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[black][size 3]Fished Willard on Saturday from sometime in the AM till sometime in the PM - Forgot my clock, camera and a couple of other nice things to have. But, it was my first boating trip of the year, so, that would be kind of expected. [/size][/black]
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[black][size 3]As I left the South Marina, a speed boat gunned it and speed off to the right towards the feed lot. They got maybe 50 yards before hitting something underwater - needless to say, they were quite surprised. I think they might consider a sonar in the future. And I doubt they did much more boating for the rest of the day.[/size][/black]
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[black][size 3]Fished alot, missed a few(probably wipers), released a few(Smallmouth bass) and took home a few(Wipers, channels, walleyes). Fished all the normal spots and did OK in some - others did not produce. Tried a variety of methods(Casting, Trolling, jigging, laying offerings on the bottom) - some worked, some did not.[/size][/black]
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[black][size 3]Met three BFT'ers as I was coming back to the South Marina, but don't know their names - I was paying attention to the very shallow depths and couldn't hear much over the sound of the motor. Two were wading and fishing by the marina entrance and another was on a pontoon boat in about the same place.[/size][/black]
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[black][size 3]Here some of the fish I took home to dinner(didn't get them all in photos).[/size][/black]
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[black][size 3]4 of the Wipers. [/size][/black]
[inline "Saturday Wipers.JPG"]
[black][size 3]1 male, 1 female, and 1 it.[/size][/black]
[inline "Saturday Tasty.JPG"]
[black][size 3]26 + inch walleye.[/size][/black]
[inline "Saturday Big Eye.JPG"]
[black][size 3]All in all a great day on the water.[/size][/black]
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[black][size 3]P.S. To those BFT'ers I met - Sorry I didn't get your names - I was the solo guy in the green boat wearing the BFT shirt.[/size][/black]
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[cool][#0000ff]Nice work, Chuck. Glad to see you posting again.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Looks like a couple of good meals there.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]There have been quite a few prop casualties outside the marinas in the low water. You would think they would put marker buoys on those things. But, maybe they enjoy the humor of seeing folks bang up their boats.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I have tubed all up and down that dike and there are some shallow spots and some "structure" that can be hazardous to boat health.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff] I dinged a fin out there once. It was terrible. Couldn't get my tube up on plane after that. [/#0000ff]
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Yep... we watched 3 boats hit yesterday in that same place. One lost a prop, but had a spare, and another got stuch while we were cleaning our fish. [  ]
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[cool][#0000ff]If you hung out there all day with a video camera you could probably put together a funny show.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Funny to everybody except those who star in it.[/#0000ff]
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Too bad the DWR guys with the camera (see my report) didn't hang out to see it. That might of killed any "hotspotting" I may have done. [  ]
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[black][size 3]Yeah, I'll be having fish sticks and sandwiches for days to come.[/size][/black]
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[black][size 3]I have to admit though, I did kind of giggle under my breath when I saw that speed boat lurch, heard the boom and watched them gracefully plow to a stop. If they weren't only half a cast from shore, I might have mosey'd on over and offered assistance, but eventually the west wind would have pushed them ashore anyway. Besides, I could see (and hear) one of them was yelling on his cell phone just before they bottomed out. I'm sure you can imagine the string of off color exclamations that followed. Potty mouthed motor boaters ![/size][/black]
[size 3]Maybe they should have waited until they were a little past the "No Wake marker before trying to hit plane.[/size]
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I have also watched those folks get stuck right outside of the marina. That is why I used my gps to mark where I felt it was safe to approach the channel.
Good report. Thanks.
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Hey Fishhound glad to see you got into some fish. I was the one on the float tube. It was a good evening the wind never came up and it was a beautiful sunset. The waders were LunkerHunter2 and i think it was Remo. I only managed one kitty that came undone in front of my tube on a little bitty rattletrap. I think the other guys did pretty well. It was a trip seeing them wade 75yd off the dyke an only being in waist deep water.
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Yeah, it was me and djremo out there. I figured you were watching the depth. Wish we could have chatted longer. Way to go on the eye.[  ]
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[black][size 3]OK, So it was you. Sorry I couldn't really hear what you were saying as I passed by. I was also trying to remember where I spotted the shallow water as I left the marina earlier. Not that I had to worry too much, my watercraft doesn't draw a lot of water. But, when I left the channel in the morning, I was only thinking of the speed boat(the one that ran aground) that was hurriedly passing me before the no wake marker - they were obviously in a big rush to go out and buy a new prop and have their hull or transom rebuilt. [/size][/black]
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[black][size 3]Did you guys say you had caught some walleyes ? Or was it wipers ? I couldn't tell what you were saying.[/size][/black]
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As they would say in the old days that sounds like a big WINDY, but I hear that's how you get your Kicks.[  ]
RF
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Sorry we don't mark every hazard out on Willard. We only go after the very large hazqards. At some point, people just have to take responsibility for there actions. We tell people about the low water and how and where to navigate but as you can see some just don't listen.
The other thing that I have to completely chuckle about is when people come up to me and tell me that we have to move our orange channel marker buoys which leads us over to the ranger dock. I always have to ask them why and there response is that we were right next to them and we ran aground. After hearing this numerous times on Saturday I finally chuckled at the one guy and said you know I hear that all the time and I can't help laughing each time it is said to me. The gentlemen looked at me kind of puzzled and I said the reason I laugh is because I can take our 25 foot whaler with the twin 225's and our 21 foot whaler with the 300 h.p. right by the buoys and never touch. At that point he looked really puzzled and said well my boat doesn't even draft that deep and I hit bottom. My next question, with a , was did you lift your motor up. Da! Da! He had no clue, he just looked at me and said you can do that. Any ways, don't take offense to this and if any of you ever want to ride along for a while on the boat and see all the stupid things we witness and see people do, just ask. Also, glad to see that you all seem to be catching fish on the bay.
Jeff
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Thanks for chiming in Jeff. People do need to use some common sense... that's the bottom line.
I know that if I was planning on taking my $10,000 boat out on Willard I would be talking to you guys and everyone else I could find to make sure I was safe in doing so, and where I could, and could not go. [cool]
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That sound like fun Jeff could this be done on a weekend? Send me a PM please.
Matt
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I have witnessed close to a dozen boats hit so hard they broke something. Most of the people have gone to the right immediately after passing the bouy. I can't help but say "watch this guy blow out his prop"! Never fails.
When they going to shut er down Jeff?
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I don't think you will ever see us completely shut the bay down that way. Right now we have been semi lucky in that Weber basin has not started pumping any water out. The bay will continue to be a launch at your own risk reservoir probably until the dike is completely repaired. If people would just slow down and not be in such a hurry to get out on the water then a lot of the prop problems would go away. It is a big body of water and we are only getting about a 1/3 of the boats as past years so there should be ample water area for everyone.
We did have to replace one prop but that was semi minor in that the operator was towing in a boat and instead of cutting him loose he tried to beach the boat in the south marina and we hit a rock just as our bow touched shore. So I guess what I am saying is that if your close to shore slow down and take it slow and raise your engine up and you'll be just fine. If you start to touch stop and back out and proceed to another area.
Jeff
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Do you think we will be able to hunt it this year?
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[cool][#0000ff]Hope you did not take any of my comments as criticism. With all of the warnings posted and with the obvious LOW WATER, you would think that would be enough for most "sensible" boaters to exercise caution and good judgment. But, then again, when dealing with people you can never assume anything.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I suppose there are limits on how far the park can go to protect people from themselves.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Anyway, as a float tuber I kinda take fiendish delight in watching the daily disasters. I try to imagine each of them as one of the jerks who ran between me and the dike I was casting to in higher water times...or who trolled over my bait lines and broke me off.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]CRUNCH! Giggle giggle.[/#0000ff]
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I never take anything to sarcastically. I just like to laugh things off. We just hear it everyday about a different rock that someone hit and by god there should of been a buoy on it. Well let me tell you if we put a buoy on every rock that someone hit it would drain the states budget and we would have to rename the reservoir to Buoy Reservoir. Also if that was the case the reservoir would be closed because you wouldn't be able to launch a boat because of all the damn buoys.
I would think that the fishermen would have to love it right now. There are fewer ski boats and plus if there is 2 to a boat it cheaper than going to the movies and at times you get the same humorous events. Any ways all be safe on the water and remember there are hazards so just take your time and enjoy the show around you.
Jeff
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As far as hunting it this year, only time will tell. If they really starting pumping water out like during those drought years then I would guess there is a pretty good chance but we'll just have to wait till the fall and find out.
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