Another attempt at sturgeon fishing didn’t go unanswered for the gang today. Despite fighting a big NE wind, we were able to land 3 small fish. Brayden & Holden wanted to catch their very first sturgeon and we tried several places to get it done. Their father’s, Kevin & Thierry were happy to see it all come together, despite the smaller than usual size of their catch. Hopefully the next time out, there will be a few more pounds added to the fish!

Finally, back on the water after several days of nasty weather. Winds were going to be light today and from a decent direction, allowing me to go to the areas I wanted. Matt was with me and interested in learning how to dropshot, so we began with a drift! It didn’t take long before he locked up on a good smallie and was well on his way to graduating. I told him we were going to fish the technique three different ways and he was all in!

Each spot we hit held fish and by mixing it up, he was able to catch bass from all of them. There were even a few taken on blades which made for great hits. Casting the dropshot definitely produced the most fish and even landed him, his personal best walleye.

We finished off the day by vertically dropshotting deeper water and he hooked up instantly. Boat control was key to being able to keep the baits properly straight down and he realized very quickly how it was done. Several good bass were landed, including a nice double, before we were done.

This was definitely, a very relaxing day spent on the water! Matt fished tournaments back home and caught on to everything new today. I’m sure he will be adding dropshotting to his list of techniques already used in future events as well as just pleasure fishing. Great times were had by both today!

Another day with hateful east winds saw Nick, Adam and Greg back, searching for some action. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I knew dealing with the big east wind, wasn’t going to be easy. All I could do was hope that the fish would bite!

We began with a reverse drift over a spot that held both bass and walleye and it wasn’t easy. With three lines in the water, surely we would get something! After several unsuccessful passes, all we had to show for our efforts, was one bass. Despite marking plenty of fish and a few missed strikes, it just wasn’t working. I made a couple more reverse drifts here before finally pulling the plug entirely. I was about to try something new!

It had been quite some time since I had trolled, but I was about to give it a try. I set the lines and began covering water, looking for active fish. I trolled over plenty of the areas that usually produce, but I didn’t see anything. No bait equals no fish and I was definitely on that! Eventually I got over better-looking water with good cover and bait, when the first reel fired. As luck would have it, an oversized walleye soon came to the net. Finally, a decent fish! A second reel also went off while fighting the fish, but unfortunately that one came unpinned. These guys couldn’t believe where the fish had come from, let alone what it was caught on! I informed them that it probably wouldn’t be the last and reset the lines, hoping for more.

We continued covering water and this time when the reel fired, it turned out to be a good keeper. I realized that the area we were fishing was holding fish and concentrated here for a while. Although I had to cover plenty more water, I did get over another active fish and now there were two good eyes in the well. It may not have been on fire, but we were finally catching fish! Several other big ones were also caught from this area before we pulled the plug on the troll. Adam had to leave and we headed back to the dock to drop him off. Greg and Nick would be remaining and we would be trying other areas this afternoon.

It was after 1:00 now and I thought we’d try dropshotting once again. I returned to the place we began this morning and gave it another try. With plenty of fish in the area, we still weren’t able to get any of them to eat, so I didn’t stay long. I hit one more area further away and fortunately the fish were more cooperative. They both had plenty of bites from here and a combination of bass and walleye were landed before we were done.

Today was a bit of a challenge, to say the least. The big winds caused the fish to just shut down in most of the places I fished. I had to mix it up a bit just to make the fish bite. With opposing winds to the current, it wasn’t easy triggering anything into eating our offerings. I definitely grinded it out today, but in the end it all worked out. There may not have been the numbers I am use to seeing, but the size of the fish they landed made it all worthwhile! A tough, but very rewarding day!!

Richard flew solo today after his wife opted to stay back due to a cold. He experienced an interesting day with the hateful east winds but we prevailed in the end. After a few areas with spotty results, we finally settled on one that was loaded. Richard boated plenty of bass and even managed to get his personal best!

One of our last stops of the day finally produced a couple of walleye for him to take home. It also saw a couple of really big smallies too!

This day wasn’t easy, but in the end, it was productive! Richard managed to learn a new technique and boated so many bass while using it. Despite the winds, it turned out to be another great day of fishing!!

Michael was in from California and wanted to try a little freshwater fishing before heading back home. He scheduled a morning trip for today in hopes of catching some fish, other than the saltwater ones he was accustomed to. I was going to make sure that it happened!

We began in an area that looked good when we stopped, but after three passes and only one small bass, we immediately changed locations. The second place showed plenty of walleye but we were only able to get 3 keeper sized ones and one over. They were all returned to fight another day! After fishing a third spot without any luck, I decided to make a move to a distant location in hopes of salvaging the morning.

The time had passed by quickly and this was going to be the last place we would fish. Fortunately, it was holding bass and almost on his first cast, it began. I decided to stay an hour longer than we were supposed to and finished fishing by noon. In just a short amount of time, he had landed an insane amount, of bass. It seemed like almost every cast for a while! This was a perfect ending to his morning trip!

Michael left with a definite sense of satisfaction and a love of smallmouth bass fishing. He had battled many of these feisty fish and enjoyed every single one of them. I only wish we could have had more time, because we left them biting! Another great half day ending with a flurry of action!