Had a great group of fishermen from across the US that came to town to relax and enjoy a night of spring walleye fishing in Muskegon. The weather wasn't postcard material, but so often the walleye fishing is the best under these conditions. The wind was strong and gusty from the north-west and carried a chilly bite. Hat's, sweatshirts and jackets were the norm, but snowmobile suits might have been a welcome addition. The guys were as tough nails, and unfortunatly, so was the fishing. We missed three fish throughout the afternoon, but the great company made up for a lack of cooperation from the fish. Often times the best fishing trips are not just about catching fish, but making new friends and enjoying the outdoors. It was a pleasure to spend the afternoon getting to know these guys, and sharing time doing what we love; fishing.
When I first started talking with these guys about their spring trip, the question was asked about what day(s) would be the best for catching some spring walleye? A million dollar question that I didn't have an answer for. The spring bite in 2007 was a month early. I started catching limits of big female walleye the first weekend of April. This was unheard of in Muskegon as it had always been late April into May. The winter had been very mild last year, and things were a month early. The long winter this year had the bite more normal with fish showing up in numbers in the middle of April, but quickly spreading out throughout their normal routes. In the spring, the big female fish are the first to show. They will be around for a week or two followed shortly by the smaller males. As it turns out, the females were around the first two weeks of the month. I fished a week after our trip on 4/26, and caught a limit of males in two hours. We missed the big bite by being a week late for the females, and a week early for the males. As I often tell people, "the best time to fish is when you have time."
Thanks Brian, Jeff and company for sharing a night of fishing with TKO and I look forward to our next trip.
Monday, April 28, 2008
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
April 16, 2008
Greeting TKO friends and family,
It was exactly a month from the time I started putting the ice fishing gear away, to putting the boat back in the water. I took the month break to get everything ready for the 2008 fishing season, and the two page list of things to do was complete with four or five hours to spare. Lots of new requirements from the Coast Guard, and a nice little list of things I needed to take care of like cleaning, replacing, and preventative maintenance.
All new rods and reels will be proudly displayed in the rod rack for everyone to enjoy this year. The old rods and reels were nothing to sneeze at, but new is exciting right! Berkley Series One rods and Abu Garcia reels make a great combination that I'm sure the walleye's wont care for, but I'm certain you will. I'm looking forward to hearing the feedback.
Sunday April 13th was the first trip on the water with the boat. A scouting mission if you will. Spent the evening working the rocks along the arms of Muskegon harbor checking for the walleye that fall back into the arms after spawning. No luck. For those of you that don't know what the "arms" are, my wife calls them "mothers arms" because they would appear to be two arms bending at the elbows reaching out into Lake Michigan that provide protection for the channel into Muskegon. The arms are actually rocks and cement that were stacked and positioned to protect the harbor.
The season for inland walleye closes March 15th to allow time for the walleye to spawn. The season opens again for inland waters the last Saturday in April at midnight. The walleye season stays open year round in the Great Lakes and connecting waterways. What this means is that if fish outside the shoreline between Muskegon and Lake Michigan, the season is open year round.
Nice little loop-hole that keeps me fishing when the inland season is closed.
Monday April 14th was my next trip out. I was determined to get a pattern going, because I knew there should be fish around. I started fishing deep divers in various depths of water. No luck. The graph was showing fish higher in the water column than I was fishing, so after an hour, I had to make some adjustments. First pass after the adjustments and I landed a very nice six pound fish. The next pass I missed two solid hits. It was starting to get late, so I packed it up feeling a little better about having landed a fish, and having a little pattern going.
More soon.
It was exactly a month from the time I started putting the ice fishing gear away, to putting the boat back in the water. I took the month break to get everything ready for the 2008 fishing season, and the two page list of things to do was complete with four or five hours to spare. Lots of new requirements from the Coast Guard, and a nice little list of things I needed to take care of like cleaning, replacing, and preventative maintenance.
All new rods and reels will be proudly displayed in the rod rack for everyone to enjoy this year. The old rods and reels were nothing to sneeze at, but new is exciting right! Berkley Series One rods and Abu Garcia reels make a great combination that I'm sure the walleye's wont care for, but I'm certain you will. I'm looking forward to hearing the feedback.
Sunday April 13th was the first trip on the water with the boat. A scouting mission if you will. Spent the evening working the rocks along the arms of Muskegon harbor checking for the walleye that fall back into the arms after spawning. No luck. For those of you that don't know what the "arms" are, my wife calls them "mothers arms" because they would appear to be two arms bending at the elbows reaching out into Lake Michigan that provide protection for the channel into Muskegon. The arms are actually rocks and cement that were stacked and positioned to protect the harbor.
The season for inland walleye closes March 15th to allow time for the walleye to spawn. The season opens again for inland waters the last Saturday in April at midnight. The walleye season stays open year round in the Great Lakes and connecting waterways. What this means is that if fish outside the shoreline between Muskegon and Lake Michigan, the season is open year round.
Nice little loop-hole that keeps me fishing when the inland season is closed.
Monday April 14th was my next trip out. I was determined to get a pattern going, because I knew there should be fish around. I started fishing deep divers in various depths of water. No luck. The graph was showing fish higher in the water column than I was fishing, so after an hour, I had to make some adjustments. First pass after the adjustments and I landed a very nice six pound fish. The next pass I missed two solid hits. It was starting to get late, so I packed it up feeling a little better about having landed a fish, and having a little pattern going.
More soon.
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