River FishingBy: Kyle SorensenIt seems as though the hard water season has come and gone in my world. The temps have risen, and the ice will soon be gone like the closing of a book. This time is certainly bittersweet for me, as I love my ice fishing, I really do. The only thing that helps to dull the pain is the excitement that ice-out brings… the springtime run on the Lake Winnebago System! When the ice drops and we are able to safely navigate the waters of the Upper Wolf, its game on! These fish ride the contours and bends of the Wolf River and we must be able to hold in the patterns they travel. The trick is finding these patterns, which can constantly change. It was really interesting to witness the movements of the fish during last year’s run. For whatever reason, the fish were active in certain bends and depths, while for other spots, the fishing action seemed nonexistent. You might ask yourself as I do, “If these fish are active ten feet away from me (or wherever), why aren’t they active under me?” Well, it’s a good question and there could be many answers. As always, I would love to be able to tell someone, go to this spot, do this, and you will catch fish. We know that’s certainly not always possible due to numerous factors, but I want to shed some light on the “Art of Draggin’”. Dragging jigs on our rivers during the run is a deadly tactic. We have talked vertical jigging, pulling flies, the thumper floater; the list goes on. While those tactics all have very important spots in my boat during the run, one must find out what is working for that day (or hour). The short answer – be ready for it all! On a side note, I highly recommend going back into Badger Sportsman’s online archive to read about the other tactics we have previously talked about, as they are very important, just as much as draggin’ jigs. Let’s start with the basics – the equipment. For dragging, I like rods that are 7’ long, which have a stiffer medium action. While it’s easy to say a “medium” rod, if you feel three different rods that are listed under the medium category, chances are you will feel a difference in each. I like a rod with a sensitive tip, but a stiffer blank that can handle some of the larger fish that present themselves. A key to the 7’ length is the fact that the spring of the rod allows me to easily flip eating sized fish into the boat. I run a rod in each of my hands, so the extra length also helps me get a little extra reach when I’m setting the hook and laying the other rod down at the same time. As with everything, personal preference is what prevails, as the next person might recommend a 6’ rod with a different action. If you’re new to this, you quickly find out what works best for you. The reels and their line go hand in hand. For arguments sake, the reel you are using must have a very sensitive drag system. Being able to fine tune your drag system is a huge advantage, especially on some of the more violent strikes that can happen from time to time. In my case, it also protects from fish-loss due to my sometimes overly aggressive hooksets… haha! I am a strong believer in fluorocarbon because fluorocarbon is practically invisible in the water and it has great abrasion-resistant characteristics. With that said, all of my rods are either strung with full fluorocarbon or they at least have a 3’ fluorocarbon leader. I really like braid for jigging, as it is so sensitive, allowing me to feel the sometimes very light mouthing bites. The downside is that braid has very little stretch and going back to the drag system on your reel, you must have it set perfectly so you aren’t pulling it out of the fish’s mouth on hooksets. If you like braid, I recommend an 8 lb. variety, complimented with a 6 lb. fluorocarbon leader. I connect the two with a very small barrel swivel, as it makes reties a whole lot easier – chances are you will certainly be donating a lot of jigs to river structure! If you run straight fluorocarbon, a 6 lb. class is great. A huge thing to remember, seeing we are going to be fishing the bottom of the river, is the fact that our line will be running into sharp edges, especially when crossing paths with the infamous zebra mussel. It is critical that you are constantly checking your line for even the smallest of nicks. If one is found, retie immediately. Jigs come in a variety of sizes. While color can sometimes make a difference, in my opinion, it’s at the bottom of the totem pole in terms of importance. I feel the most important aspect is the weight. I wish I could say all you need is a 1/16 oz. jig and you’re set, but that is certainly not the case. The current in the river is constantly changing and because of that, so should the weight of our jigs. We have to keep a nice angle from the boat to the bottom so we are able to feel the jig just grazing across it. The trick is also not having too heavy of a jig causing it to sink into the bottom or cause your line to become vertical. We want those jigs to just dance/shimmer across the bottom. So, make sure to have a variety of sizes to accomplish this, usually ranging from 1/16 to 1/4oz. I like normal lead-heads, but some adamantly prefer hair jigs, which are basically lead-heads with some hair tied on the shank. Depending on the bite, it’s not a bad idea to have stinger hooks on hand. Sometimes the fish will barely mouth the bait and are gone before you know it. The stinger can drastically add to your hook-up percentages! Bait is a huge topic, but I will sum it up. It is important to have minnows, leeches and crawlers in the boat with you. One day last year, all I could catch on crawlers were goats and small eyes. I switched to leeches and Bam! Quality fish started showing up. The easiest way to find out what they want on a particular day is to have your partners trying the opposites of you. The fish will show you what they want, and you can then make the switch. So now we’re rigged and its time to hit the water. Boat control and positioning are extremely important aspects to pay attention to if you want to be successful while draggin’ jigs. The basic concept is simple, motor upriver and drift back, allowing your jigs to drag across bottom. A basic run for me is to either pick the left or right side of the river, usually off of a break to start, but that can change very quickly. I will run up past the area I want to target and drop the Minn Kota, utilizing it to keep the boat perpendicular to the drift of the specific area I am shooting for. If I am fishing by myself, I will run a parallel drift, using the Kota to not only control my drift, but also to slow it down which allows me more time in holes or structures I come across. If the first pass area doesn’t pan out, I will make another next to the first one, and so on, as to eliminate the water in that certain bend of the river. If nothing is panning out, it’s time to make a run to a new section of the river. An important area to speak on is the presentation of the jig. While yes, we are mainly just dragging the jig across bottom, I do like to lift the rods up from time to time to not only check for debris, but to throw in a little more action. If a fish is following it and can’t snatch it off bottom, sometimes this helps to give it a better angle to get it in its beak. As a good rule (even though its certainly not 100%) walleye can certainly turn off when the current is slow and/or practically nonexistent. If you are chasing the river runners and the bite isn’t there, chances are, neither is the current. Don’t give up as the current can change at any given time. Have a bunch of jigs with you, pay close attention to your electronics, and have a ball. If you want to see some draggin’ action from last year’s run, check out the video on the OB Outdoors YouTube Channel (youtube.com/oboutdoor). I hope you all have an awesome start to the open water season, no matter where you find yourself! If you are hunting down walleye during the run this year, I’m sure you are going to have some fun times just as years past. Until next time, “Tight Lines. Stay Dry. The post River Fishing For Walleye appeared first on Morning Moss. from http://morningmoss.com/river-fishing-for-walleye/
0 Comments
Prairie Planting for WildlifeBy: Steve Jordan My wife and I were so impressed with the beautiful prairie fields and pot holes in North Dakota that we duplicated it on our Wisconsin property. In North Dakota, they have thousands of acres of public hunting. They call it “plot land” and it is posted as such. It always includes grassland, which includes prairie grasses and wildflower varieties. It usually encompasses many potholes surrounded by cattails, sedges, and other wetland plants. These “plot lands” hold a variety of upland birds, along with many ducks and geese. Whitetail deer are common in the high grass and cattail areas. For our prairie project we worked with the Outagamie County Farm Service Agency, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. We had a lot of help from many people in our local office. Julie Peterson was our main contact. She is in a partnership position with the FSA and the Pheasants Forever organization as a biologist. Julie could visualize our idea of replicating the North Dakota landscape. Her help was invaluable. Pheasants Forever is a great resource for most of the prairie seeds that you will need. They also have the knowledge and the equipment to help you maintain your prairie throughout the years. Planting and maintaining a prairie may seem simple, but it is just the opposite. You will need the patience of a bow hunter or the patience of a Detroit Lion football fan. If you can babysit your prairie for three years, the maintenance thereafter will be minimal. A good prairie mix will have up to thirty varieties of grasses and prairie flowers. Each variety is a perennial. Most varieties of weeds are annuals. During the first three years, you will want to mow your prairie periodically at approximately eight inches high. By doing this, the annual weeds that depend on their seed cluster to reproduce are continually chopped off. Eventually the weed dies with no offspring. The prairie plants, on the other hand, are stunted on top, but continually work on their root systems. These massive root systems will eventually choke out most weeds that try to grow amongst them. One example is on one of my first prairie plantings near Readfield, Wisconsin over 25 years ago. I thought about how nice it would be to incorporate some big Russian sunflowers randomly through the established prairie area. I took a 4-foot re-rod, ½ inch in diameter and poked holes 2-3 inches deep. Then I would drop a sunflower seed in the hole and close it up. I planted approximately 100 seeds; they were all choked off and yellow at two inches high. This is what happens to annual weeds on a well established prairie planting. Here is another example of how thick the root systems get. I had an opportunity to put on a hands-on food plot seminar during the Whitetail Classic event at the Bubolz Nature Center. They gave me ¼ of an acre of an established prairie to work up for the demonstration. The area was mowed and then I had to work up the sod. The root systems were amazing and my disk would not cut into the sod base. I ended up scooping out most of the root systems in this area with my tractor bucket. I ended up with a pile of roots as big as a full-sized van. I’ve never encountered a sod base as thick and dense as the Bubolz prairie project. In some areas of the prairie, trees and brush will try to get established. The mowing will keep them in check for the first three years. A recommended burn of the prairie or area on the fifth year will get rid of them. The Pheasants Forever organization can help you with the burning of your prairie safely. They have access to the equipment and trained staff. A common weed that tries to establish itself in prairies is the thistle. After the three year mowing period, you should keep an eye on any of the problem areas. The big bull thistles are easy to spot because they will tower over the prairie grasses. My wife and I will go looking for them with a weed shearers and a small squirt bottle of Round Up. We will cut the thistle to about one foot off the ground to discourage flowering. Then we will carefully spray a few of the lower, wide thistle leaves with Round Up, trying not to over spray anything around it. If you have an area that is heavily infested with thistles in your mature prairie, you can just mow that area to 8-10 inches high. You may have to mow that area a couple of times so the thistles don’t flower. In late fall you will notice the prairie grasses turn brown and go dormant. The thistle plants will still be a nice green and very healthy looking. At that time, you can liberally spray Round Up over the entire area. The thistles will die and the dormant grasses will not be affected. Geez…..I wish we could get rid of the pesky San Francisco 49ers that easily! At our current place of residence, we have 14 acres of prairie with a one acre shallow scrape or pond. The deer frequently bed in the tall grasses. The geese, ducks, turkeys, pheasants, and a huge variety of songbirds nest and feed in the prairie. We have two acres of a pollinator mix that consists of 100% wildflowers (no grasses) to attract nectar feeding birds and insects. We have had to mow that for the first three years. This coming spring will be the first year of not mowing. This year should be fantastic. It was very hard to mow last year when we noticed some of the wildflowers trying to bloom. The strategy behind a well planned prairie is to have some varieties flower early in the spring, some flowering mid-summer, and yet some waiting for the fall. Our prairie grass flower mix is only about 10% flowers and 90% grasses. It’s amazing how many flowers bloom in that mix. Prairie plantings are great for enhancing and diversifying your property. You can set up prairies next to food plots, ponds, woods, and agricultural fields. Remember, prairie plantings are a lot of work for the first three years, but after that, a minimal amount of maintenance is required. Have a great spring and think prairie for 2014. The post Food Plots For All! appeared first on Morning Moss. from http://morningmoss.com/food-plots-for-all/ SPRINGTIME IS BROWN TROUT TIME!By Capt. Lee HaaschGot that itch for open water fishing? Late March and April is the time to scratch it with some brown trout action! Late March is that magical time of the year when you can launch your boat in the morning and troll the shallows of Lake Michigan for brown trout and then slide up to Green Bay and walk out on the ice and pop a couple of nice walleye in the evening. Every year it’s a waiting game for that magical day that the launching ramp is ice-free and we can back the Starcraft down the launch ramp and get after those “silver footballs!” MOTHER NATUREDepending on the year and Mother Nature, it could be mid to late March or sometime in early April when the sun melts the ice from the marina and it doesn’t take long for the word to get out that browns are biting! That’s because, well, after a long winter of being left alone, they ARE biting! They are cruising the shallow rocky shoreline of Lake Michigan feeding on gobies, stone rollers and other small baitfish that inhabit the structured shoreline. Since the bay and other inland lakes are still ice covered at this time of year, it’s a no-brainer to grab my Ugly Stik GX2’s and Alphamar 16’s spooled with 50# Trilene Braid and 10# Trilene fluorocarbon leaders and hit the boat landing with a vengeance to tackle a few of those monster browns that are cruising the shoreline. Those first couple weeks can be some of the best as the browns have had all winter to forget about being chased. They are hungry and aggressive! A couple of Rapala #7 or #9 floaters or even a husky jerk are favorite weapons when cruising the shallow 8’ to 12’ in early season. Black/silver, black/gold, blue/silver and fire tiger are popular colors CLOSE ATTENTIONI like to pay close attention to my graph and the surface temperature as I’m trolling. I have found that often times, the areas where I get my bites are quite often patches of cloudy water where the water temperature can rise as little as 1 to 2 degrees. In those areas, the bait fish will tend to congregate and attract the hungry browns. When I find one of those patches, I will circle back and make several passes through that area and often pick up a fish or two with each pass through those cloudy patches. You will also find that the darker and more colorful baits, like firetiger and black/gold, will work the best in the cloudy areas as they tend to look the most like the gobies that the brown trout are feeding on. As a bonus, you may also pick up a few lake trout in the shallows in early spring. They too are cruising the rocky shoreline feeding on those same gobies that the browns are chasing. For this reason, I also like to toss out a couple orange/gold Rapalas in my spread. Lake trout love orange and there is nothing like a good lake trout filet on the grill from that early spring cold water! BROWNS AND LAKE TROUTSince these browns and lake trout are in the rocky shallows feeding on gobies, I have found the downward swimming action of Berkley Flicker Shads and Flicker Minnows closely imitate the gobies and are quite deadly at times. I like the colors that closely resemble the gobies, like black/gold, black/gold sunset, slick sunset and firetiger. These also seem to work very well as the sun is coming up. After you’ve made those first couple passes in the real shallow water in the early dawn hours, you will notice the bite slow as the sun gets higher in the sky. This is when I like to slide out and work that 15’ to 30’ of water. The browns and lakers don’t go away, but they do get a bit sketchy in that clear shallow water and will tend to slide a bit deeper once the sun gets a bit higher in the sky. This movement opens up more options in my spread. I will trade a couple of planer boards for my slide divers and bust out a couple super light R & R spoons. Slide divers work great for this because I can dial them to run out from the boat and also put a 50’ to 60’ leader behind the diver. This is a deadly combination for these hesitant browns and lake trout. Being a little deeper also allows you use your downriggers if you have them. Just like the slide divers, I set my riggers with longer 60’ or even 80’ leads and run them shallow, like 8’ to 10’ down. By getting the baits back a ways from the boat, the browns, especially in the cloudier water, will be comfortable striking baits that far back from the boat. For current fishing reports or information on charter fishing check out my report page at www.FishAlgoma.com. From Captain Lee and the crew aboard the GRAND ILLUSION 2 – good luck and good fishing! The post Springtime Brown Trout appeared first on Morning Moss. from http://morningmoss.com/13673-2/ Albino Buck Shot in MissouriAlbino deer are a rarity and many people love to see them and seek them out in states across the country. In my home state of Wisconsin, it is illegal to kill an albino deer, but many states allow it. This particular buck was from Missouri, where it is legal to kill an albino deer. The albino buck pictured above was famous among locals and many hunters passed on killing the deer, until this fall. Jerry Kinnaman took the Great White Buck this past November and it’s a true trophy. Rare 10 Point Albino Buck Killed“I gave him a fair shot. He had a good life,” Kinnaman told his local news. “He’s famous. He still will be.” Albino Buck ShotCheck out the video below to hear more from Kinnaman on his story. Kinnaman hunted the deer this year and knew that killing it may upset people, but it was a completely legal kill. He had a friend that allowed him to hunt on his property and had asked if he could shoot the buck if presented with a shot a few years ago. His friend told him not to kill it. In recent years though, there were trespassing problems on his property and his friend asked Kinnaman to kill the deer. “It got so bad that he came back to me and said, `I want you to shoot this deer.” Albino Buck Killed in MissouriThis is a beautiful deer and a true trophy and I would not argue with anyone’s legal kill. Earlier this year an 11 year old hunter from Michigan shot a nice 12 point albino buck with a crossbow. Legal hunting is just what we said… Legal. There was nothing wrong with this kill and it’s much better than a poacher getting it. See more of the latest outdoor news here on MorningMoss. The post Albino Buck Shot appeared first on Morning Moss. from http://morningmoss.com/albino-buck-shot/ THE ICE IS ROTTEN…BUT THE FISHING’S NOTBy: Kyle Sorensen Let’s face it, this winter has been a fierce one. Many days well below zero, various weather advisories, maybe a [few] back-breaking hours on the lake digging out your vehicle? It hasn’t been an easy one but I know one thing, we sure were given ice and a lot of it. Before you start the ever daunting task of first, finding all of your hard water equipment (Isn’t it amazing where some of it turns up?) and second, cleaning and storing it away for the season; WAIT! As we pass into March, the bittersweet transformation to the late ice period begins. Bitter, because I know the ice fishing season will soon come to an end but sweet, because the best fishing I have yet to have all ice season is about to start. The ice might be getting rotten but the fishin’s sure not! In this article, we are going to go into some reasons why I truly love this time of year and what factors go into my reasoning. Some of these factors can be said for various bodies of water but most will address my home waters of the Lake Winnebago System. Weather Late ice offers up a higher chance of those 35+ degree, calm, sunny days while there is still plenty of ice. It makes the trip more enjoyable and less of a hassle. It allows us not to have to hunker down in the portable shelter but rather sit on the side of a four wheeler, snowmobile or bucket, focusing on lure presentation and not about how our eyelashes have icicles. It is no secret, when it’s warm out, we tend to be more active outside. We think more clearly and in turn we can operate more effectively and efficiently. This is good news for our mobility efforts from spot-to-spot, lure presentation and the overall eagerness to work for our prize catches. If we are comfortable, we can concentrate and in turn, catch more fish. The weather plays an important role not only for us but also for the system as the warming weather begins the system “reboot”. The rivers open, melting water and rain purges oxygen into the main bodies of water and rays of sunlight begin to penetrate deeper into the water column. This in turn, gives the ecosystem the boost it needs to ready up for a busy summer. Location During other winter periods, we do not know where different species will be located, nor where they are heading, without some work. Sure, we can come up with an educated guess from the previous years’ experience but it’s not always a definitive answer. We all know it usually takes a lot of time to locate and pattern the fish movements throughout the winter months, however, we are given a heightened advantage during the late ice period. Our location selection patterns should change during the transition from mid-winter ice to late ice. By now, we have an idea where our targeted species have been locating themselves throughout the past months. Taking this into account, we look to where they will be heading. If we are strictly chasing big gills, we might start looking to the shallower water depths as the ecosystem shock has sparked some life into the lifeless weeds. If we are on the hunt for ol’ marble eyes, we know they will be starting their classic spawning run so we might begin to look closer to the river areas. On the Lake Winnebago System, various species begin to “stage” at, in and around the rivers for their annual spawning runs. When I say “stage,” I don’t mean they just sit around for a few days. It’s best to think of it as an area in which the schools bottle-neck and all the travel routes merge together. As these first schools begin to congregate in these areas, it is not uncommon to find fish under the first hole you drill. Does it always happen this easy? No, but if you can find safe ice around a staging area, and time it correctly, there will be large numbers of fish to be had. A fair number of these fish will be active as they will be building up on the energy for their grueling journey. With the high numbers of fish in these confined areas, the forage base becomes very limited within a short period of time. This means our presentations could show an amplified success rate with a more aggressive approach. A key point to note is this. Fish will travel from all corners in each lake to get to their spawning grounds. If you can locate and stay on these movements, which will obviously end in the river areas (for some species), you will catch the fish and for a longer period of time. Mobility I can’t stress it enough. Whether it is early ice, mid-winter ice or late ice, mobility is, and always has been the key. The great part about fishing late ice is that we know where the fish will end up and by adjusting our movements (through trial and error) we will be able to track the targeted species all the way to their final winter location. I stay very mobile and as I discussed in a previous area, the weather allows us to be more active outside. A warm day allows me to sit on the side of my snowmobile and offer a presentation that I would normally comfortably offer while within the warmth of a shack. Granted I must dress a little warmer but by limiting the amount of set-up and take-down time, I spend more time fishing and ultimately finding and catching fish more fish. Whether it is the first or last spot for the day, my routine is as follows: Drilling one hole, taking just enough slush out of the hole to get my bait down, dropping the transducer down and jigging for 10-15 minutes (some might say this is too long). If I do not produce the results I am after, the transducer comes back up and I’m off after noting the details of my strike-out in the GPS. It’s that simple. Having my auger mounted on the back of my sled and traveling light allows me to spend less time messing around with other equipment I might need in other conditions. Late ice, in a nutshell, is a blast. The most important thought I would like you to take out of this article is safety. With warming temperatures, melting ice and maybe some rain mixed in, ice conditions can deteriorate quickly. Once the safety issue has been taken into account, I will say this. Use the edge Mother Nature has given us. We know the fish will be moving and where they will be moving to. Through the use of mobility and trial and error, track and pattern these movements so you are able to take full advantage of everything late ice has to offer. Before you know it, it will have come and gone. Until the hard water hits again next season, Tight Lines. Stay Dry. The post appeared first on Morning Moss. from http://morningmoss.com/13663-2/ 24 Hours of FirstsBy: Aaron Retzlaff
|
ABOUT MEWhats up. Im Todd. I like my dog, boats, the open water, the American flag and guns. Some might describe me as a "basic bro", but I'm really just a down home country boy. And a country boy can survive! Im usually out on the water in my fishing boat or canoe with my dog drinking a beer. Stuff on here is stuff I like. Cheers. Archives
May 2019
Categories |