fish showing as I idled around. I made many short stops on places and moved several times before fishing one last spot. It was here that we managed to get a couple of red horse suckers and one other great bite. I had set into some weight and Phil was back in the game!

I could tell by the way this fish was fighting that it was big and hoped it would be heavier than the previous one. It was acting the same with the entire battle deep. Several good runs took plenty of line from the reel but she wasn’t coming up. At one point, the fish was right under the boat and going from one side to the other, completely on the bottom. It was a long battle that lasted almost 20 minutes before Phil was able to raise her up from the depths and into the net. Definitely larger than the first!

This fish was a little more difficult to hold as she was quite a bit fatter than the male he had caught earlier. It was about the same length but weighed much more! I shot a bunch of pics quickly and we got her back in the water to live another day.

We reset the lines again in hopes of another bite but with limited time, we were unable to get it done. Phil was going to have to settle with the two big ones he had landed for the day. Thankfully they were both larger than his personal best and that made it all worthwhile.

With everything packed up, we headed back to the ramp. Although we would have liked more action today, landing the two sturgeon that we had was very satisfying. I will be back out again tomorrow in search of more of these river monsters and with any luck, find a few of them to play with. More and bigger I hope!

Rafi & his daughter Tina were with me today and we were going big! I gave them the offer before we headed out and sturgeon was what we were starting with. Let’s just hope they would bite!

With the winds from the E/NE, I wasn’t sure how it would be, but decided to give it a try anyway. When I set up, I realized that I needed the aid of the drift sock just to keep us from being blown up current. This was going to be tricky with the wind & waves rolling from behind! It was a little difficult, but we were able to get the lines in and managed alright despite these unusual conditions.

We had been fishing for almost an hour without any bites when I decided to make a move. The winds had also calmed slightly, so I headed to another area to give it a try. Although I was marking some smaller fish here, I thought it would be better than nothing and anchored up to fish.

I had just casted the third line and was letting it sink when one of the other rods started to get bit. I immediately cranked on the reel, loading the fish while passing the sinking line to Tina. We were officially locked up and Rafi was about to get the fight of his life! We quickly brought in the other lines and cleared the area for him to do battle with his very first sturgeon.

What I had originally thought was a small fish, turned out to be a good one as it began peeling line from the reel. All he could do was hang on and feel the strength of the fish, as it ran. This battle was mostly fought deep as the fish never came off the bottom until the very end. Ten minutes or so later, I finally had the fish in the net and the fight was over. I shot a few pics and he released it back to live another day.

With the lines reset I was hoping to get Tina into a fish of her own and within 15 minutes, she was battling it. This wasn’t nearly as big as the previous fish, but it was her first sturgeon too. It was the perfect size for her to get started on and she enjoyed the battle. It even breached near the boat for everyone to see! Moments later I netted the fish and passed it to her to hold. After several pics, she returned it to the water and we reset, in hopes of another.

We were definitely in the right area as our third bite came soon after. I set into the fish and passed the rod to Rafi. This time however, it was a juvenile and was at the boat in no time. It didn’t matter though as they were catching fish!

I had all the lines back in the water and been waiting for a while when I noticed one of rods getting a subtle bite. Unfortunately when I set on the fish, it never grabbed and I missed the hook set. I brought the line back in and re baited it in hoped of getting the fish back.

Another 15 minutes had passed before we got our next bite, but it was a good one. I set into some serious weight and knew this fish was going to be large! I passed the rod to Tina and Rafi & I cleared the other lines in anticipation of a long battle.

You can always tell when a big fish is on the line, when it feels just like a snag! Other than the head shakes in the beginning, it wasn’t evening moving! She was in for a long & painful fight!

The amount of line that this fish took off the reel was scary and at one point I actually thought I was going to have to chase it. When the line counter reached over 200 feet, it finally stopped and Tina managed to gain most of it back. This was short lived however as it took it all back out once again. She was fighting a true river monster!

I believe that she had been doing battle with this fish for nearly 20 minutes and it wasn’t showing any signs of tiring. It was pressed tightly to the bottom and going from one side of the boat to the other. Every time Tina was able to bring it up, it turned and went right back down. Finally though, she was starting to gain and managed to bring it up for us to see! It was definitely the largest fish I had seen all season and I wanted it in the net. It wasn’t easy but after several more minutes and a few close attempts, I was able to net this beast and the fight was officially over. Tina was also officially spent!

I had left the monster in the net while prepping everything for the pics and was finally ready to lift it into the boat. I knew it was big but realized just how heavy when I tried hoisting it over the side. The net mesh caught on just about everything due to its shear mass, making it even more difficult for me to lift. Eventually however, I managed to swing it into the boat and onto the tarp for its protection.

With Tina seated on the back deck, we lifted it up and placed it onto her lap for some pics. It nearly crushed her and I had to shoot fast so as not to injure either of them! Between the two of us, we worked together to slide it over the rail after and back into the water. This had to be one of the top 3 biggest sturgeon to ever come aboard, in all the years of fishing them. To make it even more special, it was landed by a woman!

It was after noon now and they decided to end on a high with the sturgeon. We packed it in and headed back to the ramp for a short break and for them to warm up! I was going to fish for walleye after they were done and used the down time to prep the rods while they were gone.

The winds were blowing pretty hard from the east and it wasn’t going to be easy to fish where I was going. The good news was that there were fish and I caught one on the first drop. We spent the next couple of hours or so drifting opposite the current and a few more fish were landed. With this cold east wind, they both decided that they were done and we once again packed up and called it a day. There were 4 nice walleye in the livewell and at least they would be having fish for dinner!

This was an incredible day of fishing despite the crappy conditions we had to deal with. The highlight was definitely the monster that Tina had caught and that made everyone’s day! The bonus was the dinner they would be having from the fresh catch they were bringing home. Other than being cold for most of the day, they both had a good time, loaded with great fishing! I can’t wait to get back out, searching for another King Kong!

October 19^th 2019

Joel & Mindy had rescheduled their trip for sturgeon last month and today was the day! They were hoping to catch their very first one, but really didn’t know what to expect. If I could mark them, they would catch them!

We set up in an area that showed signs of life and although it did take longer than I wanted, Mindy managed to catch a juvenile. It was cute to see but not what I was looking for!

I had been contemplating a move, but held a little longer when I began marking more fish. Apparently it was a good choice too as we never left the area the entire day. Once the fish began to bite, we saw action all day long. The best period was definitely when the moon was setting as the bigger fish seemed to eat. They caught several quality ones that fought like champs. Most of them even jumped giving everyone a great view of their size.

Today was one of those beautiful fall days and I think everyone that owned a boat, was on the water. At least we didn’t have to deal with too many pleasure craft, as all the boats seemed to be fishermen!

As the afternoon passed, Mindy and Joel kept catching and plenty of great fights were had. The long runs were fun to watch as they struggled to reel these fish back to the boat. It seemed like each time they gained, it was followed up with another reel screaming run. Every time I netted their fish, a sigh of relief was had!

The last fish of the day turned out to be one of the biggest but the fight was definitely the best. Joel spent at least 20 minutes on the beast, before bringing it to net. There was no sense getting the lines back in afterwards, so we packed everything up and called it a day.

With each fish they caught today, Joel & Mindy gained more confidence on just what to do. In the end, they fought every sturgeon like they had been doing it for years. I’m pretty sure they’ll be talking about this trip for a long time and remembering all of the battles they endured. What a great day for fishing!

Today was their last day so Vito & Al decided to go pound on the smallies one more time. They were more than happy to battle as many bronze backs as they could hook.

Soon after we arrived at the first spot, Vito wasted no time getting the ball rolling with several bass and one of them was a true giant. The bite wasn’t great with the fish barely biting and several bass were missed on the strikes. By slowing down their presentations, they were able to keep most of the fish pinned all the way to the boat. Unfortunately a few of the real big ones came off though from too much pressure. It was going to be one of those days!

From deep to shallow, they hooked fish after fish all day long! It didn’t seem to matter what they threw, as long as it matched the depth we were in. Plenty of the fish were quality along with many feisty smaller ones too. They definitely didn’t lack the numbers today!

We were scheduled to finish up right around 4:00 but a last minute spot held us for an additional 15 minutes or so. Both Vito & Al were getting into bass on almost every cast and I hate to leave fish biting! Al even landed the elusive fall fish on his very last cast ending the day on a high note. He had really wanted one of these things and previously been only able to watch as Vito boated many of them.

These past four days had passed quickly but we were fortunate to have had all of them with almost perfect conditions. I couldn’t have asked for better weather for this time of year! I’m sure they will remember the time they spent up north and hopefully I will see them again next season. It was definitely a pleasure, fishing with them as they brought all their own tackle and they were a couple of great sticks. I couldn’t have asked for anything more!