Fishing Report 7-29-13

Summer is flying by...


Water is in the low to mid 70's on most area lakes, with heavy algae blooms.

The cooler weather usually makes for tough conditions this time of year, but we've had a batch of relatively stable weather and that has made for some good, but mixed fishing.

Panfish are still suspending in deeper water, but the cooler weather has pulled them tighter to the weed edge or the ends of points. 15-18 feet down over 25-25 feet of water is still holding schools, but weedy points with sharp drop offs have been really productive. Remember to get your bait down, as the smaller fish in the schools will be towards the top. Slip bobbers, tight lining vertically or light lindy rigs thrown shallow and dragged off the edge of steep structure and allowed to sink have been really producing.

Bass are doing there usual late summer things. There's still fish on the docks and in the slop, as well as out on the weed edge, but more than a few are starting to school up baitfish on the flats with scattered cover. Topwater can be really productive, but I'm catching lots of fish on a flapper grub and jigworms. Pitching holes in the slop or weed edges with a jig/craw or tube has been working when the bite has been a little tough, and texas rigging the outside edge has been a solid bite all season.

Smallmouth are active, but the bite has been very inconsistent. Some days...wow. Some days...nothing. Hard to predict, but this is very common this time of year as deeper fish start to transition to shallow rocks for the crayfish molt which is imminent. Check back next week.

Walleyes are still biting. The bite during the day is slow, but steady. Early and lake have been gangbusters all season. We've had a mild summer, and I don't think the fish really ever left the areas they use in the late spring.Weed edges in 12-18 FOW are holding lots of baitfish and the walleyes are there with the bait, but don't overlook the other batch of fish in the deeper sandgrass (where the perch like to hide this time of year.) Trolling cranks really turned on the last two weeks.

Pike fishing is steady and relatively consistent. Fish have moved to the weed edge, are suspending over 30-50' FOW or are roaming the shallow flats. Casting spinners, buzzbaits, lipless cranks, or wide bodies square bills will generate decent action, but the better fish are coming on small suckers on a slip-sinker rig.

Good Luck,
CT

Fishing Report 7-18-13

Boy is it hot. But the weatherman promises a cool off this weekend for some relief.

Fishing has been good the past week, but at either end of the day. You can catch fish during the hot parts of the day, but you have to work for them.

Water temps have creeped into the low to mid 80's on many area lakes and weed growth is at summer peak.

Panfish are moving into cover and suspending out over deeper water. Looking for quick action? Fish around docks that are close to drop offs or that hang out over deeper water. Looking for keepers? Move out to deeper water and fish for the schools of suspended pannies that are just off the weedlines or long, mainlake points. The best keepers are coming 18-22 feet down over 35-60 FOW.

Bass are feeding heavy early. From just before sun-up to about 8:30am, fish are moving in on shallow breaks. Although I'm sure they are eating a variety of things right now, bigger fish seemed to be keyed in on juvenile panfish, schooling them up and chowing down. The bite has been good until the sun comes up, but as soon as it has gotten hot, fish have pulled back out to 12+ FOW, moved under the docks or into the slop. I'm catching lots of fish pitching flapper grubs around isolated weed patches or stands of ribbon tail. Once the fish are on the docks, wacky, tubes and jig/chunks are catching them. Fishing the slop is producing, but I'm catching more fish flipping the holes with a beaver or jig than on a rat or frog. The pattern repeats itself again in the afternoon. Fish start moving in as banks start to get shade on them, usually around 4pm and the bite is solid until just after dark.

Pike fishing has slowed down substantially in the heat. Deeper weed edges fished with crankbaits, spinners and large plastics has been productive. Live bait in the form of small sucker or the biggest shiners you can get your hands on, on a slip sinker rig will produce...especially if you can find some weeds in 18-22 FOW. Don't overlook the sandgrass flats. A good patch of coontail on a deeper flat can/will hold multiple fish.

Walleye bite has really slowed down during the day, but is still solid early and later in the day. Weed edges fished with jigs or lindy rigs are still producing, but the fish have moved out to the secondary break in 15-18 FOW. In the evening, fish are moving into the shallow weeds and can be caught throwing minnowbaits over the top of submergent weeds in 6-15 FOW. You need to tick the weeds to get a bite.

In terms of Musky fishing...the only positive reports I heard in the past week were for topwater action very early, but especially just after dark. A couple of decent fish were caught in the last two weeks just after twilight over weedflats in 6-12 FOW.

Good Luck,
CT

Fishing Report 7-12-13

 Summertime.

Bass fishing has remained fairly consistent. There's an early bite happening on most lakes up until about 9:30am. The fish are then moving into the weeds, under piers or into the slop. They can be targeted around overhanging cover or weededges adjacent to deeper water. The bite is picking up again around 3:30 and remains fairly consistent until dark. Fish are being taken in shallow water on wacky worms, (white, green and rootbeer have been a hot colors) tubes, skirted grubs and shakey head worms. Deeper fish are coming on jigworms, texas rigged plastics or jigs with a craw or chunk trailer. Live bait, chubs, leeches or crawlers on a slip sinker or lindy rig have also been catching some fish as deep as 25 FOW on the clear water lakes.

Northern pike continue to bite. As is typical for this point in the season, shallow fish are still being caught on spinnerbaits, buzzbaits and lipless crankbaits around shallow weed clumps on the flats in 5-10FOW. Deeper fish are being taken using live bait, chubs and/or shiners, long lined on slip-sinker rigs. Trolling deep-diving crankbaits in natural or metalic (ie shiny) patterns like the rapala DT, hot n tots, or wiggle warts around the weed edges has also been producing some fish. 18-22 FOW seems to be the hot zone for pike right now, but if its sunny this week, don't be surprised to find them out deeper.

Walleye fishing has dropped off substantially, but expect the bite to pick back up as the sun gives way to some clouds, and more importantly, some wind. The  lack of wind during this last stretch has really pushed the walleye to low light activity cycles, and people's catch rates have dropped off. If you're going to look for them, I'd start by trolling small minnow baits around the ends of deep points and midlake bars trying to find some suspended fish, or back troll (slowly) around deep weed edges in 18-22 fow with live bait.

Catfishing on the Rock and Fox has been decent, but most of the fish that are being caught are a little smaller. You want a meal...its a great option, if you're looking to do battle with a monster, you might want to wait a bit. Cutbait has been outproducing stink bait or nightcrawlers.

Musky fishing has picked up a bit, especially early and late when people have been putting in the time. Most of the fish are being caught while trolling deep edges and over deep flat structure in 22-45 fow, but a few are still coming on topwater during low light periods, especially very early in the morning. Look for them suspended around deep water structure, especially the deep end of long points.

Good Luck.

Cheers,
CT

Holiday Fishing Report -7-3-13

Happy Independence Day Weekend.

The holiday weekend looks to have temperatures cool off to September levels, so you can expect the activity from both anglers and fish to pick up. Remember, the photo cycle is shrinking, but that the sun is at its most direct over the next couple of weeks. You can really increase your success by fishing early mornings, evenings and if you can stand the bugs, at night.

Around the area...water temps are in the mid to high 70's. Weed growth is about average for this time of year. Lots of baitfish are swimming around, with hatches on pin minnows and panfish over the last two weeks.

Panfish Looking for action? Small panfish can be caught in shallow water using a small hook, bobber and live bait, especially around docks or swim platforms. A few fish are still spawning, but I saw hatched bluegill fry swimming around (and being fed on) on Golden Lake. The better sized fish are being caught out of the deeper water by anglers drifting and fishing vertically. Look for gills to be suspending about 10-12 feet down over 18-25 FOW or 12-18 over 30-45 FOW. If you're on a deep school, but not catching keepers, get your bait down a little deeper. Crappie are suspending over deep water, and along weed edges, and the activity has been steady by anglers who find the schools.

Largemouth bass are moving traditional summer patterns.  Look for them in inside weed edges in 4-6 FOW  and the outside edges in 8-15 FOW. These fish can be caught on a variety of tackle, spinnerbaits, crankbaits, texas rigged wacky Worms, Shakey heads, skirted grubs and tubes. Piers are holding more fish with the hot sunny days, and the slop has been pretty good. Looking for some real fun? Topwaters are still catching fish over the weedflats in 5-12 feet right now, but only consistently before and at first light, and the topwater bite drops off substantially by 8am. 

Smallmouth bass fishing was below average this past week, but with the clouds and cooler temps, the fish will come back into the shallows to feed. Fish are using rocky points and bars especially early and later in the day. Most fish are holding on the deep side of breaks or suspending off mainlake structure, coming in briefly to forage. Skirted grubs, twister tails, tubes, wacky worms, shakey heads, lipless crankbaits, jerkbaits or floating rapalas are your best tackle options, but live bait like leeches and small suckers has been working for the people backtrolling deep sand in 18-25 feet.

Walleye fishing has been steady. Anglers putting in time are catching a fish, although keepers have been hard to come by. Fish continue to be caught along outside weed edges or off deeper flats with sandgrass. Slip bobbers or split shot rigs with live bait or suckers, backtrolled on lindy or a slip-sinker rig has been producing the larger fish. Fishing over the tops of weed clumps near breaklines with floating rapala minnows is grabbing a few as well, especially during low light conditions.

Pike fishing has been a little below average with tons of smaller pike being reported. Active fish are using the shallow weedflats to feed on small baitfish, including a massive bloom in juvenile panfish. Fish with willow leaf spinnerbaits, lipless crankbaits, small bucktails or buzzbaits tight to scattered weedclumps in 4-8 FOW. Larger pike were hard to come by according to most reports, but if you want to chase them, try the weedline in 12-18 feet of water and fish with suckers or large shiners on a slip sinker rig or troll with deep diving crankbaits as close to the weedline as you can without getting hung up. I caught a couple of nice fish yesterday working an outside edge with a large plastic bait on a texas rig.

Musky fishing remains slow overall, on the bright sunny days, target suspended fish out over deeper on smaller lipless crankbaits, gliders and bucktails. A few fish have been caught off the weedline on larger swimbaits. Anglers continue to report lots of lazy follows, so consider keeping a smaller sucker out.

Lake By Lake:

Okauchee:  Bass are on the piers, in the slop and on the weed edges in 8-15 FOW. Musky are feeding in the shallows in the morning, and then moving out to 18-22 feet. Nothing substantial to report on panfish as the spawn is largely over, but look for them to be schooled up at the end of points over deeper water.

Garvin: Great spot for panfish lately with some nice keepers. Look for the sunken wood in 10-15 feet. Musky are still using the treeline break and suspending off the south drop. Bass are using the shallow flat areas. Pike are on the deep weedlines on the northwest and north east corners, and suspending over the deeper water.

Forest: Panfish and pike have been biting. Live bait over the deep holes on slip bobbers for panfish, inline spinners for the pike.

Oconomowoc: Fishing has slowed down, but pressure has been very slim this season. Mornings and evenings have been best. Bass are holding on the obvious structural breaks and suspending off the deep ends of the mainlake points. Northern pike and walleye fishing has been best for anglers using small suckers catching the majority of the fish, pike was better than walleye during the day.  Musky fishing was slow, but lots of fish are still doing lazy follows, and lots of people are reporting that they are seeing fish in shallow water chasing juvenile gills.

Fowler: Small panfish are biting, a few LM were caught in the river and out of the deep slop. Pike are on the weedlines.


Lac Labelle: Walleye fishing is moving toward its typical summer pace. Weed edges along the 8-12 foot breaks are still holding fish as are drop-offs in 18-25 FOW. Musky have moved out to suspend over deep water in the main basin. White bass have been stealing lots of bait from walleye and panfisherman.

Moose:  Bass and pike continue to bite, and action has been steady. Target the breaks and weed clumps in shallow water with crankbaits or spinners. Backtrolling with small suckers on a slip sinker rigs around the first major drop to deep water has been a hot tactic, especially in low light conditions. Mornings have been better, but gamefish are biting all day. Plenty of easy to catch, albeit small, panfish in the shallows for the kids to have some fun.

Ashipunn: Bass and pike have been biting, and the action is close to average for this time of year. Best bet on Ashipunn is to concentrate on the visible weed patches, and work them from a variety of angles with spinners or plastics. Flipping tubes, lizards or long straight tailed worms to visible weed pockets is producing numbers, bigger fish are coming on jigs or skirted grubs that hit isolated patches of weeds in deeper water.

Golden: Bluegills are moving out to deeper water, suspending over the deep part of the basin, but holding close to weed edges adjacent to deeper water. Crappie are in huge schools suspending off the points and weed edges. Bass have been biting best in the morning, but a deeper weedline bite has been picking up, especially in the afternoon.. Topwaters, plastics and spinners are all producing. Pike have been biting, especially on small suckers fished along the deep weedlines and on spinnerbaits fished through the weedy areas.

Silver:  Bass can be caught using plastics around the weed clumps in 4-15 feet or around piers and boat lifts. Crappies have been suspending over the east cribs, and keeper bluegills are holding in the deep sandgrass in 12-18 FOW.

Nagawicka: Largemouths are average, and in summer patterns so look to catch them off boat docks, in the slop and along the shallow weed edges. One report has the gills still spawning, but only in the deeper sand. Pike have been average, especially on crankbaits or buzzbaits fished over weed edges at either end of the lake.

Kessus: Bass have been good, and are on the gravel, under docks/pontoons and on the points. Pike are actively feeding on you of the year bluegills.

Pewaukee:Bass have been good, Musky anglers are seeing, but not catching, many fish.

Lower and Middle Genessee: Panfish have moved to the deeper water with sandgrass, and largemouths are being caught around shallow to mid depth weeds. Lindy rigging with live bait, especially leeches or leafworms  has been very good for both bass and panfish. Night fishing is really picking up on Middle.

Rock River: the Catfish bite has been slow at night.

If you've got specific questions: Feel free to email me.

Good Luck, and stay safe this holiday weekend.

Fishing Report 6-28-13

Fishing has been hit or miss the last week as fish have been feeding during blocks of time each day. If you're on them when they feed, the fishing has been good, but this run of unstable weather has made them very hard to pattern.

Right now most lakes are in the mid to high 70s. Weed growth varies from lake to lake, but is about average for this point in the year.

Bass Fishing has been steady, producing some quality bags of fish. Fish are starting to move into an early summer pattern, with lots of areas and techniques producing. On cloudy days when its not raining cats and dogs, topwater and crankbaits are catching lots of fish over open water areas, especially weed patches on the mid-depth flats in 6-12 feet of water. On sunny days, especially those with lots of wind, fish are tighter to cover or using shallow rock bars in 3-8 feet of water. Plastics, flipped, skipped, pitched, wacky or texas rigged are great ways to target these fish. Live bait on slip sinker rigs are catching some nice fish for anglers making solid drifts over productive areas.

Pike fishing has been slow but steady, with a fair number of quality fish coming in. The number one way to catch pike right now is a small sucker or medium to large shiner on a slip sinker rig with a flourocarbon leader. Drift along the deeper edges of weeds and you'll find some fish. Lipless crankbaits, buzzbaits and spinner baits are also producing, especially in the shallow water, with topwater baits producing before first light or after dark.

Musky fishing continues to be slower than average. The larger fish have started to move out to the breaks, but there's still a solid number of fish patrolling the shallow water, feeding on schooled up panfish. Gliders and bucktails seem to be producing the most follows, but converting fish has been difficult. A few people are starting to troll the deeper basins, but I haven't heard about much in the way of success.

Walleye fishing has been pretty good, but much better on the windy days of after dark. Fish on Lac Labelle, Oconomowoc, Pine and Fox Lake are still using shallow weeds and weed edges. If you can find a weed edge in 15-18 FOW, sit on it. Jigging with live bait or drifting with lindy rigs/ spinner harnesses has been productive Trolling with Shad Raps is picking up, as is typical for this time of year....slower speeds over the deeper part of the basins appears to be the trick.

Bluegills are almost done spawning on most area lakes. If you're looking for action, areas of beds can still be found in the shallows, but if you want some bigger fish, move out to 9-15 feet of water and look for beds in gravel and sandy areas. Vertical fishing with a split shot and live bait rig works great, as does pulling a 1/8 ounce lindy rig with a short leader through likely areas. (Try panfish leaches or leafworms) It's not the bobber approach which works great in the shallows, but it can really produce some quality keepers.



Good Luck,
CT

Fishing Report 6-21-13/Labelle Wrap Up.

Hey gang,

I had the pleasure of fishing Lac Labelle every day for the last two weeks. Each day was a little different, but we caught fish consistently.

We caught lots of walleyes caught between 14 and 19.5 inches. We never got a legal 20"+ fish, despite catching several hundred over the twelve days we fished. In addition to the walleyes we caught a solid bag of smallmouth, largemouth, whitebass and even some crappies.

It is a great fishery, for catch and release fishing.

But I digress,

Panfish are still spawning on many area lakes. The crappie are done for the most part, but the bluegills continue to be in spawning areas in both shallow (2-6) and deep (10-18) FOW. The shallow fish are much easier to catch, but targeting the deeper fish will produce better size and numbers of keeper size fish. Try panfish leeches on split shot, light line -lindy rigs, or slip bobbers for the deeper fish.

Largemouth Bass are feeding heavily on juvenile panfish and pin minnows. They are really moving into summer patterns and can be found on docks, in the slop or in weed clumps in the shallow water, or on rocks or weedlines in the deeper water. Skirted grubs, wacky, texas rigs, jig/chunk, small crankbaits, or minnow baits are all productive. Smaller lakes are really hot right now, especially in areas where bluegills are still spawning.

Smallmouth are roaming flats, and running rock bars most days. The sunny days has them coming in early and late, suspending during the rest of the day, but they have been very active on the cloudy rainy days. Don't be afraid to look for them on rocks as deep as 25 FOW. Tubes, grubs, jigworms and small crankbaits are taking fish.

Walleye: My reports are biased a bit from fishing Lac Labelle, but the weedlines and deeper sandgrass is holding fish. Catching more drifting with lindy rigs than jigging, and I know some people are getting fish trolling cranks, or fishing minnowbaits over the top of submergent vegetation. We've been catching fish as shallow as 6 FOW and as deep as 30 FOW.

Pike: Pike are biting better on the cloudy days. Still plenty of action fish to be had in the shallow weeds on spinners, buzzbaits, lipless crankbaits or live bait. Bigger pike have moved to the deeper basins are are feeding on the deepest weeds.

Musky fishing has been slow the past week. A few fish were taken on bucktails or gliders in 12-18 FOW near deep weed edges.

FYI: There's a WABTA tournament on Nagawicka on Sunday.

Good luck!

CT

Fishing Report 6-13-2013

Conditions have varied greatly over the last week. The bite has been good or awful, with not much in between. Weed growth is about average for mid-June, with milfoil really taking off in many places. Water moved into the low 70's on many area lakes this week.

Panfish are spawning, but the numbers of beds you will see shallow is down significantly this year. There are some decent fish spawning in the 10-18 FOW range. Waxworm tipped plastics fished vertically on tight lines are catching these bigger gills, but a light lindy rig with a panfish leech can really produce, especially in the deeper water areas. Sand or gravel are key areas.

Largemouth fishing has been spotty. Its not that you can't catch fish, it is the patterning of fish that is difficult. Some fish are still defending fry, but many are in a post spawn mood. You can target LM by fishing for bass around the outsides of areas where gills are spawning. Wacky, popper-topwaters, minnow baits, soft jerkbaits or bright colored floating worms can really produce when the fish are on. If the bite is tough, tubes, jig and chunks, spinners or buzzbaits fished around scattered weed clumps (and tight to them at that) can trigger some less agressive fish to bite.

Pike fishing has been on-fire, with lots of guys who are fishing for bass or musky reporting solid catches of pike. Keepers are coming in 6-12 and 18-25 FOW.

Walleye are biting great, although the best bite has been mid-day. Shallow weed edges adjacent to deeper water are holding fish which can be jigged/rigged for, or fished by casting grubs or minnow baits.

Not much to report on the musky front. Reports seem to indicate lots of lazy follows from smaller 30 inch class fish.

There's a tournament on Okauchee on Saturday...WABTA.

Good Luck,
CT

Lac Labelle Day 2

Fished a little more today, primarily in the afternoon.

Took my older son Shannon out for just some father-son time. Shannon likes to fish, but he has a time limit for how long it is interesting to him. I knew today would be no different.

Headed right out to one of the waypoints I set yesterday. Dropped the lindy rig over the side, let out some line and handed him the rod. We made it about 75 feet before he asked me if he had a fish, saying there was something pulling.

Here was the first of the two walleyes he caught. I was proud of him as he did it all by himself.

First one was 15 after we caught a 16.5 he had "beaten" the longest fish that Quinn had caught yesterday, so he was ready to go in. I dropped him off at the pier and headed back out.

The wind was picking up, so I killed the motor and had two rods out drifting. I caught six walleyes 14-18" on one long drift, and headed in for dinner. Pops and I went back out after the kids went to bed, and we caught a mixed bag of crappies and whitebass before we called it a night.

Fish were shallower early, deeper later. Weed edges, especially those adjacent to a drop off have been key.

Going to hit it in the early AM tomorrow, looking for smallies.

Cheers,

CT

Lac Labelle-Day 1

My parents are staying at a place on Labelle for a couple weeks. We are looking forward to spending some time with the kids at the lake before they get busy with summer activities. I don't fish Labelle often, but I always enjoy it.

Made it out for a couple hours mid-day today. I wanted to show my Dad how to fish the weedlines for walleyes.

Found weeds out to 13 FOW, but the real weedlines are in about 10 FOW right now. Kept it simple, lindy rigs with leeches. Caught 4 and missed a couple more in about 90 minutes of fishing. Hit the first fish in 19 FOW, but the next three were right on the weed edge in 9-10 FOW. Fish were 14, 15, 15, and 16.5.

Will be at it several times over the next couple of weeks. Going to focus on primarily walleyes, but I'm looking forward to doing some smallmouth fishing in the early mornings, and some topwater for musky after dark.

Here's my daughter Quinn and her "Pop" with one of the ones we caught today.

Take a Vet Fishing

I had an absolute blast at the Take a Vet Fishing event on Lake Waubesa Today. I signed up to take a vet out for the event and I'm absolutely glad I did.

I'd never fished Waubesa before, but tried to keep it simple. Long drifts over a mainlake point with a mix of sand, rock and weeds. We were casting jigworms, and Steve had a rod out with live bait on a split shot rig. Like I said, simple.

We hit some active fish early and caught a mixed bag of both largemouth and smallmouth bass. After a bit, we also started picking up some walleyes and even grabbed a nice pike. Fished 7-11:30am, ended with more than a dozen mixed.

It was a fantastic event, well organized and well executed. Boats were launched/taken out quickly and in orderly fashion. I'm really looking forward to next year.

Here's Steve with a nice smallie from today.

Fishing Report 6-7-13

June...nothing says June like Mid 60's degree water and air temps, but that's what you've got.

Weedgrowth is picking up, and weedlines are forming in deeper water. Lilly pads are really taking off, and some areas have some patches of emergent vegetation.

Panfish are in the spawning process. Crappies are at the end of the run, but bluegills are just getting started. There's plenty of beds in the shallow water, especially in areas of sand or small gravel, but these tend to be the smaller fish. If you're looking for decent keepers, you need to look for those fish in 12-15 FOW. They are hard to find with the eye, you'll need to do some moving around with your electronics. A good starting point is the deeper water adjacent to areas where you see beds in the shallow water. (Best bets: Middle Genessee, Lower Nehmabin, Nagawicka, Okauchee, Garvin, Keesus, School Section)

Largemouth are at the end of the spawn. You may still find a few fish on nests, but many are defending fry or starting to feed on juvenile bluegills. Most fish are patrolling shallow flat areas. Look for them around scattered weeds or near where bluegills are starting to spawn. This is topwater season, and poppers, jointed floating minnows and smaller walk the dog baits (spooks) can really produce. As the sun gets high, look for fish around docks and in the deeper water adjacent to longer points. Wacky, Jigworms, Jig/chunk, Skirted grubs, pre-rigged worms, Texas rigs and sliders will all catch fish. (Keesus, Okauchee, Pewaukee, Oconomowoc, Golden, Forest, Silver, Ashippun.)

Smallmouth are also approaching the end of the spawning process. Lots of fish are in small wolfpack schools, patrolling shallow bars, points and drops with rock/weed transitions. Tubes, grubs, soft jerkbaits, topwater and live leeches or small suckers on lindy rigs are producing. (Pine, Oconomwoc, Lac Labelle, Nagawicka, Upper Nehmabin, Beaver and North)

Northern pike have moved out to the deeper weedlines that are forming. Look for them in 12-18 FOW. Live bait on slip sinker rigs is always the most consistent approach for larger pike. If you're looking for faster action...square bill or lipless crankbaits, buzzbaits or spinners fished around shallow weeds, especially in flat areas will all produce. (Pretty, Golden, Kessus, Fowler, Moose, Okauchee)

Walleye are using mid-depth weeds in 8-15 FOW. Pitching jigs tipped with live bait into the holes on the weed edges or ends of weedlines has been very productive. Back trolling lindy rigs or pulling spinner harnesses along the 12-18 FOW transition is producing some keepers. (Pine, Nagawicka, Oconomowoc, Lac Labelle, Keesus).

Musky fishing has been fairly slow. Reports suggest Pewaukee has been largely a dead sea, and Okauchee is giving up a few smaller fish with Oconomowoc being the most consistent. Gliders and bucktails have been the most productive daytime, with topwater giving up a few fish at dawn and dusk or just after the sun sets.

Whitebass are running at Jefferson, but the bite has been hit or miss. Streamers, twister tails and 3 ways have been catching fish up river from Ft Atkinson. 

DNR at Waukesha County Launches This Weekend.

"Department of Natural Resources conservation wardens will be at Waukesha County’s boat landings, and bait, sport and dive shops this Saturday as part of a collaborative group effort to protect Wisconsin’s waters from destructive aquatic invasive species.

The DNR’s decontamination unit also will be stationed at the Pewaukee Boat Landing, ready for any boat owner looking to have their vessel power cleaned for free."

 Full Press Release is here.

Tonight- Speaking at the OFC Meeting

Just a reminder...I'll be speaking tonight at the Okauchee Fishing Club at the Knights of Columbus hall located at 1800 S. 92nd street in West Allis.

Guests are always welcome for a $5.00 fee.
 
The meeting starts at 7pm. My presentation will probably start around 7:45.

I'll be talking about a couple of things Bass related, including 4 area lakes I think people overlook for bass fishing opportunities.

The Club's Website is here.

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Fishing Report May 31st, 2013.

A quickie report for today, more after I have a chance to compile the information which came in this week.

Fishing was a little slower the last week as the post-spawn blues set in on many lakes for bass fishing. That, coupled with the crazy unstable weather we've had this season, has made it hard to consistently pattern fish. Although polar opposites in terms of the actual weather compared to last year's drought, the premise is the same...you need to be able to adapt.

The best action is coming from panfish and pike. Panfish, especially bluegills are getting ready to move in and spawn, and can be found in the shallow areas around scattered weed clumps, sand, rock, or wood laydowns. The rain and the cooler weather ahead in the short term might slow down the process, but the fishing has been very good. Go small with your presentations, and be ready to mix it up some. I had much better success early last week by trying a mix of plastics and different live bait options. Waxworms outfished redworms 15-1 one day last week....and then plastics were better the next day.

Meanwhile, pike fishing has been very good, with some quality fish coming in. The larger pike are starting to move back out to deeper breaks, but there's decent action to be had casting around isolated cover with spinners, buzzbaits or lipless crankbaits....or working the flats with suspending jerks or spoons. If you can find some decent weeds standing in 8-15 FOW, smaller suckers on a slip sinker rig can really produce some nice fish.

The last thing I have for right now is that there's a fair number of reports on Lake-Link and otherwise that the whitebass are running between the Jefferson Dam and the mouth of the river. I just got back to town this morning, so I have not personally verified this, but my usual sources have been talking it up some.

Check back over the weekend for a more complete report.

Cheers,
CT

Northern Bag Limits For Walleyes Increased.

From JSOnline: information here.

Note the picture Paul Smith posted with the article:

That's a Rock River walleye in my hand in that photo.

Information on the new bag limits is: in this DNR press release  or available with lake specific information at this link.

Walleye Stocking Increase

From time to time, I have been critical of the DNR's stocking efforts but this looks promising: a focus on stocking more of the 6-8" fingerling walleyes which have a much better survival rate.

From Jsonline.

Hoping to spur fishing-related tourism and end the days of severely restricted bag limits in northern Wisconsin, state officials Wednesday announced a proposal to ramp up production of walleyes for stocking in state waters.

Called the Wisconsin Walleye Initiative, the program would "dramatically increase" the number of walleyes in Wisconsin by expanding production at state, private and tribal fish hatcheries, according to a statement released by state officials.


Update: Here.

Memorial Day Weekend Fishing Report-2013

Make sure to thank a vet this weekend.

Overall, water temps are back in the Mid to high 6o's. Weedgrowth is behind normal for this time of the season, and Mayflies are in the middle of the hatch on a couple of area lakes.

Bluegills are starting to congregate in shallower water. A few nests are starting to appear in the traditional sandy and gravel areas.Look for them in 4-10 feet of water, and be ready to move shallower as the temperatures warm up. Current areas and spawning areas (like sandy or gravel areas) will have fish, as will isolated patches of weeds in 6-10 FOW. Waxworms, butterworms, redworms and plastics are taking fish, but bigger gills have been hard to come by in any significant number. (Try Okauchee, Garvin ( red hot!), Golden Nagawicka, Upper and Middle Genessee, School Section, Ashipunn, Pretty, Phantom and Lower Nashotah)

Crappie fishing has been slow. Most crappies are in shallow bays near weeds, wood laydowns or reeds. Some fish have spawned. Minnows, hooked through the tail on a small hook (#8 or #10), waxworms and plastics have all been taking fish. Lots of fish are in small areas, so move until you find fish, and then set-up on them. (Try: Okauchee (especially the North Flat, Bay Five and the Crane's Nest), Garvin (North End and Wood Laydowns), Kessus, Nagawicka (Channels), Golden, Silver, and Pine.

Largemouth bass are post spawn and fishing has gotten much tougher this past week. Anglers are catching fish targeting them in shallow water, but a few fish are still being caught off the open areas on flats with scattered weeds. It might be hard to consistently find bigger fish, but on warm afternoons, the action could be good. Shallow water presentations like jig and chunk or craw, wacky, texas rigged lizards, spinnerbaits or lipless crankbaits will all catch fish right now, but don't overlook smaller topwater presentations. Live bait, nightcrawlers, leeches or small suckers are your best bet. (Try: Okauchee, Lake Five, Oconomowoc, Pine, Lac Labelle, Kessus Nagawicka, Silver, School Section, Golden, Fox or Emily)

Smallmouth bass have been active, but are in the process of finishing the spawn. Rock structure, scattered weeds on sand and major points are all holding fish. Expect them to be a little spooky, especially in the shallow water on sunny days. Skirted grubs, jigworms, jig and craws, tubes, and soft jerkbaits are all catching fish. Go natural with your color choices this weekend. (Try: Oconomwoc, Pine, Lac Labelle, Nagawicka, Pewaukee, Lower Nashotah and the Nemahbin Lakes.)

Walleye have been active, with some keepers being caught in 8-12 feet of water. Slip bobbers, Jig and minnow, jig and leech, and split shot rigs with nightcrawlers or small suckers have been the best way to target eyes. In the evening, a few anglers are catching fish by working rapala minnow baits over isolated weed clumps. This weekend should be red hot for walleyes, especially in the evenings. (Try: Oconomowoc, Lac Labelle, Nagawicka, North, Pine and Fox)

Northern Pike fishing has picked up some and as the bass move into the post-spawn cycle, pike might be your best option for some action this holiday weekend. I personally caught multiple 30+ inch class pike this week. Spinnerbaits, buzzbaits, lipless crankbaits, or suspending jerkbaits (like Husky Jerks or Rouges) are catching fish around shallow weed clumps, or at the edges of coves and marshy areas. If chasing pike with live bait, look for them in 6-12 feet, using small suckers or large shiners on a slip sinker rig. (Try: Okauchee, Kessus, Garvin, Nagawicka, Pine, Fowler, Golden, School Section, Emily)

Musky Fishing has been slow, but steady. There are lots of fish in the shallow water chasing, and a few are even being caught on topwaters, but the most consistent action has been coming in 8-15 FOW around mainlake structure. Gliders, jerkbaits, swimbaits and bucktails have been productive, but many anglers continue to describe lots of lazy follows, so having a sucker out on a quickstrike rig is a great idea, and figure eights are required on every cast. Gold blade/balck skirt seems to be the color of the season, but white/copper combos have also been catching a few. (Try: Okauchee, Pewaukee, Fowler and Lac Labelle) 

Around the area: Fishing on the Rock River has picked up again, and anglers are still catching a few whitebass south of Ft Atkinson, and catfish between the Jefferson Dam and the mouth. The action has been good when its on, awful when its not.

If you're in town for the holiday and want to talk some more specific tips, email or call me.

Have a great holiday weekend. Again, thank a vet.
Cheers,
CT

JSOnline Outdoors Article

Paul Smith's article on our Okauchee outing for Prespawn Bass is now posted.

 You can read it here.

Fishing Report 5-17-2013

Well, there's not much I can say about the weather. Fish are biting, but biting better on the warmer/stable weather days. You can still catch fish on the other days, but the bite can be very tough.

Water is in the low to mid 60's on most area lakes. Weed growth varies, with lakes with large quantities of Milfoil already with explosive growth.

Panfish have been hit or miss. Schools of fish are holding tight to shallow weeds in 6-8 feet of water, or around docks adjacent to deeper water. The primary point of note is to make sure your presentation gets to the bottom of the school where the bigger fish reside. Stay small with presentations, waxies or spikes on a small hook or plastic for gills or yellow perch, tail hooked minnows for crappies. Be ready for light bites.

Bass fishing has been on fire the last 10 days as the prespawn period wraps up. Lots of fish moved to their beds during the later part of the week, and if you're heading out, be ready to fish for fish in each of the three stages..prespawn, spawning and post spawn. Jerkbaits, especially soft jerkbaits can be dynamite, but don't overlook jig and craw/chunk, texas rigged plastics, skirted grubs and shallow running crankbaits for bigger fish. Lots of guys are drop-shotting around bedding fish, or flipping around docks right now. Don't be afraid to pull back from the shallow water and look for active fish in 6-10 FOW.

Pike fishing has been pretty good, but with the prespawn bass activity keeping people busy, not many anglers are targeting pike. Buzzbaits, lipless crankbaits, spinner baits and spoons are catching fish, especially in shallow areas where weeds are coming up. Bigger pike have returned to deeper water, and a few people fishing deeper for musky have been reporting some active fish in the 10-15 FOW range.

Musky fishing has been spotty, with the fish exhibiting classic post spawn behavior. My only advice...fish shallower than you'd think. I stuck a great fish early this week in 2-3 FOW while bass fishing, and I saw another fish in the same area later in the week.

There's tournaments on Okauchee on both Saturday (Bass) and Sunday (Musky). Pewaukee has a Musky tournament on Saturday. Whitewater has a Bass tournament on Sunday.

Look for an article in Sunday's Journal-Sentinel Outdoors section about the half day I spent with Paul Smith early this week.

Cheers,
CT

I get interesting emails sometimes....

Like this one:

Hi Chris

I'm a Casting Associate with Top Hooker, which is a new competition show from the producers of Top Shot, Dirty Jobs, and The Ultimate Fighter. We are currently casting for the second season, and are looking for skilled and adventurous fishermen/women to be on the show. I wanted to reach out to you to see if this might interest you, your colleagues, clients, or friends.

And here's some additional information:
NOW CASTING Dynamic Fishermen for Season 2 of Animal Planet’s Highly-Anticipated Fishing Competition Show !!!

The producers of Top Shot, Dirty Jobs and The Ultimate Fighter are seeking America's best and boldest men and women to take on the new season of Animal Planet's extreme fishing competition, Top Hooker.

On this hotly-anticipated new TV show, you and a handful of daring fishing enthusiasts will tackle exciting and intense challenges on America's rivers, lakes, streams and even the open ocean.

We are looking for COMPETITIVE, OUTGOING and SKILLED anglers, spear fishermen, game fishermen, fly fishermen, trawlers and trappers from all walks of life. It doesn't matter if your experience is commercial, sport or recreational. As long as you're skilled, adaptable and confident enough to take on anything we throw at you, you could win A BIG GRAND PRIZE and the title of Animal Planet's next Top Hooker.

This is TV's wildest fishing competition. APPLY TODAY!!! DEADLINE TO APPLY IS TUESDAY, JUNE 11, 2013!

Send an email to TopHookerCasting@gmail.com with your name, age, phone number, location, a recent photo (without hat and sunglasses please!) and a brief explanation of why you are
America's next Top Hooker.



A link with the rules and such is here: www.pilgrimstudios.com/casting/tophooker

Take a Vet fishing event in Madison on June 9th.

The 2nd annual Take a Vet fishing event is happening on Lake Waubesa on June 9th.

Event website with video and sign-up details is http://takeavetfishing.com/

Information from the website on the event:

 A Day of Giving Back

Sunday, June 9th 2013
Lake Waubesa on the Madison Chain of Lakes

All boats will launch from Babcock Park starting at 6:30am

Babcock Park

2909 US 51
McFarland, WI. 53558

Fishing time is from 7:30am – 11:30am

Veterans Memorial Party will start at 12:00 noon at McDaniel Park

McDaniel Park

4904 McDaniel Lane
McFarland, WI. 53558

Festivities will begin at 12:30pm with a flag ceremony honoring all of our active and retired US Military Veterans

Food will be served starting at 1:00pm. All families of participating military personnel are welcome to join the Veterans Memorial Party starting at 12:00 noon.

A Veteran Recognition Tribute will immediately follow lunch at 2:00pm. EACH VETERAN who participates in the event will be recognized with gifts, give a ways, and raffle prizes – all donated by our sponsors.

Space is limited! All entries will be on a first-come first-served basis!

Please contact Jay Garstecki at (847) 921-0760 or jgarstecki@yahoo.com with any questions

WMT/ Pro-Mac Events This Weekend.

I've gotten a couple of emails about the musky tournaments on Okauchee and Pewaukee this weekend.

I sent an email to the tournament organizers this morning to see if there's still room. I'll post the reply as soon as I get it, but if you wanted to pursue it yourself, the contact information for the WMT trail is available here.

Cheers,
CT

Okauchee 5-13-13

Out today 9:30-2:30 with Paul Smith from the Journal-Sentinel.

Had a couple of quick bursts of action, but was tough bite overall. All bass except for one shorty were 15-18.5 inches. Big fish was a unspawned female. Had one other female that wasn't spawned out, the rest were males.

Fished the usual early season spots, looking for warmer water and baitfish. There were fish in each area we fished, but getting bites was tough. Hooked a decent musky up in Tierney, but it got me wrapped up on a dock post. Tried to feed it line, and it ended up jumping a couple of times before breaking me off. Looked to be low/mid 40's.

Water dropped into the low to mid 50's during the cold snap. Was mid 60's when I was out on Thursday. Weeds are getting green, and have started growing big time. Water is high, and current is flowing through.

Fish were moving up, but there weren't many nests being guarded yet. I expect the warm up will put them on the nests pretty quick, and if you're fishing WABTA this weekend, you can probably plan on fishing for bedded fish.

Should be a busy week with the tournaments and such, but the fishing should also be pretty good as the warmer weather moves back in and stabilizes.

Good Luck,
CT

Fishing Report 5-9-13

Was out today on Okauchee chasing bass. Started with a jig and pig up front and a wacky rig in the back. Had to make an adjustment but dialed in the fish about 90-minutes in, and then knocked them out. Had several over 3 pounds, with a 20 incher in the batch. I would have liked to keep fishing, but the rain chased us.

Water was 60+ everywhere, but I didn't see many bedding bass...which was very surprising. The fish we were catching were shallow, but off the bank....classic pre-spawn feeding pattern for the larger female fish we were dialed into today.

This cold front that's about to hit is going to slow things down  a bit, but I expect the fishing to stay very, very good for the next ten days-two weeks before we hit that slow down in the post spawn.

Here's one picture from the cellphone...apology for the distortion in depth perception.

One of the better ones from today.

Onto business...

It's spring. You should fish spring patterns.

Water is in the low to mid 60's on most lakes, although this cold snap will drop the temps some before next week.

Panfish are moving into the shallows in groups. There's still plenty of fish hanging off the breaks suspended, especially the larger crappies, but you can get onto some decent sized fish in the 4-8 FOW range.  Areas with green weeds will hold the most panfish, but look for them around laydowns and docks that reach deeper water. Lots of nice gills are schooled up around deeper docks right now.  Keep it simple, small bobbers and small bait. Minnows for the crappies, but otherwise plastics tipped with waxies or spikes. Remember the biggest panfish are on the bottom of the school, so get that bait down to them. (Okauchee, Kessus, Ashippun, Lower Nehmabin, Fowler, Nagawicka, Pine, Golden, Middle Genessee and Forest (for shore fishing)

Largemouth bass fishing was on fire this week. I have put some huge fish in the boat since the opener. Each day requires a little adjustment, and this cold snap will push that theory to its limits this weekend, but the fishing should be fantastic for at least the next ten days. A few fish are up on the beds, but most are still chasing bait and craws at the last major structural elements outside of the spawning areas. Jig and pig, wacky, floating worms, soft jerkbaits, grubs, drop shot minnows and lipless crankbaits are all producing depending on the day. Lindy rigs with leeches fished around shallow weed clumps will catch fish, as will split shotting nightcrawlers along shallow rock to weed transitions. Now is the time to catch your biggest bass of the year. (Okauchee, Silver, Golden, Kessus, Moose, Oconomowoc, Pine, North, Nagawicka, School Section or Pretty.)

Pike fishing has been steady, with most fish being caught by musky or bass anglers. Spinnerbaits, buzzbaits or lipless crankbaits fished over/around shallow weeds or in marshy areas can really produce this time of year.

Musky are still shallow and seem to be chasing spinners, gliders and jerkbaits. Consistently hearing about lots of lazy follows on Pewaukee, Okauchee and Oconomowoc, which usually means people are fishing tackle that's too big. Try downsizing and throwing baits in natural patterns, especially if you are fishing the Muskie's Inc tournament on Saturday.

Trout are still being caught in decent numbers from the stocked ponds and lakes. Lower Genessee is still giving up some decent numbers.

Best of luck this week.

Cheers,
CT

New Bass Species Identified

Think of all the tournament rulebooks that will have to be updated!

More information on the discovery is here.

Openings next week....

I have a couple of days open the weeks of the 13th and 20th, and I'd really like to fill them. To that end, I'll knock $50 of the going rate for a half day trip, or $75 off a full day trip. We can do a multispecies trip on an agreed upon local lake.

Email me or call for more information....

New Rig Test/Moose Lake 5-6-13

Got out for a couple of hours today to put the Princecraft through a test run. Its a very stable platform, and even the higher sides didn't bother me much. The tiller will still take some getting used to.

Fished 11:30-1:30 with Kathy from Musky Mikes on Moose Lake. The Okauchee Launch was full, but it ended up working out just fine for a water test for the new boat.

Nothing fancy...Pitching a Jig and Craw around the obvious shallow stuff. Was more interested in getting a feel for the new boat than fishing.

Anyway, the fish are starting to move up, but it is still "early." Water was 61 degrees at the launch when we pulled out.



Caught three keepers including this one:

21"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Local Tournaments-Update

Building on my earlier post here, I have information on two more tournaments.

First, there's a weekly Monday night tournament on Nehmabin. I believe it is held out of the Channel Inn by the public boat launch. I've never fished it, but Becky Smith told me about it.

I also have the schedule for Thursday Nights that are sponsored by Dick Smith's.

May 9 Nagawicka (Public Launch)
May 16 Pewaukee (Kim's Lakeside)
May 23rd Nagawicka
May 30th Pewaukee
June 6th Nag
June 13th Pewaukee
June 20th Nag
June 27th Pewaukee
July 4 Nagawicka
July 11th Pewaukee
July18 Nagawicka
July 25th Pewaukee
August 1 Nag
August 8th Pewaukee
August 15th Nagawicka
August 22nd Pewaukee
August 29th Nagawicka
September 5th Pewaukee
September 12 Nagawicka

Saturday :September 15 Classic-On Nagawicka

Mixed reports for the opener....

Heard a wide variety of reports from around the area about the fishing this weekend for the opener. Overall, I heard about some nice size fish being caught, but it seemed that the fishing was fairly inconsistent and on the slow side. Some decent pre-spawn bass, and several nice pike among the reports that filtered in this afternoon/evening.

I took the opener off this year. I was prepping my "new" boat. After a little mishap with my beloved Starcraft two weeks ago, I upgraded a little. I'm now running a tiller Princecraft 169. I wanted a boat that was a little more kid friendly and a had a much bigger livewell for musky tournament fishing. I found a quality used model (actually my dad came across it.) I picked it up this weekend, and spent the day today mounting my electronics and other gear on the boat.

It's a much wider platform and will fish 3 much more comfortably than my older boat. Looking forward to doing some serious precision trolling for walleyes this season on Lac Labelle and Oconomowoc with slow death rigs, and the new boat is perfect for this job.

Looking forward to getting out. My open guiding dates start this week, so if you want to go out and hunt for some trophy bass...shoot me an email.

2013 Opener Preview

Here's what to expect when you hit the water this weekend.

1.) Water temps in the low to mid fifties. Some isolated bays may be approaching 60 degrees, but only if the wind stays down, and the afternoons are sunny.

2.) Limited new growth of weeds. New green growth is just beginning, and any that you are able to find will likley hold fish.

3.)Higher than average water.  Pay attention to the conditions, and don't overlook areas with current. Active fish will use current areas in the spring.

4.) I'd skip the morning run on Saturday, and focus my efforts in the warmer parts of the day. You may need to make some adjustments throughout the weekend as conditions change.


Panfish: Starting to stage on weed flats and in marshy areas. Look for the warmest shallow water in the afternoons. Plastics tipped with waxworms, or small tail hooked minnows are catching fish, but they are running small. Strike zone is small, make sure to make accurate casts if fishing for shallow, visible fish. (Best Local Options: Okauchee, Pine, Kessus, Nag, Lower Nashotah, Fowler, Middle Geneessee, Moose, Garvin and Golden)

Bass: Pre-Pre spawn. Look for small groups of fish to be cruising in the shallow water in the afternoons. Some of the early warming bays and channels may have some early bucks up in the shallow water, but I'd expect to see more schooling activity. Grubs, tubes and wacky are your best bets, but a jigworm might be the key approach. (Okauchee, Silver, Golden, Nag, Oconomowoc, Lac Labelle, Kessus, Pewaukee, Beaver)

Action will come in spurts, but look for warmer water and green weeds. If the sun is out, rocks can pull in fish later in the day as they absorb heat. Large fish can be caught on a jerbait or slow rolled spinnerbait on the deep edges of points near spawning coves. If you're seeing bigger fish in the shallows, jig and pig in a black/blue, black/red or rootbeer pattern will produce. If you find fish out deep, a texas rigged lizard can land you the biggest bass of the season over the next ten days.

Northern: Lots of fish on the flats, live bait, buzzbaits or lipless crankbaits will produce the most fish. Probably your best option for early fishing this weekend if you're looking for steady action. Big fish will be one breakline deeper than where the active, smaller fish are. (Moose, Kessus, Nag, Emily, Okauchee, Pretty, Golden)

Walleye: Lots of fish on the 6-12 foot deep flat areas. Especially around, but out of the current, and in any shallow standing weeds. Lindy rigging and drifting or slow death trolling are good options. (Oconomowoc, Lac Labelle, Pine, Nag and North)

Musky: Live baiting with suckers, small bucktails and jerkbaits are your best options for the opener. Reports of spawning pairs have been circulating on Okauchee, Garvin and Pewaukee for a few days. (Lac Labelle, Pewaukee, Okauchee, Oconomowoc and North)

Good Luck.
CT

Rock River Update

Shoreline fishing and boat launching ban in Fort Atkinson is lifted today-May 1st.

Water is still high, dirty and fast...but if you're looking for a place to get away from the crowds on the inland lakes this weekend, there's sure to be whitebass and catfish to catch.

Tournament Schedule for Local Lakes 2013 Season

Building on the last post...here's a list of the tournaments I have (so far) for our local lakes.

Note....These are just the ones for the lakes I cover. Full Schedules for each of the circuits are available at the website links for each of the associations.

I'll update the list as I get more information, but here's what I have as of today, April 29th.

Weekly:
Tuesday Nights: Musky Mike's Big Bass League on Okauchee

C-N-R...(The Thursday Night) tournaments don't have a schedule up yet.


WABTA (www.wabta.org)
$125 Division
Okauchee May 18
Nagawicka June 23
Pewaukee July 20

$300 Division
Okauchee, June 15
August 3


Anglers Choice Registration Information/Link is Here
May 19, Whitewater
June 1, Nagawicka Lake
June 30 - Pewaukee Lake
August 10 - Pewaukee Lake
September 8 - Whitewater Lake
September 29 - Okauchee Lake
October 5 - Nagawicka Lake

Ironman Musky http://www.ironmanmusky.com/
April 20th Fox Chain North
June 8th Lake Waubesa
June 9th Take a Vet Fishing Lake Waubesa
Oct 19th Pewaukee Lake
Nov 2nd Lake Monona
Nov 3rd Lake Waubesa
Nov 9th Pewaukee Lake

No Professional Musky Trail (PMT) events in 2013 other than a Madison date in September.

World Muskie Tournaments-Musky Country Tournament Circuit (info here)

May 18-Pewaukee
May 19-Okauchee

Pewaukee-Okauchee-Oconomowoc Muskie Tournament May 11th

The Milwaukee Chapter of Muskie's Inc is having an early season fundraising tournament and banquet on Saturday May, 11th.

Information is here.

Just before the 2013 opener.....

Here is my annual pre-opening weekend post. Look for an final update Friday, May 3rd with weather and water conditions from around the area.

Need bait, equipment, or a fishing license? Do yourself a favor and buy from one of the locals.

Musky Mikes (Okauchee)

Dick Smith's (Delafield)

Smokey's  (Pewaukee)
---------
Taking a Kid Fishing this weekend? The DNR Suggests these spots:

Ashippun Lake Park
Location: In Oconomowoc, WI. Take Capitol Drive west to State Highway 16, go west on 16 to County Highway P, then take P north to County Highway K, go west on K to McMahon Road. Watch for "public access" sign.
Notes: Run by Waukesha County Parks. Park has picnic area, restrooms and shorefishing.

Denoon Lake
Location: Located on Crowbar Drive, south of Kelsey Drive. Go west from Highway Y.
Notes: Public park with ballfields, restrooms, picnic area and boat launch. Not much shorefishing, due to marshy area near shore.

Lac La Belle
Location: At the Fowler Lake Dam, on Highway 67, one-quarter mile north of State Highway 16 in the Oconomowoc, WI. Located just northeast of the beach and park on Lac La Belle. The beach and park are on Highway 16, just west of Highway 67.
Notes: Disabled accessible public fishing pier.

Little Muskego Lake
Location: Access from Idle Isle Park in Muskego, WI on the northeast side of Little Muskego Lake. Take Martin Drive to Hardtke Drive to the park.
Note: Idle Isle Park has a beach, picnic area, restrooms, accessible public fishing pier and boat launch.

Lower Phantom Lake
Location: In Phantom Glen Park in Mukwonago, WI. Take County Highway ES (Main Street) to Andrews Street, then go west into the park.
Notes: Public park with picnic area, restrooms, disabled accessible public fishing pier and boat ramp.

McKeaun Springs
Location: Trout pond located on the west side of Highway 67, between Piper Road and Road X. About 3 miles north of Eagle, WI.
Notes: No facilities, but there is a picnic area with restrooms just a short distance to the south. DNR manages as a children's trout fishing pond. Although it is officially category 3 (3 bag and 9 inch length), there is a voluntary regulation for adults to catch and release, and kids are allowed to keep one trout of any size. Designed to encourage adults to take kids out and teach them to trout fish.

Nagawicka Lake
Location: In Nagawaukee County Park. Take County Highway C, three-quarters of a mile north of Interstate 94 in Delafield, WI.
Notes: Public beach, picnic area, restrooms and concessions, camping, shorefishing and boat launch.

Nemahbin Lakes, Upper and Lower
Location: Southeast of Oconomowoc, WI, off of County Highway DR.
Notes: County owned access on frontage road between the two lakes, Highway DR. shorefishing on Upper Nemahbin from the road right-of-way. DNR owned carry-in site on Lower Nemahbin off Sugar Island Road.

Pewaukee Lake
Location: Village park in downtown Pewaukee, WI.
Notes: Public park with beach and public fishing pier. Can also access Pewaukee River just below the dam. On Wisconsin Avenue in downtown Pewaukee. Boat launch and shorefishing from county park and boat ramp at the west end, on Highway E.

---------------------
Local Shore Fishing Locations


Okauchee Lake: Shore fishing is available at the public boat landing. Take HWY 16 to the Sawyer Road exit. Turn left at the T-intersection, and drive through the town of Okauchee. At the clock tower, veer left and then go about a ¼ mile to Road T, which is a right hand turn. Free parking for cars is available.

Moose Lake: Shore and pier fishing is available at the Moose Lake Public Launch area. This launch has a nice park-like area available to shore fisherman. The launch area is just off Highway C, across from Cedar Bay Road.

Lac La Belle: Public Fishing Pier Located in Memorial Park in downtown Oconomowoc.

Nashotah Park: Just off of the corner of HWY C and HWY R in Nashotah there is a park and ride. Across HWY R, there is a low fence that marks access to the Forest Lake area of Nashotah Park. Anglers have to hike down the hill, but the entire shoreline of the small lake is available for shore-fishing.

Fowler Lake: There is space for shore fishing by the Labelle/Fowler Dam, at the boat landing and in the Riverside Park. The lake is just off HWY 16 in Downtown Oconomowoc. The boat landing is behind city hall.

Nagawicka Lake: Two areas allow public shore fishing access. There is some space at the public launch in the County Park off of HWY 83 near Delafield. A second option allows you to access St John's Bay and a section of the Bark River. Take HWY C to where the Military Academy is. There is a small park just south of downtown Delafield on the east side of the road.

Pewaukee Lake: Located in Nagawaukee County Park on the west side of the lake. From I-94, north on State Highway 83 for 1/8 mile, east on County Highway DR 1 1/2 miles, north on County Highway E to park entrance. Park fee is charged. There is also a public fishing pier along the city strip near the beach on the east end.

Ottawa Lake: Located in the Southern Unit of the Kettle Moraine State Forest. From State Highway 67, west on County Highway ZZ for 1/3 mile to park entrance. State Park sticker required for entry.

Upper Genessee: Carry in boats and shore fishing are available. Parking is in a small gravel lot, just south of I-94, on the east side of HWY 67.

Paradise Springs: Located in the Southern Unit of the Kettle Moraine State Forest. From downtown Eagle, west 1 mile on State Highway 59 to County Highway N, north on N for about 1/2 mile to site. State Park sticker required for entry. Artificial lures only.

Lower Phantom Lake: Located in Phantom Glen Park. From County Highway ES, west on Andrews Street to park entrance.

Other Useful Links

Local Fishing Reports from Lake-Link.com

Becky Smith's list of local shorefishing locations, boat ramps and boat rentals is online at at www.Dicksmithslivebait.com

The DNR maintains a database of printable lake maps online. Although some are fairly old, they can still be very useful.

There's also a easy to use reference to find boat launches at the DNR Website.

There's a new format, focusing on lakes by species, rather than a regional approach. Check out the DNR's 2013 Spring Fishing Forecast here.

The DNR's online license purchases avoid the wait opening morning.
----Note, this is the best idea ever for opening weekend.
-----------
Fish Stocking

Trout:

Information on Stocked Trout is available from the DNR.

------------------------
Around our Area:

Panfish:

Best Lakes For Panfish: Ashippun, Silver, Kessus Buelah, Golden, the Geneessee lakes, Lake Five, Okauchee (Bay Five, the Channel, Icehouse and Stumpy Bay), Garvin and the Nehmabins. The water is still very cold. Look for panfish in shallow bays, channels or marshy areas with dark bottoms.


Bass:

Lindy or split shot rigs with nightcrawlers or suspending large shiners under slip bobbers are your best live bait options. Texas rigged plastic lizards, wacky worms and jigs with a chunk trailer will be good options if fished very slowly. Slow rolling spinnerbaits or ripping rattletraps around weedy cover could produce some reaction strikes. Smaller fish will be patrolling the shallows, but don't expect to see many fish on beds. Larger fish will be deeper than normal for the opener. Look for them around the ends of points that are near spawning areas. If its warm and sunny, a buzzbait fished over wood cover can produce some violent reaction strikes when the water is still cold.

Best lakes for largemouth: Okauchee, Silver, Nagawicka, Golden, Pine, Moose, Kessus, Pretty and School Section.

Smallmouth will be in deeper water. . Look for them to be suspended in the water column in deep water near points and other rocky structure. Suspending Jerkbaits, swimbaits, slow rolled spinnerbaits or twister tail grubs are good options for chasing suspended smallmouths. If you can find some fish on the rocks in the afernoon, lindy rigging with leeches or nightcrawlers should do the trick.

Best lakes for smallmouth: Nagawicka, Lower Nehmabin, Oconomowoc, Pine, Lac La Belle.


Walleye:

Bottom bouncers with spinner harnesses, lindy rigs and jigs will all catch walleyes. I'd consider using a mix of live bait in the form of nightcrawlers, leeches and small suckers. Look for walleyes to relate the edges of shallow water in areas with plenty of current. I'd run live bait rigs to find fish, then fish an active area hard with crankbaits like a shad rap or floating rapalas. You might even do better this opener fishing jigs on structure adjacent to areas with current.

Best lakes for walleye: Lac La Belle, Pewaukee, Pine and Oconomowoc.

Northern Pike:
This is prime time to chase pike with live bait. Use big bobbers and suspend large shiners and suckers around weed edges or near areas with visible panfish. Casting with lipless crankbaits or spinner baits, especially around shallow weeds on the flat areas can be dynamite.

Best lakes for pike: Forest, Emily, Moose, Golden, Nagawicka, Fowler, Lower Gennessee, Okauchee.


Musky:

 You never lose out by floating a sucker on a quick strike rig while casting. I'd stick to  small bucktails for the opener this year, and concentrate your efforts on any scattered weed clumps you can find. I'd plan on being methodical and be ready to make lots of casts to an area to get neutral fish to bite.

Best lakes for musky: Pewaukee, Lac La Belle, Fowler, Okauchee, Garvin and Oconomowoc.

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Good Luck out there!
CT

Quickie Report 4-27-13

Hey,

Just a quickie this week:

Panfish are starting to make a move into the traditional shallow water areas on area lakes. Water temps are still very cold in comparison to most years.

Sunny afternoons with a south or southwest wind will provide the best action until main lake areas catch up. Remember: North facing areas will be warmer, and fish tend to congregate in these areas early on. Current, in the form of a creek channel, or river area will help as well.

For now, focus on the green weeds in shallow protected bays with a northern bank. Concentrate your efforts on the patches of weeds, using live bait suspended under a bobber. Keep your bait just above the weeds, and any visible fish that you see. I like to use waxworms or spikes on a small red hook, or small/crappie sized fatheads-hooked in the tail, underneath a pencil bobber with just a split shot or two to keep the bait down. Be ready to start using plastics, especially for active fish, but for now, I'd start with the live bait and move to plastics later in the day.

The Rock River appears to have crested for now, reaching the second highest level ever. As of this morning, Ft Atkinson area boats launches and shore fishing areas remain closed.

I'll have my annual pre-opener post early next week, and a opening weekend preview next week.

Cheers,
CT

Fishing Report 4-19-13

Well, it was spring yesterday. Not sure what season this morning is supposed to be.

Here's some tidbits on what's happening.

1.) There's muskies below the Oconomowoc Dam. Bring some polarized lenses and dream a little dream about the fish you could catch this season.

2.) River fishing is essentially out of the equation. The Rock, Fox, Wisconsin, Root and Milwaukee rivers are all above flood stage. The Rock River boat launches and shore fishing areas are closed between Jefferson and Ft Atkinson.

3.) The ice is off the lakes, but water temperatures are still low. Panfish fishing should get going with a couple days of sunny, stable weather. Look for them along the northern banks of shallow, dark bottom bays of our local lakes.

Presentations should be kept small. My favorite is a wax worm or spike on a size 10 or 12 red hook under a balsa ice fishing bobber with a tiny split shot. Cast it around any green weeds or reeds that you can see. You may see small schools of fish in the shallow water, hang back as these fish can be very fussy. Try to keep the bait just above the fish you can see.

More as conditions allow.

Best,
CT

Dock Fishing Article

I enjoyed this article on fishing docks. Unlike much of what is written about bass fishing, the author is from Minnesota, so he's fishing water more like ours, than say the swamps of Florida or the gigantic lakes down south.

I'd like to add something to his basic point. While I agree with his notion that many people (including myself) fish docks too fast, in my experience, other than during the spawn, it is very unusual to catch more than one fish off a dock or pontoon. In our area there are some special docks that tend to hold a bunch of fish, but they are special.

I find that docks are best fished on days when fish are in a neutral mood. Days where fish are aggressive, there's much better pattens to fish, and one of the easiest is to fish/drift flat areas adjacent to deeper water. There are few better options than a jig worm or grub for doing this in our area. (Crankbaits work, but pike will empty your wallet pretty quick on some lakes.)

The other thing about the article is the idea that you need to flip. While that's not an issue for an experienced fisherman with the necessary skill set, most people I see around our area aren't in that category. And as such, I don't think you can beat skipping. Tubes, grubs and wacky style baits are easy to skip up and under docks and floating pontoons with just a little practice. Flukes are also great options that can be texas rigged for less hangups underneath docks.

It may be hard to believe, but we'll be gamefishing in 15 days.

Fort Atkinson still closed to fishing

An update on conditions from the city is here.

Fishing Report 4-12-13

Well, it is spring. Fishing time.

The major issue right now, is where to go. The Rock River is approaching peak run for walleyes, but the flooding there has implemented a shore fishing and boat launching ban in Ft Atkinson. Jefferson has closed the new launch by the Wastewater plant to you the lot to distribute sand for sandbags. With Blackhawk Island also flooded out, the only launch available below the Jefferson dam is the old one on Riverside Drive. As you know, that's launch is fairly primitive, and there's no dock there, so plan on using a two man team to get out.

Personally, I'd stay closer to home. The ice is off the lakes after this relentless rain the past week, so its time to start fishing for panfish on the local lakes.

Focus your attention on two areas....the warmest water you can find (typically in dark bottom shallow areas with North banks) or areas with green weeds and current. The fish will not yet have moved into the reeds or onto the wood, unless those things are in one of the two areas I describe.

Best to keep your presentations on the finesse side of things for now. Waxworms or spikes on a #10 or #12 hook  can be a fantastic approach for the early part of this season.

I'd stick to the traditional early spots. School Section, the Geneessee,  Forest, the small bays on Okauchee (Garvin, Tierney, Whitigers and Stumpy),  West end of Silver, North End of Golden, the channels on Nag.

Shoreline Fishing Ban in Ft Atkinson

The city is trying to keep people off the banks of the river as it crests this weekend.


Information on the ban is here


Meanwhile: Jefferson has closed the new boat ramp:

Due to street flooding the Tensfeldt Park Boat Launch will be closed effective immediately.   Boaters wishing to launch below the Jefferson Dam may utilize the West Riverview Drive Boat Launch which will be temporarily reopened and those wishing to launch above the dam may continue to utilize the Candise Street Boat Launch. 

Stocked Trout Information

The DNR has released this year's stocking numbers.


Close to home:

Fowler Lake                              RAINBOW TROUT 1607
Lower Genesee Lake                RAINBOW TROUT 1607
Lower Nashotah Lake               RAINBOW TROUT 1607
Ottawa Lake                              RAINBOW TROUT 1071

Full report is here.

Fishing Report 4-7-13 (Annual Rock-River Reporting Time)

At last...a nice day. Time to start putting out the Rock River Information Posts for Spring 2013.

Fishing is picking up on the Rock River from Jefferson to the mouth. Although still early in the run, solid catches of walleyes and saugers are being reported. Most are pre-spawn males, but some of the early females are mixed in. A few white bass and catfish are starting to show up as well. If we get some warm rain this week as the weatherman is suggesting will happen, things will get busy and quick.

Water level is above average, as is flow, but not outrageous as it has been at points over the last couple of years. Plenty of post-winter debris around by most reports, so always good to be extra careful. Water is high enough for slow-no-wake from the Jefferson dam to Blackhawk Island.

Dark colors seem to be working for people this year...but as with all things, if more people are fishing darker colors...darker colors will catch more fish.

The system gets heavy pressure without a doubt, but it is the people who can control their presentations they have the most success year after year.  Directly controlled drifting, or slow slipping is typically key to success. Unlike the Dells or Depere, the slack water on the Rock is not always your best option. I find that current breaks hold more fish that a traditional slack water area (I get there's not much distinction there) but slower moving water adjacent to fast water is where I always do the best, especially if I can find that type of movement/displacement on a turn in the channel. Those small spots, some of which maybe no larger than the size of a kitchen table, can be dynamite.

I tend to focus on three areas that I know better than most. The area just below the dam to the S turn. The rapids to the wingdam below the Kmart Launch and the hole from the 106 bridge to Fort. I like to fish the Blackhawk Island run, but it can be crazy busy with boats, so I try to stay up river if I can.

In those three areas,  I actually like to anchor over turns in the channel or shelves along the dropoff into the main channel, and then fish with a three way rig. I use a short dropper to the weight (typically 4-6 inches) and a short leader (no more than 18 inches, but usually closer to six to eight inches). It's a very unconventional three way rig, but with a heavy weight can be fished like a jig straight up and down. When paired with a sensitive rod, you can quickly detect light strikes.

If fish are biting short, I'll replace my octopus hook with a tiny red treble, when I'm hitting a school, sometimes I'll switch from live bait to a small rapala or ghost minnow on a little bit longer treble.  I only like run the hardbaits when I know I've got a school moving through as the large quantity of carp and buffalo on the Rock tend to snag themselves pretty frequently. (And yes, that's fun too.)

Looking forward to getting out this week. If you want to chat or are interested in checking out what the Rock has to offer...shoot me an email

Good Luck,
CT

Some Items For Your Attention

On this morning's agenda:

1.) DNR issues thin ice warning...from JSONLINE

2.)Your Wisconsin Fishing License Expired last night at midnight...renew it online, before you hit the water.

3.) Reminder about the Lunker's Fishing Garage Sale this Thursday more info here.

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Fishing Report

Local ice conditions vary widely, and extreme caution should be exercised when heading out. The panfish continue to bite, but are starting to move towards traditional pre-spawn/late ice areas. Look for current adjacent to flat areas with green weeds for the best success.

Open water fishing is picking up on the rivers. Hearing a mixed bag of reports from the Dells...everything from fantastic to lousy. Fish are coming into the area of the Depere dam, and although its still early, quite a few larger fish are starting to be reported. Open water is reported at Oshkosh, Winnecone and Fremont as well.

Closer to home, the Rock River is open and people have started heading out. Remember you can check conditions for the Rock at my list of handy links: here.

Stay tuned.

Lunkers Garage Sale: April 4th.

 

I'll be there....you should be too. 

Doing my spring cleaning/sort/inventory right now, and I am purging the stuff I have either: too much of or simply don't use.

 I'll have a table with a couple of boxes stuffed with crankbaits (rapalas, pradco and normans), a huge bag of brand new terminal tackle (including tons of gamagatzu hooks, several rod and reel combos, some assorted tackle boxes/storage trays/bags, some Castaic swimbaits, some other odds and ends for musky, and boxes of plastics...Chompers, Kalins and Zoom.

River Resources: Rock River, Fox River (Depere), Wisconsin Dells

Every spring, I post a set of resources you can use to keep track of the spring runs.

 Here's the early 2013 Version.

Rock River:

Fishing Report Links:

Lake-Link: Jefferson Dam Thread

Lake-Link:Fort Atkinson Thread 

Lake-Link: Watertown Dam Thread

Lake-Link: Blackhawk Island Area Thread

Lake-Link: Indianford and Jefferson Dam Thread 

Water Resources Links:

 

USGS Data For Ft Atkinson

River status at Jefferson

River status at Ft Atkinson 

Rock-Kosh Lake District

Public Boat Launches:

Riverview Drive (At Jefferson Dam)

K-Mart

Water Street 

Depere (Fox River):

USGS Data For Fox River at Depere

Boat Launches for Fishing in Depere

Lake Link Fishing Report for Depere

Dells (Wisconsin River)

Rivers Edge Resport/Baitshop-boatlaunch

River Cam at River's Edge Resort

River Season

I'm sure you are aware, but the reports are starting to trickle in from the early season open water river spots around the area.

The latest I have:

Depere: Open water, and docks are in. Large flows coming down. Water is high.

Dells: Open water. Walleyes in the slot, as well as some keepers starting to turn up. Fish slow and deep, in the slack water adjacent to the current.

Jefferson/Ft Atkinson: Shore fishing by the Jefferson/Indianford dams has been slow, but steady. Still lots of ice in the river..not ready for boats yet.

Oshkosh: Ice getting thin. Ice fisherman at the mouth filmed this video of a school of fish starting to stage for the run. Check it out here.

Full reports will start backup next week. In the meantime, I'll be getting my boat out this weekend.

Cheers,
CT