Lost Tackle-Craft Skills

MLK Day usually means (at least to me, in part) an all-day ice-fishing excursion, but with Winter's arrival being late, that was not locally possible in 2016.   But the boats are already put away, and the holidays are behind us; and so over the long holiday weekend I turned to some tackle craft to keep me productively engaged with my fishing season.

My first task was to replace a broken guide on an old dipsey diver rod.  I had all the materials to do so, it was just a matter of finding the time; and here was that gift of time!  I've built and repaired many rods over the last 40 years or so, but it has been a while since I've utilized my wrapping skills.  I'm sorry to admit that I've clearly allowed these to erode.  I'm doubly sorry to admit that I felt half blind when confronted with laying the thread along each previous wrap.  The end result will be fully functional (thank goodness for hard epoxy finishes!), but it's not much to look at.

This is the first year when it is legal in Michigan to target bass at any time.  To make the most of this new opportunity, I've been planning on adding Hair Jigs to my cold-water bassing arsenal.  These are not locally available to any satisfactory degree, but after watching a few You-tube videos on tying these, I decided I could tackle this project, too.  I dug out my vice for the first time in over 25 years, grabbed an assortment of naked jig heads and purchased some simple materials from the new local Orvis shop.

I've now a couple of dozen hair jigs ready for action.  These range from probable crappie jigs to bucktails for Florida's April surf.  Most are simple black, do-nothing jigs in the 1/16 to 1/8 ounce range, and between swimming darters and head-standing craws, I've got a few hair presentation options available.    I can't claim to have lost my tying skills (I never really had any), but what skills I've retained appear to be appropriate for Hair Jigs.  Mine didn't come out too pretty, but I suspect they will work.

Assorted Hair Jigs and a replaced rod guide

I've got big plans for these jigs in Spring's cold water.

These activities aren't as immediately satisfying as going fishing, but I trust my investment of time will pay off with some nice bass in the future.  And, I enjoyed doing this stuff. I can't complain about the weekend, even if I never did go fishing.

(P.S.  It's cold enough; I might be out there on the hard water by next weekend.)

2015 Fishing Wrap-up

I originally may have thought that 2015 was going to be my year for muskies, but it didn't really turn out that way.  I caught a few, I saw many more, I had my lure inside a giant's mouth without somehow hooking up, and I spent many hours in their pursuit.  I enjoyed it all, and I'll be back at it again in 2016.  But for me, I think my 2015 fishing turned out to be almost all about those bass.

Largemouths

An unexpected, quickly enacted change in Michigan's fishing seasons enabled the early pursuit of bass. Michigan's bass season has historically opened on the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend.  The first liberalization of this traditional season (circa 1989) was the experimental opening of a very limited number of lakes to catch and release bass fishing starting on April 1.  These were the waters I frequented, because the fishing was familiar, uncrowded and could be pretty good.  But the weather could be miserable, and once Spring actually arrived, there were so many non-bass options!  The second liberalization (six or eight years ago) dropped this early start in favor of opening all the inland waters of the Lower Peninsula to catch and release bassing on the last Saturday in April.  This got rid of the problem of those who were "pike" or "walleye" fishing from their bass boats and such, and made early-season bass much more accessible, for the price of those first few weeks in April.  I've experienced some awesome fishing during this season, and in fact, did much of my hard-core bassing in this early season (that is, before I got distracted by other fishing opportunities.)

So, I was surprised when in April 2015, it was simply announced that bass season was now open year-round, but that all fishing from January 1 to the Friday before Memorial Day was strict catch and release.  Later that week I was on a local lake and got a shallow, pre-spawn lunker with a good friend.  It got my season off to a great start, and I know I'm going to like this opportunity; and, I think it's going to be awesome for my future smallie fishing (see below.)

This was also the year that my buddy DC moved into his new home on Whitefish Lake; and his good fortune (and generous, welcoming nature) was my ticket to easily accessing and fishing this pretty decent bass lake.  We did so several times over the season, and I hope to do so again in future years.  We didn't catch any giants together, but we caught a lot of decent to very decent bass; and the action was always good enough that it was fun to experiment and try new baits techniques.  Fishing this water with DC will likely be my Proving Grounds for new baits and techniques in the future; it's a great confidence booster to be on fish with such regularity.  

And I've only mentioned one of the big bass I caught this season; there were some very nice crank bait fish from Reeds Lake and the biggest of the season (over 5, but likely not 6 pounds) was a pure bonus; it ate a Medussa Big Rubber bait while I was fishing for muskies.  This kid from Rhode Island, who had over the years largely gotten away from serious bass fishing (again, all those other fishing distractions here!), isn't used to encountering that many really nice bass in a season.

Nice, early-season LMB on a crank from Reeds Lake.

This girl inhaled my Rapala DT3.

These are the fish that bring me back to my youth, and with which I fell in love with fishing.  There's a simplistic purity to fishing for green bass; they feel like home to me.  They're not the biggest, most beautiful, or toughest; but they are my most comfortable and familiar quarry.

Stripers

I was fortunate to make it back to New England (twice!) this past summer, and the stripers were there for me.  Whew!  I had missed 2014 entirely, so it had been too long since our last acquaintance, and since my time this year was limited again, I knew I simply would have to accept whatever conditions I arrived to.  But I was lucky to catch some favorable tides, to make some bait, and to have some packs of marauding stripers swim by.  Amazingly enough, I caught some really nice fish that were perfectly matched to my tackle; these will tide me over until 2016, when maybe I can be a little more serious in my pursuit of these fish.

My first nice striper in a long time!

Stripers are the perfect Catch and Release quarry.

Smallmouths

More than anything, I think this season re-ignited my love for brown bass.  While Michigan is a Mecca for World Class Smallmouth Bass Fishing, I'd have to say that Central West Michigan... is less so.  We have smallies in many waters, but to access the bass you see on TV, you have to travel a few hours or more.  I'd gotten away from that over the years, but this year I had the time to do a few things.  I executed trips to fish Lake St. Clair, Traverse Bay of Lake Michigan, and select Northern Michigan waters.  Each trip and body of water payed off with fine smallmouth fishing!  In fact, the fishing was easier than it was to simply arrange my arrival at any of these spots; and there are many other opportunities within a slightly larger travel radius.

Lake St. Clair; might have provided the best fishing in the sense of biggest bags and being on fish all the time.  I stumbled on the first group of fish just by using common sense and available cues; I was able to upgrade through refinement, and I was able to find another group of quality fish, just because I simply tried.  The setting and the drive are a little bit more urban than I'd like, but once I'm there, I could care less about that!

The bass I found were just post-spawn, and any soft plastic presentation shined; I need to get a landing net (it will pay for itself) before I go next year, because I lost a fair number of tubes and Ned Rigs as I got careless about lifting, lipping and (in general) landing these fish.

I can only imagine how good the pre-spawn fishing might be.  I look forward to searching with jerk baits and taking advantage of the aggression of these fish!

Not a great picture, but one of many fine LSC smallies!

North Lake Leelanau; offered perhaps my single best day of fishing, but I may not ever hit this lake at just the right time again.  Conditions were exactly as I had hoped, and the fish were more numerous and larger than I could have hoped.  Again, no giants were encountered (perhaps they'd be more available a bit earlier in pre-spawn?), but I found solid fish after solid fish.  The fishing just got better as the day progressed.  It will be interesting to see what I can do with this lake in the future and with a little more experience there under my belt.

The NLL smallies were beautifully golden, and plentiful!

East Bay of Traverse Bay; was perhaps the toughest to fish and provided perhaps the smallest average size, but clearly offered the highest quality total experience.  Unlimited, uncrowded clear water; bass in three feet of water and in 50+ feet of water at the same time; sight fishing the flats, searching with top-waters, grubbing for monsters or drop-shotting;  and pretty much unlimited size potential for the bass.  What's to complain about?

7 AM; Red Sky in Morning, sailors take Warning!

I missed out on this for too many years!

9 AM; conditions can change quickly on the Great Lakes!

My smallmouth game to a giant leap forward this year, and I hope to build on that in 2016.  There are other Norther Michigan waters to try (or in many cases, re-visit); Hubbard Lake coughed up a 9+ pounder for a new state record this fall; and there's always Door County, Wisconsin to consider.   I'll have many choices, let's hope I make the right ones.

But Let's Not Forget About...

But wait, there's more!    Of course, I enjoyed and will need to incorporate all sorts of other experiences into my future fishing.

Salmon; we'll see what 2016 Brings.  With little pelagic bait, the Kings have been suffering, and nobody knows to what extent they'll be available in the near term future.  Of course, there will be trout, but it's the King that drives this fishery. We did well in our return to tournament fishing, and one of the biggest decisions of next year (especially in the late spring) might be defending our success in the 2016 Salmon Circuit, or chasing smallies.

Tournament Fishing, again!

Brown Trout; I've always loved the spring Brown Trout fishery here, and I usually start my boating season in their pursuit.  But now I've gotten a taste of the other-worldly brown trout fishing in Milwaukee; and I have to do some more of that.  So whether it's in the spring for numbers, in the summer with the wind at our back and cold waters in the harbor, or in the fall/winter, casting/trolling, chasing these browns just makes sense if I have the time.

A fine Milwaukee Brown Trout; last of the day, but I plan for there to many more in my future.

Muskellunge; chasing these fish is in my blood and I will continue to do so.  They are a time sink, but that is all forgotten when one appears.  I'm enjoying the learning curve, and I've got much improvement ahead of me.  Perhaps I need to expand my list of waters, and perhaps I need to go somewhere where it's not quite a marginal proposition.  I know I need to get others in the boat with me, and I know that if something Really Cool happens on the water, it might involve a muskie.  I've enjoyed the fish I've caught; but it is the fish I've lost that have had the biggest influence on my love for this sport.

One of my three 2015 Muskie Releases.

New Friends; 2015 introduced me to a few new fishing buddies.  I appreciate their generosity, enthusiasm and company.  Here's to more with them in the future; and here's to more of them, too.

Dr. M on the Dog Day

SB

That Yellow Plug

I shared  a story with a co-worker friend a while back, and he asked if it were from Numenon.  This story made an early, brief appearance (August 2012; "Too Weird to Believe"), but since I just ran across this lure while cleaning up fishing stuff in the basement, here's a bit more.

***

In the summer of 1982, I was fishing an unfamiliar but locally famous New Hampshire smallmouth lake, in what appeared to be a super-prime spot.  It offered wood, rocks, depth and overhead cover, i.e. everything a predator could want; and I expected very good things.  I had multiple choices, but inexplicably I just knew what to do.  I  chose to burn a particular yellow crank bait (with which I'd never before caught a bass) and bang it (hard!) against the rock and wood.  On the cast in question, just as the bait touched the cover, I thought I detected a strike.  I swung and missed; my line went slack and my crank was gone.  It all happened so fast, and I was banging bottom so hard, that I started to question whether I had actually had a strike, or if I had simply overburned, overreacted and broken off in the cover.  

I didn’t have to wonder for too long, though, as my partner and I could see my yellow crank moving slowly through the clear water.  As the bait moved closer, a giant bass (the source of the lure's ghostly locomotion) materialized directly under the boat.   My yellow plug was planted in her face.   It had been a strike.  Then, in plain view, she deliberately yawned and 
shook her head; my lure floated to the surface within arm’s reach of the boat.  She 
disappeared; I retrieved my plug; and the rest of the trip's fishing was uneventful at best.  (I do, however,  vividly remember the shared night-time terror of having a skunk in the tent.)  I never took another bass from this location; and I’ve never been able to use this particular lure again.

That Yellow Plug

There are multiple elements of strangeness to this tale.  The strangeness here is that I was fishing as if possessed, with a new lure, location and technique, and yet with utter confidence.  I saw the entire sequence; and it was by far the biggest bass I’ve ever seen or may ever see.  She appeared to swim directly into our view, and she returned my plug.  This was a largemouth bass, too, generally unexpected on this lake at this time.  She was an outlier among outliers, dominating perhaps the bassiest spot I have ever found.  She was a 6-Sigma fish, and I may never have the privilege of encountering her equal.  

But most curiously, I’ve been somehow unable to use this plug since.*** Fishing is strange.  It provides a steady stream of surprise for those who might notice.  But the mind is even stranger.  We all know this.  Not all are willing to admit it, though.

*** Actually, I think I might give her a chance this year.  I am going to change those hooks out, however.

Warm Holidays and Happy New Year

A year ago at Christmas, as we celebrated a quiet day with my mother and kids, we decided to Go Big in 2015 and celebrate the holidays (as well as my mother's 80th birthday) with extended family and in a big way.  Those initial thoughts and conversations transformed themselves into a week in Florida with the kids, immediately followed by a 7-day Western Caribbean Cruise with my kids, mother, brother and his wife.  This accommodated everybody's needs, abilities and schedules, and represented a Grand Celebration of the Holidays and for my mother.  This also represented a Grand Departure from how we usually do things, but in the end it turned out to be a Grand Idea.  Simply put, I'm glad we made this happen for all involved.

This is "Why!" this all happened.

There's too much that I could say; and so I think I'll just make this a picture essay for the most part.

Cocoa Beach; we enjoyed a simple stay in a condo right on the beach, just north of the municipal pier.  I could stumble out of bed to go surf fishing and the weather and water were unseasonably warm.  Perhaps this wasn't the best for the fishing, but it sure was comfortable!  I also took a couple of fishing excursions to Jetty Park at the mouth of Port Canaveral, and I even walked through a Feral Cat Colony; although I do have to ask, are they feral cats if they are being tended to?  I swung and missed on my only strike on Christmas morning, but my catch of a Spanish Mackerel on the afternoon of Christmas Eve made me Canaveral's Hot Stick that day.  Yes, the fishing was that slow!

This Blue Crab was super aggressive!  I let him go; he just didn't want to leave!

Christmas Morning at Port Canaveral's Jetty Park.

Shore-Based Spanish Mackerel

Cozumel and Playa Del Carma, Mexico; after two Fun Days at Sea we arrived in Cozumel a bit late, but rushed through a fun day that included snorkeling with sea turtles (I'd seen a bunch in Port Canaveral) and snorkeling in the sacred Mayan waters of a cenote.

Close encounter with a sea turtle

Super-clear waters of Cenote Dos Ojos

Belize; after the development in Mexico, I was surprised at how poor Belize seemed to be.  But the land was beautiful, our guides were wonderfully friendly, and the day offered some culture and learning as well as an excellent local rice and beans dish.  In retrospect, I might have gotten more out of our visit to the Altun Ha Mayan Ruins site than from our eco-dash down the Wallace River to the sea.

Altun Ha Mayan Ruins

Separate plazas at Altun Ha

Selfie Opp!

Jungle Cruise, powered by 400 horses!

Big French Key, Roatan, Honduras; conditions were perfect for a quiet day on a secluded beach for all, but also with some barrier reef snorkeling for Kate and me.  While the predator fishes were apparently depleted by local fishing and poaching activities, the reef fish and reef itself appeared to be in good shape; there was a ton of variety in the hard and soft corals that I observed from 5 feet of water to the reef's edge into the blue abyss.  Meanwhile, A and M couldn't have been happier with their time on the beach.

Warm, bright skies and clear, blue waters of Mahogany Bay, Honduras

Blue Doctors around a coral head

Kate provided a colorful target to photograph.

The barrier reef was just offshore.

New Year's Eve; The New Year's Eve Party on board might have been the highlight for many on the ship.  It was a nice opportunity to see my entire family dressed up nicely, but the party didn't really get going until after 11:15 PM.  As we passed the western tip of Cuba, everybody on board collected in The One Spot for The Countdown.  My daughters had fun dancing in this safe environment, and the rest of us variously enjoyed People Watching as things got looser.  By this point of the trip, I might have preferred to be asleep, but how often does one get a chance to share something like this?  

I wish all who might see this a Happy New Year!