You can smell it in the air every year. Whatever its source or reason behind it, there is just a certain olfactory impulse which fills our nose fall after fall. And for me, like many I'm sure, the first whiff always brings back a warm feeling of fall which overcomes the external chill that has started to seep its way down from the arctic. The chill in the air which has us human folk reaching for the pumpkin pie, turkey drummies, and mashed potatoes with extra gravy, please, is the same animal instinct felt by all our aquatic friends as well. From the smallest perch and bluegill to the biggest muskie and pike. Every instinct has their minds locked in one direction, getting as much energy as possible before the lakes freeze over and seal them off from external energy sources for the winter. With their minds made up to gorge themselves, early and often it makes the reward of landing trophy walleye just a little bit bigger, literally.
with so much changing in the water below, where should a fall fisherman start his search for these feeding fall 'eyes? "I start looking in areas where there is access to deep water and a feeding shelf in close proximity", says Jon Thelen, former PWT angler, and current Midwest Outdoors co-host. Because of the walleye's one track mind this time of year, their nomadic summer habits of roaming in search of forage get put on the shelf to belly up to the fall forage tables. Their commutes shorten up, which usually keeps them pretty closely located to their feeding area.
"Sharp breaks are better in the fall than almost any other time of year. The fall cooling trend means the water has turned over on deep lakes. The newly stabilized water oxygen levels allow walleyes to use the whole water column and finding sharp breaks just create a shorter distance for them to travel between feeding areas and resting areas"-Jon Thelen
Jason Muche with a Great Lakes fish on the "Chartreuse Perch" pattern
"During the day I will work the deeper areas of the feeding shelf, and if I am trolling at night, I will troll up on the top of the shelf. Walleye are almost always going to be found at a depth that corresponds to the light provided at that time of day. In the daylight hours, I like to start the search from the 14-20 foot marks, and after dark its from 14 feet on up. Upon arrival in an area, I am looking at my graph for concentrations of bait fish as well as what type of structure they are relating to. If the bait fish are spread out over a feeding shelf I will long line crank baits, but if the bait fish are relating to a rock pile or a small weed patch and it does not make sense to troll I will anchor my boat and cast crank baits beyond the structure and retrieve back over the structure.
"The most important factor in choosing a bait is forage size. If the walleyes are eating 2.5-3 inch perch, I go with a #5 shadling in "natural perch" color during the day while more flashy Perch colors like "yellow perch" will often prevail during darker hours when its necessary to give off any flash possible. "- Jon Thelen
Got any good fishin' stories? Share them below in the comments section, or if you want to be featured in the next post, or just want to talk fishing... Email me!
Everyone knows that the early bird gets the worm, but Jeff Sundin of Early Bird Guide Service got that and a bit more. Being blessed with gift of finding feeding fish would seems like reason enough to admire Sundin's talents. But the Leech lake area guide sends his clients home with more than a tan line and a bag of meat.
Long before the rest of the world ever reaches over to swat at their snooze button into submission, Jeff is up and going, getting ready for another day on the water. Even before the sun ever peeks above the tree tops Jeff is waiting at the dock with a comfy seat and a smile for his clients that day. Amongst a field of late to bed, early to rise folks, Jeff has set himself apart and earned his title of Minnesota's hardest working fishing guide.
incredible photo by Jeff Sundin
Gull in flight
In any other fisherman's hands a high end camera does little more to sharpen your photography skills than make you look the part, a fact which I re learn with every photo I take, but Jeff and his camera seem to capture photos which make you wonder how, "how in the world did he do that"?
A gull perched on a submerged log
"It started out as a great way to capture the moment after a customer had caught a great fish, but over time it has really become a passion". From the starting point of capturing a trophy on film or a smiling kid with their first catch, Jeff gradually made his way to the self taught artist that he is today.
There's little doubt that Jeff's numerous years behind the steering wheel of his guide boat have allowed him plenty of opportunity to sharpen his skills behind the lens, but with a quick glance over Sundin's gallery worthy work you can begin to understand that his skill stems not only from practice, but also derives from an inherent eye for the art.
"I love to take pictures of the simple things that nature lays in front of me. It really doesn't matter what it is, just ordinary sights that I see during a routine day. Some days it's a great sunset, others it might be a twig, a bird, anything that looks interesting." -Jeff Sundin
Bald eagle flying overhead
Jeff's photo tips:
1. Don't try to find a shot, let the shot find you. It will, I promise!
2. Make sure that the subject fills the screen and make sure you take a lot of pictures! I may sort through 100 pictures each day just to find one that I like.
Monarch Butterfly close up
3. Keep your camera with you always. The best pictures are the ones that I stumble into and I have missed some of the best opportunities because my camera wasn't near by.
Got any good fishin' stories? Share them below in the comments section, or if you want to be featured in the next post, or just want to talk fishing... Email me!
Ahh Saturday.... College football, couch time, and nothing to worry about except for the dinner menu. Usually stuck with a choice of beef, pork or chicken, this Saturday was different. Salmon... it's whats for dinner!
Fresh off a trip West to the salmon fishing hotbed of the Columbia river below Bonneville Dam. Like a younger version of myself in the wee hours of Christmas morning and in spite of my gut instincts yearning to open the Ziploc wrapped gift, I was forced to wait, and wait... and wait to allow the meat a week in the freezer to reach its peak of flavor. Finally it was time to share with friends and family the fruits of my labor, if you could call it labor.
King Salmon is regarded by most as the most delicious of all waterborne bounties. Go to a grocery store or google "wild caught king salmon" and you can expect to find prices upwards of $30.00 per pound, with good reason. The meat is rich in Omega-3's and has the delicious fresh taste to warrant the sky high prices.
So with nearly 20 pounds of the pink gold in my freezer I was in cullinary overload. I mean... I have a recipe or two, but what do I do with the other 15 pounds? Give it away? Uhh... No way. I am in touch with my philanthropic side, but handing out fresh caught pacific salmon is heresy.
After asking around on Facebook, Twitter, and polling my west coast fishing friends, considered experts in salmon preparation, I landed on a mouth watering Polynesian inspired recipe, shared with us, on Facebook, by Joe Maloney:
"Teriyaki marinade for about 2 hours then grill meat side down, flip and grill the skin side till medium rare. peel the skin and scrape the fatty parts off (gets rid of the strong "fishy" flavor), and serve over coconut rice"
WHAT YOULL NEED:
- About 1lb. Salmon Fillet per person
- Instant white rice
- Teriyaki sauce or other mainade
- One flat baking sheet
- Non-stick cooking spray
-1 can coconut milk
1.)First things first, you can't marinate a block of ice, so if your meat is frozen you need to set it out at room temperature or do like I did, and and put it in luke-warm water to speed the thawing process.
2.) Once you have a thawed, manageable hunk of salmon ready for marination, toss it an a clean plastic bag and pour your marinade of choice in with the meat. Suck out the excess air so the marinade envelops the whole fillet and toss the bag in the fridge.
3.) Grab a cream soda, find a seat on the couch, and flip on your choice of sporting event while the marinade does its work. There's no such thing as marinating too long, but two hours is about the minimum.
4.) Generously coat a cookie sheet with cooking spray to keep the marinade from permanently bonding your meat to the pan.
5.) Time to start your rice. I used 10 minute rice, but substituted one part coconut milk to one part water to make up the full measurement called for on the box.
6.) Finally set your broiler to high and give it a few minutes to warm up before placing the fillet, meat side down, in the oven for about five minutes. Flip and allow it to cook for five minutes on the other side to finish the meat. Serve over the coconut rice, and enjoy!
Got any good fishin' stories? Share them below in the comments section, or if you want to be featured in the next post, or just want to talk fishing... Email me!
Only a day after making a run to the Deschutes and fishing with Grant Putnam, we turned around and hopped in the boat with a couple of buddies from Salmon Trout Steelhead magazine, Dave Eng and Keith Jackson. With little more than a power nap separating us from our previous trip we were all a little run down, and still a little soggy, from traversing the banks the day before in the steelhead capital of the west. But outstanding fish counts at the dam, and a shot at some of the best salmon fishing in the lower 48, pulled us out of our cozy beds en route to the Bonneville dam.
Dave, and Keith holding his catch
Traveling east along highway 84 from Oregon City we passed through some of the most beautiful country that can be seen from any paved road. After crossing the Bridge of the Gods into Washington we launched the boat and made the 100 yard interstate voyage back over to the Oregon side of the river to cozy up next to the "red can". We put the River Rockers out behind jet divers to see if we couldn't hook one of the big fall fish on our new plug. It wasn't more than a half hour and there was a knock at the end of Mr. Jackson's line. After circling the boat and sizzling off line at the rate that only a big king can, Dave netted the huge fall run Chinook.
We eased our way back into the strike zone on the current seam produced by the "red can" and watched the rod tips nod along with the plugs, dancing in the water below. True to form salmon, like most game animals, like to take their chance at your presentation only when you're completely tied up in another task. About half way through my breakfast sandwich my rod shot back! Jolting in its holder I dropped my breakfast and struggled to free the rod, wedged tightly against the holder with the force of 20lbs of angry fish attached to the other end. Half asleep at that point, with caffeine fading quickly from my blood stream, a hand to hand battle with a Columbia King was about the only thing that was going to wake me up.
My Chinook looking a little dazed after getting bonked!
The River Rocker, designed as a steelhead plug, was not cut out for battle with the wide shouldered fall Kings in mind, but it got the job done. No one can really be sure if it was the difference in size, wobble, or color, but after seeing this same bait catch Walleye, Steelhead, Smallmouth, Coho, and now Fall Run Chinook you've got to feel pretty confident in putting one of them on the end of your line in any situation. So, with another stack of fresh salmon ready for the carry on bag back to Arkansas. Our meat box on F and energy level nearing E, the cold coastal winds and subsequent five foot rolling waves were all it would take to convince us to call it quits early that day. We hopped in the car and headed back to recharge our batteries in the comfort of our warm beds in Oregon City.
Catch of the day
Got any good fishin' stories? Share them below in the comments section, or if you want to be featured in the next post, or just want to talk fishing... Email me!
If you listen close enough you'll hear fisherman from Coast to Coast huddled in the smoky backrooms of lakeside “ma and pa” bait shops, whispering longingly about their favorite old crankbait which, for whatever reason, found its way out of production and is now relegated to the realm of obscurity in lure collector forums, garage sales, and the world of EBay. Crankbaits, like great artists it seems, only ever truly find appreciation after they leave us.
There is a saying a friend of mine always pulled out when coming under scrutiny for wearing truck stop wolf tee shirts, cut off acid washed jeans or monochrome Velcro walking shoes, "If you're never too far in style, you're never too far out of style". His sentiment was right on. Like the only kid in high school with an Afro, everyone knew who he was just because of his lagging fashion sense, but his assessment of his location on the in style/out of style continuum was off by a few degrees. Like Zubas, mullets, and classic Ray Ban's, the nostalgic comeback factor never really sets in until a trend is so far out of the mainstream, and past being old news, that it finds new life in subculture.
Fishermen find themselves in a similar quandary. Choose to abide by the unforgiving world of high fish fashion, with the grinning faces on television and magazine stands dictating the flavor of the week as fast as you can pick up the next issue, or embrace the fishing subculture - the seedy underworld of online tackle discussion, bargain bin diving and bait modification. With the fishing world light years behind the remainder of the cell phone toting, email using 21st century, often times those of us hip to the Internet and wise to "that Facebook crap" find themselves feeling like black sheep amongst the long standing old guard.
View from the Boat at the MTT championship
Enter Brad Hawthorne and Bob Carlson, Mille Lacs Lake fishing guides by day, and fishing underworld dwellers by night. Like any heroic duo, the irony in their pairing is their strength. Bob, a 55 year old, brings the even keeled “been their done that” disco era Yin to Brad's detail scrutinizing, belly laughing 33-year-old Yang.
"For me", Brad explained, "Websites like Lake State or Fishing Minnesota are like online cleaning shacks. Guys come in and share stories and pictures, talk shop, and give each other a hard time. It's just a good group". Forums, the World Wide Web’s versions of the bait shop bragging board, are the birth place of a lot of trends. "It's a great place to get real honest fishing information, Carlson explained. "You get to hear from other guys what is working for them and what isn't". A chance to pick the brain of full time guides, and get some of the best fishing info online is what has so many fisherman clicking on the page, but its the camaraderie and friendships that are formed that keep guys around.
Brad with a nice Mille Lacs fish
"I knew about the bait, but it wasn't until I saw Jonny P smacking 'em on Red that I really started to believe that it would catch fish on Mille Lacs". -Brad Hawthorne
"I don't know what it is, but the walleyes up there just like goofy crankbaits", Bob Carlson said in a phone interview, freshly off a second place finish in the MTT walleye championship on Lake of the Woods. Goofy is hardly a complement to anyone other than the Disney character. With a quick glance over the colors of the River Rocker and you could figure out pretty quickly that the crankbait shuns fishing’s high fashion world and lives to be loved within those niche subcultures and smoky back rooms where the obscure and goofy is welcomed with open arms in the fishing world.
You just know that those fish have never seen anything like it before, and I think that's a big part of why its catching fish," Bob Carlson of Mille Lacs Lake Guide Service, explained. The color schemes are in fact just that. Like a Van Gogh throw away, the combinations of shockingly vibrant colors layered over a holographic base sets the appearance of the River Rocker apart from the drudgery of the standard copy-and-paste colors.
Bob with a beauty Mille Lacs fish
"The first time I saw those things I think there were only about five colors that I thought would catch fish, and the rest looked like a some kind of science experiment". - Bob Carlson
Like the fouxhawk rocking, skinny jean wearing LA hipsters of the fishing world, the Mille Lacs duo are just fine with being different. The two would undoubtedly be all the happier if their style remained unacceptable to the masses, but as with all truly unique trends, they eventually find their way to the mainstream.
