12-20-2015 130PM-530PM, Scott and myself walleye fishing below the Dresbach dam
Weather: S8, 44°, overcast, 29.74↓
Water: dirty, high, 9.2’ rising, 80kcfs, 34°
Caught: Scott: 2 small saugers, me: 1 small sauger and 2 small walleyes
Generally this is the time of year where I would not be walleye fishing from a boat. Instead I would either be ice fishing or rabbit hunting. Unfortunately with the mild weather pattern we have neither ice for ice fishing nor snow for rabbit hunting. So, I guess by default I went walleye fishing. I cannot remember any winter ever being this mild. When I was a kid I would say I am always ice fishing by Thanksgiving, but here we are just a few days from Christmas and is does not look like there will be fishable ice for at least a week or more!
Today I was more curious than anything to see if I could catch any walleyes. I figured with the high dirty water it would be tough and it was. We tried many areas below the dam with very poor results. I even tried live minnows some of the time with no results. The three fish I caught came off plastics. Generally if a person is able to get out in a boat and walleye fish this time of year the bite is pretty good, but with the high muddy water the bite was almost non existent today.
Tuesday, December 22, 2015
12-19-2015
Dec 19, 2015 11AM-3PM Cottontail rabbit hunting with my dogs Roxy and Zeta
Where: La Farge, WI
Weather: sunny, 28°, ½ inch of fresh snow cover
Bagged: two cottontail rabbits
It was my firs cottontail hunt of the year and Roxy’s first hunt this year period. We had gotten a dusting of snow last night, so my goal was to find a spot with some snow and rabbits. I figured since the north side of La Crosse was the northern most area of the fresh stuff, La Farge was my best bet.
Luckily when I got there the ground looked as if it had been sprinkled with powdered sugar. The conditions were good and so were the dogs. I was particularly impressed with Zeta’s perseverance and ability to figure out a lost track. She is no speed demon, but I don’t care she can sure follow a track! Roxy also did well today, but she is ten now and definitely slowing down. Unfortunately this may be her last year of hunting.
We had three really good runs that resulted in two cottontails. The third cottontail escaped by swimming a thirty-foot river that was both deep and fast.
Where: La Farge, WI
Weather: sunny, 28°, ½ inch of fresh snow cover
Bagged: two cottontail rabbits
It was my firs cottontail hunt of the year and Roxy’s first hunt this year period. We had gotten a dusting of snow last night, so my goal was to find a spot with some snow and rabbits. I figured since the north side of La Crosse was the northern most area of the fresh stuff, La Farge was my best bet.
Luckily when I got there the ground looked as if it had been sprinkled with powdered sugar. The conditions were good and so were the dogs. I was particularly impressed with Zeta’s perseverance and ability to figure out a lost track. She is no speed demon, but I don’t care she can sure follow a track! Roxy also did well today, but she is ten now and definitely slowing down. Unfortunately this may be her last year of hunting.
We had three really good runs that resulted in two cottontails. The third cottontail escaped by swimming a thirty-foot river that was both deep and fast.
12-12-2015
Dec 12, 2015 89M-2AM Scott, Steve Skauf and myself walleye fishing
Where: Pool 7 below the Trempealeau dam
Weather: calm, 32-35°, cloudy with rain after 1:30AM
Water: dirty, rising, 45kcfs, 36°
Caught: Approx. 80-100 walleyes and saugers, Steve kept took home about 3 walleyes and 9 sauger
It was a very good walleye and sauger bite tonight. It took us awhile to get onto the fish, but once we did the action was great and very consistent. The fish were relating to slack water far up by the dam.
I had great success with a BNT Paddle Tail. Scott was using a BNT Pulsar and Steve (Buck) was using a hair jig with a gulp minnow. No live bait was used tonight! We did not catch any giants, but I did catch a 21, 20 and 19-inch walleyes that were all released.
Where: Pool 7 below the Trempealeau dam
Weather: calm, 32-35°, cloudy with rain after 1:30AM
Water: dirty, rising, 45kcfs, 36°
Caught: Approx. 80-100 walleyes and saugers, Steve kept took home about 3 walleyes and 9 sauger
It was a very good walleye and sauger bite tonight. It took us awhile to get onto the fish, but once we did the action was great and very consistent. The fish were relating to slack water far up by the dam.
I had great success with a BNT Paddle Tail. Scott was using a BNT Pulsar and Steve (Buck) was using a hair jig with a gulp minnow. No live bait was used tonight! We did not catch any giants, but I did catch a 21, 20 and 19-inch walleyes that were all released.
12-6-2015
Dec 6, 2015 9AM-4PM Scott and myself walleye fishing
Where: Pool 9 below the Genoa dam
Weather: calm, 42°, cloudy
Water: fairly dirty, rising, 32kcfs, 36°
Caught: Approx. 25 walleyes and saugers, kept 5 saugers
Today I did something I normally do not do, walleye fishing in December. Scott had his boat and was the Captain this day. We tried various late fall and early winter spots up by the dam, but the flow was just too fast for them. We did catch a few fish on the Minnesota side of the river about 300 yards below the dam, but this area was fairly crowded with other anglers.
We moved downstream after about an hour and fished the series of wing dams down by the Y. This is where we caught the majority of the fish. They were not out close to the main channel, but were between the wing dams staying out of the high river flows.
Where: Pool 9 below the Genoa dam
Weather: calm, 42°, cloudy
Water: fairly dirty, rising, 32kcfs, 36°
Caught: Approx. 25 walleyes and saugers, kept 5 saugers
Today I did something I normally do not do, walleye fishing in December. Scott had his boat and was the Captain this day. We tried various late fall and early winter spots up by the dam, but the flow was just too fast for them. We did catch a few fish on the Minnesota side of the river about 300 yards below the dam, but this area was fairly crowded with other anglers.
We moved downstream after about an hour and fished the series of wing dams down by the Y. This is where we caught the majority of the fish. They were not out close to the main channel, but were between the wing dams staying out of the high river flows.
12-1 thru 12-5 2015
12-1 thru 5 -2015 Up to the cabin Muzzleloader hunting and hare hunting with Jake and his friend Cory and Dick and my beagle Zeta.
Weather: The weather was decent, we had about one inch of snow cover and the highs were around 30 degrees
Location: Moose Junction, WI
Bagged: one grouse and two snow shoe hares
It was suppose to be a muzzleloader and hare-hunting trip with Jake, but to my disdain it didn’t turn out that way. It was Jakes idea to come up muzzleloader hunting and hare hunting and I thought that sounded like a good idea. I did have some spare vacation to burn and why not use it on hunting trip. Well when I get there on Tuesday I find out Jake and his buddy Cory are hard- core trapping. With them spending most of their free time trapping it does not leave much if any time for us to muzzle load hunt and hare hunt together. If Dick would not have come up I would not have even gotten a chance to muzzle load hunt.
I did get some grouse and hare hunting in. We all hunted hares on Friday and it did not go too good. Jakes dog Lucky acquired a nose for deer last year and he continued on with the deer chasing this year. In a half-day of hare hunting we had two deer chases and at least one of the chases but probably both could be attributed to Lucky.
I never really blame a dog for bad behavior; it is mostly the owners’ responsibility to correct bad or mis-guided behavior in their dog. I had done some deer breaking on Zeta this fall, but of course Jake had done none with his dog Lucky. I am thinking Jake and I are not too compatible as hunting partners and anyway I usually prefer to do most of my hunting alone.
Weather: The weather was decent, we had about one inch of snow cover and the highs were around 30 degrees
Location: Moose Junction, WI
Bagged: one grouse and two snow shoe hares
It was suppose to be a muzzleloader and hare-hunting trip with Jake, but to my disdain it didn’t turn out that way. It was Jakes idea to come up muzzleloader hunting and hare hunting and I thought that sounded like a good idea. I did have some spare vacation to burn and why not use it on hunting trip. Well when I get there on Tuesday I find out Jake and his buddy Cory are hard- core trapping. With them spending most of their free time trapping it does not leave much if any time for us to muzzle load hunt and hare hunt together. If Dick would not have come up I would not have even gotten a chance to muzzle load hunt.
I did get some grouse and hare hunting in. We all hunted hares on Friday and it did not go too good. Jakes dog Lucky acquired a nose for deer last year and he continued on with the deer chasing this year. In a half-day of hare hunting we had two deer chases and at least one of the chases but probably both could be attributed to Lucky.
I never really blame a dog for bad behavior; it is mostly the owners’ responsibility to correct bad or mis-guided behavior in their dog. I had done some deer breaking on Zeta this fall, but of course Jake had done none with his dog Lucky. I am thinking Jake and I are not too compatible as hunting partners and anyway I usually prefer to do most of my hunting alone.
11-21 thru 11-25 2015
11-21 thru 24 -2015 Gun deer hunting at the cabin with Jake, Mark Sr., Mark Jr., and Cole Tupper and Donny (jakes’ father in law).
Weather: For the first two and a half days we had about an inch of snow and it was pretty cold opening day. Then after Monday night the temperatures were above normal
Location: Moose Junction, WI
Bagged: 11 point 180 pound buck
The weather conditions for the first day of the season were ideal: one inch of snow, calm, sunny and a high of twenty degrees. I sat down by the otter crossing all day on opening day. I saw two groups of antlerless deer before noon. This year was our second year of bucks only on account of the depleted deer population after our nasty winter in 2013, so I was unable to shoot a doe. For lunch I had planned to cook myself some Rome Noodles up in my tree stand; both to pass some time and to get something warm to eat. Well, it did not work out so well. I cold not get the water to boil. I was using a can of Sterno and it kept going out and just was not getting very hot. After about an hour of fooling around trying to get the water to boil I decided the heck with it. I added my noodles and flavor packet to the luke warm water. It was not what I had expected, but it was a little bit of warmth and the somewhat crunchy noodles partially filled my stomach. Both the Tupper kids shot antlerless deer the first morning; it is permitted for kids 16 and under to shoot an antlerless deer.
On Monday we made a couple of drives. The first two were unsuccessful, but on the third my luck changed. I was one of two drivers on the third drive and on our way to start the drive I spotted a very fresh large track in the remnants of what snow we had left. I figured this deer had eluded us on the previous drive and probably was not too far away. Fortunately for me there was just enough snow to follow the tracks, although with some difficulty. Mark Tupper Jr. and I were the drivers, so I sent him ahead and around what I thought would be the travel path of the deer. I was hoping to put him into a position to get a shot at the buck if it was still in the area and tried to escape. With some difficulty I was able to follow the tracks along the edge of a large dried up swamp. After about stealthily following the tracks for about 300 yards I heard the deer get up between myself and Mark and crash through the brush. I sprinted a couple yards out to the edge of the swamp hoping to get a glimpse of the escaping deer. Luckily for me the deer decided to run the open area along the swamp edge. One quick glimpse was all it took for me to identify the whitetail as a very large and mature buck. After three quick shots from My Ambush 300 Blackout AR rifle the buck was down!
It was a very exciting moment for me. My new rifle had performed just as I had hoped it would: a rapid-fire rate with good accuracy. In all honesty I do not know if I would have hit that deer with my old and slower bolt-action rifle. I also credit Mark with helping me get that buck. That deer was only bedded about forty yards from where Mark was standing and I don’t think it would have ran out to the swamp unless Mark was there blocking its other escape route.
Mark Sr. got a spike the following day. Success wise it was a good season, but the cabin was way to crowded and after a couple days I started to get a little frazzled with all the chaos.
Weather: For the first two and a half days we had about an inch of snow and it was pretty cold opening day. Then after Monday night the temperatures were above normal
Location: Moose Junction, WI
Bagged: 11 point 180 pound buck
The weather conditions for the first day of the season were ideal: one inch of snow, calm, sunny and a high of twenty degrees. I sat down by the otter crossing all day on opening day. I saw two groups of antlerless deer before noon. This year was our second year of bucks only on account of the depleted deer population after our nasty winter in 2013, so I was unable to shoot a doe. For lunch I had planned to cook myself some Rome Noodles up in my tree stand; both to pass some time and to get something warm to eat. Well, it did not work out so well. I cold not get the water to boil. I was using a can of Sterno and it kept going out and just was not getting very hot. After about an hour of fooling around trying to get the water to boil I decided the heck with it. I added my noodles and flavor packet to the luke warm water. It was not what I had expected, but it was a little bit of warmth and the somewhat crunchy noodles partially filled my stomach. Both the Tupper kids shot antlerless deer the first morning; it is permitted for kids 16 and under to shoot an antlerless deer.
On Monday we made a couple of drives. The first two were unsuccessful, but on the third my luck changed. I was one of two drivers on the third drive and on our way to start the drive I spotted a very fresh large track in the remnants of what snow we had left. I figured this deer had eluded us on the previous drive and probably was not too far away. Fortunately for me there was just enough snow to follow the tracks, although with some difficulty. Mark Tupper Jr. and I were the drivers, so I sent him ahead and around what I thought would be the travel path of the deer. I was hoping to put him into a position to get a shot at the buck if it was still in the area and tried to escape. With some difficulty I was able to follow the tracks along the edge of a large dried up swamp. After about stealthily following the tracks for about 300 yards I heard the deer get up between myself and Mark and crash through the brush. I sprinted a couple yards out to the edge of the swamp hoping to get a glimpse of the escaping deer. Luckily for me the deer decided to run the open area along the swamp edge. One quick glimpse was all it took for me to identify the whitetail as a very large and mature buck. After three quick shots from My Ambush 300 Blackout AR rifle the buck was down!
It was a very exciting moment for me. My new rifle had performed just as I had hoped it would: a rapid-fire rate with good accuracy. In all honesty I do not know if I would have hit that deer with my old and slower bolt-action rifle. I also credit Mark with helping me get that buck. That deer was only bedded about forty yards from where Mark was standing and I don’t think it would have ran out to the swamp unless Mark was there blocking its other escape route.
Mark Sr. got a spike the following day. Success wise it was a good season, but the cabin was way to crowded and after a couple days I started to get a little frazzled with all the chaos.
Tuesday, November 17, 2015
11-7 thru 11-15-2015
11-7 thru 11-15-2015 Up to the cabin bow hunting and a little grouse hunting with Jake Tupper
Weather: Mostly way above average for this time of year. Had some significant rain one evening with a little snow mix. Temperatures were mostly above average.
Location: Moose Junction, WI
Bagged: two grouse
It was my usual one-week fall bow-hunting trip up to the north woods at my hunting shack. This trip was about two weeks later than usual. I was hoping to time it so more bucks were in their seeking phase. I actually think we should have been up about five days earlier. When we first got up there we saw bucks on the roads and cameras but after about Tuesday the buck sighting drop to almost nothing.
The deer are fairly sparse up north, but they are rebounding. If you were able to find oak stands with a heavy mast of acorns you would see deer.
I saw an ample amount of deer while hunting but I only saw one buck and he was a dandy! I had an opportunity at this buck on the fourth day. I was hunting what I figured to be a pretty good travel corridor in the morning. At about 8:45 AM a doe came from behind me and ran within feet of the tree I was in. This doe was moving at a good pace and I figured a buck was chasing her, sure enough one was. Within seconds of the doe being out of my sight I hear a buck grunting from the same direction the doe came from. He was in a bird dog style of travel following the doe’s scent.
This buck was air scenting her travel path and zigzagging the route she had taken. Well he was coming towards my stand on the opposite side that the doe had taken. I quickly but very carefully turned 180 degrees to get into position for a shot. I got ready to draw and tried to time it so his head would be behind a smallish oak tree about fifteen yards out that would shield my movement. I was a little early on the draw and the buck caught my movement of drawing the bow. He did not know what he had seen or where it had come from, but he stopped and was on high alert. He turned 90 degrees took about three steps and stopped quartering away, which gave me a good shot. I was at full draw and attempted to settle the twenty-yard pin behind his shoulder. But there was a problem. I had forgotten to take my glasses off when I started hunting this morning and I have a peep with a lens in it that does not mix well with my glasses. It was like trying to sight through a frosted coke bottle, everything was distorted and blurry. I aimed as best I could and smoothly released my arrow. My arrow smacked the center of the oak that I had previously used for cover about ten feet off the ground. What a disappointment! The buck scampered unharmed toward the direction from which he had come. It was a total let down, but I am thankful I will always have the memories of the action from that morning.
The rest of the week I did not see any more bucks, but I did see a respectable amount of does and fawns. Jake Tupper who was also hunting the week out of the cabin shot a smallish eight pointer on Friday night.
In retrospect I think next year I will hunt the first week of November instead of the second.
Weather: Mostly way above average for this time of year. Had some significant rain one evening with a little snow mix. Temperatures were mostly above average.
Location: Moose Junction, WI
Bagged: two grouse
It was my usual one-week fall bow-hunting trip up to the north woods at my hunting shack. This trip was about two weeks later than usual. I was hoping to time it so more bucks were in their seeking phase. I actually think we should have been up about five days earlier. When we first got up there we saw bucks on the roads and cameras but after about Tuesday the buck sighting drop to almost nothing.
The deer are fairly sparse up north, but they are rebounding. If you were able to find oak stands with a heavy mast of acorns you would see deer.
I saw an ample amount of deer while hunting but I only saw one buck and he was a dandy! I had an opportunity at this buck on the fourth day. I was hunting what I figured to be a pretty good travel corridor in the morning. At about 8:45 AM a doe came from behind me and ran within feet of the tree I was in. This doe was moving at a good pace and I figured a buck was chasing her, sure enough one was. Within seconds of the doe being out of my sight I hear a buck grunting from the same direction the doe came from. He was in a bird dog style of travel following the doe’s scent.
This buck was air scenting her travel path and zigzagging the route she had taken. Well he was coming towards my stand on the opposite side that the doe had taken. I quickly but very carefully turned 180 degrees to get into position for a shot. I got ready to draw and tried to time it so his head would be behind a smallish oak tree about fifteen yards out that would shield my movement. I was a little early on the draw and the buck caught my movement of drawing the bow. He did not know what he had seen or where it had come from, but he stopped and was on high alert. He turned 90 degrees took about three steps and stopped quartering away, which gave me a good shot. I was at full draw and attempted to settle the twenty-yard pin behind his shoulder. But there was a problem. I had forgotten to take my glasses off when I started hunting this morning and I have a peep with a lens in it that does not mix well with my glasses. It was like trying to sight through a frosted coke bottle, everything was distorted and blurry. I aimed as best I could and smoothly released my arrow. My arrow smacked the center of the oak that I had previously used for cover about ten feet off the ground. What a disappointment! The buck scampered unharmed toward the direction from which he had come. It was a total let down, but I am thankful I will always have the memories of the action from that morning.
The rest of the week I did not see any more bucks, but I did see a respectable amount of does and fawns. Jake Tupper who was also hunting the week out of the cabin shot a smallish eight pointer on Friday night.
In retrospect I think next year I will hunt the first week of November instead of the second.
Monday, November 16, 2015
11-2-15 Tuesday
11-2-15 Tuesday 6 – 9pm, myself walleye fishing
Weather: S 10-15, clear, 60°
H2O: 5.1’→, 20 kcfs, clear, 49°
Location: Mississippi R. pool 7 near Trempealeau
Caught: Approximately 30 sauger (kept 6), 4 small walleyes
Once again the walleyes were not abundant, and the ones I did catch averaged about 13 inches. However the sauger were once again abundant and very aggressive. The fish were once again caught on soft plastic baits. One little thing I did notice was that when a tow boat came through the locks and water was discharging out the side port on the long wall the fish were aggressive.
Weather: S 10-15, clear, 60°
H2O: 5.1’→, 20 kcfs, clear, 49°
Location: Mississippi R. pool 7 near Trempealeau
Caught: Approximately 30 sauger (kept 6), 4 small walleyes
Once again the walleyes were not abundant, and the ones I did catch averaged about 13 inches. However the sauger were once again abundant and very aggressive. The fish were once again caught on soft plastic baits. One little thing I did notice was that when a tow boat came through the locks and water was discharging out the side port on the long wall the fish were aggressive.
11-1-15 Sunday
11-1-15 Sunday 1 – 8 pm, myself, walleye fishing and squirrel hunting
Weather: calm, sunny, 60°
H2O: 5.1’→, 20 kcfs, clear, 49°
Location: Mississippi R. pool 7 near Trempealeau
Caught: approximately 30 sauger (kept 6), 4 walleyes, and 4 small mouths
Bagged: nothing
I started out fishing for small mouths, but it was not nearly as good as it had been one week earlier. I then switched it up and went for the little tree dwelling rats. That also was not productive, seems they had gotten smarter than they were the last time I stalked them.
I finished off the night fishing for walleyes and saugers. I did not catch many walleyes but the aggressiveness and the number of sauger I caught more than made up for the lack of walleye bites I had. The saugers were very aggressive and all came on soft plastic baits.
Weather: calm, sunny, 60°
H2O: 5.1’→, 20 kcfs, clear, 49°
Location: Mississippi R. pool 7 near Trempealeau
Caught: approximately 30 sauger (kept 6), 4 walleyes, and 4 small mouths
Bagged: nothing
I started out fishing for small mouths, but it was not nearly as good as it had been one week earlier. I then switched it up and went for the little tree dwelling rats. That also was not productive, seems they had gotten smarter than they were the last time I stalked them.
I finished off the night fishing for walleyes and saugers. I did not catch many walleyes but the aggressiveness and the number of sauger I caught more than made up for the lack of walleye bites I had. The saugers were very aggressive and all came on soft plastic baits.
10-31-15 Sat.
10-31-15 Sat. 9AM-4: 30PM squirrel hunting
Weather: rainy, calm, 55°
Location: Ft. Mc Coy, Wisconsin
Bagged: two gray squirrels
It was a very rainy and dreary day and my main focus was getting Zeta my beagle on some deer. I wanted to get some opportunities to smell and chase deer so hopefully I would have a chance to break this bad behavior.
I was able to find several deer for her. The first few deer she did not see, but when I put her on the track she showed no interest in their scent. However at the end of the day I was able to set her up with two deer out feeding in a field. She saw the deer and when they ran she gave chase, it was a perfect training situation. I was able to shock her as she gave chase and it definitely had an impact on her! I can only hope that she will now leave the deer alone.
The squirrel hunting was not that great, but I did manage to bag two.
Weather: rainy, calm, 55°
Location: Ft. Mc Coy, Wisconsin
Bagged: two gray squirrels
It was a very rainy and dreary day and my main focus was getting Zeta my beagle on some deer. I wanted to get some opportunities to smell and chase deer so hopefully I would have a chance to break this bad behavior.
I was able to find several deer for her. The first few deer she did not see, but when I put her on the track she showed no interest in their scent. However at the end of the day I was able to set her up with two deer out feeding in a field. She saw the deer and when they ran she gave chase, it was a perfect training situation. I was able to shock her as she gave chase and it definitely had an impact on her! I can only hope that she will now leave the deer alone.
The squirrel hunting was not that great, but I did manage to bag two.
Tuesday, October 27, 2015
10-25-15 Sunday
10-25-15 Sunday 12 – 8 pm, myself bass and walleye fishing and squirrel hunting
Weather: (1353) calm, partly cloudy, 59°
H2O: 5.1’→, 20 kcfs, clear, 54°
Location: Mississippi R. pool 7 near Trempealeau
Caught: 20+ small mouth 12-17” (kept 3), 2 sauger (kept) 13”
Bagged: One fox and one gray squirrel
Today I had a pretty fun and adventurous outside day. I started out fishing rocks and wing dams for small mouth bass and walleyes. The small mouth were quite cooperative, although the bites were subtle. On the other hand the walleyes were almost non existent.
After fishing for a solid four hours I switched it up a bit and chased squirrels. I saw a fair amount and bagged two.
At dark I continued on with my quest to catch walleyes or saugers. I had started the day off with plans of keeping my limit, so I had my work cut out for me. The first spot I fished I got two in about five minutes. A jointed shad rap fooled both these saugers. I continued fishing using a lead head jig fishing vertically and never caught another fish.
Weather: (1353) calm, partly cloudy, 59°
H2O: 5.1’→, 20 kcfs, clear, 54°
Location: Mississippi R. pool 7 near Trempealeau
Caught: 20+ small mouth 12-17” (kept 3), 2 sauger (kept) 13”
Bagged: One fox and one gray squirrel
Today I had a pretty fun and adventurous outside day. I started out fishing rocks and wing dams for small mouth bass and walleyes. The small mouth were quite cooperative, although the bites were subtle. On the other hand the walleyes were almost non existent.
After fishing for a solid four hours I switched it up a bit and chased squirrels. I saw a fair amount and bagged two.
At dark I continued on with my quest to catch walleyes or saugers. I had started the day off with plans of keeping my limit, so I had my work cut out for me. The first spot I fished I got two in about five minutes. A jointed shad rap fooled both these saugers. I continued fishing using a lead head jig fishing vertically and never caught another fish.
Saturday, October 24, 2015
10-22-15 Thursday
10-22-15 Thursday 5 – 9 pm, myself flat head fishing
Weather: (1753) N 3, clear, 57°
H2O: 4.62’→, 12 kcfs, clear, 54°
Location: Mississippi R. pool 7 main side channel
Caught: Bait: approx. 10 perch 8-11”
This was going to be my absolute last time flat head fishing for the season. It has been a very warm fall but the cool down in on its way. Once the water temperature falls into the lower 50’s the flat head bite is over for me anyhow.
Bait catching was very easy; unfortunately it was all perch and only one dink bluegill. For flat heads I tried two spots in close proximity to one another and had no action until the end of the night at the last spot. Just as I dumped the bait out to leave I got a hit. The last fish of the season outsmarted me and got my bait without becoming hooked!
Tonight and the previous night out I had a stow- away on board. The stow-away was a mouse that crawled up my leg on the previous outing. On this trip I could hear it rattling in the leaves and it would also make a light buzzing sound. I also could see it now and then in the moonlight as it scurried around the boat. At one point it scurried up onto one of the rod holder and up my pole. Unfortunately for it this was a grave mistake and I was able to knock it into the water and rid the boat of the-stow away. I thought I had solved the problem, but I was wrong. The mouse either had a partner or it was able to swim to one of the anchor ropes and make it back into its floating condo!
Weather: (1753) N 3, clear, 57°
H2O: 4.62’→, 12 kcfs, clear, 54°
Location: Mississippi R. pool 7 main side channel
Caught: Bait: approx. 10 perch 8-11”
This was going to be my absolute last time flat head fishing for the season. It has been a very warm fall but the cool down in on its way. Once the water temperature falls into the lower 50’s the flat head bite is over for me anyhow.
Bait catching was very easy; unfortunately it was all perch and only one dink bluegill. For flat heads I tried two spots in close proximity to one another and had no action until the end of the night at the last spot. Just as I dumped the bait out to leave I got a hit. The last fish of the season outsmarted me and got my bait without becoming hooked!
Tonight and the previous night out I had a stow- away on board. The stow-away was a mouse that crawled up my leg on the previous outing. On this trip I could hear it rattling in the leaves and it would also make a light buzzing sound. I also could see it now and then in the moonlight as it scurried around the boat. At one point it scurried up onto one of the rod holder and up my pole. Unfortunately for it this was a grave mistake and I was able to knock it into the water and rid the boat of the-stow away. I thought I had solved the problem, but I was wrong. The mouse either had a partner or it was able to swim to one of the anchor ropes and make it back into its floating condo!
Wednesday, October 21, 2015
10-20-15 Tuesday
10-20-15 Tuesday, myself flat head fishing 5-10PM
Weather: (1753) warm! SE6, clear, 70°
H20: 5.8 →, 12.7kcfs, clear, 54°
I had thought I was done cat fishing several weeks ago, but the warm summer like weather convinced me to try it again. There is no longer much daylight in the evening after I get home from work to catch bait. Tonight I ran out of daylight catching my bait. I did catch an ample amount of perch, however most of them were of the jumbo variety and quite big for flat head fishing. I really don’t have a problem with big bait, but for this time of year the fish are less active and I think smaller sized bait would be better.
I did have action tonight. I had what I figured to be about four bites. Three of those bites were quite subtle and weak and resulted in missed fish. The best bite of the night resulted in what I thought was a good hook-up. The fish gave me a good fight all the way to the boat. The battle ended just before I was able to see the whiskered critter. The fish must have gotten tired of the tug of war match and slipped off. I don’t think I ever had a hook in it, I am almost positive it was just hanging onto the bait and then decided to let go once I started to raise it off the bottom!
Weather: (1753) warm! SE6, clear, 70°
H20: 5.8 →, 12.7kcfs, clear, 54°
I had thought I was done cat fishing several weeks ago, but the warm summer like weather convinced me to try it again. There is no longer much daylight in the evening after I get home from work to catch bait. Tonight I ran out of daylight catching my bait. I did catch an ample amount of perch, however most of them were of the jumbo variety and quite big for flat head fishing. I really don’t have a problem with big bait, but for this time of year the fish are less active and I think smaller sized bait would be better.
I did have action tonight. I had what I figured to be about four bites. Three of those bites were quite subtle and weak and resulted in missed fish. The best bite of the night resulted in what I thought was a good hook-up. The fish gave me a good fight all the way to the boat. The battle ended just before I was able to see the whiskered critter. The fish must have gotten tired of the tug of war match and slipped off. I don’t think I ever had a hook in it, I am almost positive it was just hanging onto the bait and then decided to let go once I started to raise it off the bottom!
Monday, October 19, 2015
10-16,17&18-2015
10-16,17&18-2015, myself and Jeremy and his two boys Ian and Colton.
Weather: Beautiful, sunny with highs in the 50’s and 60’s and cool at night with lows in the lower to mid twenties.
Location: Douglass County, Wisconsin at the hunting shack
Bagged: Me: 1 grouse and 1 mouse, Colton: 1 pine squirrel
It was a weekend up to the cabin with Jeremy and his boys Ian and Colton. It was not a serious hunting trip; it was more or less just a chance to get away.
Mice have been numerous at the cabin this year. The little bastards even chewed a hole into the tote in which I keep my sleeping bag and pillow. The ungrateful vermin chewed a hole in both the sleeping bad and pillow and left a stash of acorns sprinkled on top of them. At least they didn’t chew my hair as I was sleeping like they did another year.
We did a little hunting and four wheeling, but nothing major on either activity. I did show the boys how to make fire with a bow and spindle and Colton was all over that. In, fact that is about all he wanted to do during a good portion of the day on Saturday. He never was able to develop a coal but he did put plenty of effort into it. Colton did shoot a pine squirrel on Saturday and I told him since he killed the animal we had to eat it. We all tried it except Ian; he just could not do it. It was good; it tasted like grilled meat and a lot less chewy than gray or fox squirrel. I also fried up the grouse for them to try and all of us liked that. I also grilled them bunny burgers on Saturday night and they all thought that was very good!
It appears there has been plenty of moisture up at the cabin this year. There also appears to be plenty of grouse and acorns, and it looks as if the deer numbers area probably higher than last year. The bears raised hell with our bait barrels this year, they got into and emptied several of them and destroyed one of the hard rubber ones.
Weather: Beautiful, sunny with highs in the 50’s and 60’s and cool at night with lows in the lower to mid twenties.
Location: Douglass County, Wisconsin at the hunting shack
Bagged: Me: 1 grouse and 1 mouse, Colton: 1 pine squirrel
It was a weekend up to the cabin with Jeremy and his boys Ian and Colton. It was not a serious hunting trip; it was more or less just a chance to get away.
Mice have been numerous at the cabin this year. The little bastards even chewed a hole into the tote in which I keep my sleeping bag and pillow. The ungrateful vermin chewed a hole in both the sleeping bad and pillow and left a stash of acorns sprinkled on top of them. At least they didn’t chew my hair as I was sleeping like they did another year.
We did a little hunting and four wheeling, but nothing major on either activity. I did show the boys how to make fire with a bow and spindle and Colton was all over that. In, fact that is about all he wanted to do during a good portion of the day on Saturday. He never was able to develop a coal but he did put plenty of effort into it. Colton did shoot a pine squirrel on Saturday and I told him since he killed the animal we had to eat it. We all tried it except Ian; he just could not do it. It was good; it tasted like grilled meat and a lot less chewy than gray or fox squirrel. I also fried up the grouse for them to try and all of us liked that. I also grilled them bunny burgers on Saturday night and they all thought that was very good!
It appears there has been plenty of moisture up at the cabin this year. There also appears to be plenty of grouse and acorns, and it looks as if the deer numbers area probably higher than last year. The bears raised hell with our bait barrels this year, they got into and emptied several of them and destroyed one of the hard rubber ones.
10-13-15 Tuesday
10-13-15 Tuesday, myself casting cranks 530-630PM
Weather: calm, clear, 55°
H20: 5.0 →, 20kcfs, clear, ?°
I took a quick run out to Somners Chute to see if the walleyes were there and active. They were not.
The river is in great shape for fishing, it is fairly low, clear and not much for current. Now the fish just have to cooperate. I did notice there are plenty of ducks around Somners. I guess some of that can be contributed to the duck season being closed for the break between the first and second season.
Weather: calm, clear, 55°
H20: 5.0 →, 20kcfs, clear, ?°
I took a quick run out to Somners Chute to see if the walleyes were there and active. They were not.
The river is in great shape for fishing, it is fairly low, clear and not much for current. Now the fish just have to cooperate. I did notice there are plenty of ducks around Somners. I guess some of that can be contributed to the duck season being closed for the break between the first and second season.
Monday, October 12, 2015
10-9-15 Friday
10-9-15 Friday 6pm – 7pm, myself, fishing for pan fish
Weather: (1753) NW 8, clear, 58°
H2O: 5.18’→, 21 kcfs, clear, 56°
Location: Mississippi R. pool 7 behind house
Caught: 7 perch 8-12”, 2 crappies 8&12”, 2 bluegill, 4LMB 10-12” Kept four perch, 1 crappie and one bluegill
Tonight was more of a test of my Go Devil motor than a planned fishing trip. The motor ran flawlessly after I changed out the spark plugs and the fishing was no too bad either. The fish were relating to deeper water that was void of weeds, but within close proximity to weeds.
Weather: (1753) NW 8, clear, 58°
H2O: 5.18’→, 21 kcfs, clear, 56°
Location: Mississippi R. pool 7 behind house
Caught: 7 perch 8-12”, 2 crappies 8&12”, 2 bluegill, 4LMB 10-12” Kept four perch, 1 crappie and one bluegill
Tonight was more of a test of my Go Devil motor than a planned fishing trip. The motor ran flawlessly after I changed out the spark plugs and the fishing was no too bad either. The fish were relating to deeper water that was void of weeds, but within close proximity to weeds.
10-11-15 Sunday
10-11-15 Sunday 2:30 – 7:30 pm, myself and Scott fishing for bass, walleye and pike
Weather: (1753) S 14, clear, 80°, 29.46↑
H2O: 5.18’→, 21 kcfs, clear, 61°
Location: Trempealeau, WI
Caught: Me: 1 pike 24”, 1 walleye 13”, 1 sauger 11”, 5 SMB 12-18”
Scott: 5 small mouth bass 12-15”
It was another Sunday afternoon fishing with Scott. This week we fished the upper part of our pool near Trempealeau. We started off fishing the backwaters area in an area that is called Big Marsh. This area was almost completely dead. I just have not had much for action in the back marsh areas during the fall.
After a couple of fruitless hours we moved out to a wing dam by Hammond Chute. This area was very difficult to fish on account of the strong south wind. Anyhow we had the same results there. Our next stop was north to the spillway on the Minnesota side. This is where we boated our first fish and a couple more. We definitely did not have as much action there as I thought we would.
For the last forty-five minutes of daylight we hit a couple wing dams just south of the dam, and it was there we had more favorable results. Heck, I even caught my first double on one bait! We finished up the night jigging for walleyes, where we struck out doing that.
Weather: (1753) S 14, clear, 80°, 29.46↑
H2O: 5.18’→, 21 kcfs, clear, 61°
Location: Trempealeau, WI
Caught: Me: 1 pike 24”, 1 walleye 13”, 1 sauger 11”, 5 SMB 12-18”
Scott: 5 small mouth bass 12-15”
It was another Sunday afternoon fishing with Scott. This week we fished the upper part of our pool near Trempealeau. We started off fishing the backwaters area in an area that is called Big Marsh. This area was almost completely dead. I just have not had much for action in the back marsh areas during the fall.
After a couple of fruitless hours we moved out to a wing dam by Hammond Chute. This area was very difficult to fish on account of the strong south wind. Anyhow we had the same results there. Our next stop was north to the spillway on the Minnesota side. This is where we boated our first fish and a couple more. We definitely did not have as much action there as I thought we would.
For the last forty-five minutes of daylight we hit a couple wing dams just south of the dam, and it was there we had more favorable results. Heck, I even caught my first double on one bait! We finished up the night jigging for walleyes, where we struck out doing that.
Wednesday, October 7, 2015
10-5-15 Monday
10-5-15 Monday 5:30 – 6:45 pm, myself bass and pike fishing
Weather: calm, overcast, 53°
H2O: 5’→, 20 kcfs, clear, 59°, miserable amount of floating weeds
Caught: Nothing
Since Scott and I had fairly good success fishing for bass yesterday I was hoping to continue on that success today. Well I did not happen. The fishing really sucked, the weeds really sucked and my motor really sucked! And to top it off I discovered a new invasive species of plant on the lake. Almost every cast was fouled by floating weeds, which just added fuel to my burning frustration.
The invasive I found is known as water lettuce and it has never been documented in La Crosse County. I forwarded a picture and location onto the invasive species coordinator for the Mississippi River. The lakes health this fall looks very poor, it is choked with weeds, rice and algae and it just looks and smells bad! It is in the worst state I have ever seen!
Weather: calm, overcast, 53°
H2O: 5’→, 20 kcfs, clear, 59°, miserable amount of floating weeds
Caught: Nothing
Since Scott and I had fairly good success fishing for bass yesterday I was hoping to continue on that success today. Well I did not happen. The fishing really sucked, the weeds really sucked and my motor really sucked! And to top it off I discovered a new invasive species of plant on the lake. Almost every cast was fouled by floating weeds, which just added fuel to my burning frustration.
The invasive I found is known as water lettuce and it has never been documented in La Crosse County. I forwarded a picture and location onto the invasive species coordinator for the Mississippi River. The lakes health this fall looks very poor, it is choked with weeds, rice and algae and it just looks and smells bad! It is in the worst state I have ever seen!
10-4-15 Sunday
10-4-15 Sunday 2:30 – 7 pm, myself and Scott fishing for bass and pike
Weather: (1653) E 6, overcast, 53°
H2O: 5’→, 20 kcfs, clear, 58°, floating weeds
Caught: Me: 1 pike, 1 rock bass, 7 large mouth bass
Scott: 2 small mouth bass, 6 large mouth bass
It was a fall Sunday afternoon fishing excursion with Scott. Our main target was bass and pike. We did succeed in finding both, but we lost more of the pike than we caught. We never did find any great concentration of either, but we did pick up a fish fairly regularly. The scattered fish we did contact were fairly aggressive.
We fished for the bass and pike out by the man made islands along the weed edge when we could find it. What I mean by that is the lake is terribly choked with weeds and it is very hard to find any area that has less than six feet of water that is not choked with weeds. We finished the last hour of daylight fishing for walleyes on the wing dams. We never did get any walleyes, but we did catch the rock bass and the small mouth bass off the rocks.
10-1-15 Sunday
10-1-15 Sunday 5:30 – 10:30 pm, myself and Scott cat fishing
Weather: (2053) E 6, clear, 54°
H2O: 5’→, 20 kcfs, clear, 62°
Caught: bait (bluegills and crappies), 1-8 lb flat head
It may well have been the last cat-fishing trip of the year. The air and the water temperatures are starting to take a dive and once the water temperatures fall below the mid fifties temperature the bite is pretty much over.
We started out in a side channel area in about twelve feet of water, but we had not bites there. We also tried another more main side channel spot and also struck out there. The one fish we did catch came from a main wintering area. We also had several other bites in this wintering hole.
Fall is starting to appear! The leaves area starting to change and we had our first frost last night. Also, the pan fish have started congregating in the dredge holes on the lake. The pan fish are there along with an army of greedy anglers.
Weather: (2053) E 6, clear, 54°
H2O: 5’→, 20 kcfs, clear, 62°
Caught: bait (bluegills and crappies), 1-8 lb flat head
It may well have been the last cat-fishing trip of the year. The air and the water temperatures are starting to take a dive and once the water temperatures fall below the mid fifties temperature the bite is pretty much over.
We started out in a side channel area in about twelve feet of water, but we had not bites there. We also tried another more main side channel spot and also struck out there. The one fish we did catch came from a main wintering area. We also had several other bites in this wintering hole.
Fall is starting to appear! The leaves area starting to change and we had our first frost last night. Also, the pan fish have started congregating in the dredge holes on the lake. The pan fish are there along with an army of greedy anglers.
Wednesday, September 30, 2015
9-27-15 Sunday
9-27-15 Sunday 4:30 – 10:30 pm, myself, cat fishing
Weather: (2053) S 10, clear, 71°, 29.93→, blood moon
H2O: 5’→, 20 kcfs, clear, 72°, floating weeds
Caught: bait (bluegills), 1-17” LMB, 2-17 lb flat heads
I had not been fishing in quite some time, so I was due. I decided I would do a little flat head fishing on account of the number of days for the fish to remain active was limited because fall and cooler water temperatures would soon be upon us.
I was planning on the bait catching to be relatively easy, but as usual it was not. I caught plenty of bluegills, but the vast majority of them were too small to use for bait. I was fishing the dredge holes on the lake and so were many other people and I think most were having the same type of success I was having.
I was able to do a little bass and pike fishing after catching an ample supply of bluegills. I did manage to catch a respectable LMB on a frog, and I also lost a little pike on a spinner bait.
I had plenty of bites from the flat heads but I only boated the two. It seemed as if the fish were already in a snag when they bit or they immediately swam to a snag. It was a pretty rough night on hooks, I lost somewhere between four and six of my good circle hooks to the underwater world.
I did get to experience one rarity of the natural world, a super lunar eclipse. It was really quite strange. One moment it was quite bright out on account of the full moon and about twenty minutes later the moon was shadowed by the earth and was still visible, but much darker and reddish in color. It also seemed as if everything became quite still and quiet, it was very eerie!
Weather: (2053) S 10, clear, 71°, 29.93→, blood moon
H2O: 5’→, 20 kcfs, clear, 72°, floating weeds
Caught: bait (bluegills), 1-17” LMB, 2-17 lb flat heads
I had not been fishing in quite some time, so I was due. I decided I would do a little flat head fishing on account of the number of days for the fish to remain active was limited because fall and cooler water temperatures would soon be upon us.
I was planning on the bait catching to be relatively easy, but as usual it was not. I caught plenty of bluegills, but the vast majority of them were too small to use for bait. I was fishing the dredge holes on the lake and so were many other people and I think most were having the same type of success I was having.
I was able to do a little bass and pike fishing after catching an ample supply of bluegills. I did manage to catch a respectable LMB on a frog, and I also lost a little pike on a spinner bait.
I had plenty of bites from the flat heads but I only boated the two. It seemed as if the fish were already in a snag when they bit or they immediately swam to a snag. It was a pretty rough night on hooks, I lost somewhere between four and six of my good circle hooks to the underwater world.
I did get to experience one rarity of the natural world, a super lunar eclipse. It was really quite strange. One moment it was quite bright out on account of the full moon and about twenty minutes later the moon was shadowed by the earth and was still visible, but much darker and reddish in color. It also seemed as if everything became quite still and quiet, it was very eerie!
9-18-15 through 9-25-15
9-18-15 through 9-25-15
Elk hunting near Monarch and White Sulpher Springs Montana
Jeremy Pank and myself
It was our second annual elk bow hunting trip to Montana, and I had the same results, no elk! Jeremy had different results from last year, no elk!
Going into the trip we really did not expect too much. We were going into the area blind and we really did not have any guidance from anybody on what to expect.
The first five days were pretty much a bust. We were hunting about sixe miles east of Monarch Mt. I saw a cow and a calf run by me one morning at daylight and Jeremy saw a bull and about six cows and calves that were about one half mile away. I was hoping this area would be good, but it was a disappointment. We both did lots of looking but never really found much sign. The area had quite a few trails that were restricted to motorcycle only, so we brought the cycles thinking this would be the way to access hard to get at elk. This really did not give us an advantage and to be honest most of the trails were down right scary. The trails were steep, rugged, rocky, and narrow and the bikes were not geared low enough to handle the steep grades. Besides the trails being difficult, the area was crawling with people during the weekend. There were camps set up everywhere and there was way too much human activity to allow the elk to feel comfortable. Most of the people were not hunters, but I am sure they still had the effect of chasing elk out of the area. I did have a little mishap with my cycle and ended up tangling my bow up in a tree. In the process of getting untangled I knocked the peep off my string. The next day (Sunday) I wasted the whole day and had to drive 300 miles round trip to get it replaced.
Wednesday morning we both came to our senses and broke camp to search for pastures with more elk. We found an area southeast of White Sulpher Springs that bordered some private ranch land. We had seen quite a few elk along this area early in the morning on our way out hunting, so we knew there was a concentration of animals in the area. There was a good population of elk, but most stayed on the private land.
We basically had the two half days and the one full day to scout and kill an elk. The elk were definitely more plentiful in this area but the vast majority of them were sticking to the private lands. The green alphalfa fields and the lack of hunting pressure drew these elk to the private lands. In the short period we were at this last area we both came close to having an opportunity, and we both experienced some awesome bugling.
Even though neither of us was successful in harvesting an elk, it was still a good time. We got to experience the mountain scenery, and beautiful weather. We also saw plenty of whitetail and mule deer, ruff grouse and spruce grouse, coyotes and tons of antelope along the roads of Montana. I also was able to fish the streams and catch both cutthroat and brook trout.
Elk hunting near Monarch and White Sulpher Springs Montana
Jeremy Pank and myself
It was our second annual elk bow hunting trip to Montana, and I had the same results, no elk! Jeremy had different results from last year, no elk!
Going into the trip we really did not expect too much. We were going into the area blind and we really did not have any guidance from anybody on what to expect.
The first five days were pretty much a bust. We were hunting about sixe miles east of Monarch Mt. I saw a cow and a calf run by me one morning at daylight and Jeremy saw a bull and about six cows and calves that were about one half mile away. I was hoping this area would be good, but it was a disappointment. We both did lots of looking but never really found much sign. The area had quite a few trails that were restricted to motorcycle only, so we brought the cycles thinking this would be the way to access hard to get at elk. This really did not give us an advantage and to be honest most of the trails were down right scary. The trails were steep, rugged, rocky, and narrow and the bikes were not geared low enough to handle the steep grades. Besides the trails being difficult, the area was crawling with people during the weekend. There were camps set up everywhere and there was way too much human activity to allow the elk to feel comfortable. Most of the people were not hunters, but I am sure they still had the effect of chasing elk out of the area. I did have a little mishap with my cycle and ended up tangling my bow up in a tree. In the process of getting untangled I knocked the peep off my string. The next day (Sunday) I wasted the whole day and had to drive 300 miles round trip to get it replaced.
Wednesday morning we both came to our senses and broke camp to search for pastures with more elk. We found an area southeast of White Sulpher Springs that bordered some private ranch land. We had seen quite a few elk along this area early in the morning on our way out hunting, so we knew there was a concentration of animals in the area. There was a good population of elk, but most stayed on the private land.
We basically had the two half days and the one full day to scout and kill an elk. The elk were definitely more plentiful in this area but the vast majority of them were sticking to the private lands. The green alphalfa fields and the lack of hunting pressure drew these elk to the private lands. In the short period we were at this last area we both came close to having an opportunity, and we both experienced some awesome bugling.
Even though neither of us was successful in harvesting an elk, it was still a good time. We got to experience the mountain scenery, and beautiful weather. We also saw plenty of whitetail and mule deer, ruff grouse and spruce grouse, coyotes and tons of antelope along the roads of Montana. I also was able to fish the streams and catch both cutthroat and brook trout.
Sunday, August 30, 2015
8-26-15 Wed
8-26-15 Wed, Myself and Dan (co-worker) 545PM – 10:15PM
Mississippi R. pool 8, 5.48→, 34.3 kfs, ? °, dirty// 61°, SE6, clear
Caught: Bait: bluegills, rock bass, one crappie and one war mouth
Tonight I was taking Dan from work out flat head fishing. I had taken him and his son Eric earlier in the season and we had limited success. We did manage one flat head about ten pounds and a respectable gar. We did have quite a few bites, but we did not connect on most of them.
On this trip it was just Dan and myself and we were fishing pool eight instead of seven. The last time I was on eight was about a month ago and Rob and myself did rather well. I was hoping for similar results, but that did not happen.
The bluegill fishing was rather difficult. We did catch enough for fishing, but not by much and most of them were pretty big. I really wanted Dan to catch or at least see one 30lb plus fish caught. With that goal in mind I planned on fishing two spots and the two that I chose were two of my most productive spots on this pool.
Well the plan was good, but the fish did not cooperate and the conditions were tough with all the weeds that were fouling our lines. We had one pretty good bite at the first spot and Dan missed it. Dan got a little excited and forgot about the instructions I had given him about sweeping the rod and not jerking it. Oh well, seen it happen many times with circle hooks and it usually happens with experienced fishermen.
Mississippi R. pool 8, 5.48→, 34.3 kfs, ? °, dirty// 61°, SE6, clear
Caught: Bait: bluegills, rock bass, one crappie and one war mouth
Tonight I was taking Dan from work out flat head fishing. I had taken him and his son Eric earlier in the season and we had limited success. We did manage one flat head about ten pounds and a respectable gar. We did have quite a few bites, but we did not connect on most of them.
On this trip it was just Dan and myself and we were fishing pool eight instead of seven. The last time I was on eight was about a month ago and Rob and myself did rather well. I was hoping for similar results, but that did not happen.
The bluegill fishing was rather difficult. We did catch enough for fishing, but not by much and most of them were pretty big. I really wanted Dan to catch or at least see one 30lb plus fish caught. With that goal in mind I planned on fishing two spots and the two that I chose were two of my most productive spots on this pool.
Well the plan was good, but the fish did not cooperate and the conditions were tough with all the weeds that were fouling our lines. We had one pretty good bite at the first spot and Dan missed it. Dan got a little excited and forgot about the instructions I had given him about sweeping the rod and not jerking it. Oh well, seen it happen many times with circle hooks and it usually happens with experienced fishermen.
8-24-15 Mon
8-24-15 Mon, Myself 615PM – 8PM
Mississippi R. pool 7, 5.58↑, 36.5 kfs, 66°, dirty// 64°, NW15 G24, overcast (cold)
Caught: 4 pike: 21-27”, 2 LMB: 12–13”
The temperature had taken quite a dip in the last day or two. I really don’t mind though it feels so refreshing. I figured the bass bite would be pretty much non-existent and I was right. I started out throwing a frog, and the only action that came on that was some pretty lazy follows by pike and one humungous dogfish. A swim jig did not do much better.
After about an hour I switched gears and move to a dead end slough with 2-4 feet of water. I tied on an old trusty spinner bait and the pike responded rather aggressively. I did not load up on them, but I did catch enough in a short amount of time to make it fun.
I had my young beagle Zeta with me tonight and she really seems to be starting to enjoy the boat ride and the river. We did have a little incidence with her though. I was casting off the front and heard a rather loud splash. I knew it could only be one thing. She had fallen in! She immediately headed to the emergent aquatic vegetation and started bounding towards shore. Luckily for both her and my sake I was able to call her back to the boat and haul her in. Fortunately for her I was close to being done fishing and she did not have to shiver too long.
Mississippi R. pool 7, 5.58↑, 36.5 kfs, 66°, dirty// 64°, NW15 G24, overcast (cold)
Caught: 4 pike: 21-27”, 2 LMB: 12–13”
The temperature had taken quite a dip in the last day or two. I really don’t mind though it feels so refreshing. I figured the bass bite would be pretty much non-existent and I was right. I started out throwing a frog, and the only action that came on that was some pretty lazy follows by pike and one humungous dogfish. A swim jig did not do much better.
After about an hour I switched gears and move to a dead end slough with 2-4 feet of water. I tied on an old trusty spinner bait and the pike responded rather aggressively. I did not load up on them, but I did catch enough in a short amount of time to make it fun.
I had my young beagle Zeta with me tonight and she really seems to be starting to enjoy the boat ride and the river. We did have a little incidence with her though. I was casting off the front and heard a rather loud splash. I knew it could only be one thing. She had fallen in! She immediately headed to the emergent aquatic vegetation and started bounding towards shore. Luckily for both her and my sake I was able to call her back to the boat and haul her in. Fortunately for her I was close to being done fishing and she did not have to shiver too long.
Sunday, August 23, 2015
8-22-15 Sat
8-22-15 Sat, Myself 630PM – 12AM
Mississippi R. pool 7, 5.6 →, 37 kfs, 73°, clear// 75°, S15 G23, overcast
Caught: Bait (bluegills, crappies and rock bass), Flat heads (4) 10,12,15 & 21
It was a terribly windy night for fishing, but I had the urge to go and that was that. Even with the strong gusty winds, you can usually find some area on the river that is somewhat sheltered from strong winds no matter what direction they may blow from.
The bait catching went relatively easy, but of course it was not as easy with the wind howling. The first spot I fished was an area just off the main channel, which was secluded from the south winds. I was fishing in twenty plus feet of water and managed to catch three out of this spot. After about and hour and a half there I moved downstream about one hundred yards and came up empty handed.
On my way in a stopped at another deep-water spot that was quite a ways off the main channel. The water was not quite as deep here, but it still held on fish. This fish came off some wood structure close to shore. That fish must have been just waiting for a morsel, because about as soon as my gill hit the bottom it was crushed. I had several other bites from that same spot, but failed to connect with any of the fish. I really think they were channel cats that were hitting and then running sideways with the bait.
The rice is probably at its peak stage of pollination and it is everywhere. The last couple of days there had been a tremendous amount of very small mouth type bugs. These moths area very light colored, almost white and about one half inch long. I have been watching this survival show lately; show I decided to try one. I sure would hate to have to survive on them, mainly because they are so hard to catch. The taste was actually pretty good. For such a small thing it had great lasting flavor with an almost nut taste. It actually gave me a craving to want more!
Mississippi R. pool 7, 5.6 →, 37 kfs, 73°, clear// 75°, S15 G23, overcast
Caught: Bait (bluegills, crappies and rock bass), Flat heads (4) 10,12,15 & 21
It was a terribly windy night for fishing, but I had the urge to go and that was that. Even with the strong gusty winds, you can usually find some area on the river that is somewhat sheltered from strong winds no matter what direction they may blow from.
The bait catching went relatively easy, but of course it was not as easy with the wind howling. The first spot I fished was an area just off the main channel, which was secluded from the south winds. I was fishing in twenty plus feet of water and managed to catch three out of this spot. After about and hour and a half there I moved downstream about one hundred yards and came up empty handed.
On my way in a stopped at another deep-water spot that was quite a ways off the main channel. The water was not quite as deep here, but it still held on fish. This fish came off some wood structure close to shore. That fish must have been just waiting for a morsel, because about as soon as my gill hit the bottom it was crushed. I had several other bites from that same spot, but failed to connect with any of the fish. I really think they were channel cats that were hitting and then running sideways with the bait.
The rice is probably at its peak stage of pollination and it is everywhere. The last couple of days there had been a tremendous amount of very small mouth type bugs. These moths area very light colored, almost white and about one half inch long. I have been watching this survival show lately; show I decided to try one. I sure would hate to have to survive on them, mainly because they are so hard to catch. The taste was actually pretty good. For such a small thing it had great lasting flavor with an almost nut taste. It actually gave me a craving to want more!
Friday, August 21, 2015
8-17-15 Mon
Myself and Scott 7PM – 1145PMMississippi R. pool 7, 4.57↑,? kfs, 78°, clear// 70°, N 6, overcast
Caught: Bait (bluegills), me: 5 & 12 lb flat, Scott: 37 & 32 lb flat
The days are getting shorter and the water will soon began to cool and the cat fishing will come to an end. So, I need to get out as much as I can. Scott is always ready to go fish for the big ugly predators, so off we went.
The bait catching was very easy tonight, we fished a couple of spots and had all the bait we needed. The first spot we set up in was a main channel off the main navigation channel. We were sitting in about 25 feet of water with plenty of snags just downstream from us.
Scott had the hot poles tonight. In fact the first fish that was caught was the 37-pound fish that came off his pole. This fish was so aggressive and close to where his bluegill touched the bottom that Scott did not even think the bait hit the bottom before it was engulfed.
Tonight all the fish came off his poles and he also got all the big ones. In all we caught four fish, which had a combined weight of 87 pounds. Not too bad for a couple of hours of fishing.
8-16-15 Sun
8-16-15 Sun, Myself 8AM – 23PM
Mississippi R. pool 7, 5.08 ↓, 22kfs, 82°, clear// Hot 92°, S10, clear
Caught: 6 LMB14-18”, 1 – 15” SMB, bluegills and crappies
It was a Sunday morning and I had no plans or obligations, so fishing I was going. Generally I am almost always so excited to go fishing, but with this hot weather my desire to get out and back in the heat was not too great.
As usual thought I was happy I made the commitment and went. The Mississippi rarely disappoints, and today was no exception. When I say rarely disappoint that does not mean that I have to catch fish to be satisfied. In fact just being out on the river and being a part of its awesome beauty is usually sufficient.
However the large mouth bass bite on a plastic frog was pretty close to being great. I also was able to find some new areas for bluegills and crappies. I tried trolling a couple of wing dams, but that was a bust.
The wild rice is now in the pollen stage and it is everywhere this year. The amount of it is just amazing, in fact it is really starting to overtake and eliminate the more traditional aquatic plants of this river basin area.
Mississippi R. pool 7, 5.08 ↓, 22kfs, 82°, clear// Hot 92°, S10, clear
Caught: 6 LMB14-18”, 1 – 15” SMB, bluegills and crappies
It was a Sunday morning and I had no plans or obligations, so fishing I was going. Generally I am almost always so excited to go fishing, but with this hot weather my desire to get out and back in the heat was not too great.
As usual thought I was happy I made the commitment and went. The Mississippi rarely disappoints, and today was no exception. When I say rarely disappoint that does not mean that I have to catch fish to be satisfied. In fact just being out on the river and being a part of its awesome beauty is usually sufficient.
However the large mouth bass bite on a plastic frog was pretty close to being great. I also was able to find some new areas for bluegills and crappies. I tried trolling a couple of wing dams, but that was a bust.
The wild rice is now in the pollen stage and it is everywhere this year. The amount of it is just amazing, in fact it is really starting to overtake and eliminate the more traditional aquatic plants of this river basin area.
Saturday, August 15, 2015
8-14-15 Fri
Myself, and Scott 630PM – 12AMMississippi R. pool 7, 5.4 ↓, 31kfs, 78°, clear// 82°, NW 6, clear
Caught: Bait (bluegills), me: 30 lb flat, Scott: 26 lb flat
The flat head bite was not vey good tonight. We basically got two bites and caught two fish; at least they were both good fish. The only thing is with only two bites in three hours it can get rather boring.
The first spot we fished was along the main channel in about seven feet of water with plenty of wood close by. This area looked really good, but we never got a bite. The next spot we went to was close by, but on a side channel off of the main channel. This area also had lots of wood, but it was deeper with a depth of around fourteen feet. This is the area that produced my fish, and man did that fish ever slam the bait and run. That fish actually pulled us out of position and all our lines became a mess after the wind caught us and pushed us upstream.
Our final spot was a side slough way off the main channel with very little flow and deep water. I was not too thrilled about this spot, but it did produce our second fish of the night and it was a good one. I think I will be trying more spot similar to this one.
8-13-15 Thr
8-13-15 Thr Myself, 630PM – 1030PM
Mississippi R. pool 7, 5.45 ↓, 33kfs, 78°, clear// 83°, NW 7, mostly cloudy
Caught: Bait (bluegills), 8 lb flat head
Tonight was a solo flat head trip. I was feeling bored and I needed to get out fishing. I started out fishing for bait in some new spots. I wanted to find new sources to fish for my bait, and I am always exploring. The bluegill action was not great, but I did manage to catch an ample supply. The one thing I have been noticing about the bluegills is that there seems to be less bluegills than normal and that the average size seems to be smaller.
Tonight I fished in Somners Chute. I tried two locations, and I was not too successful. I did have an ample amount of bites, but the majority of the bites I did have were quite subtle.
The rice has really exploded the last couple weeks; it is really starting to take over the lake. Right now it is in the flowering stage and it is giving off a very grassy type of odor. I had a very hard time navigating from Somners Chute to Black Deer’s Cut because of all the rice, and that was with my Go Devil. At this time there is no way in hell I could navigate that with my big boat with the outboard.
Mississippi R. pool 7, 5.45 ↓, 33kfs, 78°, clear// 83°, NW 7, mostly cloudy
Caught: Bait (bluegills), 8 lb flat head
Tonight was a solo flat head trip. I was feeling bored and I needed to get out fishing. I started out fishing for bait in some new spots. I wanted to find new sources to fish for my bait, and I am always exploring. The bluegill action was not great, but I did manage to catch an ample supply. The one thing I have been noticing about the bluegills is that there seems to be less bluegills than normal and that the average size seems to be smaller.
Tonight I fished in Somners Chute. I tried two locations, and I was not too successful. I did have an ample amount of bites, but the majority of the bites I did have were quite subtle.
The rice has really exploded the last couple weeks; it is really starting to take over the lake. Right now it is in the flowering stage and it is giving off a very grassy type of odor. I had a very hard time navigating from Somners Chute to Black Deer’s Cut because of all the rice, and that was with my Go Devil. At this time there is no way in hell I could navigate that with my big boat with the outboard.
Tuesday, August 11, 2015
8-11-15 Tue
8-11-15 Tue Myself, 630PM – 830PM
Mississippi R. pool 7, 5.23→, 26, 78°, fairly dirty// 75°, calm, clear
Caught: 3 bluegills, 1 perch, and 1 12” small mouth bass
It was such a beautiful night tonight it would have been a shame not to have gone fishing. Tonight my beagle Zeta accompanied me. She has gone a few times with me, but she is always quite skittish. However, she was much better tonight. I am thinking she must be getting use to the boat and the ride.
Fishing was not very good tonight. My main plan was to fish for LMB and also do a little exploring for pan fish. I did not find a concentration of either. I did lose two LMB and I also missed one small mouth bass. I had limited luck on the pan fish. I was just using artificial bait just basically searching for them. I also did a little exploring tonight in an area that I have not fished yet this year. This new area was a total bust.
Mississippi R. pool 7, 5.23→, 26, 78°, fairly dirty// 75°, calm, clear
Caught: 3 bluegills, 1 perch, and 1 12” small mouth bass
It was such a beautiful night tonight it would have been a shame not to have gone fishing. Tonight my beagle Zeta accompanied me. She has gone a few times with me, but she is always quite skittish. However, she was much better tonight. I am thinking she must be getting use to the boat and the ride.
Fishing was not very good tonight. My main plan was to fish for LMB and also do a little exploring for pan fish. I did not find a concentration of either. I did lose two LMB and I also missed one small mouth bass. I had limited luck on the pan fish. I was just using artificial bait just basically searching for them. I also did a little exploring tonight in an area that I have not fished yet this year. This new area was a total bust.
8-9-15 Sun
8-9-15 Sun 8am-12pm myself, 630pm– 1130PM myself and Scott
Mississippi R. pool 7, 5.17↓, 26kcfs, 74°, dirty// 80°, light wind, mostly cloudy
Caught: AM: 7 LMB 14-17”, ///PM: bluegills, 2 flat heads 8 & 15 lb, 1 channel cat 8 lb
I was back on the river again after being away on vacation the past week. Can’t say that I was glad to be back home, because that meant I would be going back to work. But, I was glad to be back for the fishing on the Mississippi river.
In the morning I just targeted large mouth bass. The action was not great, but I did managed to boat seven. All the bass came on frogs in the heavy weeds. Four of the seven fish were caught in one little area, and the other three were caught as loners that were not grouped up with other bass.
In the evening Scott and I went out flat head fishing. I thought by now the bluegills would be relating to the rocks close to the main channel, but I did not really find that to be the case. The majority of our bait (bluegills) came off wood very near the main channel. We fished three spots and caught fish in two of the spots. We did not have any bites until after darkness.
Mississippi R. pool 7, 5.17↓, 26kcfs, 74°, dirty// 80°, light wind, mostly cloudy
Caught: AM: 7 LMB 14-17”, ///PM: bluegills, 2 flat heads 8 & 15 lb, 1 channel cat 8 lb
I was back on the river again after being away on vacation the past week. Can’t say that I was glad to be back home, because that meant I would be going back to work. But, I was glad to be back for the fishing on the Mississippi river.
In the morning I just targeted large mouth bass. The action was not great, but I did managed to boat seven. All the bass came on frogs in the heavy weeds. Four of the seven fish were caught in one little area, and the other three were caught as loners that were not grouped up with other bass.
In the evening Scott and I went out flat head fishing. I thought by now the bluegills would be relating to the rocks close to the main channel, but I did not really find that to be the case. The majority of our bait (bluegills) came off wood very near the main channel. We fished three spots and caught fish in two of the spots. We did not have any bites until after darkness.
Sunday, August 9, 2015
8-1 through 8-7-15-15
8-1 through 8-7-15-15 myself the majority of the time, and evenings with Andy
Chippewa Flowage, Hayward, WI
Caught: Couple of SMB, pike and LMB, no musky
It was our annual family vacation on the Chippewa Flowage. My main goal was to fish for and catch musky. Well, I fished for them but I did not catch any. I had one fish wake my prop bait and I also lost a mid thirty fish when I was out with guide John Detloff.
John is pretty much an old school musky fisherman. He doesn’t believe much in using a trolling motor while he is guiding. Nor does he believe in the more modern baits such as the Bulldawgs or Show and Cow Girls. John is very knowledgeable about musky fishing on the flowage and the history of the flowage. I would rate him as a very good guide and he seemed to be genuinely interested in getting me a musky. I also learned a lot from John as far as types of locations to try and baits to use.
The biggest fish I caught this trip was a thirty-six inch pike that just smashed my Lerue Creeper. In fact, I had to repair it that night. Most of the other guests were mainly fishing for crappies and they did well catching them. There is a huge population of crappies on the flowage. One thing I have noticed the last couple of years is the absence of the mill foil plant that was plaguing the lake. For the last couple of years the power company has been drawing down the lake in the wintertime to kill off the milfoil and it definitely has been successful.
The weather for the week had its ups and downs. I got caught out in a hail storm that produced golf ball sized hail. It is quite an experience to be in a hail storm with hail that size. When they hit the water it makes a pretty neat splash. I also fished most of the morning on Friday in a very hard rain. We had several other fronts come through with wind and cold on their heels.
Chippewa Flowage, Hayward, WI
Caught: Couple of SMB, pike and LMB, no musky
It was our annual family vacation on the Chippewa Flowage. My main goal was to fish for and catch musky. Well, I fished for them but I did not catch any. I had one fish wake my prop bait and I also lost a mid thirty fish when I was out with guide John Detloff.
John is pretty much an old school musky fisherman. He doesn’t believe much in using a trolling motor while he is guiding. Nor does he believe in the more modern baits such as the Bulldawgs or Show and Cow Girls. John is very knowledgeable about musky fishing on the flowage and the history of the flowage. I would rate him as a very good guide and he seemed to be genuinely interested in getting me a musky. I also learned a lot from John as far as types of locations to try and baits to use.
The biggest fish I caught this trip was a thirty-six inch pike that just smashed my Lerue Creeper. In fact, I had to repair it that night. Most of the other guests were mainly fishing for crappies and they did well catching them. There is a huge population of crappies on the flowage. One thing I have noticed the last couple of years is the absence of the mill foil plant that was plaguing the lake. For the last couple of years the power company has been drawing down the lake in the wintertime to kill off the milfoil and it definitely has been successful.
The weather for the week had its ups and downs. I got caught out in a hail storm that produced golf ball sized hail. It is quite an experience to be in a hail storm with hail that size. When they hit the water it makes a pretty neat splash. I also fished most of the morning on Friday in a very hard rain. We had several other fronts come through with wind and cold on their heels.
Thursday, July 30, 2015
7-29-15 Thr
. Myself and Rob flat head fishing, 430PM – 1130PMMississippi R. pool 8, 5.21↑, 31kcfs, 77°, clear// 73°, W6, clear, full moon
Caught: Rob 38, 22, & 15 lb flat heads, Me: 30 lb flat head//bait: bluegills, crappies
I was doing three things tonight that I had not done in quite awhile; fishing with Rob and fishing the river by La Crosse. Another first of the year was catching a fish before it got totally dark. In fact Rob caught a double right about at dark.
The first spot was a main channel scour hole below a wing dam. Both fish came off the channel side poles in twenty plus feet of water, and I might add both fish hit quite well.
The next spot was a side channel area with lots of wood. We each caught a fish at this last spot. My fish came right off a snag next to some wood and Rob caught his on the farthest pole out form the shore. Both of these fish also thump the rod rather well.
Its funny I really don’t care for crowds and a lot of people, but fishing basically within the city limits and seeing the city all lit up against the water is quite tranquil. Maybe it is the fact that I am glad I am on the water and not in the city! The bait fishing was not super easy tonight, but we did manage plenty of gills. The rocks are not yet holding any number of bluegills and the wood does not seem to have an over abundance. Rob was the champ of fishing tonight. He caught the majority of the bait and three of the flat head.
7-27-15 Mon
7-27-15 Mon. Myself and Scott flat head fishing, 7PM – 1130PM
Mississippi R. pool 7, 5.43↓, 31kcfs, 78°, clear// 77°, SE 8, clear
Caught: No flats, 1 soft shell turtle//Bait: bluegill
It was a Monday after work flat head fishing trip with Scott. I had high expectations on account of having done well just a few nights ago. Those expectations were quickly doused from lack of action. Scott did have one bite and I did catch one rather large soft shell turtle.
Those turtles must have quite a tough hide. The hook was buried in the turtle’s neck and even with my forceful and persistent trying I was unable to remove the hook. Now, there is one soft shell turtle out there with a piercing in its neck. Heck, maybe it’ll be the new rage with the soft shells.
Mississippi R. pool 7, 5.43↓, 31kcfs, 78°, clear// 77°, SE 8, clear
Caught: No flats, 1 soft shell turtle//Bait: bluegill
It was a Monday after work flat head fishing trip with Scott. I had high expectations on account of having done well just a few nights ago. Those expectations were quickly doused from lack of action. Scott did have one bite and I did catch one rather large soft shell turtle.
Those turtles must have quite a tough hide. The hook was buried in the turtle’s neck and even with my forceful and persistent trying I was unable to remove the hook. Now, there is one soft shell turtle out there with a piercing in its neck. Heck, maybe it’ll be the new rage with the soft shells.
Sunday, July 26, 2015
7-24-15 Fri
7-24-15 Fri. Myself, flat head fishing, 7PM – 12AM
Mississippi R. pool 7, 6.0’→, 45kcfs, 78°, clear// 80°, S8, storms in area
Caught: 4 flat heads: 5 – 17lbs//Bait: bluegill
It was a lone flat head trip for me this evening. I wanted to get out and try one of my old time favorite spots that I only know about. That’s how they are kept secret; don’t show any of your fishing buddies.
Well it turns out I never made it to the “secret spot”, I got side tracked at another spot up by Trempealeau and the bite was so good that I never left. The first spot I fished was an action spot. I probably did not get my first bite until about 930 (half hour after dark), but after that the action sign was shining.
I moved to another spot about 1130 and missed one other fish there before the storms chased me off. Have you ever heard the term heat lightning in the summer time? Well that is a folk’s tale. It is lightning all right and caused by the heat and unstable atmosphere, but it is truly real as I found out. When you see flashes in the sky but cannot hear the thunder is from a storm that is quite a ways off. Yes, you can get rained on and still see stars as happened to me on the ride back to the sanctuary of the landing.
Mississippi R. pool 7, 6.0’→, 45kcfs, 78°, clear// 80°, S8, storms in area
Caught: 4 flat heads: 5 – 17lbs//Bait: bluegill
It was a lone flat head trip for me this evening. I wanted to get out and try one of my old time favorite spots that I only know about. That’s how they are kept secret; don’t show any of your fishing buddies.
Well it turns out I never made it to the “secret spot”, I got side tracked at another spot up by Trempealeau and the bite was so good that I never left. The first spot I fished was an action spot. I probably did not get my first bite until about 930 (half hour after dark), but after that the action sign was shining.
I moved to another spot about 1130 and missed one other fish there before the storms chased me off. Have you ever heard the term heat lightning in the summer time? Well that is a folk’s tale. It is lightning all right and caused by the heat and unstable atmosphere, but it is truly real as I found out. When you see flashes in the sky but cannot hear the thunder is from a storm that is quite a ways off. Yes, you can get rained on and still see stars as happened to me on the ride back to the sanctuary of the landing.
Thursday, July 23, 2015
7-22-15 Wed
. Myself and Scott, flat head fishing, 630PM – 12AMMississippi R. pool 7, 6.3’↓, 45kcfs, 77°, clear// 70°, clear, calm
Caught: Scott: 37 lb, Myself: 21 & 6 lb, //Bait: bluegill
It was a weeknight of flat head fishing so it was not going to be a super late night. From the results of my last cat-fishing trip I was pretty confident that the fish had completed their spawn and were in the process or already using the main channel areas.
The first spot was a woody area along side the main channel with about ten feet of water. We fished the spot for about an hour and did not have a bite. I think the flow was just a little too strong here.
The next spot was just on the other side of an island from the firs spot, but with less current. It also had submerged wood in about twelve feet of water. This second spot was the magnum hole. Scott had a bite on the first bait he threw out. The fish hit almost before the bait settled to the bottom. And, this first fish ended up being the biggest of the night. We caught one more fish in this spot and missed two others. After about an hour of fishing this spot we gave up on it and moved about two hundred yards downstream and onto the opposite shoreline. This area was fairly shallow, but it did have and abundance of wood. The small fish was caught here and one other bite was missed.
7-19-15 Sun
7-19-15 Sun. Myself bass fishing 845PM-915PM
Mississippi R. pool 7, 6.6’↓, 49kcfs, 77°, semi-clear// 75°, clear, calm
Caught: Nothing
It was a spur of the moment fishing outing just before dark. It was a Sunday and I had not been out yet today, so I was feeling a little bad of not fishing at all on a day off. I just took the small boat tonight. It is so convenient to have that boat already in the water and ready to go most of the time.
Since I had very little time to fish, and I wanted to make the best of it and yet do a little exploring I went right to one of the spots where I always catch at least one bass; in fact I think it is the same bass each and every time. Sure enough after casting the area around this spot and having no action I casted to the old reliable spot and Charlie the bass was waiting. The fish crushed my frog, and after a brief struggle he shook my bait. Oh well! Except for one other swipe that was the extent of my action for then night.
Mississippi R. pool 7, 6.6’↓, 49kcfs, 77°, semi-clear// 75°, clear, calm
Caught: Nothing
It was a spur of the moment fishing outing just before dark. It was a Sunday and I had not been out yet today, so I was feeling a little bad of not fishing at all on a day off. I just took the small boat tonight. It is so convenient to have that boat already in the water and ready to go most of the time.
Since I had very little time to fish, and I wanted to make the best of it and yet do a little exploring I went right to one of the spots where I always catch at least one bass; in fact I think it is the same bass each and every time. Sure enough after casting the area around this spot and having no action I casted to the old reliable spot and Charlie the bass was waiting. The fish crushed my frog, and after a brief struggle he shook my bait. Oh well! Except for one other swipe that was the extent of my action for then night.
7-18-15 Sat
7-18-15 Sat. Scott and myself bass fishing 2:30PM-9PM
Mississippi R. pool 5a, 6.7’↓, 50kcfs, 77°, semi-clear// 80°, sunny, S 10-15
Caught: Me: 1 – 23” pike, 1 – small mouth, 4 LMB//Scott: 2 Small mouths, 4 LMB
It was an afternoon of bass fishing for Scott and myself. Scott wanted to go someplace different and I suggested the pool just above Winona. Usually the bass bite here in the slop is quite good with both numbers and the size of the bass being high. Today however was the exception. The fishing was very slow, and we only found a decent concentration of fish in one area.
Mississippi R. pool 5a, 6.7’↓, 50kcfs, 77°, semi-clear// 80°, sunny, S 10-15
Caught: Me: 1 – 23” pike, 1 – small mouth, 4 LMB//Scott: 2 Small mouths, 4 LMB
It was an afternoon of bass fishing for Scott and myself. Scott wanted to go someplace different and I suggested the pool just above Winona. Usually the bass bite here in the slop is quite good with both numbers and the size of the bass being high. Today however was the exception. The fishing was very slow, and we only found a decent concentration of fish in one area.
Sunday, July 19, 2015
7-17-15 Fri
7-17-15 Fri. Scott and myself cat fishing
Mississippi R. pool 7, 6.7’ →, 50kcfs, 77°, semi-clear// 88°, sunny, light winds
Caught: bait: bluegills, rock bass and crappies, two flat heads, 8 & 10 lbs.
The bait catching so far this summer has been pretty tough, but tonight it was quite easy.
Tonight I wanted to key in on areas that were major channels off of the main channel. I figured the spawn was winding down and the fish should be heading out to deeper main pool areas.
The first spot we fished was a deep scour hole with little or no wood. Our fishing poles were set up in anywhere from ten feet of water to forty feet. We managed to catch both fish out of this first set up. Both fish came off of the same middle pole in what I would say was about 30-40 feet of water. We tried two other spots with no other fish coming boat side. The bites tonight were not pole cracking type of bites. Besides the two fish we caught we did have a couple of other bites, but they were very lack luster type of bites.
7-15-15 Wed
. Dick, Nora and IkeMississippi R. pool 7, 6.7’ →, 50kcfs, 76°, clear, 82°, sunny, light winds
Caught: Four channel cats, 1 sheep head, and 1 rock bass
My brother Dick had his two grand kids for the week and he wanted to take them out fishing again this year. The plan was simple; take the kids out swimming for a little bit, then we would fish until almost dark. The kids were a little hesitant at first to get into the water, but in a very short time they were enjoying themselves in the water. Nora has a little bit of an episode in the water though. I had taken them to the sand flats that lead into Lake Onalaska. Normally this is a great area to take kids because of the expansive shallow area that it provides. Well it was still very shallow for the most part, but there was quite a bit of current blowing through the area. Unfortunately Nora got out a little too far and got swept into an area in which she could not touch. She did have her life jacket on, but with the swift current she could not get back to the boat. Grandpa Dick had to go retrieve her from the swift current.
The fishing was not too good, but the kids each caught about three fish and they had a good time. Also, both were pretty excited about having a catfish fry and going to the fair the next day.
7-14-15 Tue
7-14-15 Tue, Myself 630PM – 930PM
Mississippi R. pool 7, 6.7’ →, 50kcfs, 76°, clear,
Caught: 3 crappies, 2 bluegills and on 15” LMB
It was an after work solo trip. I started out mainly targeting crappies, but after and hour and a half of very little action I decided a change was needed. I started throwing the old reliable frog into some of the spots that I had done so well at the previous outings. Unfortunately, the bass were either not active or had vanished. I had very little action and only hooked one fish.
There was a pretty good fish fly hatch going on tonight right at dark and the fish were feeding heavily on the newly emerging flies.
Mississippi R. pool 7, 6.7’ →, 50kcfs, 76°, clear,
Caught: 3 crappies, 2 bluegills and on 15” LMB
It was an after work solo trip. I started out mainly targeting crappies, but after and hour and a half of very little action I decided a change was needed. I started throwing the old reliable frog into some of the spots that I had done so well at the previous outings. Unfortunately, the bass were either not active or had vanished. I had very little action and only hooked one fish.
There was a pretty good fish fly hatch going on tonight right at dark and the fish were feeding heavily on the newly emerging flies.
Sunday, July 12, 2015
7-11-15, Sat
7-11-15, Sat, 6PM – 930PM, myself and Scott
Mississippi R. pool 7, 6.7’ →, 50kcfs, 76°, clear//S 8, overcast, 77°
Caught: Me: 8 Large mouth bass, Scott: 5 Large mouth bass
It was a top water frog fishing night with Scott tonight. The fish were not as plentiful or as active as I had been experiencing, but we did all right. We did run into a couple of spots where we would catch or miss a couple in a particular spot, but then we would go quite a stretch with nothing. It almost seemed as if the fish were there, but if they had experienced any fishing pressure recently they were not very aggressive in biting our frogs.
Mississippi R. pool 7, 6.7’ →, 50kcfs, 76°, clear//S 8, overcast, 77°
Caught: Me: 8 Large mouth bass, Scott: 5 Large mouth bass
It was a top water frog fishing night with Scott tonight. The fish were not as plentiful or as active as I had been experiencing, but we did all right. We did run into a couple of spots where we would catch or miss a couple in a particular spot, but then we would go quite a stretch with nothing. It almost seemed as if the fish were there, but if they had experienced any fishing pressure recently they were not very aggressive in biting our frogs.
7-10-15, Fri
7-10-15, Fri, 6PM – 1130PM, myself, Dan and Eric Moen
Mississippi R. pool 7, 6.7’ →, 50kcfs, 75°, clear//S 5, clear, 70°
Caught: bait (bluegills, crappies, rock bass and a perch, 6 lb flat head, 28’ gar
Tonight I was taking Dan and his son out flat head fishing. Dan has had quite a lot of fishing experience, but I could tell his son was a little shaky on the fishing. The first chore was catching bait, and it was no slam-dunk. I feel bad when I take people fishing that do not have the fishing skills I do and bait catching is tough. In order to flat head fish we need bait, so that is the number one priority. Unless the gills are easy to come by, I am pretty intense on getting a supply into the live well and I don’t have much time to help an inexperienced angler catch fish.
The flat head fishing was pretty slow. Eric missed one bite early in the night and he caught a decent gar a little while later. Dan caught a 6-8 lb flat, but other than that the action was quite slow. A couple of fish were also missed, but that can probably be contributed to lack luster bites.
Mississippi R. pool 7, 6.7’ →, 50kcfs, 75°, clear//S 5, clear, 70°
Caught: bait (bluegills, crappies, rock bass and a perch, 6 lb flat head, 28’ gar
Tonight I was taking Dan and his son out flat head fishing. Dan has had quite a lot of fishing experience, but I could tell his son was a little shaky on the fishing. The first chore was catching bait, and it was no slam-dunk. I feel bad when I take people fishing that do not have the fishing skills I do and bait catching is tough. In order to flat head fish we need bait, so that is the number one priority. Unless the gills are easy to come by, I am pretty intense on getting a supply into the live well and I don’t have much time to help an inexperienced angler catch fish.
The flat head fishing was pretty slow. Eric missed one bite early in the night and he caught a decent gar a little while later. Dan caught a 6-8 lb flat, but other than that the action was quite slow. A couple of fish were also missed, but that can probably be contributed to lack luster bites.
7-9-15, Thr
7-9-15, Thr, 7PM – 9PM, myself
Mississippi R. pool 7, 6.7’ →, 50kcfs, 74°, clear//S 7, clear, 72°
Caught: Blue gills and a few crappies
I have an upcoming trip with a co-worker and his son tomorrow, so I wanted to get out and try and find a good spot to catch some bluegills for our bait. Well bluegill fishing has been relatively tough this year and tonight was no exception. I guess it was not a total waste of time; at least I eliminated areas that did not have any pan fish.
Mississippi R. pool 7, 6.7’ →, 50kcfs, 74°, clear//S 7, clear, 72°
Caught: Blue gills and a few crappies
I have an upcoming trip with a co-worker and his son tomorrow, so I wanted to get out and try and find a good spot to catch some bluegills for our bait. Well bluegill fishing has been relatively tough this year and tonight was no exception. I guess it was not a total waste of time; at least I eliminated areas that did not have any pan fish.
7-7-15, Tue
7-7-15, Tue, 7PM – 1130PM, myself
Mississippi R. pool 7, 6.7’ →, 50kcfs, 74°, clear//S 8, clear, 65°
Caught: bait (bluegills, crappies, rock bass and a perch, 12 lb flat head
I have not been fishing flat heads too much because of the inconsistency of the bite. I don’t think the weather or conditions have anything to do with the lack of bite, but I do think the flat heads are spawning now. Flat heads are pretty tough to get when they are spawning. They build a nest in and around underwater snags and they stay close to the nest until the eggs hatch and the fry leave to strike out on their own. You pretty much have to drop your bait on their heads to catch them.
I fished Sommners slough and Big Cat Alley tonight. I caught my bait in Big Cat, and the one flat head, but Sommners was a bust.
Mississippi R. pool 7, 6.7’ →, 50kcfs, 74°, clear//S 8, clear, 65°
Caught: bait (bluegills, crappies, rock bass and a perch, 12 lb flat head
I have not been fishing flat heads too much because of the inconsistency of the bite. I don’t think the weather or conditions have anything to do with the lack of bite, but I do think the flat heads are spawning now. Flat heads are pretty tough to get when they are spawning. They build a nest in and around underwater snags and they stay close to the nest until the eggs hatch and the fry leave to strike out on their own. You pretty much have to drop your bait on their heads to catch them.
I fished Sommners slough and Big Cat Alley tonight. I caught my bait in Big Cat, and the one flat head, but Sommners was a bust.
Monday, July 6, 2015
7-6-15 Mon
7-6-15 Mon. 645PM – 915PM, N13, hazy, 67°, myself
Mississippi R. pool 7, 6’↑, 75°, clear
Caught: 10 large mouth bass
We had some major storms in the area today, but fortunately our area was spared. I had not really planned on gong fishing tonight, but he rain had stopped and some areas to the north of us had upwards of five inches of rain and I figured the river would probably rise and get dirty. So, I figured even with the drastic drop in temperature the last hour and the strong north wind, I had better get out.
I was pleasantly surprised with the results. I really did not expect much, and I was especially not sure if the top water frog bite would still be strong , but it was. It was a little harder to fish a frog on account of the wind, but in the end I boated a respectable number and size of fish.
One little odd thing that happened tonight was that I could smell something burning. I kept thinking something electrical in the boat was getting hot and burning or melting, but then at times I thought I smelled it in the wind. Well come to find out when I went on line to look at the past weather there was a warning for smoke in the atmosphere. Apparently Canada had some major fires going on and the smoke was blowing in from there.
Mississippi R. pool 7, 6’↑, 75°, clear
Caught: 10 large mouth bass
We had some major storms in the area today, but fortunately our area was spared. I had not really planned on gong fishing tonight, but he rain had stopped and some areas to the north of us had upwards of five inches of rain and I figured the river would probably rise and get dirty. So, I figured even with the drastic drop in temperature the last hour and the strong north wind, I had better get out.
I was pleasantly surprised with the results. I really did not expect much, and I was especially not sure if the top water frog bite would still be strong , but it was. It was a little harder to fish a frog on account of the wind, but in the end I boated a respectable number and size of fish.
One little odd thing that happened tonight was that I could smell something burning. I kept thinking something electrical in the boat was getting hot and burning or melting, but then at times I thought I smelled it in the wind. Well come to find out when I went on line to look at the past weather there was a warning for smoke in the atmosphere. Apparently Canada had some major fires going on and the smoke was blowing in from there.
7-5-15 Sun
, 530PM – 830PM, S 10, 80°, Jake and Cole Tupper and myselfBlack River, Hwy 35 Landing, water: clear, 4’ ↓
Caught: Approximately 6 channel cats, 1 carp and 1 sucker
Jake wanted to go cat fishing on the Black River. I do not fish this river very often and it’s very rare for me to be on it during the summer, but I was game to give it a try.
The conditions of the river were quite good, not too low and not too high. We basically set up on the upper side of deep holes (compared to the rest of the river). I fished with night crawlers and Jake fished with stink bait. The stink bait caught most of the fish, my pole baited with crawlers accounted for a sucker, carp and channel cat. Jake and I allowed Cole to catch the majority of the fish and it was quite fun to watch him tussle with the carp.
7-4-15 Sat
7-4-15 Sat. myself, 5PM – 930PM, calm, clear, 77°
Mississippi R. pool 7, 75°, 6.3’ ↓, 45kcfs
Caught: 12 large mouth bass, 2 pike
It was the fourth of July today and I am always depressed on this day. I did enjoy it when Autumn was younger and at home and we would go out boating and to the sand bars with friends, but those times are over. Now I just can’t stand all the people out on the water and all the noise associated with them and the fireworks.
Well I sulked most of the day away with small projects around the house. After I had enough of that I decided to take the goat boat out and do some bass fishing. Good thing I have that boat in the water behind the house, because there is no way I would have put a boat in at the landing today.
Anyway I was very glad I went fishing. The top water action was great. The bass were hanging right on the edge of the weed mats and when the frog would pop off the edge and into the open they would hammer it. At times I would dead stick it a few seconds after it popped off the mat and this would initiate a vicious strike from the more reluctant bass.
Mississippi R. pool 7, 75°, 6.3’ ↓, 45kcfs
Caught: 12 large mouth bass, 2 pike
It was the fourth of July today and I am always depressed on this day. I did enjoy it when Autumn was younger and at home and we would go out boating and to the sand bars with friends, but those times are over. Now I just can’t stand all the people out on the water and all the noise associated with them and the fireworks.
Well I sulked most of the day away with small projects around the house. After I had enough of that I decided to take the goat boat out and do some bass fishing. Good thing I have that boat in the water behind the house, because there is no way I would have put a boat in at the landing today.
Anyway I was very glad I went fishing. The top water action was great. The bass were hanging right on the edge of the weed mats and when the frog would pop off the edge and into the open they would hammer it. At times I would dead stick it a few seconds after it popped off the mat and this would initiate a vicious strike from the more reluctant bass.
Saturday, July 4, 2015
7-3-15 Friday
7-3-15 Fri, 9AM – 130PM, myself and norm, 75°, calm, clear
Mississippi R. Pool 9 (Genoa), 74°, calm, Minnesota side was dirty, Wisconsin side was clear
Caught: 1 – 20” pike, 1 – 13” small mouth and 1 – 13” large mouth
Norm was back home for the 4th of July, so I met up with him to do some fishing. We started out up by the float and were met with a ton of floating weeds. We then fished the rocks down by the power plant and caught nothing. Next stop was the spillway on the Minnesota side. The water was so muddy it smelled of mud. The area on the Minnesota side has some great backwater cover, but with the muddy water the fish were not active.
Our final destination was the Wisconsin side at the Roncoski Slough area. I managed to catch one each of a pike, small mouth and large mouth bass. The water clarity here was so much better than the Minnesota side. I believe the muddy water on the Minnesota side was a result of the Root River in Minnesota being flooded.
Mississippi R. Pool 9 (Genoa), 74°, calm, Minnesota side was dirty, Wisconsin side was clear
Caught: 1 – 20” pike, 1 – 13” small mouth and 1 – 13” large mouth
Norm was back home for the 4th of July, so I met up with him to do some fishing. We started out up by the float and were met with a ton of floating weeds. We then fished the rocks down by the power plant and caught nothing. Next stop was the spillway on the Minnesota side. The water was so muddy it smelled of mud. The area on the Minnesota side has some great backwater cover, but with the muddy water the fish were not active.
Our final destination was the Wisconsin side at the Roncoski Slough area. I managed to catch one each of a pike, small mouth and large mouth bass. The water clarity here was so much better than the Minnesota side. I believe the muddy water on the Minnesota side was a result of the Root River in Minnesota being flooded.
7-2-15 Thursday
7-2-15 Thur. 3PM – 930PM, myself, 75°, calm, clear
Mississippi R. just north of Winona (pool 5?), 75°, calm, clear, clear
Caught: 8 LMB, 3 SMB, and 4 pike
I headed up to one of my favorite top water action pools on the river today. The fishing was not fantastic, but it was pretty good. I did not have a ton of action but the sizes of the fish were very good.
One little side note: The president was in La Crosse today for a vast and he was speaking at UWL from about 130Pm to 230PM. Well about 3 or 330PM the presidential helicopter flew over me, which was pretty cool. I have no idea if he was in it but I did give it a big wave. I guess I was hopeful he was in it and was admiring the beauty of the River valley, and would see how important it is to protect the Mississippi River watershed.
The Large mouth were in the slop, but they were quite spotty. There was also a fair number of pike around. I missed several nice pike with one appearing to be the giant size of around 40”. The pike are very hard to hook on a plastic frog.
I tried for the small mouth on the rocks on the lower end of the pool and was met with very limited success. I just have not been able to find any numbers of small mouths this year.
Mississippi R. just north of Winona (pool 5?), 75°, calm, clear, clear
Caught: 8 LMB, 3 SMB, and 4 pike
I headed up to one of my favorite top water action pools on the river today. The fishing was not fantastic, but it was pretty good. I did not have a ton of action but the sizes of the fish were very good.
One little side note: The president was in La Crosse today for a vast and he was speaking at UWL from about 130Pm to 230PM. Well about 3 or 330PM the presidential helicopter flew over me, which was pretty cool. I have no idea if he was in it but I did give it a big wave. I guess I was hopeful he was in it and was admiring the beauty of the River valley, and would see how important it is to protect the Mississippi River watershed.
The Large mouth were in the slop, but they were quite spotty. There was also a fair number of pike around. I missed several nice pike with one appearing to be the giant size of around 40”. The pike are very hard to hook on a plastic frog.
I tried for the small mouth on the rocks on the lower end of the pool and was met with very limited success. I just have not been able to find any numbers of small mouths this year.
7-1-15 Wednesday
7-1-15 Wed. 7PM – 1145PM. Scott and myself, calm, cool 57°, clear
Mississippi R. pool 7, 7.5’ ↓, 38 kcfs, clear
Caught: Bait and no flat heads
To start out the bait catching was a little tough. We hit the man made islands out on the lake first and they were totally void of any fish. We then ran over to the tracks and caught some bluegills, but the majority of them were very small. We finished the bait gathering out by the lights and caught a few out there. My observation is that the bluegill population is much lower than normal.
Flat head fishing was a total bust, we had one legitimate bite and that was it. I do believe the fish are heavy into the spawn and fishing is going to be slow for the next couple of weeks.
Mississippi R. pool 7, 7.5’ ↓, 38 kcfs, clear
Caught: Bait and no flat heads
To start out the bait catching was a little tough. We hit the man made islands out on the lake first and they were totally void of any fish. We then ran over to the tracks and caught some bluegills, but the majority of them were very small. We finished the bait gathering out by the lights and caught a few out there. My observation is that the bluegill population is much lower than normal.
Flat head fishing was a total bust, we had one legitimate bite and that was it. I do believe the fish are heavy into the spawn and fishing is going to be slow for the next couple of weeks.
6-30-15 Tue
6-30-15 Tue, 6PM – 930PM, myself, calm, 78°
Mississippi R., pool 7, 6.5’ ↓, 40 Kcfs, clear
Caught: 3 SMB and 6 LMB
The game plan tonight was to start out fishing small mouth bass and hopefully catch one for supper. I did catch three of them in the first hour, but they were small. Since the small mouth action was relatively slow I switched species and moved onto large mouth bass. The first hour was terrible, with nary a bite. About the last hour of either the bite kicked in or I hit the right spot, because I had some pretty good top water frog action. I did accomplish my goal and had pan-fried bass for supper.
Mississippi R., pool 7, 6.5’ ↓, 40 Kcfs, clear
Caught: 3 SMB and 6 LMB
The game plan tonight was to start out fishing small mouth bass and hopefully catch one for supper. I did catch three of them in the first hour, but they were small. Since the small mouth action was relatively slow I switched species and moved onto large mouth bass. The first hour was terrible, with nary a bite. About the last hour of either the bite kicked in or I hit the right spot, because I had some pretty good top water frog action. I did accomplish my goal and had pan-fried bass for supper.
Monday, June 29, 2015
6-28-15 Sunday
6-28-15 Sunday, 8:30 – 9:00 PM, light rain, 72°, calm
Mississippi R. pool 7, 6.5’ ↓, 40 kcfs, clear
Caught: 20” pike
It was a Sunday and I had not been out fishing all day mainly on account of being so tired from the previous night of cat fishing. Well, just before dark I decided to go out with the small boat, just a little ways out on the lake for the last half hour of daylight.
I took one rod with one plastic frog tied on and that was it. In that short time I probably made 100 casts and caught the one small pike. That was it; I never even had another bite!
Mississippi R. pool 7, 6.5’ ↓, 40 kcfs, clear
Caught: 20” pike
It was a Sunday and I had not been out fishing all day mainly on account of being so tired from the previous night of cat fishing. Well, just before dark I decided to go out with the small boat, just a little ways out on the lake for the last half hour of daylight.
I took one rod with one plastic frog tied on and that was it. In that short time I probably made 100 casts and caught the one small pike. That was it; I never even had another bite!
6-27-15 Saturday
6-27-15 Sat 7:15PM – 3:00AM, myself and Scott
Mississippi R. pool 7, 6.5’↓, 40kcfs, 78°
Overcast, 75°, calm
Caught: bait (bluegills and crappies), 4 flat heads 3-14 lbs, channel cat 5 lb
It was a late start to a flathead night of fishing, but both Scott and myself had other engagements to attend to earlier in the evening. It is a very good thing that bluegills are fairly easy to come by.
The fishing was not fantastic tonight. We did fish late into the early morning hours, but I guess a guy cannot complain about five fish in an evening. The bites that we did have were all pretty aggressive, and we only missed one fish. The fish came from side channel areas within very close proximity to woody cover and most of them did have some nesting wounds on their bodies.
We did have a bit of excitement happen while playing one of the fish to the boat. I had lit a citronella bug candle and had placed it between Scott and myself. Well, while playing a fish, Scott knocked over his chair and the arm of it fell into the candle and caught fire. You can imagine my surprise when I turned around and saw more flames than just the flames from the candle. I quickly extinguished the fire by dunking the chair into the river. The only damaged sustained was one wrecked camp chair and Scott’s rain jacket had some melted plastic permanently attached to one of his jacket sleeves.
Mississippi R. pool 7, 6.5’↓, 40kcfs, 78°
Overcast, 75°, calm
Caught: bait (bluegills and crappies), 4 flat heads 3-14 lbs, channel cat 5 lb
It was a late start to a flathead night of fishing, but both Scott and myself had other engagements to attend to earlier in the evening. It is a very good thing that bluegills are fairly easy to come by.
The fishing was not fantastic tonight. We did fish late into the early morning hours, but I guess a guy cannot complain about five fish in an evening. The bites that we did have were all pretty aggressive, and we only missed one fish. The fish came from side channel areas within very close proximity to woody cover and most of them did have some nesting wounds on their bodies.
We did have a bit of excitement happen while playing one of the fish to the boat. I had lit a citronella bug candle and had placed it between Scott and myself. Well, while playing a fish, Scott knocked over his chair and the arm of it fell into the candle and caught fire. You can imagine my surprise when I turned around and saw more flames than just the flames from the candle. I quickly extinguished the fire by dunking the chair into the river. The only damaged sustained was one wrecked camp chair and Scott’s rain jacket had some melted plastic permanently attached to one of his jacket sleeves.
Saturday, June 27, 2015
6-25-15 Thr
6-25-15 Thr. Myself 7PM-11: 45PM
Mississippi R. Pool 7 (side channels)
Caught: Bluegills, 2 crappies, 5 & 15 Lb flatheads
I have had pretty good success the last week flat head fishing, so now I have the bug. Catching bait was a little bit more challenging tonight, but I did manage to get enough bluegills. The only trouble was I was not able to catch what I consider the best size for this time of year. Which I would have to say is around the 6 – 7” size. I was able to catch two flat head and I missed a third. The odd thing about the fish I caught tonight was I did not know I had a fish on till I reel in the lines when I was either moving or quitting for the night. The smaller fish was wrapped in a snag, and the larger one apparently did not move after it had consumed my bluegill.
Mississippi R. Pool 7 (side channels)
Caught: Bluegills, 2 crappies, 5 & 15 Lb flatheads
I have had pretty good success the last week flat head fishing, so now I have the bug. Catching bait was a little bit more challenging tonight, but I did manage to get enough bluegills. The only trouble was I was not able to catch what I consider the best size for this time of year. Which I would have to say is around the 6 – 7” size. I was able to catch two flat head and I missed a third. The odd thing about the fish I caught tonight was I did not know I had a fish on till I reel in the lines when I was either moving or quitting for the night. The smaller fish was wrapped in a snag, and the larger one apparently did not move after it had consumed my bluegill.
6-23-15 Tues
6-23-15 Tues Myself 7PM – 11PM
Mississippi R. Pool 7
Bait: bluegills and crappies, 1 – 20lb flat head
I was on a mission to see if any of the bluegills or crappies had moved out onto the snags in the side channels, and I also wanted to catch fish. Well the pan fish were starting to show up and I was easily able to catch them, so I was also able to flat head fish. I ended up with two bites and caught one fish. The river is in great shape right now, and some of the wild rice is starting to stand.
Mississippi R. Pool 7
Bait: bluegills and crappies, 1 – 20lb flat head
I was on a mission to see if any of the bluegills or crappies had moved out onto the snags in the side channels, and I also wanted to catch fish. Well the pan fish were starting to show up and I was easily able to catch them, so I was also able to flat head fish. I ended up with two bites and caught one fish. The river is in great shape right now, and some of the wild rice is starting to stand.
6-21-15 Sun
6-21-15 Sun 5pm-9pm myself
Mississippi r pool 7
1 19” LMB, approx 8 SMB 14-17”
It was Sunday evening and I had bass on my mind. I started off fishing for LMB and caught a nice 19” right off the bat on a frog. Unfortunately that was it for the large mouth. I then headed up one of my favorite tributaries of the black and did pretty well on the smb. Ever year there is a very good pattern that develops where the smbs are feeding heavily on pike minnows. This year was no exception; the only difference was I did not catch any LMB. I also tried the rocks on the Minnesota side and had absolutely no luck there.
Mississippi r pool 7
1 19” LMB, approx 8 SMB 14-17”
It was Sunday evening and I had bass on my mind. I started off fishing for LMB and caught a nice 19” right off the bat on a frog. Unfortunately that was it for the large mouth. I then headed up one of my favorite tributaries of the black and did pretty well on the smb. Ever year there is a very good pattern that develops where the smbs are feeding heavily on pike minnows. This year was no exception; the only difference was I did not catch any LMB. I also tried the rocks on the Minnesota side and had absolutely no luck there.
Sunday, June 21, 2015
6-20-15 Sat, 8PM-2:00AM,
6-20-15 Sat, 8PM-2:00AM, Scott and myself
Mississippi R., Pool 7, side channels
H20: 74°, clear, 6.7'↓
Last night I was the ride along cat fishing with Scott. I had gone to a wedding reception and was not able to go get bait, but Scott was going out and I partnered up with him after he caught bait.
The evening started out really slow. The first two spots produced nothing, but the next spot made up for it. Scott was the first to get a bite, and he connected but unfortunately his fish ended up in a snag. I got the next bite and it was a rod cracker.
The fish hit and never stopped running. I set the hook and the darn thing almost pulled me in the water, this was a big powerful fish!
After quite a lengthy battle the big girl was in Scott's grasp. It weighed out at a
whopping 40 Lbs. After a couple quick pics it was returned to its domain. We moved to one other spot and Scott caught a small three pounder.
Mississippi R., Pool 7, side channels
H20: 74°, clear, 6.7'↓
Last night I was the ride along cat fishing with Scott. I had gone to a wedding reception and was not able to go get bait, but Scott was going out and I partnered up with him after he caught bait.
The evening started out really slow. The first two spots produced nothing, but the next spot made up for it. Scott was the first to get a bite, and he connected but unfortunately his fish ended up in a snag. I got the next bite and it was a rod cracker.
The fish hit and never stopped running. I set the hook and the darn thing almost pulled me in the water, this was a big powerful fish!
After quite a lengthy battle the big girl was in Scott's grasp. It weighed out at a
whopping 40 Lbs. After a couple quick pics it was returned to its domain. We moved to one other spot and Scott caught a small three pounder.6-19-15 Fri. 4:45PM-9:15PM
6-19-2015, 4:45-9:15PM, Scott and myself
Mississippi R. Pool 8, Target Lake and Goose Island
H20: 72-82°, fairly dirty, 7.0', ↓
Conditions: sunny, calm, 78°
Caught: Approx., 8 SMB, 2 pike and 1 LMB
It was an after work trip on pool 8 tonight. I had gotten a tip that the pike were in Target lake thick, and that we would have plenty of action. Well, we had no action there. We did not fish it too long. We did not fish it too long on account of the water temperature was well over 80°, and pike are not tolerant of warm water conditions.
We then moved south to the Goose Island area. The frog bite was non-existent here, but we did run into a pretty nice school of small mouth bass.
Mississippi R. Pool 8, Target Lake and Goose Island
H20: 72-82°, fairly dirty, 7.0', ↓
Conditions: sunny, calm, 78°
Caught: Approx., 8 SMB, 2 pike and 1 LMB
It was an after work trip on pool 8 tonight. I had gotten a tip that the pike were in Target lake thick, and that we would have plenty of action. Well, we had no action there. We did not fish it too long. We did not fish it too long on account of the water temperature was well over 80°, and pike are not tolerant of warm water conditions.
We then moved south to the Goose Island area. The frog bite was non-existent here, but we did run into a pretty nice school of small mouth bass.
Thursday, June 18, 2015
6-17-2015 Wed
6-17-15 530 PM - 9 PM
Mississippi R. Pool 7 (old river channel)
H2O: stained, 72*, 7.5'
Caught: 6 LMB, 2 Pike, two of the bass were good sized
It was a solo night for me. I was pretty much wanting to fish the area where Scott and myself had fished just a few nights earlier. The fish were still in the same general type of cover, but they had mostly moved upstream a hundred yards or so.
The action was not fantastic, but it was fast enough to keep me in the area.
Most of the fish, except for one came on a frog. I had three fish that were well over three pounds and could have even been four or better.
Mississippi R. Pool 7 (old river channel)
H2O: stained, 72*, 7.5'
Caught: 6 LMB, 2 Pike, two of the bass were good sized
It was a solo night for me. I was pretty much wanting to fish the area where Scott and myself had fished just a few nights earlier. The fish were still in the same general type of cover, but they had mostly moved upstream a hundred yards or so.
The action was not fantastic, but it was fast enough to keep me in the area.
Most of the fish, except for one came on a frog. I had three fish that were well over three pounds and could have even been four or better.
Monday, June 15, 2015
6-14-15 Sun
Scott and myself 2:30 pm - 9 pm
where: Mississippi R. pool 7 lower end
caught: Approx. 20 LMB, 2 pike, 1 walleye, 1 sauger, 1 sheep head.
Conditions: Mostly sunny, 80, calm, River: 8', stained
Today was predominately a day fishing for bass in the slop. The bait of choice was a plastic frog. When we found the fish they were pretty aggressive. It is always a very good time frogging or bass. If we didn't connect on a fish the first time, we would usually get a second chance at it.
where: Mississippi R. pool 7 lower end
caught: Approx. 20 LMB, 2 pike, 1 walleye, 1 sauger, 1 sheep head.
Conditions: Mostly sunny, 80, calm, River: 8', stained
Today was predominately a day fishing for bass in the slop. The bait of choice was a plastic frog. When we found the fish they were pretty aggressive. It is always a very good time frogging or bass. If we didn't connect on a fish the first time, we would usually get a second chance at it.
6-13-15 Sat
Scott and myself flat head fishing fishing.
where: Mississippi R. pool 7, side channels on middle pool.
Caught: Bait, 1 - 8 lb flat head, 3 LMB's
Bait catching has been somewhat of a challenge this year and tonight was no exception. We did catch enough with about an hour left before dark. We took advantage of the extra daylight free time to do some bass fishing. I was able to catch three Large mouth bass on a plastic frog.
The flat head bite was very poor. We only had one substantial bite and I managed to catch that fish.
where: Mississippi R. pool 7, side channels on middle pool.
Caught: Bait, 1 - 8 lb flat head, 3 LMB's
Bait catching has been somewhat of a challenge this year and tonight was no exception. We did catch enough with about an hour left before dark. We took advantage of the extra daylight free time to do some bass fishing. I was able to catch three Large mouth bass on a plastic frog.
The flat head bite was very poor. We only had one substantial bite and I managed to catch that fish.
6-6-15 Saturday
Who: Myself, Scott and Brian DeWitt
Where: Mississippi R. Pool 7
Caught: Approx. 30 bluegills, kept 15.
Conditions: Sunny, 70, light winds, River: stained, 8.0'
The bluegill spawn has pretty much ended. we caught all our fish on the eastern end of the lake along the tracks. We are in the typical June pattern of plenty of rain and fairly high water. The milfoil has started to choke the lake.
Where: Mississippi R. Pool 7
Caught: Approx. 30 bluegills, kept 15.
Conditions: Sunny, 70, light winds, River: stained, 8.0'
The bluegill spawn has pretty much ended. we caught all our fish on the eastern end of the lake along the tracks. We are in the typical June pattern of plenty of rain and fairly high water. The milfoil has started to choke the lake.
Thursday, June 4, 2015
6-3-15 Wed 5PM-845PM
Weather: light rain, overcast, S 10
H20: high, clear, 67 degrees
area fished: Black R. near Hammond Chute and L. Onalaska
The fishing was not too good tonight. I had plenty of opportunities while pitching a frog to duck weed and flooded grass, but I could not connect. I also missed a few fish on a buzz bait. All the action came up the Black R. near Hammond Chute. Most of the missed fish were pike.
Weather: light rain, overcast, S 10
H20: high, clear, 67 degrees
area fished: Black R. near Hammond Chute and L. Onalaska
The fishing was not too good tonight. I had plenty of opportunities while pitching a frog to duck weed and flooded grass, but I could not connect. I also missed a few fish on a buzz bait. All the action came up the Black R. near Hammond Chute. Most of the missed fish were pike.
Tuesday, June 2, 2015
Tuesday 6-2-14, 445PM - 845PM
Fishing pool 8 with co-worker Nate
river stage 8.7 and steady, dirty, 66 degrees
Caught: variety of smallish fish (gar, turtle, bluegills, walleye, white bass, perch, rock bass, sauger,small mouth bass).
It was an after work outing with a co worker that I have never fished with before. I could tell that Nate has done quite a lot of fishing and is quite good at it. Fishing was very slow and the size of the fish that were caught was small. We fished from right below the dam to approximately one half mile downstream.
The water is quite high and dirty. The majority of the fish came from the area right below the fishing float.
Fishing pool 8 with co-worker Nate
river stage 8.7 and steady, dirty, 66 degrees
Caught: variety of smallish fish (gar, turtle, bluegills, walleye, white bass, perch, rock bass, sauger,small mouth bass).
It was an after work outing with a co worker that I have never fished with before. I could tell that Nate has done quite a lot of fishing and is quite good at it. Fishing was very slow and the size of the fish that were caught was small. We fished from right below the dam to approximately one half mile downstream.
The water is quite high and dirty. The majority of the fish came from the area right below the fishing float.
Sun 5-31-15 5:30PM - 11:15PM
Mississippi R. pool 7
Scott and myself flat head fishing
Caught bait (bluegills), 8 lb channel cat
It was my second flat head outing of the year and it was pretty much a dud. We caught the one channel in the Black R. and missed two other bites right at the end of the night just down from the Black.
The bluegills are finally starting to spawn on the lake, but you still have to do some searching to find them. The Iris plants are now blooming.
Mississippi R. pool 7
Scott and myself flat head fishing
Caught bait (bluegills), 8 lb channel cat
It was my second flat head outing of the year and it was pretty much a dud. We caught the one channel in the Black R. and missed two other bites right at the end of the night just down from the Black.
The bluegills are finally starting to spawn on the lake, but you still have to do some searching to find them. The Iris plants are now blooming.
Sunday, May 31, 2015
5-30-15 Myself
H20: 11', 66 degrees
Where: Mississippi R. (Lake Pepin)
Today I was fishing the Mississippi River at Lake Pepin. The water has gone up significantly on account of all the rain and it is around 11' at this time. It is still fairly clear though. This was the second time I have fished this area and I really like it. I had planned to target mostly pike, but after half a day with limited success, except for the 38 incher, I switched to casting the rocks with crank baits for bass and eyes. The walleye fishing was quite good. I kept four under 20" and released four other legals including a 25 and a 23. I also caught drum, small mouth and a couple of white bass.
H20: 11', 66 degrees
Where: Mississippi R. (Lake Pepin)
Today I was fishing the Mississippi River at Lake Pepin. The water has gone up significantly on account of all the rain and it is around 11' at this time. It is still fairly clear though. This was the second time I have fished this area and I really like it. I had planned to target mostly pike, but after half a day with limited success, except for the 38 incher, I switched to casting the rocks with crank baits for bass and eyes. The walleye fishing was quite good. I kept four under 20" and released four other legals including a 25 and a 23. I also caught drum, small mouth and a couple of white bass.
Sept. 2014 through May 2015
It has been a long, long time since I have updated my blog. Sometimes you just need a break from things! Well here it goes I will try to update with pics and a few descripetive words. After bear hunting with the Panks the next big adventure was elk hunting with Jeremy. We hunted an area called the Fort Peck Resevoir. It took us two years to draw a tag for this area. The hunting was superb and the fishing was not too bad either. It was a rather remote area which consisted of a gravel road the last fifty miles and a four mile boat ride to our hunting area. The elk hunting was great, we saw lots of elk and Jeremy harvested a very nice 6X6. He had spotted the elk about 8 AM and watched it be down, then he sat beside lone pine out in the middle of a open patch until it got up around 6 PM. He then made his stalk and ambushed it. He made a perfect sixty yard shot and watched the animal fall over. Oh, the mosquitoes here were horrible, if you don't like them, if you can't tolerate them I would not suggest this hunt.
Next on my major items was a new addition to the family. I purchased a stared female beagle from a guy I know in Tomah. Her name was Echo, but we changed it to Zeta. She was a little over a year old and was started chasing rabbits. She is a very affectionate dog, and she does real well with the bunny hunting. I hunted a lot with her and Roxy and bagged 30 plus rabbits and hares. She does have a very hoarse voice and we call it her smokers voice.
Next on the list was bowhunting at the cabin for a week with Tupper. The deer were very scarce and neither of us even got a shot at a deer. I did do lots of exploring with my new trail motorcycle which was a lot of fun.
Next up was the gun deer season. I hunted with Jake, Mark Sr., Mark Jr., Cole Tupper, and also with Jakes' father in law Donny. I was able to bag a decent 8 pointer and a fork horn. The eight I tracked and stalked the first day in the newly fallen snow. The fork horn came on a drive we did during the week. Cole's deer came from the same area I shot mine. I had lost my hat earlier in the day while trailing the buck I shot so in the afternoon I decided to go look for it. Cole was back at the cabin looking bored, so I asked him to join me. we never did find the had, but about the last twenty minutes we sat on a fallen log overlooking and area that I had come across earlier in the day while tracking the buck. Just about closing time the six pointer walked into view and Cole made a good shot on it.
I hardly ice fished at all this year, I think I went out four times with very limited success. Two of those times were for walleyes and I never caught a walleye or sauger.
Finally we had the spring fishing season. It was an okay season, but nothing to spectacular. The water was extremely low for spring time. The bass and pike bite was not as good as it normally is. The Nelson bite in particular was rather disappointing as far as quantity and size of the fish.
Well that was a brief recap of the eight to nine months.
It has been a long, long time since I have updated my blog. Sometimes you just need a break from things! Well here it goes I will try to update with pics and a few descripetive words. After bear hunting with the Panks the next big adventure was elk hunting with Jeremy. We hunted an area called the Fort Peck Resevoir. It took us two years to draw a tag for this area. The hunting was superb and the fishing was not too bad either. It was a rather remote area which consisted of a gravel road the last fifty miles and a four mile boat ride to our hunting area. The elk hunting was great, we saw lots of elk and Jeremy harvested a very nice 6X6. He had spotted the elk about 8 AM and watched it be down, then he sat beside lone pine out in the middle of a open patch until it got up around 6 PM. He then made his stalk and ambushed it. He made a perfect sixty yard shot and watched the animal fall over. Oh, the mosquitoes here were horrible, if you don't like them, if you can't tolerate them I would not suggest this hunt.
Next on my major items was a new addition to the family. I purchased a stared female beagle from a guy I know in Tomah. Her name was Echo, but we changed it to Zeta. She was a little over a year old and was started chasing rabbits. She is a very affectionate dog, and she does real well with the bunny hunting. I hunted a lot with her and Roxy and bagged 30 plus rabbits and hares. She does have a very hoarse voice and we call it her smokers voice.
Next on the list was bowhunting at the cabin for a week with Tupper. The deer were very scarce and neither of us even got a shot at a deer. I did do lots of exploring with my new trail motorcycle which was a lot of fun.
Next up was the gun deer season. I hunted with Jake, Mark Sr., Mark Jr., Cole Tupper, and also with Jakes' father in law Donny. I was able to bag a decent 8 pointer and a fork horn. The eight I tracked and stalked the first day in the newly fallen snow. The fork horn came on a drive we did during the week. Cole's deer came from the same area I shot mine. I had lost my hat earlier in the day while trailing the buck I shot so in the afternoon I decided to go look for it. Cole was back at the cabin looking bored, so I asked him to join me. we never did find the had, but about the last twenty minutes we sat on a fallen log overlooking and area that I had come across earlier in the day while tracking the buck. Just about closing time the six pointer walked into view and Cole made a good shot on it.
I hardly ice fished at all this year, I think I went out four times with very limited success. Two of those times were for walleyes and I never caught a walleye or sauger.
Finally we had the spring fishing season. It was an okay season, but nothing to spectacular. The water was extremely low for spring time. The bass and pike bite was not as good as it normally is. The Nelson bite in particular was rather disappointing as far as quantity and size of the fish.
Well that was a brief recap of the eight to nine months.
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