Snatcher Tournament Birch Lake

  

Conditions: 65-78℉, PC to Cloudy, 0-7mph SE

The Day:

I met up with Snatcher Herman at Fleet Farm, and we headed North. As Herman predicted, nobody went to our starting area. The area seemed to be a lot less alive, maybe due to it being early in the day. I noticed there was a channel cut into the shore that I didn't know was there. Where the cut meets the bay is a high percentage spot. Unfortunately, we moved in to close and spooked what was there. I did catch a small pike on a buzzbait. About 5 minutes later, Herman had a fish blow up on his swimbait, but miss in a group of pads. A few minutes later, Herman got the skunk out of the boat with a little bass. A couple of minutes later, I did the same thing with a spinnerbait fish (1.56). I switched to Zoom Super Fluke because the area was sloppy. I think I got a bass in the boat (1.58) pretty quickly after going to the fluke. I got more bites, but couldn't get them in the boat. I broke off on a fish that buried me in a pad root and discovered that most of the flukes I brought were torn up and basically unusable. I had four good ones left. We worked our way out of the slop bay, and I took the helm while Herman worked with his tackle. 

I worked a weedline and then some docks that had sunfish on them, but no sign of bass. We bailed on the area and went just West of where the inlet from Ten Mile Lake is. Herman and I quickly put fish in the boat, but mine was barely over 12 inches. Herman got another keeper, and we watched Smitty and Tim pull a couple out of the pads. We worked that northern shoreline, hoping to bump into something, but it just wasn't happening. A little before noon, Herman made us sandwiches. 

We then went to the southern end of the West Basin to a small slop bay, and Herman got his limit fish in front of a tree at the entrance to the bay. I got a keeper and a non-keeper off the tree on a fluke. I then had a pike wreck my second-to-last remaining fluke. I switched to a Z-Man Popping Shad and got a line burner that was hooked in an inopportune way through the eye, so I threw it back.  I lost all three bites I got on a frog in this bay, two of which I had hooked, and they were both 2-lb-class fish, minimum. We then went around the point to work more pads. Herman got a good cull quickly. I got a line burner and pike on my last fluke, which the pike did in. I put on a bubblegum Yum Dinger, but never got a hit on it.  I got my big bass with about 45 minutes left on a frog. We worked pads for 35 minutes. I had a couple of fish boil on the frog, but not take it. With 10 minutes left and still being one fish short of my limit, I pulled the plug on the slop, and we went to the channel between the basins. I fished a tree just to the SW of the channel, nothing. I ended the day getting my limit with a very small keeper on my last cast of the day, just to the SE of the channel.

Results:  I came in second to last. Tuma won and got Lunker (4/03),President Benson got 2nd Place, and Dennis got 3rd Place.

My Thoughts: I had the bites to be in the top half of the field. I didn't bring any Trick Worms, and my packing the wrong Fluke bag was just dumb as well. Lost fish on a frog when you get a good enough hookset to bring them in, most of the time, is tough luck. 

Tournament Grade: C 

I fished hard and got a limit

Birch Lake Preview Part 2: Plan and Rods I'm Bringing.

 

The Plan is to eat well again, thanks to Snatcher Herman.

The Plan: We didn't find any size, but did find bass in the pads during pre-fish, so fishing pads is Plan A. As of right now, it looks like it will be sunny with light to moderate wind. So pads could be a player. If that doesn't work, we'll wing it, I guess.

Rods I'm Bringing:

7'6" H Tatula (Swim Worm)

7'4" H Tatula Elite (Frog)

7'4" H Tatula (Toads)

7'4" H Tatula XT (Buzzbait)

7'H Avid (Texas Rig)

6'9" H Tatula Elite (FC) (Spinnerbait, Buzzbait, Wakebait)

6'9" H Tatula Elite (Swim Jig, Paddletail, Dark Sleeper, Chatterbait)

6'8" M Avid (Topwater, Ned, Jerkbait, Trap, Neko)

5'6" MH Premier (Fluke, Senko, Ned)

Snatchers Birch Lake (Hackensack) Preview, Part 1.

 

Thanks to recent changes at Fish Swami, it is easy to look up my history at places I have fished since 2011, the first year I seriously started logging my trips. I have fished three tournaments at Birch Lake and pre-fished two of those, for a total of five days on the lake. In 2016, it was also the first tournament of the year. The "heart" for May 31, 2016, was for a 33.5" pike I caught. The bass we got pre-fishing in 2016 were pretty random, and I kind of remember where we caught bass in the tournament. I will be pre-fishing the lake on Tuesday with my boater, Herman. It looks like the weather going in will be warm and stable going into the tournament. I suspect most fish will be post-spawn by next Saturday. 

Pre-fishing done, we have a plan. See Part 2 on Saturday.

2025 Opener Part 1: Mille Lacs

 

8" Rippin Rap (Chrome Blue)

12:00-4:00am Eddy's Jetty Mille Lacs

44-49℉, Partly Cloudy, 7-12mph N

I elected to take the North Jetty Harbor Mouth due to the stiff wind blowing in. There was one guy who showed up at about twenty to midnight, and two boats headed out and came back a couple of times before heading out for about 3 hours. I got a cigar 40 minutes in, then lost a 20+" inch fish at the rocks about 5 minutes later. Both bites on the blue/chrome Rippin Rap. I lost the Rippin Rap.  

I thought it was going to be AWWWN. I didn't get another bite for almost two hours, a 21.5" fish. I got that one at the North Corner. About 20 minutes later, I lost what felt like a keeper at the Harbor Mouth when dialed into the retrieve. At 4 am, I decided to bag it and head to the GOMH. 

An OK Opener, but with conditions, I should have had more opportunities.

3 Eye 

Complete 2025 Opener Report is at the Log Blog

2025 MN Fishing Opener Outlook And Plan

 Today is Thursday, May 8th, and the Minnesota Fishing Opener is in two days. As of this moment, I have done zero prep for getting the Trophy into the water. I haven't even taken the cover off once. The bite at the Grumpy Old Man Hole has just been too good, and there was always tomorrow to start boat prep. Now my back is against the wall. I hope get some things done about the Trophy today, but I doubt I will have it in the water for the Opener. Todd will be up this weekend, but to what extent is unclear. His baby daughter graduates from High School this year, and that is where he is focused.

Spring gave way to summer this week, and that will continue for Opener Weekend. So, I expect many boats to be out this week, especially for the Opener. Fishing has been so good this year that I have been spoiled. The thought of dealing with crowds just does not appeal to me like it would if fishing were a struggle.    

 

The Plan:

As of right now, my only plans are to do my traditional midnight at Eddy's Jetty and hit the Grumpy Old Man Hole for sunrise.

Update: If the bite is anything, I'll probably stay through sunrise at Mille Lacs. Conditions look favorable, so I am optimistic.  If nothing happens by 2AM, I'll bag it, come home, and be at the Grumpy Old Man Hole by 4am. My bass tackle is in disarray right now, and the Trophy will not be on the water this weekend.  I'm not sure how much bass fishing I will do for the opening weekend.

BP's 2025 Lake Fork Fantasy Picks