After a couple of unsuccessful attempts at getting Norm’s nephew on the water, today was the day. Adam was going to have the time of his life reeling in all kinds of fish, all day long. The weather was an important factor setting this day up as we wanted to have a decent one with preferably no precipitation and we had it. We even had sunshine, warm air temps in the upper 70’s and a nice wind of 5 to 10 knots from the west. Who could ask for more! We started off trolling in an area I had some success in and it didn’t take long before Adam was battling his first of many fish. This one was a pike however and we released it immediately. The next few fish were either walleye or smallmouth bass and he had officially managed to get a « Grand Slam » before 10:00 A.M. After a few hours in this location we decided to relocate to another area with bigger & better hopes for more fish. As luck would have it, the first reel to fire also was followed by a second one and we had a double. Yeah, Norm got to land one too! We were greeted with a couple of 5 pound northerns and it began. For the next few hours there were pike & walleye being caught every 10 minutes or so and several doubles were involved. Most of the walleye were in the 2.5 to 3.5 pound range with a couple of fours and one over 5 pounds. It was all good as Adam was reeling in fish one after the other! When things slowed down a bit, we changed it up to casting for bass and went to another area not too far away. Adam hadn’t really fished before this day and everything he was doing was for the first time. I taught him the basics with a spinning rod and within 5 minutes he was casting like a veteran. I couldn’t believe just how comfortable he was with this outfit in his hands and how he made the adjustment from the level wind reels with right hand retrieve to the spinning reels and a left hand retrieve. This kid’s a natural! He even landed a couple of bass on his own with soft plastics and lost another big one when it hit him too close to the boat. We casted to the smallies for a little while longer then decided to call it a day when the winds kicked up a bit too much to be able to fish the area successfully. This may have been Adam’s first experience with fishing, but I know it won’t be his last. As long as he has a « Fishaholic » as an uncle, there will be more. I guess I know what his uncle will be getting him for a Christmas present this year!!!

I had a guest from the « Sunshine State » today, in on a birthday visit to Montreal. His wife had arranged all the plans right down to the fishing trip that she gave him as his present. We hooked up at 7:00 A.M. and hit the water shortly afterwards in search of walleye. The weather had changed significantly since the day before with a cold front and strong winds. Air temps were barely 60 degrees at the start with the winds blowing 10 to 20 knots from the W/NW. This really made trolling a challenge in our first spot as it was hitting me from the side. The floating weeds were a factor as well, as we had to check the lines more frequently to ensure that they weren’t fouled up. With the cloud cover I really thought we were going to just hammer them, but we once again had to work hard for each & every fish we caught. When the first reel fired off, I thought he was into a walleye only to be disappointed as a northern came to the boat instead. The next one however was the real deal and a plump 3 pound walleye was slipped into the livewell for later pics. In the next hour or so we spent more time fighting the wind & weeds than actual fish but still managed our fair share. Three more clone walleye were caught along with a mix of pike & bass before we decided to relocate to another area hoping for cleaner water. As luck would have it, there were fewer weeds to contend with and more fish which was a better combination. I don’t think it was 5 minutes before the first rip was had and Mark was into his fifth walleye. This one was a little better than 4 pounds and the largest so far, for the day. He did lose something big in the previous spot when the hooks pulled free, but we never got a confirmation on the species. We were definitely into fish in this area as we managed to land another 4 or 5 walleye and a bunch of northerns in the next few hours. The reels were firing like popcorn at one point and this was a good thing! Once he had his fill of walleye and pike I thought we would try for the grand slam with some smallies and he agreed. In the next area he had a couple of bass hammer a spinnerbait in the wind & waves and managed to get one of them to the net. As luck would have it, this was the smaller of the bunch when we saw three others following it to the boat. They were all big and black and I knew they were in the 4 pound range! They were never to be seen again after we released the 2 pounder from his line and we wasted no time relocating after battling these horrific conditions. The next few areas were much more user friendly as we were able to withstand the wind without the waves and he managed to get into a bunch of bass, yo yoing a spinnerbait. They were just crushing the lure on the fall and fighting like champs. We also picked up several other smallies on senko’s and tubes before we called it a day and headed back to take our punishment in the waves. I’m sure glad we were in the Ranger! Mark had managed to get his grand slam after all and had a blast battling fish pretty much all day long in not so perfect like conditions. I’m sure he will take home the memories of this birthday vacation in Montreal and with any luck, be back some day soon!!

After another cancellation today, Tom was ready to take over for the no show. One person’s loss is another’s gain! We hit the water after 11:00 and were almost immediately into fish. With the overcast skies and intermittent sunshine I thought we were going to just crush the walleye, but we had to work for every one. The wind was the biggest factor blowing from the west at 10 to 20 knots creating a 2 to 3 foot chop on the lake. The air temps were in the low to mid 70’s and the water temps were around 72 when we set the lines and began our troll. Unfortunately the first fish was a northern of around five pounds but the next fish was the real deal. Tom wanted to keep a couple of walleye if we were to get into them and I didn’t think it was going to be a problem as we put this 2.5 pound fish into the livewell. In the next couple of hours we were able to land a mix of northerns, bass & walleye up to 4 pounds. As luck would have it, we had a real big smallie come unpinned as Tom was reeling it in and it might have been close to 5 pounds. Oh well, crap happens! We had landed about 7 or 8 walleye and gone through a long stretch of nothing when another reel fired and I knew this was a good fish. With an approaching weather change moving dark skies in, we had contemplated heading out, but held in for one more fish. This was to prove to be the one as I slid the net under a 24 inch walleye and we were both glad we hung it out! A couple of quick pics, a quick release and we were off to the ramp to take out. This may have been a short 3.5 hours of fishing, but it was productive. Tom landed a real nice walleye and got to take home a couple of fresh fish for dinner. What could be better!

I was back on the water with Alain & Cindy this morning in search of more smallmouth bass. We had a different type of weather with cooler air and stronger winds from the west blowing 10 to 20 knots. Skies were filled with mostly sunshine as we began casting a variety of baits for these big bass. Alain was throwing a jerkbait to try & locate fish while Cindy tossed a spinnerbait over the area. When the first fish actually hit, I think Alain almost had the rod torn from his hands with the violent strike. Five pounds of brown fish took to the air and the battle was on. This fish bull dogged & leaped, fighting for her life as he reeled it to the boat. The hooks came free not a second too late as I netted the beast and admired its overall mass. It definitely went 5 pounds and into the livewell for later pics she went! Cindy was the next to be blasted by a freight train as she too had the rod nearly torn from her hands with another violent hit. Locked up! After a brief battle with one of the meanest fish that swims in freshwater, I netted another really quality fish of almost five pounds. After unhooking her, Cindy was in awe with just how big it actually was before I put her into the livewell once again. Size really does matter! We continued fishing this area for a while and picked a few more here & there with Cindy losing another real hog. Although there was a slow period during the afternoon where we were subjected to seeing them & not catching, we did rebound later when the winds kicked up a notch. I realized that they no longer wanted the reaction baits and switched up to tube jigs and the bite was on. Alain managed to get several more real giants with this technique while Cindy somehow struggled. She did redeem herself a little later though when she started to get the feel for the subtle bites and slammed several of her own. We fished till just after five before we decided to call it a day and headed back. This new area had produced some quality fish for us today and everyone caught their share of « Big Heavies ». Oh yeah, this time they weren’t camera shy and there were some pictures to prove it too!!

I hit the water early this morning with Alain & Cindy, trolling for pike & walleye. They wanted to get a couple of walleye for dinner and catch a bunch of fish so a troll was definitely the best way to go. We had a wind blowing out of the SW at 10 knots or so causing a pretty good chop when we started, but eventually we were able to find calmer seas to fish in. Although sunshine was present all day, the cool morning air had us dressing up more than I had done in over a week. The humidity had fallen and the upper 60 degree temps this morning actually felt cool for a change. I had also noticed that the water level had gone up considerably since yesterday and this also made it interesting. I set the lines in an area that I hadn’t fished this season to try & see if the fish were relating to the same type of stuff that I had been doing well in lately and it didn’t take long to find out. Cindy had the first of many fish locked up and reeled in a northern of around 4 pounds. After many other pike, Cindy finally hooked up on a nice walleye of over 3.5 pounds and confirmation of their presence was definite. We continued to troll, catching more pike and an occasional walleye all the while covering the water. I had noticed a really big color line and decided to try the cleaner water to see if we could find more active fish there. Although there were a few, they were pike and we decided to hit the dirtier water once again. Immediately after we were in it, one of the reels fired again and another 3 pound walleye came aboard. We were to get into 4 more of them and lose a few others on the way in before we decided to switch areas and try for another species of fish. We casted lures and soft plastics for a while and caught a bunch of smallies up to 4 pounds in the last couple of hours of the day before we called it quits. Unfortunately there were no pics of anything today as it seemed that everyone was just camera shy. There were definitely worthwhile fish for a « Kodak Moment! We released all but two smaller eyes of 2 pounds for them to try for dinner and headed back to the ramp to take out. It was a day full of action as they boated fish from all over the lake with many different techniques and had a blast!!