05-18-2015, 05:00 PM
I've been itching to get on the board for the catfish challenge but weekends have been busy, blustery, or both so my efforts have been thwarted. Until this weekend.
When I bought my pontoon (craigslist), it came with a trolling motor. I like to row so I never used it and therefore never registered it (no need it you are rowing). Well a desire to spend more time fishing and less rowing along with a pinch of age induced laziness made me break down and dust off the old motor. A quick trip to the DMV (that was sarcasm) and fifty something bucks later (since I never registered it before, I got to pay tax it will be less next year) I was good to go.
My big plan was to fish Saturday while my wife was working, but the wind and rain changed my mind. I can see the lake out my kitchen window and the white caps and water color didn't appeal to me. Instead I managed to get the lawn mowed and take care of a few honey do's (see my plan here? buy a little good will hoping for better weather Sunday).
Sunday morning comes the lake looks calm and the weather is much better so off I go, planning to be off the lake by afternoon storm time. There is some delay getting out the door caused by my first trip with the motor. Small details like nuts to hold the trolling motor wires onto the battery posts should be found ahead of time as it turns out.
I arrive at The Knolls at about 9:30 and get set up. The road in is fine, just remember when launching here that you will need to pack your stuff (boat included) 10 to 20 yards to the water and that the water stays shallow for quite a ways out which can be a problem for you tube guys. It was no problem for the pontoon and I was off and fishing by 10:00 A.M..
Since I was not rowing this time, I decided to start at the rocky point south of the launch area which is a bit farther than I like to row. BTW I can row almost as fast as the trolling motor pushed me, but I was far less sweaty and far less concerned about the wind direction when I reached my destination.
Finally the report. Fishing was slow for an hour or more. I picked up a couple white bass on a gulp minnow on a 1/16 ounce jig head and tried to pick apart the rocks hoping for a walleye or even a large mouth bass (I have never caught one on this side of the lake). My catfish bait got a little attention (worm with a piece of shrimp) but no serious inquiries. The carp were becoming more active so I assumed the water was warming up a bit and all in all, I was having a nice morning.
At about noon, my first real bite of the day! My catfish pole started to do the slow "I just sucked up your bait and I'm not even stopping" bend and we were off to the races. I forgot how much fun a 23"-24" catfish is to fight. The cool water didn't seem to be a problem for him and the fight reminded me that if I want to land a fish in the 30" class, I might be using tackle that is a bit too light.
Things slowed again as another front moved through and I relocated to an area north of the launch/beach area. As the afternoon warmed, the fish got more active and I finished strong with 5 more cats in the 20"-23" ranges (pretty standard size at UL for me) and another 6 or 8 white bass. By afternoon enough big carp were breaching the surface, I felt like I was on a whale watching trip. What a difference a couple degrees in water temperature makes.
A pretty slow day compared to later in the year when water is warmer, but it sure was nice to get out.
[signature]
When I bought my pontoon (craigslist), it came with a trolling motor. I like to row so I never used it and therefore never registered it (no need it you are rowing). Well a desire to spend more time fishing and less rowing along with a pinch of age induced laziness made me break down and dust off the old motor. A quick trip to the DMV (that was sarcasm) and fifty something bucks later (since I never registered it before, I got to pay tax it will be less next year) I was good to go.
My big plan was to fish Saturday while my wife was working, but the wind and rain changed my mind. I can see the lake out my kitchen window and the white caps and water color didn't appeal to me. Instead I managed to get the lawn mowed and take care of a few honey do's (see my plan here? buy a little good will hoping for better weather Sunday).
Sunday morning comes the lake looks calm and the weather is much better so off I go, planning to be off the lake by afternoon storm time. There is some delay getting out the door caused by my first trip with the motor. Small details like nuts to hold the trolling motor wires onto the battery posts should be found ahead of time as it turns out.
I arrive at The Knolls at about 9:30 and get set up. The road in is fine, just remember when launching here that you will need to pack your stuff (boat included) 10 to 20 yards to the water and that the water stays shallow for quite a ways out which can be a problem for you tube guys. It was no problem for the pontoon and I was off and fishing by 10:00 A.M..
Since I was not rowing this time, I decided to start at the rocky point south of the launch area which is a bit farther than I like to row. BTW I can row almost as fast as the trolling motor pushed me, but I was far less sweaty and far less concerned about the wind direction when I reached my destination.
Finally the report. Fishing was slow for an hour or more. I picked up a couple white bass on a gulp minnow on a 1/16 ounce jig head and tried to pick apart the rocks hoping for a walleye or even a large mouth bass (I have never caught one on this side of the lake). My catfish bait got a little attention (worm with a piece of shrimp) but no serious inquiries. The carp were becoming more active so I assumed the water was warming up a bit and all in all, I was having a nice morning.
At about noon, my first real bite of the day! My catfish pole started to do the slow "I just sucked up your bait and I'm not even stopping" bend and we were off to the races. I forgot how much fun a 23"-24" catfish is to fight. The cool water didn't seem to be a problem for him and the fight reminded me that if I want to land a fish in the 30" class, I might be using tackle that is a bit too light.
Things slowed again as another front moved through and I relocated to an area north of the launch/beach area. As the afternoon warmed, the fish got more active and I finished strong with 5 more cats in the 20"-23" ranges (pretty standard size at UL for me) and another 6 or 8 white bass. By afternoon enough big carp were breaching the surface, I felt like I was on a whale watching trip. What a difference a couple degrees in water temperature makes.
A pretty slow day compared to later in the year when water is warmer, but it sure was nice to get out.
[signature]
